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nIt’s been 14 years since he succeeded the throne.

nFourteen years could be short, but long, during which he went through ups and downs. But he could keep the empire safe and peaceful thanks to her presence. She was the only one that he could share his concern with.

n“Oh, they’re at it again.”

n“…Yeah.”

n“I’m getting goose pimples, looking at them. Of course, loving each other like that is good for us, but…”

n“Well, what can we do? We have to understand them as we’re their children.. ”

n“You bet. Let’s eat cake. Elina is going to eat it all. ”

nRublis, who was trying to hold her soft hand gently, stopped when he heard their conversation. As if she also heard Diana and Adrian whispering to each other, she quickly pulled her hand from him with an embarrassed expression and said, giving him a teacup, “Come on, honey. It’s going to get cold. Please have tea.”

n“Okay. Why don’t you have tea, too?”

nHe lifted Elina and put her back on her lap, feeling awkward, and slowly reached out to grab the teacup. The tea she made was getting more and more mellow and full over time. As a result, he could not have any other tea than what she brewed.

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nWhen he was enjoying the flavor of the tea for a while, something cold suddenly touched his mouth. He opened his eyes wide in surprise. Elina smiled at him brightly and gave him something she was holding.

n“Please have some cake, Daddy.”

n“Oh yeah. Thank you, Elina. ”

nHe felt her putting white cream on his face, but he had it happily, not caring at all. He could not let her down because of the cream on his face.

n“Ahaha, Daddy, what’s that cream on your face?”

n“Oh my…”

n“Elina. Be careful. ”

nWatching Diana laughing merrily and Adrian holding back laughter, Tia hurriedly pulled out a handkerchief. It seemed that cream was all over his face.

nWithout caring at all, however, Elina cut a piece of cake and gave it to Tia this time,”Please have this, Mom.”

n“Oh, are you giving it to me, too?”

n“Yeah, this really tastes good.”

n“Okay. Thank you, baby.”

nRublis smiled at his wife who was eating cake with some cream on her face. It was rather funny and even strange to see her face messed up with cake cream.

nAs if she read his mind, she slightly squinted at him, giving him a handkerchief, and said, “Don’t look at me like that, please. I know your face is a mess, too.”

n“I know, but it’s funny, hahaha.”

n“Oh my goodness, please don’t laugh like that.”

nHer sullen face was so cute that she didn’t look like a woman who gave birth to three children, so he received the handkerchief from her, full of smiles on his face. Instead of wiping his face, he reached out and wiped her mouth with the handkerchief.

n“Don’t be so angry. I didn’t see it when you were a child, so I thought your messy face looked so cute and funny.”

n“…”

n“Daddy, don’t forget we’re here, too…Ahhhhh!”

nDiana pinched Adrian grumbling at the moment and sprang to her feet, saying, “Hey, Adrian, Elina, we ate the cake. Why don’t we move over there and play? I saw flowers in full bloom on my way here.”

nAs Elina nodded right away and jumped off the chair, Adrian frowned at his sister and got up, too.

nRublis smiled at Diana, watching her quickly making herself scarce with her brother and sister tactfully. As she experienced lots of stuff like this for a long time, she was indeed quick-witted. Of course, he was very grateful for her consideration.

nAristia said with a smile, looking at them walking away for a moment, “Aren’t they so pretty?”

n“Of course. I’m already beginning to worry how to marry them off later. ”

n“You bet. When I was young, I never thought that this day would come … I’m happy. ”

n“Me,too, Tia. I never knew that a day would come when I could sit next to you and smile like this. I couldn’t even think we would have children like this.”

nWhen he whispered, she gently leaned her head against his shoulder with a light smile.

nRublis carefully lifted his arm and wrapped her slender shoulders, smelling her lavender fragrance and said, “But just like our children, Tia, you are the most precious to me. You’ve always been something I’ve been craving, and you’ve been the only sanctuary of my heart, and you have been like my breath. Of course, you will continue to be so.”

n“… Rube.”

n“How about you? Do you feel the same way?”

n“Of course. Just like I have always.”

nHer whispering voice was very warm, so was the laughter of the children coming from far away.

nHis heart was full of something very warm, which he could never exchange for anything in the world. With his loved ones in eyes, Rublis smiled, stroking her soft silvery hair.

nIt was a warm spring afternoon.

n***

n“I, Allen Decker, the butler of the Monique family, am honored to greet Your Majesty, the Sun of the empire, and Your Highness, the Moon of the empire.”

n“It’s been a long time, butler.”

n“It’s been a while, so how have you been?”

nI smiled faintly at the old man who bowed politely. Normally, I wouldn’t speak to him friendly, but because he has been with our family since I was a child, I could not change the way I spoke to him and Lina easily. Although 20 years have passed since I became the empress, I could not change my way of speaking to them.

nI felt sad when I noticed his thick gray hair. He was in his early 30s when he inherited the butler’s job from his father. When I thought time flew like an arrow and he became old like that, I felt blue. In fact, my father, who I thought would stay healthy, passed away. It’s natural that the butler became old, with his hair turning gray.

nWhen I recalled my father who was always kind to me, hot tears welled in my eyesI once again, so I blinked my wet eyes quickly and looked up into the air. If I had known he passed away so early like this, I would have spent more time with him. I wish I had visited him more often and spent more time talking with him. I wish I had done better for him.

nWhen my eyes were blurred with tears, I felt him tightening his grip on my hand. Patting the back of my hand as if to comfort me, he stepped forward to block me from others’ view.

nI thanked him deep down and hurriedly wiped my tears furtively. Even after I held the funeral for my father and said goodbye to the funeral procession heading for the estate, I was still stricken by the sadness of my father’s death. As time went by, I missed him more.

nWhen I came out from behind, clearing my throat, he, who was talking with the butler for a moment, turned to me. I said with a smile at him who looked at me anxiously, “Would you want to go with me? Or do you want to wait for me here?”

n“Of course I want to go with you. Is it okay with you?”

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nAs I came to the estate as the head of the Monique family, not as the married daughter of my father, it was legitimate that he asked me if it was okay to accompany me. Even if he was the emperor, it was rude for him to meddle in the affairs of my family despite the fact that I was his wife. The reason for his going to the trouble of saying that was because he was worried about me, who got depressed whenever I mentioned my father.

nI was so grateful for his consideration,so I also nodded, tightening my hold on his hand lightly.

n“Of course, you can go with me, Your majesty. Um, butler, where shall I go? To the office or my room?”

n“You can go to the office, Your Highness. I’ll escort you there.”

n“No, you don’t have to. As I’ve come here after a long time, let me look around first before going there. Come on, Rube.”

n“Sounds good.”

nWhen I went upstairs and opened the door of my late father’s office, I felt so familiar with everything there.

nThis was the space where I spent most of my time with my father before and after I got married.

nI felt like I could find him still sitting there and waving at me gladly with a faint smile just like he always did. But no matter how often I closed and opened my eyes, I found he was not there anymore, with his empty desk left behind. I could feel his lingering nostalgic presence in this space.

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