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“A lover?”
Aleksandr turned his head to the direction of the voice and found an old woman looking at him with a small smile. He opened his mouth, about to kindly yet strictly remind her that speaking and asking the emperor such a personal question in a casual manner could lead to unsightly consequences, but he faltered, remembering that he was currently disguised as a commoner. He answered with a quick and curt “No.”
The lady looked slightly taken aback and said, “My apologies.” She gave out a lowly chuckle and sighed, almost as if she was disappointed. “I just assumed from the way you stare at the name engraved on the coffin.”
The emperor stilled, confused but curious. “Did… did it look that way from an outsider’s perspective?” The old woman nodded gently, appearing to be growing fond of the situation at hand.
“You remind me of how I used to harbor such affection for my dead husband.” She said, taking a quick glance at the grave just beside the one he was standing in front of.
"Maybe it was love, maybe it was camaraderie - but he was... there. Just... there." She added, a lone look on her face. "A constant, one might say."
Aleksandr hates how her words seem to strike a certain part in him that he persistently tries to cage away.
"Was he a friend, perhaps?" The lady asked.
Was he?
"He was..." There was silence, and there was hesitance. It was a common question, one that was asked years before he sat on the bloody throne.
"An aide. A close aide of mine." He stated, cold - almost robotic. As if he was merely conditioned to reply the same answer over and over again.
She hums in understanding. "I see... a partner."
Aleksandr nods slowly, still feeling quite confused as to what he should refer to his late royal advisor but "partner" would suffice. It had a nice ring to it, surprisingly.
*
Kanae was a wise man, he had a knack for both business and war—which aren't two entirely separate concepts considering there is the presence of money in both. Bluntly put, he had a keen eye for profit.
Mercenary turned royal advisor the moment the Third Crown Prince Aleksandr became emperor, he was bound to face political enemies—especially since it was a well known fact that he had the support of the said noble, who in fact was the least favorite contender for the throne.
Roots of their ties with each other were unknown even to this day, but society lives, society speaks. Wretched mouths dare tell a tale that cater to the gluttonic devil that reside in their ears.
"I hear he warms His Highness' bed every night..."
"So he is a harlot? What a disgrace to the Lagusa name!"
As time passed by and Kanae proved himself "worthy" to be by Aleksandr's side, the buzz surrounding his origins have died down.
Balls and banquets came and went, such as the venom in the nobles' tongues that seem to grow more fatal as one modifies the tale after another. Countless mortifying rumors have bounced back and forth the castle's walls, yet neither of them were perturbed by such ridiculous talk. But it was the speculations of Kanae being Aleksandr's lover that made the noble man himself feel at a loss.
"Do we look like lovers to you?" Aleksandr once asked him. It was a pretty uneventful day, save for the mountain of paperwork Aleksandr had waiting for him the moment he woke up, but it was quiet.
He didn't know why he asked his royal advisor such a question, but the thought had suddenly occurred to him and his mouth opened before he could think.
"Why?" Kanae asked back. The emperor almost laughed. It was a very casual question, one that would cost Kanae his neck but he was not just any other subordinate.
Aleksandr wonders why he treats him so.
"Do they bother you?" Kanae added.
Do they?
"They don't. I was just asking to see if their words bring you discomfort in any way."
"And if they do? You'll cut off their tounges and hang their heads up on display in the plaza?" Kanae scoffed, shaking his head. "I appreciate the concern but I have much important matters to deal with."
It was true in a way. Kanae was his royal advisor but he's deeply involved in affairs that would more or less make it seem that he ran the empire along with the emperor. Aleksandr decides that he should brush off the unsettling feeling in his stomach and that he should not read into Kanae's words a bit too much.
He did, anyways.
*
War came.
Kanae knows his weapons, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he was one of the key pioneers of advanced weaponry: firearms. He has dealt with weapons of death for as long as he could remember and if his memory serves him right, his guns were what brought Aleksandr to him.
His gun met Aleksandr's sword, and he vaguely remembers the man calling him a coward.
"That is simply cowardice."
"I prefer calling it tactical, Sir."
Aleksandr had little to no political backup so he focused on manpower instead. He had to make up for the absence of brains using a ridiculous amount of brawn.
Kanae had both.
The former mercenary had helped Aleksandr overthrow his entire bloodline, as though he was sitting behind the shadows guiding the tactless prince's hand as they eat away opponents piece by piece.
Kanae made him king.
Now, Aleksandr watching his strongest piece get ready for another bloodbath perplexes him. In the past, he was clueless like an unborn child, only driven by hunger and ambition. However he has grown and gained wits, and seeing his closest companion load his guns with a bright smile on his face while he, the emperor, could only sit back and watch as another tragedy started to unfold vexed him.
He had spent years fighting alongside the brown haired man and seeing him set off for a battle that he cannot take part in feels rather odd.
"Are you certain you don't need me there?" Aleksandr asked, the tiniest trace of concern laced in his voice.
Kanae smiled and waved him off. "Your people need you more than I do, Sire."
'But you are a part of my people.' He didn't dare speak, for his tongue felt numb.
The royal advisor leaned forward and took Aleksandr's hand in his and kissed it. It was brief, but the emperor's chest lurched and he faintly saw his own hand physically flinch.
"I'll be back before the lilies wilt, Aleksandr. I can promise you that."
So Aleksandr sat on his throne, watched as the seasons changed, watched as the lilies wilted, and no traces of Kanae had come back home.