Chapter 98 - His Salvation

That was how Helene became the ‘emperor’s woman’. Those who didn’t know the story between the two were jealous of Helene. While they wanted to be close to Miltiades, Helene was scared of him. It would be preferable to be killed by the Count; if the emperor caught her, she would meet a fate worse than death. 

But was there something that a pawn could find out? The time limit was fast approaching, and there was nothing Helene could do. When Miltiades suddenly left for the Holy Vios Empire, it was both an opportunity and a crisis. Helene had to find a way to survive between the two. And then the emperor came back. With a daughter. 

“Carry me!” cried an adorable child, fearlessly reaching out towards Miltiades. Helene turned away, thinking the emperor would push the little girl away or even kill her. However, the sight that they saw shocked everyone in the empire: Miltiades picked up the child. 

Helene was surprised. She knew how cold and distant the emperor was. She later found out that the child was the saintess, but her shock didn’t subside. The thought that Emperor Miltiades would be a father merged the two least fitting roles in the world into the same person. She pitied Amelia and thought that she would get hurt and shrivel away. But Helene couldn’t do anything for her. And then a miracle occurred in the palace. 

Ignoring all opposition, Miltiades made Amelia the crown princess. He sent her presents every day. There was even talk that he went to look for her. Helene couldn’t believe the stories that she was hearing. One day, she happened to see Emperor Miltiades with Princess Amelia. And then she realized why the emperor, who hated children, brought her in as his daughter.

“…She saved him.” A bright light appeared in the darkness. There was no other name for it but salvation. There was no way he could resist this light that was shining only for him. She taught him how to laugh, care, and be happy. 

From that day on, Helene felt that Miltiades changed. It wasn’t difficult to figure out what had changed him. She had thought it would be easy to separate the two. Helene looked down at her hand. Her sinful hand was clean and pure. And she couldn’t feel the unpleasant restraint that had been wound tight around her heart.

“Do you want to start a business with me?” The light, which she had thought only saved others, had pulled her up. Helene shuddered when she realized that she, too, had a chance. One she never thought she would have. She felt a lump in her throat. Yes, this was salvation.  

At the edge of despair, she was given a chance. It was one she had been wanting to grab onto. No matter how much she strived, worked, or proved herself, she had never been given a chance, but her life had changed at a moment’s notice. 

“…I will do my best.” No one had ever believed that she could do a good job. She had lived her life never being given a chance at anything. Now she had a chance to earn as much as she worked, instead of living a life in which no one cared about how much she toiled or struggled. Helene was thankful even for that. 

“You won’t regret this decision, Chairwoman.” And that was how MilMel Company’s first president came to be.

***

“Hey, Master.”

“What?”

“Why is the company called MilMel?” Achillios wondered about the name of the company, which was separate from the Hescalts Tower. 

Wasn’t it obvious? “It expresses the love between Daddy and me.” There were many options: Saintess Company, Priscilla Company, and Love Miltiades Company. But I didn’t want to expose my identity, so I had to eliminate them one by one. In the end, I had no choice but to use the ‘Mil’ from Miltiades and ‘Mel’ from Amelia to create the MilMel Company. 

“What do you think? Isn’t it nice?” 

Luciana turned away as I bragged about my choice of the name, but Achillios thought differently, “I’m so jealous of His Majesty…” It seemed as if he wanted to be in Miltiades’s shoes. 

After finally getting rid of Achillios, I went off looking for the love of my life. He was still in recovery and asleep after taking his medicine. Strictly speaking, I shouldn’t have been allowed to see the sleeping emperor under the strict laws of the imperial family, but somehow I got to do so. 

“His Majesty ordered us to let you in,” said Grand Chamberlain Liam. I nodded. It was no doubt due to my complaints about wanting to see Miltiades. The sleeping Miltiades looked younger than usual. Maybe I was simply infatuated, but to me, he looked like a young man. “Why does he look so intriguing?” I could never get tired of looking at him. “I heard that watching someone sleep is proof that you’re in love.” I was definitely in love. I didn’t know how this was possible, but I found even more ways to like him instead of getting tired of him. I laughed as I touched his nose, lips, and the lines of his face. “Sleep well.” And don’t have any bad dreams.