Benjamin quickly tied the hastily scribbled letter to the black bird’s leg.

Inside was a phrase urging a swift return, along with their secret code indicating that the dreaded event had finally occurred.

At that moment, the Duke, who was absorbing mana near Bihern Gorge, narrowed his eyes upon seeing the black bird in the sky.

‘Ominous.’

Sure enough, Benjamin’s letter contained weighty news that made his heart sink.

It’s the season when flowers bloom. Please return promptly.

A chill ran down his expressionless, cool face. He crumpled the stiff paper and threw it to the monster gaping below the cliff.

The creature’s throat, opening its mouth as if it were food, was as endlessly black as the insides of the woman currently troubling Carlyle’s mind.

The man rose his mountain-like body and picked up the sword he had thrown on the ground.

From the forest behind, the black horse that had been kicking the monster’s lower jaw neighed loudly towards the Duke.

The beast already knew where its master was heading. Straight to the Imperial Palace.

“I thought you’d come earlier, but you’re later than expected.”

The woman looking at Carlyle’s face with glowing red eyes smiled seductively as she undid his cloak tie.

His tightly clenched jaw and cold gaze always excited her.

Carlyle was well aware of this fact.

The secret study of the Imperial Library where forbidden books were kept was a clandestine space unknown to anyone but royalty.

The woman gazing at the man’s face in that dark space, illuminated by ornate oil lamps, was none other than Imperial Princess Mirabel.

She was hailed as the most beautiful woman in the empire.

Her abundant golden hair flowing to her waist and the red eyes inherited from generations past added charm to her flawless beauty.

However, the man standing before her wore a dry gaze that was more than just modest.

No, beyond that, there seemed to be emotions akin to anger or disgust towards her.

Mirabel had tested him several times.

She had ordered seductive maids to tempt him, and even ransacked his study to monitor where his heart was directed.

Mirabel half-closed her eyes, looking up at his tall face, and curled up the corners of her mouth.

“You said it was an indelible lump, so I tried to remove it easily. Did that bother you?”

“She’s a child with no abilities. Is there any reason to kill her and draw public attention?”

She unwrapped her arms from his neck and perched on the desk.

Her thin, long fingers touched the thick golden book in the middle of the desk. She opened the book familiarly and read out a passage.

“The feather of a phoenix living in the eastern mountains, the breath of a dragon living in an active volcano, the lives of ten thousand humans, and lastly, the pure mana possessed by a golden-eyed elf can summon the dead. But to do so, one must… What should be done?”

She asked while caressing the torn last page.

The Duke had no answer.

“Why speak of it? You just need to treat me well.”

Mirabel closed her eyes gently and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Carlyle removed the woman’s arms without changing his expression and answered firmly.

“If you want to have me, be more cunning about it. There are more than a few who need to be removed. Do you intend to create noise by being swayed by personal emotions?”

Mirabel asked in an annoyingly innocent voice.

“Are you angry with me now because of Merius’s child?”

At that naive question, Carlyle clenched his jaw so tightly that thick veins stood out.

“I’ve explained several times. Merius was merely a means to break the curse.”

“I know that too. You wouldn’t take such an unremarkable woman as your duchess without any gain.”

“Then what exactly is the problem?”

“Well, let’s call it a whim. For you to be more affectionate towards me?”

The princess whispered, pulling the man’s chin to her lips.

It was a moist and seductive whisper that gave goosebumps, but the hand pulling her waist showed no thirst.

Carlyle wanted to return to his territory quickly.

But that was impossible. Time always passed slowly with this snake-like woman.

Diana lay in bed, idly passing time.

Although she had been swept away by strong currents to the lower reaches, her body was intact without a single broken part.

‘It must be thanks to Raoul’s protection…’

Even though there were only small scars on her legs and arms, Angela polished Diana as if she were a precious diamond, fed her soft porridge mashed until there were no traces left, put her to sleep like a baby, and made a fuss.

“I’m not hurting anymore…”

“No way. You can’t take a single step out of bed.”

So she had no way of knowing how the world was turning. She had no choice but to lie straight in bed and ask Angela for a pen and paper.

The only thing she could do was spend time answering each letter that arrived for her.

She placed a book stand on her knees and diligently wrote letters.

She sent an apology to Peniche for not attending the birthday banquet, and promised Anthony that she would extend the temporary protection of Sebastian, so there was nothing to worry about.

There were also several unfamiliar names.

Most were inquiries about Diana’s health, and she was about to write replies with gratitude when she received a new sheet of paper.

Angela tilted her head and handed Diana an anonymous letter.

“…There’s a letter without a sender?”

Having been involved in a rough incident recently, Diana’s face darkened.

“…Should I give it to the assistant? It might be a dangerous letter.”

“I’ll look at it first.”

Diana reassured Angela and took the letter.

When she tore off the clumsily attached sealing wax, a stiff piece of paper revealed itself inside.

She quietly began to read each character, one by one.

“…Should I really tell you?”

Angela asked in a worried voice, but Diana smiled slightly and replied, seemingly relieved.

“No. It’s from someone I know. They must have forgotten to write the sender’s name.”

She answered calmly, but confused question marks were floating in Diana’s head.

‘Why did Trian send me a letter?’

Diana slowly read the contents of the letter.

Attend the next palace ball. I want to see your face before leaving for study abroad.

Diana was dumbfounded. It was an insensitive letter in itself, with no regard for her wellbeing or health condition.

‘How am I supposed to attend when I wasn’t even invited…?’

She put the bundle of letters far away and looked at the small bird chirping outside the window.

‘It looks just like a sparrow.’

Diana didn’t know at all, even though she could clearly see the palm-sized bird in front of her eyes.

She didn’t know that Trian had trained a small bird that flew into the detached palace to send Diana a carrier pigeon, nor that the surveillance of the servants was so severe that he couldn’t write a letter comfortably.

Diana’s only joy in her boredom was Raoul, who sneaked into her chambers every night.

In the dead of night when even Angela had gone back, Raoul knocked on her door to entertain Diana, who must have been bored all day.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes. I’ve been fine since last time. How about you?”

“Me too.”

Raoul, usually not very talkative, chattered about his daily routine by Diana’s side.

Diana listened to his stories with pleasure, wearing a fond smile.

“Biche is a klutz. Today he said he wanted to improve his balance, so he tried walking with a water bucket on his head and got all wet.”

“Pfft… He sounds cute.”

“…He’s not really cute. Just seems foolish.”

Biche was the only commoner-born knight Raoul talked to in his previous life as well.

Diana remembered him as a person with a lot of curiosity about different races and an innocent side.

She hoped that Raoul could live more comfortably and safely in the duke’s castle. So people like Biche were always welcome.

“Tell me more. It’s interesting.”

When Diana spoke as if talking to a son who had just returned from school, he grumbled like someone who had something unpleasant but couldn’t express it in words.

“…Sometimes you talk like my mom.”

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

Diana fell into thought for a moment.

‘He said something like this before too. Does he not like being treated like a child, even if it’s puppy love?’

Raoul laid Diana’s head, who was sitting leaning on the bed, onto the pillow and gently bumped his forehead against hers.

“I like you.”

“…Huh?”

“I said I like you.”

“Suddenly…?”

“Yeah.”

Diana blinked slowly.

‘Is he expressing it openly now?’ Diana wiggled her feet hidden under the blanket and blushed.

“You act like mom, so I tried acting like dad…”

‘What, it was just imitating his parents.’ Diana continued the conversation without showing her disappointment.

“Did your father often say he liked your mother?”

“Yeah. He always did this to mom before bed. Saying he loved her.”

“What a harmonious family. That’s why you’re so affectionate… Growing up receiving such love.”

“Not as much as you…”

‘A perfect answer.’ Diana smiled broadly and pulled the summer blanket up to her neck.

‘Come to think of it, Raoul really grew up in a loving family.’ It was a warm scene Diana had never experienced or possessed.

‘I used to want to… have such a family with Raoul too.’

She imagined the future she once dreamed of.

The image of a happy family of three sitting side by side on the bed, having pleasant conversations to end the day.

The wish that used to fill her heart just by thinking about it was now all in the past.

She was content with the current situation.

Raoul didn’t hate her, and Diana didn’t expect anything from Raoul.

It was an extremely peaceful and ideal relationship.

‘Still, it hurts a little to raise him so beautifully and give him away to someone else. Is this how mothers feel when their sons get married?’

The very next day after Diana spent a happy night chuckling, she once again confirmed the reality of her dysfunctional family when she read about her father’s news in the newspaper.