136.

Late in the afternoon, Ro headed straight to the Royal Library, accompanied by her knights. She had braced herself for arguments over being denied entry, but surprisingly, she was granted passage everywhere without resistance. She entered the Royal Library with ease.

The Royal Library resembled a beautiful, antique garden. Beneath a glass dome ceiling, bookshelves packed tightly with volumes were neatly arranged, and elegant round tables were placed here and there.

Of course, Ro didn’t take in the scenery at all—her breath caught in her throat. The sheer scale of books, hundreds or even thousands of times more than she’d read in her entire life, left her utterly clueless about where or how to even begin searching. Ro scanned the nearest bookshelf with weary eyes.

When had she ever been in such a refined place…? When in doubt, asking was the quickest way. Ro stepped before the librarian.

“Ahem.”

“What can I do for you?”

Startled by her presence, the librarian rose stiffly from his seat.

“…….”

Ro noticed his pupils were slightly unfocused. He seemed to be looking at her, yet not really seeing her. That same sense of dissonance she’d felt upon first arriving at the palace crept back up on her. As she stood speechless for a moment, the librarian politely pressed her.

“Do you have business here?”

“……I’m looking for a book. Can you help?”

“What’s the title?”

“Demekaron.”

The answer came immediately.

“As for Demekaron, we only have editions meant for infants.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely certain.”

With a sour expression, Ro turned away from the stubborn librarian. She didn’t have much experience visiting libraries, but was it common for someone to know instantly whether a specific book existed among mountains of volumes? In the end, she decided to search herself. If it truly wasn’t there, there was nothing she could do—but the librarian might be mistaken.

Da, Deo, Di, Deu, De, De… Ro muttered the first syllables as she navigated the narrow aisles between shelves. This direction seemed right, yet the book she sought remained nowhere in sight. Not even the infant edition the librarian mentioned, let alone anything similar.

Truthfully, even if Demekaron’s edition was rare, it wasn’t unobtainable with enough money. Yet she had come to the Royal Library specifically because Nick, that damn scoundrel, had pointed to this particular copy, and that unsettled her deeply. Not just any first or reprinted edition—but specifically the one housed here. That meant something had been hidden, or the content unique to this edition was crucial.

Absentmindedly glancing up at the highest shelf, Ro spotted a thin book tucked into the far corner. De… something. The spine was worn, making it impossible to read clearly. Looking around, she saw nothing to stand on except plush velvet-covered chairs.

There was only one option left. Damn it… This better be sturdy. Ro eyed the lower shelves distrustfully as she placed her foot on a shelf to climb. Just as she was about to push off—

“Dangerous.”

A shadow fell over her, accompanied by the sharp scent of perfume commonly worn by noble men. Ro hadn’t noticed anyone approaching and jumped in surprise. Just moments ago, there had been no one near this shelf… The man reached up and precisely pulled out the very book she had been aiming for. He held it out to her.

“There. I don’t know why you were looking for this, but…”

Ro took the book he offered, disappointed. It wasn’t Demekaron. As she frowned, she suddenly realized the man was observing her. She instinctively stepped back, wary. The man raised both hands, offering a clean, innocent smile.

“Oh, I didn’t mean to startle you. Did you come here looking for this book?”

The man was speaking to her casually, without honorifics. Now that she thought about it, his face was familiar—he was definitely someone she’d seen before… One of those fiancés pushed upon her? The man gave a deflated look at her indifferent demeanor.

“What? Why don’t you remember?”

Ro gave up trying to recall and shrugged.

“Who were you again?”

“Owen Kainbrige. Don’t tell me you’ve lost your memory again?”

Ah! It finally clicked. He was the one who, when she’d been clinging to a wall, pretended to rescue her only to betray her from behind. Back then, new suitors had been introduced to her daily, so the faces of men blurred together—except for Cardier’s. Ro quickly nodded.

“I remember now. I was just confused for a second. Put this back.”

Owen looked down at the book returned to him and asked.

“This wasn’t what you were looking for?”

“No.”

Ro shook her head, and Owen obediently re-shelved the book. He tilted his head slightly.

“Then tell me what book you’re searching for. I’ll help.”

“Didn’t you say you’d help last time, only to stab me in the back?”

“Let’s forget petty grudges.”

He chuckled. Ro narrowed her eyes suspiciously. But she could easily tell there was no other alternative besides Owen.

“Demekaron.”

“……”

“Why? Do you know where it is?”

“……Hard to say.”

At Owen’s response, Ro scoffed dryly. Honestly, if such a smug fellow could find it, she would’ve located it long ago. Ro shrugged once and passed by him to move to the next bookshelf. Then, from behind, Owen called out.

“Why are you looking for that book?”

“What?”

“What do you want to know?”

Ro sensed something strange in his tone. She stopped walking. Turning around, sunlight streaming through the glass ceiling illuminated exactly half of Owen’s face. Ro silently stared at his eyes hidden in shadow, and his nose and lips revealed in the light. There was only one question. She stepped closer to him.

“What can you tell me?”

“I can tell you where Demekaron is.”

“……”

“That book was burned in its entirety at the Royal Library several months ago.”

“How would you even…?”

“Except for one copy.”

Ro watched, mesmerized, as he pulled a book from inside his coat as if by magic. The cover was deep green, with the word ‘Demekaron’ clearly written in golden script. Her heart pounded as fast as if she’d seen a forbidden tome.

“Read it when you’re alone. I don’t know how far the Crown Princess’s eyes reach.”

“Why… give this to me?”

“First, I owe a debt to Cardier.”

Owen raised a finger with a playful look.

“Second, I owe you one too.”

“Debt?”

“You said you’d help but didn’t.”

“That’s it?”

“You dare call that trivial? What do you take a Kainbrige’s promise for?”

Owen spoke seriously, but Ro scoffed. If promises were so important, he shouldn’t have betrayed her in the first place. And now bringing up old debts was just laughable. Ro crossed her arms.

“Fine. What’s the third reason?”

“The third reason is…”

He paused mid-sentence, as if catching his breath. Then he reached out, gently brushing with his fingertips a strand of hair that Anna had skillfully curled and tucked behind her ear. All traces of his earlier playful attitude vanished. His gaze softened with sudden, aching tenderness—so pitiful it stopped Ro from harshly slapping his hand away. He stepped closer, whispering.

“You’re not Lea. Am I right?”

“……”

“What a surprised look.”

Damn it. She had no idea how she’d been found out, but her immediate priority was to feign ignorance. Ro lifted her chin boldly, as if unbothered, and denied it.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You’re curious how I know, aren’t you?”

“I’m not at all—”

“She reached this point already. Long before you came.”

“……”

“And she knew someone would take her body.”

Ro froze, eyes wide. For a moment, she couldn’t tell whether what she’d heard was real or not.

“What do you mean…”

“I realized it too late to turn back. But she realized it late, and I’m only realizing it now. Like a fool, I blindly believed that woman’s words and served her like a limb.”

“……”

Owen seemed unaware of whom he was speaking to, or even what he was saying. His gaze was distant, as if retracing a dream. After silently staring at her face for a while, Owen smiled playfully again—just like when they first met in front of Valdemore Manor.

“That’s why I don’t want to regret twice.”