A glimmer shone above Casius’s blue eyes, casting a sharp aura.

If the empress was an adoptee of Snowfel, it matched with the actions she had taken so far.

Tikan’s report was added on top of Casius’s rapidly turning thoughts.

“I heard there was a child with the same appearance as Her Majesty the Empress in the Rifcino territory. The timing also fits.”

“Evidence?”

“Too much time had passed, and Duke Diarob had already taken action, so no evidence could be found. However……”

Tikan handed a book to Casius, who slightly raised one eyebrow.

“This was found at that orphanage.”

Even if they thoroughly hid it for concealment and left no evidence, there is no perfect secret in the world.

The book Tikan presented had the amount the former director had taken under the name of subsidies.

Usually, the subsidy provided by the empire was 20 derks per person, so 140 derks meant there should have been a total of 7 people at the orphanage.

But only 6 names were listed on the orphanage register.

Moreover, in the year presumed to be when the empress was adopted, a large sum of money came in.

Diarob must have given money and concealed the fact after adopting the empress.

“The director?”

“At that time, the Rifcino Orphanage was completely burned down in a fire, and everyone from the director to the children died.”

It was Diarob’s typical method.

He was truly a man with a shady background. Casius, who frowned, only opened his mouth for a moment.

“How do we prove that the empress was at that orphanage?”

“According to a merchant who supplied the orphanage at the time, he had seen a child with blue hair and violet eyes.”

Casius recalled the empress’s face with deep blue hair and sparkling violet eyes.

He had never thought about this until now……

Come to think of it, Vivian Snowfel’s appearance was not common at all.

According to the public’s evaluation that once you see it, you can’t forget it, eyes and hair of such colors were extremely rare in the empire.

“Vivian being an adoptee of Snowfel…… Interesting.”

Casius recalled the traces of mana usage she had left behind.

Seeing her pass through that door today, she was definitely a mage.

“Is that the reason for adopting her?”

“Pardon?”

“The empress knows how to use mana.”

If it was something of use, Duke Diarob’s hobby was to collect both humans and objects without discrimination, so it made sense if that was the case.

Tikan, who grasped Casius’s intention in an instant, opened his mouth.

“But if she was adopted because of mana, they would have already made it known to the public.”

“He’s the kind of person who would do more than that.”

Diarob was not the kind of person who would never show off his power and let it pass.

Even if he was thinking of making that woman the empress, having mana would have been an advantage.

Then, was the reason for adoption not because of the empress’s mana?

Given Diarob’s temperament, there was no way he would have adopted a child simply to raise her.

If he had intended to adopt for the purpose of an heir at that time, he was more likely to have chosen a son.

Why did he adopt a girl……

There were more than one or two questionable points.

However, the complicated thoughts never found an answer.

In fact, the reason why that bastard adopted Vivian was not a very important issue.

The important thing was that the empress was rejecting Snowfel.

The empress’s words that her father regarded her as a mere tool to use fleetingly crossed Casius’s mind.

It was roughly guessable that the empress’s childhood was unhappy.

The enemy’s enemy is an ally, so the empress would become the best ally.

Now, all that remained was to use that to destroy Snowfel.

It was much more relieving to know that the reason Vivian acted was not because of him, but for revenge against Snowfel.

Nonsense like she likes him or loves him must have all been lies.

Just to use him.

Whether that was the case or not, it didn’t really matter.

Isn’t it ridiculous to quibble over such things when trying to use each other anyway?

In any case, since the goal was the same, they could form a temporary alliance while destroying Snowfel.

Even after that, Casius sat still and stared out the window.

Tikan, who noticed that the end of it was the Empress Palace, threw a question.

“What are you planning to do?”

The fact that Her Majesty the Empress was an adoptee was a big deal in itself.

It was deceiving everyone.

Although the current ledger lacked evidence, if an unavoidable level of rumors were generated, the Empress would eventually have to confess.

Then, it was clear that the Empress would no longer be able to maintain that position.

However, his lord seemed to have no intention of doing so and only quietly tapped the table.

“We should use it. It’s a card that rolled in on its own.”

A bitter smile hung on Casius’s lips.

“Are you planning to expel Her Majesty the Empress?”

For a moment, the image of the empress sitting in the hideout came to Casius’s mind.

The image of the empress throwing herself for him also overlapped.

If it were the old days, she would have been a woman he wouldn’t have missed the chance to get rid of.

But now…… Can all this bad fate be solved by driving out the empress? Only a hollow laugh came out.

Yes. He had no intention of ending it to that extent.

The empress was too precious a card to throw away.

So…… he just wouldn’t throw her away.

“No. It’s not time to discard her yet.”

Tikan only tilted his head at his lord’s puzzling words.

Soon, Casius, who turned from the window to the front, got up from his seat with a hardened look as if lost in thought.

Should he apologize or propose a negotiation? Would she accept an apology if he gave one?

If it was the empress who shamelessly said she liked him even after hearing those harsh words, she would accept the proposal no matter what.

So his steps were once again directed towards the Empress Palace.

But then he saw two people standing on the promenade of the Empress Palace in the distance.

Empress Vivian and…… Prince Dylan Berghen.

The image he saw in front of the tournament hall the other day flashed through Casius’s mind.

“Did you find out what the empress received from Prince Dylan?”

Tikan also looked at the same place and reported.

“No. There has been no interaction between the two since that day.”

“Looks like it’s today.”

Looking at his sharpened lord, Tikan quietly bowed his head.

“I will investigate and report back.”

*

Going to the hideout was something that happened from time to time.

After completing the strengthening stone training, whenever I passed by the Secretariat building where my father was, the hideout always caught my eye.

Since entering this body, I often went there and read letters.

To gain courage by meeting the Casius of the past.

The Casius in the letters placed in the storage box summoned the old him again.

Every sentence there was as sweet and caring as an umbrella shielding me from the rain.

Casius hadn’t visited there for quite a long time, so there was no problem.

Being careless like that today was the issue.

The gaze that looked down on me coldly felt more piercing than ever.

‘He must have already found out that I’m a mage.’

That much wasn’t a big deal.

Casius wouldn’t directly bring up that issue himself.

The problem was the relationship with Casius, which had returned to square one.

I could guess why Casius was being so sharp.

He would think I carelessly entered the space he shared with Rachel.

It was a place he hadn’t even thought of entering for a long time, and an awkward opponent had entered.

It was my fault for going in without saying anything, but it was also true that I felt wronged.

‘I even helped him catch Bylorof today……’

I couldn’t even remember how many nights I had stayed up for that.

In fact, there was something missing from the holy water data I had previously found in the ancient book.

In ancient books, there were sometimes parts that could only be read by using mana, and this page was one of them.

On the suspicious page right behind what I thought was just left as a margin, the most important data was actually contained.

To read that, mana was needed, so I worked so hard.

Only at the end of that could I obtain information about the purple potion.

After obtaining the information through so much hard work and even making it to give to him……

All that credit was reset to zero just because he found out I entered the hideout, wasn’t that too much?

I was resentful of Casius, then understood him, and then felt frustrated again.

I was freed from my thoughts when I heard Prince Dylan’s voice.

“Your Majesty the Empress?”

It seemed I was distracted for a moment.

What a discourtesy in front of a foreign guest.

“I’m sorry.”

“You seem to have troubles.”

When I tried to smile brightly, the prince finally turned his burdensome gaze away.

In fact, the reason I met the prince today was because of his message that he had something to say about the item I requested.

“I hope what I give you will solve Your Majesty’s troubles.”

“Have you already obtained it? I thought it would take a long time to bring it in from the Berghen Kingdom……”

When I raised my eyes filled with anticipation, I saw the embarrassed face of Prince Dylan.

“Oh dear. I’m usually quite good at my job, but not to that extent.”

Ah…… I had a momentary misunderstanding seeing the confident prince.

There was no way the item would have already arrived from Berghen.

It was only natural that it would take several days for the goods to be procured from there to here.

Fortunately, the prince unfolded a paper with an imposing demeanor, showing no sign of embarrassment at all.

“The reason I asked to see you today is because of the customs clearance procedure.”

“Ah, I will take care of the customs clearance procedure, so you don’t have to worry about it.”

The prince, who hesitated as if taking his time, soon spoke with an ambiguous expression.

“If we go through the customs clearance procedure, the details of the item may be revealed, are you okay with that?”

The prince narrowed his brows meaningfully and continued.

“Seeing that you need even this, it seems like it’s not a simple matter.”

‘Has he developed a sense of camaraderie from sharing information so far?’

The prince’s appearance, even looking around, was more serious than ever.