Chapter 9
“…The rumors about me aren’t good,” Hayla said cautiously. “Are you really okay with that?”
At her words, Lohen’s face brightened.
“The worse the rumors, the better. At least then no noble family will try to arrange a marriage proposal for me.”
He bit his lip to suppress a smile.
Then, avoiding her gaze, he emptied his drink in one gulp.
A moment later—
Thud.
His body suddenly collapsed against her shoulder.
“Ugh…!”
His face turned deathly pale as a groan escaped him.
“What’s wrong? Are you sick?”
Supporting him before he could fall completely, Hayla carefully lowered him to the floor.
He clutched at his chest, gasping for air.
“This won’t do. I’ll go get a physician.”
“W-wait… I’ll be… fine… in a moment…”
As she reached to pull back the curtain, he desperately grabbed her wrist.
Lohen struggled with everything he had to keep his fading consciousness.
Damn it! It wasn’t alcohol-free. I shouldn’t have drunk anything… Ugh!
His throat swelled until it felt completely blocked.
Fortunately, the alcohol content seemed low enough that he didn’t lose consciousness outright.
Even through the haze clouding his mind, he was relieved it wasn’t a drink laced with poison.
Since childhood, not a single day had passed without the threat of assassination by poison.
After the former Empress—Beck’s mother—died and the current Empress, Niel’s mother, took the throne, the attempts to eliminate him had become even more blatant.
Years of taking antidotes and sleeping medicines had left him resistant to them while also causing countless side effects and severe hypersensitivities.
His alcohol allergy was merely one of those side effects.
Perhaps the only reason he had survived this long was because he possessed a small amount of mana.
Of course, the Empress’s faction knew nothing about his magical ability.
In fact, aside from a handful of his closest confidants, no one knew.
If the Empress ever discovered it, the assassination attempts would escalate to an entirely different level.
And if they also learned about his alcohol allergy…
That would become yet another way to kill him.
Even if no one recognized him immediately because he had changed his face, it would only be a matter of time before his identity was exposed.
That was why he had desperately stopped Hayla from leaving.
Fortunately, she seemed to realize there was a reason for his actions.
Though terrified, she did her best to stay calm.
“Ron! Look at me. Can you hear me?”
While talking to him, Hayla loosened his cravat and unfastened several buttons of his shirt down to his chest.
She was trying to help him breathe.
“Are you really sure you’ll be okay like this?”
“Mmm…”
With a faint groan, he gave the slightest nod.
He wanted to reassure her as much as possible.
Just like he had that night.
Back then, she’d looked like a small, fragile creature hiding from hunters.
Today, too, he wanted to protect her in this jungle called the Imperial Palace.
There were things he couldn’t do as the Third Prince…
So even if he had to wear another face, he wanted to do them.
To think I’d make such a ridiculous mistake…!
He bit down on his lip in frustration.
After some time, his ragged breathing gradually became steadier.
Balanced between consciousness and unconsciousness, he slowly regained his senses.
* * *
Ron’s head had suddenly fallen onto my shoulder.
It was clearly an emergency, yet he wouldn’t let me call anyone.
Is it a chronic illness? Something that can’t be made public? Will he recover on his own?
Rather than suspecting his identity, I found myself believing he had his reasons.
Just as his breathing finally became easier and my panic began to settle—
“Hayla! Where are you, Hayla?”
A voice called from outside.
It was getting closer.
It sounded like someone was checking each terrace while calling my name.
It was Merni.
She had been glaring at us ever since Ron asked me to dance, so she must have seen us come out to the terrace.
Didn’t she tell me to pretend we didn’t know each other? Then what’s she doing now?
Ironically, it looked like Merni was about to expose this whole situation.
He undoubtedly had his reasons.
But I had mine too.
If people who don’t know the circumstances see us like this… what will they think?
A man and woman sitting closely together on the floor.
His shirt half unbuttoned.
If Merni saw this, she’d never let it slide.
I’d already been branded a violent troublemaker.
Now I’d gain another label—
A promiscuous woman.
I’d rather explain the truth. He needs treatment too.
Resigned, I waited for the curtain to be pulled aside while straightening my disheveled clothes.
After helping prop his body against the wall, I leaned closer to check his complexion.
Then—
Rustle.
Without warning, he turned toward me.
Our lips met.
Was that an accident…?
Or intentional…?
Either way…
I couldn’t move.
“Hayla! Are you in there?”
Merni’s voice came from just outside the terrace.
Whether because of Merni…
Or because our lips were touching…
My body forgot how to breathe.
Even my fingertips and toes froze.
The only thing I could feel was the violent pounding of my heart.
Holding my breath as though submerged underwater, my chest felt ready to burst.
Over his shoulder, I saw the edge of the curtain lift slightly.
A thin beam of light from the ballroom slipped inside—
Then vanished.
The curtain fell closed again.
Yet neither of us moved.
An awkward silence lingered.
I was the first to pull away.
“…Haa.”
I finally released the breath I’d been holding.
His eyes were still closed, his brows tightly furrowed in pain.
“How… are you feeling?”
“…”
“Isn’t this dangerous? Whatever’s wrong with you…”
“I have… an alcohol allergy.”
“I thought it was non-alcoholic… but I drank it.”
“How could something like that…?”
I froze as if someone had struck me with a hammer.
In my previous life…
Lohen had confessed the exact same thing.
One day I’d casually handed him a drink, and he’d collapsed, unable to breathe.
I’d been terrified.
He’d told me it was an extremely rare condition.
“I’m sorry for frightening you.”
Ron finally leaned away from the wall.
Color had begun returning to his pale face.
“And… thank you.
I’m alright now.”
As he spoke, he fastened the buttons of his shirt.
“Ah… that’s a relief.”
Steadying himself, he rose to his feet.
Then he extended his hand toward me.
After hesitating briefly, I took it.
He pulled me up effortlessly.
“So… does that mean we’re even now?”
“…?”
Confused, I looked at him.
He brushed a finger across his lips, the corner of his mouth curling upward.
That simple gesture was enough for me to understand.
Back in the red-light district, I’d kissed him first to get us out of danger.
Just now…
He’d done the same.
“I’ll repay your kindness too…
Whenever I can.”
After saying that, he silently gazed outside.
The gentle breeze tousled his hair, but he made no effort to fix it.
I quietly stood beside him, letting the cool wind wash over me.
An alcohol allergy…
Lohen…
And Ron…
There’s something strangely similar about them…
“Hayla!”
The sudden shout snapped me out of my thoughts.
Someone was looking up toward the terrace from outside the ballroom.
“Hayla! It’s time to go home!”
It was Merni, waving toward us.
We came in separate carriages… Why is she acting so strangely today?
“Shall we go down together?”
“Are you sure you’re alright to walk?”
“I’m fine. I recovered unusually quickly today.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“Not at all. I’m just relieved you’re alright.”
Ron had completely regained his color, as though nothing had happened.
After leaving the terrace and descending the stairs, Merni hurried over.
“Where have you been? You disappeared for so long I thought you got lost.”
Her eyes, however, never left Ron.
“Didn’t you see us from downstairs?”
“Oh… right. I mean… have you been here the whole time?”
“We stepped inside for a short rest. Lady Merni called for Lady Hera, so we came out immediately.”
Ron answered for me.
As though she’d been waiting for the chance, Merni immediately turned toward him.
“Oh my… I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”
“Not at all.
It’s time for you to return home.”
He gestured toward the stairs as if suggesting we continue.
“The servants still haven’t brought the carriage. We’ll have to wait anyway.”
“Would you like to take a walk through the garden? The flowers are in full bloom.”
Merni practically glued herself to his side as she chirped excitedly.
I almost laughed.
Well… I suppose anyone could fall for him at first sight.
But she’s aiming at the wrong person.
He isn’t interested in women.
Before she embarrassed herself further, I decided to change the subject.
“What about the young master of House Bagdik?”
“…Who knows?”
She glanced at me before shrugging, as though wondering why I was asking her.
Ron merely smiled faintly without saying anything.
The night air outside felt much colder than it had on the terrace.
Merni pulled her cloak tightly around herself.
“Forgive my rudeness, ladies, but I must be going.”
Turning his gaze away from the dark corner he’d been watching, he looked back at us.
“It seems something urgent has come up.
How unfortunate.”
There was genuine disappointment in Merni’s voice.
Not merely empty politeness.
“Someone is waiting for me with unwavering devotion.”
Without looking at us, Ron answered while gazing back toward the shadows.
Merni and I instinctively followed his line of sight.
A man dressed as a knight stood there.
Noticing us, he bowed respectfully.
It was too dark to make out his features.
I gave a small bow in return.
Merni let out a soft laugh.
She clearly thought Ron had been joking.
If she knew the truth… she wouldn’t be laughing.
I couldn’t laugh at all.
“Please travel safely.”
“Yes. I hope we’ll meet again at the next banquet.”
“Next time… let’s spend a little more time together.”
Merni’s voice dripped with sweetness.
For a moment, I was speechless.
“Goodbye.”
I quietly said to Ron as he glanced back at me.
Thanks to you… I wasn’t lonely today.
Thank you.
I kept those words to myself.
Just as he took a step away—
He suddenly turned back.
“The carriage doesn’t seem like it’ll arrive anytime soon.”
“The night wind is cold.”
He removed his coat and gently draped it over my shoulders.
A familiar scent filled my nose.
Its warmth wrapped around me.
“Return it to me next time.”
His whisper brushed past my ear—
So soft and sweet that I almost thought I’d imagined it.
* * *
Lohen walked past his escort knight, Moritz, and disappeared deeper into the darkness.
Only after they were far enough away from the banquet hall that no one else was around did he slowly turn around.
“You’ve been watching the whole time?”
“Why?”
He could have ignored Moritz completely.
In fact, had he chosen to do so, no one would have noticed.
Moritz blended perfectly into the darkness.
Lohen had acknowledged him only because it gave him a natural excuse to part ways with the two ladies.
Still, he wasn’t pleased.
“Sir Pello told me to come.”
“He was worried because you were taking so long.”
“Tell me, Moritz.”
“Who do I look like right now?”
“Lo—”
Moritz began to answer before abruptly realizing his mistake.
“Exactly.”
“With this face…”
“In other words…”
“You’re supposed to have no idea who I am.”
“Understood.”
Turning his back once more, Lohen disappeared into the darkness.
Moritz lowered his eyes, frustrated by his blunder.
He had served as Lohen’s escort knight for three years since meeting him on the frontier.
He’d always believed he could understand the prince’s intentions with nothing more than a glance.
But these three months in the Imperial Palace had been one bewildering experience after another.
Protecting the prince’s life wasn’t his only duty.
Schemes and deception weren’t exclusive to their enemies.
If one let their guard down for even a moment, survival in the Imperial Palace became impossible.
He had learned that lesson all too well.
Rustle—
A faint movement interrupted his thoughts.
Clang!
Clang!
Several blades collided, slicing through the silent darkness.
Two black figures clashed at blinding speed before separating again.
A heartbeat later—
One of them was sent crashing to the ground.
