"It must’ve been that painter.”
"What about the painter?"
"No one else would say unnecessary things to Alicia except him. He's the most suspicious one."
That man had irritated him from the start.
Cabelenus twisted his lips as he thought of James.
"What should we do with him?"
“He needs to pay the price for running his mouth needlessly.”
"The young lady might come looking for him."
"Looking for him?"
"After all, he’s been the one teaching the young lady to paint all this time. Besides, right now, she’s emotionally…"
Gazeff trailed off, cautiously watching his superior’s reaction.
Cabelenus and Alicia were currently at a standstill, locked in a cold war.
“That doesn’t matter — no, actually, it does matter.”
Cabelenus sighed and rubbed his forehead.
It would be easy to get rid of the lousy painter quickly, but the timing wasn’t right.
If Alicia asked where James was after he was dealt with, Cabelenus would have no answer.
Alicia didn’t trust Cabelenus at all right now.
If James disappeared without a word, she would immediately suspect Cabelenus.
That wouldn’t be good.
Being treated coldly by Alicia was already hard enough as it was.
Every time he encountered the firmly shut door of Alicia’s room that refused any visitors, Cabelenus had to suppress the urge to break down the door, over and over again.
“Whatever it takes, get him to say it himself — that he’s leaving. Dealing with him can come afterwards.”
“He has to say it himself?”
"Since I have lost her trust, he must have earned it."
Cabelenus clenched his teeth, suppressing his rising irritation.
Gazeff carefully gauged his superior’s mood before cautiously speaking.
"By the way, does Your Highness really plan to go ahead with the engagement like this?"
"Why do you ask that?"
Under the icy gaze, Gazeff swallowed dryly.
Having observed Cabelenus for years, the aide knew it was a warning, yet there was a person who made it difficult for him to accept it unconditionally.
After a moment’s hesitation, Gazeff finally spoke up.
“I know it’s overstepping my authority, but the young lady—”
“If you know you ’re overstepping, then don’t say it.”
“...”
“Gazeff Claude. Since when did you become so emotional?”
Cabelenus absentmindedly smoothed his cravat, his face expressionless.
Gazeff fell silent and hung his head low.
Giving up the greater good for the sake of one was a foolish act.
Though he had believed that all along, his judgment had become clouded.
“...Isn’t the young lady someone special?”
"Special?"
“She’s the first person Your Highness has ever truly desired.”
Gazeff wrinkled his face.
No matter how hard he tried to make a rational judgment, he couldn’t help but have emotions mixed in.
Alicia was no longer a stranger.
“That’s why I’m going to give her the position she deserves.”
"But the young lady right now..."
“It can’t be helped. She’s too pure to understand the dirty game of politics.”
Though Cabelenus’s face remained expressionless, his lips trembled slightly.
Contrary to his calm demeanour, inside he was boiling like a volcano about to erupt.
It had already been several days since he parted ways with Alicia like that.
She still hadn’t made any contact.
All he could hear from the reports was that she was simply holed up in her room.
“I hoped she wouldn’t get hurt, but there’s no helping how things got tangled. Now, all I can do is wait for her to accept it.”
“Do you think the young lady will understand?”
“She is also a rational person, after all.”
Alicia never forgot her own position.
She always tried to adapt and conform to the role assigned to her.
The man had always been bothered by that fact, but ironically, he was now relying on it.
“In the end, she’ll accept it. And gradually, she’ll come to understand what it means to be in the ruler’s position.”
"..."
"She's not a peasant’s wife. And she never could be."
Cabelenus's jaw muscles twitched.
Alicia now looked every bit the noblewoman, and the appearance suited her well.
There was no going back to how things were before.
“Now that things have come to this, let’s hasten the preparations we’ve been making.”
"What do you mean?"
“How long did you say it would take until the engagement ceremony is perfectly prepared?”
"A month."
"Let’s shorten it to a week."
“Bu-but...”
“As long as the formalities are in order, the princess’s side won’t put up much resistance — no, they’ll likely welcome it. From her perspective, she’d want to solidify her relationship with me even a day sooner, before her father passes.”
Gazeff's gaze faltered.
Cabelenus turned his head with a detached expression at the silence.
“Why? Is there a problem?”
“...Is that really all right?”
“What is?”
“If the young lady were to find out about it…”
“She already knows, doesn’t she?”
“...”
“Alicia is uneasy. But that doesn’t mean I can let a fish I’ve already caught slip away. In the end, there’s only one thing I can do.”
To resolve the current situation as quickly as possible.
Cabelenus let out a short breath and straightened his back.
He still didn’t believe his judgment had been wrong.
Before he was Alicia’s lover, he was the master of Schwarhan.
He had to make a rational choice as a ruler.
“I don’t care how much it costs. Make it the most dazzling, most beautiful day, just as the princess desires. And do it as soon as possible.”
"But, if that happens—"
“I don’t repeat myself.”
Cabelenus coldly cut off Gazeff's words.
"...Understood."
Gazeff glanced at his superior, then lowered his head deeply.
He had remained Cabelenus’s aide for so long because he knew never to cross the line.
"Schwarhan must become the best."
“...”
"You haven't forgotten, have you?"
Cabelenus quietly looked down at Gazeff.
Gazeff stood there with his mouth slightly open, then firmly shut it.
He had nearly forgotten.
Cabelenus’s long-held wish — and his own, as well.
“I apologise. For a moment, I forgot my duty and wavered.”
Gazeff looked at his master with an unrelenting gaze.
There was no need for doubt or fear.
Cabelenus had always made the right decisions and always turned the impossible into reality. This time would be no different.
He simply believed that.
“It’s only natural to lay bait in a trap to catch prey.”
And it should be just as natural to catch more than the bait was worth.
Cabelenus slowly closed his eyes, then opened them again.
In those golden eyes that reemerged, the greed he had kept hidden finally showed itself.
“I don’t fight losing battles. To win, I’ll use any means necessary. And in the end, this is no different — it’s about securing more cards to ensure victory.”
The appearance of a variable named Alicia hadn’t changed the goal.
If anything, choosing Alicia, who had nothing, meant he had to be even more relentless in gathering the cards for victory, to make up for the loss and see his goal through to the end.
That was the 'promise'.
Cabelenus covered his eyes with one hand and exhaled a hot breath.
It was then.
Knock, knock.
There was a knock at the door.
Gazeff sought Cabelenus’s permission with a glance, then promptly opened the door.
Standing outside was not only the chief attendant but also a woman whose face he knew well.
Gazeff instinctively furrowed his brow.
It was Shizuna, one of the maids attending to Alicia.
"Baroness Morco has sent a messenger."
"My aunt–"
"Tell them to come in."
Before Gazeff could finish speaking, Cabelenus interrupted him.
Shizuna hesitated for a moment, then cautiously stepped into the room.
“What is it?”
"W-well…"
"Stop stammering and speak properly. Is she looking for me?"
Startled by the sharp gaze, Shizuna hiccupped and swallowed her breath.
The young maid's face had already turned pale.
"Why can't you speak?"
"Your Highness. Please calm down."
Unable to bear the situation any longer, Gazeff stepped in between Cabelenus and Shizuna.
Only then did Shizuna finally exhale the breath she had been holding.
“Tell me why my aunt has sent you, Shizuna.”
“Well…"
Shizuna glanced nervously at Cabelenus, her face showing fear.
She was afraid of the fallout the news she was about to deliver might cause, but she couldn’t avoid bringing it.
In the end, Shizuna closed her eyes tightly and spoke.
"My lady has collapsed!"
"...What did you just say? Who collapsed?"
Cabelenus let out a bitter laugh.
He couldn't understand what the maid was saying.
"M-my lady has collapsed."
Shizuna's voice now sounded as if she were crying.
Cabelenus quietly glared at the young maid before finally turning away roughly.
There was no time to think.
The moment he fully registered the maid's words, his body moved first.
・・・・・
"Your Highness, you’ve arrived!"
Baroness Morco hurriedly welcomed Cabelenus.
Cabelenus barely acknowledged the greeting and strode briskly into the bedroom.
Inside, the physicians were busily checking Alicia's condition.
"Her condition?"
"She’s unconscious."
"Unconscious? Is that really all you have to say?”
Cabelenus ground his teeth with a sharp gnash.
Alicia lay in bed, completely drained of colour.
She looked more like a corpse than someone alive.
His heart sank at the sight.
“I’m sorry. But we’re doing our best right now...”
“Your best? How is that supposed to be your best?”
“She’s been overexerting herself lately, so it seems her body just can’t keep up anymore.”
“That’s why you should have been watching her more closely. Did you really leave her like that until she got this bad?”
“My lady refused to see anyone…”
Madame Morco covered her mouth with her hand, unable to finish speaking.
Her hand trembled weakly.
She was the first to discover that Alicia had collapsed.
“Bring all the physicians in the castle.”
“If that happens, the young lady’s location might be exposed.”
Gazeff interrupted urgently.
Despite maintaining maximum security, one physician was exposed to Veloa’s escort.
Moreover, several spies posing as physicians trying to approach Alicia have already been dealt with.
Calling all the castle’s physicians and causing a commotion would give Veloa an excuse.
“So, you’re saying we should just leave it as it is?”
“The physicians currently examining the lady are all capable professionals. For now, it’s best to observe quietly.”
Veins stood out clearly on the back of Cabelenus’s hand.
His fingernails dug into the skin of his clenched fist, causing blood to drip steadily.
"Your Highness, your hand..."
“Don’t worry about that. It’s not important right now.”
Cabelenus looked at Alicia.
He thought he would never feel regret.
But the moment he saw the unconscious woman, the first thing that came to mind — oddly enough — was guilt.
Cabelenus couldn’t bear to look at the woman’s faint breathing and tightly shut his eyes.
But even with his eyes closed, her face remained vividly imprinted in his mind.
He opened his eyes again, exhaling a harsh breath.
He didn’t want to see Alicia collapsed like that, but he couldn’t look away.
He had to stare straight at her and face the reality.
"The young lady will recover soon."
Gazeff cautiously offered words of comfort, but Cabelenus didn’t seem to hear them.
His entire focus was solely on Alicia.
“…Are you feeling relieved now, Your Highness?”
"Aunt."
Gazeff hurried to intervene, but couldn’t stop Madame Morco.
Madame Morco stood resolutely before Cabelenus, gazing up at him with bloodshot eyes.
“Didn’t I tell you? Keeping it secret was never the right choice.”
“...”
"You told me the one the young lady trusts most is Your Highness. Then why...?"
“...”
“And on top of that, she’s not even alone...”
Madame Morco finally lost control of her emotions and sank to the floor.
The feelings she had when she found Alicia curled up protectively, as if shielding her own child, were beyond words.
“...What do you mean, she’s not alone?”
"The physician confirmed it today. The young lady is pregnant."
"Are you certain?"
Cabelenus’s gaze turned icy cold.
There was a child in Alicia’s womb.
The moment he learned this, it felt like his blood ran cold.
“That’s why the situation worsened. There’s only a limited range of medicines safe for pregnant women—”
“That doesn’t matter.”
"Pardon?"
“The only thing that matters is Alicia. Only her.”
True to being a monster, it was trying to consume its own mother before even being born.
Cabelenus’s grim expression deepened as he clenched his fist tighter.
“As long as the medicine doesn’t harm the mother, use whatever you must. Don’t worry about the child — save her first. Do whatever it takes to bring her back.”
"Your Highness!"
Madame Morco called out urgently, but Cabelenus showed no hesitation.
Instead, what emanated from him was a deep, dark hatred.
And the target of that hatred was...
Instinctively, Madame Morco looked at Alicia.
Something was terribly wrong.
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