A middle-aged man with a bulky body sat in the patriarch’s office, tapping a letter with his thick fingers.

Each finger placed on the letter, stamped with the imperial seal, was adorned with rings, clearly displaying his greed.

Gordon Bruiser was confident of victory. Soon, not only this duchy but also the ducal title would be his.

Once he received the patriarch’s seal, even Debir Beatus would be powerless. All the power under the Beatus family would move according to his will.

‘Debir Beatus. You’re a rat in a trap.’

Even after raiding the underground organization, all the business sites were empty.

“Where did that rat bastard go? Tsk.”

Debir’s whereabouts were unknown, but it didn’t matter. The tide had already turned in his favor.

He had gained the support of the imperial faction nobles. Even the crown prince was lending him strength.

Now, the task was to leave no loose ends. The direct lineage had to be completely dealt with.

Diana’s political marriage was also part of eliminating the direct line. Moreover, a direct descendant with the Beatus name could be sold at a high price.

“Daddy!”

The door swung open without a knock. Despite the ill-mannered behavior, Gordon greeted his daughter with a smile.

“Oh, my baby.”

Rising from his seat, Gordon was so huge that he seemed to reach the ceiling. Zelony threw a tantrum in front of him.

“Where is that Diana now? Are you really not going to drag her here?”

At first, when they used private soldiers to take control of the family and stormed into the mansion, they thought Diana had fled after being tipped off.

“Since she cherishes her maids, won’t she come back?”

But then, out of the blue, news came that she was in the north.

An unpredictable bitch.

The number of people deployed to capture Diana was countless.

“Can I play with Diana when she comes back?”

Zelony always harbored a grudge against Diana. Gordon had long realized that it was an inferiority complex about the abilities she herself lacked.

Tsk. If he had known this would happen, he should have swapped them as infants.

Diana was born with a color unsuitable for the Beatus family. Due to the verification of Diana’s bloodline, he couldn’t even attempt it.

Moreover, although Zelony was born with the red eyes of the Beatus family, her hair color was green, taking after her own mother. In every way, she was his daughter.

Gordon looked at his daughter with cold, gleaming red eyes. Although inferior to Diana, she was still useful in her own way.

The other daughters had already been married off and used, so only Zelony remained.

Gordon raised his large hand and stroked his youngest daughter’s cheek. It was a delicate touch, as if handling a precious treasure.

“But it seems her face shouldn’t be ruined.”

“Why?! Do you know what she did to my face!”

Zelony, who had failed in her attempt to eliminate Diana using poison, had a memory of being severely beaten by Diana.

Where did she get that beehive from?

Diana had thrown a huge beehive, almost half the size of Zelony’s torso, into her room. She didn’t forget to thoroughly block the windows and doors.

At that time, not only did Zelony’s face swell up to the point of being unsightly, but she also experienced paralysis and couldn’t set foot in high society for a while.

And that wasn’t all. The memories of what she had suffered at Diana’s hands were enough to make her teeth chatter.

She said she got goosebumps whenever she saw that washed-out red color. That bitch who doesn’t even resemble a Beatus! She received favor from Debir and Vanessa just because she was a direct descendant.

Among the collateral relatives, Debir and Vanessa were the object of admiration. They were lenient only to Diana because she was their younger sister.

That’s why the cousins couldn’t help but find the existence of Diana, who hadn’t even inherited the Beatus red color, distasteful.

What she lacked was not only ability but also the love and care from her siblings.

As time passed and envy grew, Zelony never forgot the humiliation she suffered at Diana’s hands.

‘Diana! That damn bitch!’

‘Don’t climb up. Why do you keep climbing up?’

Diana said coldly with her haughty eyes.

‘Listen carefully, Zelony. I will pay back what I suffered several times over. Don’t try anything funny.’

As if to keep her word, Diana immediately retaliated whenever she was wronged.

Now it was Zelony’s turn to pay her back.

How long do you think you’ll remain the beloved youngest lady? Hah. Now I’m the lady.

“Daddy. Then it’s okay if it’s not the face, right?”

“Of course. It’s even better. Once the first night is over, how would the husband know if she was beaten by him or by someone else?”

Zelony hugged the huge Gordon tightly with a wide smile.

“Baby, how are the preparations for the crown princess’s tea party going?”

“Ah, that? It’s being prepared without a hitch.”

“Good. If things go well, you’ll be able to take that position. I heard the crown prince is scouting for other women, so you’ll have a chance too.”

“But is it really okay to get rid of elder sister Vanessa?”

“They say her condition is not very good, so her position will weaken. When our family puts you forward to replace Vanessa, it will work out.”

For Zelony, Vanessa was always someone she admired and wanted to emulate. She never thought she could be shaken so easily.

“Don’t worry, baby. The direct line will disappear. We will become the history of this family.”

The things she had longed for were becoming a reality. Zelony’s red eyes sparkled as she smiled brightly.

“Then if I become the crown princess and eventually the empress, our family will become even more prosperous!”

Even before receiving the patriarch’s seal, they were drawing up a blueprint.

Typically, the patriarch’s seal is passed on to the next heir when the previous generation dies in the family. However, in the Beatus family, as soon as the patriarch dies, the seal is returned to the emperor.

That was how the emperor held the leash of the Beatus family for generations. It was bound by a powerful magic contract, so there was no escape.

In this way, the imperial family further fueled the succession battles within the Beatus family. They could install a patriarch that suited the emperor’s tastes.

For some reason, the emperor was delaying Debir Beatus’s succession as the patriarch. Seizing that opportunity, Gordon had taken his chance.

That’s why Gordon couldn’t go against the orders coming from the imperial family when the patriarch’s succession was within reach.

Gordon’s gaze shifted back to the letter stamped with the imperial seal.

“The imperial family wants Diana.”

Left alone after Zelony’s departure, Gordon tapped on the letter from the imperial palace.

Originally, he had planned to hand Diana over to an old marquis with a strong voice in the central political circles, but the sudden arrival of the letter caught him by the ankle.

It was an order to have Diana tie the knot with an imperial prince.

Even if he was a prince, he was a useless card since there was a crown prince who had a firm grip on the succession.

It seemed the imperial family intended to hold onto as many Beatus members as possible.

Well, it didn’t matter since the prince had no power anyway. For now, he had to at least pretend to grovel at the emperor’s feet to receive the patriarch’s seal.

Ding-a-ling− As Gordon rang the bell, a servant immediately entered.

“Go and bring Diana’s maids. Disguise one of them as Diana.”

Gordon’s eyes, burning with ambition, finished their calculation.

Slash−! Blood splattered, cutting through the vicious air.

“Why! Why aren’t you reacting at all!”

A beautiful blonde woman distorted her face like a demon and screamed at the man hanging on the wall without a single groan.

The woman, who seemed to have been raised in nobility, nonchalantly brushed away the red liquid splattered on her blonde hair.

“Debir Beatus! Answer me!”

“……”

Ha. Even a stone statue would have more reaction than this.

“You, you really make me miserable.”

Princess Erica contorted her face as if she was about to cry.

Even in the dungeon reeking of cruelty, the man didn’t lose his beauty. Even his blood-soaked appearance was enveloped in a pessimistic air, exuding a decadent atmosphere.

Everything about him was alluring, and he was the man she had wanted so badly.

However, no matter how much she used aphrodisiacs to seduce him with her body, persuaded him with words, promising to make him a duke, or whipped him harshly to make him submit, Debir Beatus didn’t budge an inch.

No, he didn’t react like a human without any emotions. Even while being beaten like this for no reason, he didn’t even get angry!

“Is there no one there!”

“Did you call for me, Your Highness?”

“Bring more stone tablets.”

At the princess’s command, the servant fidgeted nervously. The servant, who only glanced around without answering, was met with a fierce glare.

“What are you doing!”

The abundant red color. The sight of the man hanging like a prisoner, reduced to rags, and the princess holding a whip, was enough to instill fear. The servant trembled and bowed his head even lower.

“That, Her Majesty the Empress has ordered that nothing more be given to Your Highness.”

“What?!”

Gnashing. The sound of teeth grinding echoed in the dungeon, which was blocked on all sides. The princess looked at the man who had his eyes closed as if he were dead, then abruptly turned and left the dungeon.

“Keep a close watch on him.”

The knights guarding the door bowed their heads. Creak. Thud. The thick iron door closed.

Nothing was going right. The princess headed to the empress with neurotic footsteps, still wearing her blood-stained clothes and holding the whip, without changing.

“……”

In the instantly quiet space, Debir opened his eyes without a sound. Through his slightly open eyelids, his scarlet eyes gleamed sharply.

‘Is it time?’

There was a reason why the princess tried to evoke any emotion in him.

“Haa.”

As he let out a tired sigh, clank− The crimson mana that moved according to his will rippled around his wrists, and the handcuffs were released.

Emotions were nothing more than a medium to evoke mana. The imperial family coveted the mana of the Beatus family.

Although the Beatus family couldn’t use magic like the imperial family, the mana they possessed in their bodies was special.

Only the Beatus family inherited the mana of the witches, whose lineage was now extinct.

The bloodline of the witches…

“Yes, this is the source of this damned power.”

In one corner of the dungeon, there was a pile of stone tablets that manipulated human emotions.

However, the princess couldn’t extract a single bit of emotion or a strand of mana from Debir.

“As if you could extract it.”

He was already using the mana in his body according to his own will, just like the imperial family.

Crack− One stone tablet. Two. They began to shatter amidst the red pool.

At the same time, creak. The tightly closed dungeon door opened.

Debir tilted his head and looked outside the door. The knights who had already been dealt with were sprawled on the floor.