He could only be satisfied if he gave her pain greater than or equal to what Amelia had suffered. Even as she begged for her life, he didn’t pretend to listen. He forced her to speak of her feelings for him until the end. He became curious about how far she could maintain those feelings. Could they remain unchanged even if her body was completely battered?

It was even more hateful that she dared to mimic Amelia without understanding her place. The hopeful look in her eyes, with her silver hair, was not just ridiculous but revolting. No matter what she did, she could never become her.

He wasn’t fully satisfied playing with her slowly, but he had to check on Amelia’s condition, so he had no choice. He had to end it at a point that was satisfactory enough.

“……”

Edward would take care of the aftermath. Raphael rose from his seat with a cold face. He had been bending over to match the bug’s eye level. The hostile look in her eyes that turned towards him at the last moment was quite a sight.

In the end, it was an emotion that couldn’t last until the end. There was no particular message from Edward, but he felt an unease that wouldn’t settle until he saw her with his own eyes.

“Please……”

Without realizing it, he found himself uttering ‘please’ on his way to her. It was the first time in his life he had begged someone without a face, someone unknown. It was more accurate to say that there had never been such an occasion. He had never desperately wanted something before.

That he was now pleading for her safety, strangely, didn’t feel bad. In fact, it felt good.

“Amelia.”

He wasn’t quite sure how he got to the room. His steps quickened without him noticing it, and he ran his hands through his hair several times out of anxiety.

“…Your Grace?”

When he burst into the bedroom, Edward and Leonel were there. And Amelia was still sound asleep on the bed.

“How is she?”

“That’s far enough.”

Just as he was about to rush to her, a small hand stopped him. The owner of that hand was none other than Leonel with a plump face. No, rather than plump, it was more appropriate to say his expression looked angry.

“How am I supposed to take this.”

“……”

Interest sparked in him as he was stared down, no, glared at by those brown eyes. He hadn’t expected such open hostility towards him. He wondered when his once timid son had become the perfect Siegfried. There had definitely been a time when he was intimidated by him.

“Do you intend to startle Mother with that look?”

“What?”

“Excuse me… Your Grace…”

Raphael did not understand what current appearance was being referred to.

“You need to wipe off the blood.”

It was only after Edward’s comment about wiping the blood that he noticed the stains all over his body. He hadn’t paid any attention to it in his hurry to see her. In truth, he hadn’t cared. Raphael had never cared for anyone’s gaze. Who would dare to speak against him? This applied even to the emperor.

There were times when Raphael had gone to see the emperor drenched in blood. No, there were quite a few times. Each time, it was amusing to see his shock and his glances. The image of his plump body trembling.

“What would Mother think if she woke up to see Father soaked in blood?”

“…Amelia.”

“She’s fine for now.”

The phrase ‘fine for now’ stuck with him, but he couldn’t stand there any longer. Even he thought Amelia would be shocked at the sight of blood. Although he had changed recently, his current appearance was like a demon possessed by blood.

“I’ll go wash up.”

To wash up, he had to leave the room. That was obvious, yet his feet wouldn’t move. Raphael looked at Amelia’s peacefully sleeping face with eyes full of reluctance. They said there was no problem, but why was her face so pale?

She was always pale and delicate. The shock of today might have caused a serious issue.

“Cough… We will watch over here, I and the prince.”

“Alright.”

He could have cleaned himself up with magic, but he chose not to. He wanted to make a good impression on Amelia in case she woke up. He knew he was good-looking. It would be foolish not to use such an advantage.

“…You come back shining after scrubbing off the dirt.”

“It seems you’ve done the same.”

Raphael was incredulous at the sight of Leonel, who had changed into an excessively cute outfit despite having just woken up. It was to make a good impression on her. Amelia was already smitten with Leonel, to the point that he wouldn’t even notice Raphael’s presence when Leonel was around.

“You don’t need to go that far. Seems like you’re not too free.”

“…That’s…!”

“Shh, you’ll wake Amelia.”

He couldn’t disturb her if she was sleeping soundly, unless she woke up on her own. It was better for her to sleep a bit more after such a scare.

“How is she?”

“All the physicians and mage priests have been. She’s received a shock, but they say she’s safe. However…”

“However?”

“They say it’s dangerous for her to receive mana.”

In other words, the healing magic he performed to save her could potentially be poisonous to her. At that, Raphael clenched his fists tightly and looked at Amelia lying down.

“So, has her condition worsened because of that?”

“No, that’s not it, but… they can’t guarantee it will be the same next time.”

It was as if they were saying it was just good luck that she got through this time. It was fortunate that he used the healing magic sparingly, allowing her own healing abilities to take over as she slept.

“But they did say it might be okay if the magic doesn’t involve direct mana transfer.”

So it might be alright as long as the mana isn’t directly infused into her.

“No one is sure, then.”

“Yes… Since this case is unprecedented, everyone was cautious.”

They meant to prevent anything potentially dangerous before it could happen. But even healing magic could be risky.

“I’ll take my leave now.”

Edward left the room quickly, with no hesitation in his step. It seemed as if he wanted to get out of there as fast as possible.

“I’ll stay with her.”

“I thought this was my room.”

“It’s also Mother’s room.”

Raphael frowned at the sight of Leonel sitting by the bed, sticking close to her side as he spoke. It seems like he’s been bested. It wasn’t like this before…

“Why did you leave the castle?”

He realized why he was angry towards him. Leaving the castle had put Amelia in danger, and that didn’t sit well with him.

“I had to meet with the emperor.”

“……”

“I thought you were resistant to sleep incense.”

Siegfrieds are not easily affected by poison. That was the same with sleep incense. But it was strange that Leonel had fallen asleep because of it.

“It wasn’t just the sleep incense that was used…”

“How is your body? If you’re hurt anywhere…”

“I’m fine.”

Leonel dodged his attempt to check for injuries and clung to Amelia, leaving Raphael’s hand hanging in the air. He had felt it since last time, but his feelings towards him were not favorable.

“I’ll let this incident pass… since I wasn’t prepared for it either.”

Let it pass because he wasn’t prepared? He couldn’t understand what he was talking about.

“You did well, killing that woman.”

At the age of 5. He too was mature as mature as Leonel at that age. No, perhaps even more so. But his own son was not like that. He had traits befitting a Siegfried, but there was still something childlike about him.

“She dared to feel jealousy towards Mother.”

“……”

Recently, the relationship between mother and son has improved. The previous Amelia had never been a good mother to Leonel, but Leonel showed endless affection towards Amelia.

“You must have handled it well, Father.”

Leonel’s cold words felt unfamiliar. Since when had his son become so dispassionate?

“I’m talking about Mother’s condition.”

“You don’t need to worry too much.”

He must have overheard his conversation with Edward. He should have been more careful because of the child. But he couldn’t afford to pay attention to that right now, preoccupied with Amelia’s health.

“Being unable to receive mana means…”

Leonel was more intelligent than his peers. No, even without considering his age, he was smart. And when it came to matters involving Amelia, he was particularly sensitive. Raphael swallowed a sigh when he met Leonel’s stern gaze from those brown eyes.

“Her mana core is broken, isn’t it?”

It wasn’t just his wife who had changed.