“I have committed a crime worthy of death.”

“You said you wanted to go to the North instead? If that’s what you truly desire!”

“…!”

With a face ashen and fury, he abruptly turned and strode away, leaving Rosé alone.

On the terrace, rose petals scattered in the wind like a crimson rain.

Rosé, trembling, bowed her head for a moment before slowly rising to her feet. Her expression was calm as if nothing had happened.

Her hand still tingles from the force of the slap.

She had done something unthinkable—laying hands on the Crown Prince—yet rather than fear, she found herself laughing.

The long-rotting weight in her heart had finally been lifted, leaving her feeling strangely refreshed.

Staring at Kasiax’s retreating figure, she murmured,

“If it means escaping from you, I’ll go to hell itself.”

She hadn’t planned on drawing blood, but ultimately, her plan succeeded. A satisfied smile played on her lips.

The moment he stepped into the banquet hall, the murmurs of the crowd inside reached even the terrace.

“Y-Your Highness, you’re bleeding!”

The attendants waiting outside gasped in shock.

All eyes in the banquet hall turned toward the Crown Prince at once.

Blood trickled down his cheek, leaving a messy stain on his collar that gave the impression that someone had slashed his throat.

The nobles gasped in shock, some letting out faint screams, as the orchestra’s melody and the dancers’ movements abruptly halted.

The atmosphere in the hall turned icy as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped over it.

“Your Highness! We must tend to your wounds at once!”

Despite the dire circumstances, Eliza remained quick-witted and eager to leave a positive impression on him. She rushed forward, intending to be the first to offer him a lace handkerchief.

Kasiax shoved her aside with tremendous force.

Eliza was practically lifted into the air before crashing to the ground in a disgraceful heap.

Whether she had indeed lost consciousness or simply fainted from humiliation, she lay there, motionless, without so much as a blink.

The spectators were aghast at the sight.

Kasiax’s eyes burned with barely contained fury.

As he walked forward, the crowd instinctively split into two, creating a path for him.

“My goodness.”

“Honey, honey! What is happening? Why is His Highness’s face…?”

Lady Audrey clutched her chest, trembling as she clung to her husband. Count Jared took her hands firmly, trying to reassure her.

“Where is Rosé? Have you seen Rosé?”

A dreadful premonition struck him, and he anxiously searched for his daughter. Rosé was nowhere to be found.

Kasiax abruptly halted his hasty departure from the ballroom.

He now stood before the Marquess of Montenegro, who had spent the entire evening sulking as if mourning some great misfortune.

The marquess and his wife instinctively shrank back as the crown prince approached them with a terrifying expression.

“Y-Your Highness.”

“I bring excellent news for your daughter.”

“Pardon…? W-What do you mean?”

“The brave young lady of the Etoile family has volunteered to travel to the North. Congratulations.”

“Wh-what?”

A murmur spread through the hall.

The moment Kasiax finished speaking, the sharp sound of breaking glass rang out.

“My lady!”

A goblet slipped from Lady Audrey’s trembling hands, shattering into countless fragments on the floor.

Count Etoile rushed to support his wife as she collapsed in a faint.

Kasiax glared at the count and countess before striding out of the ballroom.

Watching him depart from a distance, Hans muttered in disbelief,

“Rosé. My dear sister. I think you’ve done it this time.”

***

The Etoile household felt like a house in mourning.

Lady Audrey lay down with a damp towel on her forehead, refusing to get up, while Count Jared sat beside her, clutching his head in despair.

Tap, tap.

In the midst of it all, Hans, sitting with one leg crossed, anxiously drummed his fingers on the sofa’s armrest, aggravating Lady Audrey’s frayed nerves.

“Hans! Could you please stop that noise? H-hick!”

Even Hans, usually carefree, had never faced such a confounding situation before. He quickly crossed his legs the other way and folded his arms in discomfort.

Rosé Etoile, the beloved daughter of the Etoile family—timid, quick to tears and laughter alike—had been raised like a delicate flower in a greenhouse.

Who could have ever imagined that she would do something so outrageous?

“Mother… are you all right?”

At last, Rosé entered the room.

She clearly understood the gravity of her actions. Though she had performed boldly before Kasiax, she now appeared meek and subdued before her parents.

She could only imagine how shocked they must have been at the ball—her fragile-hearted mother and her unsuspecting father. The mere thought filled her with guilt.

The sound of her voice jolted Lady Audrey awake. She abruptly sat up, as if she had never been unconscious.

“What on earth is going on? The North? Did you volunteer to go to the North? Tell me it’s a lie! Tell me it was a joke!”

“I’m sorry.”

At Rosé’s quiet admission, Lady Audrey collapsed onto her husband’s shoulder.

“Honey! How could she do this? How could she—h-how did we raise her? Hhic! Waaaah!”

She burst into wailing sobs, feebly striking the count’s chest.

“Rosé, sit down.”

The count’s voice was deep and heavy, weighed down with emotion.

Rosé silently took a seat on the sofa across from Hans. Hans opened his mouth as if to say something but then closed it again.

“Tell me. Did you tell His Highness you would go to the North in Lady Muriel’s place?”

“Yes, I did.”

Lady Audrey’s sobs grew louder.

“What made you think of such a thing? No one told you to go to the North.”

The count’s tone was calm, but his eyes searched hers, as if trying to understand what had gone through her mind.

“If I wanted to avoid marriage with the Crown Prince, this was the only option. He will do whatever it takes to marry into our family.”

At her response, the count’s face hardened in apparent bewilderment.

“Didn’t you originally like His Highness the Crown Prince? Did something suddenly change your mind?”

The count was confused.

If anything, he had always been reluctant about a marriage alliance with the imperial family.

He knew well that the life of a woman married into the imperial family was not always happy.

However, because Rosé adored the Crown Prince so much, behaving like a lovestruck foal, he had somewhat come to terms with their eventual marriage.

After all, what could he do when his daughter was so head over heels in love?

“If I marry him, everyone will be unhappy.”

“Who gave you that advice?”

The count glanced at his son, wondering if it was Hans.

Hans simply shrugged, indicating he was just as curious.

“There were certainly women who were unhappy, but not all of them. There’s no need to worry in advance. Besides, even the imperial family wouldn’t dare mistreat a daughter of our house, my dear.”

He tried to change Rosé’s mind.

Sending his daughter to the North was unthinkable—he would instead marry her into the imperial family a hundred times over.

She would be within his sight even if the Crown Prince were a tyrant.

He could go against the imperial family and annul the marriage to bring her back if necessary.

Yet, despite his persuasion, Rosé shook her head firmly.

‘I saw with my own eyes how our family, which was supposed to last longer than the imperial house, was annihilated. I saw how my father was humiliated and killed and how our family fell into ruin. Father doesn’t know.’

Rosé momentarily considered confessing everything she had experienced, laying the truth before her family. But she quickly shook off the thought.

They would surely think she had gone mad.

Her mother might not just faint but suffer a heart attack that could genuinely endanger her life.

If rumors spread that she had lost her mind, it would inevitably damage the reputation of the Etoile family. There was no need to create unnecessary chaos.

Speaking clearly once more, she said, “I have wounded the Crown Prince, so being sentenced to death would be fitting. If I am executed for this, it will bring great harm to our family. I should go to the North instead. It will also save Lady Muriel’s life.”

At those words, her mother screamed at her.

“Since when did you become a saintess! Who told you to save Lady Muriel?”

Audrey clutched her blanket and sobbed.

“If I must die, I’d rather do it without bringing harm to the family. I’ll go to the North and bear the consequences alone. Who knows? People live there too—I might even adapt and survive.”

Rosé knew better than anyone that there was not even a one-percent chance of that happening, but she tried to feign composure to reassure her parents.

“I will find a way to smooth over the injury to the Crown Prince. The imperial family might overlook it if marriage is on the table.”

Rosé did not even blink as she responded.

“If you force me to marry him, I will truly end my life. Please respect my decision.”

With those final words, Rosé stood up and left the room.

The count, countess, and Hans were utterly speechless.

They could not comprehend how the sweet and innocent Rosé had drastically changed.

As they watched her leave with her back straight and head held high, they wondered in stunned silence if this was truly the same Rosé they had known.