“Carlo left for the Cerclezia Empire? Without saying a word?”

Carlo was the only person Theodor could truly call a friend.

Yet one morning, he simply disappeared from the Empire without leaving a message or explanation.

As the formidable heir to a prestigious ducal house, Carlo had always occupied a special place in Theodor’s life. They had grown up together, closer to brothers than friends, but it was the pain they shared that truly bound them.

Just as Carlo’s mother had died after being falsely accused, Theodor’s mother had been driven to take her own life after being branded a poisoner. Both women had fallen victim to cruel lies.

This shared experience, and their mutual thirst for vengeance, had made them inseparable. So when Carlo suddenly turned his back on him, treating him as a stranger, Theodor was left with a bitter scar that time could never erase.

In the treacherous world of high society, where ambition and desire consumed everyone, Theodor lost the only person he could trust — his only true friend. Being abandoned without knowing why was devastatingly empty.

Even worse, Carlo disappeared shortly after Theodor’s young sister, Laila, died.

The timing of their parting was unbearable, and the wounds it left behind were agonizingly slow to heal.

‘When I go to the Cerclezia Empire this time, I have to see Carlo.’

He needed to know why Carlo had gone there—and why he had cut off all contact.

As that grim resolve settled in his eyes, a silky voice interrupted his thoughts.

“Yes, Your Highness. You must be very careful on your journey. The road to Cerclezia can be treacherous.”

At Scarlet’s pointed remark, Theodor’s gaze darkened further.

‘That’s the face of someone who wishes I were dead. Of course—you’d love nothing more than to kill me and hand the crown prince’s seat to your own son.’

At Scarlet’s shameless smile, Theodor nearly lost control of himself.

‘But it won’t be that easy. I’ll survive—long enough to expose the crime that drove my mother to her unjust death.’

He smiled faintly as he looked at Scarlet, the woman responsible for his mother’s downfall. She had framed his mother for poisoning, forcing her to die without dignity.

The only thing stopping him from breaking down right then and there was his desire for revenge.

“I’ll be sure to remember Her Majesty the Empress’s words.”

He was no longer the same Theodor who once trembled before her threats.

‘Back then, I was powerless against your schemes. But not anymore. I’ve spent all these years sharpening my blade, preparing for the day I destroy you.’

While Scarlet busied herself tightening her grip over the court, Theodor had been quietly building his own network of power—biding his time, waiting for the moment to strike. And when that moment came, he would make certain her sins were laid bare before the world.

“I’ll take my leave now.”

Bidding the weary emperor to rest, Theodor stepped out of the chamber and placed a hand over his heart as he looked out the window.

“Phew…”

Whenever Theodor thought of Carlo, there was always one child who came to mind—
the imperial princess who had died alone, locked away in the detached palace six years ago.

Laila Adelina.

Theodor’s mind replayed that horrific day as if it were burned into his memory.

“Fire! Fire!!”

Flames raged at the farthest corner of the Adelina Imperial Palace. No one in the palace knew where it had started or how the entire annex had become engulfed in fire so suddenly.

“W-Where’s the Princess?!”

At last, a knight who was supposed to guard the detached palace shouted in panic.

“D*mn it! Water! Bring water, now!”

The palace servants, who should have been attending to the young princess, were thrown into chaos.

Had they taken proper care of her, none of this would have happened. The little princess would not have been trapped inside the palace as it burned down around her, consumed by merciless flames.

Only then did the servants realize the full extent of their cruelty.

“Why bother feeding a half-blood princess anyway? Just ignore her.”

“Sick again? Pathetic. With that weak body of hers… guess the maid’s blood really does show.”

The blood of a maid. A half-blood princess. The shame of the Empire.

These were the words branded upon her name.

With no attendant to keep her warm, the young princess shivered in the cold, clutching her empty stomach. The servants left her alone, offering only a chilling smile and a locked door.

That fragile child endured it all alone: the scorn, the mockery, and the unbearable loneliness.

Crash!

While the palace staff were in a state of panic, the palace itself collapsed, consumed entirely by the raging flames.

It was only when confronted with the deafening roar and the sight of the burning ruins that the onlookers realized what had happened: Adelina, the Adelina Empire’s only princess, who was unloved simply because her mother had once been a maid, had just died.

At just eleven years old.

That was how the princess perished.

The very next day, an unthinkable rumor spread through the palace.

It was said that the young princess had tried to poison the emperor, and that her death was punishment for her crime.

But Theodor never believed it.

“Her Majesty the Empress, Scarlet, abused the princess.”

“Because the Empress despised her, the palace staff followed suit. She was treated worse than a commoner… and in the end…”

The princess was a child who couldn’t protect herself. She had barely survived the cruel *buse she suffered at the hands of Empress Scarlet, so calling it poisoning was absurd. Any sane person would recognize this as an attempt to murder Laila.

However, the emperor remained indifferent, and the nobles, eager to remain in the empress’s favor, joined forces to vilify the dead girl — just as they had done when the emperor’s mother was framed and driven to her death.

‘Phew.’

He closed his eyes against the rush of anger and pain, exhaling heavily and raggedly.

Because his mother came from a powerless noble house, she was forced to endure the cruelty of Empress Scarlet.

And because his sister was a ‘half-blood’, she suffered the same fate.

“I will never forgive her.”

Theodor never forgot that all of it—every tragedy—had been Scarlet’s doing, born from her fear that her own sins might one day be exposed.

Even if it cost him his soul, he would see her crimes brought to light.

“If that child were alive… what would she look like now?”

Bitterness and guilt twisted deep within him—the anguish of not having protected her.

‘How much pain did she endure, all alone, with no one to help her? In those flames… how much did she suffer?’

Although they had different mothers — his from a noble family and hers a palace maid — Theodor cherished Laila as if she were his own daughter.

Having witnessed her losing her mother at birth and being shunned by their father, he often wondered what crime she could have committed to deserve such cruelty from the world.

‘That’s why I wanted to protect her… to treasure her until the end.’

He could still picture her in his mind. Laila toddling towards him, smiling as she took his hand.

It was here, in this very corridor, that she had first called him ‘brother’.

Overwhelmed by joy, he held her in his arms and wept.

Now, standing alone in the same corridor, filled with beautiful, happy memories, Theodor wondered where it had all gone wrong.

‘If I hadn’t left the palace back then… could I have protected Lea?’

He wished he had refused the offer of Empress Scarlet. As he was intelligent and quick to learn, she persuaded the Emperor to send him to the Academy. As it was traditional for members of the imperial household to attend the academy, Theodor had no way of refusing her suggestion.

Scarlet had cunningly argued that if he graduated early, he could begin his crown prince training sooner. The Emperor agreed, and Theodor was sent to the academy two years ahead of schedule.

During the five years he was trapped there, his six-year-old sister Laila was left to endure *buse. If he had been wiser, could he have protected his sister from that cruelty?

He hated himself for assuming that she would be all right. How could he not have known about the agony she had suffered for so long?

Despite being the daughter of a maid, he’d imagined she would live happily as a princess. He never expected that the moment he left the palace, the empress’s cruelty and the nobles’ scorn would befall her.

“Your injustice, your pain… I have not forgotten. I will repay it.”

His vow was both revenge and atonement for a sister who had died in misery.

***

It was early morning and the streets were quiet.

A knight with bright orange hair, tied neatly at the nape of his neck, walked along the capital’s main boulevard.

Tall and broad-shouldered, with a long sword at his side, he walked with an air of calm confidence.

His lightly tanned skin was framed by dark, sharp brows above eyes that gleamed with mischief and clarity.

‘His Highness, Crown Prince Theodor, is set to arrive in the Cerclezia Empire next week… I suppose I’ll just observe the situation for now.’

Even as he quickly organized his thoughts, the man offered a charming smile to every woman who passed by.

With his tall, athletic physique, it was no surprise that they turned to look at him. He was Nathan Riot, Theodore’s trusted friend and personal knight.

His easy grin, deep enough to reveal a dimple, softened the chiseled lines of his face and melted hearts wherever he went. Unfortunately, there was little meaning behind that smile.

Having arrived in the Cerclezia Empire ahead of Theodor, Nathan strode past the women glancing at him and made his way towards the busiest part of the city.

‘Where people gather, so does information.’

Though he looked every bit the carefree wanderer, Nathan was faithfully carrying out the secret orders Theodor had entrusted to him.

“Excuse me, may I ask you something?”

“Yes?”

He approached a man standing in line outside a shop.

“Is this bakery really that famous? It’s still early, yet the line’s already so long.”

“You must not be from around here. This is the most popular bakery in all of Cerclezia. If you don’t get in line now, you won’t get a single thing! So hurry and queue up.”

“Ah, I see.”

He didn’t think it was worth the trouble, but decided to follow the man’s advice and joined the line.
Well—starting the morning with a good pastry didn’t sound so bad.

‘Hm?’

As Nathan idly stood in line, his gaze drifted about—then suddenly stopped.

‘That woman…’

A young woman was sitting by the nearby fountain. Her long, golden hair swayed gently in the breeze and her clear eyes shone against her pale complexion. She was so beautiful that it was impossible to look away.

But it wasn’t her beauty that made Nathan’s heart tremble.

‘She looks… just like Her Highness.’

The resemblance was uncanny — so much so that he was suddenly flooded with memories of his first love, Princess Laila, who had passed away. No matter how hard he had tried to forget her, he never could.

‘No… it can’t be. Princess Laila is dead. There’s no way…”

Nevertheless, Nathan couldn’t tear his eyes away from the woman sitting by the fountain.