Several crystal glasses have already met their fate.
Noevian drank the entire bottle without even looking at his bandaged hands.
'If by any chance I lose my wife... you said you would become my complete government.'
It was a Noevian wearing a black cloak and black clothes.
Noevian drank the entire bottle without even looking at his bandaged hands.
'If by any chance I lose my wife... you said you would become my complete government.'
He didn't even open his mouth or roll his tongue.
His voice from that day suddenly popped out of his head.
'I want you.'
'I want you, who is in front of me, more than the Adrienne I could never have, the Adrienne I will never be able to have...'
Clang!
"Your Highness!"
“Fuck! Fuck! F**k! What the hell!”
Noevian Trovica was crazy.
The omnipotent Grand Duke Noevian Trovica, who had been in the capital, was no longer here.
Even Annie, who had tried everything to seduce him at first, now felt close to giving up.
All she did in this cold, desolate corner of the North, in the Tower of Lubel, where only the worst criminals were imprisoned, was to clean Noevian's room, which had become extremely sensitive.
And the person cleaning up just glared at him as he created shards of glass that he didn't even think about.
Noevian didn't even glance at Annie as she quietly closed the door and left.
As soon as he heard the door close, large streams of tears poured out from his eyes that were buried in his arms.
It was the first time he had cried so hard that his tears wouldn't dry, except when Adrienne died.
'Noah. My beloved Noah. My sea. My everything.'
“Ugh, uh...”
As he reminisces about the past that makes him want to rip his mouth off dozens of times a day, the happiest days come to mind.
“Eu..."
And more than any other memory, those memories mercilessly tore, cut, and stabbed Noevian's heart.
The sound of his heart pounding hit his eardrums.
“Rien, Rien...”
The attending doctor, Spino, who had accompanied him, could not stand his temper and gave him sleeping pills, but also gave him a medicine to counteract them.
When he took drugs and drank alcohol, he would beat his chest while hallucinating from happy times, and when he took the neutralizing drugs and came to his senses, he would chew over the words he had said to Adrienne, who he thought were Blie, with my eyes wide open.
He was a complete mess.
On days like today when the moonlight was beautiful, he writhed in unbearable pain.
He began to tremble with anxiety as his once healthy body withered away and even the clear image of Adrienne became blurred.
The sharp conflict between the past days of wanting to see her, wanting to hold her, and wanting to love her, and trying to replace Adrienne with someone else he could have always led to the memory of the last time he saw her in the palace.
'You know what?'
'You are so useless.'
The writhing and sobbing suddenly stopped.
The most shocking thing he heard from Adrienne was that she no longer loved him.
It was at that very moment that he had not urged anyone to kill the Crown Prince.
It was a statement that completely negated the past years he had lived only to become a useful person.
The reality that he was no longer a useless man or a human being hit Noevian hard on the back of his head.
Noevian grabbed the dagger he had kept by his bedside.
It was Adrienne's dagger that he had brought after insisting that there was no need for evidence since he had already confessed.
If it was Adrienne's, then he had insisted on having it.
Unlike the fancy interior that was specially treated as royalty, the frosty sword blade gleamed in the moonlight streaming in through the palm-sized window.
Noevian naturally thought of Adrienne, who needed him in the secret underground room.
'You said you were a man who kept his promises. You said you would make me happy?'
'You kill me.'
'Then I forgive you.'
Noevian, holding a dagger in his hand, straightened his slumped body and stood up.
Even though she said it didn't mean she would come back to me, didn't I still get forgiven?
Is it because I'm drunk? Is it because I regret it so much? Is it because I miss Adrienne so much?
With nowhere left to retreat and nothing left to prove, Noevian's eyes began to sparkle.
Instead of a gun, his venomous eyes turned to the newspapers strewn across the floor.
When it came to news related to Countess Blie Acacia, he would read the newspapers he had snuck in through Annie even when he was drunk.
Because that was the only medium through which she could be reached.
It was fortunate that he was able to secretly receive newspapers as a privilege of the royal family in the Tower of Rubel, where only the worst criminals were imprisoned.
[The envoy group heading to Elacon is stranded in Acacia County. Is it because of a monster?]
Noevian put his dagger back into its scabbard and quickly straightened his clothes.
[The early return of Prince Rhodnes. Is it because of the feud with Elacon or for the Crown Prince's ascension to the throne?]
If she doesn't have Rhodnes, it's not hard to go to Acacia County and meet Adrienne.
Breaking into a mansion the size of a palm isn't even a tickle when he thinks back to his younger days when he would prove your worth with his bare body.
The body that had been lying listlessly was filled with energy.
Why did you just lie there quietly?
What does he have to lose after killing Bardenaldo with his own hands?
'Adrienne, if only I could prove to you that I'm a useful man to you...'
Blood returned to his pale cheeks.
He want to ask.
If she can't come back to him.
Can't he get a little closer to her?
If Rhodnes abandons her for the throne and takes Doris Castagna, who pretends to be a Saintess, as his wife.
If that's the case, then do I have a chance?
In the end.
In the old wardrobe that he opened with his own hands, Noevian took out the black cloak he often wore in his youth and put it on.
He had blood on his hands and risked his life for Emperor Julius. He lived that way his whole life.
Everyone said it was fate. He thought it was fate too.
'Not this time.'
Even if he gets caught and dies.
This time, of his own free will, he will run to the person he truly desires, prepared to give up everything.
That night.
Noevian Trovica, who was imprisoned in the basement of the Rubel Tower, has escaped.
It was a day before the coronation of Crown Princess Doris Castagna.
“The canonization of a Saintess?”
The mansion of Count Acacia was filled with an ominous atmosphere, starting with the shrill voice of Canula Winster.
The High Priest, who had received a letter from Doris asking to discuss the schedule of the canonization, confessed it himself and then looked at Canula's expression.
The high priest, whose corruption had been completely exposed, had a resigned look on his face as if he had entrusted his own neck to Canula.
“Nonsense! Absolutely not! I can’t take such a vicious woman as Lord Rhodnes wife! If she weren’t the Crown Princess, I would have...”
“Wow, wow. Your Grace. Don’t get excited. So, Your Eminence, you’re saying that we’re going to have that sainthood ceremony?”
Ephero said in a mocking tone.
The High Priest, Teln, nodded with a more nervous expression on his face as he looked at Ephero than at the Marchioness.
“Her Royal Highness has already declared that she has received the trust, and those who wish for this enthronement ceremony are not just the Crown Princess.”
“Who else is there?”
At Ephero's sharp question, Teln took a moment to collect his thoughts and then opened his mouth.
“Count Siscometin, Count Raylon, nobles from the West...”
“If it were Count Siscometin and Count Raylon, the nobles of the capital would flock to join them. My goodness. If only Doris could become a Saintess...”
“I guess the plan is for a powerless child of the Empress like me to quietly return to Elacon without even handing over a business card. Should I be grateful that they are restraining me to this extent? Wasn’t I a Prince with a presence?”
As Canula touched his head, Ephero continued to speak in a self-mocking tone, wondering if his head was hurting more because all the nobles involved were from the Crown Prince's faction.
Ephero stared at me, who was quietly drinking tea, as he told me the reality that he had no choice but to return to Elacon.
“Madam. If we share this much of a secret, then I’m your friend, right?”
As I put down my teacup and looked at him, Ephero smiled brightly with anxious eyes.
“You helped me capture the High Priest, even risking shocking my mother. You were confident that you would spare me from having to go to Elacon, so now stop dwelling on those tedious thoughts and share your plans with me.”
Ignoring the pallor of the High Priest's face, Ephero raised his chin proudly.
Ever since I made a prediction that wasn't discussed in advance, Ephero's patience seemed to have run out as he teased me with a face that looked as if he was going to die of fear whenever he saw me.
When I turned my gaze, I saw that the High Priest who had to reply to Doris, as well as Canula, were looking at me with their hands on their temples.
I proudly declared that I was the one who brought the dead back to life and would bring them back to life again, so it was only natural that people had high expectations of me.
“Please proceed with the canonization as Doris wishes, Your Eminence.”
Canula and Ephero's eyebrows furrowed as if it wasn't the answer they were looking for.
“If such a historic event were to take place, all the people of the country would gather in the capital. My prophecy would come true then.”
“I will cooperate as much as I can, but I will not say anything until I see a miracle happen before my eyes. In particular, the new sun shining on Ronta... Isn’t that a political statement? If you try to make it sound like ‘His Highness the Second Prince’s red eyes are the sun,’ then it could be.”
“If I perform a miracle, even if it is political, you mean to declare it like that?”
“... If you perform a miracle, it will be clear that you are the one who truly received the oracle.”
"Great."
“Well, anyway, the canonization ceremony will proceed as scheduled. Judging from the fact that Her Highness even wrote a letter like this, I think she is planning to do it earlier than scheduled.”
“And please allow me to assist you at the inauguration.”
"Yes?"
“I am the maid of Her Highness. Who would think it is out of the blue that I will serve my master until the end, who wants to leave the palace and live as a Saintess? If I mix in with the priests, I won’t be noticed.”
Teln's gaze lingered on my blonde hair. It was a gaze that was so unnoticeable despite my shiny blonde hair.
“...I can accept that much.”
The High Priest then steadfastly responded to several warnings from Canula and Ephero's nagging and left the mansion.
“I don’t know if it’s okay to send it like that.”
“Don’t worry, Your Highness. The Grand Temple, the Knights Templar, and everything else is under the eyes and ears of this Canula Winster, so they won’t do anything foolish anymore.”
“If you think about the people who were called here for doing something stupid, it doesn’t seem like that’s necessarily the case.”
Canula glanced at Ephero's words that turned her insides upside down.
“That’s when this foolish old woman trusted the High Priest. We have already given the order, so I will be watched twice as much as usual.”
“If only you had done that a long time ago, this wouldn’t have happened. Tsk.”
Canula glared at him again at his sullen tone. The two were polar opposites.
After training with Rossi in the mine and gaining magical powers, I returned to my room late at night, exhausted.
Olivia combed my hair for a while and then went back to my room.
Olivia couldn't stay with me for long because she still started crying whenever she recalled even the slightest memory.
"I miss you. I used to dream of you every day, but I haven't dreamed of you since I came to the capital. Today, I'm going to pray to the Lord. Please help me too, because it seems like this is happening because you don't want to see me."
I found the letter, which seemed a little heartbroken, and cute and made me chuckle.
It was a more important and headache-inducing time than ever, but it was bearable because Rhodnes sent me a short letter.
He just wanted me to be safe, but I thought differently.
He had no doubt that he would seize the throne by his own power.
But there were definitely areas where I could help if I wanted to go that route without making as many enemies as possible around me.
I touched the letter that ended with the words, 'Inside you.'
It was a short letter, but it was precious because we couldn't exchange important messages for fear that someone would intercept it.
For a moment, I felt like I went back to my childhood.
As I was staring at the letter, which was like an oasis in the endless desert of anxiety, I suddenly heard a noise outside the window.
It was the first time I heard any noise while staying in Count Acacia's room.
The moment I looked in the mirror, I thought it was just a passing breeze, as this place was safe and guarded by the Marchioness' private soldiers. My body stiffened.
The window, which had clearly been locked, opened wide, and black feet suddenly came in from outside.
The lips that were about to scream suddenly stopped.
“...Adrienne.”
His voice from that day suddenly popped out of his head.
'I want you.'
'I want you, who is in front of me, more than the Adrienne I could never have, the Adrienne I will never be able to have...'
Clang!
"Your Highness!"
“Fuck! Fuck! F**k! What the hell!”
Noevian Trovica was crazy.
The omnipotent Grand Duke Noevian Trovica, who had been in the capital, was no longer here.
Even Annie, who had tried everything to seduce him at first, now felt close to giving up.
All she did in this cold, desolate corner of the North, in the Tower of Lubel, where only the worst criminals were imprisoned, was to clean Noevian's room, which had become extremely sensitive.
And the person cleaning up just glared at him as he created shards of glass that he didn't even think about.
Noevian didn't even glance at Annie as she quietly closed the door and left.
As soon as he heard the door close, large streams of tears poured out from his eyes that were buried in his arms.
It was the first time he had cried so hard that his tears wouldn't dry, except when Adrienne died.
'Noah. My beloved Noah. My sea. My everything.'
“Ugh, uh...”
As he reminisces about the past that makes him want to rip his mouth off dozens of times a day, the happiest days come to mind.
“Eu..."
And more than any other memory, those memories mercilessly tore, cut, and stabbed Noevian's heart.
The sound of his heart pounding hit his eardrums.
“Rien, Rien...”
The attending doctor, Spino, who had accompanied him, could not stand his temper and gave him sleeping pills, but also gave him a medicine to counteract them.
When he took drugs and drank alcohol, he would beat his chest while hallucinating from happy times, and when he took the neutralizing drugs and came to his senses, he would chew over the words he had said to Adrienne, who he thought were Blie, with my eyes wide open.
He was a complete mess.
On days like today when the moonlight was beautiful, he writhed in unbearable pain.
He began to tremble with anxiety as his once healthy body withered away and even the clear image of Adrienne became blurred.
The sharp conflict between the past days of wanting to see her, wanting to hold her, and wanting to love her, and trying to replace Adrienne with someone else he could have always led to the memory of the last time he saw her in the palace.
'You know what?'
'You are so useless.'
The writhing and sobbing suddenly stopped.
The most shocking thing he heard from Adrienne was that she no longer loved him.
It was at that very moment that he had not urged anyone to kill the Crown Prince.
It was a statement that completely negated the past years he had lived only to become a useful person.
The reality that he was no longer a useless man or a human being hit Noevian hard on the back of his head.
Noevian grabbed the dagger he had kept by his bedside.
It was Adrienne's dagger that he had brought after insisting that there was no need for evidence since he had already confessed.
If it was Adrienne's, then he had insisted on having it.
Unlike the fancy interior that was specially treated as royalty, the frosty sword blade gleamed in the moonlight streaming in through the palm-sized window.
Noevian naturally thought of Adrienne, who needed him in the secret underground room.
'You said you were a man who kept his promises. You said you would make me happy?'
'You kill me.'
'Then I forgive you.'
Noevian, holding a dagger in his hand, straightened his slumped body and stood up.
Even though she said it didn't mean she would come back to me, didn't I still get forgiven?
Is it because I'm drunk? Is it because I regret it so much? Is it because I miss Adrienne so much?
With nowhere left to retreat and nothing left to prove, Noevian's eyes began to sparkle.
Instead of a gun, his venomous eyes turned to the newspapers strewn across the floor.
When it came to news related to Countess Blie Acacia, he would read the newspapers he had snuck in through Annie even when he was drunk.
Because that was the only medium through which she could be reached.
It was fortunate that he was able to secretly receive newspapers as a privilege of the royal family in the Tower of Rubel, where only the worst criminals were imprisoned.
[The envoy group heading to Elacon is stranded in Acacia County. Is it because of a monster?]
Noevian put his dagger back into its scabbard and quickly straightened his clothes.
[The early return of Prince Rhodnes. Is it because of the feud with Elacon or for the Crown Prince's ascension to the throne?]
If she doesn't have Rhodnes, it's not hard to go to Acacia County and meet Adrienne.
Breaking into a mansion the size of a palm isn't even a tickle when he thinks back to his younger days when he would prove your worth with his bare body.
The body that had been lying listlessly was filled with energy.
Why did you just lie there quietly?
What does he have to lose after killing Bardenaldo with his own hands?
'Adrienne, if only I could prove to you that I'm a useful man to you...'
Blood returned to his pale cheeks.
He want to ask.
If she can't come back to him.
Can't he get a little closer to her?
If Rhodnes abandons her for the throne and takes Doris Castagna, who pretends to be a Saintess, as his wife.
If that's the case, then do I have a chance?
In the end.
In the old wardrobe that he opened with his own hands, Noevian took out the black cloak he often wore in his youth and put it on.
He had blood on his hands and risked his life for Emperor Julius. He lived that way his whole life.
Everyone said it was fate. He thought it was fate too.
'Not this time.'
Even if he gets caught and dies.
This time, of his own free will, he will run to the person he truly desires, prepared to give up everything.
That night.
Noevian Trovica, who was imprisoned in the basement of the Rubel Tower, has escaped.
It was a day before the coronation of Crown Princess Doris Castagna.
***
“The canonization of a Saintess?”
The mansion of Count Acacia was filled with an ominous atmosphere, starting with the shrill voice of Canula Winster.
The High Priest, who had received a letter from Doris asking to discuss the schedule of the canonization, confessed it himself and then looked at Canula's expression.
The high priest, whose corruption had been completely exposed, had a resigned look on his face as if he had entrusted his own neck to Canula.
“Nonsense! Absolutely not! I can’t take such a vicious woman as Lord Rhodnes wife! If she weren’t the Crown Princess, I would have...”
“Wow, wow. Your Grace. Don’t get excited. So, Your Eminence, you’re saying that we’re going to have that sainthood ceremony?”
Ephero said in a mocking tone.
The High Priest, Teln, nodded with a more nervous expression on his face as he looked at Ephero than at the Marchioness.
“Her Royal Highness has already declared that she has received the trust, and those who wish for this enthronement ceremony are not just the Crown Princess.”
“Who else is there?”
At Ephero's sharp question, Teln took a moment to collect his thoughts and then opened his mouth.
“Count Siscometin, Count Raylon, nobles from the West...”
“If it were Count Siscometin and Count Raylon, the nobles of the capital would flock to join them. My goodness. If only Doris could become a Saintess...”
“I guess the plan is for a powerless child of the Empress like me to quietly return to Elacon without even handing over a business card. Should I be grateful that they are restraining me to this extent? Wasn’t I a Prince with a presence?”
As Canula touched his head, Ephero continued to speak in a self-mocking tone, wondering if his head was hurting more because all the nobles involved were from the Crown Prince's faction.
Ephero stared at me, who was quietly drinking tea, as he told me the reality that he had no choice but to return to Elacon.
“Madam. If we share this much of a secret, then I’m your friend, right?”
As I put down my teacup and looked at him, Ephero smiled brightly with anxious eyes.
“You helped me capture the High Priest, even risking shocking my mother. You were confident that you would spare me from having to go to Elacon, so now stop dwelling on those tedious thoughts and share your plans with me.”
Ignoring the pallor of the High Priest's face, Ephero raised his chin proudly.
Ever since I made a prediction that wasn't discussed in advance, Ephero's patience seemed to have run out as he teased me with a face that looked as if he was going to die of fear whenever he saw me.
When I turned my gaze, I saw that the High Priest who had to reply to Doris, as well as Canula, were looking at me with their hands on their temples.
I proudly declared that I was the one who brought the dead back to life and would bring them back to life again, so it was only natural that people had high expectations of me.
“Please proceed with the canonization as Doris wishes, Your Eminence.”
Canula and Ephero's eyebrows furrowed as if it wasn't the answer they were looking for.
“If such a historic event were to take place, all the people of the country would gather in the capital. My prophecy would come true then.”
“I will cooperate as much as I can, but I will not say anything until I see a miracle happen before my eyes. In particular, the new sun shining on Ronta... Isn’t that a political statement? If you try to make it sound like ‘His Highness the Second Prince’s red eyes are the sun,’ then it could be.”
“If I perform a miracle, even if it is political, you mean to declare it like that?”
“... If you perform a miracle, it will be clear that you are the one who truly received the oracle.”
"Great."
“Well, anyway, the canonization ceremony will proceed as scheduled. Judging from the fact that Her Highness even wrote a letter like this, I think she is planning to do it earlier than scheduled.”
“And please allow me to assist you at the inauguration.”
"Yes?"
“I am the maid of Her Highness. Who would think it is out of the blue that I will serve my master until the end, who wants to leave the palace and live as a Saintess? If I mix in with the priests, I won’t be noticed.”
Teln's gaze lingered on my blonde hair. It was a gaze that was so unnoticeable despite my shiny blonde hair.
“...I can accept that much.”
The High Priest then steadfastly responded to several warnings from Canula and Ephero's nagging and left the mansion.
“I don’t know if it’s okay to send it like that.”
“Don’t worry, Your Highness. The Grand Temple, the Knights Templar, and everything else is under the eyes and ears of this Canula Winster, so they won’t do anything foolish anymore.”
“If you think about the people who were called here for doing something stupid, it doesn’t seem like that’s necessarily the case.”
Canula glanced at Ephero's words that turned her insides upside down.
“That’s when this foolish old woman trusted the High Priest. We have already given the order, so I will be watched twice as much as usual.”
“If only you had done that a long time ago, this wouldn’t have happened. Tsk.”
Canula glared at him again at his sullen tone. The two were polar opposites.
***
After training with Rossi in the mine and gaining magical powers, I returned to my room late at night, exhausted.
Olivia combed my hair for a while and then went back to my room.
Olivia couldn't stay with me for long because she still started crying whenever she recalled even the slightest memory.
"I miss you. I used to dream of you every day, but I haven't dreamed of you since I came to the capital. Today, I'm going to pray to the Lord. Please help me too, because it seems like this is happening because you don't want to see me."
I found the letter, which seemed a little heartbroken, and cute and made me chuckle.
It was a more important and headache-inducing time than ever, but it was bearable because Rhodnes sent me a short letter.
He just wanted me to be safe, but I thought differently.
He had no doubt that he would seize the throne by his own power.
But there were definitely areas where I could help if I wanted to go that route without making as many enemies as possible around me.
I touched the letter that ended with the words, 'Inside you.'
It was a short letter, but it was precious because we couldn't exchange important messages for fear that someone would intercept it.
For a moment, I felt like I went back to my childhood.
As I was staring at the letter, which was like an oasis in the endless desert of anxiety, I suddenly heard a noise outside the window.
It was the first time I heard any noise while staying in Count Acacia's room.
The moment I looked in the mirror, I thought it was just a passing breeze, as this place was safe and guarded by the Marchioness' private soldiers. My body stiffened.
The window, which had clearly been locked, opened wide, and black feet suddenly came in from outside.
The lips that were about to scream suddenly stopped.
“...Adrienne.”
It was a Noevian wearing a black cloak and black clothes.
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