That night, the warehouse where some of Melpiram’s soldiers were imprisoned burned down completely. There were no survivors.

Even among the imperial guards protecting the surroundings, only a few survived. It was because Melpiram’s soldiers had seized weapons and resisted until the very end.

Lebel’s shoulders trembled as he heard the news about Melpiram while people passed by murmuring.

The whispers that Melpiram had completely disappeared from the world, and only Her Majesty the Empress remained in the imperial palace, pierced his lungs like needles.

Lebel staggered and slumped down in a corner of an alley. Even though it was midday, this place was suitable for hiding as it was shaded by buildings and light didn’t penetrate well. He curled up his entire body, raising his knees.

‘……Henry Haskell.’

A person’s name flowed from Lebel’s lips. It was the name of the soldier who had first rushed towards the door inside the warehouse.

‘Matran Weave. Belton Haine……’

He remembered them all. He engraved each of their names and faces.

The warmest moments he had felt at the Melpiram mansion were melted into the names. His hands, which were gripping his raised knees, involuntarily tensed.

‘I will never forget.’

Even if Melpiram had disappeared from the world, if even one person remained who remembered, it wouldn’t be a complete extinction.

‘……Limless Rowen Melpiram.’

If he had had a blood brother, would it have felt like this? The young master who treated everyone equally regardless of origin and status. Even when he grumbled, there was always affection in his words.

Recalling it again, his throat felt blocked as if a ball was stuck in it. Perhaps because he was forcibly holding back tears, his breathing became rapid and his solar plexus ached dully.

And then…….

With a gasp, Lebel’s eyes opened.

His entire body was stiff, as if he had fallen asleep in the same position he had collapsed in. As he managed to raise his body, a blanket slid off. It seemed one of the members had covered him.

Had he bitten his lip without realizing? He tasted the tang of blood in his mouth. Lebel wiped his lips with the back of his hand as he sat on the edge of the bed.

The last name he wanted to remember, he couldn’t bring himself to utter aloud. It was a person who had now become an existence he dared not even name.

‘Ilarid.’

My lady. The one and only light in the world who first reached out her hand.

The name ‘Lebel’ that came from Ilarid’s lips was beautiful. Although every word from her lips was brilliant, it was the first time he realized that a name could feel that way.

The moment she called “Lebel”, the voice carrying the name shattered into pieces and burrowed into Lebel’s fingertips. Those dazzling fragments flowed through his blood vessels and spread throughout his entire body.

From that moment on, Ilarid existed as part of him.

It was night and everyone was asleep; no one would hear his voice. Lebel barely opened his blood-caked lips and uttered a single name.

“Ilarid.”

At the end of the name spoken aloud, there was a tremor. Unable to dare call it to her face, he could only call it hidden in the darkness.

Even if he were to be used as a tool, he would gladly accept it. As long as he could remain by her side, he would be willing to become anything for Ilarid.

“For you, I will live on.”

It would be his first vow and final promise. That this time, he would not leave her side, that he would surely keep it.

Lebel quietly bit his wound. Inside his lip, the annoying bleeding continued.

**

“Your Majesty the Empress.”

“Hm?”

“Aren’t you tired?”

Lynette looked down at the desk with disgust. How many times had she transcribed this already?

Watching her silently copy that musty, old-fashioned content that smelled of age made even her remaining appetite disappear.

Those ancient passages droning on and on about the virtues of an empress. Every single one of them was far removed from the Ilarid that Lynette knew.

“It’s enough to make one dizzy just looking at it. I’m worried about your wrist too.”

“There’s nothing better for organizing one’s thoughts. And don’t worry about my wrist. Believe it or not, these hands have held guns a few times.”

“But there are other books too, aren’t there? Even I’m getting bored just watching.”

There were books on politics and philosophy, as well as plays and essay collections. Those seemed better for calming the mind.

‘She’s probably hesitating more for fear of arousing suspicion……’

She might be driven into a corner for reading books with strange content. After all, hadn’t her entire family been massacred on charges of plotting rebellion?

After being lost in thought for a moment, Lynette seemed to have made a decision and sidled up close to Ilarid.

“Your Majesty. How about a romance novel?”

“What?”

Ilarid laughed off Lynette’s words as if they were absurd. But she seemed sincere as she pressed her lips together and spoke seriously.

“I’m being serious. I’ll have the maid girls fetch some popular romance novels from the capital.”

“We might get in trouble for no reason.”

“Throw me under the carriage. Say the head lady-in-waiting of the Empress’s Palace is collecting steamy romance novels because she’s lovesick.”

“Alright. Then please get the hottest one you can find.”

Ilarid said it jokingly, but Lynette seemed to have really made up her mind as she left the office with a determined look in her eyes. Watching her rigid posture, worry slowly crept into Ilarid’s eyes.

‘She’s not really going to bring some, is she?’

Surely she wouldn’t. After Lynette left, Ilarid quietly pulled out other papers hidden between the transcription sheets.

In truth, the content of what she was copying didn’t matter. The transcription itself was a kind of smokescreen.

In Ilarid’s hands were letters from local nobles and some recently prominent new wealthy individuals promising cooperation. Most used pseudonyms, while some boldly wrote their real names.

The newly wealthy were mostly commoners without noble titles. But they had quite high social prestige. Most were cases of people who had built their fortunes through their own abilities, like school teachers, lawyers, doctors, or factory owners.

The wealth they had accumulated was by no means insignificant. However, the nobles despised them. They whispered that they were uncouth creatures who only cared about money, but Ilarid was different.

‘Their time will come in the future.’

There were only two ways to meet them without any suspicion at present. The imperial ball and charity events.

If she announced a bazaar to help disabled veterans and aid the poor, people’s reactions would be quite favorable.

‘The schedule should be after the ball.’

There was always a salon that offered its space. The owner quite liked it, saying it was good publicity to host good events. Even though it was still a few months away, it would be better to contact them in advance.

Ilarid picked up her pen and wrote a letter to Duchess Örgen, who was in charge of venue rentals. She was almost the only noble in the capital who was favorable towards Ilarid.

One must always prepare meticulously. Even if her breath catches in her throat and her whole body freezes, she must sharpen her senses and look in all directions.

Her hands grew colder and colder. Ilarid carefully wrapped her hand holding the pen. The hand already full of coldness showed no signs of warming up easily.

Lynette deliberately submitted an outing permit and left the imperial palace. It had been a while since she had officially gone out. Until now, it had been common to secretly sneak out with Ilarid, so the honest method felt rather awkward.

She thought about taking a carriage but didn’t want to stand out. She quickly threw on an outdoor cloak and deliberately left through the back door.

The last time she went out with Ilarid under the pretext of a secret outing, Cledius’s surveillance had been attached.

‘It was for protection, Empress.’

Despite Ilarid’s protest, Cledius had replied indifferently. But Ilarid was not foolish enough to not distinguish between protection and surveillance.

Fortunately, there was no surveillance this time. It was a quiet outing to get something she needed, and since she wasn’t going anywhere suspicious, Lynette’s footsteps were confident.

The streets were still lively. Lynette began looking for a bookstore while dodging oncoming carriages and horses.

In the midst of this, a large building under construction came into her view. Loud construction noise echoed through the white screens.

‘When did they start construction……?’

She hadn’t noticed during the last Founding Day celebration. Just by looking, it seemed to be some grand structure being built.

Lost in thought while staring at the building for a while, Lynette even forgot that someone was approaching nearby.

“Are you curious?”

“Oh my! Wh-who are you?”

“Me? I’m the owner of this building.”

A tall woman winked at Lynette.

She seemed to have just passed her mid-thirties. With a fancy hat and a black cane in one hand, she looked rather extraordinary.

Her attire was stylish yet comfortable, and her vibrant deep auburn hair waved energetically under her hat.

It was the first time Lynette had heard of a woman owning a building alone in the empire. Perhaps she was new to the capital? While Lynette was calming her startled heart, the woman chatted sociably, sticking close to Lynette’s side.

“We’re planning to open a cafe on the first floor, and the second and third floors will all be guest rooms. It would be nice to have a large hall like a seminar room too. Oh, we’re building a hotel.”

“I see……”

“Nice to meet you. I just came up from the provinces, so I don’t have many friends. When I see women, I just want to become friends and talk to them. But I haven’t had many chances to make friends.”

Could she be a newly wealthy person of common origin? Lynette gazed at the bright and energetic woman.

Usually, no matter how much money they had, they couldn’t enter the salons frequented by noble ladies. There were limits to entering high society as well. Even if they did enter, they often left disgusted by the cold treatment from noble women.

If she had enough wealth to build a hotel in the capital, she should have enough to buy a title, but was it pride or was there another reason? While Lynette was lost in thought, Marsha asked tirelessly.

“When the hotel is completed, would you like to come visit?”

“Ah, I’m a bound person……”

She was quite a talkative woman. Feeling burdened, Lynette took a step back and waved her hands.

When she said “bound person,” did she take it to mean married? The woman covered her mouth with her hand and opened her eyes wide.

“You’re married! I’m sorry. I jumped to conclusions and spoke carelessly.”

“No, no. I’m not married, but there are circumstances……”

The eyes of the two women, both wearing apologetic expressions, met and soon light laughter burst out. What an unusually friendly woman, approaching a stranger so warmly. She was certainly not an ordinary person.

The woman held her cane and bowed gracefully towards Lynette.

“I’m Marsha. Marsha Wenley.”

“I’m Lynette.”

The pounding hammer sounds buried their greetings, but their voices were bright.

Lynette had to quickly leave, glancing around nervously, as the expectant Marsha asked for her address, saying she would invite her when the hotel was completed someday.

Years later, when Lynette and Marsha recalled this meeting, they would smile, saying it was quite a historic first encounter.

**

The journey back to the imperial palace after finishing her business at the bookstore was smooth.

Lynette glanced at the books that children who looked like employees of noble houses were buying with a fuss at the bookstore. Most had thin and clear titles, but the content was certainly interesting.

Stories like a man she accidentally bumped into on the street turns out to be the crown prince and they become entangled, or a girl who just arrived from the countryside enters a mansion as a maid and falls for the young master of the house.

Lest there be any fault found, Lynette picked up a few books with the most wholesome-looking content. Though she doubted whether Ilarid would be interested in such stories.

As she was quietly entering through the back door, she saw several luxurious carriages in the distance.

‘That’s the road heading to the Empress Consort’s Palace.’

Lynette’s eyes narrowed. Come to think of it, she had heard that recently more noble ladies had been visiting the Empress Consort’s Palace.

Most were wives of high-ranking officials who were pro-emperor and had been loyal to the imperial family for many years.

They never came empty-handed. Lynette saw a lady alighting from a carriage, followed by servants unloading several items from the carriage behind. She naturally moved her feet towards the direction of the Empress Consort’s Palace.