Tension filled the Empress’s bedchamber.

The Empress swallowed dryly. Lifting her chin, she spoke in a firm tone.

“He is the Crown Grandson who will carry on the imperial line. I cannot entrust him to the Crown Princess.”

“The Crown Princess is this child’s mother.”

“What could the Crown Grandson possibly learn from her? He’d be lucky if he didn’t pick up vulgar habits—”

The Empress froze mid-sentence.

Pheromones laced with Damian’s fury rippled through the room. He stared her down and spoke in a voice simmering with heat.

“I believe I made myself perfectly clear.”

“W-what…?”

“Don’t speak to my mate like that.”

Overwhelmed by his presence, the Empress parted her lips without a sound. Damian spoke forcefully, raking his hair back and fixing his mother with a gaze sharp enough to cut.

“Do not make me resent you any further.”

“This is all for the Crown Prince’s sake!”

Overwhelmed by emotion, the Empress cried out. As she did so, she gripped the baby’s cradle tightly. The cradle shook and the sleeping baby burst into tears.

“Waaah—!”

“Why is he crying all of a sudden…?”

Flustered by the baby’s crying, the Empress tried to rock the cradle, but this only made matters worse. The harder she tried, the louder the baby cried.

“D-don’t cry! Be good!”

“Waaah—!”

Panicking, the Empress tried to pick up the baby. Seeing her clumsily attempt to support the child, Damian let out a short, derisive laugh.

“So you’ll raise him very well indeed, Your Majesty.”

The Empress’s face flushed deep red at Damian’s mockery. It must have been humiliating. She had never raised a child herself.

From the moment he was born, she had handed him over to a wet nurse. While it was true that royals rarely raised their own children, she had been particularly distant and cold by those standards. To the Empress, her son was nothing more than a means to an end, a tool for inheriting the Eisenbart throne.

Because of that, Damian had never once been held in his mother’s arms. Seeing her now insisting that she would raise a child herself was almost laughable.

“Stop being unreasonable and hand him over.”

Looking at her with open disdain, Damian took the baby from her grasp. It was easy enough to snatch the child away from her clumsy grasp.

“How can the Crown Prince be so heartless, so ignorant of a mother’s feelings!”

Having lost the baby, the Empress shouted at her son. Startled by her outburst, the baby cried even louder, but she only glared at Damian resentfully.

“The Crown Princess will try to leave the palace with the Crown Grandson! I’m trying to stop that! And yet you don’t understand—my intentions—!”

At her accusation, Damian clenched his teeth. He glared at his mother and roared, his voice sharp as frost.

“Do not interfere with the Crown Princess’s choices!”

At his outburst, the Empress’s eyes widened.

Damian was not someone who displayed his emotions freely. Until now, he had always treated her according to protocol. This was the first time he had ever lost his temper with her.

“…Crown Prince?”

“If Sephi wants to leave, I will let her. If that’s what it takes for her to be happy, then I will respect her decision.”

Damian tightened his hold on the baby. Looking down at the golden hair so like his own, he murmured.

“I won’t let my child grow up like me…”

He pressed his lips together and shot his mother a merciless glare. Leaving the Empress frozen beneath his piercing gaze, he turned his back on her without hesitation.

***

Seraphina waited for Damian, forcing herself to endure the burning anxiety in her chest. Unable to lie down properly, she sat upright and stared at the door endlessly.

Her hands were clasped together as though in prayer and the backs of her hands had gone white from the tension.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince will definitely bring back the Crown Grandson.”

Rosalynde tried to reassure Seraphina, who sat taut with nerves. Holding her hand, she added.

“I’ll inform you the moment His Highness returns, so please—try to rest.”

“I am resting, Rosie.”

Seraphina said this, staring at the door with bloodshot eyes. Despite her words, every nerve in her body was on edge. Each time the door rattled in the wind, she flinched.

“…Oh, honestly.”

Unable to hide her concern, Rosalynde sighed. Just as she was about to let go of Seraphina’s hand, the door finally swung open and Damian appeared.

The moment Seraphina saw him enter, cradling a swaddled bundle with the utmost care, she swung her legs off the bed.

“My baby…!”

She rushed to Damian and pulled the child into her arms, hugging him tightly.

Her body trembled violently when she finally got her baby back. The time he had been taken from her had felt unbearably long.

“My baby… my baby…”

Tears streamed down Seraphina’s face as she looked at the baby. Inside the swaddling cloth, the baby blinked slowly. Unaware of what had happened, the innocent child smiled brightly at her.

“Kyah—!”

Seraphina’s lips curled into a smile at the sound of his laughter. Seeing him smile made her smile, too.

Still laughing through her tears, she suddenly looked up at Damian. He had been watching her with gentle eyes, and when he noticed her looking at him, he tilted his head slightly.

“What is it?”

“Thank you for bringing him back to me, Damian.”

At her words, Damian furrowed his brow. Rubbing his chin awkwardly, he replied.

“It was something I was supposed to do.”

“While I was waiting for you—after he was taken—I kept thinking about how I hadn’t even given him a name. I regretted it so much. I wished I’d at least been able to call him once…”

Lowering her gaze to the swaddling cloth, Seraphina continued.

“So I want to give him a name now.”

“All right.”

Damian nodded.

Fixing her eyes on the baby, Seraphina took a small, steadying breath. Then she said the name she had chosen while waiting for him.

“Lucas. Lucas Eisenbart.”

“Kyah—”

As if he recognized his name, Lucas wiggled his fingers and smiled. Seraphina beamed down at him. Holding him in her arms made her feel as though she had gained the whole world.

***

Seraphina moved the crib from the nursery to her bedroom. While she was recovering, she kept Lucas close by, caring for him by her side.

She had planned to raise him herself. However, Damian unexpectedly objected, insisting that, given the harrowing nature of the birth, she should focus solely on restoring her health.

Ultimately, Seraphina reluctantly entrusted Lucas to a wet nurse. Nevertheless, she made sure he was always within her sight.

Thanks to Damian’s consideration and Rosalynde’s devoted care, Seraphina recovered without much difficulty.

Then, one day, after she had fully regained her pre-pregnancy health —

“Leave the imperial palace, Sephi.”

Damian spoke words she had never expected.

“…What did you say?”

As she walked with him through the greenhouse, Seraphina blinked. For a moment, she thought she must have misheard.

But Damian repeated himself, his expression set.

“Leave the Imperial Palace.”

Seraphina stopped and turned to look at him. She had been sleeping poorly lately, anxious that the Empress might cause trouble again. Had he somehow read her worries, or even her thoughts?

“I only realized it when Her Majesty took Lucas away that this palace does nothing but make you unhappy.”

He struggled as if breathing itself were difficult before forcing the words out.

“Only if you leave me… can you be happy.”