“His Highness is not here at the moment.”

When she came to Aidan’s palace to meet him, the servant replied that he wasn’t there.

“I’ll wait.”

She tried to go to the reception room to wait but the servant blocked her way with a troubled expression.

“Even if you wait, it will be difficult to see him.”

The servant answered in a mechanical voice, unable to even lift his head.

“Are you blocking my way?”

“I apologize. However, as His Highness ordered…”

Though he apologized with a deep bow, the servant wouldn’t step aside. Karina was more concerned about his latter words than the fact that he blocked her way.

What had Aidan ordered? Surely not to keep her out? But why?

She felt bewildered as this had never happened before. The old Aidan might have done this, but why would the current Aidan…? No, even the old Aidan had never officially blocked Karina’s visits. Though they rarely visited each other since meeting was uncomfortable and awkward, he had never turned her away at the door like this even when she came without an appointment.

It seemed strange no matter how she thought about it. Could Aidan be trying to hide something from her?

“I will go in and check.”

When she tried to push past the servant, other servants came out to block the way. Karina let out an exasperated sigh and glared at them.

“His Highness ordered us not to let anyone in.”

The servant bowed his head again and announced.

“I didn’t realize I was included in ‘anyone.'”

Though they flinched at Karina’s cold retort, the servants still wouldn’t step aside, apparently having received strict instructions.

“Your Highness.”

Turning at the voice from behind, she saw Kai approaching. Seeing him made things even stranger. How could Aidan be absent when Kai was here?

“Are you feeling better now?”

He bowed and asked about her health after coming right up to her.

“I’m fine. Thank you for your concern. More importantly, I came to see His Highness, but these people say I cannot enter.”

When she criticized the servants’ behavior, Kai made a troubled expression.

“His Highness is not here at the moment.”

Kai gave the same answer as the servants. Karina stared at him intently. Unlike usual, he couldn’t meet her gaze directly.

“Whether he’s here or not doesn’t matter. I can wait.”

“That wouldn’t be…”

“Are you also going to tell me I can’t? If so, explain the reason first.”

She cut off Kai’s words. Letting out a low groan, Kai knelt on one knee.

“How could I dare tell Her Highness the Consort she cannot? I merely meant it would be better not to wait since I cannot guarantee how long you would have to wait.”

His excessive politeness made her wonder if she was being unnecessarily stubborn.

“Please stand up. This doesn’t look right.”

Karina’s voice softened slightly compared to before, and Kai straightened up.

“Why is His Highness away?”

“That…”

Kai wasn’t good at lying. He was someone too upright to bend, even if it meant breaking. Aidan often said that aspect of him resembled Karina. He also said that while such people were needed, they weren’t suited for dirty work because they were too righteous. Karina agreed with that opinion. Even now, Kai was frowning in difficulty, unable to continue speaking.

“Did he order you to keep it a secret from me?”

“……”

His eyes fell to the floor, unable to give any answer. Now he seemed uncomfortable even making eye contact with Karina.

“When can I come back to meet His Highness?”

It wasn’t good to keep arguing in the corridor like this. The imperial palace was a place where even the smallest actions could be exaggerated into rumors. Though she didn’t understand why, it seemed better to ask Aidan directly later rather than making a scene here.

“I cannot guarantee. I will tell His Highness that Your Highness visited. If you wait at your palace, His Highness will come to you.”

So basically, wait quietly until he comes?

Though she understood Kai’s words perfectly, Karina made no objection. It would be pointless to argue with him since he would only follow orders anyway.

“May I ask just one thing?”

“Of course.”

Kai bowed his head slightly.

“Nothing has happened to His Highness, right?”

Aidan was acting unexpectedly. Karina believed there must be a clear reason for him to behave this way. She trusted what she had observed of him over the past few months, though it wasn’t a long time — that he wasn’t someone who would act without thinking or on mere whims.

Kai hesitated to answer. When he didn’t respond immediately, her heart sank, wondering if something really had happened.

“Perhaps he’s seriously injured or…”

“No, absolutely not!”

Hearing him deny it without a moment’s hesitation provided some relief.

“Then why couldn’t you answer right away?”

“Well…”

He hesitated again. This time she waited patiently for his answer. As long as Aidan wasn’t injured and there wasn’t a major problem, that was enough. After a long while, as if he finally couldn’t take it anymore, Kai let out a long sigh.

“I was worried you might misunderstand something else if I said His Highness wasn’t visiting despite nothing being wrong with him.”

So he hadn’t answered right away out of consideration for Karina’s feelings. Karina smiled with a faint sigh.

“I appreciate the consideration, but I’m not so delicate that I’d be hurt by something like that, so please don’t worry.”

She had experienced far worse things in her previous life. She wasn’t the type to get sulky just because Aidan hadn’t visited for a few days or wasn’t present when she came to see him.

“When His Highness returns, please tell him I came by and that I want to see him.”

“I understand.”

Kai bowed to indicate he would comply with her request.

Kai watched Karina’s retreating figure for a long while, only letting out a long sigh after she had completely disappeared around the corner.

This was truly wrong. It was especially torturous having to lie to Karina of all people.

He knocked on the reception room door and announced his name, receiving permission to enter from inside. When he opened the door, he saw Aidan standing by the window.

“Do you really not regret this?”

Aidan turned to face Kai upon hearing his question. No emotion could be read on Aidan’s face. His expression was so blank it was impossible to tell if he was angry or upset. That made him seem even colder.

“Your Highness, at least you should explain to Her Highness the Consort…”

“What difference would that make?”

The icy voice replied. Kai had been acutely feeling these past few days just how smooth-talking Aidan had been before.

After the day Karina collapsed, he became like a completely different person. His playful smile disappeared and his eyes turned cold. No, such expressions weren’t entirely absent before. Sometimes when he seriously wielded his sword in the training grounds, a chilling coldness would briefly flash across his face. But it was truly just momentary. The usual Aidan had maintained a smiling face that could almost seem glib, and even delivered unpleasant news with a smile.

“What about the imperial knights?”

Aidan changed the subject, seemingly not wanting to discuss Karina anymore. Unlike him, Kai had much more he wanted to say, but he took a deep breath and swallowed his words. It seemed pointless to say anything now anyway.

“We leaked information that there are clues at Belmont’s mansion, so they should move in that direction.”

“They’re slower than expected. To think such incompetents are the emperor’s knights…”

Aidan clicked his tongue in disapproval. It didn’t seem worth trying to defend them as an elite group of the finest knights. Much to Aidan’s distaste, they kept coming up empty-handed in their pursuit of Belmont. Of course, Aidan’s side had interfered at first, but recently they had been deliberately leaving clues, yet the knights still fumbled around, unable to catch on quickly.

“What happened to Belmont?”

“I handled it as you ordered.”

Kai frowned and spoke again.

“But didn’t you say you would save him?”

“Did I?”

Aidan let out a cynical laugh at Kai’s question.

“I said I’d let him live, not that I’d forgive him.”

Kai swallowed a groan at Aidan’s response.

So you really just barely kept him alive?

He thought it might have been better if Belmont had been caught and killed by the imperial knights. It seemed like he hadn’t shown such sharp decisiveness before, always being more lenient… But even such thoughts are becoming tiresome now. Aidan showed a different face each day. Sometimes he revealed such cruelty that it made Kai think one should never become this man’s enemy.

The way he handled Belmont, luring the imperial knights to search Belmont’s mansion, and how his attitude toward Consort Karina, whom he had seemed to cherish most, had completely reversed.

Regarding the matter about Belmont, Kai didn’t disagree with Aidan’s methods. Though it wasn’t an approach Kai would have thought of, it was the most effective way to handle it.

But regarding the Consort… Is this really the only way? Though he still frequently questioned it, his lord, Aidan, seemed to have already made up his mind.

*