Lord Osric Castle.
The banquet hall shone brilliantly under a huge chandelier. Fresh flowers bloomed everywhere he went, and the scent of flowers that had forgotten the season vibrated in the air.
Beyond the glass windows of the banquet hall, it was a cold autumn when the leaves began to fall, but the inside of the banquet hall was as warm as a spring day thanks to the hot water pipes that ran through the entire Castle.
At the same time, it was also proof of how wealthy Osric was.
"When is the governor of Barmia going to show up?"
Quite a while had passed since the banquet started, but the VIP guest everyone was waiting for was still absent.
People's eyes were on the door, and greedy information came and went from their lips.
"It's an open secret that Lord Osric joins hands with the governor to collect back money."
"Don't talk dangerously. But... If our family could add some shares to that 'secret', wouldn't it be different?"
"That's right. My wife also heard it. The reason why Lord Osric became so rich was that he secretly went back and forth with the governor..."
"Ayy, what kind of day and age are you talking about, such a dangerous thing? Of course, if it's legal, our family is willing to participate."
Greed flickered in the people's eyes. No one who remembered the Emperor of Valdina was present here.
They were simply people blinded by the gold flashing before their eyes, and they were ready to do anything to open a new floodgate.
I watched the banquet hall where the greed of the weeping people came and went.
They are Karman's nobles. There is also the Northern Prince's aide.
Bringing in subordinates from the Northern Princes beyond the territories under Ostick's control seemed like quite an ambitious move.
He wonders what they intend to do by gathering the Northern nobles all in one place.
"But we are citizens of the Valdina Empire now, you know. Is it really okay for the governor of a small country like Barmia to make us wait like this?"
A voice filled with complaints was heard from somewhere.
"Still, isn't he the one who will soon succeed to the throne of Barmia?"
"Hmm. Back when the Crown Prince was alive, no one would have dared to even set their sights on the throne. Who would have known that such a formidable figure would meet such a futile end?"
"They say he was assassinated by his doctor back then?"
Lou's hand, which had been fiddling with the decorated fresh flowers, froze.
The woman nearby unfolded a fan, covered her mouth, and lowered her voice.
"However, there is a rumor that the doctor was a Valdina."
"Nonsense! Why would Valdinain get involved in Barmia's succession struggle?"
"It seems he was blinded by the gold. Even back then, Valdina was in a worse situation than Barmia. Relying on the Crown Prince of Barmia would be tantamount to treating kindness like an enemy, considering his status."
The lady shook her head.
"I heard that the Governor-General was so frugal with his power that as soon as he heard the tragic news about my brother, he executed the doctor and his entire family."
"That..."
Lou looked down at his hand. It was scratched from having been hit by the stem.
"It seems they shared a deep bond. He is busily traveling all over the continent, vowing to rebuild Barmia in accordance with the Crown Prince's dying wish. It is no wonder the King of Barmia is considering handing the throne over to him, bypassing the Grandson. Well, in any case, the outcome turned out perfectly well for Governor Lan."
'Hypocrite.'
Lou bit his lip.
Valdina.
The words they spat out like thorns dug into old memories.
"Rosien, don't you remember Valdina? I'd think you would remember."
When she lay on her father's lap, he would stroke her head and ask that.
When she thought of Valdina, the first things that came to mind were the green hills and the cool breeze brushing refreshingly against her cheeks. And the peaceful days of strolling among the wisteria flowers.
"Come here, I told you you'd fall."
"I told you not to go there."
A boy walking hand in hand.
And, sometimes, unknown scenes that surface like a dream.
"Rosien. Ahaha, Uncle will play with you."
She vaguely remembered a man with eyes that held the sky lifting her high in his arms. She also remembered reaching out her hands as far as she could to grasp the dazzling jewel that was sparkling atop his head.
"Your Majesty, daughters are not meant to be treated that way. Go away."
"Go easy on me, man. Our Belle looks like she's lifting a block of wood, but this girl is definitely different. She's like a snarling cat; she'd be perfect as our daughter-in-law."
"Don't even dream of it."
Her father would pull her out and hold her in his arms, glaring at him. A strong scent of medicinal herbs wafted from his embrace.
"Claudio failed, too. I wonder when a daughter will be born to our Royal House of Valdina. The child in Selene's womb is a girl, isn't it?"
"Since Her Majesty the Queen has not given permission, I have no choice but to comply."
"You're acting like this knowing that if it were Selene, I couldn't do it even if I dreamed, right? How petty. Is this all our twenty-year friendship amounts to?"
The man patted her father's shoulder and grumbled. At the edge of the memory, where hearty laughter had been exchanged, the scene was turned upside down once again.
"Why can't you give up the plains? Conquering the plains is a debt that our Valdina cannot afford right now."
Her father's sharp voice burst out from the door.
"Rob, I thought you were the one who would understand me!"
The lonely cry, like a man's scream, too.
"Did you really think that I would support Your Majesty, risking the lives of countless soldiers?"
"It is for the future of Valdina. No matter the cost, I will not let even our children bow at the feet of the Empire."
"What can I do? To me, it sounds like nothing but Your Majesty's cowardly excuse for war."
Bang!
Her father came out, slamming the door shut, and picked her up.
"Let's go, let's leave. Your father can no longer stay here."
After crossing the turbulent sea and wandering here and there, they ended up staying in Barmia.
"Your skills are truly remarkable. Won't you stay in this royal palace? Are these your children? They are so cute."
"Yes. Rosien. Rupert. Say hello."
The Crown Prince of Barmia was a cheerful man. Rosien liked him when he patted her head.
"Hmm, my younger brother got injured at the hunting grounds, so could you take a look?"
"Rosien, is that your name?"
However, she just couldn't bring herself to like that younger brother with the snake-like, fishy eyes.
"Sister, His Royal Highness the Second Prince left a gift. Are you really not going to look at it?"
Lou shuddered every time Rupert brought a gift.
"I hate it. He looks at me every time like a snake eating a frog."
"I guess his gaze was a bit suspicious. Don't worry, I'll make sure to shake him off. Besides, he says he's getting married soon anyway."
There were days when, disliking the gaze that would not leave her despite his height being twice as tall as hers, she would not bother to leave her room whenever the Second Prince came.
Although it was uncomfortable, it was not a bad time under the protection of the Crown Prince and her father.
Except for the shocking news.
It was one day. Her father was hurriedly packing his bags with a dazed look on his face.
"What is wrong, Father? What is the matter that you are in such a hurry?"
"I must return to Valdina. His Majesty the King and Her Majesty the Queen have passed away."
The news of the death of the late King and Queen of Valdina had reached even Barmia. Father stuffed his luggage in with a sorrowful expression.
"How... can I abandon that young Belle all alone? I must go and become that child's, no, His Highness's strength."
Father's hands trembled as he packed his bags, and his voice grew choked with emotion.
"If I had known he would leave in vain like this, if only I had stayed in Valdina."
The father could not shake off the regret that he might have been able to prevent the death if it had been his own medical skills.
Her father went to meet the Crown Prince of Barmia without even a moment to dwell on regret.
It was to say goodbye and say that he would return to Valdina.
"That man executed His Highness the Crown Prince. He is an assassin. Capture that scoundrel immediately!"
Never knowing that that day would be the last.
"Run away, leave this place with your mother, and you two leave immediately!"
Leaving their mother behind, the brother and sister had to flee frantically, led by their nanny.
Not long after hearing rumors of her parents' deaths under the pretext of summary execution, he was surrounded by the 2nd Prince's subordinates before leaving the border of Barmia.
They stood before Joachim just as they were.
"It's you! You're the one who framed my father!"
Joachim's snake-like eyes flashed.
Only then did Rosien realize how fiercely this polished Prince had been planning today's moment beneath the surface.
She could tell. Her family was nothing but his expendables.
"Become my woman, and I will spare the life of my only remaining brother."
The proposal from the young man, who had recently lost his wife and had now become the King's only son, was more chilling than sweet.
Just then, Rupert snatched Rosien by the waist.
"Shut up. I wouldn't let my sister go to a bastard like you, even if I died."
Rupert took out the fuse.
Chiik-!
The fire he lit without hesitation caused the gunpowder barrels buried throughout the bridge to explode in succession.
Kukukukung!
With a huge roar, the stone bridge screamed and collapsed.
In the split second the flames engulfed the night sky, Rupert embraced Rosien and the nanny and threw himself dozens of meters down into the torrent.
Plop~!
Even in the icy water, he did not let go of Rosien. Burning debris rained down, and arrows shot by Joachim's soldiers pierced through the surface of the water.
Rosien made her way out of her younger brother's arms through the rough waters.
She wonders how far she drifted away like that...
"Rupert! Open your eyes!"
When she barely managed to regain her senses and climbed up to the cold riverbank, Rupert was as pale as a corpse.
"You have to stay alive, see lots of good things, and eat lots of delicious things in my place."
He barely opened his eyes, choked up water, and smiled faintly.
"P-Pull yourself together. You can't leave me alone again. If you leave like this too..."
"You don't have to seek revenge, so don't do anything scary like that. Go back to Valdina. Father and Mother wanted to go back too, so live there doing the things you like."
Rupert lifted his head. The day had already dawned.
"They say the sky in Valdina is as blue as a lake... Can you check for me to see if it's really true?"
With a faint smile as his last gesture, Rupert's head drooped weakly.
It was only then that Rosien realized the reason she had been safe from the blast's fragmentation and Joachim's arrow.
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