SPOILER
I have read the novel and I want to share some "points" (๑•ㅂ•)و✧
PS: it is loooooonggg
1) Lucius (emperor) is still in love with Pol but he feels bad for her wives so he tries not to see and forget her. That is why even when she asks for permission to get marry with Frau Sneke (fat doctor) he gave permission even thought he knew Frau is not acceptable candidate but Pol liked Sneke.
2) About wives: In a few chapters, Rebecca gets pregnant and her health was so bad. But 2 wives and emperor had to go to Nanaba (ex capital) for a national holiday so they take Pol too leaving Rebecca alone in Yaba. Lucius hunts a big deer for Pol to eat, while Stra looks at half dead animal (even pol warns her), deer tries to kick Stra, but Pol take it and she broke her ribs. Lucius runs to her and they cancel event, and take Pol to castle. Emperor gets angry at her and orders to live and not to risk her life for anyone, even for him. At the same time there is a messenger from capital, Ainno and Lucius prepares to go back Yaba and he orders Pol stay in Nanaba until her ribs fully healed with his wives. She waits for 1 month but she is crazy worried for Rebecca. So Pol leaves 2 wiwes in Nanaba and goes back to Yaba. By the way, Pol gets her period back thanks to kick from deer.
When Pol reaches capital, Rebecca is dead, they did funreal 2 days before, child is a girl and premature baby. Everybody says"she died in a vain because it is girl", even Rebecca's mother apologized emperor for it. Lucius doesnt want to see her daughter because of his fear losing her too, He just drinks alchohol in his room. Pol wants to console emperor, but emperor rejects him and says "get out of WINTER" (it broke my heart). Pol feels too lonely, so she puts herself in self-punisment for a month at home, when Frau takes care of her ribs, she accepts his proposal because of her loneliness.
Before wiwes leaving Nanaba, Tory's grandfater gives her the rarest alcohol for her make Stra drink it while celebrating Rebecca's death. Wives comes back and now everybody wants to make them compete and Tory (my fav wive) starts to learn politic and economic definitions from Pol secretly, she doesnt believe any maids. Stra organizes emperor's birthday event, all elders from Nanaba are invited, for her perfect job Tory gives her the rarest wine, even emperor gulps, but Tory doesnt let her drink and says her grandfather put poision in it, Tory's maids broke the bottle and tells she put the poision. Elders objects and call her crazy woman, but she starts to list their corruption and everything. She orders knights to arrest all elders but they dont. Tory feels powerless and Pol screams "what are you waiting for, didnt you hear? Arrest all of them" and show begins, grandfather screams at Tory and throws a knife at her, again, Pol takes it for her at the shoulder. I liked here because first think she calculated what to do in her retirement if it is permanently, then"oh it is a flesh wound, I dont have to retire"
So, Tory loses her nobility and their marriage with emperor is invalid. At the same time, Stra's family is founded to poision Tory and Stra, so she takes responsibility and divorces Lucius. And she says emperor to marry Pol because he loves her. Emperor is shocked
3) Frau:He is noble born doctor thrown away from her family because of his relationship with a maid. Pol think he wants to work for her so she accepts his dinner offer. when she asks how much salary he wants, she gets nervous and screams " i want to porpose to you because I am interested in your money" in a restaurant and now all city now it. She rejects him and becomes friends with him. In some time, she starts to date with him
After the incident with emperor, Pol accepts Frau's propose, but because of the royal death, nobody can get marry or engage. But unofficially they start the preparetions. When Lucius learnt her deciosion from Ainno, he cries (I was crying too). Everybody is against their marriage bacause he is nobody and golddigger. but emperor gives permission because he sees how Pol is happy, as a result, people just complains, and everybody is shocked how Pol has changed. (it happens before his birthday) News reachs to the south, and then twin sister's mom heard about the name of Frau Sneke, she screams and sends Donau and Howe to stop her.
After Stra's encouragement, Lucius decides to propose to Pol and goes to her home with flowers and his mother's ring. But when he sees Frau treating Pol's wound from the grandfather (some time has passed after the incident), he understand she likes him and just leaves crying. but he saw Donau and Howe, they explain why she cant marry him, all loyal knights meet to decide how to kill Frau but emperor says he will take care of it without damaging Pol's name.
Frau wants to marry with a maid prevously (Pol and everybody knew this already) but Sneke family doest want to accept her as legal wife. but they elope and marry. his wife dies after childbirth but Snekes doesnt want to accept the son as Frau's heir so they kick him out. (yep, nobody knew this, thanks miss twin sister's mom ) child is in Nanaba with her other grandparents. Frau wants her son become next Marquess Winter and noble. "why a foreign woman can while his precious son cant". Pol treasure Winter name so she wants to give it to a worthy person.
Emperor spread the gossip about Frau's son being harmed during investigation of elders' crimes. Frau leaves to the village near Nanaba with lying to Pol. Lucius asks Pol for a picnic and takes her to the village. by coincidence, pol hears Frau promising his son to make her a noble, next marquess. Pol snaps and kick Frau with him holding the child. she doesnt kill him because of child but orders him to cut his own penis otherwise she will kill his son too. I liked it when she told everybody who she is at this scene
4)After little Frau's execution, Pol and Lucius goes to an inn and Pol brings a barrel alcohol to emperor's room. She gets drunk and make Lucius to drink too. They are wasted, Pol vents on the incident, while Lucius confesses "Pol, please love me". They have sex, Pol wakes up hangover next to emperor, she think they just slept, but after she finds the "evidences", she wakes the emperor "your highness I raped you". When he insists it should be him to take advantege of her, she reminds him the words " I would never sleep with an ugly woman like you. I would rather take a dirty prostitute to my bed" he said when they fist meet. Lucius was not even sure if he said something like that but he could not make her to believe. Lucius sees her panic and as he also doesnt remember how it become like this, he cant say his love (she wants to kill herself), so he says lets forget. They return to Yapa as emperor only remembers her breasts (he gropes the air)
Pol starts to remember how they did, she feels bad as she starts to see the emperor as a man, she swears never to drink and starts 1st Divisions' training which is hard to concentrate. But her period is late (doctors said she will not be late anymore) so she goes to 2 different midwives to check her and they confirm pregnancy. She can't kill emperor's child so she decided to leave capital to a near city, her own territory, to give birth. and she is not sure if emperor will believe to her if she talks with him about the pregnancy. if the child looks like her, no problem, she will forge documents and say its someone else's. if it looks like Lucius, she doesn't wan to think. (after learning pregnancy, she just loses and it is totally chaotic because of her panic). When emperor plans how to propose, Pol asks for the holiday. Lucius decides he will marry to the Pol, he will not have another wife and will not have a baby, so the son of his cousin will become heir. (he was not aware Pol's period)
She comes to Strin and tell her vassals she is pregnant and help her to give birth secretly. She can only eat a stew made during war, named Dow Stew. During her heavy period, Lucius gets worry and sends a auditor (Momo) to check Pol, fortunately he is Pol's old friend and he promises to keep it secret from the emperor. (he doesn't know the father). Emperor gets suspicious on his report "nothing significant to report" so he prepares for a tour whole continent. Pol doesn't let anyone on he territory and lives in a holiday house near he castle. only a few people know the baby. She gives birth to a blond son with green eyes, she calls him "Dog Stew". she thinks "fxxk, where is my DNA", and she loses more. After a little time, Lucius comes to the her castle. She thinks Lucius's Inteligence Office (which reports everything to emperor too fast) told him about the baby and she begs him to forgive her for hiding the birth of royal prince. (she didn't hear until the last moment, because Lucius's knight captivated all guards on the way, hahaha)
Lucius is happy and after seeing the baby, proposes her, Pol loses even more. She doesn't want to marry him because she will lose her everything and for Rebecca. She says "it is first time I hate to be born a women, because if I was a man, you would now love another knight". Lucius promises to find a way and have to go back to his tour.
Pol was totally in panic and depressing situation, she was afraid of the death too, so she can't feel as a mother and very cold to the baby. She calls Donau, he makes him to speak with emperor and takes her to Yapa, baby stay with the nannies. (She can't totally believe Lucius is in love with her)
Emperor starts to seduce her with his beauty, takes a break from government to take care of his appearances and even spread rumours to who city how he is one sidedly in love with his knightness. Everybody supports his marriage to her because of her power and the birth of Gerald (prince) is top secret from public, because he is out of wedding. Pol starts to fall for the Lucius to after his attacks (he plays very well and everybody is shocked how sweet he is with her), wedding preparations starts, she agrees because they can't leave Gerald as a bastard. Everybody treats her as the next empress and she stays in the palace as Lucius's guest. While playing with princess Luminae, she notices how bad she behaved to Gerald and wants to treat him better when she gets back.
While some little things happens, Pol decides she can't give up on her Winter surname. she goes to emperor with wearing her armour, (normally it is treason, but she is next empress nobody says anything) emperor is in a meeting with officials. it continues:
-your highness, do you love me?
-yes, Pol
-can you give up on your kingdom for me?
-no
-I love you too, and I can't give up my surname. you can take my title and confiscate my all wealth, you can do anything, but I can give up on my Winter
He understands her and gives her 1 year to rest. after on year, she has to come back to her position. Pol pledges her oath to him again. She leaves room and goes back to Strin where the baby is.
After she left, Lucius announces he will become a tyrant from today and if anybody has any problem, they should say now. nobody resist.
5) After she come back, Gerald welcomes Pol "mama", and she says "yes, I am your mother". She starts to act as a mother, even apologises to the child. 1 year passes, Pol doesn't know anything about the capital. Lucius writes to her and the baby letters as she writes back. After 1 year, Donau comes Strin to take Pol back Yapa, before they go to a picnic to the another land. she leaves her sword at the horse and lays down on the willow. somebody tries to pick her up, but she gets angry and want to punch him (she doesn't see the face), but it was actually Lucius. She sees all other important knights and female characters too. (I love it when she signs "if you are here, who protects the capital") Lucius puts a big book in front of her where they changed whole law. Now women have the right to inherit. Lucius gives up on his early retirement for his love. he explains it, "A world where mothers will not have to apologise for giving birth to a daughter" (Rebecca's the last will). Then Pol asks for a sword (she doesn't have now) all knight offers her theirs. She takes Donaus' and pledges her loyalty and proposes to the emperor
Cekel (new head of maids & Pol's personal maid) and Ainno (new duke Seki) marries, he was very passionate when he proposes. "If until end of royal ban on the marriage, I can't get your heart, I will marry with you by force"
Princess Luminae becomes crown princess
Gerald prepares to become a knight
Pol becomes 3rd division's capitain and the empress
Tory is the new baroness and she takes care of the management in the palace
Stra is the second head of maids
happy end. ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶
I read the novel as well & I wasn’t fully satisfied with the ending. Considering how smart & how smart Sir Pol is I was excited for her to become Empress. She broke down so many barriers & had so many achievements, imagine adding one more as the first Empress of the new empire. I also wanted to see her in a wedding dress, for once at least. Idk I know all of this would have gone against who she was as a character but I was still hoping for it. I was also kind bothered b/c of how unfair all of this has been towards the emperor. & yes I know no one is forcing him to be with Pol, but it would have been nice to see an enthusiastic Pol. Till then she was stubborn & I guess she stick to who she was as a person but a little wouldn’t have hurt. Like she literally canceled their wedding a day before it if I remember correctly. & yes I understand she wouldn’t been happy so she did what was best for her. I mean I guess what I wanted more of this story was a bit of romance. We waited so much for it to feel rushed in the end, also almost it feeling force into Pol. The emperor had to bed & change the entire system to her finally to be willing. I would have like to have seen even just a little bit it the enthusiasm she had when she was prepping her wedding for Frau. It’s sucks she couldn’t show even just a little for the emperor. Also I wanted her son to be emperor. Like yes I understand they’re trynna change these old views, but I’m just thinking of the future & of how her sons probably gonna hear how he could have/be emperor & how his mothers a fool for doing what she did.
But like I said I understand all of this would have gone against who they were as characters. In the end I would have just wanted a bit more romance & a little more enthusiastic Pol b/c I felt bad for the emperor
I agree with the dissatisfactory events. But when I consider her life, view, scars and pregnancy, giving birth alone, postpartum stress, I could not get angry at her for what she did to her son and emperor. If she wore a normal wedding dress like others, it would be out of character, but at least I would like to see a dress like the one in the last chapter of Reminiscence Adonis. And at the last chapter, she feels bad for taking her son's chance to become an emperor but "if he feels bad in the future I will tell him to blame me" she thought, and Gerald didn't seem to have any problem with it, for now. Additionally, even if I didn't like how Luminae is obsessed with becoming an emperor (normally even if you are crown prince/cess, you can't speak you becoming emperor/empress, it is treason in the manga world), she should act / brought on more like a child.
And as the romance, yep, I would like to read at least 5 chapter on their romance ╥﹏╥
IKR?! She was even giggling and she spent date nights with Luci too so there might be a part there that they talked about their marriage plans but Novel was written fast forward. It's like we only see glimpses of what happened and the author wanted it done and over with. So disappointing author.ヽ(`Д´)ノ
I think, the emperor is convinced that if the woman he slept, wanted to be his wife/lover, she would not leave him next morning. So whoever comes to him as that woman, they are liar. At the same time she will not come to me as a pregnant too. This is explanation of his behaviour in ch 5
Lol the classic FWTHM Syndrome the only reason this thought came to me was cause he seemed he was enjoying kinda of toying with her (in the sense that he finds her actions and behaviour amusing) and because a lot of the time in manwhas there’s a case of a big misunderstanding that lasts for a while that seems obvious to the readers (which would be the fact he most likely knows that it’s her)
They look a bit like the first couple in this manga:
http://www.mangago.zone/read-manga/jounetsu_kakumei/
It is my first time being this SATISFIED with the uke Azuma is perfect as uke, I want to see more