In the Name of Empress-Chapter 471 - 316: Blood, That’s Blood!

She could probably guess the source of Roland’s irritability.

It had been a long time since Sylph had sent a letter; it seemed there was indeed some friction between them.

Perhaps a few glasses of strong liquor could lead Roland to pour out his heart.

If it were a trivial conflict, she would persuade them not to take it seriously.

If it were an irreconcilable conflict...

Though Jin Yuan Kingdom couldn’t find a beauty with the stunning looks and charm of Sylph, perhaps they could make up the deficiency in numbers.

In any case, if Sussex wasn’t a home, Jin Yuan could provide one.

She promised.

Opening the door, Alina gestured to the maid to roll the dining cart in, gave a few more instructions, and then hurried off to her own bedroom.

Looking at the face in the mirror, with its tender pink hue touched with a bit of blush, Alina’s heartbeat quickened slightly.

Was the beauty in the mirror really her?

Every day, the maids helped her with her makeup, and she never really scrutinized it carefully.

Perhaps it was the joy of a happy occasion, her skin glowed more than before.

She couldn’t resist pinching it, white with a hint of red, soft and springy, she almost wanted to pinch it again.

Alina bit her lip, applied a simple light makeup, and opened her wardrobe.

The clothes hanging here were all top-notch, personally designed and crafted by renowned fashion designers from the two countries of Jin Yuan and Talia.

Rather than clothes, they were more like works of art.

Alina’s gaze wandered from the left to the right of her wardrobe, landing on the last translucent milky-white high-slit long dress.

Her cheeks turned even redder.

When she had first received this dress, she had tactfully criticized Madam Yilian.

"Elaine, this kind of dress doesn’t suit me," she had said.

"Miss, it suits you very well; it can perfectly show off your graceful curves and seductive charms."

"Take it away, I don’t want it."

Thus, the dress hung in the corner of the wardrobe.

Though she had never worn it, she hadn’t thrown it away either.

Such a contradictory person.

Alina couldn’t help mocking the person who said they didn’t want the dress but couldn’t bear to throw it away.

Perhaps she could try it tonight?

She didn’t want to showcase her subtle beauty to anyone, but Roland was an exception.

After all, they were best friends, and occasionally showing off to a friend was quite reasonable.

Anyway, Roland wouldn’t be tempted.

He already had the most beautiful Sylph in the world.

Thinking of this, Alina felt nine-tenths dejected, but also one-tenth indignant.

Even if Sylph possessed the most flawless beauty in the world, was the garden only filled with roses? Who said the passionate romance of iris wasn’t worth noticing?

Alina spun around, her outfit change completed.

After a moment’s hesitation, she took out a pair of crystal high heels from the bottom of the wardrobe.

The fully transparent shoes could elevate her delicate jade-like feet, forming a perfect curve.

Whether worn or not didn’t make much difference, they were just more enticing.

The thought of Roland unable to help himself from staring at the crystal shoes added a flush to her cheeks, concealing even the color of her light pink lipstick.

With her outfit complete, and full of confidence in her feminine allure, Alina stepped toward Roland’s bedchamber.

This had once been the Old Empire Empress’s chamber.

She had long since appropriated the Emperor’s chamber, when arranging things for Roland she hadn’t thought much, directly assigning him the most revered chamber, only thinking it was inappropriate afterward but found it difficult to change.

Better not to mention it, once spoken Roland might overthink it.

Alina walked elegantly into the chamber, seeing Roland holding a wine glass in a daze.

"Sir, pardon the intrusion. I am Alina, an international student at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts. My final assignment is to paint the portrait of a melancholic nobleman, could you help me?"

A soft voice rang out.

Roland was startled for a moment, suddenly remembering this was the conversation when he and Alina first met.

Back then, he wasn’t a noble, now he was.

Back then, his mood wasn’t melancholic but rather wanted to die, now there was indeed some sorrow.

Time really flies.

Roland felt a strange hint of sadness, softly murmuring, "I’m a high-tier noble, you know, my modeling fees aren’t cheap."

"It’s alright, I have money."

Alina sat across from Roland, snapped her fingers, and all the Magic Lamps in the room went out.

Red and blue moonlight filled the room, candles on the candlesticks lighting up one after the other.

"The candles were already set up, not lighting them would be a waste," Alina smiled and explained.

Roland did not seriously retort that candles could also be recycled if not used.

He was no longer that dense man; he could vaguely feel Alina’s emotions.

But he also knew clearly that this was not romantic affection between a man and a woman.

Unlike Sylph, Alina’s affection held seven parts gratitude and compensation, two parts camaraderie from life and death experiences, at most one part was the hazy attraction between a man and a woman.

He knew well that if he cast a coveting glance, Alina would come into his embrace tonight, but he wouldn’t do that.

This friendship was already complete; the feeling of not being lovers was actually quite nice.

Moreover, he disliked using coercion on those close to him.

Even mild coercion.

Perhaps their friendship would change someday, but not now, not tonight.

Alina meticulously dressed up tonight and repeated the lines from when they first met; it’s hard to say whether she had any complicated thoughts, but it certainly wasn’t pure love.

Only when he’s with Sylph is there pure mutual attraction.

He suddenly had a yearning for home, missing his wife, the tender red lips, the passionate embrace under the hot spring, and the ethereal calmness of entering Wise Man mode.

Raising his glass, Roland said loudly, "Alright, tonight I will be your model, but the subject of the painting isn’t a melancholic nobleman but a husband missing his wife."