“Lexion.”

Deep in the imperial garden filled with colorful flowers, a man leaning back deeply on a bench raised his head at the sound of someone calling him. Squinting his eyes against the blazing sunlight, Lexion spotted his friend and lightly waved the hand holding dried herbs.

“I heard you went away to recover from an illness?”

Peter, the young noble of a count’s family with extensive land holdings and Lexion’s friend since their academy days, sat down at a table shaded by a peach tree and answered.

“It’s been over two months since I returned, remember? Aren’t you being too indifferent to your only friend?”

“I thought you died there since I hadn’t heard from you.”

“Is that what you were hoping for? Always with that heartless personality……”

Lexion laughed casually at Peter’s complaint and licked the end of the paper. As a dreamy feeling came over him, he closed his drowsy eyelids and leaned his head back.

“You still haven’t quit?”

Peter looked at the hazy smoke with a disapproving face. The herbs Lexion was smoking were hallucinogenic poisonous plants. They had enjoyed them together during their immature days, but Peter, who had barely escaped after living as a half-cripple due to severe addiction, never touched them again after receiving treatment at a facility.

“Found it in the corner of a drawer, thought I’d reminisce about old memories.”

“Keep that up and your brain will turn to mush and burst! The Crown Prince dying from smoking forbidden poisonous herbs… if the people found out, they might start a riot. Tsk tsk!”

Lexion pulled up one corner of his mouth and snickered.

“How could the Empire’s guardian die from mere poisonous herbs? If it’s not stronger than this, I don’t even feel it.”

He was a man with superhuman physique and abilities. Even if he chewed poison whole, it would only have the effect of a spice.

“Does your old man need another reason to collapse grabbing his neck because of you? Didn’t you eradicate those forbidden herbs circulating in social gatherings? Don’t you remember?”

“Peter, are you my wife? A man nagging over one smoke.”

“Pleasure is fine, but don’t pour cold water on the fantasies of the ladies who follow you.”

“It’s just a momentary deviation.”

As the acrid smoke escaping through Lexion’s lips slowly drifted over, Peter wrinkled his face. His supposedly reformed body was tingling with temptation. Feeling a surge of anger, Peter covered his nose and shouted.

“Damn it… Do you know how hard it was for me to quit! Just the smell makes me nauseous, so put it out quickly! I’m afraid someone might see!”

Lexion shrugged, dropped the cigarette on the ground, and crushed it with his shoe. It wasn’t so much that he took his friend’s advice to heart, but rather that Peter’s buzzing complaints annoyed him like a swarm of bees.

“What brings you here?”

As if annoyed by Peter’s disruption of his peace, Lexion loosened his tightly fastened cravat. It was true that he kept him around because he liked Peter’s informal manner, but sometimes he irritated him with his tiresome behavior.

“I’m taking Maria back.”

“……”

Lexion rolled his eyes upward. His expression showed that he was more puzzled about why Peter was telling him this rather than appearing troubled.

“It’s the old man’s order! He’s furious after hearing about the scandal between you two!”

“And?”

‘I knew he’d react like this! Shameless bastard……!’

Peter didn’t have a good sibling relationship with his sister Maria. But blood is thicker than water, and he felt the urge to punch his friend’s smug face for playing around with his little sister.

“Lexion, are you going to become my in-law?”

“Peter, you’re not serious, are you? Your newly elevated family isn’t prestigious enough to be tied to the imperial family. I heard you broke your leg from falling off a horse, but did you actually injure your head during your recovery?”

“You bastard… I see your foul mouth hasn’t changed.”

Peter shook his head with a disgusted expression.

“How strange.”

Lexion draped his outstretched arms over the bench backrest and looked up at the blue sky.

“When have you ever stopped badmouthing your sister to the point my ears got calluses?”

“Hmph!”

Struck at his core, Peter roared back instead.

“Even so! You shouldn’t have messed with my sister! You…damn! Don’t you have even that much courtesy!”

“Take her away or not, do as you please. She’s the one who’s settled in the imperial palace. I was just starting to get tired of her.”

“Hey! Because of you, my sister’s marriage prospects are ruined! How are you going to take responsibility!”

“I didn’t do anything that requires taking responsibility.”

“Not yet, that is,” Lexion added with a mischievous smile, as if teasing Peter.

“Is that what matters? The streets are buzzing with rumors that Maria is already your woman!”

“More importantly, as you said, Maria’s education in etiquette is terrible. She keeps visiting my bedroom every night, making things difficult. Like a stray cat.”

“Gasp!”

Peter gaped in shock. He knew his sister had a forceful personality from being raised with constant indulgence, but it was clear that she was more ruthless than he had expected, stopping at nothing to get what she wanted.

“Out of consideration for you, I’ve been rejecting her, but who knows. What might happen if I feel inclined.”

“You……! If you touch her, you really have to take responsibility! There’s no woman like my sister! Do you think such beauties are common in the Empire?”

Suddenly, Lexion remembered the woman he had seen that morning.

“They’re all over the streets.”

She had eyes filled with hostility, in contrast to the shy gazes of others. Perhaps that’s why his gaze had lingered longer than usual.

Moreover, that woman had avoided his gaze with an expression as if she’d seen something filthy. Such cases were rare. Women were usually desperate to catch even a passing glance from him.

‘…I must have unknowingly earned someone’s resentment.’

She was a woman in plain attire, not even wearing common earrings. Yet her unwavering posture and the subtle dignity she exuded were clearly those of nobility.

“Peter, which family has silver hair?”

“Silver hair? Why……? Baron Bardelli has silver hair, but… No, no! Answer me! You’ll take responsibility, right? Lexion, I’m really serious.”

“If by chance I do get involved with her, I’ll give you adequate compensation, so don’t worry.”

At his voice, devoid of any hint of jest, Peter showed a perplexed reaction.

“You… are you serious?”

“Why would I lie?”

“But you made a promise to my father!”

“I never told Count Widro that I would marry Maria.”

“Lexion!”

Tilting his head slightly with an indifferent air, Lexion spoke in a deep voice.

“Peter, be clear. Do you want to discuss politics with me rather than friendship?”

“You……”

“You should go now. I want to rest before entering the assembly.”

He had always been a man without blood or tears, but Peter had thought they were close enough and had some loyalty to each other….. Feeling suffocated by Lexion’s excessively cold attitude, Peter trembled with humiliation, unable to add anything more as he rose from his seat.

It wasn’t just the sense of betrayal, but the fact that he was too intimidated by Lexion to say anything more.

“Peter Widro.”

Lexion firmly said to his retreating back.

“From now on, schedule an appointment when you come to see me.”

* * *

In the luxurious room carpeted with rugs, a woman stood on the balcony, waving a fan adorned with white lace as she looked down below.

Her clear glass-like eyes were busily scanning the magnificent garden of the imperial palace, but perhaps not finding the person she was looking for, she withdrew her regretful gaze and turned her head toward the maid entering.

“Miss, the item you requested has arrived!”

Seeing the lustrous mother-of-pearl jewelry box in the maid’s hand, the woman left the balcony with an expectant expression and sat down at the table. The maid opened the jewelry box in front of her, and a necklace embedded with dozens of jewels sparkled on the satin.

“Oh my, it’s so beautiful!”

The woman picked up the necklace and let out an exclamation of admiration. Blue sapphires that perfectly matched the color of her eyes flowed through her hands, flaunting their presence.

“Would you like to try it on?”

“Yes!”

The maid carefully pushed aside the woman’s glossy brown hair to one side and fastened the necklace around her delicate neck. The jewels, well-matched with her snow-white skin, emitted an even more splendid light.

“You look so beautiful! No one will draw more attention than you at the ball!”

With flushed crimson cheeks, the woman stroked her neck and quietly smiled.

“Oh, and on my way here, I met an attendant who said His Highness the Crown Prince will be coming to the palace this evening!”

“What? Is that true?”

“Yes! I should tell the head chef to pay special attention to dinner preparations!”

The woman hurriedly stood up.