Chapter 10
Rohen stepped out of the bath, drying his damp hair with a towel.
The face he had altered with magic had already returned to that of the Third Prince.
Pello and Moritz, who had been talking at a table in the corner, immediately stood when they saw him.
Since the two of them always stayed by his side like shadows, Rohen thought nothing of seeing them so late at night.
But their expressions were unusually grim.
“What happened?”
“After Your Highness left first, Moritz was attacked.”
In a quiet voice, Pello reported the sword fight that had taken place in the dead of night.
Moritz kept his head lowered, convinced that he had made one serious mistake after another.
“Did you learn anything?”
“We left him alive to interrogate him… but he bit off his own tongue and died.”
“…I see.”
Rohen’s heart sank.
Had the attacks within the Imperial Palace finally begun in earnest?
“I’m deeply sorry.”
Moritz bowed his head miserably.
“It wasn’t entirely your fault,” Pello said. “His Highness bears just as much blame.”
Even as Pello criticized him indirectly, Rohen simply nodded.
“If you keep running around with that ridiculous face of yours, I’ll tell your fiancée everything.”
“You’re violating my privacy. Besides, you have no proof that it was because of the disguise.”
“If someone tailed you all the way from the banquet, what more proof do you need? I warned you repeatedly.”
Pello spoke through clenched teeth.
“For the time being, do not waste even the smallest amount of mana.”
…
“Using it outside the palace is one thing, but doing it at the imperial banquet was reckless. You’ll lose sight of what’s truly important by worrying about trivial matters. Once the job is finished, you’re planning to set the young lady free anyway, aren’t you?”
Unable to understand Rohen’s actions, Pello struggled to suppress his anger.
Rohen remained silent.
“You’re long past puberty. Why are you still acting like a rebellious teenager?”
“A rebellious teenager? Hah. All this because I used a little mana?”
“Back then you weren’t rebellious—you were genuinely insane. Honestly, those rumors about you aren’t completely baseless.”
“Ahem…”
Rohen almost changed the subject by mentioning his alcohol allergy, but decided against it.
It would only earn him another lecture, and the situation had already been resolved.
“You two should get some rest. It’s late.”
“Please remember, Your Highness—you are in enemy territory that’s even worse than the border.”
“I know. Now go get some sleep.”
Once Pello and Moritz had left, Rohen fell deep into thought.
Count Payden’s daughter isn’t politically important…
And no one should have recognized the face I changed into…
He couldn’t understand at what point he had become a target.
Pello was probably right.
He needed to restrain himself for a while.
Still…
There was something strange about his alcohol allergy.
Did it improve after all these years of being careful?
He hadn’t completely lost consciousness.
More importantly, he had recovered far faster than usual.
The only thing that had been different this time…
…was that Hayla had stayed beside him.
Still… of all people, it had to happen in front of her.
Fortunately, no one except Hayla had discovered his condition.
That alone was a blessing.
Knock. Knock.
I thought it was strange that Pello gave up so easily despite the attack.
Rohen assumed Pello had returned.
Before he could even answer, the door swung open.
Standing there alone—without even an attendant—was the First Prince, Beck.
The moment their eyes met, Beck strode inside.
“You were nowhere to be seen during the banquet. Where exactly were you?”
“I figured I’d only ruin the atmosphere if I joined everyone, so I stayed tucked away in a corner and watched.”
“Why do you always take everything to extremes? You could at least mingle a little.”
He clicked his tongue.
“I doubt you came here at this hour just to tell me that. What happened?”
Without answering, Beck sat at the table and gestured for Rohen to sit as well.
Watching his brother’s expression carefully, Rohen took the seat opposite him.
If he came all the way to my residence despite all the eyes watching us… this can’t be something minor.
But honestly…
He simply wanted to rest.
Using mana always exhausted him.
“It’s about Wiresium.”
Beck leaned forward and lowered his voice.
“Our suspicions were correct. I just finished confirming it.”
“…!”
“I secretly planted someone inside the Mana Administration Office…”
“…The Wiresium kept inside the Imperial Palace is definitely a fake.”
“…”
Rohen rubbed his face wearily before pressing his fingers against his eyes.
“What do you plan to do?”
“…”
Beck let out a long sigh but said nothing.
Rohen also remained silent.
Wiresium was the sacred jewel passed down through the Imperial Family for generations—a mana stone containing condensed magical power.
Long ago, when a great mage founded the Cahen Empire, he ensured that magic would flow only through the Imperial bloodline.
They were called the Royal Blood.
Members of the Royal Blood possessed mana, the very source of magic.
Wiresium had been created to resonate specifically with the mana of the Royal Blood and was handed down from emperor to emperor.
Through it, each emperor inherited both the legitimacy and power of the Royal Blood, becoming a mighty ruler.
But as generations passed, the bloodline mixed with others.
The mana gradually weakened.
Eventually, its resonance with Wiresium disappeared.
In truth, both the Imperial Family’s magical abilities and the mana stone’s power had all but vanished.
Over time, Wiresium became little more than a symbolic heirloom representing the Imperial family’s legitimacy.
However…
The Mana Administration Office insisted that a mana stone’s power could never truly disappear.
On the contrary, they claimed that the magical energy accumulated over centuries might suddenly awaken in some future generation.
There was no way to prove whether that was true.
“What we do next…” Beck finally said, “…depends on whether the Empress’s faction knows about it… whether they’re pretending not to know… or whether they’re the ones who stole it.”
“Do they even have a reason to steal it?”
“I can only hope they didn’t. If they did, there’s undoubtedly some filthy scheme behind it… and cleaning up the aftermath will become much harder.”
“Would it help if I hurried the wedding?”
“…?”
“The engagement has already been formalized in writing. If I start moving under the pretense of preparing for the wedding… wouldn’t that seem natural?”
“Let’s wait and observe for now. Suddenly rushing things would only make us look suspicious.”
“Understood.”
“The real reason I came here tonight…”
Beck stopped speaking and stared at Rohen.
There’s something even more serious than this…?
Rohen tensed.
Beck’s eyes wavered briefly before settling.
“The secret you’ve hidden since childhood…”
“I’ve always known.”
“…!”
“When your nanny was falsely accused and dragged away, you didn’t cry or throw a tantrum.”
“You silently lifted a stone…”
“…and hurled it straight into a servant’s forehead.”
“That’s when I knew.”
“Mana flowed through you.”
Rohen stared blankly into space.
In his mind, he saw himself again—
A five-year-old boy.
“Knowing that mana, long lost to the Imperial Family, still existed within you…”
“At first I envied you.”
“Then I feared you.”
“And eventually…”
“…I pitied you.”
“…”
The terror he had felt as a child while instinctively hiding his mana came flooding back.
“I hated being the First Prince.”
“I believed that one day you’d take the throne from me…”
“…and kill me.”
“But after Niel’s mother became Empress…”
“…I started worrying that you would be the one who died.”
Rohen slowly turned his gaze back toward Beck.
The loneliness…
The fear…
All those years surged through him, forcing him to bite down on his lip.
“I meant to tell you when the time was right.”
“But somehow…”
“…today became that day.”
“Perhaps this, too, is fate.”
“…Fate…”
Rohen repeated the word absentmindedly.
He couldn’t tell what Beck truly meant.
“You know…”
“Hmm…”
Beck closed his eyes tightly before opening them again.
There was clearly more he wanted to say.
But in the end, he decided it could wait.
“Be careful.”
“We’ll talk again once we’ve learned more.”
“Get some rest.”
“Yes.”
Rohen rose along with Beck.
Even after watching his brother leave, he remained standing in silence.
Five years older than him, the First Prince had been more than just a brother.
He had been a father…
An older brother…
Even a caretaker.
It had been Beck who secretly sent antidotes whenever the Empress tried to poison him.
It had been Beck who advised him to escape to the border guard and strengthen himself there.
Rohen had depended on him more than anyone.
Yet Beck had always insisted that they never show that closeness in front of others.
Only then could they both survive.
Rohen had treasured those words.
There was only one secret he had never shared—
His mana.
To him, magic had always been synonymous with treason.
Ironically…
It was Beck who had planted that belief in his mind.
Rohen had never wanted to disappoint him.
And yet…
He had never imagined Beck had known the truth all along.
A heavy wave of guilt washed over him.
✦ ✦ ✦
Several days passed after the imperial banquet.
The days were unusually peaceful.
Thanks to Rohen’s order to keep silent, Hayla’s name never became the talk of high society.
Merni and Grad were probably dying to gossip.
Everything was completely different from her previous life.
Back then, society had constantly paired her name with Rohen’s, and ugly rumors had spread like wildfire.
She still remembered spending every day locked inside her room, learning imperial etiquette before entering the palace.
She had expected Lady Hilderia to train her just as harshly as before.
Strangely…
Nothing happened.
Why is everything so different?
At the imperial banquet, where she had once been nothing more than forgotten decoration…
…she had actually danced.
All because she had met Ron.
The thought of him filled her with warmth…
…and an unexpected longing to see him again.
Should I really be feeling this way when I already have a fiancé?
Oddly enough…
The thought barely bothered her.
Rohen had repeatedly emphasized that theirs was merely a contract marriage and that she was free to live however she pleased.
More importantly…
Ron liked men.
There was no way he could develop feelings for her.
We’re friends.
Just friends.
Thinking that way made her heart feel lighter.
She hadn’t heard anything from Rohen since the banquet.
Which was only natural.
They weren’t lovers.
Why had she expected him to contact her?
Perhaps…
She had mistaken the lingering affection and regret from her previous life for genuine closeness.
Soon enough, she’d probably receive the order to enter the Imperial Palace.
That was how things were supposed to go.
Even the Count’s family had behaved unusually quietly.
Although they all lived in the western wing of the estate, they rarely crossed paths.
The mansion was enormous…
…and Hayla deliberately adjusted her schedule to avoid them.
The biggest change after the banquet…
…was that invitations had begun arriving for her.
Small tea parties.
Grand banquets.
Every kind of social gathering imaginable.
Most were from noble ladies who had seen her at the imperial banquet and insisted on inviting her personally.
“You really were beautiful that night, Miss.”
“No wonder everyone was amazed.”
Marie giggled happily, as though it had happened to her.
Hayla had absolutely no intention of accepting any of them.
She simply pushed the stack of invitations aside.
“Miss Ellie is here.”
“Please be careful.”
“Every time she sees you, she looks for an excuse to pick a fight.”
“I know.”
“I was going to take a walk later anyway.”
Just then—
“Is this the room?”
“I used to stay here once!”
“My goodness.”
“And she isn’t even grateful.”
“She’s become unbelievably full of herself.”
Voices drifted in from outside the door.
It was obvious.
Ellie had come to get revenge for the humiliation she had suffered at the banquet.
“I wonder what she’ll say when she sees me.”
“‘You rude little brat.'”
“Will she still pretend she doesn’t know me?”
Ellie huffed angrily outside.
Hayla immediately climbed into bed and pulled the blanket over herself.
She refused to let anyone ruin the peaceful days she had finally found.
“Marie.”
“Tell them I took cold medicine and fell asleep.”
“Y-Yes, Miss.”
Knock. Knock.
The door opened almost immediately.
“M-Miss!”
“Where’s Hayla?”
“She caught a cold after taking some medicine and fell asleep.”
“I only came to deliver the letters addressed to her…”
“A cold?”
“I think she got chilled during the banquet.”
“I’ll let her know Lady Merni stopped by when she wakes up.”
Marie lied so naturally that it was almost impressive.
“What’s this?”
Ellie’s footsteps rustled across the room.
“Letters?”
“They look like invitations…”
“I’m not entirely sure.”
“Hmph.”
“So she’s finally become a proper noble lady.”
For a moment, Ellie and Merni quietly flipped through the letters.
“Um…”
“Miss Hayla hasn’t opened those yet…”
Marie tried to stop them.
“What?”
“What did we do?”
“And what were you doing here?”
Ellie snapped at her.
Ugh… she’s even worse than Merni.
Hayla fought the urge to throw off the blanket and get out of bed.
“I was just about to leave when you ladies arrived.”
“Ellie.”
“Let’s go.”
Apparently irritated that Marie had dared answer back, Merni spoke curtly.
The door opened…
Then closed.
Silence returned.
Only then did Hayla slowly pull the blanket away and sit up.
