Judging by Giselle’s haggard face, living with Richard must not be easy. But that was also the result of her poor choice in men.

As Lydia inwardly clicked her tongue and turned to leave, Richard called her again.

“Oh, Lydia.”

“Yes?”

“Rozena has been wanting to see you. She’ll be waiting, so if you’re not busy, why not stop by the imperial consort’s palace?”

Bringing up Rozena here? Lydia instinctively glanced at Giselle, but she seemed composed, as if used to it. Lydia replied that she would and left the audience chamber.

With the tension released, Lydia exhaled deeply and leaned against Arsen.

“His Majesty has changed a lot.”

They say a person’s appearance changes when their personality changes, and Richard was exactly like that. Before her regression, Richard had the makings of a wise ruler. But it was difficult to call the current Richard a wise ruler.

Whether it was an aftereffect of Ludger’s disease or something else, Richard couldn’t control his impulsive temperament. Imperial decrees were sometimes foolish. Conflicts at the borders were increasing, but the emperor remained shut in the imperial palace with no intention of taking action.

His most dedicated effort was keeping the empress, Giselle, in check. It was understandable. As a prince, Richard had clearly seen how the empire had been devastated when the previous empress seized power.

Still, Richard took it too far. If he hadn’t had children other than Michael in the first place, things wouldn’t have come to this.

Of course, Lydia didn’t wish for Richard to become a wise ruler and gain fame. Nor did she want him to form a harmonious family with Giselle. She had hoped they would regret betraying her for the rest of their lives.

But seeing them like this wasn’t particularly satisfying.

“He has definitely changed.”

Was that thanks to Arsen? Instead of dwelling on unresolved feelings toward Richard and Giselle throughout her marriage, she had been busy being happy with Arsen. Arsen’s affection remained constant over time.

“He didn’t used to be so rude as to call another man’s wife by her first name.”

……The problem was that his jealousy also remained constant.

“Don’t say such things here.”

Lydia lightly punched Arsen’s shoulder. Though he had spoken in a whisper and probably wasn’t overheard, caution was essential in the palace.

Already, people’s attention was focused on the ducal couple due to the grand duchy’s rapidly growing influence.

“It’s not like my name will wear out just because he called it.”

“Is he doing that because he still has feelings for you?”

“That can’t be. So much time has passed. And with so many beautiful women in the capital, how could he still be hung up on me?”

“I was looking carefully on our way here……”

Looking? Lydia pretended to be nonchalant but perked up her ears.

“There was no woman as beautiful as you.”

“Oh my, what a lie.”

“It’s not a lie. In that respect, the capital hasn’t changed. You were the most beautiful then, and you’re the most beautiful now.”

Lydia hunched her shoulders as her ears tingled.

“Why have you become so cheesy?”

“Say that after wiping that smile off your face, wife.”

While his affection remained unchanged, Arsen’s expressions of affection had grown, and he often delivered lines worthy of a playboy.

The funniest part was that she still felt fluttered hearing such words.

“If you’re pleased, give me a kiss at least.”

“Someone might see.”

While seemingly refusing indirectly, Lydia gently placed both hands on Arsen’s chest.

Fortunately, they had chosen a secluded path on their way to the imperial consort’s palace. If anyone had been passing by, this would have been an embarrassing sight……

“Ahem.”

But they were seen. Startled by the sound of someone clearing their throat, Lydia hurriedly stepped back. Arsen instinctively reached for his sword, then realized he hadn’t brought it into the palace and instead hid Lydia behind him.

“Who’s there?”

There was a rustling sound in the bushes, and then a young man stood up with a sheepish grin.

“I wasn’t trying to spy.”

The young man, who raised both hands in the air as if surrendering, had a familiar appearance. His red hair and brown eyes resembled the empress’s, while his wide mouth and other features looked exactly like Richard’s.

“Might you be His Highness Prince Michael?”

“Yes. How did you recognize me at once? We seem to be meeting for the first time.”

“You look a lot like His Majesty the Emperor.”

Indeed, the closer they looked, the more he resembled Richard. They had heard he was sixteen this year, but his tall stature made him look more mature.

“Why were you hiding there?”

Unlike Lydia, whose wariness had eased upon learning the boy’s identity, Arsen remained sharp.

“Well, actually, I was here first. You two came here.”

As Michael stepped slightly to the side, a cloak spread on the ground became visible.

“It’s a perfect spot for napping away from the attendants’ eyes.”

And for skipping lessons too. Michael smiled somewhat sheepishly, making Lydia even more embarrassed. Wasn’t this a situation where they were about to kiss in front of someone taking a nap, and then accused him of spying?

While Lydia’s face turned bright red, Michael picked up his cloak.

“What happened to your hand?”

“Pardon?”

“Are you injured?”

At Arsen’s question, Michael looked down at his own hand. There were drops of blood on his fingertips.

“Ah, a rat was bothering me while I was lying down. While chasing it away.”

Michael answered casually, wiped his hand roughly on his cloak, and then bowed politely.

“I’ll be going now. See you at the banquet later.”

Lydia continued to feel embarrassed as she returned his greeting. Just then, voices calling for Michael could be heard from the distance, and Michael waved broadly as he headed in that direction.

“Let’s go, Arsen.”

“Just a moment.”

Once Michael was out of sight, Arsen headed toward the bushes where he had been lying.

“What’s wrong?”

“Doesn’t something seem strange? Why would his hand be bloody from chasing away a rat?”

Normally, when a rat appears, people throw stones or stamp their feet to chase it away, rarely getting blood on their hands. Arsen, who was pushing aside the low bushes, frowned deeply.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s a rat carcass. Don’t look.”

The rat’s body was crushed beyond recognition, and a bloodstained stone lay beside it.

For someone so young, his nature seemed excessively cruel. More concerning to Arsen was the fact that the prince had left it in this state.

Did he not think to clean it up, or did he never intend to in the first place?

* * *

“I met the Grand Duchess, Mother.”

Michael spoke while changing into formal attire under Giselle’s supervision. Giselle’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

“You didn’t say anything foolish, did you?”

“Of course not. The Grand Duke looked like he wouldn’t let me off easily if I did.”

He had seen people secretly eavesdropping in the palace, people secretly gossiping, but never people secretly trying to kiss. Michael giggled as he recalled Lydia’s face turning bright red.

His father’s former lover. She had a completely different atmosphere from his mother. Their lives were probably complete opposites too. The Grand Duchess looked happy.

“When Father staged a rebellion, the Grand Duke of Bayern was with him, wasn’t he?”

“Rebellion? Mind your words, Prince.”

“Yes, revolution.”

When Michael obediently corrected himself, Giselle’s displeased expression softened slightly.

“Yes, the Grand Duke saved His Majesty’s life several times.”

“Then you must have known the Grand Duke from before, Mother?”

Giselle nodded halfheartedly and pointed out that Michael’s collar was crooked. Michael fixed the collar himself and met Giselle’s eyes in the mirror’s reflection.

“But why did you choose His Majesty? The Grand Duke seems like a better man.”

“Michael.”

Giselle’s eyebrows furrowed sharply.

“You had poor judgment in men, Mother.”

Regardless of her reaction, Michael continued smiling as he fiddled with his cravat.

“I was just joking. Wasn’t it funny?”

“Do I look like I’m in the mood for jokes right now?”

“Why, because of the crown prince competition? Don’t worry about that.”

The throne, the throne, the throne! He was sick to death of it. He had grown up being brainwashed that he must become emperor. Yet people said the child of the prophecy should ascend to the throne.

His father’s intentions remained unclear. Depending on his mood, he would either dote on Michael or hate him for resembling his mother. Why not just pick one? It was confusing.

Well, being confused was a thing of the past. Michael was no longer confused. The emperor considered Michael his son, but wanted to give the throne itself to Raphael.

However, like many things in life, it wouldn’t go according to the emperor’s wishes. Michael approached Giselle and affectionately grasped her shoulders.

“If I win the competition, that’s all that matters, Mother.”

“Of course, of course you must win.”

She showed a somewhat confident smile, but Giselle didn’t seem particularly reassured. She muttered compulsively.

“This isn’t simply a matter of becoming emperor or not, Prince.”

“Yes, yes, it’s a matter of survival.”

“If Raphael becomes emperor, would his imperial consort leave us alone?”

She was right, as always. But even correct statements become tiresome when heard too often.

“Should we just k*ll them all then, Mother?”

“……What?”

When Giselle faltered, Michael gave her an affectionate smile.

“I was joking, Mother.”

“Please refrain from such jokes, Prince.”

But Mother, if we really killed them all, we could both gain the throne and save our lives, so why should I refrain?

* * *

“I’m going to get some fresh air for a moment.”

“Don’t go too far.”

Violet crossed through the hall where the banquet was in full swing. Numerous nobles had been invited to the banquet announcing the competition.