Chapter 109
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Chapter 109
The moment the most powerful person in the room spoke, Anastasia immediately fell silent. The Raven, who had been enthusiastically chiming in, did the same.
The two exchanged a knowing glance that seemed to say, "Oh, right. Crown Prince Kiaros was fond of Namia Loapi, wasn't he?"
"Um, but who exactly are you?"
"Well... think of me as an elite knight who operates in the shadows."
"Wow, w-wow..."
Anastasia and the Raven had apparently grown somewhat closer in the meantime, whispering to each other.
Meanwhile, Victor turned his gaze back to me with a heavy sigh.
"I was sincere. Namia Loapi, I... you. Yes. I can't imagine possessing someone in any other way than this."
His voice carried the weight of ragged breathing.
"That's right. You don't know me at all, Namia."
Victor spoke in a dark tone I'd never heard from him before, his eyes glistening with tears.
"I've kept my childhood hidden all this time, but the truth is, my biological parents..."
I stared at him intently. It seemed he was about to reveal something concerning his upbringing.
But in that moment.
I'd tried so hard to hold it back, but inevitably, my mouth opened.
"Yaaawn..."
There was nothing I could do about it. It was truly unavoidable—a side effect of the sedative.
Victor looked at me with a sense of betrayal more profound than ever before, and having lost all will to continue speaking, he glared at me.
"So... the Minister doesn't... want to hear it, apparently..."
Only Anastasia rolled her eyes and muttered.
"I told you, confessions aren't something you challenge someone with..."
* * *
[I merely reported all matters of the Scroll Department to someone. After receiving that report, I was instructed to obtain Crown Prince Kiaros's blood by any means necessary.]
As Victor was dragged away by the Ravens, he said this.
[I don't know who exactly ordered me to do this, only that it was the Gaejo Faction. Especially after the Saint Kairo Banquet, all communications came through my personal mailbox in the Imperial Palace.]
That had credibility. After all, Victor had joined the Gaejo Faction in his teens and left immediately upon becoming the adopted son of Marquis Awin.
[Marquis Awin knows nothing of this. Please, I beg you—let no harm come to him.]
That final plea from Victor seemed genuine. It had to be, if he was human.
There was no way he would have revealed such important information to someone at that level.
[Please, please... not Marquis Awin. He believed in me and gave me a new life...]
[Did you ever show him your true self?]
[...No. I never want him to know.]
Victor was dragged away while worrying about the Finance Minister. In any case, the fact that he had a weakness was quite fortunate.
[The Imperial Servant's blood... I arranged to leave it in my mailbox, the one I've been using to communicate with them all this time. That's all.]
[If that's a lie, I won't spare the Finance Minister.]
Crown Prince Kiaros ordered a vial containing ordinary human blood to be placed in that mailbox.
And he had Victor placed under surveillance, instructing him to report to work as if nothing had happened.
It was so the Gaejo Faction would believe their plan had succeeded.
'I set this trap from the very beginning.'
The Imperial Palace was not a place anyone could enter. Especially not in the dead of night.
Victor's mailbox was used for official purposes, so it was kept within the Imperial Palace.
If we lay in wait there, we could catch any other members of the Gaejo Faction staying in the Imperial Palace.
"Then I'll leave the cleanup to you."
Crown Prince Kiaros spoke to two of the Ravens.
One of the Ravens approached Victor. His sky-blue eyes turned toward me once more. He spoke in a daze.
"...You need to be careful, Namia."
It was the first time I saw such an empty look in his eyes.
"Until now, you've been safe because of me, but they've already become aware of you."
I remained silent.
It was something I had already suspected. That's why I entered the Imperial Palace as soon as the banquet ended.
"Because I could use you to obtain the blood of the Imperial Servants, you've been able to remain unharmed all this time."
I understood what Victor was saying.
Now that they believed they had obtained the blood of the Imperial Servants, they could harm me.
Someone within the Imperial Palace who could access Victor's mailbox.
It meant I was in danger even if I stayed in the Imperial Palace, even with guards at my side.
"...From the moment I first saw you, wanting to have you was my true heart."
The one who blocked our locked gazes was Crown Prince Kiaros.
"Go."
Crown Prince Kiaros standing before me gave a low command.
"Now, immediately, at once, hurry, quickly, go."
At his instruction, a Raven bound Victor and swiftly disappeared. Crown Prince Kiaros also gave instructions to Anastasia.
"Miss Anastasia should take medical leave and rest at home. Say she suffered severe injuries from Victor and is hovering between life and death. And don't try to learn more details about this matter."
"Yes, yes! Ah, I understand!"
Thus Anastasia's situation was roughly resolved as well.
"Still, just in case, I'll assign someone to watch over her."
The Raven who had just saved Anastasia and quickly grown close to her took on that escort duty.
After the two of them departed, each with their respective Raven.
Crown Prince Kiaros spoke to me as I stifled a yawn.
"You must be quite exhausted, but could you perhaps muster a bit more strength?"
My figure was fully reflected in his crimson eyes, which held a certain tension.
"How about we keep watch together to see who approaches the mailbox."
"I wished to do the same."
I nodded vigorously.
Thus we headed toward Victor's mailbox together with the remaining Ravens.
One of the Ravens placed a beaker containing blood into Victor's mailbox.
After that, we crouched low in the grass and hid ourselves.
As we waited for someone to approach the mailbox, sitting quietly, Victor's final appearance kept returning to my mind.
"Why."
Crown Prince Kiaros asked, observing my expression.
"Feeling troubled?"
I stifled a yawn before answering, my eyes conveying an apologetic expression.
"Not really. I think I'm still reeling from the shock of Anastasia's revelation... It's just that I've come to accept that such things can happen."
"Yet Victor Awin seemed to be blaming Namia Loapi for it."
"That's just typical male deflection, isn't it? Regardless of his background or circumstances, I have no obligation to accommodate them."
At the time, Anastasia had wistfully murmured something about how she found brooding men with tragic backstories rather appealing, but I felt no curiosity about his circumstances. That was simply my nature.
"We could have worked out, but timing simply didn't align—and I suppose that's something that can happen."
I continued speaking, blinking slowly.
"But forcing everything to go exactly as one wishes while scrutinizing every detail isn't true love, is it?"
"...That's true."
Crown Prince Kiaros's response came a beat too late.
Only then did I realize I had been rambling quite unnecessarily to him.
He was my superior—practically a figure as distant as the heavens—so why had I been speaking so personally?
'Have I grown more comfortable around him?'
I couldn't pinpoint when it had happened, but our interactions were certainly nothing like that first meeting, where I trembled visibly at the mere sight of him.
This was entirely because Crown Prince Kiaros had made me feel at ease.
He approached me warmly, with genuine interest and affection, taking the first step himself.
"In any case, ensure that they do not harm Namia Loapi. Exercise particular caution."
Crown Prince Kiaros spoke in a low voice.
"Namia Loapi is my guest, and I will protect her without fail."
Just as I was about to acknowledge his words—
I caught sight of someone approaching Victor's mailbox.
He quietly withdrew a beaker filled with blood from the mailbox, cradled it against his chest, and retraced his steps just as silently.
"Follow him."
Crown Prince Kiaros issued a low command, and one of the Ravens swiftly took flight, trailing after the figure.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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