Chapter 165: The Emperor’s ’invitation’ to lunch

"Julian Von Astrea, I admit you have great teaching prowess, but to my children, you are a poor influence. I recall the incident of my brother’s marching mare,"

Julian flinched as the memory of the children rushing in to stop the Duke in that moment flashed through his head, and he bit the inside of his mouth. "...if that horse had trampled my heirs, the fault would have rested solely on your head and not my brother’s, I would have made sure of it."

"It wasn’t him!" Cassian suddenly blurted out, stepping forward with a trembling lip. "We were the ones who—"

Aurelian didn’t let him finish. He leveled a glare at his son so freezing that the boy visibly cowered, his small shoulders hunching.

The Emperor turned his gaze back to Julian, a slow, sharp smile spreading across his face.

"They have even learned how to talk back to their father now," Aurelian purred. "Their Emperor. Who am I to blame for this sudden burst of... courage, if not you?"

Julian bowed his head, feeling the weight of the Emperor’s words. Right, if someone were to blame, it would definitely be him.

Though he had not taught them for long, and he definitely never encouraged such behavior, such as throwing one’s body in front of a marching mare to prove a point, the reason they did something so dangerous was that they wanted to help him.

"I acknowledge that the children have overstepped, having been influenced by me," he said, his insides trembling just slightly as his head stayed bowed, feeling the Emperor’s burning and oppressive gaze on the back of his head, "I shall take full responsibility for their misconduct, Your Majesty."

Aurelian let out a sharp, short laugh. He reached out, his fingers grazing Julian’s shoulder, a touch that felt like a brand.

"Responsibility. You are so fond of that word."

Julian’s heart was hammering frantically as he couldn’t stop his mind from racing through every possible horror the Emperor could devise. Aurelian was a cruel man, and he was always looking for ways to humiliate Julian and strip him of the last of his dignity.

This time too... 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

A cold bead of sweat rolled down from Julian’s temple and hung at his chin like a lifeline, or perhaps, the last of his sanity waiting to drop. It was already hot and humid in the greenhouse, and it became ten times hotter thanks to the Emperor’s slow dissecting gaze.

"Very well." The Emperor finally spoke, after staring at Julian in his bowed state for almost two minutes. What would he do to torture the scholar this time? He wondered. "Anyway, it is lunchtime." The topic shift was so abrupt, so utterly abstract compared to the tension of the moment, that Julian’s breath hitched in his throat. It was a non-sequitur that felt more dangerous than a direct threat.

"Since you are so invested in the children’s welfare, you shall join me for lunch and see how well their manners pass at the Emperor’s table," the Emperor said, his voice regaining its airy, bored lilt. "All three of you, come along."

It wasn’t an invitation. It was a command.

He turned on his heel without waiting for an answer, his cloak snapping behind him like the wings of a crow.

"March," he told the children, not looking back to see if they followed.

Cassian and Liora exchanged a look of pure dread and gulped.

To them, a meal with their father wasn’t a family gathering in the slightest. They didn’t need their father to send them to the gallows because they were going to get executed with his criticism alone.

Rowan, standing just behind the Emperor, caught Julian’s eye for a split second. He shook his head slowly, a look of genuine pity crossing his face before he turned to follow after the Emperor.

The Golden Guards who had come with the Emperor stepped into place behind Julian, their armor clanking as they ’escorted’ him out of the Greenhouse and toward the Sunburst Pavilion.

Julian felt his stomach turn.

A private lunch with the Emperor and the children he was accused of corrupting was not a meal—it was a trial.

And he felt like he was going to fail it woefully.

The Sunburst Pavilion was as Julian remembered. Gold-leafed pillars caught the midday sun, bouncing harsh and sharp rays of light into every corner of the room.

The air was unnervingly still, smelling of expensive saffron and roasted meats—scents that should have been appetizing to just about anyone, but instead acted like a grinding machine in Julian’s unsettled stomach.

On the opposite side of the table, the children sat in a row. Cassian was closest to his father, his small frame looking diminished by the Emperor’s shadow, with Liora seated beside him.

Julian sat entirely alone on his side, which made him feel even more pressured.

Aurelian sat at the head of the table, his golden eyes tracking every microscopic movement Julian made.

The meal was served right away with occasional clinking of silver against porcelain.

And then, when the maids retreated to stand behind them, Julian looked down at the glazed quail on his plate, the sight of the glistening fat making his throat tighten.

He glanced toward the twins and, to his relief, they were holding firm.

Cassian’s back was straight as a spear, his movements with the heavy cutlery precise, while Liora handled her napkin with a grace that mirrored the Empress’s own faded elegance. They were eating in a tense, disciplined silence, their etiquette beyond reproach.

There was no opening here for Aurelian to tear into them. Julian felt a microscopic spark of pride through the haze of his own nausea. He had taught them well.

Julian gave a gentle, quiet sigh of relief, glad he had touched on the topic, if only briefly, while they were at the greenhouse.

But knowing and acting it out as one had been told wasn’t always easy, so the children who had carried it out flawlessly were beyond exceptional. Just like Lucius, they were very quick learners.

At the thought of Lucius, his expression faded with one of longing. As he thought of the little boy, he thought of his father as well. He missed them.

Well, it was only a matter of days; he just needed to survive, and then they would be reunited again.