101 Ways To Tame The Emperor

Chapter 15: A Knight's Pledge

“I TAKE BACK what I said earlier. Lady Catherine must have trained herself in secret all these years to be able to protect herself from her own family. I heard that the Bradford ladies are quite vicious. They had resorted to bullying her not just verbally but also physically. But the report could be wrong. I mean that was the kind of face that can never be bullied. Will you let Lady Catherine become your Empress, Your Majesty? Will you marry her? Because if you won’t, I will. Damn, that’s my dream girl right there!”

As much as I did not want to take my eyes off Catherine, I forced myself to turn towards Matthew and scowled at him. “In your dream is where Catherine will ever be, Matthew. She is my woman.”

Matthew just grinned but it disappeared right away when he saw me pulling out my sword from the sheath. “Y-Your Majesty, calm down. We can talk this out-“

“Shut up.” I threw the sword straight to the rebel’s chest before he could chuck his spear at Catherine’s direction. She was checking on her subordinates that she did not notice the attack. If I was a second late, she could have been hit. I got worried when I saw her panting. She looked tired and she just said she was hungry.

“I wonder if I should just kill them all right now for making Catherine skips her meal.”

Matthew was now serious when he spoke. “There are many spies watching your every move, Your Majesty. I bet that through the Mages the Ministers hired, they found out that you went out of the Imperial Castle for Lady Catherine. And now, you are using your own sword in order to protect her. Since everybody knows that the Emperor never showed any affection towards anyone, particularly in women, your enemies will certainly have a field day about this. This is like publicly announcing that you are into Lady Catherine. They could use this against you.”

“They can try. But do you think I will let them win? This thing would not scare me. They’ve been trying to kill me all my life, Matthew. And they have been failing for thirty-three years now. I actually thought they will get tired failing by now. I am surprised that they managed to hold out this long. Catherine is another matter, though. It’s past lunch time now and there are still enemies out there. She should not be skipping her meals.”

Matthew groaned. “But we haven’t had our lunch yet, too, Your Majesty. Don’t just think about Lady Catherine’s welfare. The Knights and I are here, too, and we are hungry, too.”

“There are lots of grasses out there. Just pluck some and make do with them for now.”

“Wow, thank you very much, Your Majesty. That is so considerate of you.”

“You’re welcome.” I answered while still contemplating whether to interfere with the battle or not. Because Matthew was right. If I keep interfering, others might misinterpret it. Since they will see Catherine as my weakness, more people would want to either try to win her over or dispose her in order to taunt me. But when I saw Catherine’s legs stagger a little, I gave in. I don’t give a damn about what others would think anymore. I can just increase the protection around her when the time comes.

Catherine was starving. She should eat now. And she should not push herself too much.

Once she starts living in the Castle, I will make sure to train her Escorts so she would not have to do all the fighting. No. I shook my head. I would make sure she would not have to fight anymore. I will surround her with people who will do the fighting for her.

She was going to be the Empress soon, my Empress. I wish punish anyone who will dare lay a hand on her in and outside my territory. And that begins right now.

You can rest now, Catherine. You’ve done well. I will take over from here.

“Hand me your bow and arrows.” I told one of my soldiers. I did not waste time. After getting it, I used a spell to conceal the arrows and shot her enemies in the chests. In less than ten minutes, Catherine’s path had been cleared.

Matthew had an amused look on his face when I gave him the bow and the remaining arrows. He handed them to the soldier behind him. “You are becoming very protective for the first time, Your Majesty. You personally went out for this thing when you could have just sent your personal Knights to do it. That itself spoke volume. And now, you dealt with her enemies. Others would definitely think they have found your weakness.”

“Catherine will not-and will never be-my weakness, Matthew.” I answered as I continued to watch her every move.

Catherine looked around as if she was searching for someone. But when she failed trying to find us, she just shrugged and smiled. “Whoever you are, thank you very much for helping us. That was some amazing arrows. I am impressed. I didn’t know that things like that exist. But I don’t like owing people that’s why I hope we can meet again soon so I can return the favor. May the blessings of the Almighty be with you.”

“Who are you talking to, my lady?” Oliver asked, bewildered. “And what arrows are you talking about?”

“The person who helped us in fighting our enemies.” Her brows furrowed. “What are you saying? Didn’t you see the blue arrows in those men’s bodies?”

“I do not see anything, my lady.” Oliver turned to the other Escorts. “Do you see the arrows?” They all shook their heads.

“Hmm…” Catherine was speechless for a moment before she shrugged. “I guess I am the only one who can see them, huh. Wow, I must be lucky. But don’t mind the arrows. At least, there is one among our team who can see them. That is enough.”

Matthew gulped. “How did Lady Catherine know about you and the kind of weapon you used when you concealed it with magic? How did she see the arrows? The spell came from no one else but you. I would have had a hard time seeing them myself if I were in her situation.”

“Because that is my woman we are talking about. She is that unique.” I proudly said but even I was surprised again. Not many could guess that right since there was not a single trace left on the rebel’s body that I targeted. All of them suffered internal bleeding that’s why no one could easily discover what happened to them. Every minute that I spend watching Catherine is equivalent to a minute of different emotions that she evokes in me.

She then jumped off the carriage and perfectly landed on the ground. Darn. Even that was sexy.

“I am happy to know that everyone is safe. We can finally rest and eat now. But before that, I would like to make a confession.”

Confession? The Escorts suddenly looked edgy. I was startled, too. What could that be?

Catherine cleared her throat. “The truth is… I lied to you all.”

“We don’t get it. What do you mean, Lady Catherine?” The guy she called John asked.

Her face turned red. I did not know she could be shy at times, too.

“Actually, the Count did not give me any coins when I left the mansion. I wanted to ask him for some pocket money a while ago but he came a bit late in sending me away. You all saw that, right? I may look like this but I can get embarrassed, too, you know. I could not possibly ask him about money in front of his family and servants. To sum it up, I… I have nothing to reward to all of you.” She smiled sheepishly. “But come on. The rewards should not matter so much, right? I may have lied but it benefited us. It did help to fire you all up. That was the reason why we are safe and sound right now. But don’t worry. If I get lucky and ended up having money, I would share it to all of you.” She raised his right hand as if she was making an oath. “That’s a promise.”

“I could not possibly ask him about money in front of his family.” She said those words nonchalantly but her eyes betrayed her. They lost their shine for a while.

The Escorts all stared at Catherine before they burst out laughing. Despite that, the fascination in their eyes about her cannot be denied. Even I smiled upon hearing what she said. Matthew and the soldiers with us also laughed. Catherine spoke as if she was not a royalty, but one of the Escorts.

The noble ladies usually act so dignified. They seldom talk to those below them unless necessary. They would never even throw a glance at them. But Catherine was not like that. She acts in a way that makes it easy for her subordinates to approach her. And even now, she was reaching out to them first. Was it because she was raised differently?

Anyhow, I was glad that she did not turn out to be another brat.

“Why are you laughing? I’m serious!” Catherine said that but her expression looked like she was holding back her laughter, too.

“We are aware of that, Lady Catherine.” John said while smiling. “As a matter of fact, we all know from the beginning that we will be escorting a penniless noblewoman. We just played along when you told us about the reward. And you are right, my lady. The reward does not really matter here. What you showed us today was more important than any gold coins. You gave us confidence and courage. You could have just abandoned us. You had the chance to do it since you had the ability to escape. But you chose to stay and fight with all of us when we are nothing but just simple Escorts. We can be replaced anytime.”

Catherine suddenly had a far-away look on her face. It was the same expression I saw in the illustration which Matthew showed me this morning. Her eyes seemed lifeless and so was her voice when she spoke. “That’s because I know how it feels to be abandoned. It was so painful that I would never wish for it to happen to anyone, even to my worst enemies.”

Everyone fell silent. I don’t know how the heck it happened but I feel like someone was ripping something inside me. Her Escorts were the ones injured but Catherine seemed to have the most number of wounds. And compared to her, it looked like her Escorts had better chances of healing since their wounds were external.

“We were wrong about you, Lady Catherine. Please forgive us. Even if we had misgivings about you, you were willing to help us. From now on, I, Mark Novan, vow to protect you and fight alongside you, Lady Catherine, until my last breath.” One of them said.

All the Escorts then kneeled and put their left hands on their right shoulders as a sign of their life pledge to the lady. She was now respected and feared at the same time by them. This rarely happens. The Knights pledged their lives to her in their own accord.

“This is the first time that someone from a noble status ever made us feel so important and valued. Thank you very much, my lady.” Oliver said. “We had no idea that you could fight so well. As a matter of fact, you fight better than us, my lady. You defeated almost half of the enemies. We are not even as good as you are when it comes to archery. Still, we are hoping that you will let us serve you even if we are lacking in many ways.”

The wounded Escorts nodded in agreement.

The sparkle in Catherine’s eyes came back. “I will teach you, don’t worry. I also have a lot to learn about fighting. We can learn together one of these days. This is also the first time that I am treated like a noblewoman. Thank you very much. I do feel sorry that you all are serving a penniless lady. But I will find a way to make it up to you. And no, you are not just Escorts to me. From the time you fought with your life earlier, you became my friends. You, guys, also had the chance to save your lives and leave me here but none of you did that so please, do stand up now.” She flashed her sweetest smile. “I am really grateful. I don’t know what will happen to us when we reach the Imperial Castle. But I am hoping we can make a good relationship with everyone there.” She lifted her hand and winked. “Let’s do our best!”

Matthew began counting beside me. “Twelve. Lady Catherine has twelve Escorts in total, Your Majesty.”

“I know how to count, too, Matt. What’s your point?”

“Twelve Escorts plus your five soldiers and me. That makes eighteen of us. Today, it looks like eighteen more men will be added to Lady Catherine’s fans club.” Matthew chuckled. “And she does not even know about it. Now I know why you were so keen on finding her. She is worth the attention you are giving her, Your Majesty.”

I could not answer him because I felt like there was a huge lump on my throat. I just sat there on my horse as I watch Catherine giggle along with the other two women who came out of the carriage. I wonder if she knows how much her beautiful face lit up when the maid took out the food in the basket. I wonder if she knows how alluring she was when she was using the bow and arrow. I wonder if she knows how many moods had been brightened when she showed that charming smile of hers. I wonder if she knows how many people are smiling right now just because she was smiling, too. I wonder if she knows how much influence her every word, her every action, and her every expression holds to people. I wonder if she knows how nasty it felt when her eyes lost their sparkle for a moment.

I was so sure that I did not need a woman in my life. I was so sure that they would just mess things up.

And then this woman appeared, kissed me, and stirred something in me.

I wonder if she knows that someone out here had been losing sleep because of her. I wonder if she knows that she ought to take responsibility for it.

“Despite all these, I think we still have to be wary of her, Your Majesty. A woman that good could be a spy. That must be the reason why Count Quentin hid her all these years because she could be his ultimate card to climb up the social ladder.”

I nodded. “I am aware of that. I made plans already.”

I know that Catherine could never be a spy. I could tell a greedy monster when I see one. I’ve been dealing with them for more than a decade now. And she was not among them. Someone with bright eyes like hers couldn’t have a twisted mind. So far, I’ve never been wrong about people. But I can’t just say that. Matthew and others will need proof.

Everyone who works under me in the Imperial Castle knows who I am. They know the Emperor’s real face. Their loyalty to me had been proven and tested so many times over the past decades. And that includes the soldiers. We have been through the darkest and toughest times together. Their loyalty was the foundation of the Imperial Castle. It was the main reason why my enemies were having a hard time to get through me. And Catherine would have to prove her worth to those people in order to gain that same loyalty.

After a while, I grinned. Knowing her personality, winning my subordinates over might be just a piece of cake for her. Catherine had enough madness inside her that made her interesting. And that was her advantage.