beta
I had hoped that this atleast, although this novel has many intersecting themes w/ the Remarried Empress it would not be half as frustrating[ mostly bec it took a lot of chapters before the split/divorce happened]. I was wrong.
At least w/ Navier it's not so much as naivete, rather it was being responsible and fulfilling her duty since the relationship w/ Soveshu even prior Rashta was more of a work spouse vibe. They both were pushed into a high position w/ heavy responsibilities and duties to uphold and have depended and leaned on each other to grow into their respective roles. Each of them had really no room to experience that giggly, googly eyed, heart fluttering experience of even an actual first love since they weren't even each other's first or any place choice. They were engaged at a very young age and grew to depend on each other. So Navier has a stronger sense of responsibility since it's pretty much been her daily life companion aside from Soveshu amidst all the pressure from expectations of being a perfect crown princess then later empress.
Here tho fl is just so, white lotus-y even more than the platinum haired green tea and an overwhelming holy mother vibe [tho she's supposed to be a saint or something so]. Navier had at least pride and regalness in her bones that was undeniable, while fl in this novel kind of falls flat. If she was not the designated fl, she would blend into the extras crowd.