The audience was silent as death. Noah thought he should drive the point home completely at this juncture. With his elbow resting on the armrest and his chin in his hand, Noah spoke in an icy voice that seemed to drip with frost.

“One chance is enough. If you’re not confident of success, don’t even try.”

Then he kicked the miserable corpse lying at his feet. The baron’s body rolled down beneath the high seat.

“Remove it.”

The cold voice fell like the blade of a guillotine.

“Remember. I won’t overlook it twice.”

As the terrified people swallowed dry saliva, a blade-like aura explosively erupted from Noah’s body.

Women with weak hearts fainted with groans at the sharp killing intent, as if they had just coughed up blood and collapsed. Even Joseph, who seemed to be holding up for a moment, crumbled.

“……”

Vernon and Bradley swallowed hard. They never dreamed that the Grand Duke, who had been considered one of the docile ones, would be a hidden powerhouse. No, Bradley had slightly suspected when the Grand Duke had easily thrown Dwayne with southern martial arts before.

But he had dismissed it as beginner’s luck and Dwayne’s carelessness. After all, Dwayne was truly one of the top ten strongest in the empire, surpassing even Vernon.

Bradley bit his lip, resisting the pressure weighing on his shoulders.

‘At this level, I can’t even match him, and he’s on par with Dwayne….’

Vernon also stared at Noah, who was sitting askew on the throne, with wavering eyes.

‘To have hidden such skill so perfectly……’

Regardless of whether people were struggling or not, Noah just looked down with an indifferent face. Wasn’t this quite a generous measure, considering he had only released a weak killing intent without killing or hanging anyone as an example?

At that moment, his gaze fell on his half-brother, who was on his knees on the floor, retching. He was trembling his lower jaw, tears and snot running.

‘That guy, what on earth……’

When their eyes met, blue and sharp, the Crown Prince felt all the hair on his body stand on end. It was instinctive fear. The Crown Prince unknowingly averted his eyes and thought.

‘Is this why Amy chose that child…?’

It was then.

“……Haa.”

Amy’s body, standing next to Noah, tilted sideways.

“Amy!”

Noah, who had sprung up, caught the falling Amy and pulled her into his arms. Amy breathed heavily with her eyes closed. It seemed she had fainted, unable to endure any longer after being exposed to the suffocating killing intent while already suffering from emotional distress.

Noah stared at Amy with wavering eyes and then squeezed them shut. The pressure that had been pressing down terrifyingly, as if crushed under a cliff, disappeared in an instant.

“Ah……”

Exclamations burst from Vernon and Bradley’s mouths. Those who had been barely holding up on their knees in the hall, where countless had fallen, exhaled in relief. People who had finally come to their senses looked up at Noah with incomparably greater reverence than before.

But Noah did not react at all. He was now entirely focused on the unconscious Amy.

‘It’s my fault.’

As he bit his lip, Amy’s voice replayed in his head.

‘But it’s not good to appear too oppressive either…… You need to show a generous side too, right?’

Looking at her pale, bloodless face, he wanted to strike himself for forgetting her request.

“Lady Weaver!”

At the rough call, Lady Weaver, who had been at the edge of the hall and thus less affected by the pressure, staggered over. The maids, including Rita and Mary, and Joseph did the same.

Noah gave instructions in a terrifyingly calm voice.

“Take Amy to her chamber. She’ll wake up soon, so let her rest well.”

Even as he said this, he held Amy tightly in his arms, as if reluctant to let her go, and stared at her endlessly. The head maid fidgeted, not daring to urge him. Unable to bear it any longer, Vernon stepped forward.

“Your Highness, you need to take care of yourself as well, not just the lady-in-waiting.”

The amount of blood Noah had shed was not ordinary. Moreover, his complexion, which had slightly returned, disappeared again, probably due to the killing intent he had just released. It was unmistakable that the suppressed toxin had manifested again, and the physician chimed in from the side.

“Your Highness is in a severe state of poisoning. We must detoxify you immediately.”

The two pillars supporting the Grand Duchy were about to collapse. Lady Weaver, Joseph, and Vernon exchanged urgent glances and appealed to Noah.

“Grand Duke, please leave the rest to us and retire.”

“Please do so. We will take careful care of the lady-in-waiting as well, Your Highness.”

“……”

Noah, listening to their pleas, squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them. Then, gazing at Amy dejectedly, he spoke in a low voice.

“The banquet is over. Send everyone away.”

Thus ended the new Grand Duke’s enthronement ceremony and banquet, stained with blood.

***

Flash. Amy opened her eyes.

“……”

The ceiling, now familiar after staying for several months, filled her vision. She was bewildered, not knowing why she was lying in her chamber. After blinking for a moment while lying down, the next instant she sat up with a jolt.

“Your Highness!”

Rita, who had been dozing off in a chair beside the bed, was startled and then rushed to Amy upon seeing her.

“Lady-in-waiting, you’re awake? How are you feel-……”

“Rita, what about His Highness? How is the Grand Duke’s condition?”

Amy asked, roughly brushing up her hair, not giving Rita a chance to speak. Then, without waiting for an answer, she hopped off the bed and strode towards the door. Rita hurriedly followed behind her.

“The lady-in-waiting just fainted briefly due to the pressure of the aura, they said. No special treatment was needed.”

“What about His Highness’s condition?”

Noah’s state was more important than her own body. Amy clenched her fists, unable to bear the anxiety. Her nails dug into her palms, but she didn’t even feel the pain.

“He’s sleeping now after taking medicine brewed by the physician. There was much concern because he lost a lot of blood, but fortunately, his recovery is fast.”

“……”

Finally, she felt relieved at the news that he was recovering well. When they reached the front of the Grand Duke’s chamber, Amy stopped at the door and took a deep breath. Then she whispered softly.

“It’s Amy, Your Highness. I’m coming in for a moment.”

Creeak. Amy and Rita slowly opened the door and entered. In the dark interior, only the light from the wall-mounted candlesticks shone dimly.

Amy walked without making a sound, reached the bed, and carefully pulled back the canopy that surrounded it. On the large bed lay Noah with his eyes closed, his face pale.

“……”

Amy gazed intently at his face, beautiful as an angel’s, then slowly sank into the chair placed beside the bed. She placed her arms on the bed, clasped her hands as if in prayer, and closed her eyes.

‘I was too complacent.’

It wasn’t right to change the weather immediately. She shouldn’t have been so reckless as to try to show something right away. She should have attempted anything only after solidly building up the North’s military power and system. She should have perfectly won over the people of the Grand Duchy to Lord Noah’s side first……

The regrets were endless.

‘Having caused such a tremendous change when we had just arrived without any foundation, the Empress’s head must have been spinning.’

She must have thought that if they didn’t join hands with the Crown Prince, she could just eliminate them immediately and reincorporate the duchy into the empire. It must have seemed like a golden opportunity, especially now that the restrictions of the severe cold had disappeared.

‘He came here because of me… and I couldn’t protect him.’

Was what I did truly for his sake? Wasn’t I just manipulating him under the pretext of repaying his kindness?

In fact, Lord Noah said he had never even thought about what kind of ruler he would be……

A pitiful self-deprecation leaked out.

“How is this repaying a debt? Even an enemy wouldn’t do this.”

Just as she mumbled weakly, Noah called out to her.

“Amy.”

“!”

Amy’s head snapped up.

“Your Highness! Are you conscious?”

Noah was looking at her with a quite sober face, as if he had been awake for some time. He moved his chapped lips roughly.

“You’re thinking strange thoughts……”

“……Pardon?”

She was bewildered, unable to understand what he meant. Noah blinked, looking at her, and spoke more calmly.

“Listen well, Amy. I don’t regret coming here.”

“……”

Realizing that he had heard what she had just said, Amy’s mouth clamped shut. Noah felt a pang of regret as he gauged the guilt filling her face.

“Amy showed me a wide and new world when I was trapped in the palace. She also let me know that my potential is limitless. She told me I could become anything.”

“……”

“A little mouse who believed that only the inside of a dark warehouse was the entirety of his world has come outside for the first time. Do you think the mouse would regret that, would want to go back to the warehouse?”

Noah smiled slightly and mouthed the words while maintaining eye contact with Amy.

‘Absolutely not.’

A tingling sensation spread down Amy’s spine. As she was flustered, wondering what this feeling was, Noah whispered again. This time with a slight blush on his face.

“And above all… I like that Amy and I are looking at the same place.”

“……Your Highness.”

Hearing his words, the warm air in the chamber seemed to turn cold. A feeling that something was off… Amy stiffened slightly at the subtly spreading sense of unease.

Noah keenly noticed this and inwardly gave a bitter smile.

‘Our Amy is indeed clever….’

He added casually.

“So, I’m happy living with the same goal and pursuing the same results.”

“……Really?”

Amy’s wariness softened at the word ‘happy’. It was understandable. Hadn’t she been pondering over that very thing just moments ago? But finding it hard to believe easily, she asked softly.

“Are you truly happy?”

Reading the expectation, anxiety, and earnestness etched on her face, Noah felt a tightness in his chest. Could there be another being who worried about him this much? He tilted his head to the side and whispered.

“Yes. I’m happy.”

Then he smiled prettily again. Amy smiled with all her might, meaning to relax since he liked her face. The effort was not in vain, as Amy’s expression improved considerably.

“So don’t make that face. Amy is doing well enough, no, more than enough.”

“……”

Amy’s lips trembled involuntarily, choked up. Noah, feeling sorry, unconsciously took her hand. Too busy trying to hold back tears to notice at first, Amy stiffened slightly when she belatedly realized the warmth gripping her hand. Noticing this too, Noah quickly took the initiative.

“Amy. We are…… companions, right?”