It feels like a past life now, but there was a time when Raphael didn’t think so badly of Rosalyn.

This was before he fully understood the long-standing animosity between the Delmart and Imperial families. Unlike Raphael, who had been shy from an early age, Rosalyn’s naturally warm personality made it easy for her to reach out to him.

What boy wouldn’t blush at such an approach? But when he learned of the relationship between their families, everything changed.

Deeply rooted in the Imperial family, the Delmart family had a long history that no other family could match. Looking through the history books, it would be hard to count on one hand the number of great figures who bore the Delmart name, for the family’s honour was unparalleled.

As their power grew, so did their influence, slowly spreading like a snowball with momentum. It was rumoured throughout the Empire that the wealth of the Delmart family had surpassed that of the Imperial family.

When their wealth and power almost equalled that of the Imperial Family, the Delmart family showed their claws. They began to wield their vast wealth as a weapon, using it to manipulate and influence the affairs of state.

As time passed, the situation worsened, and now the Duke of Delmart sought to make his daughter Empress, with the intention of placing his own bloodline on the throne as Emperor.

To Raphael, the Delmart family had become a parasite, feeding off the strength of the Empire, and Rosalyn, raised in such a family, was no different.

He made no secret of his hatred and animosity towards the Delmart family, while the Duke of Delmart treated him as nothing more than an insignificant child.

Through it all, Rosalyn remained calm and collected, no matter what storm came her way. Her serenity in the face of such tension only served to irritate Raphael further.

“If I could live like a princess in a garden of flowers, I would have no other wish. Just to look at such a foolish, innocent world.”

Though the words were mocking, the way her eyes softened, completely unconcerned, still lingers in his memory.

“Thank you for such a beautiful description, but this world is not uniquely difficult for you, Your Highness.”

Her voice was soft, but Raphael couldn’t help but feel the thorns in her words.

As he reflected on the past, his gaze grew cold and distant, a faraway look overtaking him.

“Johannes is no different from my right hand. That is why I have never doubted him.”

“……”

“Bring me the last rose left in this land, cut it clean and place it in my hand.”

When the Duke’s treasonous plot was revealed to the world, Raphael couldn’t hide his joy, but there was still no concrete evidence to justify an immediate execution.

While the Duke’s family were placed under house arrest, Raphael could only watch in frustration as the matter was dealt with slowly.

During this time Raphael pressed ahead with his marriage to Paola. Not surprisingly, when the Duke of Delmart lost his daughter’s position as empress, he raged as if a fuse had been lit. In his blind rage, he eventually fell into a trap of his own making.

The person who made the greatest contribution to this process was Johannes, who was the first to notice the signs that the Duke of Delmart was gathering mercenaries, after the relationship between the Delmart family and the Imperial family had completely broken down. Before the mercenaries could cross the border, Johannes went to Delmart and executed the Duke without hesitation.

While the Lombard commander, Felipe Baron, rested in the Imperial Palace, Johannes didn’t waste any time and dealt with the situation quickly, without waiting for orders from above.

Even when Raphael couldn’t make an immediate decision, Johannes was the one who gave a clear answer, earning his place as the most trusted of the Lombard knights.

“So, Paola. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“……”

“When the child is born, everything will be resolved.”

Since childhood, Raphael had harboured a strong dislike for his fiancée and her family, but the reason why he hadn’t immediately passed judgement on Rosalyn was relatively simple.

Even if he sentenced her to death, it would mean nothing if Rosalyn Delmart died a noble death. She needed a more specific crime to be punished for.

Raphael didn’t want the Delmart bloodline to be remembered in any way that might evoke nostalgia, and he certainly had no intention of allowing the public to subtly elevate the daughter of a traitor while humiliating Paola.

And so, like her father, Rosalyn Delmart met her end in a shameful and dishonourable manner. She must never again be mentioned in the same breath as the name of the Empress of the Empire.

Raphael would not allow even the slightest disgrace to touch his wife, and his son would grow up with a perfect foundation, becoming an heir that no one could challenge. Everything – his actions, his decisions, his future – was for Paola and their unborn child.

***

Although Delmart was known for its mild weather, enduring the winter nights felt no different to other regions. Without servants to chop wood or gather firewood, it was impossible to light a fire in the stove. Rosalyn shivered in the cold and pulled the blanket tight around her neck. 

With the comforts she had taken for granted since birth suddenly gone, fear gripped her as she thought of the uncertain future ahead. But with time, she grew accustomed to this new way of life.

Even the sight of soldiers and knights in full armour patrolling the castle no longer unsettled her. Perhaps that was what Raphael had wanted – in these quiet, peaceful moments, when her tension began to ease, she couldn’t help but wonder if he was planning to strike.

But despite her uncertainties, she didn’t really mind the solitude of the empty castle. It was as if the silence had become a strange companion, one she had learned to accept.

Looking back, her life had always been a whirlwind of activity. Before her debut, she had been overwhelmed by countless lessons, and afterwards she had flitted from one social event to another, barely remembering how each day had passed.

She exchanged friendly greetings with people whose names she could barely remember, engaging in shallow conversation while laughing like it was the most fun thing in the world. It was all just a continuous cycle of such moments, a blur of faces and fleeting interactions that never left a lasting impression.

Her father wanted all attention focused on Rosalyn, and to meet his expectations she was always anxious, always trying to do her best. When she was younger, it was simply because she craved affection, but after the seizures began, she developed a blind belief that only her father and Vincent would never abandon her.

In truth, they had always warned her that if her flaws were ever exposed to the world, she would become the object of everyone’s scorn. This belief, instilled in her from an early age, weighed heavily on her and shaped the way she saw herself and her place in the world.

So Rosalyn did her best to please her father and brother. Occasionally she resented those relatives who mistreated her, but in the end she always found herself in the same place.

People in high society only admired appearances, but would they not despise someone who struggled and gasped for breath like an animal in distress? Surely they would.

The only people who would not abandon her or judge her when they saw her true self were her family. For that reason, she could not go against the wishes of her father and brother, no matter what. Their approval was all that mattered, even if it meant sacrificing her own desires.

Perhaps for this reason, the sudden death of her father caused more fear than grief. With the deep-rooted honour of the Delmart family completely uprooted and gone, she and her brother were left alone in the world, and she felt utterly lost.

‘Don’t say that. At least Vincent is still with me.’ 

Rosalyn, breathing heavily and tossing in bed, felt the light on her eyelids and opened her eyes gently.

The moon rising outside the window was unusually bright. Rosalyn blinked a few times, her thoughts clouded by the serene glow.

Now, whenever she saw the bright moonlight, she automatically thought of the man whose colour resembled it. His presence lingered in her mind, even in the stillness of the night.

As she looked at her hands, which seemed more suited to prayer than holding a sword, she unconsciously imagined their fingers intertwined.

The past, when she once shuddered at such thoughts, now felt like a distant memory. What use was any of it now? Rosalyn closed her eyes in frustration.

Then she heard the loud sound of footsteps echoing on the floor, breaking the silence of the night.

Before she could even consider the source of the noise, it quickly reached the front of Rosalyn’s bedroom.

After the Emperor’s knights had taken control of the estate, the soldiers had destroyed all the locks in her room, making it seem as if her room was always open.

Suddenly, with a deafening crash, the bedroom door flew open and Rosalyn jumped in shock, propping herself up on the bed. When she saw who had entered her room, a scream of terror escaped her lips.