“If he personally warned you, you should have stopped there. Don’t you understand how the current situation is unfolding? Even though the Crown Prince seems to have no interest in politics, his faction isn’t. The emperor has neither strength nor brains, and you’re an empress without a child, so what confidence did you have to……”

“Why should I? It’s different from before! No matter who I touched, he just watched. No, he clearly enjoyed it. He was happy to see me jealous and made eye contact with me!”

The duke finally realized his daughter’s delusions were pathological. He looked down at Liliana as if seeing a madwoman. Finally afraid of Roshan’s retribution, Liliana made one last defiant stand.

“If-if there’s no evidence, that’s all! If I’m not caught, even the great Roshan can’t do anything to me, the empress of the empire. I am the most noble woman in this country. The empress.”

“……I completely misjudged you. I thought that at the very least, you wouldn’t harm the family, but I was wrong.”

“……”

“You looked at your dead maid, and yet you still don’t understand? Your plan was already exposed. You’ve been playing in the palm of the Crown Prince’s hand. If you’re going to make a move, at least don’t get caught. Tsk!”

At her father’s words, Liliana finally began to tremble. Apart from her obsession with Roshan, she feared him. That’s why she had tried to proceed without being caught, but to think everything had been exposed. As she struggled with what to do, her face turning ashen, she suddenly realized something strange and looked up at her father.

“You brought Luna here, right? And you called me here too.”

Her father said he had heard about what she’d done from Roshan. But he didn’t seem particularly worried. Moreover, it was her father who had summoned her from the imperial palace and showed her Luna’s corpse. Liliana’s contorted face gradually smoothed out and then brightened.

“……You’ve joined hands with Roshan.”

“……”

“You’ve abandoned the emperor and decided to side with Roshan!”

Her fear completely vanished. Liliana jumped up from her seat and smiled widely until her mouth split. She didn’t even care that her pink hair was disheveled from her father’s slap. She let out a cry of joy, spread her arms wide, then hugged herself and twirled around once. She seemed to have completely forgotten the death of her beloved maid.

“Oh! My goodness! Father! Father! A wise choice. Well done!”

“……”

“When should I be ready? Since a new emperor will take the throne, I who will stand beside him must look impressive too, right? I’ll need to have new dresses and crowns made……”

“……”

“Will we have a new wedding ceremony too? Though I’m embarrassed, I’d like that. I want to wear a white dress and stand before people with him to announce our new beginning.”

Duke Day looked at his daughter in astonishment as she rejoiced immediately upon realizing that he and Roshan had joined hands. What kind of behavior is this? How could she think only of what pleases her?

As he looked at his daughter with contempt, the duke suddenly realized something and his face drained of color. His daughter had always been self-centered. But her judgment had never been this poor.

“……Liliana. Do you know about the medicine the emperor takes every night? That filthy thing the high priest gives to the emperor.”

At the duke’s words, Liliana, who had been smiling, flinched. And from this reaction, Duke Day could tell. Like the foolish emperor, his daughter was also addicted to drugs. He couldn’t help but shout,

“That damned b*stard! How dare he!”

It wasn’t clear who he was cursing. But for the first time, Liliana closed her mouth and lowered her head at her father’s flushed face. The duke was someone who couldn’t tolerate drugs that pursued pleasure while consuming people. For example, he once beat a servant to death in front of everyone for bringing recreational drugs into the duke’s mansion.

“Have you lost your mind!”

“Fa-Father…… Ahhh!”

The duke swung his hand at Liliana. Unlike when he slapped her cheek, he showed no restraint. Liliana sobbed loudly and curled up her body. The duke barely calmed down after raging until his strength was depleted.

“……Stay here quietly and then go to Moulin. I’ll personally tell the emperor that you’ve gone on a trip with your mother.”

“Sniff…… sob.”

“Don’t think of setting foot in the capital again. Stay at the temple and just pray quietly to the Goddess. For forgiveness of the sins you’ve committed so far.”

Moulin was a southern city that took three months by carriage from the capital. Liliana showed her dislike but couldn’t bring herself to talk back to her father. Duke Day walked briskly toward the door, leaving his sobbing daughter behind.

Once outside, he didn’t stop cursing until he reached his office. And finally, on his office desk lay the old document he had received from Roshan.

The duke gritted his teeth as he glared at the document. The paper, which contained secrets about the late emperor, his beautiful mistress, and their son Kedrick, had content that the duke could never accept. He turned over the document in disgust and said,

“To think I allowed my daughter to marry a creature not even worthy of being called an animal and served him as emperor all this time…… D*mn it! D*mn it!”

* * *

“It’s getting hot so suddenly.”

“The capital’s weather tends to be like that. Hot when it’s hot, cold when it’s cold.”

The weather had suddenly become sweltering. Yerena lay slumped on the couch, listening to the insects crying day and night.

The Sedas Kingdom, which was colder compared to the empire’s capital, wasn’t this hot even in midsummer. Already weak, and now struggling to adapt to the weather, Yerena languished all day.

“By the way, Jane. How do you store ice? There’s no deep basement here.”

“Ice chunks stored in containers made of frost stone last for half a day. Look.”

Jane had been bringing Yerena drinks with ice or cool water since some time ago. Since ice was precious, Yerena expressed surprise and questioned how she received such things. Jane said they came with the meal basket and glanced furtively at the door without Yerena noticing.

Yerena, leaning back on the couch, put down the cold, refreshing tea Jane had handed her. The weather was as difficult as winter. She suddenly thought of the guard knight outside.

Yerena went outside when she felt stuffy. However, when ‘Kian’ was outside, she didn’t move an inch from her room. Fortunately, she had adapted somewhat to the stairs, reducing the time it took to go up and down.

“Jane. Is it hot outside too?”

“It’s much hotter now than when you went out this morning. Why? Do you want to go out?”

“No, not outside, but beyond the door. I mean the corridor……”

Jane noticed what, or more precisely whom, Yerena was worried about. She smiled awkwardly and said,

“……Don’t worry. The tower is quite cool inside. It’s shaded, after all.”

“That’s good……”

Yerena started to speak with a more relaxed face but stopped herself. She wouldn’t pay any attention to the man outside. She was breaking that promise she made to herself dozens of times a day.

“……Still, if Sir Frederick or Sir Kian asks for water, please add ice. Their clothes are quite thick, so they’ll feel the heat.”

After sighing, Yerena spoke after some consideration. She judged this approach better than continuing to worry needlessly. Jane nodded and said she understood. And at that moment, someone knocked on the door.

“Excuse me, Lady Yerena.”

It was Alicia’s voice. Jane was about to go to the door to open it. But before that, Alicia quickly opened the door and entered.

“Alicia?”

Yerena stood up at the unusual atmosphere. Behind the golden light mass that she guessed was Alicia’s silhouette, there was also what appeared to be a man. Yerena immediately recognized the man as Kian and frowned. But before she could ask what was happening, Jael and Juul, who had been outside the door, entered.

“Restrain her.”

As Alicia spoke in a cold voice, Juul and Jael approached Yerena with quick steps. Surprised, Yerena opened her eyes wide and stepped back.

“Wh-what……”

However, Juul and Jael’s target wasn’t Yerena. They grabbed Jane, who wasn’t far from Yerena. When Jane screamed at being seized by the arms, Yerena shouted,

“What is this? What are you doing!”

“Step back behind me.”

Yerena tried to approach Jane, who was being held by the priestesses. But someone blocked her way. A man as tall and solid as a wall. Yerena immediately recognized that the person standing in front of her was Kian.

“What are you all doing? Drag out the criminal.”

“Argh!”

Alicia spoke in an icy voice from behind Kian. At the sound of someone being roughly dragged away, Yerena called out to Jane while being held by the man.

“Jane!”

* * *

“Her beloved maid died and she fell ill from grief? This is excellent news.”

After Duke Day left, the emperor who remained alone looked relieved. The empress would be away on a long journey. This was the most joyful news in recent times.

“To think I won’t have to see that filthy woman who has nothing but her father strutting around for a while. The air already feels fresher.”

Kedrick disliked Liliana as much as she disliked him. However, since Duke Day, Liliana’s father, was sustaining his faction that was already losing to Roshan’s, Kedrick tolerated Liliana.

Since becoming emperor, he had acted according to his own will most of the time. Liliana was one of the few things he endured.

“It’s been a while since I enjoyed myself at the Ivory Palace. Hey! Is anyone there!”

The emperor, who seemed lighthearted as if a worry had disappeared, called out. A chamberlain immediately entered and bowed. The emperor instructed him to prepare for a visit to the Ivory Palace and went into his inner bedroom.

“Mmm…… Your Majesty.”