The unspoken scream and resentment boiled like lava in her head.

The corner of Roxiana’s lips twisted.

“She was a very good friend.”

Her voice trembled finely at the end, unable to stop the bitterness in her tone. Floyd, who had been staring at her intently, said:

“Your Highness’s good friend has become the lord of Kingteren.”

Only then did Roxiana raise her head to look at Floyd.

“She became a lord?”

“Yes.”

There was no trace of jest in his calm reply.

Roxiana was puzzled.

‘Became a lord? I thought she’d be desperately trying to marry Lucas…’

She didn’t know then, but now that she thought about it, there were things she could understand.

Things like the way Elise looked at Lucas, or Lucas’s attitude towards Elise.

Elise gazed at him with admiration, and Lucas’s voice softened when he spoke of her. Elise envied Roxiana who was to marry him, and Lucas praised Roxiana for having a friend like her.

−”Elise is a good woman. She’s cute and kind. She’ll surely meet a good man.”

−”Your Highness must be so fortunate. The Crown Prince is truly kind, isn’t he? And so handsome. Everyone must envy you.”

She realized the emotions behind those words far too late.

After her mind was filled with thoughts of revenge against Lucas and Elise, when she imagined what they might be doing, there was only one thought.

She thought they’d be entangled on a bed, mocking the foolish Franche royal family and the stupid princess. Meanwhile, she thought Elise would be struggling to secure her place by Lucas’s side.

But Elise had defied Roxiana’s expectations.

‘What kind of place is Kingteren?’

Roxiana knew Gania well. She had learned and mastered what she needed to know to become the future queen of Gania.

Gania’s lands, internal and external issues, major nobles, culture, trends, festivals…

Among them was the city of Kingteren.

‘Kingteren could become a transportation hub connected to several cities. If road construction is done well, lodging facilities are improved, and restaurants and entertainment are added, it could become a city frequently visited by travelers and merchants.’

She recalled planning to ask Lucas to develop this area after their marriage while looking at the map of Gania.

‘Well, if Elise had stayed by Lucas’s side, there’s no way she could have become queen.’

A woman from a fallen kingdom. Moreover, from a family that committed crimes and was exterminated in that fallen kingdom. Even if invisible, that stigma would follow Elise for life.

Gania’s inflexible nobles would never accept such an Elise as the Crown Princess. At best, Elise would have been treated as Lucas’s most cherished mistress.

But Elise chose a way to cover the stigma placed on her.

‘Elise couldn’t have thought of this alone.’

Just as Elise knew Roxiana well, Roxiana knew Elise well too. Unless another being had entered her, Roxiana didn’t think Elise would have chosen such a method on her own.

‘It seems you’ve found a good strategist, Elise.’

Roxiana unknowingly bit her lip hard. Floyd, who had been watching her, reached out and gently pressed his thumb against her lower lip.

Startled by the sudden warm sensation on her lips, Roxiana relaxed her mouth. His finger touching her lips. The blood-red hatred that had filled her mind until just moments ago subsided instantly.

“Are you angry?”

His ash-gray eyes shone as if piercing through Roxiana’s inner thoughts. Roxiana wanted to avoid his gaze, feeling as if he might see through her, but she managed to answer without averting her eyes.

“No.”

“That’s strange.”

He removed his thumb and leaned back against the sofa.

“It would be normal to be angry. Even I, who have no connection, feel upset.”

“What would change if I got angry? There’s nothing to gain by getting angry when nothing will change.”

Floyd didn’t seem to believe her words. Roxiana, embarrassed that she had momentarily revealed her emotions so clearly, picked up her teacup as if nothing had happened.

“What will Your Highness do?”

“About what?”

“Your good friend has become a lord, albeit of a small territory. Will you remain as you are?”

At his probing tone, Roxiana felt a surge of anger.

“What can I do? Didn’t His Majesty want me to fold my wings and sit quietly in a cage, just breathing?”

“I could move the cage you’re confined in to another place. Torkan is vast. Shall I carve out a territory for you in the safest area?”

It was a sweet temptation. She wanted to shamelessly and brazenly beg him to do so.

But Roxiana thought she couldn’t reach Lucas and Elise that way. To bring down not just Elise but Lucas as well, she needed something more solid that wouldn’t crumble.

She didn’t know what that was yet, but it certainly wasn’t a territory in the safest part of Torkan.

“Your Majesty’s mockery is excessive.”

“Mockery? I’m sincere. Do you think I can’t spare a territory for Your Highness?”

“Why are you doing so much for me? What am I to Your Majesty?”

At the casually thrown question, Floyd’s shoulders stiffened.

‘That’s right.’

Floyd himself was a mystery.

‘Why am I trying to do so much for the princess?’

It was too much to be because of past favors. He thought he had repaid the favor of briefly staying in Kanta when he had nowhere to go by rescuing her from the narrow box on the merchant ship.

Then was it because he needed her strange power?

No, not that either. Floyd had lived well without her power and would continue to do so. He didn’t need Roxiana’s power to make Torkan prosper.

‘Then why?’

Suddenly, Lucas’s face came to mind.

That face he had tried to forget and had somewhat succeeded in forgetting. That terribly cruel face that smiled amusingly in front of his mother’s burned corpse. Even the kick that nudged his mother’s corpse.

He suppressed the sudden surge of anger by clenching his fist tightly.

Floyd stared at Roxiana’s beautiful face as she looked down at her teacup. With flawless skin, she was like a work of art carefully crafted by God, and she was once Lucas’s fiancée.

For some reason, Lucas hated her enough to sell her into slavery instead of killing her along with her family.

‘And I’m keeping that woman he hates.’

The fact that Roxiana wasn’t sold to the Hoburn Islands but was staying at the Grand Duke’s palace in Torkan, treated as an honored guest, would soon reach Lucas’s ears.

‘Then, what kind of expression will you make?’

He hadn’t thought about it until now, but now that he did, Floyd thought it might be quite fun to watch that bastard’s face contort upon seeing Roxiana by his side.

‘Then, is that why I’m keeping the princess?’

It might be. Perhaps, without realizing it, there was an underlying desire to give Lucas a hard slap on the back of his head.

Thinking that way, he could explain why he had been treating Roxiana so well, beyond his own understanding. While he had no intention of exacting terrible revenge on Lucas, it was enjoyable to do things that bastard would find detestable.

Making Torkan powerful was also one of the things Lucas hated.

Having reached this conclusion, Floyd spoke honestly.

“Lucas considers Your Highness a thorn in his side.”

Roxiana was a bit taken aback, not expecting Lucas’s name to come up in this situation.

“But when he learns that I’ve rescued you and even treat you as an honored guest, that bi… Lucas will be furious.”

Floyd twisted the corners of his mouth upward.

“And I very much enjoy watching that bastard’s anger.”

“Ah.”

Roxiana felt as if she’d been hit on the back of the head. She had no idea it was for such a reason, and didn’t know how to react.

‘Then what reason did you think it was?’

She didn’t know. She didn’t know what reason she had hoped for from him, and she didn’t know why she was shocked by this reason.

He had a valid reason, and as a result, Roxiana was saved. Whatever his reason, he had treated Roxiana well and bestowed a great deal upon her.

It’s something to be grateful for. She had received such grace that it wouldn’t be too much to give her life for him.

‘But why?’

Why doesn’t the sorrow and shock rising in her chest dissipate? What exactly had she expected that made her want to hit that smiling face she had always thought was pleasant to look at?

Unable to understand the change in her emotions, Roxiana froze. In her place, the wolf sitting quietly beside her suddenly bristled and growled. As if expressing the emotions she felt.

Floyd laughed in disbelief as the small wolf, not even the length of his forearm, bared its fangs.

“It’s not trained at all.”

“It’s just a child that can see people for who they are.”

At her sharp retort, Floyd’s eyes widened before he burst into hearty laughter.

“Alright, that’s good. Then I can leave the palace for a while with peace of mind. That creature with good judgment will protect Your Highness.”

“You’re leaving the palace?”

“I’m going to hunt monsters. Because we’re out of money.”

Was it alright to speak so casually about the Grand Duke’s palace’s financial situation? Roxiana was momentarily flustered, but remembering that this was Floyd’s usual character, she calmly asked: