"So that happened? I'm worried. His remnants still have enough power to reach the imperial palace..."
"You seem to be in a hurry, too. Judging by the fact that you haven't even attempted to cover up the murder, the situation seems dire enough that you can't even think straight..."
While talking with Roderick about the current situation, Hiram tousled his hair as if his mind was in a mess.
He felt anxious, as if something would happen at any moment, but he didn't know where to start or what to do.
"For now, we need to catch the woman who met Byron before we can begin to figure things out. Given the lack of follow-up, there's a chance she won't return."
“Yes, I have scattered the montage at every entrance to the palace, so if she comes and goes, she will be caught right away.”
He sighed deeply and reproached himself with a worried expression.
“The management was lax. It’s all my fault.”
“...Regretting what has already happened won’t change anything, Your Majesty.”
Roderick said with a listless smile.
“Hey, aren’t you too cold?”
"I, too, brought a daughter of the Air family into my home with my own hands. I fully understand Your Majesty's feelings, and I'm telling you this. Now is not the time for regret, but for seeking a solution. Everyone makes mistakes."
When Hiram grumbled in a sad voice, Roderick laughed and cleared up his friend's misunderstanding.
He was just offering some clumsy consolation, but it seemed like the recent series of events had exhausted him, and his tone had become cynical.
“...Yeah. This isn’t the time to be feeling down. You’re right.”
It was when the Emperor clenched his fist again, trying to muster his strength.
“Your Majesty, I have something to report.”
A knock was heard outside the room, along with the investigator's voice.
“Come in. What’s the matter?”
The investigator, who entered the room after receiving permission, spotted Roderick just before opening his mouth and glanced at the Emperor. It seemed he was considering whether to report the matter in public, given the top-secret nature of the matter.
“It’s okay, just tell me.”
"Yes, Your Majesty. We've caught her! The one who entered and exited the prison using a maid's ID. We caught her as she was trying to leave through the main gate of the palace."
Hearing this welcome news, Hiram and Roderick leaped to their feet. They wanted to interrogate her as quickly as possible to find out what she was up to.
“If she were caught going out the main gate with confidence, it means she is qualified to enter and exit the palace...”
Hiram muttered as he hurried to where she was being held.
"Yes, that's right. She showed me her ID, claiming to be a maid at the Crown Prince's palace. At first glance, it didn't seem like a forged ID, but..."
When the investigator who heard the Emperor's soliloquy answered like this, Roderick and Hiram, who were hurrying along, stopped in their tracks.
Because Aila and Winfred were there together.
“Say it again.”
“A maid working at the Crown Prince’s palace...”
They started running towards the Crown Prince's Palace without even listening to the investigator's words or saying who should go first.
They hope nothing happens and that this anxiety is just a worry.
Hiram, in particular, was even more anxious. He was angry at himself for not knowing until now that such a dangerous person had been hiding in his only son's space.
"Please, nothing happens. I was just trying to spend some quality time with you, so why are you interrupting me so tactlessly? You can vent your anger on me, Dad."
Hiram moved his feet, trying hard to suppress his anxiety.
However, his wishes were in vain, and the Crown Prince's Palace was already in disarray as if something had happened.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty...”
“What’s going on?”
“That, that is...”
Joseph, the chamberlain, was about to send someone to tell Winfred what had happened, but he was so devastated that he couldn't open his mouth and trailed off.
Then, in the midst of the commotion, Aila discovered Roderick and ran out into his arms.
"Father...!"
“Aila, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
“Winfred...”
Aila began to explain the situation to Roderick in a trembling voice, but Hiram didn't wait for her to finish and walked towards his son's noisy bedroom.
There lay Winfred, motionless, as if dead. Surrounded by royal magicians and a court doctor.
It felt like his own breath had suddenly stopped as he looked at that sight.
He wanted to rush over and shake his son awake, but Hiram stopped himself with a swipe of his face. He knew that an excited guardian would only interfere with the treatment and not help.
“...How did this happen?”
"Your Majesty. It seems... He's been poisoned. We haven't yet determined what kind of poison was used."
Under the Emperor's angry majesty, the doctor explained the current situation in a hushed voice, as if he were being crushed.
To prevent the poison from spreading, he temporarily slowed his breathing and pulse with magic, but this was only a temporary measure. At the palace doctor's words that he had to quickly find out exactly what poison he had consumed and detoxify it, Hiram staggered and collapsed into his chair.
“How much time can you buy?”
“I think that would be limited to about 24 hours at most.”
24 hours. Hearing that he had to rescue his son within that incredibly short time, Hiram jumped to his feet.
“...Make sure this never reaches the Empress’s ears.”
The first thing he did was to shut his mouth.
Selene's health had recently deteriorated significantly. If she had heard this news, it would have been Selene, not Winfred, who would have been the first to turn away from the world in shock.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Before leaving the room, Hiram took one last look at his son. Every time he saw his pale face, his hands and feet trembled, and he felt like he was going to collapse at any moment, but he squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to keep walking.
“Roderick, let's go.”
At the Emperor's call, Rodrick, who was trying to comfort his daughter, stopped following him and looked at Aila with a worried expression.
“Aila, you...”
“I want to stay next to Winfred.”
Roderick, who was about to say, 'Go home with your mother first,' looked at his daughter's face as she cut him off.
His stubbornly pursed lips and determined expression made it seem impossible to persuade him.
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Roderick sighed and allowed her to remain in the palace. He was about to hastily chase after Hiram, who had already gone ahead.
"Father... If you ever find any clues, please let me know. I'm no expert, but I think it might help."
Aila grabbed Roderick's arm and said.
Roderick, who knew that Byron had taught her toxicology, nodded after a moment of hesitation.
Given the circumstances, it was decided that Aila, who knew both about poison and Byron's power, would be of great help.
As Hiram and Roderick hurried out of the Crown Prince's Palace and arrived at the guardhouse, the investigator greeted them with a puzzled look on his face.
“Welcome, Your Majesty. Your Excellency, the Duke.”
“...Is there a problem?”
As the atmosphere seemed chaotic, Roderick asked cautiously on behalf of the Emperor, who was distraught over Winfred's matter.
“That’s it...”
The investigator began to speak incoherently, his voice flustered.
"When we first caught her, her appearance clearly matched the witness's testimony. But then, suddenly, her hair and eye color changed."
“Her appearance has changed... Have you checked her belongings?”
"Oh, yes. I confiscated two suspicious vials. This way."
In response to Roderick's question, the investigator took out a vial of medicine he had confiscated from the suspect and showed it to him.
One side was a small glass bottle containing a colorless, clear liquid, and the other side was a vial containing a thick, greenish-brown liquid.
“It’s a magic potion that changes the color of your eyes and hair, Your Majesty.”
Roderick opened the vial containing the brown liquid, sniffed it, and opened his mouth. He recognized it because he had seen it several times, as it was a drug often used by criminals to conceal their identities.
“...What were they trying to hide by changing the color of their eyes and hair? You’ll know when you see for yourself.”
Hiram tried to suppress his anger and walked towards the cell where the maid was being held.
And Roderick stared blankly at the remaining vial. If one contained a disguise potion, the other was likely poison.
“Take this vial to the Crown Prince’s Palace. This is urgent, so we must act immediately.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
He handed the vial to the investigator and hurried after his master. He briefly considered taking it himself, but he felt it would be better to stay by Hiram's side, who was unstable at the moment.
Even if it wasn't him, the item would probably be delivered safely since it was entrusted to the Emperor's own secret investigator.
And then, Roderick, who followed Hiram into the detention center, stopped in his tracks when he saw the young woman locked inside.
He was speechless at the sight of a pair of golden eyes staring out through the bars with a terrified face.
“Your Majesty, what is this?”
“...It seems I have a niece I don’t know about.”
Hiram looked at the girl inside the prison cell with a weak smile.
It was a situation that didn't seem like it would be funny at all, but seeing her who looked exactly like Byron was so shocking that he couldn't help but laugh.
"Still no contact from the pharmacy? It's been so long since I took the medicine, and you still haven't heard anything?"
“I, I apologize, Your Majesty. Since there are so many different types of poisons... it will likely take some time for the analysis results to come out.”
The innocent subordinate trembled as he answered Hiram's angry question. The Emperor, usually kind and gentle, was now as sharp as a sharp-tongued porcupine.
Of course, he understood how he felt since it was a reasonable situation, but being scared was a separate issue.
Hiram slammed the table down. Time was running out, and there was no way to detoxify the poison, let alone figure out what it was that Winfred had consumed.
Although he managed to obtain a confession from Byron's illegitimate child, whom he had never known existed, Binka unfortunately did not know the name of the poison she had used to harm the person.
Capella Air, who gave her the poison, was already dead and no longer in this world.
'If only Cloud Air had been awake...'
Cloud should have known what poison his sister-in-law was carrying, but unfortunately, his consciousness still hadn't returned.
Hiram wiped his face with a look of despair.
There are only about twenty hours left. If he can't rescue Winfred within that time...
His anxiety reached its peak, and it felt like even the last thread of reason he was holding onto was flying away.
He jumped up from his seat and headed towards where the mastermind behind all this was being held.
The guard guarding the prison asked with a bewildered expression, surprised by the Emperor's sudden visit.
“Your Majesty, what is the matter?”
“...Open the door.”
As the guard opened the door, Hiram lunged at the prisoner. Before Byron could even recognize the visitor, he had him pinned against the wall and began strangling him.
"You seem to be in a hurry, too. Judging by the fact that you haven't even attempted to cover up the murder, the situation seems dire enough that you can't even think straight..."
While talking with Roderick about the current situation, Hiram tousled his hair as if his mind was in a mess.
He felt anxious, as if something would happen at any moment, but he didn't know where to start or what to do.
"For now, we need to catch the woman who met Byron before we can begin to figure things out. Given the lack of follow-up, there's a chance she won't return."
“Yes, I have scattered the montage at every entrance to the palace, so if she comes and goes, she will be caught right away.”
He sighed deeply and reproached himself with a worried expression.
“The management was lax. It’s all my fault.”
“...Regretting what has already happened won’t change anything, Your Majesty.”
Roderick said with a listless smile.
“Hey, aren’t you too cold?”
"I, too, brought a daughter of the Air family into my home with my own hands. I fully understand Your Majesty's feelings, and I'm telling you this. Now is not the time for regret, but for seeking a solution. Everyone makes mistakes."
When Hiram grumbled in a sad voice, Roderick laughed and cleared up his friend's misunderstanding.
He was just offering some clumsy consolation, but it seemed like the recent series of events had exhausted him, and his tone had become cynical.
“...Yeah. This isn’t the time to be feeling down. You’re right.”
It was when the Emperor clenched his fist again, trying to muster his strength.
“Your Majesty, I have something to report.”
A knock was heard outside the room, along with the investigator's voice.
“Come in. What’s the matter?”
The investigator, who entered the room after receiving permission, spotted Roderick just before opening his mouth and glanced at the Emperor. It seemed he was considering whether to report the matter in public, given the top-secret nature of the matter.
“It’s okay, just tell me.”
"Yes, Your Majesty. We've caught her! The one who entered and exited the prison using a maid's ID. We caught her as she was trying to leave through the main gate of the palace."
Hearing this welcome news, Hiram and Roderick leaped to their feet. They wanted to interrogate her as quickly as possible to find out what she was up to.
“If she were caught going out the main gate with confidence, it means she is qualified to enter and exit the palace...”
Hiram muttered as he hurried to where she was being held.
"Yes, that's right. She showed me her ID, claiming to be a maid at the Crown Prince's palace. At first glance, it didn't seem like a forged ID, but..."
When the investigator who heard the Emperor's soliloquy answered like this, Roderick and Hiram, who were hurrying along, stopped in their tracks.
Because Aila and Winfred were there together.
“Say it again.”
“A maid working at the Crown Prince’s palace...”
They started running towards the Crown Prince's Palace without even listening to the investigator's words or saying who should go first.
They hope nothing happens and that this anxiety is just a worry.
Hiram, in particular, was even more anxious. He was angry at himself for not knowing until now that such a dangerous person had been hiding in his only son's space.
"Please, nothing happens. I was just trying to spend some quality time with you, so why are you interrupting me so tactlessly? You can vent your anger on me, Dad."
Hiram moved his feet, trying hard to suppress his anxiety.
However, his wishes were in vain, and the Crown Prince's Palace was already in disarray as if something had happened.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty...”
“What’s going on?”
“That, that is...”
Joseph, the chamberlain, was about to send someone to tell Winfred what had happened, but he was so devastated that he couldn't open his mouth and trailed off.
Then, in the midst of the commotion, Aila discovered Roderick and ran out into his arms.
"Father...!"
“Aila, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
“Winfred...”
Aila began to explain the situation to Roderick in a trembling voice, but Hiram didn't wait for her to finish and walked towards his son's noisy bedroom.
There lay Winfred, motionless, as if dead. Surrounded by royal magicians and a court doctor.
It felt like his own breath had suddenly stopped as he looked at that sight.
He wanted to rush over and shake his son awake, but Hiram stopped himself with a swipe of his face. He knew that an excited guardian would only interfere with the treatment and not help.
“...How did this happen?”
"Your Majesty. It seems... He's been poisoned. We haven't yet determined what kind of poison was used."
Under the Emperor's angry majesty, the doctor explained the current situation in a hushed voice, as if he were being crushed.
To prevent the poison from spreading, he temporarily slowed his breathing and pulse with magic, but this was only a temporary measure. At the palace doctor's words that he had to quickly find out exactly what poison he had consumed and detoxify it, Hiram staggered and collapsed into his chair.
“How much time can you buy?”
“I think that would be limited to about 24 hours at most.”
24 hours. Hearing that he had to rescue his son within that incredibly short time, Hiram jumped to his feet.
“...Make sure this never reaches the Empress’s ears.”
The first thing he did was to shut his mouth.
Selene's health had recently deteriorated significantly. If she had heard this news, it would have been Selene, not Winfred, who would have been the first to turn away from the world in shock.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Before leaving the room, Hiram took one last look at his son. Every time he saw his pale face, his hands and feet trembled, and he felt like he was going to collapse at any moment, but he squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to keep walking.
“Roderick, let's go.”
At the Emperor's call, Rodrick, who was trying to comfort his daughter, stopped following him and looked at Aila with a worried expression.
“Aila, you...”
“I want to stay next to Winfred.”
Roderick, who was about to say, 'Go home with your mother first,' looked at his daughter's face as she cut him off.
His stubbornly pursed lips and determined expression made it seem impossible to persuade him.
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Roderick sighed and allowed her to remain in the palace. He was about to hastily chase after Hiram, who had already gone ahead.
"Father... If you ever find any clues, please let me know. I'm no expert, but I think it might help."
Aila grabbed Roderick's arm and said.
Roderick, who knew that Byron had taught her toxicology, nodded after a moment of hesitation.
Given the circumstances, it was decided that Aila, who knew both about poison and Byron's power, would be of great help.
As Hiram and Roderick hurried out of the Crown Prince's Palace and arrived at the guardhouse, the investigator greeted them with a puzzled look on his face.
“Welcome, Your Majesty. Your Excellency, the Duke.”
“...Is there a problem?”
As the atmosphere seemed chaotic, Roderick asked cautiously on behalf of the Emperor, who was distraught over Winfred's matter.
“That’s it...”
The investigator began to speak incoherently, his voice flustered.
"When we first caught her, her appearance clearly matched the witness's testimony. But then, suddenly, her hair and eye color changed."
“Her appearance has changed... Have you checked her belongings?”
"Oh, yes. I confiscated two suspicious vials. This way."
In response to Roderick's question, the investigator took out a vial of medicine he had confiscated from the suspect and showed it to him.
One side was a small glass bottle containing a colorless, clear liquid, and the other side was a vial containing a thick, greenish-brown liquid.
“It’s a magic potion that changes the color of your eyes and hair, Your Majesty.”
Roderick opened the vial containing the brown liquid, sniffed it, and opened his mouth. He recognized it because he had seen it several times, as it was a drug often used by criminals to conceal their identities.
“...What were they trying to hide by changing the color of their eyes and hair? You’ll know when you see for yourself.”
Hiram tried to suppress his anger and walked towards the cell where the maid was being held.
And Roderick stared blankly at the remaining vial. If one contained a disguise potion, the other was likely poison.
“Take this vial to the Crown Prince’s Palace. This is urgent, so we must act immediately.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
He handed the vial to the investigator and hurried after his master. He briefly considered taking it himself, but he felt it would be better to stay by Hiram's side, who was unstable at the moment.
Even if it wasn't him, the item would probably be delivered safely since it was entrusted to the Emperor's own secret investigator.
And then, Roderick, who followed Hiram into the detention center, stopped in his tracks when he saw the young woman locked inside.
He was speechless at the sight of a pair of golden eyes staring out through the bars with a terrified face.
“Your Majesty, what is this?”
“...It seems I have a niece I don’t know about.”
Hiram looked at the girl inside the prison cell with a weak smile.
It was a situation that didn't seem like it would be funny at all, but seeing her who looked exactly like Byron was so shocking that he couldn't help but laugh.
***
"Still no contact from the pharmacy? It's been so long since I took the medicine, and you still haven't heard anything?"
“I, I apologize, Your Majesty. Since there are so many different types of poisons... it will likely take some time for the analysis results to come out.”
The innocent subordinate trembled as he answered Hiram's angry question. The Emperor, usually kind and gentle, was now as sharp as a sharp-tongued porcupine.
Of course, he understood how he felt since it was a reasonable situation, but being scared was a separate issue.
Hiram slammed the table down. Time was running out, and there was no way to detoxify the poison, let alone figure out what it was that Winfred had consumed.
Although he managed to obtain a confession from Byron's illegitimate child, whom he had never known existed, Binka unfortunately did not know the name of the poison she had used to harm the person.
Capella Air, who gave her the poison, was already dead and no longer in this world.
'If only Cloud Air had been awake...'
Cloud should have known what poison his sister-in-law was carrying, but unfortunately, his consciousness still hadn't returned.
Hiram wiped his face with a look of despair.
There are only about twenty hours left. If he can't rescue Winfred within that time...
His anxiety reached its peak, and it felt like even the last thread of reason he was holding onto was flying away.
He jumped up from his seat and headed towards where the mastermind behind all this was being held.
The guard guarding the prison asked with a bewildered expression, surprised by the Emperor's sudden visit.
“Your Majesty, what is the matter?”
“...Open the door.”
As the guard opened the door, Hiram lunged at the prisoner. Before Byron could even recognize the visitor, he had him pinned against the wall and began strangling him.
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