When they finally arrived at the Holy Star Kingdom, Grace chose to return home, so they parted ways.

Richard had already told her everything—that he would pay one installment of the Holy Star Kingdom's debt.

It was the demand of Lilith and the entire royal family for their marriage.

Of course, Richard could easily reach the capital.

The capital city of a kingdom—this was still a very large city in his eyes, even though he had just returned from the largest city in the Eastern Region, which in sheer size was far bigger.

Still, the capital of the Holy Star Kingdom had its own uniqueness because it was built atop mountains.

The sky was still bright when Richard arrived.

Only a few days had passed since he left. Naturally, the Holy Star Kingdom was still busy rebuilding the kingdom.

It was something that could not be completed in a short time.

Fortunately, there were still many strong people loyal to the kingdom.

Richard was not in a hurry to go to the palace. From a distance, he saw that it was extremely crowded, so he chose to descend at random.

After wandering for a while, he found himself standing in front of Sophia Whitewater's residence—the lover of his father, who had given birth to his younger brother.

However, he didn't sense anyone inside that residence.

The woman seemed to have left. Richard, who planned to ask about his younger brother, had no choice but to leave again.

He kept walking until he saw a red-haired youth around his age.

Who else but the son of the Red Star Empress, Prince Alex.

He was standing in front of a large residence, even larger than Sophia Whitewater's.

However, he looked uneasy, as if hesitating on whether he should proceed or not.

This prince had a timid, indecisive personality. Richard wasn't surprised to see him like this, especially at this age.

However, Richard didn't intend to pry into his business.

He approached simply because they knew each other.

The prince seemed startled when he saw Richard appear nearby.

"Where is your mother? How is she?" Richard asked.

What else could he talk about but the Red Star Empress' condition?

After all, she was the only one he was close to in the Holy Star Kingdom.

"My mother has recovered. She went out to meet her friends since this morning," Prince Alex replied.

"Meeting her friends?" Richard didn't expect that.

But thinking about it, the Red Star Empress had once been a young woman. How could she not have friends from her youth, such as friends from Magic Academy?

Considering she was no longer an empress and her husband had passed away, it was natural for her to resume the activities of a normal person.

Overall, the Red Star Empress could still be considered young.

However, Prince Alex didn't seem to know exactly where she went. It should only be somewhere within this city. Richard didn't ask further; he said goodbye and continued walking, circling around the city.

He visited the lively districts filled with shops.

In reality, he had only seen a small portion of the city so far. There were still many areas he had never visited.

There were quite a number of entertainment spots as well.

"Richard!"

As he continued walking, suddenly someone called his name.

He was slightly surprised—it was clearly the voice of the Red Star Empress.

Richard looked around and found the woman sitting in a luxurious restaurant, right beside a second-floor window that seemed to be a private room.

No—after examining it more carefully, it was only a restaurant on the surface.

Their shelves were filled with high-quality wine.

Looking more closely, he noticed the Red Star Empress' cheeks were tinged red—clearly, she was somewhat drunk.

Even so, she still looked neat in her deep-purple dress that made her appear younger, with her hair flowing down her shoulders.

Compared to the last time, her hair looked less curly.

The woman waved at Richard, signaling him to come.

Richard didn't even need to enter through the restaurant door. With a single step, he could appear beside the window.

At first he thought the Red Star Empress was alone. Then he noticed three other women who seemed to be around her age.

The difference was—those three were completely wasted. One struggled to keep her eyes open; another couldn't even blink; the last looked like she was panting and having trouble breathing.

They were all beautiful and charming even while disheveled, seemingly unaware that their legs were nearly exposed due to their loosened dresses.

It was no surprise considering the absurd number of empty wine bottles.

Not ten, not twenty—but more than fifty.

Richard's nose twitched; the smell of alcohol was extremely strong.

These women were clearly nobles who usually appeared elegant—one of them being the Red Star Empress herself.

Richard did not expect their gathering to be no different from rowdy teenagers.

"Your Majesty," Richard said instinctively.

"Don't call me that anymore. I am no longer an empress. Call me by my name—Maya," she replied with a frown, clearly displeased that Richard still addressed her formally.

Richard had forgotten she asked him to stop calling her "Your Majesty" before—but since he had never actually tried calling her by name, of course he wasn't used to it.

"Maya, who is this handsome young man? Is he your new lover?" one of the drunken women suddenly teased, barely able to keep her eyes open—yet seemingly the one with the clearest vision among them.

Richard froze upon hearing that.

Then another added, "Hahaha, Maya, how lucky you are. Being the first widow lets you be the first to get a new lover!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, I want a new lover too, but that damned bastard is still alive."

Richard: "…"

"Ahem…" The Red Star Empress cleared her throat, though she didn't look particularly embarrassed.

Although her mind was much clearer than her friends', she was still drunk—so big matters felt small, and small matters felt irrelevant.

"You all, stop talking nonsense. This young man is the star of our Holy Star Kingdom." She attempted to introduce Richard properly.

But the women seemed not to hear anything.

Their gazes remained fixed on Richard—looking at him as nothing more than a handsome man, not caring about his identity.

Naturally, Richard felt extremely awkward being stared at by a group of married noblewomen like that.

He gave the Red Star Empress a look, signaling that they should leave.

Fortunately, she understood.

She stood up—but the moment she did, she suddenly staggered.

Richard instinctively caught her.

And his eyes widened—her soft chest pressed firmly against his shoulder.

More importantly, her neck was directly in front of his mouth.

It carried a faint, intoxicating fragrance—a drunk mature woman's scent that clouded the mind.

Richard's thoughts flew everywhere.

Fortunately, the empress managed to stand properly afterward.

"Sorry, I guess I sat too long," she said.

Richard rolled his eyes slightly, unsure what to say.

She could still walk, though her steps were clearly unstable.

If she walked on the streets like this, it wouldn't be surprising if she hit a wall after a few steps.

Fortunately, she had a carriage pulled by flying horses.

The carriage flew up to the window, allowing her to enter directly without going downstairs.

"Richard, come… Leave them here, they'll head home once they sober up," she said, inviting him inside.

Richard entered and sat across from her.

To him, she was truly different from the empress he knew.

Whether she had genuinely begun to change due to her new life, or this was just alcohol talking—

It was most likely the latter, since Richard knew her personality was fundamentally fixed.

"Sister Maya, perhaps you should go home and rest," Richard said.

This time, he tried calling her by her name. Naturally, calling her sister was easier too, since she had suggested it last time.

"I just went out today. It's too soon for me to go home," she replied.

"Don't worry, I'm still stable enough."

"I don't think so," Richard murmured softly.

Of course, she heard him clearly.

She responded immediately.

"What's wrong, Richard? Is it because my drunk friends called you my new lover, so you're scared to accompany me? Don't tell me you don't want it? The widow of a king?"

Cough! Cough! Cough!

Richard coughed uncontrollably—though he shouldn't physically need to cough at all.

This wasn't him pretending. His brain simply sent the reflex.

The empress was far more drunk than he anticipated.

But perhaps because of her power, she could still function physically.

However, her mind was tangled like messy threads—and anything could come out of her mouth.

With the conversation turning like this, Richard felt extremely chaotic.

And somehow, he blurted out a question—

"Do you want it with me, Sister Maya?"

Richard wanted to slap himself, wondering why he responded like that.

"If you confess your love to me, I might accept you. Hahaha—dating a handsome young man like you sounds fun. And honestly, I'm touched that you came to rescue me from that prison."

Richard: "…"

Cough!

This time, the empress was the one coughing as she suddenly held her head, looking shocked and confused.

"What did I just say?"

She seemed dizzy all of a sudden.

Perhaps her true consciousness was trying to force its way back after realizing her drunken self was causing trouble.

And the result made her dazed.

Her eyes became unfocused, her breathing unstable.

Before Richard realized it, the woman's eyes closed.

He wasn't sure if she had fallen asleep—or fainted.

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