Selina regained consciousness in a damp hut heavy with moisture. The walls were lined with stuffed animals—deer among them—and dangerous-looking tools, likely used for hunting, lay scattered about.

The place seemed to be a hunter’s dwelling, and its sense of detachment from reality made her wonder, for a fleeting moment, whether she was still dreaming.

“You’re finally awake.”

At the unfamiliar voice, a chill ran through her entire body.

“I wanted to do this while you were fully conscious. Revenge is only satisfying when the other person can feel fear—otherwise, it leaves a bad taste.”

With great difficulty, she lifted her head and turned towards the voice.

The man who had abducted her had removed his mask. He was broad-shouldered with piercing eyes, and she felt she had seen him before.

When he shrugged off his robe a moment later, she understood why.

‘He’s wearing a knight’s uniform…’

Since he had exchanged greetings with Rocheste, he must have been one of the knights. But why would a knight do something like this?

Selina stared at him, bewildered, as she saw the gleam of amusement in the man’s eyes.

“You look like you have no idea why you were dragged here. Why—does it feel unfair to be kidnapped by me?”

His gaze, filled with hatred, was fixed on Selina.

The moment she met his malicious gaze, her heart sank. She had been disliked before, ignored for being illegitimate and subjected to relentless harassment. But this was the first time she had encountered someone who hated her for no reason.

The cruelty she had endured until now had been petty and spiteful, but never intended to kill.

This man was different.

He was filled with murderous intent towards her to the very marrow of his bones.

“Now then—since you’re awake, let’s choose.”

He grinned playfully and raised two fingers.

“The first method is simple and clean. I push you off a cliff. That way, the fear while falling will be brief, and the pain of dying will be brief as well.”

Of course, if she didn’t die instantly, it would be quite painful—but still.

Chuckling, the man waggled his second finger and continued.

“The second option is slightly more dangerous. I’ll throw you into a pen of starving wild dogs. You’ll die a more painful death, but I personally think I’d find that far more satisfying.”

He waggled his fingers at her, urging her to choose. Selina said nothing.

From the moment she was abducted in the alleyway, she knew it had been planned. The maids who seemed to be seeking reconciliation had been hired, and a cart had been prepared in advance to take her away.

And yet, there was one thing she could not understand.

“Why did you go to such lengths to bring me all the way here? If you had wanted to kill me, you could have done it there.”

Her hands trembled with fear, but she forced her voice to remain calm.

As if she had asked a reasonable question, the man nodded and replied.

“If I killed you there, it would’ve been too easy.”

“…Too easy?”

“Yes. Like I said before, what I want is for you to die while gripped by terror—as pitifully as possible.”

When he spoke of death, his eyes gleamed, slick and oily.

“Why… why do you hate me that much…?”

Selina searched her memory, trying to recall ever having wronged someone so deeply. However, no matter how hard she tried, she could not remember doing anything that merited this level of hatred.

“Do you truly not know the reason?”

In an instant, the man roughly seized the antlers of a stuffed deer mounted on the wall.

“Because you bastards invaded Thalia, claiming you would conquer it—countless people died like worthless scraps.”

With a sharp crack, he snapped the antler clean off.

“And my father died at your hands.”

The broken antler lay shattered on the floor.

The man stared blankly at the fragments before bending down, picking up a shard, and muttering,

“Yes, every tragedy began because of the Empire’s dogs. And now—what? Not even a princess, but the daughter of the man who tortured Thalian prisoners so cruelly and was sent here as Grand Duchess?”

A deep darkness had settled over his eyes. His pupils were blackened, as though dead, and he did not take his gaze from the fragment in his hand.

“As if it weren’t enough to mock the people of Thalia with your very existence, you have humiliated us again by preparing ‘gifts’ for the territory’s residents.”

Selina drew in a sharp breath.

The man’s dangerously gleaming eyes slowly turned towards her.

“Just because you came here, countless people are suffering,” he spat. “Every time I see your filthy face, I’m reminded of the family I lost. And yet you dare to step forward and claim that you will comfort us?”

Each heavy, rage-filled word felt like a blade driving straight into her chest.

Everything Selina had done for the people of the territory had been done out of genuine goodwill. She had never once imagined that her actions could cause anyone pain.

“Your very existence is suffering—disaster itself. Because of you, the bereaved mourn, struggle and writhe in agony. Do you think the Grand Duke is any different? He’s bound by nothing more than a political marriage, which is why he remains silent. In truth, he may want you dead even more than I do.”

As her beliefs began to crumble, they could no longer hold their shape, swaying dangerously towards collapse.

‘Did Calix truly feel that way as well?’

From the outset, Calix had opposed this marriage. Recently, he had not only kept his distance from her, but also seemed to regard her with thinly veiled contempt.

Even when he showed moments of consideration, was that not just for show? Was it merely the minimum courtesy expected of a husband, performed for the sake of others?

‘And what about everyone else?’

Zenfri, Rocheste and the other knights. She had believed that she had grown close to them, but perhaps they were just hiding their hatred, too.

‘Was there ever anyone in Thalia who would truly welcome me?’

She had tried again and again, desperate to do her best. But no matter how hard she tried, she could never change the way people saw her.

“Shall I tell you the only way to comfort them?”

Seeing the emptiness hollowing out Selina’s eyes, the man grinned grotesquely.

“You die.”

‘…If I die?’

Selina looked up at the stuffed deer mounted on the wall with vacant, hollow eyes. Once, it had been alive. Now it was dead, gazing down at her with its empty, lifeless eyes.

Meanwhile, Calix and the knights were visiting bereaved families in their homes. They had split into two groups, led by Calix and Rocheste respectively, to offer the families comfort.

And yet, something about the visits felt wrong. They did not seem like simple gestures of consolation. While Calix spoke with the families, Zenfri, who accompanied him, quietly searched the houses, taking care not to draw the homeowners’ attention.

“Oh my, Your Grace… for you to come in person like this… I hardly know where to put myself.”

An elderly woman, whose husband had died in the war, welcomed Calix with trembling gratitude.

“I’m relieved to see you’re in good health. I heard you’ve been looking into a marriage match for your son lately.”

“Yes, that’s right. Ah, but that boy of mine lives only for his work. Instead of attending parties, he’s always rushing off to the training grounds.”

“Sir Libero is known to be quite diligent. I see him often at the training grounds myself.”

“Indeed. He’s so diligent that even on a day like today, he went to the training grounds of his own accord.”

“…Libero went to the training grounds.”

It was at that moment—when Calix turned her words over in his mind—

“Your Grace.”

Zenfri, who had come with him, approached quietly and tapped him on the arm.

After apologizing briefly to the woman he had been speaking to, Calix took the item that Zenfri handed to him.

“A notebook?”

“Yes. What matters is what’s written inside.”

While the woman’s attention was elsewhere, Zenfri searched Libero’s desk and found a notebook. At first glance, it appeared to be a training log, with the first five pages or so filled with records of drills and exercises.

But the following pages were—

[Filthy dogs of the Empire. I must kill this b*tch and wipe out the Empire’s seed.]
[Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!]
[I will be the one to save the collapsing Thalia.]

Every line was steeped in hatred toward Selina.

“We now have definitive proof.”

Zenfri then subtly revealed what he had concealed in his coat. It was an old crossbow.

“…It seems certain now. Libero Max is the culprit.”

Calix had two reasons for deciding to visit the bereaved families.

The first was to offer them genuine comfort. But that was merely the reason he presented on the surface.

The second was his true purpose.

“A bolt used by the knight order was found. There’s a high likelihood the culprit is one of the knights.”

Let’s rewind to the day Selina first arrived in Thalia. Calix was on high alert, determined to discover who had shot the arrow at her. Yet the culprit had not been found. The only evidence left at the scene was a single crossbow bolt, which the knight order used for training.

Everyone insisted that no knight would ever attempt to assassinate the Grand Duchess, suggesting that a commoner must have stolen it from the training grounds instead.

But Calix thought otherwise.

“The culprit likely harbors deep resentment toward the Empire. Prioritize knights who lost family in the war with the Empire.”

This narrowed down the list of suspects considerably.

Libero Max had been one of them, and evidence had been secured during the search.

Calix felt a pang of regret for the elderly woman who had lost her husband in the war. Now, however, there was a high chance that she would lose her only son as well.

Just as he was about to reveal the truth and order Libero’s arrest—

“Your Grace! This is an emergency!”

A shout rang out from beyond the door.

“The Grand Duchess has been kidnapped!”