“Well then, please wait comfortably, madam.”

After the chamberlain of the Imperial Palace guided her to the reception room, a maid brought tea after a while. With the maid also leaving, Blair was left alone in the spacious reception room.

Blair waited for Ivan while sipping tea. Coming to find the Emperor unexpectedly without any prior arrangements, there was no choice but to wait without any certainty.

As Blair, weary from waiting, began to doze off, the door of the reception room opened. Hearing the sound, Blair quickly regained her composure.

Ivan, who approached with firm steps, sat across from Blair and looked at his younger sister with a strange expression.

“Something’s up. You came to find me without any notice.”

The relationship between the two was far from being close siblings. Ivan occasionally felt uncomfortable with Blair, who sometimes outshone him, and Blair avoided Ivan, fearing such resentment from her half-brother. More precisely, it was the fear of Katrina, who favored Ivan and found Blair displeasing.

Therefore, Blair had always remained on the sidelines between the two, merely serving as a decorative piece in their seemingly harmonious family.

“Sorry for coming without contacting you.”

“Well, there’s no reason not to spare some time for my only sister. I’m curious about what urgent matter brought you here.”

A maid who had just entered served tea in front of Ivan and also filled Blair’s cup before leaving the reception room.

As Blair looked at Ivan, who was lifting his teacup, she cautiously brought up her concerns.

“Please stop involving him in subduing the monsters.”

Upon Blair’s words, Ivan chuckled as if asking why she bothered to bring up such a topic.

But as always, he responded in a kindly manner, teaching his naive younger sister.

“Subduing monsters is a duty of the justice governing the North. I’m just seeking some assistance.”

“Protecting the North is the business of the North, and the Imperial Knights are responsible for the affairs of the Imperial Palace.”

“What’s wrong with family members helping each other out? I’m not trying to fulfill my selfish desires, just helping the weak and powerless people.”

Family.

It was a tiresome word, brought up every time they tried to manipulate Herdin, every time Ivan and Katrina attempted to control him using the word ‘family.’ It was a nauseating word that became like a noose around his neck.

Every time Ivan and Katrina talked about ‘family’ and tried to control Herdin, it felt horrifying, like the noose around his neck was tightening, strangling not only him but also Ivan.

In his past life, he felt self-loathing about this fact but chose to ignore it.

Because he loved him too much, unable to let go.

Despite knowing that the word ‘family’ was a noose around his neck, choking not only him but also Ivan.

However, in this life, he had no such feelings.

“…If we are no longer family, will you stop burdening him with Uncle’s responsibilities under the pretext of ‘family’?”
Ivan’s mocking laughter erupted as he met Blair’s defiant gaze. However, his expression, which had been looking at her with affectionate brotherly eyes, soon turned cold.

Arrogant.

Blair, although appearing delicate from a young age, occasionally displayed such defiance, overturning the minds of both Katrina and herself.

And every time, Ivan did not leave Blair alone.

He trampled, pressed, making sure she couldn’t even think of resisting.

“Are you planning to fall for that scoundrel and even cut ties with the mother who gave birth to you, if not slander her?”

“It’s not slander but the truth.”

“How do you know that?”

“That day, Empress Mother wasn’t trying to harm me; she was protecting me. She didn’t commit suicide but was murdered.”

Ivan’s pupils shook for a moment.

In other words, Blair had recovered memories of the fire incident.

‘I knew he was colluding with Herdin Delmarc, but I didn’t expect him to genuinely recover his memories.’

At the same time, everything became clear.

Herdin’s attitude in the previous conversation, where he confidently asserted Esmeralda’s innocence, was not simply defending Esmeralda as usual but securing evidence.

“Whether Mother directly participated in the incident is still unknown, but one thing is certain.”

“…”

“Hiding the truth of the incident and unfairly shifting the blame to Empress Mother.”

“…So, are you deliberately making Mother a criminal?”

“I’m not making Mother a criminal; the truth is only now being revealed.”

“In that case, you’ll feel much more relieved. You’ll surely regret it.”

Ivan deliberately provoked Blair’s guilt.

The younger sister he knew always thirsted for a piece of her mother’s affection.

He didn’t know why Herdin was trying to persuade Blair to recover her memories and reveal the truth, but Blair would undoubtedly have been shaken by Katrina’s story.

But surprisingly, Blair’s reaction differed from his expectations.

Blair responded with a calm tone.

“…I’ve been regretting for a very long time, probably much more than you imagine.”

Sooner than what Uncle imagines.