Chapter 2

Chapter 1. A Fallen Noble and a Mocking Invitation

Fourteen-year-old Damien Lambert instinctively sensed that something was wrong.

His mother’s mood had not been good lately.

For several days, the furrow between her brows, her tightly pressed lips, and the fingers tapping impatiently against her teacup had kept Damien on edge.

Today was even worse than usual.

Although the party she was hosting was in full swing, she could not hide her heavy sighs.

Watching her carefully, Damien quietly shifted his feet against the floor.

“Look carefully, Damien.”

After a long silence, his mother finally spoke.

“Look at how poorly I’m being treated.”

The way she gripped her wineglass tightly revealed her emotions better than words.

“They all know.”

“They’ve already guessed that His Majesty’s heart has left me.”

It wasn’t the first time Damien had heard this complaint.

His mother, Countess Saint-Fleur, was the most famous woman in the kingdom.

Because she was the King’s favorite mistress.

“…His Majesty didn’t come.”

Damien looked around the guests again.

Sure enough, his father wasn’t there.

Or…

Could he even call him his father?

Damien was an illegitimate child of the King, a child born outside of marriage.

“That’s right. He knew I was hosting this party, yet he still didn’t come.”

Lady Saint-Fleur bit her lip.

“He’s probably with another woman. But who could it be?”

Impatiently, she muttered the names of several influential ladies from the royal court.

That was why this wasn’t the first time Damien had heard such complaints.

Rather than the kingdom’s most famous woman…

It would have been more accurate to call her the kingdom’s most anxious woman.

She lived every day terrified that the King’s love would leave her.

“This time it’s different!”

Lady Saint-Fleur snapped irritably.

“I have a really bad feeling.”

Damien stayed silent.

He knew that one wrong word would only make her angrier.

“Oh, how shameless!”

Suddenly she cried out sharply.

“Look over there, Damien.”

She pointed her silk fan toward one side of the ballroom.

“Count Montauban.”

Damien knew exactly who she meant.

Count Montauban was opposing the King’s plan to have the Pope officially recognize Damien as a royal bastard of the royal family.

He was a devout conservative who believed illegitimate children were an insult to the sanctity of marriage.

“That filthy bitch’s invitation wasn’t something he could completely ignore after all.”

Lady Saint-Fleur raised her chin proudly.

“After all, who would dare openly disrespect the King’s mistress?”

But Damien’s attention did not remain on Count Montauban for long.

Someone else had completely captured his attention.

Standing beside the Count was a little girl.

A small, fair face peeked out shyly.

She had reddish-blonde hair, blue eyes, and a green dress.

She looked like a tiny lily of the valley, with delicate white blossoms blooming from a slender green stem.

“That must be Count Montauban’s eldest daughter.”

Before he realized it, Lady Saint-Fleur was looking at the same girl.

“His Majesty is trying to persuade Count Montauban by promising that you’ll marry that child.”

She narrowed her eyes.

“He’s taking advantage of the Count’s financial troubles these days.”

She let out a mocking laugh.

“He should’ve adapted to this industrial age sooner instead of clinging to old traditions.”

“So even if Count Montauban’s family is declining financially, he still has considerable influence in Parliament?”

Damien asked calmly.

“It seems everything his ancestors built can’t disappear overnight.”

Lady Saint-Fleur grumbled.

“They’re coming this way.”

Still fanning herself, she lowered her voice.

Sure enough, Count Montauban was walking toward them through the crowd with his daughter.

“So, he couldn’t possibly ignore greeting the Queen Without a Crown.”

Lady Saint-Fleur smirked.

Ignoring her arrogant attitude, Count Montauban stopped politely before her.

No matter how infamous she was, she was still the King’s mistress.

Proper etiquette required him to wait until she acknowledged him first.

“The weather is lovely today, Count Montauban.”

After deliberately making him wait so she could enjoy her authority, Lady Saint-Fleur finally spoke.

“Oysters are in season. You should try some.”

She clapped her hands once.

A servant immediately appeared carrying a silver tray.

“Thank you.”

Count Montauban accepted the oysters almost by force and answered stiffly.

“This is a wonderful party.”

Lady Saint-Fleur accepted the reluctant compliment as if she were used to it.

“May I have the honor of introducing my daughter, Clementine Cornille?”

At last, Count Montauban spoke again.

“She only recently made her debut in high society.”

The girl who resembled a lily of the valley stepped forward gracefully.

She stumbled slightly from nervousness, but her elegance remained unmistakable.

“…Hmm. She’s quite pretty.”

Lady Saint-Fleur searched her from head to toe, clearly hoping to find a flaw.

Eventually, she reluctantly admitted it.

In truth…

The girl was so beautiful that denying it would have been impossible.

“His Majesty mentioned that she’s about the same age as Damien.”

Lady Saint-Fleur introduced them indirectly.

At once, both Count Montauban and the young girl turned their eyes toward Damien.

The moment their eyes met…

Everyone else disappeared.

Nothing else mattered.

His heart pounded wildly for reasons he couldn’t understand.

The air itself seemed to tremble around him.

His breath caught.

It felt as though his heart had suddenly become far too large for his chest.

And something…

Something very small and incredibly gentle…

Quietly began within him.

“…Ah.”

Without realizing it, Damien let out a soft sigh.

But it seemed the girl felt differently.

Her awkward smile stiffened with discomfort.

As if she wanted to deny that their eyes had met, she quickly looked away.

After giving him only a small bow…

She stepped back as though she were fleeing.

Was it because she looked down on him for being the King’s illegitimate son?

Because he wasn’t even a prince…

Only an incomplete child born outside of marriage?

“She’s simply shy.”

Count Montauban quickly offered an excuse.

Lady Saint-Fleur responded with a sarcastic smile.

“Oh my, how modest.”

After finishing the required greetings, Count Montauban left with his daughter.

Even among the crowded ballroom, the girl stood out.

Yet she never looked in Damien’s direction again.

Once she had turned away, she never once sought his gaze.

It was as if she saw no reason to acknowledge him at all.

That only made Damien’s heart grow even more restless.

The shock of meeting someone so unfamiliar…

Followed immediately by the pain of being rejected…

Gradually transformed into an emotion he could not understand.

His enlarged heart never returned to normal.

By the time the party ended, the King had never shown his face.

Lady Saint-Fleur was furious.

The danger Damien had sensed earlier had now reached its peak.

“You saw it too, didn’t you?”

Lady Saint-Fleur removed her silk gloves.

“The way those nobles looked down on me!”

Her eyes searched for someone to blame.

“You disappointed me too, Damien.”

At last, she found her excuse.

“That little girl, Clementine Cornille, looked down on you!”

She jabbed her young son’s chest with an angry finger.

“Because you’re not a prince! You’re nothing more than an illegitimate child, and that’s why she acted so proud!”

Once again, the girl’s distant expression seemed to grip his heart.

“…You truly disappointed me.”

Lady Saint-Fleur suddenly grabbed the back of Damien’s neck and dragged him away.

She stopped only when they reached the stairs leading down to the basement.

It was familiar.

“Go on, Damien.”

She spoke coldly.

“It’s time for your punishment.”

Damien didn’t resist.

He had learned long ago that resisting was pointless.

He entered the basement.

A strong smell of mold filled the air.

There wasn’t a single light.

Only darkness.

Behind him, the heavy iron door slammed shut with a loud clang.

How many days would he be locked up this time?

How long would it take for Mother’s anger to fade?

But strangely…

He wasn’t afraid of the hunger that would soon become familiar.

Curled up in a dark corner of the basement, Damien could think of only one person.

“…Clementine Cornille.”

He whispered her name quietly.

He kept wondering what this strange feeling was.

Why had his heart grown so large?

What was this emotion he couldn’t understand?

Perhaps…

Because he had been born from his mother’s anger and raised in darkness…

Damien Lambert came to a conclusion far too quickly.

He decided that this mysterious feeling…

Was hatred.