As My Husband Said, I Brought in a Lover

“I-If an ordinary servant had plucked it, they would have had to risk their life… but since it’s your order, Empress Dowager, I will follow your command.”

“Yes. I will take responsibility for all three of these roses. If anyone asks about this incident, tell them to come to me.”

Ellena looked down at her hand. There was a red drop of blood on her fingertip, pricked by a thorn while picking the rose.

“Yo-Your Majesty, I will call a healer immediately.”

“…Alright. Could you place the roses in a vase in my bedroom?”

“Yes, I will.”

Soon, the empress dowager left the greenhouse. Three close maids, who had been watching from a distance, whispered to each other.

“I really like the empress dowager because she is kind. She covers up mistakes, just like now. Remember when Kyle broke the vase? She said mistakes are okay, and only intentional wrongdoings are bad. She even covered her up.”

“Right. It’s just so unfortunate that she has…

, I almost said something terrible.” The maid who was speaking quickly covered her mouth.

“The empress dowager won’t tolerate insults against her son, so be careful.”

The maids giggled.

Unlike the calm empress dowager, the emperor was always sharp and acted recklessly. Among the imperial palace maids, there was a widespread feeling of bewilderment at the starkly different personalities of the mother and son.

“

! Do you think that rumor is true?”

“What rumor?”

“Princess of Pendel is pushing for an engagement with Count Cloette.”

“The princess and the count? Why? I thought she’d stay single and just keep the men in her harem close to her, but now she’s getting engaged…”

“Count Cloette is the emperor’s closest confidant. It’s probably a diplomatic move.”

“Isn’t Princess Pendel around the same age as His Majesty? If it were me, I’d aim for the empress’s position.”

“Maybe she’s not just after power. There could be other reasons. Anyway…”

“

, I see…”

The emperor was rather plain-looking and had a bad temper. In contrast, Reiad was one of the most handsome men in the empire and very close to the emperor. Moreover, he was extremely affectionate towards his lovers, speaking sweetly to them, so he would be a better husband than the emperor.

“If the princess marries him, he won’t be able to have affairs like he does now. Maybe she’s the only person on the continent who can tame him, and he’s finally found his match.”

“By the way, between the emperor and Count Cloette, who would you choose?”

“Honestly, neither is my type.”

“

, any sane person would feel the same.”

The three close maids laughed again.

* * *

Luize carefully placed a well-dried rose into a glass bottle and put it in her bag. It was a gift from Edward that had been given to her some time ago.

Having completed all their missions, the Silver Hawk Knights set out for the capital with their new companion. Given Ren’s personality, it was impossible for him to stay hidden quietly during the entire journey, so Edward introduced the baby dragon to the whole team as their new member.

“

!” [Hello, rough-looking humans!]

“…Is this really a dragon?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“It doesn’t seem to speak human language.”

“It understands what we say, so we have to guess by its gestures and tone.”

Of course, it was a secret that Edward was a descendant of dragons and could understand Ren’s words.

Unlike their previous routes, which deliberately passed through villages, the knights chose to camp in secluded places to keep their secret companions hidden. On the first day out of the village, while preparing for camp, Ren, with a large handkerchief draped like a cloak, stood on Maxion’s head and waved a twig.

“

!” [Follow my orders, puny human soldiers!] Ren, fully rested, was as lively as before.

Hendrik, who was near Edward, asked him, “Your Highness, what is that squeaking all about?”

“Nothing to worry about. Continue inspecting the tents.”

“

! Yes. It’s fascinating to have a dragon as a comrade.”

“

!

!”

Ignoring Ren’s ongoing war game, Edward used a magic stone with a warming spell to keep the whole campsite warm, under the pretext of helping the knights endure the winter’s cold during camping. Although the knights’ uniforms had magic stones that prevented them from feeling cold, they were puzzled when Edward took out another magic stone – one he had secretly teleported to the capital to buy. But seeing Ren squeak and run around the camp, they understood. They couldn’t let a newborn dragon shiver in the cold.

After inspecting the camp, Edward sat next to Luize, who was roasting marshmallows by the fire.

“Would you like some?”

“Yes.”

“Here you go.” Luize handed him a skewer.

Edward looked at the completely blackened marshmallow, originally white, with a complicated expression, then ate it upon seeing Luize’s face. After swallowing, he spoke. “Is this Miss Luize’s special cooking method?”

“Marshmallows taste better when a little burnt.”

“…I think so too.”

Luize skewered a new marshmallow. As she brought it to the fire, Edward overlapped his hand with hers holding the skewer.

“How about I roast this one my way?”

“Sure. Elliot, will you roast it?”

“I’ll roast it just like this. My main goal was to hold Miss Luize’s hand.”

“…Only Edward would say something like that.”

“Did my future self do such shameless things?”

“Elliot is a bit more shameless.”

“That’s something to be proud of.”

Edward skillfully moved Luize’s hand to roast the marshmallow. Luize then chuckled softly.

“By the way, Elliot, you usually hide that you’re a wizard and avoid using magic. Why is that?”

“The current emperor tried to frame me as a black wizard, but the imperial family has always hidden the fact that they’re wizards. We save our mana for emergencies.”

“Wizards are rare and highly regarded. Wouldn’t it be good for the empire’s people to know?”

“There’s a story behind it.”

As the fire crackled, Edward handed the perfectly roasted marshmallow to Luize. She took a bite and widened her eyes in surprise. It tasted far better than the ones she had roasted.

Edward continued calmly. “Someone who visited the capital in the past left a prophecy. They said if the imperial family didn’t hide the fact that they were wizards, great turmoil would come.”

“That’s a scary prophecy. It must have been hard to believe.”

“Yes. But when all their other prophecies came true, they felt threatened. By the emperor’s order, all records of the imperial lineage were destroyed, and since then, they’ve kept the imperial family’s magical abilities a secret.”

“I see…”

“In hindsight, it was the right choice. The imperial symbol is the black dragon. If it were known that the imperial family were wizards for generations, someone would have sought a connection.”

“

…”

“When the black dragon Run rampaged through the empire, revealing that the imperial family was descendants of dragons would have caused multiple problems.”

“That makes sense. Then how did Elliot learn magic?”

“I could use it without learning.”

“…So skillfully?”

“Actually, this is the first time in this generation that such a case has occurred.”

“

!” [Of course, something special happened this generation!]

Suddenly, Ren squeezed between Luize and Edward.

“

” [Human Edward inherited a lot of mana, almost as much as a half-dragon. Magic is originally the ability to turn wishes into reality. So, human Edward can use magic skillfully without learning it like normal humans.]

“…That’s what he says.” Edward translated Ren’s words.

Luize gently petted the baby dragon’s head and asked. “Ren, what special thing happened this generation?”

“

”