CHAPTER XVI

"It's snow—ing..."

Celestine stuttered on her own words as her eyes sat upon the figure in front of her, shocked.

The man in front of her smiled. He had a distance of about a meter from her place, he was donned in white and his robe was lightly fluttering through the cold winter air as he stood upright.

"You're..." Celestine's voice faded out due to the pleasant surprise—she was unconsciously smiling.

His eyes were calmly fixed at hers. He had a seemingly bottomless pit of black pupils, however, it showed nothing of hostility, but somehow, there was an unknown sentiment—a mysterious lingering feeling.

Celestine's heart suddenly seemed to beat fast, hammering through her chest.

Thadump! Thadump! Thadump!

With all of her might, Celestine returned the gaze of the man in front of her, both of them looking deep into each other's eyes.

However, she was pulled into reality by the cold feeling of snow, melting as it meets with her skin.

Celestine blinked her eyes repeatedly, swallowing before clearing her throat. "You're... You—Your Majesty?" She asked, stuttering, unsure whether to believe her eyes or not.

The man did not answer and only smiled, his action causing Celestine to rub her eyes before repeatedly blinking once again.

'Am I dreaming again?' She asked herself, pinching her cheek.

"Wha—." Her eyes widened.

The man came up to her and held her wrist, preventing her to hurt herself any further, the sudden contact making her flinch.

She shook her head. She was not dreaming.

"Your Majesty?" She asked once again, this time, her voice was clear and unwavering.

The man smiled before nodding his head, answering her question.

She gasped, but just as she was about to kneel and bow, he stopped her.

"I told you before, right?" He began, looking at her eyes.

Not knowing what to answer, Celestine could only look at him with wide eyes and a gaping mouth.

"As of now, I am not the Emperor. I'm just a normal civilian, just like you." He said, his hand touching her by her cheek.

His actions made Celestine blush. She remembered— remembered the way he said that to her before— endearing. Come to think of it, he did the exact same thing as he did before.

"As of now, I am not the Emperor. I'm just a normal civilian, just like you."

Feeling her cheeks heat up from his warm hand, she swallowed, forcing herself to look into his eyes but ultimately averting it.

She cleared her throat, and slowly slipped away from his hold.

Bowing her head, she looked at the cloak in her hands, once again swallowing. "Y-Your Majesty, I-I'm afraid I—."

Her words were interrupted by his index finger laying at the top of her lips, hushing her.

"You can, Celestine." He said, smiling.

Once again, she was lost for words, her heart, beat so fast to the point where it seemed like it was going out of her chest.

Thadump! Thadump! Thadump!

She inhaled, it was getting quite hard to breathe as she felt herself heat up more as her name echoed in her ears. It was the first time that she felt so embarrassed to hear her name.

Yet, who wouldn't? The way he said her name sounded so sincere and encouraging, and at the same time, it had a hint of something that she cannot understand as it rolled from his tongue.

She bit her lip to prevent her smile from surfacing.

Instead of feeling thrilled and exhilarated, she should be ashamed.

As she thought of that, her happiness immediately dropped, it was as if reality came crashing onto her, like a bomb.

She shook her head and further distanced herself from the Emperor. Slowly, she lifted her head to meet his eyes, his look making her feel weak in her knees, yet, she held on.

"Your Majesty, how must your humble subject serve you?" She asked formally as she swiftly looked down, closing her eyes. She was brave, but not enough to withstand the unknown look in his eyes.

The Emperor did not answer, making the whole forest awfully quiet. As the snow continuously fell, gathering as it melts upon their feet. The two, who can be compared to celestial beings stood upright, feeling each other's presence.

Desidevious sighed. 'It seems like I am going too fast.' He thought as she looked at the girl in front of him, shaking his head at his actions.

He swallowed, before showing a sheepish smile.

"I'm sorry for startling you..." He said, trailing off, observing Celestine's reaction.

She slightly flinched as a result of his statement, her forehead lightly furrowing. Almost instantly, she shook her head.

"No-no... Your Majesty—" She started, fumbling over her words.

The Emperor smiled at her attempt, shaking his head. "It's alright, Celestine. You don't have to act like..." He began, pausing as he chuckled, "Like how you are doing right now...?" He trailed off, holding back a laugh.

His adorable look almost made Celestine laugh too. She bit her lip, trying to hold back her laughter, but as they both saw each other, trying desperately to do the same thing—they stopped, and let everything that they were feeling out.

"We-we're exactly the same!"

"We-we're exactly the same!"

They looked at each other with wide eyes, as they both spat out the exact same words at the same time.

A roar of laughter escaped their mouths as tears started to fall from the corner of their eyes. Their bodies shook, both of them holding their stomachs which almost hurt due to the uncontrollable shaking.

Celestine shook her head, being the first one to calm down, she was smiling from ear to ear, watching the Emperor who she remembered to have such a cold and rigid face, laughing heartily.

As he noticed her gaze, slowly, he stopped laughing, having the same smile as Celestine.

Finally, both of them were able to breathe freely—the awkwardness in the air, long gone.

Desidevious cleared his throat, "I believe that we're on the same page now?" He asked, smiling as he took a step forward.

Celestine only watched as he took a step, heaving a sigh as she finally nodded. "Alright, Your—" She was cut short by his look; he had one of his eyebrows raised as if threatening her to stop.

She swallowed the lump in her throat, and looked down, averting his eyes.

"D—" She began, feeling her cheeks heat up as she forced herself to speak.

"D—?" He asked encouragingly, his smile further widening as he looked closely at the embarrassed expression of the lady in front of him.

"Des—" Celestine bit her lip, once again swallowing before taking in a deep breath.

She lifted her chin, meeting his eyes, gathering all the courage that she could.

"Desidevious..." She said in a small voice, instantly looking down, her face, reddening up to her ears.

She closed her eyes tightly, biting her lips.

'I'm gonna die.' She thought. She cannot believe the audacity that she had to call the Emperor by his name.

She was having mixed feelings. She was ashamed—embarrassed, but aside from that, she was elated.

However, the so-called Emperor thought nothing of what she was thinking about. Instead, he was all smiles, looking obviously glad and proud of what seems like an achievement for Celestine.

"Yes?" He asked, walking towards Celestine who immediately looked up with wide eyes.

His actions made her instantly distance herself, feeling her back bump into a tree. Thankfully, the Emperor did not approach her any longer and was only smiling, making her sigh in relief.

Her heart would surely burst if he continued to do his advances.

"..." Celestine did not talk back and only looked down, not knowing what to say.

Desidevious nodded in understanding. It was time to stop his foolish advances. After all, it seems like they still had a lot of mountains to conquer.

'They're the same...'

"How is your new shop?" He asked, innocently, trying to spark up a conversation casually—as if he doesn't know the answer.

A hint of satisfaction showed on his eyes as he saw Celestine smile upon his question. It was the perfect thing to ask.

"Thank you for asking, Your—Desidevious..." She began trailing off before clearing her throat.

"Regarding our shop, I and my family had our fair share of troubles regarding our new line of career, but then again, it's not something that is so hard that we're unable to handle." She said, smiling, "After all, challenges are the fun part of a business." She continued, slightly chuckling as she remembered Sandra and their customer's squabble.

"Meira had also started talking in full sentences. It was as if I had witnessed a baby grow into a child." She added, her smiling face turning dim, "But earlier, we had our very first fight. I'm so ashamed—why did I have to jump to conclusions? I should have taken into consideration what she has been through, yet, I forced all of my beliefs on her." She said, shaking her head, "Honestly, I won't be surprised if she hated me. But then again, I am really glad that she was there—she was the one who helped me to keep my sanity intact." She added, frowning, "She helped me, yet, I never did anything to help her... At the most crucial time—I was gone." She said, clenching her fists.

"She was so kind as to simply accept my apology and even her fate. She had no intention of fighting back, of course, I would get mad. But who am I to judge? As she said, we have lived through different lives. In the end, I'm just a hypocrite." She said, sighing.

She looked up and watched as the flakes of snow fell from the pitch-black sky.

However, as fast as she looked up, she immediately returned her sight to the man in front of her. His pair of pitch-black pupils were gently looking at her, yet, he did not have a smiling expression.

She smiled sheepishly, "Your Majesty, I'm sorry for engaging in somewhat a deep conversation." She said, embarrassed. "Have I offended you...?" She asked.

Desidevious, upon hearing what she said was unable to hold back his laughter. "No, Celestine, you have misunderstood!" He said, trying hard to stop his laughter. After a while, he spoke with a straightened face, "It's just that—I have never encountered someone who was able to speak so much in front of me, well, of a topic that is out of court, that is." He explained.

Looking at the Emperor, in Celestine's eyes, his attitude was natural and unrestrained and appeared to be extremely sincere, because of that, she couldn't help but smile too.

Remembering, Celestine hitched a breath.

"Uhm..." She began, looking clearly embarrassed.

Upon seeing her expression, Desidevious smiled, "It's alright. You can be at ease." He said, waving his hand, urging her to continue.

Celestine bowed her head, "Thank you so much, Your Majesty. For gracing me and my family with your kindness." She began, "If not for your help, I honestly don't know where I'll be." She said, sincerely.

"Hmm..."

His reaction made Celestine swallow. Slowly, she looked up, meeting his gaze.

"Apart from that, you do have one thing to apologize about..." He said, trailing off as he looked at her.

Celestine closed her eyes, remembering her rudeness towards him.

Once again, she lowered her head, "I apologize for my actions earlier, Your Majesty." She said, feeling her heart beat faster.

Unexpectedly, he went near her and helped her to raise her head.

He clicked his tongue, shaking his head, "That's not what I am talking about." He said, making Celestine more anxious.

She thought of every possible thing that she has done wrong, her eyes widening as she thought of something.

"I am sorry for my behavior on that day." She said, bowing her head again in which he shook his head upon, helping her to get up.

"I am sorry for not being able to return Your Majesty's cloak...?" She asked, now unsure.

However, he only shook his head, making her more confused.

Her brows furrowed. 'What have I done?' She asked herself, not being able to think of any more things that she may have done to offend him.

The Emperor took a long and heavy sigh, looking at her with what seems to be glossy eyes.

"My name?" He said, pouting.

Celestine looked at her with wide eyes, flabbergasted. She opened her mouth only to close it again.

"So?" He asked with the same adorable face that he had before.

Celestine blushed, slightly chuckling to herself. She cannot believe what she was seeing, was this man really the Emperor?

"T-Then, I will not be modest anymore, D-Desidevious..." She said, biting her lip, couldn't help feeling embarrassed and flustered.

"Celestine." He responded with a smiling face, deeply satisfied.

However, little did she know what was hidden behind his expression.

The two of them sat together underneath a tree.

"Y-Your coat?" Celestine asked, her hand holding out the fabric that has been in her care for a week.

Desidevious shook his head. "You can keep it." He said, "At least, you'll be able to remember me whenever you see that." He continued, smirking.

Celestine bit her lip, 'I have been thinking about you for the past week. Any more than that, I think I will go crazy.' She thought, thinking of her actions for the last week.

She blushed, remembering that she even had to lie to her family just to keep the Emperor a secret.

She nodded her head, unable to decline. "Alright, Yo-Desidevious." She agreed, correcting herself in the process.

Desidevious chuckled in response, silence once again enveloping them. Observing how her eyes lit up from watching the white flakes that are falling from the sky, he immediately thought of another topic to discuss.

"So it finally started to snow." Desidevious noted, holding his hand out, catching the little snowflakes which melted against his palm.

Celestine nodded her head, mimicking his actions. A wry smile showing on her lips. She swallowed before turning her head towards the Emperor.

"D-Desidevious... Thank you..." She said, showing an expression of gratitude.

Frowning, "For what?" He asked, noting that she has already thanked him earlier. However, Celestine just shook her head, "Nothing..." She answered, smiling before returning to her prior movements.

He dared not to ask any further and only watched Celestine as she was now smiling from ear to ear.

Celestine was grateful. Just earlier, she was almost overcome with sadness, but thanks to the Emperor's presence—his kindness, the memory that was supposed to be bad has now turned into good, something that she will want to reminisce and think about, over and over again.

Suddenly, her expression changed. She bit her lip, slightly tilting her head away from the Emperor to avoid him seeing her face which was now as red as a fully bloomed rose.

She shook her head, 'Stop it.' She thought before clearing her throat.

"Your—" She was cut short, her eyes widening as she could feel herself heat up more.

He was looking at her intently.

Immediately thinking of a way out of the current situation, Celestine looked around.

"Oh no! It's already so deep in the night. Who would have thought?" She said, voicing out a small, awkward laugh. She stood up and dusted off her robe, turning her head towards him, slightly bowing her head.

"Sorry... I'm sorry, Yo-Desidevious. I still have to help my mother and sisters this morning, I'll have to take my leave first." She said, almost fumbling her words.

'And aside from that, I don't want to repeat what happened before.' She thought as she repeatedly bowed and raised her head.

"It's alright, Celestine." He answered as he also stood up.

Both of them looked at each other in the eye with Celestine being the first one to avert, "I-I'll go now..." She said, trailing off before bowing again, dashing towards the entrance of the forest.

However, just before she could finally leave, she stopped in her tracks and turned her head towards the man in white.

She pondered for a while before swallowing all of her inhibitions, "W-Will you come again tomorrow night?" She asked with a reluctant expression, unable to restrain herself.

Desidevious smiled upon hearing her question, "It seems like right now, you are fairly tired, and as you have said, you'll be helping your family this morning." He said, chuckling as he saw her dimming expression.

"I under—"

"For the now, rest with all the time that you have..." He said, trailing off as Celestine nodded her head embarrassed.

Quickly, she turned her body once again but was halted due to his next statement.

"If you want to meet, we can. The day after tomorrow, at the same time as now, I will wait for you here." He said, smiling. Celestine looked back, her expression was the same as his—joyful.

"I will not leave before we see each other!" He shouted, his voice echoing throughout the forest making Celestine blush in embarrassment.

She nodded her head repeatedly, "Then, don't leave until you see me, alright?!" She answered, shouting back at him.

Both of them laughed at each other's foolishness.

They both smiled at each other, with Celestine waving her hand before running out of the forest, throwing him her final glance, "I'll see you, the day after tomorrow!" She shouted and left.

Looking at the fading figure of Celestine, the gleeful smile on Desidevious's face slowly disappeared into a cold and stoic expression.

Soon, he swiftly climbed up a tree, and without any word, in an agile and unseen movement, his whole person soared up, high into the sky.

After repeatedly taking his steps, rising and falling against the thick branches of the trees, he disappeared in the direction opposite to Celestine, not leaving a single trace.