Strictly speaking, Ilarid was right.

From the beginning, a ‘shadow’ must act as if it doesn’t exist. Openly acknowledging a ‘shadow’ would tarnish the royal family’s reputation, so it should have been carefully controlled.

Ilarid decided to faithfully carry out that duty.

Cledius’s expression twisted at the seemingly naive words of the Empress.

“What…?”

“Ah, we did have some new members join recently. Both Alice and Cecilia. With the sudden increase in people coming and going in the Empress’s quarters, which used to be so quiet you could barely hear voices, it’s understandable there would be some gossip.”

People were bound to notice when more people started frequenting the Empress’s quarters, which previously had extremely few visitors. Ilarid threw a veiled threat at Cledius, suggesting it was probably due to something like that.

I know, but you should pretend not to know.

It was no different from the grave Cledius himself had dug. This was the fate of a man who had gone too far in provoking his wife over the ‘shadow’.

He should have maintained at least a minimum of trust and courtesy between spouses, but he had crossed the line for quite some time in his attempts to corner Ilarid.

The strength visibly drained from his hand holding the sword. Ilarid looked up at the dimming red eyes with a faint smile.

“The mercenary captain is clearly an outsider to anyone, so it’s a situation ripe for baseless rumors to spread. Please show your magnanimity, Your Majesty the Emperor.”

Those who enjoy such rumors might roll this gossip around in their mouths like candy for a few days, but they’ll soon spit it out.

They’ll know that holding onto it for too long will only give them cavities.

The rumors will stop here. If used well, they could even aim for the image of a pitiful Empress victimized by society gossip. With Cledius even drawing his sword, there was no chance of follow-up articles.

This rumor will end as a simple commotion born from someone’s misunderstanding. Now, to soothe the Empress and address the issue of the Gloria Foundation…

“…Send the Empress to the prison tower.”

All eyes in the room focused on Cledius. No warmth could be found on his face as he mentioned prison. It was a completely different attitude from when he was eagerly embracing Selina.

“Your Majesty the Emperor!”

Selina’s shocked scream filled the room. But Cledius didn’t budge, instead gripping his sword even tighter.

It felt as if his anger had already crossed the critical point, but the thread of reason was barely holding it back.

Prison tower for someone with the status of Empress. It was unthinkable.

Selina desperately crawled on her knees towards Cledius. Soon she began clinging to the Emperor’s trouser leg.

“It’s not true, I didn’t do what I’m accused of!”

This was an unexpected punishment. Alice’s expression, standing next to Cecilia, also gradually hardened. Is only the Empress being punished while Count Diobe, one of the people who plotted this, gets off scot-free?

She had instructed Lebel to slip evidence of the Gloria Foundation’s embezzlement into the stack of documents carried by a servant. If she mistakenly mentioned Count Diobe here, it could reveal that this whole affair was fabricated.

After a moment’s deliberation, Ilarid bowed her head before Cledius and pleaded.

“This is too harsh a measure, Your Majesty.”

“There’s no reason to protect her. She dared to besmirch the Empress’s face, so an example must be made.”

“Please change the Empress’s quarters back under the jurisdiction of the Empress. I will take responsibility for punishing the Empress myself.”

A sharp intake of breath was heard simultaneously from both the Emperor and Empress.

“This incident also occurred because the Empress did not receive proper education. Originally, the Empress’s education was the responsibility of the Empress Dowager, but unfortunately that opportunity was missed when the jurisdiction changed. So please hold me accountable for this trouble as well.”

If she couldn’t catch the Gloria Foundation, she aimed to at least catch traces of money laundering flowing through the Empress’s quarters.

And there was another matter Ilarid was speculating about.

If it coincided roughly with the arrival of the Eastern Continent envoys and the schedule of the royal ball, ‘that event’ would certainly happen.

Considering Selina’s recent sensitivity and increased sleep, the possibility wasn’t entirely impossible.

‘Even if it doesn’t happen… I can change the jurisdiction of the Empress’s quarters with this incident. The Marquis and Marchioness of Geminia won’t be able to use the Empress’s quarters for their money games anymore.’

Cledius’s mind must be complicated right now too. Which side to abandon, which would be more beneficial and less damaging.

“The royal ball is not far off. It would be appropriate to give the Empress a chance to show her face and expand her connections, as the Pegaean envoys will also be attending.”

As soon as the words ended, the sound of Cledius sheathing his sword echoed coldly.

“…So be it.”

An unexpectedly easy affirmation was heard. Cledius wrapped his hand around Ilarid’s shoulder. It was closer to a caress than a forceful grip.

“I will return the jurisdiction of the Empress’s quarters to the Empress Dowager. I leave the Empress’s punishment to the Empress Dowager.”

Selina’s cries calling for the Emperor rang out as if they would tear her ears. But Cledius didn’t even glance at Selina clinging to his trouser leg.

Ilarid. For him, only one person was enough.

The color of control and prohibition collided in the air with the light of freedom and progress. But their hearts were misaligned.

Guessing those feelings, Cledius’s lips moved slightly. What he really wanted to say to Ilarid was something else.

Tell me, Ilarid. That you don’t actually love him. That it was just an impulsive act to provoke me.

The gaze that had looked at Lebel in the torture chamber tormented Cledius again.

That look was clearly different from Ilarid’s usual kindness.

It was a deeper concern, a warmth that even conveyed extreme affection.

Though he hated to admit it, it was clearly an action born from love for that man.

After marriage, Cledius had certainly felt that temperature and touch too. At the time, he had taken it for granted as a simple emotion and merely assumed such warmth would last forever.

By the time he realized it had slipped from his grasp, it was already too late. Cledius desperately looked back, but she was slowly moving away, showing her back.

Now only the Empress remained by his side, letting out screams mixed with sobs.

“You said you loved me, why are you doing this!”

“I never said I loved you.”

Not even once.

With that cold, honest truth without a trace of lie, Cledius left as well.

Selina froze like a stone in the position of grasping Cledius’s leg. Only her flowing tears were proof that she wasn’t a statue.

The world she believed was built on love was just a tower constructed of lies.

Love expressed only in words would crumble at the slightest touch, yet in her desperation she had clung to it blindly.

Even though it was all an illusion.

Selina stared blankly at the floor covered in glass shards.

Blurred by tears, even the broken pieces looked like twinkling starlight. The space left behind filled with dampness tinged with salt.

Although she had tarnished the Empress’s reputation, sentencing the Empress to the prison tower was too harsh a measure for someone who hadn’t committed a capital crime.

Ilarid issued a formal confinement order to Selina. And she instructed that a doctor be sent frequently, saying the Empress seemed overly sensitive.

“Lady Chamberlain. If… she’s confined, they won’t starve her or anything, will they?”

The journey back to the Empress’s quarters was fraught with mixed emotions.

Between sighs that couldn’t be openly expressed, Alice asked about her biggest concern. Lynette quietly shook her head and whispered softly.

“It’s not like that. It’s similar to a ban on going out. However…”

Would Ilarid really allow Selina to attend the upcoming ball?

The ball hosted directly by the royal family was one of the biggest social events. It was an important stage to expand connections and further imprint Selina’s existence. Moreover, it was good for making an impression on the newly changed Eastern Continent envoys.

‘If she’s banned from attending the ball, Selina’s position will shrink. That would be more advantageous for Her Majesty the Empress Dowager as well.’

But Ilarid looked serious for a different reason. Alice noticed the Empress Dowager’s concerns and spoke first.

“It’s alright, Your Majesty. Not everyone in the world lives for their children.”

Unexpectedly, there are many guardians who consider only their own desires as the highest priority. Count Diobe was such a person. So he probably just viewed his two daughters as pawns to protect his own interests.

“I’m sorry in many ways, Alice.”

“Not at all! This is all…”

It was clear whose fault it was. But no one could bring themselves to say his name.

Even if Selina had enthusiastically spread malicious gossip about the Empress Dowager, if he had thought about his daughter’s future, he should have stopped at that point. When everything was exposed, he should not have dumped it all on Selina at the very least.

However, Count Diobe chose his own survival and greed.

‘Father, is this how you show your true colors?’

Had the children ever demanded unconditional sacrifice? They had hoped to see at least some semblance of a nurturing guardian and protector.

But there were only instances of Alice and Selina becoming sacrificial lambs for Count Diobe.

And Cledius.

A man who thoroughly used and trampled on one person.

The love Cledius spoke of was nothing but a mass of wounds extracted by exploiting another.

If that was love, Ilarid wanted to reject it completely with her entire life.

**

Eddie’s hand held a paper bag again as he returned to the palace.

‘Of all things, how could you forget the swelling reduction ointment.’

‘I’ve been forgetful lately. I’ll go out again tomorrow.’

That ointment had left in Alice’s hands. Though he didn’t particularly want to receive reports on the progress of her condition, he was oddly curious.

“I wonder if her face has improved…”

Just as he was inadvertently muttering to himself, one corner of the alley became noisy.

A door burst open and several imperial guards came out. They were roughly dragging out a man. Eddie was startled and tried to stop them, but the atmosphere seemed ominous.

“My dad’s not that kind of person! He’s not part of the republican faction!”

“Take your sister inside, hurry!”

Wailing children and the imperial guards binding the man with ropes and dragging him away. The situation was clear without explanation.

The paper bag in Eddie’s hand was suddenly crumpled. People behind him clicked their tongues in pity and whispered.

They said people being arrested like this had been increasing lately. Though Tamiel was said to be dead, oppression and torture hadn’t disappeared completely.

They would make everything that interferes with power disappear from the world.

It was a difficult situation where he couldn’t forcibly stop those carrying out the Emperor’s orders. Eddie had to move his heavy feet while looking back several times at the siblings crying in front of the door.

When he returned to the unit’s quarters in the palace, the members were huddled together in one place. They looked serious, as if looking at something grave.

“Is there something interesting?”

“I can’t accept this.”

“…I agree.”

Lailo was engrossed in the picture in the booklet, not even noticing Eddie approaching. Eddie craned his neck to examine the problematic picture the members were focusing on.

“Don’t tell me this is supposed to be the Captain?”

“…Be quiet.”

Luth gently raised his hand to cover Eddie’s mouth. Lailo had already burst out in anger just before.

“The bastard who drew this has never actually seen the Captain’s face. How could they draw it this badly? Are they joking?”

The direction of his anger seemed to have gone to a strange place, but Eddie agreed on that point.

Didn’t their Captain turn all the men around her into dried seafood just by standing there?

Lailo started pounding his own solar plexus as if overcome with rage.

How dare they draw such a handsome man, who would be the talk of the town for three years after just one encounter, like this? And they probably got paid for it too? It’s shameful as a fellow human being!

While he was ranting and raving, Eddie pointed his finger at the woman lying in bed with Lebel.

“But is this… Her Majesty the Empress?”

“Huh? Where?”

They stared intently at the face of the woman they hadn’t noticed before, distracted by the Captain.

The figure on the paper was none other than the Empress, drawn in a half-naked state.