YMA – 36

Medea took a nap until midday because she thought maybe Lyle might come at night.

If Lyle came at night, she wouldn’t be able to sleep until dawn. Her body was tired, but she was in a good mood, so Medea felt somewhat excited.

She woke up late, ate lunch, and spent the whole day idling around in bed.

As she prepared to go to bed after dinner, she felt something was wrong.

Yesterday Lyle had visited her during the day.

There was no law that should be the same today, but something felt strange.

The maids were excited, grooming Medea’s skin and putting on a new negligee, but Medea’s mood was gradually sinking lower and lower.

‘I don’t think I’ll come.’

He is human. Was he tired after all? Did you have pain in your back? But there is no law that if you come to my bed, you must do it.

There were so many things we could talk about and do together.

Waiting for Lyle, Medea stayed awake until late at night. I really wanted to wait, so I waited—No. It was because I overslept during the day and took a nap so I can’t sleep. Tsk—You’re like that, well…

Disappointed, by midnight, Medea put a blanket around her neck and went to sleep.

I wasn’t waiting for him. I took a lot of naps so I couldn’t sleep!— so I was just awake.

‘Humph!’

***

Lyle couldn’t sleep either.

I hate Medea though… … I wasn’t convinced I had to absolve her from her past actions because of my new-found feelings for her.

It’s so unfair! She did lose her memory…….. … Should I pretend to forget all the things she did to me and accept her?

But those awful recollections still remain in me.

Even deep inside, Lyle knew Medea, herself, was not so terrible.

What Lyle really hated was the ugly women that raped him during his childhood, and the moment he saw them in Medea—, someplace deep within Lyle, Medea had become one of them.

So he hated it, and it became unacceptable; if they had been alive, they would have been shredded apart and killed hundreds of times.

The former Empress used poison, but Lyle, ever since he was a small boy, imagined how he would have killed them a thousand times in a thousand different ways.

As an adult—when he realized it wasn’t normal— he couldn’t get over the feeling that he shouldn’t have experienced such a thing. He was apart of the imperial family; if someone shouldn’t have been touched—it should have been him. It was so unfair.

Instead, his position, which should have protected him, isolated him, with no one to sympathize with him or confide in.

Nevertheless, Lyle wanted to see Medea.

‘I miss her… …’

“Millie… … . Medea… …”

With a bleak murmur of longing, Lyle looked down at his hands on his lap. They were empty like his hollow heart.

***

Miledia woke up late in the morning and yawned a long time.

Yesterday she took naps and fell asleep late at night. Medea created a strange sleep cycle to try and compensate for her lack of slumber.

“Napping can’t make up for good old sleep!” cried Medea to herself.

There was a knock.

“Come in.”

With the her pjs only slightly ruffled and her being fully clothed the maid must have known all night that Lyle had not come to Medea’s bedroom, but she looked quite happy.

“Good morning, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, yes. Where are my clothes to change?”

“Huh? You weren’t going to wash up first?”

“Huh?”

Of course I was going to wash up, but I didn’t feel like walking around wearing only a transparent negligee.

Medea stretched out her arm wrapped in a negligee out of the blanket.

“I told you I wouldn’t go around like this.”

“His Majesty didn’t tear it this time.”

“What?”

“What?”

Medea frowned at her lady-in-waiting’s reply.

“His Majesty didn’t come yesterday?”

“He did. I saw with my own two eyes that he was secretly sneaking out at dawn.”

“What?”

In the middle of the night when Medea was asleep, Lyle secretly entered the bedside of the Empress’s Palace, where Medea was asleep without a servant.

Then he looked up at Medea, who was asleep until dawn, and then quietly went out,

‘He came, but just went?’

It was a weird change.

“His Majesty didn’t wake your Majesty, the Empress, up? Oh my!”

“Why?”

“His Majesty must really care about the Empress! He kept in mind your tiredness from yesterday.”

‘Looks like she’s writing a novel too.’

Medea shook his head and instructed the maid to bring her a change of clothes.

It’s Lyle. If she met him later, she could just ask him directly.

***