The day came. The visitors from different countries arrived.
I was currently in my chamber, preparing myself to greet them personally. I hadn't talked to or seen the king for the past few days. Maybe he was too busy preparing for the remaining events.
"You look gorgeous, Your Majesty."
"Do you think my visitors will like me?" I asked the head court lady.
She smiled. "Why not, Your Majesty? You are beautiful and kind."
I smiled at her in response. That boosted my confidence a little.
"We need to go now, Your Majesty," she said.
The hanbok I was wearing was a bit heavy. It looked like I was attending a wedding.
Please, no mistakes. I don't want to ruin the image of the king and the palace. Act like a queen. Act like a noble and powerful person, I told myself as I walked. I was constantly reminding myself not to make a mistake. One mistake and people will judge you. I had been there before.
We arrived at the palace hall—an open area where the main gate could be seen. Behind me was the king's hall, where meetings were held. I positioned myself in the middle, waiting for the visitors to arrive.
I looked around, hoping to catch a glimpse of the king. But he was nowhere to be found.
I looked at the ministers who were silently standing in the right corner. They were waiting for the visitors too.
"Where is the king?" I whispered to my head court lady.
The court lady was about to answer, but then I saw the king walking toward me.
I bowed my head in respect.
He smiled.
The head eunuch assisted him to his throne. He went up the stairs and sat where he needed to sit.
I looked at him once again. He looked quiet and didn't even say a word to me. Even his smile was very tense.
I saw my throne placed on the right side, below the king's throne. My attention shifted when I heard the gate opening.
There I saw the horses and palanquins carried by the men. The palace guards welcomed them with a bow. Even the ministers bowed their heads.
I watched them silently. I felt nervous too because I hadn't been in a social event like this before. Not even in my world. I hated going to parties. I didn't like loud noises and music. I just wanted to stay in a quiet place, like the library.
The men started putting the palanquins down. The soldiers who were with them assisted as well. All I could hear were the noises coming from our visitors. Our people were too quiet. We were just observing them.
The people riding the palanquins began to get out. The first one I saw stepping out was a teenage girl wearing a pink hanbok. The diamond accessories in her hair made her look expensive.
I walked toward her to greet her.
"Hi, I am Queen I-jun. Nice to meet you." I smiled.
"Oh, Your Highness." She bowed her head. I felt uneasy but still pretended to smile.
After bowing, she held out her hand to me. "I am Princess Shi Mi from Shikaya. Nice to meet you too."
I accepted her hand and smiled.
She looked toward where the king was. The king was already standing at his throne.
Princess Shi Mi bowed her head to show respect to the king.
After that, the court ladies assisted her to her seat. Other royals came too. The princesses and princes bowed to me, greeted me, and then bowed to the king.
After that, more palanquins came inside. The empty palanquins went back outside the gate to give way to the others.
Just like earlier, the men and soldiers assisted the people inside the palanquins.
That's when I met the King and Queen of Mikiyagi.
I bowed my head, and they followed.
"I am King Shiporo, and this is my wife, Queen Zuki."
"Nice to meet you, Your Majesties." I bowed my head.
"No, it is nice to meet you," said Queen Zuki.
They looked at the king, who was now coming down the stairs. I hadn't even noticed he was moving.
King Shiporo and Queen Zuki paid their respects to the king.
The king bowed his head in return.
"It's nice meeting you," said the king.
"It's nice meeting you too."
We both smiled at them, and the court ladies assisted them to their seats.
I didn't expect so many royals to come. If I wasn't mistaken, around twenty princesses and twenty princes had arrived. I couldn't even remember their names.
More kings and queens came. The same process was repeated: I introduced myself, bowed to them, and said it was nice meeting them. The king did the same.
It was honestly so tiring, and still, more palanquins were arriving. I had already forgotten most of their names and didn't even count how many queens and kings came.
Finally, a white palanquin entered the gate. It was the last one.
Everyone fell silent. I didn't know why. All eyes were on the white palanquin.
The men and soldiers assisted the person inside. She was wearing a white hanbok and a white veil to cover her face. Was she a queen? Why wasn't her king with her?
I heard the king gasp when he saw the person.
I was so curious and wanted to ask him, but I decided to keep quiet and just stared silently at the woman who was slowly walking toward us.
"Empress Isha..." I heard the king utter.
I looked at him again, and this time I could see emotions in his eyes. His eyes were sparkling.
I looked back at the woman who was walking toward us. She walked so slowly, like a bride walking down the aisle. Even her outfit matched it.
When Empress Isha, as the king had called her, lifted her head, I gasped in horror and disbelief. My eyes widened, and my mouth dropped open.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing right now. I had never imagined I would see this person, especially in this world!
"Von..." I uttered.
Yes, you heard me right! The Empress Isha, as the king called her, was my best friend, Von!
My body started trembling, but I tried to calm myself. I had the urge to hug her tightly and say sorry for what I had done. I wanted to talk to her and ask so many questions—why she was here, and how she ended up becoming the empress of a certain country.
The king bowed to her when she came near us. I bowed too. I tried to suppress my emotions because I didn't want to cause a commotion. I reminded myself not to make any mistakes, especially during such an important time.
The empress bowed her head in return. I looked at her face. She seemed emotionless, like a woman who had battled for many years.
She looked at me for a moment, but I couldn't read her expression. She was different from the Von I knew. The Von who always smiled, the one who cared for me.
The Von standing in front of me looked like her doppelgänger.
I was about to say something, but the court ladies assisted her to her seat.
When everyone was settled, the palace's spokesperson began speaking. I couldn't even understand what he was saying. I was too busy staring at Von, who was intently listening to him.
I badly wanted to hug her and explain everything—why I did what I did to her in our world. Seeing the way she looked at me earlier sent shivers down my spine. I had never seen that expression on her face in my entire life.
What if she's not the Von I knew? What if she just looks like her?
"I now announce that this festival is officially open." The king had stood up. I hadn't even noticed until he made the announcement.
People began clapping their hands. Judging by their expressions, they seemed to be enjoying the event, even though it was just starting.
I looked at Von again, who was now focused on the king.
Why was she looking at him like that? Even from a distance, I could see the sparkle in her eyes, just like what I saw in the king's eyes earlier when he looked at her.
Do they have a past?
But Von never shared anything with me. She never opened up about this.
I was still filled with curiosity about how she ended up as an empress.
As the king officially opened the event, the court ladies and eunuchs started serving the food prepared by the royal chef. I remembered the chef again—I hadn't spoken to him in a while.
"Your Highness." A court lady placed a tray of food on my table. The spokesperson announced the dish served and explained why it was chosen as the appetizer.
I started eating, but I still couldn't take my eyes off Von. She didn't even look my way. She was just intently staring at the king. And when the king looked at her, she looked away.
I glanced at the king too, who was silently eating. I couldn't wait for the festival to end—I had so many questions for Von and the king.
Even though the food was great, I couldn't enjoy it. I hadn't even finished my appetizer when the spokesperson announced that they would be serving soup. The court lady placed the soup on my table.
I started sipping it with a spoon. My mind wandered back to the day when the king and I did the food tasting. The chef had even argued about the food.
I shook my head and tried to focus on sipping the soup.
I looked around at the visitors and ministers. They seemed to be enjoying the food.
After the soup, they served the main dish.
I heard murmurs coming from the visitors, but I couldn't make out what they were saying. Then the spokesperson explained again why the royal chef had chosen that particular dish.
The serving of food continued. Everyone seemed to be enjoying it until the court ladies served tea for digestion.
"I'm full," I muttered to myself. I wished Min Yun were here to listen to me, but he was nowhere to be found. I hadn't seen him at all.
I looked at Von again. She was silently wiping her lips, indicating she was done eating.
Von doesn't eat like that. She used to be a big eater. Seeing her eat like this felt strange. She seemed too sophisticated. She had always been refined, but not to this extent—not in our world.
"My queen," the king called me.
I looked up at him, and he asked, "Are you okay?"
Honestly? No. Who would want to sit here pretending to be a sophisticated person, constantly afraid of making a mistake? It feels as if you make one mistake, you should die of shame. Right now, I was acting like someone I wasn't. I had to pretend just to please everyone.
"I'm fine," I mouthed.
He just smiled at me, though I could tell he was uncomfortable too.
I sighed. How I wish this would end soon. I just wanted to lie on my bed and have a good night's sleep.