Aidan and Karina sat facing each other at a round table on the dining terrace. Though there was a larger, longer table inside, Aidan didn’t like it. He said it was uncomfortably overwhelming for just the two of them to dine there. He also complained that the large table meant they served unnecessarily many dishes.

So the dining terrace became the alternative. They placed an appropriately sized round table there, which wasn’t originally present, and had meals served there when dining together. Fortunately, the weather was mild enough that dining on the terrace wasn’t unpleasant. It was nice to overlook the garden and feel the cool evening breeze.

“When will it start getting cold?”

While the weather was perfect for outdoor dining now, it would become impossible in cold weather.

“Since it’s spring now, it should be fine for half a year.”

“Hmm.”

Aidan made a long humming sound. She thought he would contemplate what to do when winter came, but he made no particular comment. Karina wondered why he had nothing to say, then realized she might not be here by then.

It was premature to talk about the future when there was a divorce agreement between them. Complete with both their seals.

Less than half a year remained now. More than two months had passed since writing the agreement, so less than four months remained.

It’s strange how a person’s heart could change so much in just a few months. If you ask her whether she still wanted the divorce now, she honestly couldn’t answer confidently. Wouldn’t this be fine as it is? She thought she could stay with the current Aidan regardless of whether he became emperor or not.

You’ve grown soft, Karina.

She quietly swallowed her breath while admonishing herself. While Aidan had been showing very good behavior recently, and Lloyd was a mess in comparison, they were still princes competing for the imperial throne. If they were close brothers, it might be different, but in a relationship where they were desperate to destroy each other, once one became emperor, the other couldn’t remain in this palace. Being sent to the provinces would be getting off lightly. With Lloyd and the Empress, they would obviously try to kill him through various schemes.

Unless Aidan became emperor, there would be no peaceful future for him or for herself who wanted to stay with him. She initially wanted to leave because she was sick of the power struggle, but while living with Aidan, she had forgotten the most fundamental problem.

But Aidan could become emperor too.

She laughed bitterly at her own counter-argument. It was bitter that she couldn’t think of her feelings for him purely and completely. That’s why she couldn’t be more honest in front of him. Even if she admitted she liked him, to continue living as his consort was a different matter.

“You seem lost in thought. Your complexion doesn’t look good either.”

Aidan said while staring intently at Karina’s face as they ate.

“No. It’s nothing…”

Karina swallowed her words as she felt a sharp, needle-like pain in her abdomen. Come to think of it, she had been breaking into cold sweats for a while now. Why was her body acting like this? Once she became aware of it, the pain seemed to intensify.

“Karina?”

When she unconsciously clutched her stomach with one hand while frowning from the pain, Aidan’s expression grew more serious.

“My stomach… hurts…”

The pain was becoming increasingly unbearable. She had never experienced such pain in her life and could barely speak. As she bit her lip to suppress a groan, Aidan rose from his seat and approached her.

“You’ll split your lip if you bite it like that.”

He frowned as he used his finger to pull her lower lip free. When her lips parted, an unstoppable groan escaped.

“Are you alright?”

Aidan fidgeted as he examined Karina’s complexion. She couldn’t even manage to say she was fine, even as a lie. Her vision was now starting to waver.

Did I eat something bad? Why…

It was too much effort to even think anymore. The pain made it difficult to breathe properly. Everything seemed to be turning black before her eyes.

“Karina! Karina, stay conscious!”

As Karina gasped for breath, her body slumped from the chair. Aidan quickly caught and held her, preventing her from falling to the floor. Her forehead was covered in cold sweat. Her complexion had turned completely pale compared to moments ago.

“Call the physician! Get the palace physician here, now!”

At Aidan’s shout, the servants and knights who had come to the terrace wondering what was happening became flustered at the sight of the collapsed Karina.

“Kai!”

When he called for Kai, he quickly gathered his wits and ordered another knight behind him to bring the physician immediately. Aidan lifted Karina in his arms. His steps toward her bedroom were more urgent than ever before.

His mind seemed to turn white. He had never been greatly flustered by anything in his life. Having experienced all sorts of things from a young age, his heart rate barely changed for ordinary matters. Even when he was accused of embezzlement at his company, or when his subordinate stabbed him in the stomach, while he thought the world was terrible and irritating, he hadn’t felt like his heart would fall out like now.

‘You’ve never had someone precious to you.’

Who was it? Someone had said those words to him.

‘Unfortunately… nothing will change if you can’t cherish people.’

Though he couldn’t remember the face, that voice remained clear.

*

The palace physician came to examine Karina’s condition. After giving her medicine brewed with the herbs he prescribed, her breathing became calmer as if the pain had subsided. However, she remained unconscious.

“What’s wrong with her?”

The physician let out a low sigh.

“Let’s step outside.”

The physician suggested moving to the reception room. Aidan checked Karina’s face as she lay on the bed. Though her breathing had stabilized, her face remained pale. He felt like he would go crazy with worry, wondering if there was something seriously wrong.

When they entered the reception room, the physician who had gone ahead turned to face him.

“You should sit down and listen calmly.”

The physician waited for Aidan to sit on the sofa first. Though he wasn’t in the mood to sit or have a long conversation, he reluctantly followed the physician’s suggestion and sat down.

“Please clear the room.”

The physician requested, gesturing to the knights and servants waiting in the reception room. Aidan’s expression hardened further. Did this mean it was something that could only be discussed in private? His premonition grew increasingly worse.

At Aidan’s signal, Kai led the knights and servants out into the hallway.

“Now tell me.”

As soon as the reception room door closed, the physician looked at Aidan with a serious expression.

“Has Karina contracted a fatal illness?”

Even as he asked, he thought it made no sense. Surely it was just simple indigestion or something similar. Though he thought this, he couldn’t shake off the anxiety in one corner of his mind.

“No, that’s not it.”

The physician calmly answered, shaking his head.

“Then?”

If it was just food poisoning, the physician wouldn’t have asked to clear the room. Or perhaps in this place, was there some law that members of the imperial family shouldn’t even suffer from stomach aches? All sorts of thoughts tangled messily in his mind. Whatever it was, he just wanted the physician to give a clear answer.

“Her Highness the Consort…”

Though he opened his mouth, the physician hesitated to continue again. From the perspective of the one waiting, it felt like he was dying from frustration.

“If you’re not trying to drive someone to death, shouldn’t you keep the suspense to a minimum?”

His tone sharpened as his nerves frayed. The physician dropped his eyes that had been meeting Aidan’s to the floor and swallowed dryly.

“It appears she has been poisoned.”

Poisoned…? With poison? He was struck speechless by the unexpected words. Is this really happening, like something out of a drama?

“She won’t… die, right?”

Why did he suddenly remember that the previous Empress, Aidan’s birth mother, might have been poisoned to death? His heart seemed to plummet at the thought that Karina might die. Fortunately, the physician shook his head again.

“Her life is not in danger. However…”

The physician stopped speaking again and watched Aidan’s reaction.

Is this guy trying to drive people to death from frustration? Just as he was thinking he might want to draw his sword if this dragged on any longer, the physician continued.

“It will be difficult for her to conceive.”

Aidan narrowed his eyes and furrowed his brow. He wondered if he had heard the word correctly. Conception? Out of nowhere?

“It seems she hasn’t been poisoned just in the past day or two. When I checked with the servants who attend to Her Highness the Consort about the food she ate today, there was Flora tea. That tea contains ingredients that react with the poison Her Highness has been exposed to. That’s what caused the stomach pain. I’m not saying the Flora tea was the problem. Rather, it’s fortunate that we discovered she had been poisoned thanks to that tea.”

Aidan stared at the physician without blinking as he explained. A poison that makes pregnancy impossible… His head, which had been burning hot, gradually cooled to ice.

‘Your Highness should also have good news. An imperial heir is important. His Highness Lloyd has already achieved this, so Your Highness must hurry. When a prince is born, His Majesty is more likely to name His Highness Lloyd as crown prince.’

Duke Hewitt had advised this recently. A prince’s second generation, blood to inherit the imperial family… If that influenced the appointment of the crown prince, it was crystal clear who had been poisoning Karina.