Abandon the past, focus on the present (2)

Lukewarm water sprayed on his body to cleanse all the sweat and dirt collected from yesterday. He was so mentally exhausted that he was dropping asleep, causing him to enter such a deep dream he still could not comprehend.

Letting the water run down his flesh, he stared at the floor, watching the water flow blankly while musing.

The dreamscape felt too real to be considered an illusion. The details and the storyline followed a narrative structure, even if he had skipped some scenes ahead, but the meaning of the dream could be easily deciphered. In other words, he dreamed about the events of Empress Irene's renascence of the throne.

Regardless, Levinte still had doubts. He merely believed that dreams are projections of one's beliefs and perceptions, a normal brain activity where endless fantasies can be made within. So he could not confirm that he had dreamt about an actual event of the past.

But someone could validate this problem.

Levinte rushed to finish showering and wore nice and comfortable casual clothing. When he was thrilled to get answers from the man, he suddenly remembered something related to the palace.

Didn't the empress order them to have an audience with her today?

Oh shoot! His eyes widened in realization and his heart rate increased. Levinte rushed out and knocked on the door adjacent to his. "Mister? Are you there?" Alas, he gained no response.

He heaved a sigh of lassitude. Forget it, I wasn't important anyway. Then he walked lazily into his room, drained to his last energy. He was desperate to get an explanation, perhaps that contributed to his extreme despondency.

To get his mind off of stressful thoughts, Levinte grabbed his thick-rock notebook and began to note down his thoughts. He preferred to write short and direct sentences to avoid confusing himself if he were to read them in the future. Without noticing, time ticked away and Levinte still had his eyes fixed on the book. He did not miss a single event that occurred since the day he visited the memorial park.

After writing for almost two hours, he finally stopped after he felt satisfied with what he wrote.

Stretching out his tired limbs, he felt somehow relieved. His eyes glanced at the clock hanging on the wall and saw that it was still early in the morning. Sighing, he thought of another way to fill his boredom.

Soon he remembered a place that he considered his second home.

Levinte used his courage to ask the lady at the counter. "Excuse me, how can I get to the public library?"

Machaera Archives, the eastern side of the city.

A grand, marble standalone building that serves as the main library for the entire empire's population. The library is filled with books and manuscripts from all corners of the empire, displaying the vast knowledge and culture of the people.

Standing before the grand building, Levinte was all smiles. Home sweet home, my place of comfort.

The main entrance led him to a central atrium, offering a general overview of the layout of the library. Levinte slowly walked, struck by the spectacular beauty of the building's internal structure.

His eyes widened in awe at the sheer scale of the place. The towering shelves of books seemed to go on forever, each one packed with volumes on every conceivable subject. He marveled at the intricate structure of the library, from the sweeping arches and imposing columns to the delicate carvings etched into the walls.

Levinte began to wander deeper into the maze of books. He had never seen a massive library such as this one. As he lost himself further in the labyrinthine stacks, he knew he could spend a day exploring the library and never tire of it. He made the right choice to ask the lady at the hotel's counter to inform Acre about his whereabouts.

Seeing the signage that displayed the historical section, Levinte headed toward the aisle. His eyes scanned the books arranged by subject and author. He took a few books that piqued his interest and dedicated his time to reading.

The first book he read was 'Irene Eula Nore, the Epitome of Strength'.

The empress' family, the House of Nore was a distant relative of the Imperial family.

With the descending age of the emperor and the empress of that time, the emperor declared a succession test to choose a worthy companion for his son, Crown Prince Euluc. The test included various rounds of mental and physical tests, as well as moral and ethical quizzes. Lady Irene outperformed at every level through sharp thinking, empathy, and impeccable leadership qualities, ultimately attaining victory.

Crown Prince Euluc soon succeeded the throne and simultaneously had Lady Irene become the empress. The people saw great potential in them to govern and protect the empire. The couple did not have a child for 4 years since their concern was on the empire and not on the succession of the throne.

As if a storm came, a woman from an ordinary background became an obstacle in their mutual understanding. Empress Irene remained patient for the sake of their marriage and the stability of the Imperial family. Her goal was to extinguish enemies, especially from the south. She led an army to the battlefield while her husband was being bewitched by the mistress. Upon hearing the rumors, Empress Irene kept her composure and conversed with her husband to get confirmation. Her level of patience was so high that when the emperor confessed his increasing love for the mistress, Empress Irene only told him to keep some distance between them and advised him to focus on the empire.

During the emperor's absence, it was rumored that the emperor was busy having his vacation with his mistress. Empress Irene took care of his workload and supervised the Imperial army. Overall, she was a talented sword fighter, a remarkable and fearsome opponent on the battlefield.

When people heard of the mistress, there was a division among them. To cease the chaos, the emperor declared a Contest of Strength, which was a duel before the throne. Everyone already expected the winner, but due to the mistress' mischievous tactics, she managed to overpower the empress. That was the turning point for the people and they turned against her. The major difference between the mistress and the empress was their personality. The former wore a disguise as a sweet, innocent, and gentle girl while the latter was strict, fierce, and strong.

Empress Irene's patience reached her limits when the mistress got pregnant (spoiler, not the emperor's child). The mistress wanted to frame the empress, so she fell from the staircase, resulting in a miscarriage, and accused the empress was the one who pushed her. The emperor was infuriated and the couple got into a huge fight. That was when Empress Irene demanded a divorce, stepping down from the throne which led to the temporary downfall of the empire. The worst part was that when the empress exited the palace in a carriage, a crowd surrounded the streets and cheered loudly. Due to the mistreatment, Empress Irene decided to live far away from the city, refusing to go back to her family to avoid being a nuisance. Luckily, her loyal subordinates followed her until the end. The House of Nore supported her and fought hard to clear her name.

Karma had its way. When the mistress became the empress, she performed her duties so badly that negatively impacted the lives of the citizens and the long-term stability of the empire. After only two years, the Emperor became impatient and distressed about her capabilities so he summoned his former wife back to the palace. At first, she declined the summoning and injured every royal officer who used force to enter her house in the countryside. It took months of persuading and begging for her to finally go back to the palace after comprehending the empire's bad situation.

However, she did not take her role back as the empress but insisted on having the title of palace secretary with a famous saying: "I only wish for my people's peace. The past is none of my concern, therefore I will not claim the throne back. Plus, I do not wish to become a middle person in someone's marriage. I will perform my duty until it's done and I will leave this palace at once. If anyone tries to call me by my former title, I will personally cut their tongue. My title here is Miss Irene. Bear that in mind!"

During that time, the flopped empress was detained in her residence ever since she gave birth to a child with a different hair color, meaning that the child was illegitimate. Red hair color is a dominant trait in the Gertrud bloodline, so every newborn will bore red hair.

Even with the trauma surrounding her, Empress Irene performed her duties as a secretary so well that the empire was stabilized in just months of restoration.

The mistress was finally put on trial after many people were brave enough to speak out about her evil deeds. She died because she refused to admit everything after drinking the Potion of Eternal Veracity.