The next day, his mother was dead.
Carlo never even saw the body. He only heard small, scattered reports from the knights; it had been handled in secret as a shameful matter. It was a pitiful end without a shred of decency.

“Yes—I’ll take revenge. My mother died unjustly, and if I forget that… won’t she weep blood?”

Carlo murmured coldly, lifting the corner of his mouth as if making a vow. He swore he would never love again. If taking another woman and burying a wife counted as love, then that was no better than a curse.

Yet the distrust blazing in his eyes began to tremble at a shape that came into view.

“Laila.”

Her shoulders sagged as she walked weakly—pitiful to the point of annoyance. Why did she look so fragile? Why did her face seem on the verge of tears again?

Carlo’s feelings for Laila were bewilderingly complex. She was the easiest to be with, yet the one he wanted to hide everything from. Unlike him—who had fallen into ruin—she remained pure and unshakeable no matter what dirty work he put her through.

Because of that, he refused to show her his depths. He wanted to protect that purity. That purity could exist only because she didn’t know the filth at his core.

He wanted her to stay as she was, yet he felt revulsion toward himself for using her in his filthy schemes. He had driven the one person he most wanted to protect into the mire, all in the name of revenge—but still he had no intention of stopping.

“Sorry, Laila.”
She was the only one who could help with this revenge, and so he had to use her completely. Her love for him would never change, so manipulating her heart was easy.
So he pretended not to notice Laila’s feelings even though he knew them. He didn’t believe in love, but when all this was over, she deserved to be loved properly by a decent man. Even after the revenge, Laila had to keep shining.
That was Carlo’s last shred of conscience—the weight of guilt for using someone noble in his vengeance.

And then—

“Who the hell is that?”

A man in a knight’s uniform smiled as he approached Laila, and a budlike smile just beginning to bloom lit up her face.
For a moment, Carlo felt the urge to gouge out the knight’s eyes. In his mind a plan formed at once: find out who the man was and drive him away immediately.

‘How dare he… who does he think he’s looking at?’

Even though he was the captain of the knights and knew Laila got along with the men, seeing another man look at her filled him with searing anger. And if that man received the smile that was meant for him alone, Carlo would make sure the man was removed from Laila’s presence. Laila would look at him—and him only—forever. She had to feel love for him alone.

“Ha. What a madman…”

Carlo watched Laila until she disappeared into the main building, a derisive smile curling on his lips.
What had he just said? That Laila deserved to be loved by another man?
It was hypocrisy—a blatant lie.

He intended to use her love to the very end, yet the very thought of her belonging to someone else was unbearable.
That contradiction mocked him, taunted him.
If you can let her go—then do it.

***

In the corridors of the Adelina Imperial Palace, a man with sleek silver hair brushed neatly behind him made his way toward the Emperor’s bedchamber.
His white uniform was embroidered with silver thread that shimmered down from the shoulders, and a crimson sash draped across his chest gleamed with the emblems of his rank.
It was a uniform worn by only one man in the empire.
Crown Prince Theodor was on his way to visit his father, who had collapsed six years ago.

“How is His Majesty the Emperor?”
“He was able to sit up today, Your Highness.”

At that reply, Theodor quickened his pace.
When he reached the bedchamber, he was met by more attendants and knights than he had expected.

Ha… looks like the Empress is here.

Suppressing his irritation, he entered the chamber with a blank expression—where the Empress greeted him.

“Oh, Crown Prince. Do come in.”

The Empress Scarlet greeted him with a smile, her red hair swept high and tight, her thin brows arched over sharp, upturned eyes. Yet despite the curve of her lips, there was nothing warm about her expression—it was cold as glass.

Theodor masked the surge of anger twisting inside him with a composed, courtly smile.
“I greet His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress.”

“No need for such formality. Come closer and see your father properly,” she said, her voice dripping with feigned affection.

To anyone listening, she might have sounded like a devoted stepmother.
But Theodor knew better—the woman was a serpent, waiting for the right moment to strike, her ambition coiled and cold beneath her graceful exterior.

Ignoring Scarlet’s pretense as she rose to make way for him, Theodor stepped past her and approached the Emperor.
“Your Majesty, how are you feeling today?”

“Theo…”

Though the Emperor had regained enough strength to sit upright, his voice was still frail.
Leaning back against the pillows, he reached out to his only beloved child. The hand that struggled toward him was thin, dry, and fragile from years of illness.

“Seeing you sit up like this eases my heart,” Theodor said softly.

As he clasped his father’s cold, withered hand, a heaviness sank deep into his chest.
Six years ago, this man—once a mighty ruler who had built Adelina into a great empire, cared for his people, and commanded even the proudest nobles—had crumbled in an instant.

An attempted poisoning—by someone no one had ever expected.

“I’ve heard you’ve been handling affairs well in my stead as Crown Prince. Thank you, Theo…”

The Emperor’s weary words were filled with tenderness, but before Theodor could respond, the Empress’s voice slid smoothly between them.

“Yes, Your Majesty. The Crown Prince has been managing matters with such conviction. The nobles can’t stop praising his sound judgment.”

With conviction, she says… Ah. She must be talking about that argument I had with her father over the appointment issue.

Seeing straight through Scarlet’s polished tone, Theodor calmly continued his report to the Emperor.

“As I reported before, I’ve appointed Marquis Pallas as Minister of State. Also, Count Schmaller has stepped down from his position as Royal Knight, and his son, Eugene Schmaller, has succeeded him.”

“Good. Marquis Pallas is an honest man—he’ll be of great help to you. And the Schmaller family has served the Empire faithfully for generations as one of its finest knightly houses.”

As the Emperor’s praise went on, the Empress lifted a single brow and spoke in a voice as smooth as silk.

“They are indeed excellent families. But I can’t help worrying about His Highness. I’ve been losing sleep at night, thinking of him.”

Theodor barely restrained the laugh rising in his throat.

Losing sleep over me? More like losing sleep because your father didn’t get the minister’s seat.

“They say the latest appointments consist only of the Crown Prince’s close aides. I fear the nobles may soon turn their backs on His Highness if this continues…”

“That’s enough, Empress.”

“…”

Even weakened by illness, the man before them was still the Emperor of the Empire. Scarlet fell silent at once, lips pressed tight. The Emperor had never once acknowledged her as his true wife, and his words carried an unshakable weight.

“Your Majesty,” Theodor began calmly, “Marquis Pallas successfully negotiated the recent trade agreement with the Valtro Empire, bringing immense profit to our realm. Not only that, he uncovered an illegal sl*ve market, arrested the perpetrators, and freed the captives.”

As Theodor continued detailing Pallas’s accomplishments, Scarlet’s smile slowly faded.

“Among those sl*ves were citizens of other empires. By repatriating them to their homelands, our diplomatic relations have improved as well—surely, Your Majesty, that much you already know. So tell me, Empress—do you mean to say that appointing such a man as Minister of State is unjust?”

“Crown Prince… that’s—!”

“I’m well aware of Your Majesty the Empress’s concern for me,” Theodor said with a calm, courteous smile. “However, I also understand that matters of state must never be governed by personal ties or selfish motives. So please, you need not worry.”

At the words personal ties and selfish motives, Scarlet’s expression sharpened. She had understood the warning clearly—he was telling her to abandon any attempt to raise her father to Minister of State or to place her own son on the throne.

Before wasting your strength on such pointless schemes, you should learn to keep your unruly son under control, Theodor thought coldly.

Scarlet, the second Empress, had been the Emperor’s second wife.
And Theodor—he was the firstborn son, born of the Emperor’s true consort.

The Empress, who sought to place her son Vahan on the throne, and the Crown Prince, born of the Emperor’s first wife—there could never be peace between them. Scarlet and her father opposed Theodor at every turn, seizing every opportunity to undermine or threaten him.

“Your Majesty, I plan to depart for the Cerclezia Empire in two weeks,” Theodor said, his gaze fixed ahead, ignoring the faint tremor in Scarlet’s hands.

“The Cerclezia Empire?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I will personally attend the birthday banquet of His Majesty the Emperor of Cerclezia.”

The Cerclezia Empire had long been Adelina’s close ally, their nations bound by a deep and enduring friendship. To preserve that bond, it was only proper that the Crown Prince himself make the journey.

“Very well, then. Travel safely. You’ll likely see young Lord Carlo Siren when you arrive—he’s an old friend of yours, isn’t he?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Good. I hope you can enjoy some peaceful time there, for once.”

Peaceful time… huh.

Theodor’s eyes flickered faintly at his father’s words.