Chapter 7

"By the way, has the story of the cold-blooded knight and the princess, which His Majesty has been pursuing, come to an end?"

"Just a little more. According to Elise, it will be finished by today."

"That's why you finished your work so early and are heading to Elise's place, right..."

Ignoring Jeffrey's exasperated voice, the emperor walked briskly toward Elise's room. Last night, Elise had continued writing with intense fervor, and they didn't stop until they both fell asleep at dawn.

By now, there must be a mountain of manuscripts piled up.

Unable to wait any longer, the emperor entered the room without knocking. However, what he found was not a mountain of manuscripts.

"Elise?"

The emperor found Elise lying limply on the bed, her eyes vacant and staring into space.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing her unusual state, the emperor cautiously approached and asked.

"...I'm done..."

The emperor, startled by her unusually calm response, jumped up and rushed to Elise's side.

"What? What happened?"

"I was suddenly attacked by the greatest enemy of a writer."

"What? Ambushed!? I won't forgive whoever hurt you! Who is this enemy? I'll tear them to pieces!"

As the emperor, agitated, tried to help Elise sit up, she extended her right hand in pain.

"It's this."

"Huh?"

"It's this... tendonitis."

"Tendonitis?"

The emperor stared intently at Elise's trembling right hand, not quite understanding.

"My hand... it hurts so much, I can't write anything!"

Seeing Elise's face contort with frustration, the emperor finally understood the situation and quickly turned to Jeffrey.

"Jeffrey, get the royal physician... no, the high priest!"

"Y-Yes...!"

Jeffrey hurriedly ran off. With Jeffrey gone, Elise seemed to relax, wiping her eyes and sobbing. The tears falling from her eyes were heartbreaking.

"Ugh... I want to write, but I can't..."

Shocked, the emperor hurriedly wiped Elise's eyes with his sleeve and whispered, genuinely concerned.

"Don't cry. If you cry... I don't know what to do."

Hearing this, Elise quickly stopped crying and looked up.

"Your Majesty, do you mean...?"

"...Yes."

Now that they understood each other so well, they held hands and shared their excitement.

"The cold-blooded hero, who has no blood or tears, falls in love with the heroine and learns kindness... that classic plot twist!"

"Yes, I understand that feeling now. What is this wrenching emotion in my chest? When you cry, I feel your pain as if it were my own! I can't forgive anyone who makes you cry. Ah, I feel like I'm going to lose it!"

"The passion that contains both kindness and madness... I'm getting all flustered."

Supporting the suddenly energetic Elise and wiping away the remaining tears, the emperor looked at her with gentle eyes.

"How about it, can you write a new story now?"

"Yes. I can't wait to start writing right away! But, that's why... it hurts even more."

Seeing Elise's tears welling up again, the emperor panicked.

"Hey, Elise, pull yourself together!"

"Ugh... Your Majesty..."

"......!!"

Elise threw herself into the emperor's arms. Clinging to him tightly as she sobbed, the emperor's heart raced.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't finish it even though Your Majesty was looking forward to it... I couldn't write..."

"Don't worry about it. It's fine."

Elise, who was usually so resilient, was now so weak.

And she was relying on him, clinging to him like this, and no one else.

His heart pounded painfully, and he couldn't control it.

"But, but... Your Majesty only keeps me around because I write novels, right? I have no value if I can't write anything."

Gently grabbing the back of Elise's head, the emperor pressed her to his chest.

"No, that's not it. I want you, even without the novels..."

Wishing she would stop crying and wanting to do something to help, the emperor couldn't help but think. However, before he could say more, Jeffrey returned with the high priest.

Reluctantly letting go of Elise, the emperor felt a strange sense of loss at the loss of her slender warmth.

In the end, the high priest's holy power quickly cured Elise's tendonitis.

With her healthy, pain-free hands, Elise regained her energy and resilience. Determined to catch up, she quickly shooed the emperor out of the room.

"Jeffrey"

"Y-Yes"

Jeffrey, who was wary of the emperor's potential outburst, was surprised to see the emperor's face filled with confusion.

"Your Majesty? What's wrong?"

"It's... strange. When the high priest touched Elise's hand to heal her, I suddenly felt... a vague, indescribable discomfort. It was as if something precious to me was being dirtied by dirty hands."

"That's..."

Jeffrey, who understood, gasped, and the emperor spoke the conclusion he had reached.

"Could this be jealousy?"

"!"

"Could this mean I want to monopolize Elise?"

"!!"

"Could this... be love?"

Hearing the emperor's words, Jeffrey was moved to the point of speechlessness.

"Your Majesty...! You've finally started thinking like a human being!"

"No, wait. It's not just that. The more I think about Elise, the more my heart races. Could this... be love?"

"Ah, Your Majesty...!"

Touched, Jeffrey took the emperor's hand.

"To think that someone who was so emotionally detached could talk about love and romance...! After serving you for over a decade, this is the happiest day I've ever had!"

"That's an exaggeration..."

"No, it's not. It's not love or romance."

The emperor, who had immediately gone to Elise to talk about his feelings, was directly contradicted by Elise, the person involved.