“I’ll handle that myself.”

Yulifa had expected to be told to send the money right away, so Calsion’s unexpected answer left him hesitating on the spot. Seeing him standing there blankly, Calsion raised an eyebrow.

He checked the time; it was almost time for lunch. He needed to finish the paperwork quickly and leave, but Yulifa, who stood there as if he had something more to say, was getting in the way.

“Is there anything else to report?”

“Your Highness, I have something to ask you seriously.”

“What is it?”

“…You’re not really going to give all that money to Duke Bright, are you?”

Yulifa truly thought it was a waste. Just thinking about the money spent on this wedding and the dowry to be given to the bride’s family was enough to make him sit up in bed at night. It would have been better to invest that money in the knights’ order rather than feed the duke’s family.

Calsion understood Yulifa’s intent but saw no need to clear up his doubts. Just because he asked, it wasn’t as if he could reveal that April was an illegitimate child.

“I told you I’d handle it.”

“…Understood.”

Only then did Yulifa retreat. Calsion stared at his back, then turned back to the documents. The words wouldn’t sink in; the white was paper, the black was letters, but why did it all feel so suffocating? Calsion set the documents down on the desk.

The dowry Duke Bright demanded was a bit much. Normally, he wouldn’t have even considered such a request, but the situation was different now. The emperor had officially requested that he prepare money to reward the duke, who had willingly offered his daughter for the second prince whom no one wanted to marry.

But the duke wasn’t qualified.

If he had truly wanted to make a deal with the imperial family, he should have offered a daughter with no issues in her bloodline. He’d heard the duke had two daughters, so the other must be the real daughter of the duchess. Rumor had it the duke would try to marry that daughter to the unmarried third prince, and Calsion felt he could have drawn his sword over that.

It was too obvious. He hadn’t wanted to give his precious daughter to someone so far removed from the throne. Calsion had no maternal family to support him.

“How ridiculous.”

He’d been chased out with nothing but a sword, yet he’d managed to secure a place for himself in the imperial palace. His next goal was the highest position here.

“If he wanted to join hands with me, he shouldn’t have done this.”

He knew the duke had only reached out after watching the situation. The first prince’s faction was already too large—many would reach out to him even without the Brights. The third prince was a knight full of pride and temper, living for his own glory. When Calsion appeared, the duke must have thought this was his chance.

And with another daughter, he could avoid angering the empress. The third prince was still unmarried. It was well known that the emperor had pressured the noble families for this marriage, so the duke could use that as an excuse with the empress.

He could have tolerated that much. At least then, he could have claimed to have given his precious daughter to a prince without backing.

But Duke Bright had made a show of everything before Calsion and the emperor. He’d said the only reason he hadn’t married off his eldest daughter was because he cherished her too much.

“And then he stabs me in the back like this?”

Calsion gripped the documents in front of him.

He hadn’t been able to sleep from rage after learning the truth from April last night. Not only had the duke, who was less than himself, deceived him, he’d also tricked the emperor.

Who could he blame? It was the fault of those who fell for the lies. But he couldn’t just let it go.

Even so, Calsion couldn’t be angry at April. It wasn’t her fault. She was a victim too.

Someone left with no one in the world to help her, unable to live as she wished because of it.

April and Calsion were similar. In fact, Calsion was projecting himself onto her situation.

It was obvious what kind of treatment April, left alone without a mother, would have received in the Bright family. He’d been through the same. At least he was a legitimate royal, even if he’d lost his mother. But April, as the daughter of a maid, would have suffered even more.

“At least I was a man and could hold a sword.”

April was different. Born a half-noble woman, she couldn’t even wield a sword.

The more he thought about it, the less he could ignore April. He could have kept his distance and lived a cold, indifferent marriage, but… his heart kept moving.

He thought he should be firm, but knowing April’s background, he couldn’t treat her harshly.

“Or maybe… she told me on purpose, expecting this.”

Calsion let out a hollow laugh, trying to steady his heart.

“Duke Bright.”

Calsion clenched his teeth so hard they clicked. Not only had the duke ignored him, a royal, but he’d even tried to deceive the emperor. Unforgivable. If left alone, he’d keep doing the same thing.

“You really don’t know fear of the heavens.”

It was time to show why royals were compared to the sun, moon, and stars in the sky. There would be no mercy for someone who mocked his authority.

***

April was sitting across from Calsion. She couldn’t tell if the steak was going into her mouth or her nose. That’s how uncomfortable the meal was.

The maids serving at her side were all smiles, but April’s heart was anything but at ease.

‘Just look at those eyes!’

Dark flames flickered in his black eyes. He clearly had something else in mind, but he still hadn’t spoken. She’d been waiting since she sat down, but Calsion hadn’t said anything.

She kept cutting the steak into small pieces and putting them in her mouth when she saw him gesture to the servants. All the staff who understood Calsion’s signal left the dining room. Well, not all—his aide and her personal maid remained.

‘Jarenne, wasn’t it?’

She was called a maid, but really a knight. The other maids knew this and didn’t try to give Jarenne any chores. Her only job was supervision. She was an odd fit for the title of maid, and even she had asked April to call her by name.

“If you need anything from now on, ask Jarenne.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“And one more thing.”

April, who had been answering without looking at Calsion, turned her head. When their eyes met, she was swept up in a strange feeling.

“What’s with that look?”

He seemed to pity her, but also want to avoid her…

She didn’t know how to react to the strange emotion in his gaze, so April decided to pretend not to notice.

“What is it?”

At her question, Calsion even sent Jarenne and Yulifa out. Once they were alone, he spoke first.

“The dowry Duke Bright demanded—I’ll give it to you.”

“…What?”

She hadn’t expected this at all. April stared at him for a moment, trying to understand what he meant by giving her the money instead of the duke’s family.

She blinked several times, but when he said nothing else, she realized she’d heard him correctly.

“But isn’t the dowry supposed to be given to my family?”

“That’s why I’m giving it to you. You’re still a member of Duke Bright’s family, listed in the noble registry.”

She’d never heard of the dowry being given to the bride herself. As she tilted her head in confusion, Calsion smiled.

“I’m doing it because I resent what the duke did.”

“Oh, well…”

She was an accomplice, so she had nothing to say. April quietly lowered her head. She didn’t know what to say. To Calsion, she was as much a criminal as the duke—a collaborator in the deception.

“Raise your head.”

At the sound from right above her, April looked up. Calsion, who had been sitting at the other end of the table, was now standing by her side. Fearing he might lower his lips to her ear and whisper as he had the night before, April straightened her posture.

“You didn’t do anything wrong, so why act like that?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Now, her name was no longer April Bright, but April Isper. She had nothing to do with the Bright family anymore…

“I’m part of the royal family now. Is it okay for me to receive the dowry?”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“Oh, right.”

The royals were far above the duke’s family. So whatever the duke said wouldn’t matter to Calsion.

Duke Bright would have no choice but to wait quietly. After all, he’d been deceived.

“How much will you give me?”

April’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.