“Luhan. I brought Latifa for you.”

“……?! What?”

Startled by the statement, Luhan, who had been staring blankly, looked at Hades in surprise. But Hades remained silent.

Luhan, gripping his own wrist, or more precisely, the bracelet he was wearing, urged Hades with urgency.

“What, what are you talking about? Bringing Latifa for me?”

“……. ”

“Hades! I’m asking you what you mean!”

Although Luhan’s attitude seemed desperate, Hades responded coldly without even making eye contact.

“My mission is for you, with the legitimate royal bloodline, to become the sultan. Bringing her was purely to assist you in becoming the sultan. So, I brought her for you.”

Hades’ words, which carried a hint of vitality, made Luhan quickly lower his head and tightly clasp his bracelet. Even under the scorching sun, cold sweat began to form on Luhan’s back.

“Is it okay for someone aiming to become a sultan to fall for such wordplay?”

“Hades.”

“Discard that.”

“……!”

“I don’t want to say it twice.”

As the fast-paced drumming echoed through the cheerful melody, Luhan’s hands and feet were gradually getting colder. Responding to Hades’ questioning words, Luhan, in his despair, realized how pathetic he must look.

“I severed ties with her. You should know better than anyone what I severed. My long-time friend.”

As Hades declared that he had severed ties, Luhan, suspecting the implications, raised his head and looked at Hades with sad eyes.

Chewing on his lower lip, Luhan, who had been silent for a while, looked at Latifa dancing with Asti and sighed heavily, then grabbed Hades’ arm.

“Please, Hades. I’ll keep it in my heart.”

“Keep it?”

Hades’ brow narrowed in an instant, and a harsh tone emerged from his rough voice.

“Luhan. You are the prince of the Grand Bazaar, inheriting the bloodline of the authentic royal queen. Damn it! You shouldn’t even think of sullying your noble bloodline!”

“How can you even consider handling Latifa? Just looking at her, or even smelling her fragrance is fine. So, please, Hades!”

“Discard it!”

Hades flicked his hand towards Luhan’s wrist. However, Luhan firmly pushed Hades’ arm away and glared at him with a determined expression.
When Hades stopped in surprise at Luhan’s venomous eyes, Luhan spoke with a restrained voice as if barely containing his anger.

“If you try to forcibly hold onto the flames of Amor, you know what will happen.”

“If that’s the case, what can you do for Latifa?”

“What?”

“I made her into a goddess. What can you make her into? A prince’s maid? A concubine? I didn’t bring Latifa to the desert just to make her something as insignificant as that.”

“I…!”

Facing the harsh reality calmly, Hades’ words only received a direct stare from Luhan. In Luhan’s night-colored eyes, hot tears were pooling.

“It’s just a momentary interest born out of curiosity. Even that flame of Amor you believed in will soon wither.”

Hades spoke soothingly with a soft sigh, and Luhan slowly pulled his bracelet with trembling hands. However, he hesitated, reluctant to sever the connection.

Clang!

In the end, Hades forcefully grabbed it, tearing it apart, and the platinum string around Luhan’s arm weakly snapped off.

“You don’t need to snatch it away like that, Hades!”

“You have everything. Don’t even think of taking the scraps of a madman.”

With a warning tone, Hades spoke and left without a trace. However, Luhan, watching him disappear, kept staring at the fallen bracelet and quickly picked it up again.

“Latifa! You look really beautiful, like a true goddess! It’s too good for that lunatic!”

Around Latifa, who was now surrounded by people dancing, she held onto Asti’s chubby arms and danced energetically to the music.

“The princess is really good at dancing!”

“Of course! I’m a princess, so I’m good at everything!”

“Asti is a princess!”

Even Tikkan, sitting on Asti’s head, shouted as if he were ecstatic.

In the gap between the exciting music and cheerful people, Latifa’s reserved dance moves seemed to be gradually becoming bolder.

“I never thought we’d have such a splendid coming-of-age ceremony!”

Forgetting the earlier shivers, everything now seemed beautiful and perfect.

Thunk!

“Make way for Princess Pig.”

Until a thick and sturdy male hand suddenly appeared and grabbed Latifa’s wrist, that is.

“Ah, Hades!”

Asti grabbed Latifa’s waist and pulled her away.

“No! Latifa is dancing with me, you lunatic!”

Being called a lunatic, Hades, with a slightly raised eyebrow, retorted harshly to Asti.

“Pig, pig, pig.”

“Hades! What are you saying to the princess!”

“Ugh! Lunatic! Lunatic! Lunatic, Hades!”

But Asti, too, didn’t back down and shouted loudly at Hades.

“That’s right, Princess Pig. Please let go of Latifa, the madman’s frau.”

Hades forcefully pulled Latifa, and she was drawn towards him. Latifa, pulled along, quickly shouted towards Asti, who was angrily voicing his complaints.

“Princess! I’ll be back soon!”

“Madman! Come here now?! Latifa!”

“No, I can’t let you go again.”

Although it seemed like Hades’ muttered words were audible, the surroundings were too noisy to hear clearly. However, she could feel that the hand holding hers was very warm.

Without a word, Hades dragged Latifa away, pushing her into a deserted gazebo with an intricately elevated dome.

Under the support of pillars adorned with pink wisteria, it was a cozy and cute gazebo.

Standing under those lovely pillars, Latifa leaned against them, gazing worriedly at Hades with a slightly raised head.

“Why are you like this? What’s wrong? Did something happen? Did a complaint come from Shadi, perhaps?”
However, Hades silently stared at her without uttering a word.

Feeling a bit uneasy under his direct gaze, Latifa slightly turned her head and gently touched the beautiful pink flower petals climbing up the pillar.

At that moment, Hades’ hand wrapped around her white wrist, and he softly murmured, “I think I was wrong.”

After uttering those words, Hades leaned in, bringing his face close to Latifa’s neck as if crumbling down.

Amidst the beautifully arranged gazebo scenery, along with the sweet scent of fruit liquor, there was a somewhat dreamy atmosphere.

Behind his eyes, slightly unfocused due to the influence of alcohol, flickered crimson flames.

What could those crimson flames symbolize?

“Goodness. I was wrong, Latifa.”

And then, in an instant.

His moist lips, soaked in the fruit liquor, roughly covered Latifa’s lips, as if he intended to devour her.