“Sister!”

Iscallion ran towards me with a bright smile.

“You’re here?”

It was the first time I invited him since his birthday.

I needed to repay him for his help during the incident with Ines, and my parents were curious about his recent activities.

But I had another motive.

He had only about two months left until he officially became an adult.

Since I had shaken off the Crown Prince, it was time to start working behind the scenes.

Iscallion, who had no idea about my sinister intentions, was simply happy about the rare invitation and brought a bunch of gifts.

“It’s so nice to be at your house again, Sister. It’s good to see the Duke and Duchess too. And you look stunning today as well.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

I didn’t bother correcting his mistakes. I planned to teach him what they meant once he became an adult.

“Come visit often, Leon. You know I wasn’t serious when I acted cold towards you, right?”

Though he pretended otherwise, my father must have missed him, as he was unusually affectionate. My mother watched them with a pleased expression.

The warm atmosphere continued until evening.

“Oh my, it’s already this late. We have something to attend to, so we’ll leave first. Is that okay? Have fun.”

“Huh? Honey, we have something to… oh, right, we do. I just remembered.”

My father, who hadn’t even finished his meal, was dragged away by my mother.

Naturally, only Iscallion and I were left in the dining room.

The day when my parents’ misplaced wish would come true was not far off.

After he finished his meal, I made a suggestion.

“The weather is nice. Want to take a walk in the garden?”

“Sure.”

In truth, the weather wasn’t that nice. It was late autumn, and the nights were quite chilly. But I purposely didn’t bring a blanket.

“Ahem, it’s a bit cold…”

As soon as I hinted, Iscallion immediately took off his coat and draped it over me.

The jacket, warm with his body heat, was cozy.

“It’s warm. Leon, you must have a high body temperature.”

Feigning innocent admiration, I subtly moved closer to him.

“Yes, our family naturally has a high body temperature. I’ll give you my jacket in winter too.”

Winter. By winter, he would be an adult. And then, not just his jacket…

‘Stop it, you scoundrel! This is all for world peace…!’

I shook my head vigorously to clear my thoughts. Iscallion looked at me strangely. Feeling guilty, I avoided his gaze and changed the subject.

“The stars are really bright, aren’t they?”

Though it was chilly, the sky was clear, and the stars were visible. Even the distant wolf star, Seirios, could be seen.

“Yeah.”

Iscallion suddenly stopped walking.

Like he’s longing for his ancestors, his golden eyes were fixed on Seirios.

“Why?”

“Nothing. I just got a slight headache.”

‘Oh, right.’

He had a chronic condition. And only I could cure that headache.

How romantic was that? Iscallion was indeed the perfect match for me.

“Should I heal you?”

“Sure.”

Just like that rainy day under the umbrella, I stood on tiptoe and touched my forehead to his. The moment our foreheads met, a sharp pain pierced my head. But to win his favor, I could endure this much pain.

“Does it not hurt anymore?”

“It’s amazing. When you’re here, it doesn’t hurt. Even the stab wound I got last time has healed. They say love makes you forget pain. Maybe it’s something like that?”

‘Yeah, right. It doesn’t hurt at all. Really.’

“Maybe.”

I smiled shyly and lowered my gaze. At the same time, I gently took hold of Iscallion’s large, firm hand.

His hand, which had been quietly held for a moment, soon intertwined naturally with my fingers.

With his proactive gesture, the situation quickly turned romantic.

Just at that moment when I was about to confess to him to date me once he became an adult…

“Whoa…”

“Oh my, I didn’t know…!”

Unexpectedly, a rustling noise came from behind the bushes growing alongside the path.

‘I knew it was going too smoothly.’

I pushed Iscallion away and sighed deeply.

“Stop peeping and come out, Mother, Father.”

After a while, the leaves and branches rustled, and soon my parents appeared with embarrassed smiles.

“…”

“…Ahaha, it’s not like we were peeping on purpose. We just happened to see you while we were on a walk. It was purely by chance, purely by chance.”

“Of course! Our daughter is an adult now, so she can date any man she likes. We don’t mind at all, so don’t worry about it.”

“Sure.”

“Dear, shall we head to the bedroom?”

“Good idea. I’m quite tired, so let’s go in and rest.”

My parents, awkwardly conversing, quickly retreated inside as if escaping.

But the already broken atmosphere could not be restored.

“Sorry. You’re used to my parents acting like this by now, right?”

I turned to Iscallion with an awkward smile. But he wasn’t looking at me. As if it didn’t matter what happened.

Once again, his gaze was fixed on Seirios.

“Leon? Does your head hurt again?”

“…”

“Leon?”

It was strange. He had never been so unfocused on me before.

As I tilted my head in confusion, his golden eyes, resembling Seirios, slowly turned towards me.

That gaze felt so unfamiliar. It was as if I was facing a stranger, causing my body to tremble with a sense of discomfort.

“Sister. I think I need to go back now.”

“What? Okay… Are you really alright? I’m worried.”

“Yeah.”

But that sense of discomfort soon disappeared. Iscallion quickly returned to his playful and innocent smile that I knew.

“By the way, I need to return this.”

What he handed me was the dagger given to me by Gined.

“Oh, thanks.”

I looked down at the dagger without thinking and was shocked.

The dagger, which had once shone as white as snow, had turned so black that even I, its owner, could hardly recognize it.

‘Is it because of that water ghost?’

Considering how powerful it was, even Michalis, the vampire lord, had warned me about it, it was no wonder the silver had tarnished this much.

“Then I’ll be going.”

“Wait a moment. I’ll have a carriage prepared for you.”

“I can go by myself.”

Seemingly in a hurry, he refused even my farewell and quickly left the mansion.

Something felt off.

Something had happened to Iscallion. My intuition told me so.

“Janet.”

In no time, a sensual beauty appeared before me.

“Yes, Master.”

“Do you remember that spy from Pontos in the imperial palace? The one who’s always dazed.”

“Yes. I’ve been regularly using enchantment magic on him.”

“Bring him here.”

***

The next night.

With a dull thud, a man collapsed in front of me. He was the spy Iscallion had planted in the imperial palace.

I originally intended to use him as a double agent, but soon after, he realized that I knew Iscallion’s true identity, and the information he brought wasn’t particularly valuable, so I left him alone.

‘I didn’t expect to use him like this.’

“Hey.”

Janet nudged the unconscious man’s face with her shoe.

Soon, the man opened his eyes.

“What the…”

The man, who was about to get angry, immediately changed his expression upon seeing Janet.

With eyes full of reverence, he looked at Janet and then prostrated himself on the ground like a commoner meeting a king.

“Ah, you finally summoned me. My master of my soul! My heart has been torn to shreds with thirst for you. Please, end my longing with a single kiss…”

The man, who pleaded pathetically, tried to kiss Janet’s foot while looking at her for approval. But just before his lips could touch, Janet elegantly turned away.

“I heard there’s trouble with Grand Duke Pontos.”

“What? How did you…”

“There’s nothing in this world I don’t know. Tell me, what’s happening to him?”

The man hesitated. Noticing this, Janet walked over to him and stood arrogantly.

“If you speak willingly, I’ll allow you to kiss my foot.”

“Really?”

The man glanced greedily at Janet’s foot. While Janet and the man remained calm, I, having to witness this scene, felt unbearably embarrassed.

‘This is insane…’

But there was no denying it was an enviable ability.

“If you want, you may even kiss my hand.”

Janet whispered seductively.

Blinded by desire, the man forgot all about his loyalty and spilled the political situation of Pontos.

“There’s an internal conflict in Pontos. Abel, who is His Highness’s cousin, is the ringleader.”

“What? Again? I thought he had suppressed all of them when he ascended to the Grand Duke’s position.”

I was so shocked I forgot to curse inwardly and asked.

The man looked at Janet for permission to answer.

“Answer her questions fully.”

“The usurper has ruled the Principality of Pontos for over ten years. It’s not surprising that some remnants remain.”

“Are you saying he left his territory empty for so long under such conditions?”

“He planned to completely root them out by provoking their ambitions during his absence.”

“Oh my.”