Saving The Abandoned Empress

140 “No Longer Here”

Eleanora woke up in the morning and found her eyes full of tears. Even her pillow was drenched as she cried in her dreams.

Eleanora sighed and felt uncomfortable as her eyes was stinging in pain.

‘Their ending was really tragic... Maybe more then mine.’

‘But why did i saw those? is it because of her powers which is currently inside me? is it why am also feeling her emotions now as the powers are getting stronger?’

Eleanora thought for some moment before she remembered the emperor’s weird behaviour from last night.

‘No, something is terribly wrong here. I didn’t had those visions for no reason. I have to cheak the records.’

“Jennie, are you here?”

Eleanora called for Jennie as she put aside her blanket and stood up from the bed.

“Yes, My lady?”

.....

“Help me to get ready. Am going to the imperial palace.”

“Right now? but it’s still early, the duke-”

“I have some important works to do, just tell this to daddy.”

“Okay, My lady.”

Jennie agreed in confusion. She has never seen her lady in such a hurry.

Eleanora wore her silver uniform with a blue cape over it and went to the imperial palace without even having her breakfast.

She was more concerned about her vision last night as it felt like this has some connection with her upcoming new future that she doesn’t know about.

“My lady, we have reached.”

The horseman spoke and Eleanora got down from the carriage which had Dalton duchy’s crest engraved on it.

As it was early, there was not many people on the imperial palace.

Eleanora directly headed towards the imperial palace and seeing her, none of the knights stopped her either which surprised her.

She thought someone would ask her any question or inquire why she is here so early, but even after she entered the library; no one asked her anything.

‘What’s happening?’

‘Why did no one stopped me?’

Eleanora thought as she didn’t knew that the emperor had long ago ordered the knights to not stop the Lady Dalton to go wherever she wants in the palace.

‘It’s not the time to think this all.’

‘I should do what i have come here to do.’

With exhaling a heavy breathe, Eleanora focuses on finding the imperial family linage records.

And then, she finally found a thick book with red cover, which pages was all black.

The words written on it was by ink which was made of gold to write.

The roaring golden lion imperial crest was crafted on the front page and turning it, the first emperor and empress’s names come to her view.

‘Emperor Cathain De Valentino & Empress Ariande Cathain Valentino.’

Without thinking much, Eleanora found her fingertips trailing on the names before she could get why she was doing it.

Turning the page, she found the name of the second ruler of the empire.

‘Empress Eleaine Valentino.’

Somehow Eleanora felt warm as she uttered the name in her mind.

She felt closeness with this name and person without even seeing or knowing her.

But then turning some few pages Eleanora frowned.

Most of the empress died young.

Either by giving birth or having an unknown illness.

None of them past the age of 22 except a few exceptions.

The second empress, the daughter of the first emperor and the 33rd empress, the mother of the current emperor who lived till her age 30.

She get to know the emperor when she was 20, had married the emperor at the age of 24 and died at 30 while giving birth to the next emperor.

Where only the second emperor, Eleaine died naturally at a old age.

Even the past her was no exception.

She was also executed at the age of 22, four years after she married the emperor.

‘What’s the mystery here?’

‘Why no one noticed it till now that there is something fissy here?”

With that thought, she turned the next page and expected it to be blank but she was uttered shock when she saw her name written with gold ink in the black page.

‘The 34th Emperor Cathain De Valerian Valentino & Empress Eleanora La Ariande Dalton.’

With a loud thud, the book dropped down on the ground from her hands and she was tongue tied.

She couldn’t even think anything after seeing her name already written in the family linage.

It’s the imperial linage book which is bound by magic and once written, the name can never be removed from it.

Even if one tries, they will suffer sever punishment not to mention the counterattack of this magic books spell which was casted by the owner of the magic tower.

‘Just- Just what was he thinking while doing this even without my permission?’

Eleanora thought as she bent down to pick up the book and placed it into the shelf again.

Then her eyes fall on her left hands index finger, where the magic engagement ring was.

The ring which the crown prince had forcefully made her wear during her 13th birthday in kingdom Rua during the visit for negotiation.

‘Why have i not taken it off yet?’

‘Why?!’

Eleanora’s eyes filled with tears but not a single tear drop left as she suddenly laughed at herself.

‘Why am i thinking one thing but ends up doing the other thing?’

‘Am always thinking of running away but ends up in his arms everytime i try to run.’

‘Did he not hurted me enough?’

‘Why do i still-‘

‘...love him?’

Eleanora’s blue eyes widened in shock at her own realisation but she doesn’t want to admit it.

She doesn’t thinks much and runs out from the library, shocking everyone on her way.

She takes the route which avoids the public by taking the back road, which leads to the abandoned mansion of the imperial palace.

Where she used to live.

‘Yeah, maybe that will make me come to realise the reality once again and make me sane.’

‘The place where i lived alone for two years after being detained from the empress palace for no valid reasons.’

‘This will remind me of how i waa treated and neglected by him in the past and i won’t melt into his new warmness once again.’

Right then, Eleanora stopped on her tracks but there was no abandoned mansion in the place that she remembered.

‘Huh? What is this?’

Eleanora looked at the scene infront of her with a dumbfounded expression.

The burnt down mansion she remember being here was no longer here.

Instead, there was a huge garden of white and red roses.

Children’s was happily playing on the garden and laughing as they run after each other.

The abandoned mansion was re-constructed to be the home of homeless orphan children’s.

They live, eat and study for free here.

There are maids to take care, teachers to teach and knights to protect them here.

.....

The lonely abandoned palace full of spiderwebs and darkness where she was sent by the past him, which used to hunt her everyday…

Is no longer here.

It is turned into a warm and beautiful home for those kids, by the current him.

A teardrop silently came out from her blue eyes and dropped on the ground.

She was here to recall his past harshness but ended up seeing his current wariness and love for her.

He even went that far to get rid of the imperial concubine palace, which was abandoned but couldn’t be removed as it was a place created long ago by his ancestors.

And she can imagine how the nobles reacted when he proposed to not only destroy this place but also create a orphanage in the imperial palace.

‘Why did he went so far to destroy this place?’

Eleanora thought as she kept staring at the warm picture of the happy kids infront of her, not even realising a big hand wrapping around her waist to hug her from behind.

“Do you like it, My empress?”

“!!!”

Eleanora, who didn’t noticed the person behind her till he whispered in her ears was shocked by his voice.

She turned her head to look at him in surprise, who was just looking at her with warm eyes.

“I was planning to give you a surprise on your 18th birthday by taking you here, but you have seen it already...”

“I need to prepare a new gift now.”

Eleanora silently watched the young man infront of her complaining for ruining his surprise, which made her ask an unexpected question.

“Why... Have you done this?”

“...”

Seeing that he wasn’t answering, Eleanora felt like not hearing it is a better choice.

“No need to answer-”

“I did it for you.”

The emperor cut her off in the middle of her words by his answer, which made Eleanora’s heart feel heavy.

“...Why?”

As far Eleanora knows, he doesn’t have his full memory back.

So he wouldn’t know about this place.

“I once saw her in a dark and lonely place, and in the day of the previous emperor’s funeral, i saw this place and it reminded me of her.”

Eleanora knew which ‘her’ he was referring to.

It was her pastself.

“I thought this place must be not a good memory for her, so i turned this place full of children’s laughter and her favourite flowers...

So that she won’t be remind of bad memories and lonely anymore.”

‘And know that i won’t hurt her anymore...’

Cathain swallowed his last sentence on his mind and didn’t spoke anymore to observe her expression.

Who was looking at him with unbelieving expression.

For the first time, she stayed in his embrace without any struggles.

And then, another voice rang from behind.

“ELE!!!”