Laila was herself bewildered by the tears of resentment spilling from her eyes. Silently, she demanded to know why he had realized only now and why he had left her alone.

“I never imagined that something like that would happen while I was away.”

Theodor had believed that Laila would be respected and protected, even as a half-blood princess. Yet the moment the crown prince’s protection disappeared, her life descended into misery.

“I… I….”

She had been all right. No, she was all right now. Yet she could not bring herself to speak.

The resurfaced memories of the past still left Laila feeling confused, and the emotional wounds that remained as deep scars continued to torment her.

“If only I had known you were alive…. If only I had recognized you when I saw you at the weapons shop.”

‘Then you would never have had to go to war.’

The words lingered unspoken in Theodor’s mouth.

Perhaps she would never have suffered from Carlo’s betrayal, and her delicate hands would never have been ruined by wielding a sword.

“I’m sorry….”

His guilt ran far too deep. Because of it, Laila had endured countless wounds and sorrows that could never be undone.

This was why Theodor could only apologize repeatedly. He could find no words to comfort his suffering younger sister.

“It was… so difficult.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…. Hngh….”

Taking Theodor’s trembling hand, Laila began revealing the feelings she had never shared with anyone.

“I was miserable because I felt as though I had been left completely alone without a family, but the emptiness that constantly returned was even more frightening.”

“….”

“Whenever fragments of the *buse resurfaced, I thought I must have lost my family and been left alone because I was lowborn and unworthy….”

“No. That isn’t true…. You could never be….”

As Theodor shook his head in fierce denial, the tears gathered in his eyes fell heavily.

“I resented it and tried to deny it. I kept wondering why even the smallest happiness granted to everyone else was so difficult for me…. Why was it so difficult only for me?”

When Laila’s head dropped, Theodor pulled her tightly into his arms, his heart aching even more deeply.

“I have never forgotten you—not even once. My beloved, precious little sister. Not for a single moment.”

“Hngh….”

“So never think that you are alone again. You are not alone. I will never, ever leave you lonely again. Please, give me just one chance.”

She could sense his desperation through his hands, which were wrapped around her back as though he would never let go again. She could sense it in the strength of his grip and the tremor in his voice.

Just as with Nathan, Laila could no longer hold back her tears at this unfamiliar feeling of being protected.

“Hngh…. B-Brother….”

“…!”

Hearing that form of address for the first time in so long, Theodor forgot how to breathe. Laila’s frail voice sounded much like it had when she was an innocent child.

“Lailea…. My little sister.”

“Brother, Brother…. Hngh.”

“You have suffered so much. Thank you for enduring it all so bravely.”

As he stroked her hair and praised her for how well she had endured, tears continued streaming from Laila’s eyes, yet a smile escaped her lips.

‘He truly is my family.’

Overwhelmed by that powerful truth she could no longer deny, Laila poured out everything she had kept buried while held in Theodor’s arms.

***

The Adelina Empire.

“Where is Her Majesty the Empress?”

“She is asleep. What could possibly have brought you here at such a late hour?”

One of the assassins Scarlet had dispatched arrived at the Empress’s Palace deep in the night. Seeing him covered in dust and bleeding, Scarlet’s maid immediately realized that something serious had happened.

“I must see her immediately. Right now!”

“Understood.”

The maid entered Scarlet’s chambers, and before long, an order came permitting him to enter.

“What happened? You killed them, didn’t you?”

The moment the assassin entered, Scarlet bombarded him with questions.

“Your Majesty, something terrible has happened.”

Contrary to Scarlet’s desperate hopes, the assassin did not give her the answer she wanted. Her face instantly twisted.

“Something terrible? Do you mean you failed?”

“His Highness Crown Prince Theodor suddenly appeared….”

Bang!

“What?! T-The crown prince?!”

How did he know to go there? The assassins had undoubtedly operated in absolute secrecy. Scarlet sprang to her feet and glared at the assassin as though she might kill him.

Only then did she properly take in his condition. The multiple wounds covering his body showed that he had barely escaped with his life.

“But that was not the true problem.”

“The crown prince discovered my plan, yet you claim that is not the problem? What could possibly be more serious than that?”

“The person His Highness intended to bring back was not Crook Zegner.”

Scarlet, who had looked ready to order the assassin’s immediate execution, fell silent.

If it was not Crook Zegner, that should have been a relief. Yet the assassin remained visibly agitated, his expression grave. Filled with fear and unease, Scarlet swallowed dryly.

“If not Crook Zegner, then who?”

“It was Dame Laila, the woman known as the reincarnation of the Ancient Sword.”

“…Dame Laila?”

It was someone she had never anticipated. The person Theodor was secretly bringing back was Dame Laila? Why?

“Surely… he does not intend to wage war against me.”

“No, Your Majesty. Dame Laila is actually… Princess Lailea, who was believed to have died seven years ago.”

“…!”

The memory of the child she had long forgotten hit Scarlet like a ton of bricks.

The princess born to a lowly maid.

She was the target upon whom Scarlet had vented her fury, and the illegitimate child she could never acknowledge.

“She was… alive?”

“Yes. They say she survived.”

How? She had undoubtedly been reported dead inside the burning palace.

The flames had been so fierce that even adults had not dared enter. How could a young princess possibly have survived?

“No. No, that cannot be true.”

“I heard it clearly.”

After barely managing to conceal himself, the assassin had unmistakably heard Theodor call Laila Princess Lailea.

Despite suffering from severe wounds, the assassin had remained until he uncovered Laila’s identity before returning to the Adelina Empire.

“Ha….”

Overwhelmed by shock, Scarlet sank into a chair, her face deathly pale.

‘Theodor is bringing Princess Lailea back….’

That meant he intended to expose the *buse Scarlet had inflicted upon her and reveal that she had framed the princess.

He had obtained evidence—evidence capable of proving her crimes.

“Bring my father…. Bring my father to me at once!!”

The maid beside her turned pale and rushed out. One by one, the lights in the Empress’s Palace began to dispel the darkness.

Palace servants moved silently beneath the flickering light. They were so tense that they could barely breathe as they watched Scarlet’s every move.

“That b*tch… was alive?”

Scarlet’s gaze wavered as she muttered to herself, biting her nails.

It was inconceivable. Someone she had erased from her memory after they supposedly died had suddenly reappeared — and with a reputation known throughout the empires, no less.

“How did she reach the Circlezian Empire, and how did she become a swordswoman?!”

Unable to remain still while waiting for her father, Scarlet abruptly stopped pacing when a thought struck her.

“Carlo.”

Only then did Scarlet remember that Laila had been Carlo’s escort knight.

“Lord Carlo Siren smuggled her away. Seven years ago, when he left the Adelina Empire…. She went with him.”

All strength drained from Scarlet’s body, and she collapsed onto the floor.

“Your Majesty!”

“Do not touch me!”

Slap!

A startled maid approached Scarlet, but the empress’s thunderous shout and raised fist made her retreat. Scarlet was more erratic than ever.

“Has she been gathering evidence with Lord Carlo all this time?”

To avenge their mothers’ deaths, Theodor and Carlo had joined forces. They kept their heads down and quietly prepared their revenge.

‘And I only realized it now!’

“When will Father arrive?!”

At Scarlet’s furious demand, the maid promised to find out and hurried from the room. Moments later, the sound of shattering glass rang out behind her.

“Aaargh!!”

Unable to endure her mounting anxiety any longer, Scarlet finally exploded.

“How dare they do such a thing against me!!”

Her eyes blazed with rage, flashing so terrifyingly that she appeared ready to lose her mind at any moment.

Breathing harshly, Scarlet desperately tried to determine how she should handle the situation. Then—

“Lady Roselina…!”

She remembered the letter Roselina had sent her several weeks earlier, in which Roselina claimed to possess evidence provided by Sophia.

Roselina had offered to surrender the evidence in exchange for Scarlet persuading Theodor to grant Carlo the Siren dukedom.

“Come to think of it, she has said nothing about handing over the evidence since then.”

It had already been a week since Scarlet secretly sent her reply, yet she had received no response from Roselina.

“Was that girl part of their scheme as well? Did she negotiate with me even after she had already given the evidence to Carlo?!”

With the situation rapidly spiraling toward the worst possible outcome, Scarlet was on the verge of madness.