“Instructor.”

Woden stopped walking at the sound of a voice behind him. At the far end of the hallway, he saw the crown prince’s aide sprinting toward him, breathless.

“What is it?”

“Well…”

Woden frowned when the aide approached. The pale-faced young man had a visible bruise he couldn’t hide.

“Did His Highness do that?”

“…His confinement has been dragging on for a while now…”

At Woden’s question, the aide hesitated, bowing his head.

“You’ve had a hard time,” Woden said with a small sigh. The confined crown prince had been causing chaos almost daily. The aide, still watching Woden cautiously, eventually spoke up.

“Has His Majesty… said anything about this?”

“He’s been busy handling affairs of state.”

“That… makes sense. With His Majesty taking on even the duties His Highness was managing…”

The aide’s expression darkened further. The crown prince had been under confinement for nearly a month as punishment for his disrespect toward Grand Duke Eustace. It seemed like a long enough time to release him, but there had been no word from the emperor, leaving the aide increasingly anxious.

“Is there no sign His Highness’s confinement will be lifted?”

The aide finally mustered the courage to ask.

“Well…” Woden trailed off. He hadn’t expected the confinement to last this long either. Nor had anyone else in the palace.

“Who can know what His Majesty is thinking?”

“I see…”

“I’ll look for an opportunity to petition His Majesty to lift the confinement.”

“…! Thank you.”

The aide’s face lit up with relief at Woden’s words. As a close confidant of the emperor, Woden’s request might have a chance of succeeding.

“Thank you for your time,” the aide said, bowing politely before turning to leave. He seemed more energized than before. Woden watched him walk away, then pressed his fingers to his temples.

“What is His Majesty thinking…?”

Woden clicked his tongue quietly. The longer the confinement lasted, the more the crown prince deteriorated. Mentally cornered, the crown prince grew increasingly violent. Sounds of objects breaking and shattering echoed daily from the prince’s quarters.

Just yesterday, a servant had been injured by something the crown prince had thrown. The number of people hurt by his outbursts had already reached dozens. His escalating aggression made palace staff reluctant to work in his quarters.

“Sir… Instructor.”

As Woden sighed and turned toward the main palace, a young servant appeared.

“You have a visitor.”

“A visitor?”

Instead of answering, the servant motioned with his eyes toward the back. From behind a marble column, a figure emerged like a mouse scurrying into view.

“Greetings.”

“What brings you here?”

Woden scowled at the sight of the “Rat,” an informant and shadowy figure who had come to the palace of his own accord. It was unusual for him to enter the imperial palace without being summoned, except in emergencies.

“Did something happen?”

Woden dismissed the servant with a quick wave of his hand. If the Rat was here, it had to be something urgent.

“I’ve successfully infiltrated the Grand Duke’s residence.”

The Rat drew closer to Woden, glancing around before whispering.

“What? How?”

“Recently, the Grand Duke has been meeting with many merchants… I disguised myself as a jeweler from the Duchy of Terra.”

“What are the chances it’s a trap?”

“I haven’t sensed anything suspicious so far. I just returned from meeting the Grand Duke in person.”

“Well done.”

Woden’s expression brightened slightly at the good news from the Rat.

“Did you happen to see Baroness Knox?”

“My apologies. The security was so tight I couldn’t confirm it. I managed to question one of the servants subtly, and it seems Baroness Knox spends most of her time in the training grounds.”

“The training grounds in the Grand Duke’s residence are near the rear garden, so it must have been inaccessible.”

Woden murmured to himself as he recalled the layout of the Grand Duke’s estate.

“I believe I’ll have a chance to see her face soon enough.”

“Hmm?”

Woden’s sharp gaze focused on the Rat’s next words.

“The Grand Duke ordered a significant number of items from me today. It seems a banquet will be held soon at the Eustace family’s townhouse.”

The Rat lowered his voice, covering his mouth with his hand as he spoke. He hoped Woden wouldn’t notice his trembling lips as he whispered.

“As you might have guessed, Baroness Knox is the Grand Duke’s partner.”

What came next was crucial. The Rat swallowed hard and recalled his time at the Grand Duke’s estate.

“Let’s start with you telling me everything you know.”

The Grand Duke had entrusted Elvin with interrogating the Rat. Over the course of three days, the Rat had been forced to spill everything he knew while confined at the estate.

The treatment wasn’t bad. Instead of a cold prison, he stayed in a comfortable guest room. The meals were excellent, and there were no horrifying tortures or relentless questioning.

Yet the Rat trembled with unease. Throughout Elvin’s interrogation, he was haunted by the fear that he might die at any moment. This fear had gripped him ever since the Grand Duke had embedded magic into his chest.

“Remember this: if you betray me, your heart will explode, and you will die instantly.”

The Grand Duke’s words weren’t an idle threat. Though the Rat didn’t understand how it worked, whenever he hesitated to answer or harbored deceitful thoughts, his heart constricted painfully. Even a slight delay in his responses caused the pressure to intensify, leaving him terrified.

In the end, he said anything that came to mind. He even confessed things Elvin hadn’t asked about, fearing that withholding information would trigger the magic embedded in his heart.

“You’re more useful than I expected.”

Two days after his initial detention, the Rat was summoned again, this time to the Grand Duke’s office. The Grand Duke, reading Elvin’s report based on the Rat’s statements, smiled in satisfaction.

“Good thing I didn’t kill you.”

He was alive. Seeing the Grand Duke smile, the Rat felt a wave of relief wash over him. At least for now, he had survived.

“From now on, your role will be that of a double agent.”

The Grand Duke had decided to fully exploit the Rat, the emperor’s shadow.

“I’ll serve with all my heart!”

The Rat immediately accepted. He had anticipated this outcome, knowing he had no choice. Refusing would only mean death.

“Mix truth and lies skillfully to mislead the imperial palace.”

The Rat’s job was twofold: to report on the emperor’s schemes to the Grand Duke and to manipulate information so that the imperial palace would act according to the Grand Duke’s plans.

“No one in the palace can detect my magic. All you have to do is play your role convincingly.”

Easier said than done, the Rat thought bitterly. While others might be fooled, Woden’s intuition was sharp. Even if the magic escaped detection, Woden would surely notice if the Rat had shifted loyalties to the Grand Duke. That would spell his death.

“It seems the Grand Duke is planning to officially welcome Baroness Knox as his bride.”

“What?”

Woden’s expression immediately darkened. The Rat carefully chose his words, speaking cautiously.

“The gemstones the Grand Duke ordered from me are all typically used for wedding gifts…”

“Hah.”

Woden let out a soft sigh at the Rat’s explanation. Rumors that the Grand Duke intended to elevate Lila Knox to nobility and make her his grand duchess had already spread throughout the capital. Woden had dismissed them as baseless gossip.

“There will be opposition from the noble faction.”

Many of the nobles who supported the Grand Duke had daughters they hoped would become the grand duchess. They would never accept Lila Knox taking that position.

“It seems the Grand Duke intends to use the upcoming banquet to introduce her to society. Likely, he wants to solidify her position through social activities. Even the retainers from the Eustace territory departed for the capital yesterday to attend the banquet.”

“Hmm…”

Woden let out a heavy sigh, his expression grave. It was already difficult to get close to the Grand Duke since she rarely left her estate. If an engagement truly came to pass, approaching her would become even more challenging.

“I should’ve captured her back then…”

At Woden’s low murmur, the Rat swallowed nervously. Woden was undoubtedly referring to the clash between Lila Knox and the knights sent by the emperor’s faction at the Eastern estate.

The incident, where Lila single-handedly defeated over a dozen knights who ambushed her, was still a hot topic in noble gatherings.

“I apologize. It was my failure to respond properly…”

If suspicion fell on him now, it would be the end. Lowering his head deeply, the Rat wore a dejected expression.

“I thought my position had been exposed, so I fled without taking proper action.”

“…No, it’s better that you weren’t captured. It would have caused even more trouble.”

Woden sighed softly.

“Have you figured out where the information leak came from?”

“Not yet…”

The Rat trailed off hesitantly, biting his lower lip nervously.

“No matter how I think about it, it doesn’t make sense. My hideout is a top-secret location that even the imperial intelligence doesn’t know about. Only a select few Shadows, including you, know of it as a contact point. How, then, did Baroness Knox find her way to the Eastern estate?”

The Rat’s words quickened as he feigned the agitation of someone truly perplexed. He even panted as though he were genuinely upset.

“Unless there’s a traitor in the imperial palace… I believe Baroness Knox is the Raven!”