Chapter 5
“Do you really believe I did it?”
“It doesn’t matter. I have no desire to hear the details anyway.”
The King was visibly and obsessively trying to avoid paying any attention to Ioreth. It had always been like this—ever since her mother committed suicide.
The King had two Queens. The first, Leila, was a commoner. While inspecting the capital, the King fell in love at first sight with the beautiful commoner and pushed for marriage despite the fierce opposition of his ministers. Even after that, as the nobles continued to protest, he went so far as to crown her first daughter, Catherine, as the Crown Princess the very next year. It was an unprecedented act of favoritism.
However, after that, Queen met a sudden and tragic death, and the King soon felt lonely.
He immediately took a second Queen: Charlotte, a princess of the Levia Kingdom and Ioreth’s mother.
A daughter was born to Charlotte as well. The King cherished his second daughter, Ioreth, as much as he adored the Queen.
Then, the scandal of the Queen’s affair with a royal guard broke out. The evidence was insufficient, but the guard’s handsome appearance and the Queen’s defensive attitude toward him offended the King. Enraged, the King locked the Queen and his second daughter in a tower. Since the Queen’s suicide, he had entrusted Ioreth’s entire welfare to Catherine and withdrew his interest completely.
It wasn’t that the King hated Ioreth. If he had, he would have disposed of her long ago. If one had to define the King’s feelings toward his second daughter, it was “discomfort.”
‘Father knew Mother was innocent. Because she died by her own hand while framed, she remains like an uncomfortable thorn that can never be pulled out.’
In the end, Ioreth was a victim of the King’s poor judgment. But the proud King refused to admit his mistake. So, he looked the other way even when he knew of the irrational treatment Ioreth faced. He explicitly transferred power to Catherine as if trying to erase the very existence of the second princess.
Yet, on the other hand, the King did not reject all of Ioreth’s requests—especially if they were matters directly linked to his own dignity or the prestige of the kingdom. That was likely the tiny bit of conscience he had left as a father. If so, the King was the only person in this castle Ioreth could pin her hopes on.
“You are to be married soon. Is there a reason you need an additional guard?”
“It’s not that I need more. One guard to protect me until the wedding is enough, Father.”
“Are you saying a princess of a nation doesn’t even have a single guard?”
Only then did the King look surprised.
“Is there someone you want? I will assign whoever you choose. I can at least do that much as a wedding gift.”
Ioreth couldn’t hide a bitter smile.
‘As I thought, you are intent on marrying me off and kicking me out of the capital by any means necessary.’
There was no need to attempt a dangerous gamble by saying she didn’t want to marry here. Besides, Ioreth had no intention of running away. Marriage was necessary. It was just that the partner would be different.
“I want Sir Ferrain, the Vice Commander of the Royal Black Eagle Knights, as my guard.”
“Fine, take him. However, I will not forgive any more trouble. Quietly focus on your wedding preparations and get ready to leave the castle.”
“Yes, Father.”
Ioreth bowed deeply to the King. As she turned away, the submissive smile vanished from her face. She left the audience chamber to the sound of her father kissing his mistress.
“…!”
A boy standing like a sculpture by the door recoiled in surprise. He was a pretty servant with eyes that slanted upward like a cat’s. As Ioreth stared at him, the boy lowered his head deeply. A sense of dismay lingered on his youthful face, which looked to be about fifteen or sixteen.
‘Red hair and golden eyes.’
She had never seen him at such a close distance, but Ioreth recognized him immediately. Among the numerous mistresses the King had toyed with since his youth and the twenty or so illegitimate children born to them, he was the only child remaining in this palace. The reason was simple: he was mute.
“It seems Father is enjoying his midday amusement, so do not disturb him.”
The boy, mouth held tight, nodded. On an impulse, Ioreth reached out and stroked his pale cheek. He was younger than Ioreth but taller, and though thin, his frame was quite sturdy. Feeling the warmth of her hand, the boy blinked, not knowing what to do. A bluish bruise was briefly visible beneath his collar.
As Ioreth adjusted his collar to hide the bruise, the boy’s cheeks flushed a faint pink. A weak spark of life returned to his dead golden eyes. Seeing him so overwhelmed by a small kindness, she saw her past self in him. Ioreth felt an instant wave of discomfort.
“Don’t be grateful for something like this.”
“…”
“Be wary of people who treat you kindly. Strike first with your life on the line before you are hit. Don’t feel pity beyond your station, don’t help others carelessly, and don’t expect anything. The only one who can save me is myself.”
The boy, leaning his cheek against Ioreth’s hand, blinked vacantly. Under the King’s irresponsible neglect, she too must have had such stifled, lonely eyes. Ioreth gritted her teeth and turned away sharply.
‘This is only the beginning, Father.’
She had lived as if dead, holding her breath for a lifetime; calling this much “trouble” was absurd.
‘If you view me as a mere pawn, then I, too, shall place you on my chessboard. Without you even knowing it, you shall be swung by me as my blade until you break. By the second daughter you considered so taboo.’
Ioreth went out to the rear garden of the main palace. The moment she stepped onto the soft grass, someone turned her around with a forceful grip.
“Ioreth.”
It was her childhood friend and former fiancé, Benedix Valere. He seemed to have run, as his breath was heavy. Seeing Ioreth’s cheeks, which were marked with tear stains, he asked urgently:
“Have you been crying? Are you hurt anywhere?”
Benedix was a handsome man with neat navy hair and dark gray eyes. He had a sharp, intellectual impression, but the way his eyes curved like crescents whenever he looked at her was incredibly gentle.
“I was worried the Earl had tried to harm you. I’m glad to see you aren’t hurt.”
Even now, there was not a hint of hypocrisy in Benedix’s expression of concern. That fact was chilling.
“The wedding will be postponed for a while. Earl Castlein’s condition is more serious than expected. It’s for the best. Sending you to the Earl has been weighing on my mind…”
There was no need to hear more. Ioreth cut him off.
“The wedding will proceed as scheduled.”
“What are you talking about? You hated the idea of this marriage. Even just last week, you were suffering so much—”
“There is someone I want to marry.”
“…What?”
Benedix stammered, looking as if he couldn’t find the words.
“You want to marry someone? That’s impossible, Ioreth. Who do you even know in this castle…? Or has someone approached you?”
“Well, is that any of your business?”
“Ioreth, I am your friend.”
Friend. Ioreth laughed hollowly. They had been fiances from before she was even born until right before their engagement was broken when she was seventeen, yet they were just “friends.”
‘Knowing full well how desperately I loved you.’
Once, this face was Ioreth’s world. It was the only world she could meet from inside the tower. After days of having no one to speak to, meeting Benedix was the only time she felt like she could breathe.
“I wasn’t lonely because you were there.””…””Because you and Sister were there…”
Benedix and Catherine. In the past, those names were Ioreth’s breath and her life. Now, she had returned to erase those names from the world. Ioreth forcefully shook off Benedix’s hand.
“Not a friend, but a former fiancé. I believe you’ve lost the right to meddle. It’s unpleasant, so please move aside, Duke.”
Ioreth had never pushed him away this coldly before. Benedix seemed genuinely flustered.
“Are you upset because the engagement was broken? That wasn’t my will. I told you, I had no other choice because of the pressure from the elders in the Royal Council.”
Ha! Ioreth let out a dry laugh. She wanted to strike that shameless face right now. The prestige of the Duke Valere family was falling day by day because they forcibly maintained an engagement with a discarded princess. Their standing in the Royal Council had narrowed because of it. That was the reason for the broken engagement.
Ioreth felt like bursting into loud laughter.
“So you played around with Sister? For the sake of the family’s prestige, with your former fiancé’s half-sister?”
“What… are you talking about, Her Highness the Crown Princess? Ioreth, how can you have such a misunderstanding?”
Benedix narrowed his eyes as if offended. It was truly a masterful performance. Especially since she remembered his final appearance so clearly, where he held Catherine and mocked her!
“Is that so? A misunderstanding?”
Right then, she saw Catherine’s black curly hair in the distance of the garden. The Crown Princess was approaching at a fast pace. It was likely because she had heard the royal order regarding the appointment of a guard.
Catherine stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted them. Benedix, facing Ioreth, could not see her. A cold light flashed in Ioreth’s eyes.
“Then kiss me. Right now, right here.”
