I’m the Only One Who Can Put the Tyrant To Sleep Chapter 130 - End of Main Story

The news of my marriage with Caesar was announced immediately.

Many people sent surprised looks, but there weren’t as many sharp or hostile gazes as I had feared. No doubt this was thanks to the fact that many nobles who sided with Ian had already been dealt with.

I spent a whirlwind of a month. Caesar had said all I had to do was choose what I wanted, but even that wasn’t easy. There was far too much to choose from.

Fortunately, just as Caesar had said, the chief lady-in-waiting of the Imperial Palace was a true veteran. From her, I was able to learn the etiquette of an imperial wedding.

While I was busy with all of this, Caesar was just as busy in his own way. He had to deal not only with matters inside the empire but also with those beyond. Informing other nations of our marriage and showing the proper courtesies took more effort than expected.

And so, paradoxically, though we were preparing for our wedding, we hardly even saw each other for a whole month.

Finally, on the day of the wedding, I opened my eyes wide and sat up in bed at dawn—before the sun had even risen.

It’s today!

It didn’t feel real that the day I had counted down to for a month had finally arrived. Often, I had wished it would all just be over as soon as possible. But now that the day was here, I wished I had just a little more time.

As I was sorting through those mixed feelings, gazing out the dimly lit window, a knock came. It was Tiaran.

“Come in.”

Tiaran entered with the maids from House Chester. He strode in proudly, both hands full with the dress.

“Are you ready, Lady Chester?”

“Well… yes…”

“Then up you get!”

Tiaran pulled the curtains open and lit every lamp in the room. Flooded with light, I squeezed my eyes shut and took a deep breath.

It’s really today. By the end of today, I’ll be married to Caesar.

When I opened my eyes again, I jumped out of bed as if spring-loaded.

“Alright. Let’s do this quickly!”

There was no time to sink into pointless sentimentality.

After I washed and came out, Tiaran and the maids were in the middle of a heated debate. Tiaran was in charge of the dress, while the maids handled the headpieces and accessories—but clearly, they couldn’t agree.

“The dress isn’t that flashy, so the necklace needs to be big!” one maid argued.

Tiaran’s face flushed with excitement.

“Not flashy?! This dress has a kind of brilliance on a whole different level from just slapping on jewels! To bring out the true beauty of the dress, the accessories must be as minimal as possible!”

“Who cares about the true beauty of the dress? What matters is the true beauty of our lady!”

“Um, maybe we should start with the dress fir—”

I was just about to step in and mediate when there came another knock at the door.

“At this hour? Who could it be?”

Puzzled, since there was no one else I was expecting, I opened the door. Standing there was Floria.

“Evelyn!”

“Your Highness?”

Floria had arrived with the maids of the Princess’s Palace. She strode into the center of the room, then spun in a full circle.

“How do I look?”

The wide skirt of her dress billowed gracefully as she moved.

“It looks wonderful on you! But… Your Highness, you’re already finished getting ready?”

“Yes! I had plenty to prepare too, you know!”

At today’s wedding, Floria would play an important role as both Caesar’s only sibling and the daughter of the late empress. With their parents long gone, Floria was Caesar’s only living family.

The Empress Dowager, who had mended much of her relationship with Caesar, had also agreed to attend. But since Floria was the only one tied to him by blood, her role carried special weight.

“And this! I came early because I thought I wouldn’t have another chance to give it to you.”

At her signal, one of her maids stepped forward and handed me a box—luxurious at a glance.

“What’s this?”

“My wedding gift! Open it!”

Inside were a pair of earrings and a necklace. The earrings had small, sparkling jewels, while the necklace was made simply of pearls without much adornment.

“Your Highness, this is…”

Its simplicity made it all the more striking. Neither the jewels nor the pearls were ordinary. Compared to the other gifts Floria had previously forced on me, this was even more extravagant.

“This is too—”

“No!”

I tried to hand the box back as usual, but Floria stopped me firmly.

“Now I’m allowed to give you things like this. Because from today on, Evelyn, you’re my family!”

As if rehearsed, her words left me blinking in shock.

She was right. This wasn’t the princess giving a gift to a maid, nor to a stranger. After today, I would become part of the imperial family, Floria’s family.

It wasn’t simply about becoming Caesar’s wife. Today’s wedding carried far greater meaning.

“Your Highness…”

Moved by the sudden realization, I looked at her with misty eyes.

“Thank you. I’ll wear them today.”

“Really? Truly?” Floria bounced with joy.

“Then hurry and put on your dress, Evelyn! I want to be the very first to see!”

“What? But it’ll take some time. I still need to get my hair and everything—”

I said it shyly, but Floria was steadfast.

“That’s fine. I’ll wait. I’ve got plenty of time!”

The princess’s maids, as if waiting for this moment, brought over a chair. Floria sat down, eyes shining, fists clenched, staring at me eagerly. There was no way I could refuse.

In the end, I began my preparations right in front of her.

First was my hair. I had chosen to wear it down naturally—but achieving a “natural” look required even more time and effort.

Afterward, I put on the accessories Floria had brought. Even Tiaran and the maids, who had been squabbling, had no objections this time.

Finally, I stepped behind the screen and, with the maids’ help, put on the dress.

Layer upon layer of underskirts, then Tiaran’s final inspection—at last, the screen was pulled back.

“Waaah…!”

Floria, who had been waiting the whole time, covered her mouth with both hands in awe.

“Evelyn!”

Tiaran hurried over with a mirror. I studied myself closely.

The dress had an off-shoulder design, with leaf-shaped decorations along the neckline—taken from the design of the ring Caesar had given me.

The skirt spread wide, layered with translucent fabric that gave it both a mystical and voluminous air. With each step, it swayed gently, radiating elegance.

Overall, the silhouette was cute, but with Floria’s accessories, it didn’t look frivolous.

“Now, the final touch.”

With a serious face, Tiaran slowly draped the veil over my head.

I turned to Floria with a shy smile. She let out another cheer.

“Waaah!”

As if announcing that all preparations were finally complete.

 

 

 

 

*****

 

 

 

 

 

By the time preparations were complete, the sun was already high in the sky.
With the maids’ help, I left my room and headed toward the Imperial Garden.

From there, Caesar and I were to meet, then march together along the long path leading to the grand ballroom.

Since we had rehearsed the route yesterday, I wasn’t worried about getting lost, but my hands kept dampening with nervous sweat.

“From here, you will go alone,” the chief lady-in-waiting of the Imperial Palace said at the garden’s entrance, giving me a nod. I stepped slowly into the garden.

Once inside, it was so quiet it was as if the earlier commotion had been a lie. A few more steps ahead would be the ballroom full of guests, but for now, it felt as though only the flowers and I existed here.

After walking for some time, I stopped at a round gazebo. According to what I had learned yesterday, Caesar would appear from the path to the right.

“Huu…”

What would he look like? The thought of seeing him after hardly meeting at all for a whole month made me all the more tense. As I stood still, dabbing the sweat off my hands on my skirt, I saw a figure pushing through the flowers. It was Caesar.

“Ah…”

Unconsciously, my lips parted. Caesar was dressed in a black uniform that suited him perfectly, and in his hands he carried a bouquet.

I immediately recognized it as the same bouquet I had once given him—blue delphiniums with little yellow wildflowers tucked in between, hand-picked by me.

Thankfully, now it was decorated with sheer white fabric and ribbon, so it didn’t look shabby like back then.

“Your Majesty, this is… Don’t tell me you’ve kept it all this time?”

“There couldn’t be a better day for it. Today is the day my dream comes true.”

Caesar strode up and took my hand. His body was stiff, as though he too was slightly nervous.

“Then… shall we go?”

“…Yes!”

We began walking through the garden together.

“These flowers… did you choose them?” Caesar asked, noticing the abundance of blue blooms lining the path. I smiled faintly and replied:

“Yes, they’re the same color as Your Majesty’s eyes, aren’t they?”

It was a memory from childhood—when I had asked if delphinium flowers resembled Floria’s hair color. Caesar seemed to be remembering the same thing, because he gave a small laugh.

“I see.”

After that, we said nothing more. We didn’t need words—our eyes told us everything about our thoughts and feelings.

At last, we entered the ballroom. Majestic music swelled, and countless guests rose to their feet, gazing at us.

Duke Bryden, who had been deeply shaken by Ian’s rebellion, seemed somewhat recovered as he applauded. Alvin and Olche clapped fervently from the side, while Katana practically jumped with excitement.

In the very front row, the Empress Dowager smiled warmly, while Floria clasped her hands tightly, her face filled with joy.

Passing by them all, we stood before the altar. An elderly man presiding over the ceremony turned to Caesar and asked:

“Do you, the groom, vow to love the bride forever?”

As if he had been waiting only for this moment, Caesar answered without a shred of hesitation:

“Yes.”

“And do you, the bride, vow to love the groom forever?”

With a radiant smile, I replied:

“…Yes.”

After the long officiant’s speech, at last, we came to the final part of the ceremony.

Standing at the center of the stage, we faced each other. I slowly closed my eyes. For a moment, it felt as if the cheers, applause, and majestic music had all fallen silent. All I could hear was the sound of breath drawing closer.

Then Caesar’s lips touched mine. And once again, the cheers, applause, and music filled the air.

I felt our joined lips curve into a smile. Without realizing it, I was smiling too.

Caesar’s breath flowed into me. Even without the old sensation of trembling waves, I knew.

That in this moment, we were happier than ever before.

 

 

I’m the Only One Who Can Put the Tyrant To Sleep- End of Main Story