The second prince’s palace study.

Learning the imperial palace’s etiquette was exhausting. But April never took her eyes off her instructor. Learning was enjoyable, and the time allotted to her was short.

The one teaching her not just etiquette but also general foundational knowledge was the nation’s finance minister. The only reason such a busy man was teaching April was because of an imperial order.

The emperor’s philosophy was that, since she had become royalty, she needed to learn etiquette and the flow of money. Of course, underlying that was a warning: if she was caught carelessly spending money, she wouldn’t be let off easily.

Realizing this, April understood that the emperor was sensitive about money. She quickly caught on that if she bought jewels or commissioned new dresses with her allowance as the prince’s consort, she might have to face the emperor.

‘I should just do nothing.’

The money Calsion gave her went straight to the imperial bank. The feeling she had when she saw the enormous sum deposited in her account under her own name—

‘It felt like I was flying through the sky.’

“Do you understand this part?”

“Yes.”

“Then please state the third rule that royalty must observe.”

“Always be gentle.”

“Very good.”

April didn’t mind the finance minister’s checks to see if she was distracted. She hadn’t been able to learn before, so she cherished every moment.

“Your attitude is always excellent, Your Highness.”

“I’m honored you think so.”

April answered demurely. The finance minister, looking at her with satisfaction, closed his book and stood up.

“You’re learning quickly, so a few more lessons should suffice.”

“What should I do if I want to learn more?”

“…What do you mean?”

“I’d like to study more about history or economics.”

“In that case, it would be better to invite a professor from the academy.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. You’d need His Highness’s permission, though.”

“All right.”

April nodded at the finance minister. In simple terms, if she wanted to learn anything properly as the prince’s consort in the palace, she needed Calsion’s approval.

‘That much is nothing.’

From what she’d seen so far, Calsion wasn’t that rigid. Unlike Duke Bright, who thought women should quietly stay like greenhouse flowers, Calsion was very open-minded.

Even the fact that he assigned Jarenne, a knight, to her proved it. Instead of a maid, he gave her a knight, ensuring her protection and preventing her from suffering unfair treatment.

She hadn’t realized it at first, but she understood as her lessons with the finance minister continued. The palace maids were daughters of noble families, seeking to climb the social ladder. Among them, the position of the prince’s consort’s personal maid was the fastest way to get close to the prince.

‘Maybe he just found it bothersome.’

Perhaps Calsion assigned Jarenne simply out of annoyance, but thanks to that, April didn’t have to deal with pointless power struggles. The maids assigned to the second prince’s palace were those who had lost out in the competition, so the infighting among them was even fiercer. April realized this after spending a few days in the palace.

Having only learned to read people’s intentions at the Bright ducal house, April had now reached the point where she could tell at a glance whether someone was hostile, indifferent, or friendly toward her.

‘About half.’

Half the maids in the second prince’s palace harbored ill will toward her, while the other half were indifferent. The only one who showed any kindness was Jarenne. And now, the finance minister before her could be added to that list.

“If you wish, I can speak to His Highness for you.”

“That’s not necessary. I’ll speak to him myself.”

“As you wish.”

If only he didn’t occasionally test the waters about her relationship with Calsion.

“Is today’s lesson finished?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“You’re too kind.”

He said it with a smile, but April knew. It made no sense for the empire’s finance minister to personally teach the consort of the second prince. If not for the emperor’s order, he would never have come here.

‘What is the emperor thinking?’

Since the crown prince hadn’t been appointed yet, she wondered if there was another motive, but the first prince’s support among the nobles was too strong. The second prince, who had only just entered the palace, couldn’t possibly compete.

April gave a half-hearted farewell to the finance minister and sat down, lost in thought. With a quill pen in hand and some paper, she started doodling absentmindedly to organize her thoughts.

“So, the first and third princes are the children of the current empress, and the second prince is the child of the late former empress.”

There had never been a more complicated family tree. The child of a concubine came before the legitimate wife’s children.

‘And she even had two children.’

At that time, the current empress was just a concubine, not even listed in the royal family registry.

April bit her lip as she scribbled over the words she’d just written.

‘This is too dangerous.’

She didn’t know why the emperor had called Calsion into the palace now, but there was no way the woman who had climbed all the way to the empress’s seat would sit quietly.

“If it comes to this, she’ll probably try to kill me.”

It didn’t seem to have reached that point yet, but with the finance minister moving, rumors were bound to spread. She might have avoided others’ eyes, but she couldn’t escape the attention of the maids.

There was no guarantee those maids would be loyal to Calsion, so she needed to prepare for what was to come. First, she had to ask Calsion to increase her security.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

She’d come in search of freedom, only to find palace intrigue waiting for her.

‘Not that it was unexpected…’

April sighed as she reflected on why she could never seem to be happy.

“No, wait. At least I got money.”

She had the money Calsion gave her. Since she’d received it, she had to fulfill her role as the prince’s consort.

April clenched her fist. No matter what happened, she was determined to endure and leave safely with her money. Her eyes shone with resolve.

The blue flames burning in her eyes were stronger and more beautiful than any other fire.

April held the scribbled paper up to the candle lighting her room. With a whoosh, the thin paper turned to ashes. Staring at the ashes, she blew them off the table with a gentle breath.

Before she knew it, the sun was setting. April turned her gaze to the distant, blazing sunset. The red sun was rather beautiful—so much so that she couldn’t look away, unlike the ones she’d seen at the duke’s mansion.

April kept her eyes on the window, then blinked as she noticed a faint, dark shadow flicker across the clear glass.

‘Huh?’

She wondered if she was seeing things, but she wasn’t. April hurriedly stepped back, pressing herself as close to the wall as possible and gripping her quill tightly.

“Die!”

At that moment, a man with his face covered in black cloth broke through the window.

April dodged the sword he swung at her and stabbed the tip of her quill into his neck. She doubted a thin quill would go in properly, but the nib was quite thick. As she pulled the quill out after stabbing him precisely in the neck, the man grabbed at his throat.

“Ugh!”

She tried to back away from the man swinging his sword at her again, but tripped over the desk and locked eyes with his wild gaze. April glared back fiercely.

“April!”

It was then that Calsion appeared before her.

He stepped in front of her and blocked the man’s sword. But it was too much to face the dozen or so assassins who followed, pouring in through the broken window.

“Kill them both! Cut off their breath!”

“Yes!”

Calsion swung his sword at the assassins rushing from all sides. If he had been alone, he could have easily subdued them, but with April crouched behind him, he couldn’t fight at full strength. He couldn’t move freely and could only defend himself in place.

Even so, he quickly defeated the assassins, and as he was about to deal with the last one, the assassin, noticing his hesitation, swung his sword at April.

“Die!!”

“Ugh…”

Calsion, unable to dodge as he protected her, was stabbed deeply in the side. But without stopping, he drove his sword into the man’s chest. Blood continued to pour from the wound where he’d been stabbed.