"Do you want to stay in my chamber?" the king asked.
I blushed. Surely, the people around us heard that. Or maybe the king was putting on an act to deceive them?
He leaned closer to my face and whispered,
"I'm serious. Have you forgotten my confession? That I want everything to be real?"
Awkward...
I wanted to pull away, but people were watching us. I didn't want them to think we were just pretending.
"What are we going to do in your chamber?" I asked—without thinking. The moment the words left my mouth, I realized I had triggered everyone's imagination, including the king's.
He gave a mischievous smile. "What do you want to do?"
That's when it hit me—I asked the wrong question.
"I didn't mean..." My face turned red. The king burst out laughing at my reaction.
I frowned. Will he still laugh like this when he sees the woman he once loved?
"I think I've helped you enough today. I'm going back to my chamber," I said, trying to pull my hand away, but he didn't let go.
"Let's just walk around a bit before you go back. I'm full. I need to exercise."
I didn't argue. I just let him lead the way.
We walked in silence, passing by the lake. The king seemed to be enjoying the peaceful moment—until his head eunuch suddenly approached us.
The eunuch whispered something to him. I couldn't hear the words, but I noticed the king slowly letting go of my hand, his face turning serious.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, for leaving you like this. I have an important meeting. They need me urgently," he said.
I nodded. "It's okay. You don't have to worry about me. I'm heading back to my chamber." I smiled.
"I'll visit your chamber later," he said before leaving.
I sighed. I hope everything will be fine.
As I retraced my steps, I noticed a familiar face nearby. It was the chef—he seemed busy drying food. That yogurt earlier...
I walked over.
"Your Highness," the chef said, noticing me and bowing.
"Hey," I replied.
"Do you need anything?"
"What are you doing?"
"Drying some fish."
I glanced at my servants and subtly signaled them to step back, wanting to speak with him privately.
"I just wanted to say that I enjoyed the food you prepared."
"It's nothing, Your Highness."
I didn't reply right away, trying to find the right timing.
"Is there anything else you need, Your Highness?"
"I want to ask about the yogurt..."
He looked at me blankly. "What about it, Your Highness?"
"How did you know how to make it?"
"You mean how I learned to make it?"
I nodded.
"I used cow's milk and—"
I cut him off. "Who are you?"
"What?"
"I'm sure yogurt doesn't exist in this era. Even the king didn't know about it. So—who are you?"
His brows furrowed. He looked confused—or maybe he was just pretending.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Your Highness."
"Stop lying, Chef. Tell me the truth."
"I am telling the truth. I just know how to make yogurt."
I frowned. He clearly had no intention of being honest.
"What now? You keep staring at me."
"And now you're dropping the honorifics," I said, my tone sharpening.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness."
"Are you going to tell me the truth, or should I have you jailed?" I warned, trying to assert my authority.
He scowled at my threat.
"Geez… Are you going to kill me, too?"
Geez? That word confirmed it. He was like me.
"I shouldn't have used my yogurt recipe. That gave me away," he muttered, shaking his head.
"How did you end up here?"
"I wanted to be a royal chef."
"Since when?" I asked.
"Is this an interrogation? Geez, I was just working quietly until you showed up."
"How did you get here? Do copies of this book exist in your world?"
"Yeah. Debris in My Heart."
I gasped—even though I already suspected it. Hearing it out loud gave me hope. Maybe I could finish this book with a happy ending.
"How about you?" he asked, totally dropping the honorifics now.
"How about me?" I replied.
"Yeah. Since you figured me out and you're the only one who knew what yogurt was, you're clearly not one of them."
I sighed.
"How did you get here? Did the book absorb you?"
"Yeah."
"Since when?"
"I don't know. Our time here is different from our time."
"You went back?"
"How did you know?"
"You wouldn't talk about the time difference if you hadn't."
"Yeah."
"Why did you go back again?"
"I still have a mission."
"A mission to serve the country as a queen?" he chuckled.
"A mission to protect the king... and the person who helped me."
"Captain Min Yun?"
I gasped again. "How did you know?"
He laughed. "I'm a reader, you know."
"If you know about me, why didn't you approach me?"
"For what? To tell you, 'Hey, I'm not part of this world'?"
I laughed. "How did you become the royal chef?"
"Someone helped me, just like someone helped you."
I nodded. "Just like me..."
"But unlike you, I'm just an extra character in this story. I might appear in some scenes, but not all the time."
"Are you longing to go back to our world?"
"Longing to go back? Nah. I'm okay here. Less stress, fewer expectations."
"But being a royal chef is a bit stressful."
"Not compared to our world."
"Care to share?"
"Wouldn't your servants be puzzled why you came here to talk to me?"
I glanced at my servants, who were patiently waiting for me.
"Can we be friends?" I asked directly.
"A queen wants to be friends with her royal chef?"
"Why not? I'm not even actually a real queen."
"Yeah..."
"So, do you want me to be your friend?" I asked again.
"Let me think about it."
I frowned.
He laughed at me. "I don't want to get involved in your so-called mission. I just want a peaceful life."
"I'm not asking you to be involved. I'm just asking you to be my friend."
"But since you know about me, and I know about you, we're connected, right? Even if I don't want that to happen… It's bound to happen."
What was he thinking? I couldn't even read his mind because of how he answered.
"Okay. I agree to be your friend. I just realized that I need connections in this world." Then he laughed.
Okay… so he agreed because he needs a connection. What is he up to?
"So are we done talking now? I need to prepare food in the kitchen."
I nodded. "I'll be visiting you often."
"Yeah, sure, my friend." I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not. But one thing was for sure—I wasn't alone in this world. There was someone I could run to, someone I could talk to about our world. Though Min Yun knew about my world, it still felt different to talk to someone who came from the same place.
"Bye," I said, then walked away. He didn't seem like a villain to me. He just wanted to stay away from a world full of stress and pressure.
"Did you know the royal chef, Your Majesty?" the head court lady asked.
"Yes," I replied.
I thought my servant would ask more questions, but she remained silent.
We returned to my chamber. Before lying down, I changed into my sleeping clothes.
"Your Majesty, would you like some tea?" the court lady asked.
"Yes, please."
She bowed before leaving the chamber.
I sat on my bed and looked out the window. It was getting darker now. I could already see the moon and the stars in the sky.
How was Min Yun doing now? How was the king? Even though I saw the king earlier today, I couldn't help but worry. I was worried about Min Yun, too. He'd been so busy that I hadn't seen him all day.
Should I visit him in his office? But it was already night, and I wasn't sure if he was still there.
I sighed. Maybe I'd just sit here and watch the night sky—the stars and the moon.
"Your Majesty, your tea is here," the court lady said.
I didn't even realize she had already come in.
"Thank you." I got off the bed and walked to the table where she had placed the tea.
"Do you need anything else?"
"No. But please inform me if Min Yun or the king comes here."
"Should I wake you up?"
"I don't think I'll sleep yet. I'll probably stay up late again."
She nodded and quietly left the room.
I grabbed the book from the bedside table and opened it. I reread Chapter 16.
I forgot to ask the chef if he also had the book. Should I ask him next time I see him? He mentioned earlier that he was just an extra. So now that I've become the queen, does that mean I'm no longer just an extra, but part of the main characters?
I sipped my tea while holding the book.
Right! The chef might be able to help me prevent the villain's plan to ruin the food. I should tell him that the book warned me about the upcoming event.
But what about the performances? What should I do to stop that?
I was so deep in thought that I didn't even notice Min Yun had entered my chamber.
"I-jun?" he called again, snapping his fingers in front of my face.
"Oh! Min Yun! You're already here!"
"Were you expecting me?"
"Actually, no. But I was hoping."
"Why?"
"I haven't seen you all day."
"Did you miss me already?" he asked with a sparkle in his eyes.
Right. I had almost forgotten that he had already confessed… and even kissed me.
"It's about the warning from the book."
"Ah, yes. I almost forgot."
"We already did the food tasting with the king earlier. And guess what?"
"What?"
"The chef is my friend now."
"Do you know him?"
"Yes. I met him a while ago—because of that yogurt." I laughed.
"Yogurt?"
"A dessert in our world."
"How is it connected to the chef?"
"He's just like me. He came from my world, too."
His face showed shock.
"How is that even possible?"
"I was puzzled too. Maybe I'm not the only one who ended up here... but I haven't met the others."
"Did he know about you as well?"
"Yes. He figured it out because I was the only one who asked about yogurt."
"I want to meet him. How did he become the royal chef? Did someone help him, too, just like I did when you first arrived?"
I nodded. "That's very possible. We wouldn't have survived here without help from people in this world."
He nodded, too, but didn't respond right away.
"By the way, I know you're busy preparing for the event, but I wanted to let you know that the villain might try to ruin the performances."
"Yeah... I've been trying to figure that out too."
"Why don't we secretly recruit new performers?"
"And where would we find them?"
"Outside the palace. Maybe we can start tomorrow? Let's not tell the king for now—he'll start questioning why we're recruiting performers."
"With the limited time we have, can they perform well?"
"I'm not sure… but it's worth a try. At least we'll have a backup plan."
"Okay. I'll follow your lead."
"Let's meet tomorrow evening. I know you have work in the morning—I don't want to disturb you. I'll also help the king before we go."
He nodded again.
"I hope next week's event goes smoothly," I said.
"Let's make sure everything turns out okay."
I nodded in agreement.
And that ended our conversation. The king didn't visit my chamber—perhaps he was still busy with work. That's why I woke up early the next morning to visit him and bring him breakfast.
"Your Highness, Her Majesty is here," the head eunuch announced.
No response.
He repeated it. Still, there was no reply.
"Let me in. I need to check on him."
The eunuch nodded and opened the door. I instructed the court ladies carrying the trays of food to wait outside. They nodded in understanding.
Once I stepped inside, the eunuch closed the door behind me. I saw the king sleeping peacefully, dressed in a white silk sleeping robe. I could hear his gentle snores.
He looked like a baby while sleeping. I thought he had trouble sleeping at night? But right now, he looked so calm, despite the pressure and stress he was under.
I quietly sat beside his bed and found myself thinking again about the woman he once loved. What if they reunite someday? What if he realizes he's still in love with her? What would happen to me?
Shouldn't I be happy if I'm free, so Min Yun and I can finally do the things we've always wanted?
But what if rumors start that the king disposed of me just to be with her again?
How would that make me feel?
Right now, I don't even know what I'm feeling. But one thing's for sure—I'll be hurt if he lets me go. Not because I'm in love with him, but because of the effort and sacrifices I made just to come back and help him.
Still, whatever happens, I need to accept it. After all… I don't belong here.
"You've been staring at me for a while now."
I flinched when I heard his voice.
"Do you like my handsome face?" he teased with a smirk.
I frowned. "No."
"Really?"
He sat up and leaned in closer to me. Even though he just woke up, his breath surprisingly smelled good. I couldn't help but notice it.
"Your face is too close to mine," I said, turning away—but he gently lifted my chin with his finger.
"My mornings are already perfect. I get to see the queen of this country… and my wife."
I blushed. Was he drunk? No… he seemed completely sober.
"Let me go..." I said softly.
"I don't want to let you go," he replied, his voice just as gentle—yet there was a yearning in his tone.
I couldn't speak. If I did, our lips might accidentally touch.
"Let's make everything real..."
I didn't respond.
"Let's make a baby."