The Count and Countess Efilton were imprisoned in the imperial prison along with the Marquis and Marchioness Lemang.

But when they opened their eyes, only the Count and Countess had been transferred to a different underground location.

“Well. What should we do?”

Kashar hummed.

Earlier, while riding in the carriage with Eileen, he had been pondering.

Pondering how to punish the vermin who dared to harm what was his.

Kashar rubbed his chin.

Mihail, who was beside him, asked.

“What shall we do with the Marquis and Marchioness Lemang?”

“For now, let them be. They were close to the Empress, so it would be better to slowly tighten the noose.”

The Count and Countess were used as materials to harm Eileen.

It would have been right to grind up the materials immediately, but he intended to make the Marquis and his wife understand what living pain was.

The Marquis and Marchioness Lemang would be released after using half their fortune.

At that time, he would cut off their connected businesses one by one and make them go into debt.

In the end, if they were abandoned by the Empress as well, it would be a sight to see.

“The working period… 1 year should be fine. When they’re completely bankrupt, put the Marchioness on a slave ship and throw the Marquis out on the street.”

Eventually, the bankrupt Marquis and Marchioness will flee in the night to escape their debts. If he makes his move then, no one will suspect anything.

It was the scenario of a madman trying to thoroughly dry up a person’s blood.

And the one who would turn Kashar’s plan into reality was Mihail.

“I will execute it.”

The adjutant obeyed the order.

Soon, Kashar’s gaze fell on the Count and Countess again.

“I step away for a moment and come back to see a nice sight.”

A whip for the woman I keep as a lover, of all things.

The Empress, backed by the Emperor, was growing bolder by the day.

Kashar had briefly left the banquet hall because the Emperor had summoned him.

‘Did you commemorate Viviana’s death anniversary well?’

‘There were no issues.’

Kashar answered Daios’ question.

It was a subtle answer. But Daios didn’t ask further.

Kashar inwardly mocked him.

Viviana, the woman Daios once loved, had gone mad and didn’t recognize him, and also rejected him.

Daios couldn’t accept that, and Wayeno, who was a concubine, took the weakened Emperor under her wing.

And after Kashar’s madness erupted, Daios finally made a decision.

‘I depose Empress Viviana and Crown Prince Kashar.’

Viviana was confined in a tower, and Kashar was driven to the battlefield.

But there was something the Emperor overlooked.

It was Viviana’s death.

‘To think he didn’t even expect the one he abandoned to die.’

The cause of Viviana’s death was suicide.

The Emperor’s guilt began from that day.

But he didn’t fully accept his sin either.

‘The sight of him struggling, unable to admit it.’

The Emperor denied the guilt itself.

While distancing himself from Wayeno who had seduced him, he would take Wayeno’s side regardless of the reason whenever she found herself in a difficult situation.

It was a way to avoid admitting his own sin.

After finishing his report, Kashar was about to withdraw from the Emperor.

The one who followed was the Emperor.

‘I hear there’s an Oloje being held in the Empress’s palace.’

It was a sudden decision.

But Kashar easily inferred the Emperor’s inner thoughts.

‘It’s because of Eileen.’

The Emperor’s guilt included Kashar as well.

He was curious about the woman his son, whom he had driven to the brink of death, had taken into his arms.

So the two headed towards the Empress’s palace.

Not knowing what was happening there.

‘Fortunately, the Emperor came along.’

Kashar, who had cut off the whip about to strike Eileen’s back, muttered inwardly.

If the Emperor hadn’t been there, he would have not just broken the knight’s neck, but torn off his head.

The timing was good too. The whip hadn’t yet wounded Eileen.

‘I almost lost my mind.’

The moment he grasped the whip, his mind had wavered.

It was a sign just before madness.

A body consumed by madness doesn’t distinguish between people. Only slaughter. That’s all.

The reason he was able to maintain his mind that was about to crumble in an instant was all because of Eileen.

‘Though the fact that I had consumed food also played a part.’

The alcohol and flat-shaped food he had tasted on the balcony.

The things Eileen had presented offered a special flavor to Kashar, who had long lost his senses.

No delicacies could penetrate the sense of taste that poison had taken away.

Only the food she made reached Kashar.

But.

‘Strangely, that doesn’t seem to be all.’

Eileen’s scent and her body temperature, all of it was affecting him.

He wanted to touch a little more.

But Eileen slipped out of his arms, citing the contract.

It was the same just before his madness erupted.

The reason he was able to regain his senses was because of Eileen’s gaze.

The moment their eyes met, his seething mind became calm in an instant.

It was a truly bizarre sensation.

“I wonder why.”

Kashar muttered to himself.

Why did he want to touch her so much?

But no matter how much he pondered, he couldn’t understand the reason.

He continued to be lost in thought.

But to those around him, it didn’t appear that way.

“It’s all my fault! Please, just spare my life…!”

The Count, thinking Kashar was contemplating how to kill him, clung to his feet and begged.

The sensation of the cloth being pulled snapped Kashar out of his thoughts.

Kashar’s gaze fell on the Count. He tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand at all, looking at the face streaming with tears.

“Why volunteer to be used as material?”

The Count probably was supposed to receive a reward for carrying out the Marchioness’s orders.

But that was only if it had succeeded.

If things went wrong, neither the Marchioness nor the Empress would guarantee the life of the material.

Kashar will never understand the foolishness of those who don’t know their place.

“P-Please spare me. Spare…!”

The Count, who didn’t understand his words at all, begged while trembling.

Soon, Kashar looked at the Count and his wife alternately and said.

“You should manage your son well. It’s no good teaching him bad words.”

Kashar clicked his tongue softly.

Seeing this, the Count brightened and shouted at his wife.

“That’s right! This all happened because that woman raised our son wrong!”

“What are you saying? What nonsense are you spouting?! Who was it that made a deal with the Marchioness!”

“Weren’t you the one who told Giovanni to bully the princes!”

His ears were starting to hurt. Kashar graciously stopped the messy fight himself.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be equal in the face of pain.”

The noisy prison became quiet in an instant.

Soon, the empty space was filled with agonized screams.

Two hours later, Kashar came out of the prison.

“Are the preparations to welcome Eileen and the princes ready?”

“Everything is finished.”

He had instructed to prepare even before proposing to her.

Kashar smiled with satisfaction.

“I’m really looking forward to it.”

It’s the first time I’ve been this excited, he muttered.

[This is the timeline separator]

A week had passed since the Oloje party ended.

‘I’ve sent the luggage ahead, now we just need to go ourselves.’

Thanks to the people Kashar sent, packing was quick.

I did pack the items I brought from the mart separately, but it wasn’t too much to load onto the carriage.

On the morning of our departure.

Mihail came to pick us up.

“Eileen, I’m so excited!”

“Stay calm, Louis.”

“Hmph, Evan is such an old man!”

“What did you just say?”

The twins bickered as they got into the carriage.

I couldn’t help but laugh at their cute quarrel. Emma must have felt the same, as she whispered to me in a small voice.

“Both of them stayed up all night, you know.”

“I can tell.”

Their eyes were dark, probably from staying up all night in excitement.

As proof, they fell asleep not long after getting in the carriage.

“They’ve been counting down the days.”

“Louis was even marking the calendar with circles.”

I chatted quietly with Emma.

The sight of the children so excited was incredibly cute.

‘It’s their first experience leaving the imperial capital, so it’s natural.’

I stroked the sleeping children’s hair.

‘And for me too.’

Most of Eileen’s memories were of events in the imperial palace.

Moreover, the description of the ducal estate in the original work was only this much:

[Kashar’s domain was surrounded by mist created by magic. The hazy mist prohibited outside entry while also serving as a powerful barrier.]

It meant that security was extremely tight.

The interior of the ducal estate was shrouded in secrecy.

“My goodness, to think we’ll be living in Ruben Castle. It must be an amazing place, right?”

“I heard rumors that the entire castle was carved from crystal. Well, we’ll have to see for ourselves, but…”

We made eye contact and said simultaneously.

“It’s sure to be wonderful.”

“It’s sure to be a wonderful place.”

Filled with anticipation, Emma and I imagined the ducal estate.

“There must be a large fountain in the beautiful garden, right?”

“The windows will be sparkling clean, and the interior might be covered with blue carpets.”

And kind servants to welcome us on top of that.

All of this was the standard for a ducal estate in romance fantasy.

I clasped my hands together, my eyes shining.

The excitement was growing more and more.

How long had the carriage been traveling?

Just as I was starting to doze off, the window connecting to the coachman’s seat opened, and Mihail’s face appeared.

“We’re about to pass through the barrier. There may be some vibrations, so please don’t be too startled.”

“Ah, yes!”

I nodded immediately, and the window closed right away.

Looking at the closed wall again made me feel a bit awkward.

‘He doesn’t give any room for conversation.’

Mihail, who had a cold impression from the start, remained consistently so.

‘The book mentioned he was quite a capable magician.’

Only the owner of the castle and the affiliated magicians, including Mihail, could open the barrier’s gate.

His connection with Kashar began with war and ended with war.

‘In the end, Kashar, who didn’t receive the female lead’s choice, starts a war after all.’

It was a massive war targeting the Temple and the Rihart Empire.

The continent is largely divided into four lands.

The Rihart Empire, descended from dragons. The Rubensia Holy Nation, where the Temple of Light is located.

Barahan, where the descendants of the Ma’in live. The Five Principalities of Shyrius, who live worshipping nature.

Among these, Kashar had made Barahan his own force.

But the war ends in his defeat.

‘Michael ends up awakening his abilities.’

The power of the dragon.

It was an absolute power that could annihilate a target with just a word.

‘Well, it’s the true nature of the male lead.’

The 7th prince had long been unable to awaken his abilities and was treated as an outcast.

The one who helped Michael awaken was, of course, the female lead, Elcius.

‘As expected… I should introduce a woman to Kashar as soon as possible.’

The war had to be prevented no matter what.

I turned my head at the sound of soft breathing. The children were still deep in sleep.

‘Sleep well.’

I carefully drew the curtains so as not to wake the children.

Beyond the window, everything was filled with a hazy mist.

‘To think this is near the capital.’

It looked like a remote place, but it took less than a day by carriage.

As I was looking out the window, a voice came from beyond the wall. It was in ancient Rune language, not the imperial language.

‘Is it starting?’

Soon after, with a small vibration, the misty path began to open.

Hurriedly looking out the window, I could see a straight forest path, with sunlight entering only where the mist had cleared.

‘So this is magic.’

I couldn’t take my eyes off the mystical sight.

Emma seemed to feel the same way, her eyes shining as she looked outside.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“Me neither.”

The carriage safely entered. The mist enveloped the forest again.

I carefully knocked on the wall and asked.

“Um, how long until we arrive?”

“It won’t even take 10 minutes.”

It seemed best to wake the children in advance.

I gently shook Louis and Evan’s shoulders.

“Your Highnesses, we’re almost there. You need to wake up now.”

“…Mmm.”

Louis grumbled sleepily. Evan barely opened his eyes.

Soon, Louis, who had regained his senses, asked with sparkling eyes.

“Are we there?”

“Yes. Just a little more…”

“We’ve arrived. Let’s get off.”

At last, the carriage stopped. A large cloud was blocking the sunlight, as if a sudden shower was about to start.

‘Finally!’

The end of the Cold Palace, now the beginning of the romance fantasy standard.

My heart was pounding furiously.

I gathered the children and stepped out of the carriage.

But.

“What’s wrong, Emma?”

Emma, who had gotten off first to help Louis down, was standing still as if rooted to the spot.

When I asked in confusion, Emma uttered incomprehensible words.

“Is this… the ducal estate…?”

Soon, my gaze also turned to where the castle was supposed to be.

‘What is this? It looks just like…’

I was at a loss for words for a moment.

A huge demon lord’s castle was gaping its mouth at us.