Astelle von Lestern devoted years of her life to becoming the perfect bride for Kaizen, the crown prince of the Rastiel empire and the only man she has ever loved. The morning after their wedding, the emperor passes away and Kaizen inherits the throne—and to Astelle's shock, Kaizen promptly demands a divorce.

With no choice but to accept, Astelle cuts ties with her disgruntled family and resolves to live a quiet life . . . until she discovers she's pregnant with Kaizen's child. Kaizen's abrupt ascension to the throne has ignited fierce political strife, and Astelle refuses to allow her son, Theore, to become a pawn in the nobles' power struggle. But hiding Theore is no easy task, as he was born with the unmistakable red eyes of the imperial bloodline. When Kaizen tracks her down after six years apart, can Astelle protect her child—and herself—from the cold-hearted man she swore to forget?

How to Hide the Emperor's Child has a story by 26 and art by SSAL, based on an original story by Kee Yeonseon. Lettered by Andworld Design. Published by Inklore (October 13, 2026). Rated 14+.

Rebecca Silverman
Rating:

Although they aren't really all that similar, there's a The Remarried Empress vibe to this series. Astelle, the heroine, doesn't have Navier's confidence and Emperor Kaizen isn't half as much of a dingle as Sovieshu, but they're all cut from the same cloth. After ten years of being engaged and their wedding night, Kaizen unceremoniously divorces Astelle, making her the shortest-reigned empress ever, wearing the crown for a mere day. Astelle, although heartbroken, agrees, but shortly after she's left the palace (and been disowned by her scheming father), she discovers she's pregnant. Unwilling to sacrifice her child for others' political ambitions, she hides in the countryside with her maternal grandfather, which works for six years…until the empress dowager dies and specifically mentions Astelle in her will. Suddenly, Kaizen is knocking at her door and she's desperate to keep him from realizing that Theore is their son rather than her nephew.

Astelle is quietly brilliant, working hard to maintain her distance from the imperial court and Theore's safety. Although it's rarely explicitly stated, she knows that Kaizen (or his ministers) would love to take Theore if they knew about him, and she's got even more proof that her father would use him for his own ends. Astelle's driving motivation is to keep her son safe so that he can grow up happy, something she has zero faith in any of the men in her life to pull off. And why would she? Astelle's entire life prior to Theore's birth was an example of how powerful men use women and children for their own ambitions. Being noble or royal just means that they're more likely to use you. Like any sane person, she doesn't want that for her child. And if that means lying to the emperor's face, she's going to do it.

I suspect that Kaizen may actually know this about men in power all too well. Although it's barely even hinted at, there's some implication that he only divorced Astelle because he didn't want her father to have too much power – that he truly did, and does, love her. But that's part of the problem with him as a character: he's unwilling to take a stand for what he wants. He's too much in his own head, assuming that Astelle will understand what he's thinking and shocked when she doesn't; I don't think for a minute that he expected her to run off to the countryside after granting him a divorce. His closest aide likely isn't helping anything either, as he clearly thinks Astelle wants to become empress again – and if he realizes that Theore is the emperor's child, I have no doubt he'd rip the child away from his mother without a second thought.

If you enjoy a side of politics with your romance fiction, don't pass this one by. The art has some issues with faces and keeping Theore's height consistent, but the story is excellent. I'm very much looking forward to reading more.