Octavi and yourself had spent the whole day together, creating new and beautiful memories. For the final part of your day, Octavi had decided to have dinner with you in your private quarters where the emperor would surely not be able to find the two of you since he most likely thought you would be spending the day with Octavi.

While the two of you had been having the time of your life, the emperor sat at his large, authoritative desk in his royal office, going through parchment after parchment of endless paperwork. There was so much to be done in the absence of two personal assistants that he had barely any time at all to be concerned about you spending too much time with Octavi. Ideally, he would've liked you to rest upon his lap to give him comfort as he powered through his work, trying to do the papers as quickly as he could to be able to cut in and somehow earn your affections once again.

Eli stood by the door, surprised by the emperor. He was usually a cold hard shell; however, now he was so easily offended by your words. Unexpectedly, he had been strangely silent today as if he was too busy mentally fuming at the thought Octavi got to spend so much time with you. Continuing to do his work, scribbling ink onto the parchment paper, he didn't notice Eli clear his throat in a feeble attempt for some attention from the emperor. Eli cleared his throat once more, only to not receive any acknowledgement at all from the emperor for a second time.

"Your majesty," Eli stated clearly, only to continue to be ignored by his master. "It is time for dinner." Eli continued, hoping to earn at least a glance or nod from the monarch.

"Go have dinner without me. I will be finished soon." The emperor responded coldly and in a monotone voice, dismissing Eli from his station.

"If you insist." Eli took the emperor up on his offer and swiftly left his station, exiting from the door. It was already relatively late into the night, and he had been waiting for the emperor to at least take a break from his work so they could enjoy some dinner. Despite this, the emperor had been ravaging through his work ever since you had stormed out of the room and shouted at him for doing nothing when in truth, it was him that saved your dear Octavi. Eli felt pity for the emperor, if only he had told you the truth about him being Octavi's saviour. He thought that the emperor would not want you to know, but it seems as though Eli's plan of action had been incorrect.

You and Octavi were currently sharing a splendid dinner at the coffee table in the centre of your bedroom. You sat upon cushions as chairs would be too high for the low-lying table. You were enjoying a rich chicken broth with balls of rice and thick noddles. It was flavourful and an absolute joy to eat, the taste was on par with Kai's homemade soup from back home.

"Octavi, I have a question." You announced, moving your gaze from the enticing soup to Octavi's figure. You gently placed your spoon down, and Octavi mimicked your movements, stopping in the middle of his meal to listen to your question.

"Yes, go ahead. What is it that you wish to ask of me?" Octavi questioned, his curiosity caged inside.

"If you had one day left to live, what would you do?" You asked, tilting your head with curiosity as to what the young man's answer would be. You had only just realised that you didn't know much about Octavi's likes or dislikes at that and so ; however determined to learn a bit more about the man who had so confidently professed his love to you earlier that day.

"Well..." He pondered for a moment, purple orbs rolling to the ceiling before reverting to you as the answer came to his mind after several moments.

"Ah. I know. I would spend the day with you." Octavi responded listlessly, as though his answer was not a big deal. Did this man not notice what an impact his words could have on you? You blushed at his response, not expecting something so sweet.

"That's so sweet, Octavi." You affirmed. If you could manage to learn a bit more about Octavi, perhaps he could be a potential love interest in the future. You weren't currently looking for a relationship, despite the fact you were available. (Which was something you often got told off by Kai for since he was unsure who would look after you once he passed). Women had barely any power in this society and earned less gold than men did for the same work, so you couldn't blame him for showing concern for your lacking love life.

"Why, of course," Octavi replied before picking up his cutlery and resuming eating to his heart's content. After all, he needed the nutrition for a speedier recovery.

You reached for your cutlery but paused as another question came to mind. "Actually, I have another question as well." You announced once again, causing Octavi to quickly slurp up his noodles so he could respond to the question as he nodded, urging you to ask him.

"What is your favourite colour?" You asked, now picking up the cutlery to continue eating.

"Well, what is yours?" Octavi regressed the question to you.

"It is [F/C]. It's very appealing to me at the very least." You responded with a slightly stifled voice due to the fact you still had several of the thick noodles in your mouth, practically abandoning all basic etiquette at this point.

"Yes, that is a marvellous colour. My favourite colour, however, is.." He quickly began to think, wondering what colour he found most appealing. He had never been asked this question before so never actually gave it some real thought. Frantically looking around, his purple eyes locked with your [E/C] ones.

"My favourite colour is [E/C]." He stated with an utter resolution before proceeding to slurp his noodles up from the bowl, unable to resist the delectable taste on his tongue any longer while you made small talk with him.

"How come?" You interrogated him, causing him to choke on his noodles slightly as an embarrassed blush formed on his cheeks. "Just cause." He shot back at you instantly, not wanting to explain how he had come up with his favourite colour so quickly.

"Alright, then." You accepted the fact you weren't going to get an answer out of him if he didn't want to tell you. After all, this was Octavi you were talking to.

Octavi took several moments to regain his composure after being embarrassed and disconcerted from the thought of answering your question. He didn't want you to know that he had picked his favourite colour solely off the colour of your eyes.

"[Name], thank you for not giving up on me." He thanked you out of the blue, a smile on his lips. You nodded, "Not at all. I would never give up on you, Octavi." You responded politely.

The two of you continued to eat in silence. However, this sort of silence was comfortable. After all, during this time, you had the chance to process all the things that had happened today. You did feel slightly guilty for shouting at the emperor like that, but he deserved it, he did nothing to help Octavi. It was all thanks to the royal guards, but he still expected you to thank him? How ridiculous.

Octavi sat there, his head still blank. Ever since he had been rescued he'd had nothing on his mind, as though it belonged to somebody else. The only thing he could think about was killing you, as that was all that Eugene told him for days on end. It was a terrible thing to endure, but now, he felt nothing. He had been putting up an act to seem like the usual, friendly Octavi; however, he couldn't feel a single thing. What had happened to him? What had happened to his sense of being? Everything was so frightening and new, but it was nostalgic and average at the same time. It was as though he had been reborn into a different mindset, and he couldn't fight the urge any longer—the urge to kill you.

His hands were shaking slightly, and he looked at you murderously. You couldn't notice his dangerous, poisonous purple glare setting upon you like the sun setting in the distance, engulfed by night. He looked at the knife at the side of the bowl which he had not used yet. The blade was reasonably long and was meant to be used to cutting through meat and steak during a meal.

Octavi felt himself telling him to stop and not even to dare pull such an act, yet his mind couldn't stop him anymore. After all, Eugene had managed to brainwash the fourth assistant to do his bidding. Now, Octavi was one of the newest and most excellent members of the black snake group. Eugene had managed to break him mentally, and now, there was nothing in his mind. The only thing of reasoning he could hear was Eugene's instructions to kill you. His former self was no longer there; there was presently nothing but destruction on his mind.

He didn't want to hurt you, and he had genuinely fallen in love with you over the time you had both spent together but, sadly, not all stories have a happy end. He couldn't spend the rest of his life with you as he wanted. He couldn't hold you in his arms as he wanted. He couldn't do all the things he wanted to do together anymore. He had no sense of self; his soul had been lost. He didn't know if there was any escape from this mental state of his, but now - all he wanted to was kill the person whom he loved the most.

Octavi timidly reached for the knife, gripping it in his pale grip as his eyes fixated on you while your head was kept down, focused on slurping up the delicious food placed before you. You had barely been able to eat correctly in Octavi's absence after all. The only reason you had not died of starvation was all thanks to the emperor who enforced healthy eating habits upon you.

He gently picked up the knife and snuck his hand behind his back. Little did Octavi know, the emperor was watching right from the other side of the door through the small crack left open. The emperor could feel his heart rate increase with concern for you, causing him to push the door open.

"Octavi, the royal doctor requires to do a check-up of you. Little tailor, I have a job for you." The emperor stated loud and clear as he entered the room, causing Octavi to jump from his seat and onto his feet, leaving the knife on the floor behind him, making it appear as though he'd simply dropped the knife if the emperor spotted it on the floor.

The emperor had made sure to intervene before the situation could escalate any further. He had no idea what Octavi had intended to do with that knife, but wasn't going to take any chances of you being in danger, even if you had hurt his feelings earlier in the day. Even if you hurt him, he was going to protect you no matter what, just like he had promised. It was probably the second time the emperor had saved your life, and he thought that he deserved at least half of the affection you were giving Octavi. The emperor had luckily just arrived at your room several moments ago in his despairing search to find you before stopping upon seeing the unfolding scene.

"Of course, your majesty. I shall be off then, lady Fuyomui." Octavi tensed up and abruptly withdrew in a dubious manner, heading towards the royal infirmary.

You sighed at the presence of the emperor, even though you couldn't help the fact you still saw him as a good friend of yours. After all, he had been looking after you when even you weren't looking after yourself.

"What sort of job do you have for me, your majesty?" You asked the emperor who soon entered your room, closing the door behind him. He walked further into your room, stopping by your bedside to stay a considerable amount of distance away from you since you wanted nothing to do with him at the moment.

"I need you to fix the hole in my black tunic and make some new pyjamas for me. I've been using the same several pairs of pyjamas from ever since I was fairly young and forgot to request you to tailor some new ones, preferably loose-fitting." The emperor instructed, lying through his teeth. He had plenty of pyjamas that fit him perfectly well, but he needed a good enough excuse to come here, and order you to do something for him. If Octavi was really up to something, he couldn't tell you as you thought poorly of him and would think he was lying.

"Alright then, very well. I'll start work on them tomorrow." You said, standing up from your seat and walking towards the door. There was no other route than passing by the emperor, which you gathered up your courage to take.

"Where are you going?" The emperor interrogated you as you began to leave without being dismissed by him, making your way towards the door of your private quarters.

You ignored the emperor and walked past him, only to be pulled back by a grip on your wrist. He pushed you onto the bed and hovered atop you, his arms on either side of your head. Despite the awkward position, the emperor still looked as confident and cool-minded as he usually did. You, however, couldn't help but erupt into a blushing mess in such a position and struggled under the emperor's massive frame.

"Have you forgotten who I am?" He questioned you, trapping you between his arms and legs. "I am the emperor of Intuuin. I had the tolerance to allow you to leave the room once without being dismissed, but I will not have the tolerance to do so twice." He warned you before leaning closer to your face until he was just several inches away. "You have no affection or heart towards me. Many people have said such about me as well. If you don't want to give me your heart, I'm stupid enough to give you mine. I chase after you because I need you, I want you. I yearn for you when you're out of my reach, out of my sight, [Name]... I lov-.." The emperor cut himself off, his eyes widening. He finally realised what the warm feeling inside him was this whole time. Was it really love? And if it was, would you ever feel the same? Could he make you feel the same? He quickly backed off of your figure and ran out of the room, leaving you deserted.

You lay down on your bed, speechless from the scene that had recently taken place. The emperor had just whispered such sweet words to you at such proximity. It felt like a scene from a romance novel - too good to be true. It was so dreamy, and charming, and you could slowly feel your cold hard anger towards him melt away. You were still confused as to why he had cut himself off before finishing what he was saying and stormed out. What was he about to say either way? You hadn't the slightest clue and weren't sure if you wanted to know.

At the very least, you now knew that the emperor had grown rigorously attached to you, and by pushing him away, you were only making him worse. You could understand why he yearned for you; you were the first person that he indeed was able to act informal with and open up to for the first time in his life. You were the first person to see the warm, loving side of the emperor. Now that side had grown into something sort of obsessive. It was too soon to tell. Either way, where had the emperor gone?

The emperor moved up the stairs, ignoring the butlers and guards that were trying to follow after him since it was required that he had some palace staff assisting him at all times. Nevertheless, the emperor's sprints across the palace were too quick for anybody to catch up with. He came to an abrupt stop in front of a silver detailed sliding door with two pairs of guards on either side.

Panting slightly, the emperor regained his composure before the guards opened the door for him. The emperor stepped in eagerly, only to be met with the sight of none other, but Via Resniyi sat next to his beloved grandmother to share a late evening tea. He stayed still, frozen with shock. "Grandmother, the palace is in lockdown. How is-"

"I invited her to stay with us for several days before the lockdown. I was going to schedule the two of you to spend time together, but it appears that you've been too busy so we've been enjoying some time together." His grandmother responded, cutting off the emperor as she already knew what he was going to ask.

"Imperial grandmother has been treating me very comfortably and kindly during my stay, your majesty," Via affirmed, a smile on her lips as she looked at the emperor with a soft blush on her cheeks.

"Please excuse me to the restroom. Takahiro, look after Via in my absence." Imperial grandmother ordered her grandson, "Bu-" "It'll only be for a moment." She cut off his objection before disappearing into the washroom. Finally, she had managed to get the two alone. The grandmother stood in the bathroom for a while, wanting them to spend as much time as possible without them being suspicious as to why she was taking so long.

"Your majesty. I still feel the same way about you." Via avowed, her cheeks blushing a bright red as she looked down at the floor timidly.

The emperor crossed his arms and sighed, "As do I. I still reject your feelings just as I always have." He responded harshly. However, his words of rejection could not affect Via's obsession with the thought of becoming empress, and so she continued to press on.

"Your majesty, I'd be happy to be your concubine." She offered. After all, being a concubine was the first step to becoming the empress.

"I already have a concubine." He answered coldly, his gaze avoiding hers.

She flinched at his statement. Who had managed to beat her to the position she was attempting to achieve for years?

"Who?" She questioned urgently, looking up at him with fierce eyes. She would make sure that he stripped him of his concubine, she would embarrass that woman and make her lose the king's respect if it was the last thing she did.

"[Name]. She is the only one for me." The emperor replied harshly before departing the room, ignoring the calls of Via. "Who is [Name]?!" She yelled out repeatedly, her cries not acknowledged.

The imperial grandmother hastily left the bathroom upon the sound of Via shouting out. "What in the world? What is the matter? What did that troublemaker do now?" She questioned Via. She wanted the reason as to why her grandchild was acting so unruly and rejecting a supremely capable wife.

"He has a concubine named [Name]! Who is [Name]?!" She shouted at the top of her lungs, unable to keep her calm composure as she could only feel envy running through her veins.

"[Name]? I have no idea! I didn't even know he had a concubine!" The grandmother responded, surprised from the information that she had just learned.

Meanwhile, the emperor wandered through the halls and made his way to the royal infirmary on his way back to his bedroom. He needed to speak with Octavi about the incident in private. When he entered Octavi's private quarters, he was nowhere to be seen. However, he could hear your laughs accompanying Octavi's echoing down the hallway. Jealousy plunged into the emperor's body as you two continued to spend an excessive amount of time together. After what he had seen, the emperor took no risks and no tolerances; he thoroughly distrusted Octavi. The emperor dashed towards the sound of your laughter, hoping that you would not become hurt before his arrival.