TRETTHD 19

#19. Rapid Development of the Incident

Raul, unable to contain his rage, grabbed the flower vase beside him and hurled it to the ground.

Crash!
A sharp, shattering noise echoed through the room.

“Haa… haa…”

He tried to steady his breathing in an attempt to control his anger, but the storm inside him wouldn’t subside.

‘How dare they…!’

It was supposed to be his.
He should have been the one to have the Princess of the Kingdom of Ronica.

He had invested so much time and effort, only to have her snatched away right before his eyes.

Raul couldn’t believe it and asked again for confirmation.

“…Everything you said is true, right?”

“Yes. There are witnesses who saw Prince Khalid leaving Princess Velia’s bedchamber at dawn.”

“That vulgar bastard…!”

The moment he saw Velia, Raul was certain she was meant to be his.

Her silver hair gleamed in the light, and her violet eyes seemed to draw him in.

Her calm, elegant demeanor made her the perfect woman to stand by his side.

He didn’t truly love her, but he was convinced there was no one more fitting for him than her. She was a princess, after all—her status impeccable.

Raul had always believed that when he became emperor, Velia would naturally be by his side.

“He planned this. He must’ve deliberately gone after her just to keep her from me.”

Surely, Khalid heard about his marriage proposal and tried to sabotage it.

Raul’s feelings toward Khalid were complicated and hard to define.

He always had to be superior in everything. He was the true son of the emperor.

Khalid, raised by a deranged empress, should never have been a threat. And yet, he kept getting in the way.

“Khalid…!”

When they were younger, Raul had even pitied him for not receiving their father’s affection.

But every time Khalid displayed talents greater than his own, Raul’s mood sank.

‘Why? I’m the one who should be chosen…’

Raul slammed his fist on the table.

He should have been the one to receive praise, the one to be admired.

He couldn’t understand it.

Why did Khalid have qualities that surpassed his?

Khalid should have always been trailing behind him. That was how it was supposed to be.

“Your Highness… also…”

At the hesitant voice, Raul scowled and looked at the speaker.

“It’s been reported that the Empire has sent a marriage proposal.”

“What do you mean?”

The proposal had already been sent to the King of Ronica.

So what was this new one about?

“It’s a formal marriage proposal from Prince Khalid to Princess Velia.”

“…What did you just say? A formal proposal? Are you saying His Majesty approved it and sealed it himself?!”

Raul’s voice rose in disbelief.

Even if Velia had shown signs of affection toward Khalid, he had planned to dismiss it all as rumor. She would end up marrying him anyway.

Because he believed there was no way Khalid could ever send a formal proposal with the Emperor’s seal.

He—the First Prince—had already proposed to Princess Velia. There was no way the Emperor would approve of Khalid doing the same.

Then how?!

Raul couldn’t wrap his head around the situation.

“The Empress intervened.”

Raul let out a bitter laugh.

To think he managed to move the Empress…

Khalid would go that far just to steal Velia from him?

Raul’s fury reignited. How dare he. Khalid tried to steal what was his.

“…I’m going to see the princess.”

Raul ran a hand through his hair.

Then, in an instant, he put on his usual gentle expression.

“Tell her I’ll be visiting shortly.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

He assumed Khalid had approached Velia just to keep an eye on him.

If Velia heard that Khalid didn’t truly love her, maybe she would change her mind.

Raul bit his lip at the thought.

“You found out later than I expected,”

Velia said with a gentle smile as she looked at Raul, no longer hiding her feelings.

“Princess Velia…”

“Prince Raul.”

Velia cut him off before he could start another emotionally manipulative plea in a wistful tone.

“I will be marrying Prince Khalid.”

“Khalid doesn’t love you.”

Raul said this with absolute certainty.

“He approached you on purpose after learning of my feelings for you.”

Impossible.

If anything, Velia had approached Khalid with intention.

“You’re mistaken, Your Highness.”

“No. You just don’t know the truth. Khalid isn’t someone capable of loving another person sincerely.”

Raul said with a voice full of concern.

“If you stay with someone like that, you’ll only end up hurt.”

As if he was the only one truly worried for her.

“Even if he doesn’t love me sincerely, I’ve already decided to accept his proposal.”

Velia scoffed.

She never thought Raul would be the one to say that she shouldn’t stay with someone who didn’t truly love her.

People’s feelings change.

Velia knew that better than anyone.

Because Raul had carved that truth deep into her bones.

“Emotions are so fleeting. One day someone says they love you, and the next they wish you were dead.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The same person who once said I was their whole world could turn around and say someone else is their everything.”

Raul didn’t understand what she was getting at.

Why was she telling him all this?

Velia stared him straight in the eyes.

‘You might deny it, but just because I returned to the past doesn’t mean those things never happened.’

The grief of losing her family. The shame of losing her country.

And the fact that all of it happened because she had chosen him.

She could never forget how she had been torn apart and broken.

‘This is my revenge against you, but also my atonement.’

Velia let out a faint laugh.

“Feelings are cruel, aren’t they? Only those who believe end up the fool, and only those who are sincere end up miserable.”

“Princess…”

Velia closed her eyes as though remembering a distant past.

She was still trapped in darkness.

“Let me ask you something instead. How can you be so sure? That your feelings—your declaration that you’ll love only me forever—aren’t just a fleeting desire?”

“I love you sincerely. Why do you refuse to believe me?”

Because she had lived it already.

Because she remembered the very moment Raul betrayed her.

“Maybe one day he’ll also fall in love with someone else and say she’s the only one for him.”

“That’s why you can’t choose him…!”

“But it’s okay.”

Whoever he is, he’ll still be better than you.

“I want to choose him even if I have to bear all of that.”

Faced with Velia’s resolute expression, Raul couldn’t find anything else to say and had no choice but to leave.

The Second Prince of the Ingot Empire, Khalid, formally sent a marriage proposal to Princess Velia of the Kingdom of Ronica.

The fact that the Second Prince proposed to someone the First Prince had already proposed to caused an uproar in both nations.

Everyone’s attention was on Velia.

Would she choose the First Prince? Or the Second?

Most believed Princess Velia would marry Prince Raul.

He was the emperor’s favorite son, born of the woman the emperor loved most.

Even though rumors circulated that the Second Prince, the legitimate heir, might be passed over, the emperor remained silent.

Naturally, power began to center around Raul.

So everyone assumed the princess would marry him.

But—

“Please deliver this letter to the Ingot Empire.”

Velia handed her letter to the head attendant.

It would be enclosed with the King’s affirmative reply to the Emperor.

Soon, the letters of both the King and the Princess arrived at the Imperial Palace.

And her choice was officially announced.

—Princess Velia chose the Second Prince, Khalid.

The news sent shockwaves through the empire.

“Damn it!”

Raul was in disbelief.

Why would Father approve of this marriage?!

“What did Father say?”

“He said the alliance with Ronica is at stake, so their wishes must be respected.”

“…Damn it!!”

The search for the gold mine was still going nowhere, and the woman he’d pursued was stolen by Khalid.

He had come all the way to Ronica and ended up with nothing.

Raul ground his teeth.

“When’s the monster subjugation scheduled?”

“Mid next month.”

“Move it up. We depart at the end of this month.”

“But the preparations—”

“Is it that hard to deal with just one Alag?! Are you saying the Empire’s knights can’t handle that?!”

At the very least, he had to take credit for the subjugation.

Even if the emperor loved his other son, if Raul had no achievements to boast of, he wouldn’t be openly supported.

“This has to succeed. If Khalid ends up claiming the monster subjugation glory too…”

He’d become a laughingstock.

Raul stared out the window with a dark expression.

No matter what, the subjugation must succeed.

He’d already prepared everything.

Though it was rare for the Alag to descend from the mountain to the river, it wasn’t unheard of.

He had gathered and studied all records of such cases.

He wouldn’t fail.

A letter from the emperor arrived in the Kingdom of Ronica.

It expressed hope that Prince Khalid and Princess Velia’s engagement would strengthen the alliance between their nations. This meant the emperor officially recognized and supported their union.

Numerous letters were exchanged as both countries began engagement preparations.

Busy days followed.

Then one day, Prince Raul set out with knights to subdue the monster.

“What do you think?”

Khalid and Velia took a leisurely walk in the royal capital after Raul’s departure.

Khalid would eventually have to leave to rescue Raul in case of failure, but for now, they decided to enjoy a brief moment of peace.

He gently swung their interlocked hands as he asked.

“Hmm. It’ll take longer than expected to reach the river since they’ll have to take down other monsters along the way.”

“We’re fully prepared.”

Khalid’s knights had already finished their preparations.

They’d even trained for contingencies after discovering Raul had been stealing information.

They knew where to block the water, how to defeat the Alag—everything.

All that remained was to put the plan into action.

“Raul left just a day ago, so wait another four days before following.”

Khalid nodded.

Even the knights acknowledged Velia’s strategy as highly effective.

It made excellent use of terrain knowledge and the Alag’s weaknesses—something only a native of Ronica would know.

“Subduing the Alag won’t be difficult. As long as we cut off the water, the knights’ power should be more than enough.”

Khalid often wanted to ask how she knew all this.

But he had promised her—he wouldn’t ask. He’d said he trusted her.

He couldn’t take that back now.

‘Sigh… I still have a long way to go.’

It would be a while before Velia fully trusted him and opened her heart.

“Also, don’t mention the gold mine yet. We’ll reveal that after the monster is taken care of.”

The investigative team Khalid brought had secretly headed south.

No one outside the key members knew about the gold mine’s discovery.

“I plan to reveal you in a dramatic way. Everything is already in motion.”

“What kind of plan?”

“Hmm, well—just focus on succeeding in the subjugation first.”

Velia smiled playfully.

“It’d be fun to tell you now, but keeping it a surprise will be more exciting when you return.”

“Then I hope it’s grand enough to truly surprise me.”

Khalid’s voice was full of anticipation.