“Then please wait comfortably, madam.”

After the head chamberlain of the imperial palace who had guided Blair to the reception room left, a maid soon brought in tea. Once the maid also departed, Blair was left alone in the spacious reception room.

Blair sipped her tea while waiting for Ivan. Having come to see the busy emperor without an appointment, she had no choice but to wait indefinitely.

Just as Blair was starting to doze off, tired from waiting, the door to the reception room opened. Blair snapped to attention at the sound.

Ivan strode over and sat across from Blair, looking at his sister with a peculiar expression.

“This is unusual. You coming to see me first.”

The two were siblings who could hardly be called close.

Ivan occasionally looked unfavorably upon Blair when she outshone him, while Blair feared and avoided such a brother.

More precisely, she feared Katrina, who favored her brother and regarded Blair with displeasure.

As a result, Blair had spent her life unable to fit in between the two, merely orbiting as a decorative family member constituting a superficially pleasant family.

“I’m sorry for coming unannounced.”

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

A maid who had just entered served tea to Ivan and refilled Blair’s cup before leaving the reception room.

Blair stared pensively at Ivan as he picked up his teacup, then cautiously broached the subject.

“Please stop involving him in the demon beast subjugation.”

At Blair’s words, Ivan smiled crookedly as if to say, ‘You came all this way just to talk about that?’

However, as always, he answered casually in the tone of a kind older brother teaching his ignorant sister.

“Subjugating demon beasts is the count’s specialty in governing the north, so we’re simply receiving some assistance.”

“Protecting the north is the north’s business, and the imperial territories are clearly under Your Majesty’s jurisdiction, so it should be the imperial knights’ duty.”

“I don’t see what’s so wrong with family helping each other. It’s not like I’m trying to satisfy my own greed, but to help the weak and powerless citizens.”

Family.

It was that nauseating word they always brought up whenever they tried to bind her or use Herdin.

Every time Ivan and Katrina invoked the word ‘family’ to try to control Herdin, it felt dreadful, as if she had become the leash around his neck.

In her past life, she had felt self-loathing about this fact but turned a blind eye to it.

Because she loved him, because she couldn’t bear to let him go.

Even while knowing that the ‘family’ leash was choking not only her neck but his as well.

But in this life, she had no such inclination.

“…Then if we were no longer family, would you also stop imposing your responsibilities on him under the pretext of ‘family’?”

A scoff escaped Ivan’s lips as he met Blair’s brazen gaze. But soon, his expression, which had been that of a caring older brother, sank coldly.

Impudent thing.

Blair had always seemed fragile since childhood, but occasionally she would act audaciously like this, turning his and Katrina’s insides upside down.

And every time, Ivan would not let such behavior from Blair slide.

Trampling her, suppressing her, so that she wouldn’t even dare to go against his mood for a while.

“Have you fallen so hard for that man that you’re not only slandering the mother who gave birth to you, but now you’re even thinking of cutting ties?”

“That’s not slander, it’s the truth.”

“How would you know that?”

“That day, Her Majesty the Empress didn’t try to harm me, she protected me. She wasn’t suicide, she was murdered.”

At that, Ivan’s eyes wavered for a moment.

Those words meant that Blair had regained her memories of the fire incident.

‘I knew she was in cahoots with that Herdin Delmark, but to think she really recovered her memories.’

At the same time, he understood.

Herdin’s attitude in their previous conversation, asserting Esmeralda’s false accusation with such confidence.

It wasn’t simply advocating for Esmeralda as usual, but because he had secured testimony.

“I may not know yet if Mother was directly involved in that incident, but one thing is certain.”

“…”

“That she concealed the truth of the incident and pinned false charges on Her Majesty the Empress.”

“…So you’re determined to make Mother a criminal after all?”

“I’m not making Mother a criminal, the truth is simply coming to light at last.”

“I’m sure that will ease your conscience greatly. You’ll surely come to regret it.”

Ivan deliberately provoked Blair’s sense of guilt.

The little sister he knew had always been a child thirsting for even a scrap of her mother’s affection.

He didn’t know what words Herdin had used to persuade Blair to recover her memories and reveal the truth, but he was certain Blair would waver at Katrina’s words.

However, Blair’s actual response precisely missed his expectations.

Blair answered in a calm tone.

“…If it’s regret, I’ve already felt it for a very long time.”

Probably much longer than her brother could imagine.

“That I didn’t reveal it sooner.”

Throughout both of my lifetimes.

It’s not that people’s criticism doesn’t hurt. But even if I receive more criticism, I won’t regret this.

I’ve only done what I should have done.

Ivan was inwardly flustered by Blair’s unexpected response, but he quickly changed tactics.

Ivan set down his teacup and spoke with an expression of brotherly concern.

“Blair, I’m saying this out of worry for you too.”

“…”

“After you’ve burned yourself up to uphold justice, what then? Do you think Delmark will sit idly by with you, the daughter of their enemy?”

“…Since we can’t sever blood ties, I’ll have to sever marital ties. Even to atone for Mother’s sins as her child.”

“Does Count Delmark agree with this?”

Blair hesitated for a moment before answering.

“He’ll wish for it more desperately than anyone.”

Ivan’s brow furrowed slightly.

During his previous conversation with Herdin, he had shown great agitation at Ivan’s suggestion of divorce from Blair.

‘Either Blair is misunderstanding something, or…’

After pondering for a moment while rubbing his chin, Ivan spoke to test Blair.

“Then, what about you?”

At the returned question, Blair’s hand paused as she was lifting her teacup.

“Are you really alright with ending your marriage to him like this?”

“…”

“As your brother, I’ll do my best to find you a new marriage prospect, but it’ll be hard to find a better position than Duchess Delmark. As you know, many men are reluctant to take a woman who’s been with another man.”

That was a fact Blair was well aware of.

If she were to remarry, at best it would be as a second wife to a high-ranking noble.

But for Blair, who planned to leave the imperial territories and disappear immediately after the divorce, let alone remarry, it was an irrelevant matter.

“It doesn’t matter.”

At Blair’s answer, the corners of Ivan’s lips, which he had been rubbing, curved up crookedly.

Blair doesn’t know Herdin’s feelings. Or if not that, she has no intention of accepting those feelings.

Either way, things had become interesting.

The less attachment Blair had to him, the more Herdin would have to hand over his leash to Ivan to prevent the divorce.

“Then, brother. I trust that you will deliver a fair and just verdict, not as Mother’s son but as the supreme ruler of this empire.”

Blair set down her teacup, signaling the end of the conversation as if she had said all she needed to say.

Ivan smiled leisurely as he answered.

“Well, I don’t think that will happen.”

Blair felt uneasy at Ivan’s meaningful smile and words, but she didn’t dwell on it.

Currently, Herdin was running around frantically trying to find definitive evidence of the fire incident, and soon that truth would come to light.

When that happens, even Ivan would have no choice.

“You must be very busy, I’m sorry for coming unannounced like this. If you have nothing more to say, I’ll take my leave now.”

Blair waited a moment longer for Ivan’s response before quietly rising and making a polite bow.

Shall I tighten the leash a bit more?

Ivan watched Blair’s retreating back with intrigued eyes as she walked towards the reception room door, then called out to her.

“Blair.”

Blair, who was about to grab the doorknob, turned to look at him.

“Let me give you one piece of advice as your brother.”

Ivan spoke with his usual kind brotherly smile.

“Be careful of that man.”

“…”

“He’s quite the madman, you know.”

Blair looked at him for a moment, then turned and left the reception room without any reaction.

Ivan smiled as he watched the closing door.

“This is going to be fun.”

Tap, tap. The sound of his long fingers drumming on the chair armrest echoed cheerfully.

* * *

The warm afternoon sunlight was streaming down the deserted hallway.

In the quiet scene, only the regular sound of Blair’s shoes echoed, when suddenly another set of footsteps mixed in from the far end of the corridor.

Sensing something familiar in those footsteps, Blair raised her gaze to see a familiar face approaching.

“…Herdin?”

He strode over and grabbed Blair’s wrist, starting to drag her along.

Blair, startled by his unexpected appearance, was pulled along by him. Her wrist throbbed painfully in his rough grip.

“Herdin, it hurts. Please let go…”

At that moment, he released her wrist and pushed her against the wall, trapping her between his body and the wall as he had been walking with large strides without considering Blair’s pace.

Under the warm sunlight, his cold eyes facing her felt chillingly frosty.

“What are you doing here alone without any fear?”

Blair looked up at him with confused eyes. She couldn’t understand why he was suddenly angry after showing up out of nowhere.

“This is the imperial palace, and His Majesty is my brother. There’s no reason I can’t come here, and there’s no one in this imperial palace who would dare harm me.”

Brother.

Herdin sneered coldly at that title flowing from Blair’s lips.

To think that thing is called a brother.

I wish you weren’t that bastard’s sister.

Her words made him acutely aware of the reality he wanted to deny, and that title irritated him anew.

“Have you forgotten? What your mother tried to do to you.”

At his words, Blair’s eyes twisted painfully.

Though it was an undeniable reality, his blunt words always reopened Blair’s wounds, as they always did.

“It’s dangerous outside. So…”

His hand cupping her cheek felt cool. Like his eyes facing her. His gaze speaking of danger felt even more dangerous.

“Stay by my side, obediently.”

As did his voice, seemingly suppressing emotion.

At that sight, why did Ivan’s words from earlier come to mind?