Eileen wondered why Leon had come alone, without Ornella, but she couldn't ask outright—not when the other party was the emperor. Not wanting to commit the discourtesy of delaying her greeting, she quickly bent her knees in a respectful bow.
Leon watched her greeting with an unreadable expression, while Sonio, assisting nearby, carefully observed the emperor's mood.
"Have you been well?" Leon asked with a gentle smile. "This is the first time we've met since that day outside, isn't it?"
Eileen recalled the time when Leon had covertly appeared during one of her outings, asking questions about the lion's feather Cesare had gifted her—questions laced with suspicion.
Yet, the memory that lingered like shards of glass in her mind wasn't the feather itself, but his cryptic words from that day.
"Does the Grand Duchess know what the term 'Imperator' originally meant?"
"I believe it meant the supreme commander…"
