The Solitude of an Emperor [TO BE UNPUBLISHED]

7: The Painful Truth

Amara was looking gloomy all the time as she watched the nobles dance in twos. She watched the Crown Prince dance with Lady Tanzania. And she watched Esteban happily talk to the Empress. She found herself silently walking out the banquet hall and went to a dark and empty hallway. And without any knowledge where her feet took her to, she found herself looking at portraits of Esteban with Empress Kathika.

That hallway was where all the royals' portraits were displayed but she never saw her face, her own portrait, as she could only see a lot of Empress Kathika's portraits. She stopped in front of a portrait of three people. There was Emperor Esteban, Empress Kathika, and Crown Prince Lorenzo, looking happy together, like a real family.

Empress Kathika had beautiful curly black hair and her eyes were golden. His features were pretty clear that she is not an adopted daughter of Count Morata but was really his daughter. It is now making sense... Everything is now making sense as to why there is a Crown Prince. It was because... Crown Prince Lorenzo was really Esteban's son. He was really his son with Empress Kathika.

Those yearly expeditions... and a month after leaving the Imperial palace, he was really with a woman... and that woman was Empress Kathika... who had given birth to their son, Lorenzo, before they even got married.

"I suggest you better go back, my lady."

Her tears wanted to come out in a second but then after hearing the deep voice behind her, she became lifelessly hurt, secretly. She was silenced a bit, trying to stay sane.

"Say, what would you do if your life had been taken and suddenly came back to life?" She found herself asking the man who talked. She was looking down as she did not want to see the portrait in front of her anymore.

"What would you do if you suddenly lived another life but found your lover happily living with someone else after your death?" She asked more.

Silence engulfed the space as she did not hear a reply. "I must have gone deprived of my own sentiment." She smiled painfully and did not bother looking where the voice was coming from as she just walked straight back to the banquet hall.

When she arrived, she was never noticed as she silently just stood in the corner. She does not want to mingle and talk to anyone else. When she looked at Esteban again, she just made another hole in her heart as she watched him dance with the Empress. How happy they are to be with each other. They look perfect together. She looked over Crown Prince Lorenzo and then to Empress Kathika and then to Esteban.

Crown Prince Lorenzo's appearance was such a perfect combination coming from two beauties. He got his father's eyes that were like the sky. He also got his mother's beautiful black hair and the beautiful features of her face. It was a very good plan to not get caught that Esteban actually had an affair even before their marriage.

Viscount Morata... Duke Garrett... they knew it all along as they played their cards with backups. It was a perfect plan to ruin her well-being as the Emperor.

After some time, the Emperor suddenly stood up and left the banquet hall after an informant came to him. He asked permission from the Empress before leaving. Amara who saw him, followed the Emperor as Crown Prince Lorenzo also saw her walking out the banquet hall again.

Crown Prince Lorenzo stopped dancing with Lady Tanzania and followed Lady Amara because he felt like something did not seem right. Lady Amara usually does not like to be alone at a banquet. She would always invite him to dance but why didn't she do it this time? When he came out of the banquet hall, he could not see where she went.

On the other hand, Lady Amara waited for the Emperor to finish talking to a foreign man on the balcony. When they were finished and the foreign man left, the Emperor was alone and there she walked towards him.