Chapter 2.4

Adrian, who had been glaring at me as if to kill me, didn’t appear in front of me again after he came to me that night and had me put my fingerprint on a strange document.

My life was incredibly monotonous.

Moreover, my personal maid, Jenny, was rather quiet. It seemed Adrian’s intention was to bore me to death.

“I’m so bored I could die.”

“Pardon?”

“Nothing. Uh… Jenny, should we go for a walk in the garden?”

“It’s quite cold.”

“Well, it’ll be fine once we get out and walk around. Let’s go to the kitchen first.”

But when I got to the kitchen, I was speechless at the desolation. There must have been hundreds of servants and knights stationed at the Grand Duke’s castle, but the kitchen was terribly quiet.

Still, my meals weren’t bad, so I couldn’t understand the kitchen situation at all.

“Um, Jenny… Is the Grand Duke’s castle having a hard time?”

“Pardon?”

Jenny was very flustered by my question. It was only natural, as a maid would have no way of knowing the Grand Duke’s finances.

Just then, Butler Ben, who must have received a report that I had come down to the kitchen, came in hastily.

“What brings you here?”

He feigned politeness, but his face was clearly filled with suspicion and wariness.

“Oh… I just wanted to do a little cooking. You didn’t have to come all the way here, Butler.”

“It’s only natural for a butler to come when a guest of the castle enters the kitchen.”

I understood the meaning of his words. He was blaming me for daring to enter the castle’s private area as a guest.

But I didn’t want to play word games with him.

“I’m sorry for wandering around your castle without permission, Ben. I just wanted to do some cooking and take a walk in the garden.”

“Our castle… That is not appropriate.”

The smart butler understood the true meaning of my words. According to him, I was a guest, so it might be uncomfortable for me to wander around.

But the butler’s attitude was that of treating an unwelcome guest, not a guest.

I didn’t want to fight, but I also didn’t want to be disliked for no reason while I was here. It was already frustrating enough that I was dragged here.

“No, I just wanted to try cooking something because I was bored, so don’t worry about it and go back to your work.”

“No. I will call the head chef.”

“I said I wanted to do it myself. Um… but Ben, I don’t know if I can ask you this.”

“Go on, speak.”

“Is the Grand Duke’s castle struggling financially?”

The butler seemed a little offended.

“Of course not.”

“Really? But from what I see, the castle is a bit… desolate.”

“That is!”

The butler, who noticed that I was purely curious without any hidden agenda, let out a sigh he tried to hide and continued.

“The Grand Duke’s castle is on a par with the Imperial Palace in size. The Northern territory that the Grand Duke rules over is larger than the Southern territory in terms of size alone. Of course, the soil’s fertility and population density are lower than the Imperial Palace, but the situation here has improved a lot since the Grand Duke came to protect the North.”

“Really?”

“Yes, that’s right. However, it has not been two years since the Grand Duke came here, and… the Grand Duke has been.”

The butler hesitated for a moment and then continued.

“He has been protecting the North… and searching for the young lady, so he has not stayed in the castle for a long time.”

“The young lady?”

“Yes…”

My eyes widened. And I looked around. Fortunately, the only person standing close enough to hear our conversation was my personal maid.

“That young lady… is me.”

This was the reason why the butler had a negative feeling toward me.

To be the Grand Duke’s butler, he must have been from a long-established family that had produced butlers for generations.

The loyalty that such butlers had for their masters was difficult for a modern person to understand.

“There has been no lady of the house for a long time, and the Grand Duke has not been interested in the castle’s domestic affairs at all, and there are separate kitchens for the servants in each annex of the Grand Duke’s castle, so… this place is like this… I am sorry.”

“No, you have nothing to be sorry about. It’s not my place to interfere either. I’m sorry… for me.”

But Ben did not raise his head even at my apology. I walked over to him, pulled his arm, and guided him to the kitchen table.

“Ben, I’ll cook something for you. If you’re not busy, would you mind waiting a moment?”

He looked at me with a surprised look, but I avoided his gaze and went into the kitchen.

As Ben had said, the Grand Duke’s finances were not bad, as the pantry was filled with good ingredients.

I was happy to have something to do after a long time and started cooking, humming a tune.

Having lived in the North for a long time, I knew well what ingredients the people here used and what kind of food they made.

I made a decent sandwich by putting fresh vegetables and well-grilled chicken breast on a toasted bread and adding a sweet and sour sauce made with vinegar.

As I was bringing out the food, I stumbled on the kitchen threshold and almost fell forward.

But at that moment, a large hand appeared and luckily grabbed me so that I and my tray wouldn’t fall over.

“Adrian!”

Adrian was looking down at me with a scary face, as if the butler had informed him in a moment. I glared at the butler with a slightly resentful look. Ben looked away as if he felt a little sorry.

“What are you doing?”

“Oh… I was just going for a walk because I was bored. I made some sandwiches. The weather is nice, you know.”

It wasn’t a good feeling to realize that I was rambling as I spoke.

“Do you want some too?”

When I spoke to Adrian casually, Ben stood up abruptly from his seat.

“Mind your language with His Royal Highness the Grand Duke.”

“Oh! Your Royal Highness, would you like some too?”

Adrian, who had been looking at my face, shouted at Ben sharply.

“This is not your place to speak.”

“I apologize, Your Royal Highness.”

“Why are you so angry… with him.”

To be honest, I was in the wrong for speaking informally to the Grand Duke of this Empire, even if he was my childhood friend.

I quickly walked over to the butler and made him sit down at the table again. And I placed the sandwich I had made in front of him.

“Try it. It’s edible.”

I went back into the kitchen to avoid Adrian and prepared a picnic bag to go for a walk with Jenny, with the food I had made.

When I went outside, I saw the butler sitting at the table, not knowing what to do.

“Ben, you don’t have to force yourself to eat if you don’t want to. Your Royal Highness the Grand Duke, I’ll be going out for a walk now.”

And the garden I went out to, as if I was running away…

It was as desolate as ever.

“Jenny…”

“Yes.”

“This… the trees are so thick here. Don’t you think?”

Jenny spoke awkwardly.

“The butler has asked to have a gardener several times, but His Royal Highness the Grand Duke hasn’t given any specific orders, they say.”

“I see… But Jenny, you’re a good talker.”

“Pardon? Yes…”

It was the first time I had heard Jenny speak at such length in a few days.

“But why before?”

I stopped what I was saying. What reason would there be if she didn’t want to talk for long? But Jenny seemed to have understood my meaning and answered in a slightly awkward voice.

“Before, the young lady was a bit difficult…”

“Was I? But it’s okay now, right?”

“Yes.”

Jenny’s face turned a little red as she answered. I hadn’t noticed it when she was expressionless, but she had a very cute face when she smiled slightly.

I couldn’t just go back inside, so I looked around.

In the distance, there was a place that looked like a lake, and around the lake, weeds that were unfazed by the upcoming winter weather of the North grew lushly.

And beyond the weeds, I couldn’t believe it, but I saw a building that looked like a gazebo.

I didn’t have the courage to go all the way there, but today was warmer than other days, and this kind of weather was rare in the North.

“Jenny, let’s go over there for now.”

“Yes.”

On the way, I almost tripped over a rock several times. And the gazebo, which we arrived at after walking for a long time, was much more beautiful than I had thought.

If all these weeds were cut down and the surroundings were tidied up, it would create a pretty nice scene with the lake.

I licked my lips and tried to get on the gazebo. But no matter how hard I looked, there was nowhere to sit.

Only the picnic bag reminded us that our purpose was a walk.

“Let’s go back, Jenny. Let’s eat the sandwiches inside.”

Jenny had a very apologetic look, even though it wasn’t her fault.

But the next morning, when I looked out the window, I had to rub my eyes and look again for a long time.

As if a fairy had visited during the night, the path in the garden where I had walked was neatly organized. And the gazebo I saw yesterday was exactly as I had pictured it.

Looking at the neatly arranged garden, where the sparkling light of the lake could be seen through the window, my heart also felt like it was sparkling.

‘Adrian…!’

The only person who could make this house so sparkling was Adrian.

Then, did Adrian see me walking around the garden yesterday? I felt a corner of my heart fill up.

I calmed my heart, which was pounding with hope, and left the room to thank him.

I first stopped by the kitchen to get some snacks to share with Adrian. And on my way out, I saw that the kitchen threshold, where I had almost tripped yesterday, was gone.

The corners of my mouth went up without me even realizing it.

Maybe Adrian hated me much less than I thought.

“Come in.”

When I stood in front of Adrian’s office, the knight guarding the door announced my visit, and permission to enter was soon given.

When I entered the office, Adrian was not looking at me and was just flipping through the documents he was reading and doing his work.

The sight of Adrian working with a pen was quite unfamiliar.

I cautiously crossed the center of the office and sat down on the sofa. I waited for him to finish his work and talk to me, but Adrian didn’t seem to have any intention of stopping.

“Um, Adrian.”

I plucked up my courage and called him.

“What is it?”

He still didn’t look at me.

“Well… about the garden.”

Before I could even finish my sentence, I heard the voice of the gate-guarding knight from outside.

“Young Master Evan Genes of Baron Genes’s family has come to visit.”

Upon hearing the knight’s report, Adrian finally slowly raised his head and looked at me.

“Let him in.”

Evan soon entered the office.

“Your Royal Highness the Grand Duke.”

Evan, who had come in a hurry, paused for a moment when he saw me sitting on the sofa in the office.

His face, which I hadn’t seen in a few days, was very gaunt. And he hadn’t shaved properly, as if he was very busy.

“What is it?”

Adrian’s gaze was still on me. Evan also looked at me and the snacks I had brought once, and then turned to Adrian with difficulty.

“Are you the one who cut off all the funds of my family?”

I was so surprised by Evan’s words that I jumped up from my seat.

The Genes family was in the leather business, bringing in raw materials from other regions, processing them, and selling them.

If their funds were cut off, they wouldn’t be able to pay for the goods immediately. They would go bankrupt one after another. It was the same as a small business falling due to the tyranny of a large corporation.

“What if I am?”

“Adrian!”

I called out to him sharply, forgetting that I had come to thank him for the garden. Then I quickly took a place between Adrian and Evan.

“Is this true?”

“I wonder…”

I thought of the people of Baron Genes’s family. A corner of my heart felt cold with fear. I couldn’t just stand by and watch those kind people fall into hardship because of me.

“Put it back to the way it was.”

“Why should I?”

“Put it back. Otherwise…”

“Otherwise?”

“…I’ll die.”

“…What?”

Adrian’s beautiful eyebrows suddenly furrowed. But Evan, who was surprised by my words, grabbed my arm and turned me toward himself, so I couldn’t see how Adrian’s expression changed after that.

“Helena.”

“Evan, just stay still. This is between Adrian and me. I can’t just stand by and watch you fall into hardship because of me.”

I twisted my arm out of his grasp and turned to face Adrian again.

He motioned to the knight who had brought Evan in, and they soon began to pull Evan’s arm.

“Your Royal Highness the Grand Duke!”

“What are you doing? Let Evan go!”

But there was no change in Adrian’s expression. He was soon dragged out of the office, and now only Adrian and I stood in a terrible silence.

Adrian was just staring at my arm.

“Adrian, please. Put Baron Genes’s family’s funds back to the way they were.”

He got up from his chair and slowly walked toward me. He must have grown taller in the meantime, as I had to look up at him for a long time.

Adrian, who came closer to me, raised the arm that Evan had grabbed.

“Claire?”

“…”

“What did you say you’d do?”

His face was wavering with anger and pain.

“You’d die?”

Then what could I use to threaten Adrian in this situation? I had no weapons.

“Yes. So put it back to the way it was.”

“Did you really share your heart with him? Is he that precious to you?”

“That’s not what I meant. They are innocent. Does it make sense that they have to go through something like this just because they knew me?”

“Why not? You sold the maid who brought me food to a labor camp.”

Adrian asked me back with a crooked smile as if it was fun.

“What?”

This guy’s frontal lobe must have been damaged from a long time of abuse. Or he just holds a grudge for an incredibly long time.

“You didn’t decide to die because of that maid. So that person is very precious to you, isn’t he?”

“Don’t talk nonsense. And I returned Hailey to the count’s mansion.”

Adrian just looked into my eyes as if he didn’t hear what I said. I realized. Continuing to provoke Adrian like this would be of no help to me or Baron Genes’s family.

“Adrian…”

I gently took his thumb, which wasn’t holding my arm, in my hand.

“Don’t get the wrong idea. It’s not that I’ll die because of Evan. I just don’t want to feel guilty. If those people are harmed because of me, I’ll surely suffer, thinking of them for a long time. Don’t you think?”

“Guilt? You had such an emotion?”

It seemed Adrian wanted to destroy everything that was precious to me now. So his goal must be to make sure I have nothing to lean on.

When I was silent, Adrian motioned with his eyes as if to tell me to continue.

I wrapped all my fingers around Adrian’s thumb and gently rubbed the back of his hand with my fingers. From my last experience, I knew Adrian’s agitated chest calmed down when I touched him.

“As you know, I couldn’t possibly have anything precious. I’m Claire Ianster.”

Adrian let go of the hand he was holding and the hand he was holding me with at the same time and walked toward the door. And he opened the door and looked at me again. The guy was making a face as if he was genuinely having fun, and I was so annoyed I could die.

“Alright, I’ll think about it. It depends on what you do from now on. By the way, I really like these moments when you plead with me like this.”

After saying that, Adrian left me alone in the office and went out. I looked at the closing door and quietly bit down on my curse.

‘Damn Adrian!’

 

***

 

I didn’t sleep at all that night. After Jenny had seen me to bed and returned to her room, I found a black robe and put it on.

I couldn’t just stay still like this.

Instead of begging Adrian, I decided to find Owen and Cedric.

They hadn’t been seen at all in the castle, as if they weren’t working inside. When I asked Jenny earlier, she said they had just returned to the Grand Duke’s castle from the border today.

As I headed to the annex where the knights stayed, I saw guards standing with torches.

“Please call Owen.”

They seemed to know who I was, thankfully. Soon, Owen, who had heard the news, appeared outside the annex.

“Owen!”

“My lady, what brings you here at this hour?”

I thought I should quietly leave the castle and go home, emptying all my assets to give to Baron Genes.

The profits from the typewriter were considerable, and if I sold the mansion, I could solve the immediate financial problems.

But it was impossible to escape from this castle, and I thought it would be better to just tell Owen the truth and ask for his help.

Fortunately, Owen knew about the Genes family’s situation when I told him my story.

“My lady, don’t worry about that.”

“Huh?”

“As soon as I arrived at the castle today, the Grand Duke called me and had me take care of that matter.”

“What?”

“He didn’t intend to completely cut off their funds from the beginning.”

“Is that for real?”

“Yes.”

I looked at the honest-looking Owen and my legs gave out, and I sat down on the spot. He helped me up and laughed a little.

“You haven’t changed at all, my lady.”

“What?”

“Still… never mind.”

“How insipid.”

“My lady, the Grand Duke has been searching for you for a very long time.”

“…I know.”

“So, please, even if the Grand Duke treats you a little harshly, please try to understand.”

‘A little? Oh, what a nice thing to say.’

“Okay.”

Well, Owen didn’t know this was a novel, and there was no way he would know what Adrian’s true intentions were for dragging me here.

Perhaps in the eyes of Owen and others, this situation might seem like a romantic game of hide-and-seek. But I knew. I knew just how cruel Adrian could be to Claire.

I decided to approach Adrian more proactively from now on. Since he didn’t seem to have any intention of letting me leave this place, I didn’t have many options.

And since I hadn’t died immediately, it seemed I had succeeded in deviating from the original story a little.

 

***

 

The next day, in the early morning, I went to the training ground where Adrian trained.

I didn’t forget to make some sweet tea and cool it down. I smiled broadly from the entrance of the training ground and warmed up my facial muscles.

As the saying goes, you can’t spit on a smiling face.

Adrian noticed my presence before I even got close. He was still half-naked in the cold early morning.

I managed to collect my thoughts, which were becoming hazy at his even more splendid appearance than before, and approached him.

“Hi, Adrian. Did you sleep well?”

Adrian looked at me with a ‘what’s this new trick?’ expression, but I gave him the best smile I could and held out a cup to him.

“Are you thirsty?”

He obediently took the cup from me and gulped down the drink. Every time his masculine Adam’s apple moved, my eyes unconsciously followed it.

“Is it cool? It’s dried Cheche flower petal tea. The ice has just started to form. I thought you would need something cool after training…”

Just then, the cold wind of the North blew between us, and a few strands of my black hair flew and stuck to my mouth.

Adrian, who was looking at the shape of my lips, seemed to be concerned about the hair stuck to my lip, and he slowly raised his hand, took the hair off my mouth, and smiled faintly.

‘He’s smiling?’

My heart pounded without me realizing it when I saw Adrian’s pure smile, not a sneer. There was no doubt that his face didn’t need any plausibility.

“What’s this new trick?”

If only it weren’t for those cursed lips.

“What trick? I heard from Owen yesterday. About Baron Genes’s family.”

“You came to me this early because you’re grateful for that? How touching.”

“That, and also the garden. Thank you so much. And the kitchen threshold too.”

Adrian’s ears turned slightly red at my words. No, was I mistaken?

“I just tidied it up because it was time.”

It was truly amazing that it was time to take care of the garden when the long winter was about to begin.

“Well, anyway…”

I flinched without realizing it as another strong gust of wind blew.

Adrian suddenly moved away from me, and he quietly placed his coat, which was carelessly draped over a tree branch, on my shoulders.

I was reminded of that night two years ago when I interrupted Adrian’s practice on the mountain behind the count’s mansion.

Speaking of which, I saw a new red wound on Adrian’s body. It was a long wound that went from his side to his ribs.

I unconsciously raised my hand and carefully traced his wound.

“A wound I haven’t seen before…”

Adrian still flinched and moved away as if he disliked my touch, but he didn’t slap my hand away like before.

“…The North is a place with a lot of wars.”

“I see, it must have hurt a lot.”

Adrian gripped my hand as if he had been patient enough.

“I don’t think that’s something the person who put the most wounds on my body should say…”

“Oh… right.”

I became so awkward that I put force into my hand to pull it away from him. But Adrian didn’t let go.

“Your hand is cold.”

“It’s very cold. I should go inside soon.”

When I put force into my hand again, he let go obediently this time. As I moved away from him, Adrian held his sword again as if he was going to continue his training. I didn’t go back right away and plucked up my courage once more. I couldn’t possibly be trapped forever like this.

“By the way, Adrian, would you like to go horseback riding with me this afternoon?”

“Horseback riding?”

“Yeah, I’m a bit bored, and I saw a good place for horseback riding behind the Grand Duke’s castle… If you don’t want to, that’s fine…”

Adrian didn’t answer. I didn’t expect an answer, so I wasn’t too disappointed.

But when Jenny came in to get my lunch, she had a riding outfit in her hands. When I smiled broadly at the riding outfit, Jenny also smiled along with me.

Around four o’clock, when I went out to the garden with the butler, Adrian was sitting on a horse, waiting for me. Jenny handed me a picnic bag. I felt a little embarrassed that she had prepared a picnic bag just to go horseback riding, but I carried the bag well.

My horse was a Tarpan breed, with dark brown fur and a lustrous mane. I quietly approached and stroked its body. I really liked the horse.

“Please take care of me today.”

After quietly whispering to the horse, I tried to get on the saddle, but it wasn’t easy to get on the large horse. But Adrian just watched me and didn’t seem to have any intention of getting off his horse to help me.

Just then, a knight with hair the same color as my horse’s fur came next to me.

“My lady, I will help you.”

“Oh, thank you so much.”

I smiled widely, grateful for his pure kindness, and took his outstretched hand. With the knight’s help, I got on the horse and looked at Adrian with a proud smile, but he had already turned away and was far away.

“Adrian, wait for me! Please!”

I expressed my gratitude to the knight with a glance and quickly followed him. I was right next to him soon, but Adrian didn’t look at me.

But I was very satisfied with this moment. It felt so unreal that I could ride side-by-side like this.

Adrian quietly rode his horse up the ridge.

I don’t know how long we had been riding, but the sun was already setting when we got to the top of the ridge. When the city of the North unfolded far from the Grand Duke’s castle, I let out a cry of admiration without realizing it.

“Wow… this is so beautiful.”

Of course, I didn’t say that expecting a response from Adrian.

“They’re busy preparing for the festival. Did you know? The North holds one last festival before winter comes. The place where I used to live must be busy preparing for a festival too.”

“Do you want to go?”

“Huh?”

“Do you want to go back there?”

It would be a lie to say I didn’t want to go back, but I couldn’t go back in this state.

I now hoped that he would no longer hate me. If Celine hadn’t returned early, he and I might have become friends.

“If I want to go, can I?”

When I asked playfully, Adrian turned his head away from me and plopped down on the ground. Then he pulled his horse and walked into the mountain.

“What’s wrong with helping me get down?”

I grumbled so that Adrian couldn’t hear me and followed him. He tied his horse and soon came toward me. And as if it were a lie, he held out his two arms toward me.

I leaned toward Adrian as if possessed, and he easily placed his hands on my waist and helped me get down from the horse.

The guy, who I thought would immediately take his hands off me after I got off the horse, kept his hands on my waist and looked into my eyes.

“No.”

“Huh? What?”

Since his hands were on my waist, it was a little hard to look into Adrian’s eyes. For some reason, my heart was pounding, and I couldn’t hear what he was saying clearly.

“Even if you want to go, you can’t.”

“Oh… I know.”

Adrian turned away from me without any lingering feelings. I took the picnic bag from my horse’s saddle and awkwardly followed him.

After walking for a bit, we arrived at a large rock with a great view. It felt similar to the place where we watched the stars two years ago.

I climbed onto the rock and patted the spot next to me.

“Sit here. Let’s have dinner here.”

I pulled Adrian’s arm, who was frowning as if he had heard something he shouldn’t have, and made him sit next to me.

Soon my picnic bag was opened, and the sandwiches that Jenny had made were visible. It was clear that she had seen me making them last time and had tried to imitate them.

I pulled the arm of the guy who was sitting next to me and looking straight ahead and took off his gloves.

I felt a slight resistance, but I pretended not to notice and held his hand more tightly. Even as I pulled out his long fingers one by one, Adrian was only looking straight ahead.

After I barely managed to take off all his gloves, I put his share of the sandwich in his hand. Come to think of it, I had never seen Adrian chew and eat anything.

“Try it.”

He held the sandwich in a picture-perfect pose, and when he took a bite, I unconsciously let out a little gasp.

Is this what it feels like to feed your child?

“Is it good? Try one more bite. Huh?”

Adrian took another bite like a well-behaved child.

When I looked at him with sparkling eyes, feeling proud of him, Adrian, as if something was wrong again, put the sandwich down casually and stood up abruptly from the rock.

“Why? Just one more bite.”

“Let’s go.”

The cold wind blew again. But this was something, wasn’t it? As the saying goes, the bond of food is a powerful thing. He wouldn’t kill me after we sat side by side and ate together, would he?

“Alright.”

I also got up without any lingering attachment. And I gathered my courage and asked him something I had been curious about ever since I was dragged to this castle.

“Um… Adrian?”

When I called him, he turned to look at me.

“By the way… you’re not going to kill me, are you?”

“What?”

“I’m asking if you’re going to kill me.”

Was it my imagination that Adrian’s eyes changed so terrifyingly?

“What kind of ridiculous…”

It’s not ridiculous.

“So you’re saying you won’t kill me, right?”

“As long as you don’t run away.”

I nodded my head vigorously at his words and promised.

“Okay, I won’t run away.”

But regardless of my promise, this huge scandal that happened at one of the few prestigious count’s balls in the North was uncommonly and quickly passed on to the South.

And this news was enough to make the blood of the young Crown Prince, which had grown cold with waiting, boil.

 

***

 

“It is no longer possible to postpone your engagement, Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince.”

Sebastian suffered from a headache again today because of the vassals who came to him from the morning and badgered him. These old men, as if they were stuffed, had been nagging him with the same things for several years.

“At nineteen, you should have already had a successor.”

“That’s right. What is the reason you won’t get engaged?”

“Is the rumor going around true, Count Ianster?”

As the Crown Prince remained silent, the arrow moved from the Crown Prince to Count Ianster.

The Crown Prince’s face, which had been looking at the meeting with boredom, cracked as the problem was brought up, even mentioning names in a rare aggressive manner.

“If the legitimate daughter of the Ianster family doesn’t suit your taste, please consider choosing a Crown Princess from another family.”

“Did all of you drink alcohol during the day today?”

At the Crown Prince’s voice, which was honed like a sword after a long time, the vassals’ necks recoiled like turtles.

“Or have you forgotten that this is the Imperial family? Do you not know that I’m not using my strength to kill you for no reason, because you’ll die of old age soon enough anyway?”

The young Crown Prince was different from the current Emperor. Unlike the current Emperor, who didn’t need to be strong under his great father, Sebastian, who would soon inherit the throne, had a strong character befitting the greatest empire.

Just then, the head chamberlain rushed to the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince instinctively knew. The reason why a chamberlain would dare to intrude into a meeting with the vassals. It was for the one reason he had permitted.

The most urgent matter of all.

Finding Claire Ianster.

The Crown Prince stood up abruptly at the head chamberlain’s whisper.

“What is it, Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince?”

The Crown Prince looked at the vassals and smiled brilliantly. It was a gentle smile as if filled with sunlight after a long time, but even that was intimidating enough for the vassals.

“I’m going to find my fiancée.”

 

***

 

After the age of 12, Sebastian Quinze-Nouais had been suffering from constant headaches.

It was a chronic illness that began after he overheard a conversation coming from his father’s office.

<He must be killed.>

<…>

<Leaving Aurelian alive will only be a threat to Prince Sebastian, who will become the Crown Prince. You know that there are still people who praise the reign of the previous Emperor, don’t you? He is the child who resembles His Majesty the previous Emperor more than anyone else. Make a decision.>

<But Aurelian will soon be granted the title of Grand Duke and go to the North. Is it really necessary to kill him?>

<Your Majesty, you must not become weak because of blood ties. Aurelian will grow up to be stronger than anyone else. Even if he has no ambition, the world will not leave him alone. If so, can Prince Sebastian truly handle him?>

<Do you dare to question the qualifications of my son, Sebastian?>

The Emperor raised his voice, but the vassal did not back down.

<Face reality. Aurelian Quinze-Nouais is a child who lacks nothing to be the Emperor. Don’t you know that?>

The Emperor’s silence was soon a confirmation. It was a fact that the vassals in the office and Prince Sebastian, who was eavesdropping outside, all knew.

Aurelian… his uncle who was the same age as him.

He and Sebastian were friends and rivals in their childhood.

And there was a fact that no one spoke of but everyone knew. That Aurelian was superior to Sebastian.

After that, Sebastian suffered from endless headaches and nightmares.

Then he met that woman, Claire Ianster.

<A… A… A thief?>

He was flabbergasted.

The Crown Prince had personally gone to the jewelry store after hearing from his close aide that they had found a jewel that Aurelian’s mother had cherished until her death.

Aurelian’s body was not found.

He had a… naive thought that if he was alive, and if Sebastian were to meet him again, he wanted to give him the memento his mother had left behind.

<The crazy bitch of the Ianster family?>

He had heard rumors about his fiancée-to-be and knew a lot.

She was said to be an illegitimate child who didn’t fit in at all in society, she tormented maids and servants for no reason, and her behavior was unseemly enough to be an embarrassment to the Ianster name.

And that she was obsessed with a slave and didn’t hesitate to whip him…

But the fiancée-to-be he actually met was so different from the rumors.

Her sharp eyes were sparkling with goodwill and brilliance, and her way of speaking was cute and a little quirky. Was that why? He subtly held her wrist, who was about to leave.

<When are you coming back?>

<Pardon?>

<I asked when you were coming back.>

And on his way back after meeting and parting with her, he thought of her face making a bewildered expression as she looked at him, and he suddenly realized.

That only during the moments he was talking to her, he was free from his headache.

In case it was an illusion, he waited for the slow-moving days to pass and met Claire again. This time he stepped closer, speaking from the depths of his heart—the feelings he had long hidden even from himself.

<That wasn’t Your Royal Highness’s fault.>

<No, I… I…>

‘I knew everything. How many people were sacrificed to make me the Crown Prince. My relatives, my brothers who smiled in front of me, and Aurelian…’

But the woman, who was burdened with countless rumors, did not let him think such things.

<You were just protecting yourself and your mother. You did well. You are magnificent. And you worked hard.>

And as if it were a lie, the headache that had tormented him his entire life stopped. It was a chronic illness that he had never told anyone about for fear of looking weak.

And soon, a warm hand held his…

The crazy bitch of the Ianster family, the unprecedented villainess, the woman who was obsessed with a slave and abused him… It didn’t matter. She was just his salvation.