Of course his feelings would not change. He had to give up only because Chloe’s heart never fully came to him in the end.

After Chloe was attacked, he tried once more to protect her, relying on Charlotte’s entreaty, but ultimately could not overcome Chloe’s feelings for the duke.

The pain of that moment when Chloe bit his neck was not the agony of flesh being torn and bones being crushed, but the pain of his heart being ripped apart.

‘I have no choice but to let her go. To this woman, I’m just an old friend. No, I can’t even be an old friend anymore. I just couldn’t beat Hugrey Ulpaz.’

He had clung to every lingering attachment and stubbornness he could muster for her, but Chloe, who had given him warmth like sunshine during his Boergen days that were as dark as pitch-black night, ultimately slipped through his hands like water to find her own love.

If Chloe hadn’t disguised herself as a man and gone to the duke’s family, if he had stopped her more actively then, could he have held onto her? Or was she a light that could never have come to him anyway?

He was sick of mulling over these countless hypotheticals. No matter how much he speculated, it was just a meaningless past, and even if she had stayed in Boergen, she probably wouldn’t have become his personal sunshine.

Thinking about it now, it may be fortunate that Chloe rushed at him without any hesitation. It left him without any lingering attachments.

But…

From the forest house in Boergen

Charlotte Liden]

Seeing even Charlotte Liden’s heart turn to Hugrey Ulpaz, he couldn’t help the bitter taste rising in his throat.

What Light of Elaion – his heart had now lost its warm sunshine and was sinking into darkness. The sense of loss and pain, so deep he couldn’t even fathom where the bottom was, had now become almost familiar.

Beautiful heart? Ha, what was beautiful about it? He was withdrawing because he had no choice but to withdraw. Even his claim that he, a lion emperor rather than a mere wolf beast person, could protect Chloe could no longer be an excuse.

The woman he had loved, Chloe, had become a woman who needed no one’s protection. She had protected herself, and had even become strong enough to protect the two beast cubs who were tearing at each other, blinded by hostility towards a love rival, without thinking of the consequences.

If she hadn’t appeared at that moment, he and Hugrey Ulpaz might have died biting each other to pieces.

Lucky bastard Ulpaz. To have claimed a woman who was the most lovable in the world and also the strongest. Now he even envied that bastard’s irresistible imprinting.

“Pathetic fool.”

He rubbed his face with both hands as if trying to brush something off.

As Charlotte Liden had wished for him, he now had to let Chloe go. It was no longer time to wallow in such misery alone.

There was even a letter from Charlotte Liden’s enemy.

Tuscan Stacston’s letter started abruptly like this, which was also quite amusing.

Who was asking whom to return whom now? Asking to return someone he had never even possessed. Charlotte Liden was telling him to send Chloe, whom he had never possessed, to the duke, and this old king was telling him to return her.

I know that as soon as you ascended to the throne recently, you seized a fortune you couldn’t even handle. I’m talking about the Santal mines where money is gushing out like a spring. You are quite fortunate indeed.]

Reading up to here, Calcus couldn’t help but let out a deflated laugh.

What fortune? This old tiger who didn’t know anything was saying he was fortunate when he couldn’t even have the one thing he wanted. It seemed he had been going on about this nonsense just to say this.

From the King of Tigrium, where the dignity and glory of tigers dwell,

Tuscan Stacston.]

“Huu… It seems he can’t see straight. Telling me to hand over Santal.”

Calcus muttered as he crumpled the letter. The conclusion of this absurd sophistry was ultimately a declaration of war to seize Santal, where the healing liquid was produced.

“What will you do, Your Majesty?”

The head chamberlain asked beside him.

“What else? Tell him to do as he pleases. I have nothing to lose anyway, so war doesn’t sound too bad to me.”

“How can Your Majesty say you have nothing to lose? You are the Emperor of the Elaion Empire!”

The head chamberlain immediately objected to his words. Coming from a family that had served the imperial family for generations and knowing everything about the lion beast person imperial family, the head chamberlain’s loyalty to the emperor was strong enough to be called blind.

‘It seems even in your eyes I appear to have a lot.’

“Right, that’s true. Whether I have much or nothing at all, I don’t want to give anything to this old man, so the conclusion is the same. Santal has never not been Elaion territory, so send a reply saying if he wants to take it, he should come and take it himself. The battle would be good to have around Hound Plains, I think.”

“Yes, understood.”

The head chamberlain answered respectfully. Since Tigrium had provoked first, this was a natural response for Elaion. There was no reason to give up land that was clearly Elaion’s.

“Send an official letter to all beast person families. Tell them that Tigrium has declared war on Elaion and we will respond accordingly. Tell them to choose their stance wisely.”

It meant to remain neutral. Traditionally, other beast person races did not interfere in wars between beast person races. Even in a war between the lion and tiger races, who had established empires and kingdoms, it was no exception. Rather, it being a fight between strong powers made them even more likely to maintain neutrality.

“Yes!”

The head chamberlain answered but did not withdraw, quietly waiting for Calcus’s next order. This couldn’t be the end of it.

Stacston was a skilled man who had reigned as king for a long time. A hundred times out of a hundred, he would attempt to draw the surrounding beast person races to the side of the Tigrium Kingdom through underground maneuvering.

Since war had been decided, if Calcus didn’t intend to lose, he had no choice but to respond to Stacston’s underground maneuvering.

Tap tap tap. Calcus tapped the desk with his right index finger, then wiggled his finger to signal for a map to be brought.

Beast person races with territories within the Tigrium Kingdom would side with Tigrium emotionally even if they didn’t directly participate in the war. In contrast, beast person races within the Elaion Empire would naturally side with Elaion. After all, the interests of the Santal mines were at stake.

However, it was unclear what stance the surrounding small kingdoms would take.

And another thing, it was also unknown what decision the wolf beast people, who had roots in both countries, would make.