The one who interrupted Jeremy’s words was Dietrich.

“If you bring the woman who assassinated the emperor into Your Highness’s palace, there will surely be rumors.”

“Ha!”

Jeremy let out a hollow laugh as if in disbelief. He glared at Dietrich with widened eyes.

“Do you think I would listen to the words of a mere dog?”

“……”

Jeremy twisted his lips and lightly tapped Dietrich’s cheek.

“A dog’s role is to protect its master. Not to talk back to the master’s words.”

Celiya did not like this situation.

Not because the Crown Prince was treating Dietrich rudely, but because it was not even funny how he acted as if he was something, when he was of the filthy bloodline that destroyed her kingdom.

Moreover, it was dangerous to move to the Crown Prince’s palace when the Empress was trying to harm her.

Even if she killed the Crown Prince while the Empress’s eyes were on her, it would only hasten her own death.

She could not die yet. Because she still did not know Dietrich’s true identity, nor how he knew about her ability.

“Your Highness, I would like to stay at Duke Calypso’s mansion.”

So she interrupted.

Dietrich was not only the only one who knew about Celiya’s ability, but also the only man she could communicate with.

Jeremy showed a displeased expression at Celiya’s words.

“Why do you want to stay at that fellow’s mansion instead of my palace?”

“Because the Duke’s words are not wrong at all. If I stay at Your Highness’s palace and upset Her Majesty the Empress, I would only cause trouble for Your Highness, so how could I possibly stay there?”

“……”

At Celiya’s answer, Jeremy smiled contentedly as if he had never shown displeasure.

“Your thoughtfulness for me is truly admirable. Alright, I’ll do as you say. I’ll send you an invitation to my birthday banquet soon, so make sure to attend.”

Jeremy even kissed the back of Celiya’s hand. Not knowing that Celiya was thinking she needed to go to her room right away and scrub her hand with water.

The smile on Jeremy’s face disappeared as soon as he looked at Dietrich.

“This is an order. You, don’t you dare set your eyes on her.”

Dietrich said nothing. Because it was not worth answering.

Seeing the expressionless Dietrich, Jeremy furrowed his brows as much as he could. Jeremy turned his head away from him and left for his palace.

Dietrich silently went ahead first. Afraid of losing him, Celiya grabbed the hem of Dietrich’s clothes.

“Walk a little slower.”

“……”

Dietrich’s gaze fell from his grabbed collar to the handkerchief wrapped around Celiya’s wrist. Dietrich silently looked down at it, then turned his back, fluttering his sleeve.

Celiya stared at Dietrich’s retreating back with a dumbfounded face.

“I said I’m in pain.”

At those words, Dietrich stopped walking.

“Where does it hurt?”

“My head is spinning and……”

Celiya touched her forehead as if she were really in pain. Dietrich slowly closed and opened his eyes.

“……Hold on.”

Dietrich held out one arm. Celiya thought this worked out well, even though she wasn’t actually in pain right now, and quickly grabbed his arm.

Come to think of it, he seems easy to handle, Celiya thought as she laughed softly.

Belatedly realizing that Celiya had been acting, Dietrich frowned.

“If it’s not just my imagination, you seem perfectly fine.”

Instead of answering, Celiya smiled softly. Dietrich let out a deep sigh. He looked down at Celiya, who was holding onto his arm and not letting go, with an indescribable expression.

“……Don’t cling too much.”

“You’re the one who held out your arm.”

Celiya smiled brightly. Dietrich looked down at such a Celiya with a dry face.

Walking while holding Dietrich’s arm, Celiya felt her mind and body becoming calm.

What could be the reason?

Was she feeling calm because he was the only one her ability didn’t work on?

‘It’s strange. Until recently, I was walking like this with a man who tried to kill me.’

Celiya thought it was odd but didn’t voice her doubts.

Dietrich wanted something from her, and Celiya also wanted something from him.

What he wanted was probably her ability, and what she wanted was information on how Dietrich knew about her ability, and why her ability didn’t work on him.

Just as a relationship without give and take cannot exist, so was the relationship between him and her.

Thinking that it was a strange alliance that could break at any time, Celiya found it utterly ridiculous that this alliance was sustaining her life.

‘Originally, I was planning to die after killing the emperor.’

Would the man in front of her really tell her the information? Celiya was looking for an opportunity. She was determined to find out even if she had to search his office if Dietrich didn’t tell her the information.

“What are you thinking so hard about?”

Dietrich’s gaze was now fixed on her. Celiya smiled brightly at the expressionless man and said,

“Something you don’t need to know.”

Dietrich moved on as if he hadn’t expected an answer anyway.

Throughout the journey back to the mansion, Dietrich was silent. He seemed to be lost in thought. Celiya stared at such a Dietrich.

The chilly evening breeze brushed through Dietrich’s black hair. She could feel people’s gazes turning towards them, but Dietrich didn’t seem to care at all.

They had arrived at the mansion before they knew it.

Dietrich passed through the hallway and took Celiya to any empty room. In the space where only the two of them were left, Dietrich opened his mouth.

“Did you use your ability?”

“……What?”

“I asked if you used your ability on the Crown Prince.”

Dietrich leaned against the wall, locking the door so Celiya couldn’t leave.

“Your ability was the one that smelled like hyacinth. Tell me exactly what kind of ability it is.”

Ah, so he didn’t know everything about my ability. Celiya narrowed her eyes.

This was a good opportunity to negotiate. It was natural that if something goes, something comes.

“What can you give me in return for telling you that?”

“The price of your life.”

Celiya burst into laughter.

“Anyone can see that I’m getting the worse end of the deal.”

“……”

Dietrich’s eyes sank.

“You think it’s a loss to tell me about your ability in exchange for sparing your life? That doesn’t make sense.”

“You know too, don’t you? That I don’t have much attachment to life.”

Celiya answered with a grin. Dietrich was about to say something but closed his mouth.

After a long while, his lips opened.

“Is there something else you want?”

It was the words she had been waiting for. But knowing that he wouldn’t answer even if she asked how he knew about the ability, Celiya said something else.

“Tell me your real plan.”

“……”

“Why are you trying to save me? Am I of that much value to you? You want to do something through my ability. Right?”

Celiya caressed Dietrich’s cheek. His eyes looking at her were overflowing with negative emotions.

Hatred and killing intent, wariness.

Looking at the red eyes tangled with many things, Celiya raised the corners of her mouth.

“Don’t I need to know your plan to help you?”

Dietrich grabbed Celiya’s hand touching his cheek as if to crush it. The handkerchief tied by the Crown Prince fell to the floor.

“……What do you think my plan is?”

“I’m asking because I want to know, aren’t I? We’re in the same boat, after all.”

Celiya continued speaking while mercilessly trampling on the handkerchief on the floor.

“The crew needs to know what the captain is going to do so they can row or drop anchor.”

“……”

“How can I trust you if I don’t know the destination?”

If he wouldn’t tell about the ability, she could ask about something more fundamental. What Celiya herself was doing was closer to a deal than a question.

Celiya had no intention of being used as Dietrich wished.

Although her kingdom had fallen, she was the princess of the Shan Kingdom, and her father had taught her to hide her claws but never reveal her hand first.

Her father also said that if you are forced to reveal your hand, it will soon become your weakness.

Celiya had never forgotten the teachings of her dead father.

Dietrich leaned towards Celiya while holding her hand. His raw gaze looked as if it would devour Celiya right away.

“Know your place.”

Dietrich coldly scolded as he removed Celiya’s hand.

“You just need to do as I say.”

With those words, he left the room without looking back.

Celiya alternately looked at the handkerchief on the floor and the door Dietrich had left through.

Seeing Dietrich’s sharp reaction, Celiya was certain.

He hates this empire.

As much as herself.

No. Perhaps, even more than her.

A week had passed since then.

During that week, two imperial ministers and over a dozen imperial knights who confessed to plotting the emperor’s assassination were executed.

−We tried to pin all the blame on that woman. All this because His Majesty the Emperor tried to bring his niece into his bedchamber!

There was a plausible reason, and there was evidence.

Immediately after, the talk that Celiya had assassinated the emperor completely died down.

Behind all of this was Ileon’s arrangement, but the only ones who knew the truth were Ileon and those who had already been executed and turned into corpses.

For Celiya, it was a too peaceful and calm, and therefore stranger week.

She sat on the edge of the bed and looked up at the sky where the dawn moon had risen.

After Celiya had probed Dietrich, he never came to see her. Even meals were only delivered through the maid Ellie.

Celiya subtly probed Ellie, but the blind maid seemed to know nothing about the outside situation.

This dawn, Celiya decided to slip out of the mansion.

Since Dietrich had been avoiding her lately and not telling her anything, it was to secretly find out information behind his back.

Celiya changed into a maid’s uniform she had prepared in advance and tightly tied up her noticeable silver hair with a rubber band.

As she was about to step out the door, suddenly there was a knock on the door.

−Knock knock.

‘Is it Ellie?’

But Ellie had never visited the room at dawn like this. Celiya thought it was strange. Then, a low voice was heard from beyond the door.

“It’s me.”

It was Dietrich’s voice.

Celiya immediately ran to the bed on her tiptoes and pulled the blanket up to her neck.

Before Celiya could say come in, the door opened.