“Useless fools!”

Crash!

The Crown Prince, upon hearing the informant’s report, flipped his desk in fury. The fine wooden desk toppled over, scattering its contents across the floor. Still unsatisfied, he began grabbing and throwing whatever was within reach.

“How many days has it been? And you still can’t bring me a single useful piece of information! Do you even call yourselves royal informants?!”

“Our deepest apologies, Your Highness.”

Three pale-faced informants repeatedly bowed their heads. Though they had genuinely done their best, their lack of results left them with no defense.

“If you give us just a little more time—”

“When will that ‘little more time’ end?!”

The Crown Prince roared, his magical aura buzzing ominously as if it might erupt at any moment.

“If Father loses faith in me, will you bear the consequences?!”

Crash!

A porcelain vase hurled by the Crown Prince shattered loudly against the floor, sending shards flying in every direction.

“Your Highness, please calm down.”

Unable to ignore the sight of blood dripping from the informants’ hands, Woden, the head of the Emperor’s covert forces, stepped forward.

“This is not your concern!”

“Your Highness.”

“I said step aside!”

The Crown Prince bellowed at Woden, his light blue eyes blazing with fury.

“Throwing tantrums here won’t resolve anything,” Woden said coolly, unfazed by the deadly glare. His voice remained as calm and firm as ever.

“Damn it! Bring me water!”

Shaking with rage, the Crown Prince barked orders. Even in his fury, he could not direct his wrath toward Woden, the Emperor’s shadowy enforcer.

Still seething, the Crown Prince drained the iced tea a trembling servant brought him. When even that failed to soothe him, he hurled the glass against the wall.

Crash!

The glass shattered against the hard surface, falling in pieces to the floor. Woden sighed inwardly as he surveyed the chaos in the room. He had always known the Crown Prince had a foul temper, but this was beyond expectations.

“It’s all because of her! You said the raven had the potential to become a swordmaster! I spared no expense in supporting her, and yet she’s barely reaching the highest advanced level”

The Crown Prince, now seated in one of the few chairs that remained intact, began berating Woden. At the mention of “barely reaching the highest advanced level,” Woden’s thick eyebrows twitched.

“Given a bit more time, the Raven would have undoubtedly risen to the rank of Swordmaster.”

“And just how long do you expect me to wait for that?”

The Crown Prince, forgetting that he himself had opposed using the Raven for the assassination of the Grand Duke, vented his frustration. Woden clenched his fists to suppress the anger welling up inside him.

For the Emperor and the Crown Prince, the Raven might have been just a disposable tool, but to Woden, she was a cherished student he had carefully nurtured, now lost in a single day.

“The Raven achieved the highest level of Sword Expert status at the youngest age in the Empire’s history. At this rate, she would have easily become a Sword Master in a few years—”

“I don’t want to hear it!”

Bang! The Crown Prince slammed the overturned desk with his foot.

“Regardless, it’s a failure! Whether she’s dead, fled, or captured, we’ve lost all contact with the Raven! The Grand Duke is holed up in his estate, and we’re left with nothing!”

“It was an overly ambitious plan from the start,” Woden said, unable to mask his grim expression. He had been the fiercest opponent of the Emperor’s plan.

“Your Majesty, I implore you to reconsider. It’s far too early.”

When the Emperor had ordered the assassination of Grand Duke Eustace, Woden, as both the Crow’s trainer and the leader of the shadow forces, had vehemently objected. Attacking the Grand Duke at this time was premature.

“The Raven is not yet ready. To defeat a 6th-circle mage, she must at least reach the level of Sword Master—”

“Woden, I’m not looking for a fair fight. This is an assassination. Hasn’t the Raven succeeded in every mission so far?”

“That’s only because her opponents were weaker than her.”

“The Grand Duke is still human. No matter how strong a mage, if he lets his guard down, he can be killed. We’ve already managed to create a gap in his defenses. Now, it’s just up to the Raven to finish him off.”

The Emperor had been unyielding. Even knowing the risks, he stubbornly pressed forward.

“The voices praising that man grow louder every day. I’m sick of arrogant nobles mocking my son by comparing him to the Grand Duke. If that man ever harbors treasonous ambitions… damn it!” 

“That won’t happen.”

Would the Grand Duke ever entertain treasonous thoughts? Woden was shocked by the Emperor’s claim. From what he had seen, Grand Duke Eustace despised both the Emperor and the Crown Prince but had no interest in the throne. Yet, the Emperor thought differently.

“How can you be so sure?”

“Your Majesty—”

“That man harbors venom in his heart. If I lose my grip on power, he’ll waste no time cutting me down. Then he’ll devour even my son.”

The Emperor trembled at the thought, his face contorted with dread. As he lost his composure, his ominous magical energy flared, darkening from its usual hue to a deep crimson. Woden, staring at the Emperor’s unstable aura, sighed and nodded. It was no longer possible to dissuade his ruler.

“His Majesty was too hasty,” Woden remarked.

“…I know,” the Crown Prince muttered in a subdued voice. Now that his rage had subsided, he seemed embarrassed by the tantrum he had just thrown. He avoided Woden’s gaze and cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Father has hated the Grand Duke for as long as I can remember.”

“It became especially pronounced two years ago,” Woden replied, his tone heavy with fatigue. Despite having served the Emperor for years, he still couldn’t understand his ruler’s obsession with Grand Duke Eustace.

The Emperor’s inferiority complex regarding magic was no secret. He had even abandoned his own daughter because she lacked magical talent. But his hatred for the Grand Duke seemed too intense to be solely about magic.

Was it because of Countess Lucia? Woden’s thoughts turned to the late Grand Duchess, his expression bitter. Few remembered now, but the Emperor, as a Crown Prince, had once proposed to her, only to be rejected.

“You’re not in love with me. You’re in love with my talent,” Countess Lucia had coldly dismissed him.

From that moment on, the Emperor had harbored a grudge against her. When she married his cousin, his anger had turned into outright fury.

Had that old resentment transferred to her son as well? Woden sighed, unable to shake his frustration.

“It wouldn’t hurt for His Majesty to show a little patience.”

“Father’s getting old,” the Crown Prince replied dismissively, as if it were a trivial matter.

But Woden thought otherwise. He regarded the situation gravely. To him, the Emperor seemed like a man being chased, incapable of finding peace.

“Before he kills me and my son, I must eliminate him first.”

The Emperor had grown visibly restless after Grand Duke Eustace’s formal debut in politics following his coming-of-age ceremony. Whether due to insecurity, guilt, or madness, his fixation on the Grand Duke had become disturbingly apparent.

The Emperor was convinced that Eustace would one day kill him. It was a belief that bordered on paranoia. But why?

“Could it really be related to… that incident?”

A sudden thought crossed Woden’s mind, making him pause.

“No… that can’t be.”

Woden shook off the idea, trying to dismiss it. But once the seed of doubt had been planted, it refused to leave him.

“The Emperor used Aron to orchestrate the deaths of the former Grand Duke Eustace and the Grand Duchess.”

Woden recalled the rumor that had once swept the Empire, his expression grim. At the time of the incident, he had been on a top-secret mission in another country and thus hadn’t been privy to the exact details. All he knew was the official explanation: the deaths of the former Grand Duke and Grand Duchess were the result of a series of tragic coincidences. Investigators dispatched by the Imperial Court, the Senate, and the Mage Tower had all reached the same conclusion.

Yet, many still believed the Emperor had orchestrated their deaths. If that were true, and the current Grand Duke Eustace knew about it… The thought sent a chill down Woden’s spine.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, I was just lost in thought,” Woden replied, shaking his head to dispel the unsettling hypothesis. He couldn’t afford to indulge in baseless speculation. Still, the idea refused to leave him.

“Have the Shadows received any new information?”

The Crown Prince, noticing Woden’s unusually tense expression, furrowed his brows but chose not to press further. Instead, he focused on gathering intelligence about the Grand Duke.

“…We received something from the Rat.”

“What is it?”

The Crown Prince’s interest was piqued. The Rat was a Shadow operative who worked as an informant in the underworld, uncovering rumors and raw information while subtly shaping public opinion among the Empire’s citizens.

“Apparently, a few days ago, Grand Duke Eustace signed an exclusive contract with the tailor Aria Shuie.”

“Aria Shuie?”

The unexpected name made the Crown Prince scowl. Aria Shuie was a well-known tailor, even to him. She owned a boutique frequented by noblewomen, including those considered potential matches for him. He himself had recently received a shirt from her as a gift.

“Even while bedridden, he still has the energy to commission new clothes, does he?”

The Crown Prince muttered with a twisted smile. Two days earlier, the Grand Duke had informed the Imperial Palace through an envoy that he would attend court next week. The new clothes were likely for that occasion.

“That in itself is odd. I suspect someone might be staying at the Grand Duke’s residence.”

“What?”

The Crown Prince’s expression darkened at Woden’s suggestion. A possibility crossed his mind, making him tense.

“Could it be… the Raven has been captured?”

“I don’t believe so.”

“If she had been caught alive, they’d be calling in interrogators to extract her secrets, not tailors to make new clothes.”

Relieved by Woden’s response, the Crown Prince exhaled deeply, his expression relaxing.

“Is that all?”

“No, there’s more. According to the Rat’s report, rumors are starting to spread about an Eastern warrior who saved the Grand Duke last night.”

“What?”

The Crown Prince’s face contorted in disbelief.

“Explain.”

“Exactly as it sounds. During the incident orchestrated by His Majesty in the Grand Duke’s territory, an Eastern warrior is said to have assisted him. This warrior supposedly arrived at the Grand Duke’s estate and thwarted an assassin’s attempt on his life.”

“So… you’re saying the assassin mentioned in the rumors was the Raven?”

“Given the circumstances, it’s likely.”

Woden’s usually stoic face darkened. Thinking that the Crow might have failed her mission—and possibly perished—left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“Do we have any information about this warrior?”

“Not much, yet. However, there is talk that it’s a woman. Some speculate the Grand Duke contracted Aria Shuie because of her. I’ve instructed the Rat to dig deeper.”

“This feels suspicious.”

The Crown Prince narrowed his eyes and stroked his chin. Such rumors arising at this time left him uneasy.

“Could the Grand Duke’s side have started the rumors intentionally?”

“It’s possible. The story seems to have spread from conversations between the Grand Duke’s household staff and their families.”

“This is becoming increasingly troublesome.”

The Crown Prince clicked his tongue in irritation. Rather than resolving issues, new complications seemed to arise. Woden watched him, a bitter expression crossing his face.

As the head of the Shadows, Woden had done his share of dirty work. Yet, he had always strived to retain his humanity. While the Raven likely saw him as nothing more than a stern instructor, he had cared for her in his own way.

But the Crown Prince? Even though the Raven was his twin, he showed no more concern for her potential death than he would for a stranger. To him, her life or death only mattered insofar as it might inconvenience him.

“What should I tell His Majesty?”

“For now, nothing. Wait until we’re certain. Let’s see how the Grand Duke presents himself next week before deciding.”

“Your suggestion is reasonable. I’ll do that.”

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

Suppressing a wave of nausea, Woden stood and left the room as quickly as he could.

No matter how loyal he was to the Crown Prince, witnessing such callousness toward his own family was far more harrowing than Woden had expected.