Chapter 111

Louis walked quickly down the long corridor of the Imperial Palace. In the quiet hallway, only the sound of Louis’s footsteps echoed deeply.  

“Announce me.”  

He spoke to Dave, who was standing in front of the Emperor’s office. Dave bowed deeply in greeting, then knocked on the large door of the Emperor’s office.  

“Come in.”  

Before Dave could even announce the Crown Prince’s arrival, the Emperor’s voice came from inside the office.  

Louis straightened his jacket and opened the door to enter.  

It was spring rain. The raindrops hitting the window soaked everything on the earth. The droplets gathered on the windowpane and rolled down together.  

The Emperor, who had his hands clasped behind his back as he watched the scene, finally spoke after quite some time had passed since Louis entered.  

“Have you seen the Empress?”  

“Yes.”  

At the concise answer, the Emperor’s right eyebrow rose sharply. Turning around, the Emperor looked at his son standing confidently and let out a bitter laugh.  

“To think that my son is this foolish—I’m only realizing this now.”  

The Emperor moved his long legs and walked heavily. Loosening the buttons of his jacket roughly, he sat down on the sofa, not bothering to hide his displeasure.  

“How reckless you are. Do you even realize that you are the Crown Prince of the Empire?”  

He was a son who handled everything on his own without needing to be nagged. It was hard to believe that such a son had done what he did, but it was true—his only son had returned from Palterno with a mage who had kidnapped the future Crown Princess on his back.  

“What if you had been captured by the anti-Imperial mages? What were you planning to do then? Let’s hear it.”  

Louis, still staring at the window where the Emperor had been looking earlier, finally spoke.  

“Being captured by the anti-Imperial mages was not part of my plan.”  

At the shameless and absurd answer, the Emperor couldn’t even scoff. Feeling a headache coming on, Emperor Henry pressed his temples with his fingers and closed his eyes.  

“There are a few things I must ask of you.”  

At Louis’s words, the Emperor slowly opened his eyes.  

When he had refused to meet the Emperor’s gaze earlier, staring out the window rebelliously, now Louis was looking at him with an impolite and defiant expression.  

“Ultimately, isn’t the outcome satisfactory? I rescued Lady Dinever and captured the leader of Inferna. With the leader of Inferna, who supported the anti-Imperial faction, in our hands, they won’t be able to act recklessly anymore.”  

Louis’s words were correct.  

Not only had he rescued Vivian, but the leader of Inferna was also now in the Imperial Family’s grasp. The fact that the mage who kidnapped Vivian was involved, and that they had the leader of Inferna as leverage, meant they could tighten their grip on the anti-Imperial faction.  

While the Crown Prince’s actions couldn’t be praised, his efforts had created an opportunity to overturn the worsening situation.  

The Emperor lowered his hand from his temple and tapped the armrest of the sofa.  

“Sit.”  

At the Emperor’s command, Louis smirked. He walked slowly, sat on the sofa next to the Emperor, took a short breath, and met the Emperor’s gaze.  

“Before I make my request, I have one question to ask.”  

“Go ahead.”  

The Emperor suppressed his rising irritation and replied.  

“Have I ever met someone named Robert Fame in the past?”  

The Emperor raised both eyebrows, puzzled by the question.  

“Let me rephrase. Have you ever met someone named Robert Fame, Your Majesty?”  

The Emperor thought about the question and exhaled deeply before shaking his head.  

“As far as I can recall, I have never met the leader of Inferna. Why do you ask?”

“Marquis Cloak mentioned that Robert Fame is from the Empire. Not only that, but he is said to have deep ties to the Imperial Family.”

At the mention of Marquis Cloak, the Emperor’s brow furrowed even deeper. Glancing at his son, the Emperor narrowed his eyes and shook his head.  

“I don’t remember, but that’s something we can confirm through interrogation. Why are you so concerned about this?”

“That’s…”

Even though it was midday, the persistent spring rain made it dark outside. The magic stone streetlights in the garden lit up, and the shadows cast by the raindrops on the window fell across Louis’s face.  

The shadow of a raindrop rolled down Louis’s face.  

“Please allow me to interrogate Robert Fame.”

Louis, who had trailed off, met the Emperor’s gaze again and spoke firmly.  

“That’s not possible.”  

The Emperor rejected him, meeting Louis’s intense gaze. Louis’s tightly pressed lips twisted slightly, but Emperor Henry had no intention of changing his mind.  

“You’re the one who betrayed my trust.”  

“I’m the one who captured him.”  

“That doesn’t mean you have the right to interrogate him.”  

“I will do it. Please allow me to.”  

The Emperor was inwardly surprised by Louis’s determination but did not show it outwardly. Watching his golden eyes, so similar to his own, the Emperor felt an inexplicable weariness.  

“Is that your only request?”  

At the Emperor’s words, Louis’s face hardened. The wrinkles on his otherwise smooth brow deepened.  

“…There’s one more thing.”  

The Emperor urged him to speak with his gaze.  

“Please tell me, without any lies, what relationship you had with Aitor Turner’s adoptive father, Caspian Turner, Your Majesty.”  

At Louis’s question, the Emperor’s gaze sharpened. But soon, as if nothing had happened, his golden eyes returned to their usual calm, exuding the unique languor and dignity of the one who stood at the Empire’s pinnacle.  

“There’s nothing special.”  

“Your Majesty.”  

“I will leave the interrogation of Robert Fame to you, Crown Prince.”  

The Emperor’s words were a dismissal.  

“Please answer me. He is my man. He trusted me and risked his life to carry out dangerous tasks. For such a man’s father…”

Ignoring the dismissal, Louis continued to speak, but the Emperor’s gaze turned cold.  

“Leave. Rest and await further instructions. I will inform you of Aitor Turner’s punishment soon.”

“Your Majesty!”  

Louis raised his voice.  

“Did I not tell you to leave?”  

The Emperor’s voice also grew louder.  

“I will not leave until you tell me.”  

The Emperor stood abruptly. Furious at the Crown Prince’s obstinacy, Emperor Henry strode to the window. The light drizzle of spring rain had turned into a heavy downpour.  

Looking outside, the Emperor’s chest rose and fell rapidly. Rubbing his face roughly, the Emperor turned sharply toward Louis.  

“He was the one who let go of my hand first.”  

It was rare for the Emperor to show such intense anger. His bloodshot eyes reflected a mixture of regret, longing, and fury.  

“He disobeyed my orders and left first. Why should I have saved someone like that?”  

“Your Majesty….”  

Turning back to the window, the Emperor stared at the pouring rain, lost in memories of the past.  

“Even if it was at the request of Violet, he should not have done that. It was a clear betrayal.”  

At the Emperor’s words, Louis’s eyes widened. He had never imagined that Caspian Turner and Violet were connected.  

The Emperor firmly shut his lips, signaling that he would say no more.  

After the initial shock, a wave of bitterness washed over Louis. It was because of that woman. The Emperor had let go of Caspian Turner’s desperate hand because of the woman he had loved.  

“Even so… He was someone who worked for you. He worked for the Imperial Family, yet his past led to his and his family’s lives being threatened. You should have reached out to him when he asked for help.”  

Louis lowered his head.  

“Or at the very least… If you knew Aitor Turner was his son, you should not have allowed him to work for the Imperial Family.”  

Lowering his head, Louis recalled Aitor’s shabby appearance in front of the circus, as well as the image of him running through the Imperial Forest with Zero, and the night he had secretly visited the Imperial Palace after graduating from the magic academy.  

The relentless downpour began to subside. A deeper silence settled over the Emperor’s office.  

***

“Miss, please get some rest now. I’ll stay here. As soon as Aitor opens his eyes, I’ll run straight to you, so please rest for a little while, okay?”

Three days had passed since Vivian returned to the capital’s mansion. During those three days, Tia had been burning with anxiety.

Vivian, who had attended the hunting tournament, had not returned. Because of the strict secrecy imposed, only a very small number of people in the Dinever Duchy knew that Vivian had been kidnapped.

The gratitude for her safe return after enduring such a harrowing ordeal was short-lived, as Vivian, with a face that looked as if she might collapse at any moment, sat by Aitor’s side without moving.

Vivian couldn’t get the look in Aitor’s eyes out of her head. Despite being stabbed with a sword, his gaze and smile had been filled with genuine concern. She wanted to ask him why he had done it once he woke up, but Aitor showed no signs of opening his eyes.

Vivian took a deep breath, trying to calm the heavy feeling in her chest. Despite Tia’s earnest pleas, Vivian didn’t budge and continued to look at Aitor.

Knock, knock.

At the sound of a knock on the door, Tia let out a deep sigh and opened the door slightly.

“Oh, hello.”

When Tia opened the door, Teresa appeared. Teresa, a tall woman who was a head taller than Tia, nodded in greeting.

Tia, wondering why she always felt intimidated by Teresa, tilted her head as if she didn’t understand and stepped aside to let her in.

“Still sitting there, huh.”

Clicking her tongue, Teresa approached Vivian.

“Sitting there like that won’t make him wake up. Go back to your room.”

Vivian turned her head at Teresa’s words, smiled bitterly, and shook her head.

“Just like your mother. Stubborn as…”

Shaking her head in disbelief, Teresa dragged a chair over and sat next to Vivian.

“Lucas may not be good at anything else, but when it comes to healing, he’s the best in the Mage Tower. That’s why, even after being stabbed like that, he’s still alive.”

Vivian turned her gaze back to Aitor and spoke.

“Then why isn’t he waking up?”

“They said he lost a lot of blood and suffered damage to some pretty dangerous areas. He probably needs time to recover.” 

Teresa replied, quoting what Lucas had said.

Teresa, who had been resting her chin on her hand and swinging her legs, suddenly stood up and approached Aitor, who lay as if he were peacefully asleep.

“Stop worrying and wake up already, you brat! If you open your eyes now, I won’t scold you this time, so wake up while I’m still asking nicely, okay?”

“Te-Teresa!”

Startled by Teresa grabbing Aitor’s nose, Vivian jumped to her feet.

“Come on, Lady. This guy threw himself recklessly and got hurt instead of you, so why are you sitting there all gloomy with your shoulders slumped? You’re making Duke Tereon look ridiculous too, walking around with his shoulders drooping like this.”

As Teresa exaggeratedly mimicked Duke Tereon’s posture, pointing to her knees to illustrate, Tia, who was standing behind them, covered her mouth to stifle her laughter.

At that moment.

“Really… you’re not going to scold me, right?”

At the sound of a cracked voice, both the excited Teresa and the startled Vivian, as well as Tia, who had been holding back her laughter, turned their heads toward Aitor.

“You promised… didn’t you?”

Aitor had woken up.