Sophia stepped toward Arthur again, even after he had pulled his hand free. Her face, flushed red, was a mix of jealousy and shame. At another time, Arthur might have soothed her jealousy over Aisha with gentle words—but not tonight. He signaled for her to keep her distance, his expression blank as he forced down his anger.

“… Sophia. Don’t try to divert this conversation with meaningless talk. I have no intention of indulging your sulking.”

“Sulking? You think I’m sulking?”

“Sophia!”

The fury that had been roiling inside him finally burst. At his raised voice, Sophia flinched, tears welling in her eyes. Her voice trembled as she looked at him with a pitiful expression.

“Why… why are you yelling at me? Arthur, how can you shout at me? Hwaaah…”

“…Haa.”

“Sophia, I’m not comforting you today, no matter how much you cry. More importantly—answer me. Why did you do it?”

Even through her tears, Arthur’s voice was firm. Sophia bit her lip and shut her mouth tight, her usual tactic of escaping trouble with tears failing her. The reason she had started the rumor? There was only one.

Because she hated Aisha Parden.

“Don’t tell me… you did this for no reason?”

“I hate Aisha! I just do!”

The words burst out like a child throwing a tantrum. Arthur’s strength drained from him. That vile rumor—so filthy it was hard to even speak aloud—one that dragged his sister’s honor into the dirt and could shape the course of her life, had been born from nothing more than petty, childish spite.

Arthur looked at the woman he loved. Sophia’s tear-streaked face was still lovely, but tonight—at least right now—she didn’t look beautiful to him at all.

“I was just joking around with people I’m close to. Everyone talks behind each other’s backs. I was only doing the same.”

The disappointment in his face made Sophia stop sobbing and scramble to explain herself. She was scared—she had never seen him look like this before.

“Spreading false rumors is malicious slander. It’s a crime.”

“Ah, Arthur, please don’t be mad, okay? It was just a joke. I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“…”

“It’s true. And I never said it exactly the way it’s being told now.”

“You knew about the rumor? And you’ve kept your mouth shut this whole time?”

Sophia had no answer to Arthur’s demand. The rumour had become far more malicious than when it began, which frightened her. However, she had also felt a certain satisfaction. Hearing Aisha Parden’s name being dragged through the dirt and whispered behind people’s backs had given her a cheap thrill.

“Tell me exactly what you said to people.”

When Sophia hesitated, Arthur changed the question. She fidgeted under his gaze before finally speaking.

“T-That Ian weren’t going to marry Aisha. A-And that the reason was…”

“…”

“T-The reason was because Aisha already had another man.”

“…”

“But that’s all! I never said anything like—like she was caught in bed with a man or that she wasn’t a virgin, the way the rumors are now.”

The more she spoke, the darker Arthur’s expression became. Sophia threw herself at him, clutching his clothes.

“Arthur, d-don’t be mad, please. You know, you understand, why I hate Aisha.”

“…”

“Hhhuuuk… You said you’d be on my side, unlike everyone else. Didn’t you?”

At her words, Arthur’s hard expression shifted faintly. Sophia Lloyd was playing dirty. “Be on my side.” Once those words left her lips, he couldn’t help but weaken.

“I hate Aisha. Everyone takes her side. She’s the only one they care about.”

“Sophia…”

“Arthur, no one cares about me. I don’t have a mother or father… and my brothers are no different. All they do is praise Aisha. I’m prettier than her. I’m better than her. But everyone… hhhk…”

“Don’t cry, Sophia. I’ll… be on your side.”

“What?”

“I know why you did it. I understand you.”

“R-Really? But Aisha’s your own sister. My brother’s on her side, so why would you…?”

“…Like you said, Aisha has plenty of people. So I’ll be the one who’s on your side, Sophia.”

Arthur understood better than anyone why Sophia hated Aisha. They shared the same kind of emptiness. He knew too well what it felt like to live as a shadow all your life… to stand beside the child who drew everyone’s eyes and feel the weight of that humiliation.

‘Just this once… She says the rumour has been overstated. Just this once…’

Arthur shut his eyes tightly, then opened them again. Ultimately, he decided to protect her. If anyone else had started such a filthy rumour about Aisha, he would have sent them straight to hell without a second thought. But he couldn’t do that to her. He told himself it would be only this once, suppressing the crashing guilt.

“…Edward already knows you’re the one behind it. It’s only a matter of time before Daniel does too.”

“What?”

“Edward has no intention of letting you off. He hasn’t said it outright, but he’s even thinking about taking this to trial.”

“Th-Then what should I do? Arthur, what am I supposed to do?”

Arthur’s gaze toward Sophia brimmed with anguish. In a voice drained of strength, he finally told her the best course of action he could think of.

“…Go to my father first. Tell him everything and ask for his forgiveness. Tell Ian too. As soon as possible.”

Ian would try to protect his younger sister. And though Count Parden would be furious at anyone who had wronged his daughter Aisha, if Sophia went to him first to apologize, he would likely let it go once—for the sake of his late close friends, her parents.

‘Aisha…’

Arthur bit down on the inside of his mouth until he tasted blood, his thoughts turning to the younger sister who would ultimately suffer most from his decision. He knew he shouldn’t be doing this. But in the end, he made the wrong choice.

“Do I really… have to go that far?”

Whether she understood his feelings or not, Sophia’s pale face was twisted with open displeasure. Sparks lit in Arthur’s eyes.

“Are you serious right now? Haah…”

“Arthur…”

“If you don’t want this going to trial, you’d better move fast. If Edward steps in first, not even Ian or Father will be able to cover for you. So go take your punishment from them instead. Got it?”

“F-Fine. I’ll go see Uncle right away. I’ll tell my brother too.”

Only now grasping the full gravity of the situation, Sophia nodded, her expression deflated. Arthur reached out toward her tear-streaked face out of habit, but stopped himself and turned away.

“…Let’s keep our distance for a while. I need time to think.”

“Arthur!”

“I’m going.”

“Arthur! Arthur! Don’t go! Arthur!”

Arthur walked straight out of the living room. Sophia reached for him, but missed and collapsed onto the couch. Her tearful gaze lingered on the door through which he had just left, until the glimmer of tears in her eyes shifted into something else entirely. Wiping her face roughly with her sleeve, she muttered someone’s name under her breath, her bloodshot eyes blazing.

“…This is all your fault.”

In the empty lounge, the sound of her teeth grinding was vicious.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

The color drained from Aisha’s face. The man who had saved her seized the collar of the one who had been knocked to his knees, lifted him effortlessly with one hand, and—without the slightest hesitation—drove his fist forward.

Thud.

A dull thump rang out, mingled with a groan, and before long, all three men—including Vincent—were lying unconscious. The sight of their bloodied faces, swollen beyond recognition, was almost unbearable; Aisha even worried that, at this rate, someone might end up dead.

“Y-Your Highness…”

Her voice trembled as she addressed the one who had saved her. Jared, who had been glaring down at the fallen men, startled at the sound of her voice. Loosening his grip, he gave her an awkward smile.

“…Forgive me. That was an unseemly display.”

He brushed his hands off and muttered something under his breath, leaving Aisha momentarily speechless. She had heard that the Second Prince was a formidable knight, but seeing it with her own eyes was still hard to believe.

His face was as finely featured as a woman’s, and compared to her elder brother Daniel, who was also a knight, he didn’t look particularly strong. Yet he had just lifted a grown man with one arm, and the strength behind that feat was staggering.

Seeing that she was frozen to the spot, Jared shifted awkwardly, looking faintly abashed. In the ensuing silence, Aisha began to bow in thanks, but the sound of footsteps and a familiar voice reached her before she could finish.

“Aisha!”

“Daniel? Daniel! Brother!”

Hearing her brother’s voice caused all the tension to drain out of her at once and brought tears to her eyes. She ran to him and threw herself into his arms. Startled by her unusual behaviour, Daniel held her close while quickly scanning their surroundings.

“What happened here?”

Who were the men lying battered on the floor? Why was Prince Jared here with his sister? Unable to make sense of the situation, Daniel examined Aisha from head to toe before putting her behind him. Seeing her brother’s guarded posture, Aisha whispered softly.

“…His Highness saved me.”

“What?”

“Those men, they… they tried to…”

The memory of being overpowered and harassed made her head spin. The repressed fear came flooding back, causing her to falter and lose her ability to carry on. Sensing what had happened, Daniel tried to calm her down.

“It’s all right, Aisha. You don’t have to say it. Just calm down. You’re safe now.”

Although he spoke slowly and warmly to comfort his sister, the look he gave the men on the floor was anything but comforting. The murderous glint in his eyes suggested that he could rip them to shreds right then and there.

Jared took a step towards the siblings, prompting Daniel to stand to attention immediately. Meeting Jared’s gaze, he bowed deeply — so quickly that Jared almost collided with him.

“Your Highness, thank you for saving my sister.”

Embarrassed by the loud, formal expression of gratitude, Jared gestured for Daniel to stand up. Daniel rose to his feet as quickly as he had bowed, his face expressing his genuine gratitude towards the prince.