Epilogue 1 – The Secret of the Playboy Prince

On a languid afternoon, Erpesto Hasmin Bechenia was feeling extremely gloomy. It was just after he had chased Belnez all the way to Flerosa on the empire’s outskirts and then returned to the Imperial Capital in Kraem.

He wanted to bring his older brother Orlando with him immediately, but the position of Crown Prince of the Empire was not one that could be left so easily. Orlando, who had to finish his scheduled appointments and duties before he could move, needed two more days.

In the end, Erpesto had no other option. For two days, he could do nothing but wait in a daze. Even though time was of the essence, having to just wait like this was truly nerve-racking, depressing, and utterly boring.

Erpesto leaned diagonally against the window, gazing outside and thinking of Belnez. 

What might she be doing right now? 

He wanted to run to her immediately, but the reality that he couldn’t was so frustrating he could hardly stand it.

Of course, what he hated even more than that was himself, for having started those ridiculous rumors. If he had known he would end up in such a troublesome situation, he never would have done such a thing.

Lost in deep regret, Erpesto sighed and ran his fingers through his disheveled hair. Along his long fingers, a soft golden light shimmered, and the afternoon sunlight gently outlined his features. It was a truly picturesque scene. Even though he was suffering, the sight of a fantastically handsome man gazing out the window in anguish was nothing short of beautiful.

Someone who had been secretly watching that beautiful scene quietly lifted their head from the floor. With Erpesto so lost in thought, perhaps he wouldn’t notice if they slacked off for a moment.

But even with his gaze fixed outside, Erpesto immediately sensed it, almost like a ghost.

“Ramon Matias, put your head back down properly.”

His low, flowing voice carried an overwhelming pressure.

“Yes, Sir.”

Ramon quickly pressed his head back to the floor. He then tried to raise his hips and keep his legs straight. But since he had already been holding the position for a long time, his limbs trembled and wobbled, and he couldn’t maintain the posture at all.

Ramon had already reached his limit. He couldn’t even tell if the water streaming down his face and body was sweat from exertion or cold sweat from fear of Erpesto.

Even so, Erpesto looked down at Ramon, who was groaning and struggling in the corner of the office, with a face devoid of the slightest sympathy. His chilly expression was as if he were looking at an insect, not a human being. Curling his lips in displeasure, he spat out irritably,

“How did Miss Belnez ever come to care for such a worthless thing?”

“I-I’m sorry! Your Highness! I, this worthless and lowly creature, am entirely at fault! Please forgive me!”

Sensing that Erpesto’s mood had soured, Ramon reflexively flattened himself against the floor and begged for forgiveness. The pain and fear he had suffered at Erpesto’s hands had taught him well. Meanwhile, Orlando, who was sitting at his desk processing documents, ground his teeth.

“Er, that’s enough.”

“Why?”

Erpesto asked as if he truly didn’t understand, and Orlando, feeling a brief headache, replied calmly,

“He’s still a noble. If you go too far, it could cause big problems.”

“If I expose the evidence I have, he’ll be stripped of his title and sent to prison anyway.”

“Then just do that instead.”

“No. That’s too boring. Besides, what am I supposed to do for two days if I can’t even do this?”

At his indifferent reply, Orlando pressed his forehead with his hand and sighed, then returned to his paperwork.

Over there, Ramon was sending hopeful glances toward Orlando, as if he were on his side, but unfortunately, Orlando had no intention of stopping Erpesto any further. The only reason he had intervened at all was because his concentration had been broken while working, not out of any concern for Ramon’s human rights.

A shameless playboy doesn’t need human rights. Especially if that person is a piece of human trash who, after losing money at the races and falling into great debt, had planned to scam dowries from the women he was two-timing and then flee the country at night. If Erpesto hadn’t secured evidence and caught him in advance, innocent women like Belnez would have suffered terribly.

The main person involved, Belnez Adraena, had no idea, but Erpesto had been watching over her for quite some time. She was always seated in the audience at the operas he invested in.

At first, he simply noticed her because she was often present even at the sparsely attended premieres of unknown shows. He thought she must really love opera. Then he realized that every performance she watched with sparkling eyes was sure to become a hit, and every performance she watched indifferently would flop. After that, as an investor, he became extremely interested in her reactions.

So Erpesto began secretly checking Belnez’s reactions at every performance. Before long, he started noticing other things: that Belnez was generally calm and showed little emotion, except when watching opera, when her expressions became lively; that her eyes were a fresh green, like early summer foliage; and that her speech and behavior were somehow different from those of city noblewomen.

Of course, sometimes he also noticed the man sitting next to her.

He wasn’t much to look at, and his reputation wasn’t great either. When Erpesto found out that such a man was her lover, he felt annoyed for some reason. Especially when that man would sit next to Belnez, openly looking bored and even nodding off.

How could anyone be bored sitting beside her? If I had been in that seat, I would never…

Never what?

Without realizing it, Erpesto frowned at that thought. Even then, he hadn’t realized his feelings. Perhaps it took him even longer to realize because he thought Belnez already had a lover. If no one had been at her side, he would have approached her long ago.

But annoyingly, Ramon stayed by her side for years, and all Erpesto could do was watch from afar.

Then, at some point, Ramon’s behavior became suspicious. Feeling uneasy, Erpesto secretly investigated him and discovered the crime Ramon was planning.

At that moment, he was furious. Not only had that man sat next to Belnez looking bored, he had also been about to commit such a shameless act.

He wanted to rush over and cut the man down himself, but Erpesto managed to calm himself. Instead, he blackmailed Ramon into breaking up with Belnez, worried about the shock she would suffer.

For the first time in his life, he deeply worried about someone who wasn’t family, yet Erpesto still didn’t realize his own feelings. He was just troubled by the thought that Belnez, who had suddenly gone through a breakup, might be crying with those beautiful green eyes of hers. The thought made him unbearably anxious.

In the end, unable to stand his anxiety, Erpesto rushed to check on her himself. And only when he saw Belnez’s face up close did he realize.

He was in love with her.

Even after watching her face from afar for over two hours during a performance, he hadn’t been bored; sometimes he missed her so much he thought of her all day; Ramon’s presence had annoyed him; he’d been furious at the crime Ramon had planned; and now, he was so worried about her.

All of it was because he loved her—Belnez.

Once he finally realized that, the feelings that had been lying dormant inside him overflowed uncontrollably. His once-frozen heart pounded wildly, sending hot bl＊＊d rushing through his body. He could hardly stand not confessing his feelings to her immediately.

Even so, Erpesto did his utmost to maintain his composure. While he had watched over her for the past few years, from Belnez’s perspective, he was only a man she had met for the first time today. Reminding himself of that fact, Erpesto tried again and again to respond calmly and perfectly.

As a result, it seemed his first romance was proceeding smoothly. In fact, things progressed so well that they went from confession to bed in one go.

Although the pace was surprisingly fast, Erpesto had no doubt that his first love was going well. He was simply overwhelmed and happy that, as soon as he met her, their hearts connected and they became one.

At least, until he woke up the next day and saw the empty space where Belnez had disappeared like the wind.

When he learned that Belnez had returned to her hometown without a word, Erpesto was deeply devastated. Having experienced love for the first time in his life, he had no way of understanding how things had turned out this way. Lost and wandering, after much agonizing, he eventually sought out his older brother Orlando for advice on love, and while telling his story, he repeated the same thing several times.

‘Brother, why did it turn out like this? I really did everything perfectly!’

Perhaps it was because he did things too perfectly that it ended up this way. Orlando, instead of voicing that thought, simply gave Erpesto a wry smile, looking at his suffering younger brother with pity.

He had chosen just the right moment to naturally hand over a handkerchief and ask her out on a date, smoothly led the way through dinner at the restaurant and even to the bedroom.

Just as he claimed, Erpesto was perfect that day. So who would have thought, seeing him, that he was a man asking a woman out on a date for the first time in his life, clutching his trembling heart with nerves? On the contrary, his overly skillful demeanor must have convinced her that the man before her was undoubtedly the playboy from the rumors.

It was a pity. If only he had openly trembled or stammered more, perhaps the result would have been different.

But Orlando couldn’t bring himself to say that. Ever since he was young, his younger brother had never been satisfied unless he did everything perfectly. It was simply too difficult to make someone like that understand that, in this world, sometimes things turn out wrong precisely because you do them too perfectly.

Erpesto was a born perfectionist. Thanks to that nature, he had excelled in every field since childhood. As a result, the world saw Erpesto as a candidate for the next Emperor, but that was an opinion only those who didn’t truly know him could hold.

The most decisive reason why the empire’s Second Prince, Erpesto Hasmin Bechenia, must never become Emperor was actually something else.

He had a bad personality.

Of course, he wasn’t evil by nature. At least Orlando thought so. Basically, he was a good kid, but he simply had a childlike lack of boundaries between good and evil.

For example, he never harmed innocent people for no reason, but he was bad enough to catch a man who tried to hurt the woman he loved and take out his anger on him like this. In daily life, he seemed normal enough, but once something went wrong, he would easily go beyond the bounds of common sense.

That side of him had never caused any real problems so far. Like a true perfectionist, he was also good at cleaning up after himself. However, he did not have the personality suitable for an Emperor. Erpesto himself agreed with this, which was why he started acting like a libertine.

At least, the saving grace was that Erpesto was endlessly kind to those who entered his heart. Hadn’t he yielded the throne to his older brother Orlando without asking for anything in return? Of course, even if he hadn’t yielded, the throne was originally Orlando’s anyway, but Orlando knew well that if Erpesto ever decided he wanted it, he would stop at nothing to get it.

So the fact that Belnez Adraena was fond of Erpesto was truly fortunate. Otherwise, who knew what Erpesto, once he lost all reason, might do by now.

Moreover, because of his personality, Erpesto had never even glanced at most women before. She was the first person to ever catch his eye. Orlando honestly felt like bowing to her and begging her to please take good care of his little brother.

As long as Belnez accepted Erpesto, everything would go smoothly. Erpesto would be endlessly kind to Belnez, who had entered his heart, and would flawlessly fulfill the roles of perfect husband and perfect father.

But if Belnez were to reject Erpesto……

Just imagining that possibility sent chills down Orlando’s spine. He shuddered, feeling as if a cold wind was blowing from somewhere.

“…That’s unpleasant.”

No, it wasn’t just his imagination. Turning his head at the ominous voice, Orlando saw Erpesto glaring at Ramon with eyes so murderous it was as if he wanted to kill him. Apparently, what Orlando had just felt was real murderous intent.

“Er, what are you trying to do right now…….”

Surely, he wasn’t planning to kill him. His little brother had never actually committed m＊rder, after all.

Worried, Orlando started to speak but stopped. He realized that Erpesto’s gaze was not on Ramon himself, but between Ramon’s legs. Glaring at that spot with hatred, Erpesto ground his teeth.

“To think that, besides me, something else has been inside her… It really is unpleasant. It’s irritating. I hate it so much I could die. Just thinking about it drives me crazy. I wish it would just disappear from this world right now. Why should I leave that thing alone? Isn’t there some way to get rid of it?”

Feeling the murderous intent directed at him, Ramon turned deathly pale and flattened himself against the floor.

“P-please spare me, Your Highness! My thing is so small, it probably didn’t even go in all the way! I just barely touched the entrance…!”

“D＊mn it, now that you’ve said that, I can picture it. That makes me feel even worse.”

“P-please, have mercy!”

Unfortunately, that desperate plea only made Erpesto even more displeased. Deeply annoyed, Erpesto frowned in thought for a while. Then, as if a good idea had occurred to him, his eyes lit up.

“Ah, should I just cut it off? If I cut it off and burn it, it’ll be gone, and I’ll be the only one who’s ever been inside her.”

That almost innocent expression sent chills down Orlando’s spine, and he tried to dissuade Erpesto.

“Hey, Er. No matter what, that’s too cruel……”

“Why? It’s better than k＊lling him, isn’t it?”

That was true. Unconsciously agreeing, Orlando opened and closed his mouth, then quickly gave up and turned his gaze back to his documents. 

Do as you please; I’ll just pretend I don’t know.

Rather than waste time trying to stop Erpesto in this state, it would be better to finish his work as quickly as possible and rush to Flerosa. If things were delayed any longer, there was no telling what kind of trouble Erpesto, whose patience was at its limit, might cause. At least if he took out his anger like this, they might buy a little more time.

While Orlando was looking at the documents, Erpesto drew a dagger and approached Ramon. With a scream that sounded like it might be his last, a great commotion erupted, and soon the smell of bl＊＊d began to fill the air.

Orlando squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again and focused on his work. At least it was quieter now, perhaps because Ramon had fainted.

For the Second Prince of the Empire, Erpesto Hasmin Bechenia, who already had many secrets, one more secret had just been added.