Long abandoned and poorly maintained, with a ghostly appearance that kept people away — it met all the conditions for Aidan’s discreet comings and goings.

He sorted through unnecessary documents about territories and castles from the vault and used those funds to buy this abandoned mansion at a bargain price. The documents in the vault were originally prepared secretly by ‘Aidan.’ Therefore, no one detected his redirection of funds using them.

He used the remaining money to hire mercenaries. He needed people who could handle tasks knights couldn’t. Those hired purely for money were simple to manage. While he couldn’t expect loyalty, they would do any job according to payment, and when they’re no longer needed, they were easy to dispose of.

Some of these mercenaries were the ones he had assigned to watch Marquis Belmont. Though invisible in the darkness, security around the mansion had been strengthened. They would be safe from attacks while staying here.

After hearing all this, Karina quietly swallowed, unsure how to react. A prince maintaining mercenaries paid with money rather than official knights was far from ideal. If the Emperor learned of it, he might suspect treasonous intentions.

However, from Aidan’s position, she sympathized with his need for independent forces operating outside the palace when he couldn’t fully trust anyone there. Having House Hewitt openly support him wasn’t appropriate either. If House Hewitt openly moved their private forces in any way, it would make the imperial family uncomfortable, and give the Empress’s faction grounds to claim House Hewitt was targeting imperial authority.

A necessary evil. Not an alternative, but a necessary evil. For Aidan, if something was necessary, he would execute it without hesitation even if it was ‘evil.’

She had to acknowledge that this mansion was his perfectly safe domain for spending a night. She understood why they kept the lights off and maintained the building’s eerie exterior.

She confirmed that the windowless corridors and inner rooms were actually kept quite clean with lights inside. Several people managed the mansion, and as Aidan said, security personnel regularly patrolled outside.

“Through that door is the bedroom. The inner bathroom has warm water prepared as I requested, so you can go in and wash up. A change of clothes is ready too.”

Aidan, who had draped his outer garments over a reception room chair, nodded toward a door leading inside. Given the prepared warm water, he must have planned to stay here from when they left the palace.

“Where do you plan to sleep, Your Highness?”

Instead of answering Karina’s question, Aidan just stared at her steadily. His expression suggested he had something to say, and then it hit her. Right now, it was just the two of them here.

“Aidan.”

When she quickly gave him the answer he wanted, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

“It’s just unfamiliarity, so please let it slide.”

She wondered why he insisted so much on being called by name rather than ‘Your Highness.’ For Karina, who had been taught to say ‘Your Highness’ for over three years — no, since she first learned to speak — such habits couldn’t change overnight.

“Names gain meaning the more they’re called. For both me and you.”

She couldn’t argue further when he said it held meaning not just for Karina who called it, but for Aidan himself. Almost no one called him Aidan. Everyone in the palace called him ‘Your Highness,’ not his name. Only the Emperor and Empress occasionally, rarely, called him Aidan.

Perhaps he too needed time to get used to that name, needed someone to call it until it became familiar.

That thought made calling him ‘Aidan’ feel suddenly weighty.

“Before I called his name, he was merely a gesture. When I called his name, he came to me and became a flower.”

Aidan spoke incomprehensible words, muttering to himself, then he met Karina’s eyes and smiled gently.

“It’s from a famous poet where I lived, a passage I personally like.”

It was too abstract to understand what it meant or why Aidan said he liked that passage.

“You see, I never had anyone call my name with meaning.”

Ah… She thought she vaguely understood what he meant.

Were you lonely?

The words that reached her tongue couldn’t be carelessly voiced. Even if she confirmed his loneliness, there was nothing she could do about it. Especially since what he spoke of wasn’t his current form but his life in a world Karina had never even heard of.

He, who spoke of meaning in calling names, wanted only her to call him Aidan. For Karina, that action held even greater significance.

Through Karina, Aidan wanted to confirm his existence in this world.

You don’t need to do that. You’re already a prince, and that alone could make you someone everyone acknowledges. That would be better than recognition and meaning from just one person like me.

“So, where will you sleep?”

Though she had much to say, she swallowed it all and repeated her earlier question. She understood it might be because she alone knew his true identity, and that’s why he sought meaning from her.

“There.”

Aidan pointed to the bedroom with an expression that suggested it should be obvious. It was the bedroom connected directly to the reception room, where he had just told Karina to sleep.

Karina swallowed a groan while staring at the bedroom door. She wanted to ask if he meant to share the bed but held back, thinking it a pointless question.

“Isn’t there another…”

“As you can see, we’ve only cleared and used the necessary spaces. Other areas aren’t ready yet.”

He meant this vast mansion had only that one room suitable as a bedroom.

“You’re not the only one who stays here. Sir Kai and other knights must stay here sometimes…”

“Kai’s room just has a bed thrown in and large windows, so we can’t even turn on the lights. Other knights and mercenaries share rooms. I can’t send you to places like that.”

So there were no other options.

“I won’t do anything.”

Aidan raised both hands and smiled brightly.

“It’s not that I don’t trust you.”

This was Aidan who had resisted even after being drugged. She believed his words about not wanting to force himself on someone unwilling.

“You shouldn’t trust me.”

He smiled mischievously while saying the exact opposite of before. But now she knew it was just teasing.

“I’ll wash up first.”

If she kept talking with him, she felt she might get caught up in his wordplay. Knowing he just wanted to tease, washing up seemed better than engaging with him. After walking around all day, she really wanted to wash up too.

Since he said the bathroom was inside the bedroom, she opened the bedroom door and entered. Fortunately, perhaps because there were no windows, the lights were bright enough that she didn’t have to hesitate because of the darkness.

After Karina went in and closed the bedroom door, Aidan stared at it, chuckled, and let out a long breath.

“I was serious. She must think I’m joking.”

While he had no intention of forcing himself on her, he couldn’t guarantee he could control himself well all night together. As his feelings for Karina grew, other desires grew too.

“I thought those kinds of desires had disappeared with age, but with a different body, things are different.”

Aidan muttered to himself, let out a hollow laugh, and shook his head. He had no intention of rushing. He was confident he could wait until Karina approached him first.

Still, as a man who sincerely desired Karina, he couldn’t help his heart stirring.

“No sleep again tonight.”

He stretched broadly, poured the wine the butler had prepared on the table into a glass, and sat on the sofa. He planned to have a drink while waiting for Karina to finish washing up, since he couldn’t enter the bedroom until then.

*

Glug glug. The light brown liquid filled the clear glass. Marquis Belmont picked up the glass and downed it in one go. The strong alcohol burned down his throat, feeling like it scorched his heart. His eyes were bloodshot red. Not just from drinking, but also from lack of sleep.

He tried to refill his glass, but the bottle was already empty. Frowning deeply, Marquis Belmont threw the empty bottle at the wall. Glass shards scattered everywhere with the sound of breaking.

“To think they chose House Spencer of all people to stab me in the back…”

His teeth clenched at the memory of hearing about Lloyd and Kate Spencer’s marriage news earlier that day.

“Lilith. I should have torn that woman apart when I had the chance.”

As he gripped the wine glass tightly and cursed, he heard a rustling sound from the window.

“W-Who’s there!”