After the meeting with Emperor Joseph and his subsequent departure back to Eldia, the rest of the day passed with relative normality for Mark and the others.

And so, without further disruptions, night arrived.

Mark was in his room with Rose, finishing getting ready for the meeting he would have with Princess Luna that same evening.

"Remember, this woman is much shrewder than she appears," Rose was saying while reviewing one of her scrolls, leaning against the table. "So don’t let your guard down just because she acts like nothing matters to her."

"I’ll keep that in mind," Mark replied, straightening his robe.

"And another thing," Rose added, setting the scroll aside. "If she asks about anything too specific regarding your capabilities or ours, deflect. The less she knows about us, the better."

"Understood..."

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

"Come in," Mark said without turning toward the door.

The door opened slowly and Emilia entered the room.

She was wearing a simple dress, much less elaborate than the ones she wore during the day, and her light green hair fell loose over her shoulders.

"...Do you have a moment to talk?"

"Of course," Mark replied.

But Emilia glanced quickly at Rose, who was still standing beside the table, and then looked back at Mark.

"But... I’d like it to be in private."

Rose looked up from her documents and raised an eyebrow at Mark, silently asking what he wanted her to do.

He simply shrugged, and she let out a resigned sigh.

"Alright," Rose said, rolling up the scroll and putting it away. "I have a couple of things to prepare before the meeting starts anyway. I’ll go ahead."

Rose walked over to Mark, rose onto her tiptoes, and gave him a quick kiss on the lips before heading to the exit.

As she passed Emilia she didn’t spare her so much as a glance and simply left the room, leaving an uncomfortable silence between the two of them that lingered until the door closed.

Mark turned toward one of the dresser drawers and began searching through it, rummaging among his things.

"Well?" he asked without stopping his search. "What did you want to talk about?"

But there was no answer, and the next instant he felt two arms wrap tightly around him from behind.

Emilia had clung to his back, pressing her face against him and squeezing her arms around his torso as if afraid he would disappear if she let go.

"Huh?"

"Please..." Emilia murmured against his back. "Please don’t go to tonight’s meeting."

Mark slowly closed the drawer and turned around within her arms to face her.

"What’s going on?" he asked with a slightly furrowed brow. "Did something happen with her? Did she say or do something to you?"

Emilia looked up at him, and Mark noticed something in her green eyes he couldn’t quite understand.

"I want you to stay with me..." she said, ignoring his questions. "I need you."

And before Mark could respond, Emilia rose onto her tiptoes and kissed him.

It wasn’t a soft or shy kiss.

It was passionate, deep, almost desperate, her tongue seeking his and her hands holding his face to keep him from pulling away.

Mark was surprised for a second, not fully understanding the sudden shift in Emilia’s attitude.

But in the end he ended up returning the kiss, bringing his hands to her waist and drawing her toward him as it continued.

When they finally separated, both slightly breathless, Mark let out a small laugh.

Because he had felt one of Emilia’s hands slowly slide from his chest down toward his groin.

"Look, if what you want is for us to spend the night together, I’m more than fine with that," Mark continued, softening his tone. "But it’ll have to be after the meeting."

"..."

"I have to meet with Princess Luna," he explained, looking her in the eyes. "I can’t stand her up now. But I promise that as soon as it’s over, I’ll be all yours for the rest of the night. Alright?"

Emilia stayed quiet, unable to look away from him.

She didn’t want him to go.

She wanted to hold him back at all costs, to hug him tight and refuse to let go, to shout at him, to cry, or even to humiliate herself if that’s what it took to keep him from crossing that door and going to see that woman.

Because Emilia knew perfectly well what Princess Luna had come looking for that night.

She could still hear the princess’s voice repeating those words over and over in her head.

’Would you mind lending me your husband for a while? After all, I need him to get me pregnant. It’s not a big deal.’

And she knew that Mark, with no idea of the princess’s true intentions, was about to walk straight to her like a lamb to the slaughter.

The words got stuck in her throat.

Emilia wanted to warn him, to tell him the truth and confess everything she had been keeping to herself, but the words simply wouldn’t come out.

She just had to open her mouth and tell him what the princess was really after.

But she couldn’t.

Because if she told Mark what Luna was planning, he would inevitably ask her how she knew.

And then she would have to tell him about the conversation they had had.

That would lead her, sooner or later, to having to explain her real intentions, the desperate plan she had drawn up and everything she had done from the very beginning out of pure self-interest.

She was afraid of how Mark would look at her if he ever found out what she had done. She was afraid of losing the little she had managed to build with him. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

So the words died in her throat and Emilia lowered her gaze, unable to keep holding Mark’s.

"...Alright," she said, her voice cracking slightly at the end. "I’ll wait for you."

Mark smiled and leaned down to give her a soft kiss on the forehead.

"I’ll be back soon, I promise," he said. "And then you’ll have my full attention. Alright?"

She nodded weakly without looking up.

Mark tucked a strand of hair behind her ear with a gentle gesture and then stepped away from her to walk toward the door.

"Rest a little in the meantime... you look exhausted."

And with that, Mark left the room and closed the door softly behind him, leaving Emilia alone.

She stood motionless, staring at the door through which he had just disappeared, until she slowly brought both hands to her mouth.

Her shoulders began to tremble and the tears she had been holding back finally spilled over, running silently down her cheeks.

"This can’t go on like this..." she murmured through the tears, her voice broken and barely audible. "...I have to tell him the truth."