* * *

Ethan thought that everything had slowed down. The feel of her own hand slipping through, the soft hair that fluttered in front of him, and the delicate body that pushed the Second Prince and plunged into the eerie spreading light. Everything seemed to unfold slowly before his eyes.

“Sarah! Wake up, Sarah!”

Ethan, with his bloodshot eyes, shook her slender body, which had lost consciousness in his arms. When the light that was so bright that he could not see faded, Sarah was standing there. And when he hurriedly approached, she fell back, vomiting blood.

“……Haa, ha urgh!”

Sarah was crying and vomiting blood while she was unconscious. Blood was flowing like tears in her eyes. As Sarah was dyed in red, Ethan also began to see red.

“All the nobles have been sent away, Duke Ambrosia. The Imperial doctors will be here soon.”

“……The Imperial Palace’s doctors are not enough.”

Ethan grabbed Sarah’s body and lifted her up. Then Sarah’s arm flicked helplessly from his bosom and fell.

“Damn.”

It felt like his heart was sinking. He spitted out low swear words like chewing gum, fixed Sarah’s light body, and hugged her. Then he spoke to the Emperor as if it was a notice.

“We will open Ambrosia’s lounge. I ask you to send all the priests staying in the Imperial Palace, as well as the Imperial doctors, there.”

“Sure, let’s do that. Hurry up.”

The Emperor nodded hastily as he looked at Ethan with blazing eyes. He had no time to be angry that this had happened at this Imperial banquet. Sarah, the great magician, could not even use her hands, vomited blood like that, and collapsed. The Emperor gave the order, looking at the back of the Duke of Ambrosia, who hurriedly headed for the lounge with Sarah in his arms.

“Stenia Hall is closed. Identify everyone who came in and out of here today and hand them over to Duke Ambrosia.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“And send someone to Count Millen’s family.”

“I’ll send one right away.”

Behind the Emperor, who quickly gave orders, the Second Prince, Ilior, looked blankly at the bloodstains that Sarah had left behind.

‘It’s dangerous!’

The moment Sarah shoved his shoulder and wrapped herself around the light captured his whole mind.

“I will also go with Duke Ambrosia. Your Majesty.”

Ilior hurriedly tried to follow Ethan. The Imperial Knights, who received the Emperor’s glance, stopped him.

“Halt.”

“……Your Majesty.”

“There’s nothing good about dealing with Duke Ambrosia now.”

“But Countess Millen saved me. If it weren’t for her, I would have been the one who collapsed vomiting blood.”

“That’s trivial. Now it’s not time to consider such a little favor.

“What are you talking about……”

The Emperor slowly approached him and grabbed his shoulder tightly. There was no reflection of any worries about Sarah, who had just left with the Duke of Ambrosia in his cold, sunken eyes. It was just the eyes of a ruler who ruled an empire.

“What would you do if Ambrosia and Count Millen’s family were held accountable, Son?”

“……!”

“The glory of the Crombell Imperial family will plummet to the ground. If you are truly the Prince of Crombell, be wise.”

Ilior knew exactly what the Emperor was trying to say. It wasn’t something that he didn’t know. So he clenched his fists and bit his lip.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Seeing Ilior calmly agreeing, the Emperor praised him as he was rarely satisfied. But Ilior wasn’t happy at all.

“……”

It was because he realized that the Emperor had never given a single glance to Eleon, who was almost engulfed in light with Ilior. When he made eye-contact with him, Eleon nodded as if he were familiar with it. Perhaps if Ilior had not stepped up to follow the Duke of Ambrosia, the Emperor would not have given him even the slightest interest.

“Ha.”

Realizing this, a mournful sigh leaked out from between Ilior’s lips.

* * *

“Sarah, please open your eyes……!”

Sarah was still unconscious. He wiped and wiped the blood from the corners of her mouth, but as it continued to drip, he could see that her insides were still shaking.

“Duke Ambrosia, I will take a look.”

Arriving at Ambrosia’s lounge, the Imperial Court hurriedly ran. Only then did Ethan release Sarah from his arms.

“F, Fa……Father……”

Claude watched the situation from a distance, then grabbed Ethan’s hem with a tearful face. Ethan’s clothes were already soaked with the blood that Sarah had vomited.

“Hic, hiic……”

Claude burst into tears once more as he saw Sarah being examined by the Imperial doctor. He couldn’t believe that Sarah, who had previously reassured him with a smile, had returned to a state where she was about to die.

“What if Nanny dies? Father, Nanny……”

“It’s fine, it’s fine…… I will never leave it like that.”

Claude had been crying out of breath the moment Sarah came in blood-drenched in Ethan’s arms. The situation was too painful to show the child, and he tried to entrust Claude to Jade, but Claude refused so stubbornly that he had no choice but to let him stay by his side and comfort him. Ethan wanted to hug Claude, but only clenched his fists, remembering himself soaked in her blood.

“Count, Countess Millen’s breath is getting fainter.”

At the words of the Imperial doctor, Ethan frowned and grabbed his collar. With just one arm, Ethan could easily make the two feet of the Imperial doctor float in the air.

“Do you think someone left it to you because they didn’t know? Tell me the symptoms and solutions.”

“It, it wouldn’t be strange if she died now……!”

Ethan threw the Imperial doctor away. Then, he took hold of the sword of the Imperial Knights who brought in the Imperial Palace’s doctors and pulled it out. Schwing, with a horrifying sound, the sword was pulled out and touched the nape of the Imperial doctor.

“It’s not the answer I want to hear from the mouth of the Imperial Palace’s doctor that even those who are dying will be saved.”

“Sa, save me……”

“I don’t have a hobby of taking useless lives. So you just have to do your duty.”

The Imperial doctor shook his head, trembling. She was neither traumatized nor internally injured. Nevertheless, it was beyond common sense to constantly vomit blood like that. The Imperial doctor was desperate because there was nothing he could do.

“Usually, it’s a symptom that can never come out. There. There’s something beyond what I can do!”

Ethan’s face hardened terribly at the words that came out of the Imperial doctor’s mouth.

“Get out.”

“……! Th, thank you!”

As a blessing fell from Ethan’s mouth, the Imperial doctor scrambled out in case someone was going to catch him. As he didn’t want to see the Duke of Ambrosia, who was famous for being neat and gentle in the noble circle, seething with anger in his eyes again, he quickly left.

“Sir Harper, the priests?”

“They’re almost there. They’ll be here soon.”

“So late.”

“I’m sorry.”

Ethan bit his lip and took Sarah’s hand, who still hadn’t opened her eyes. An eerie chill seemed to pass through the back of his neck as the cold energy passed through his palms.

“Sarah……”

It seemed like she would get up at any moment and smile softly saying, ‘Oh my God, are you surprised?’. She was a strong person. He couldn’t believe she was lying down like that.

“You said you were a great magician.”

Unknowingly, Ethan began to mumble in a low voice.

“You’re stronger than I thought, you told me that with your own mouth.”

He didn’t know he would be so shaken like that. He didn’t know he was so desperate like that. Thinking that Sarah might never be able to open her eyes again, it seemed that there was a chilly wind blowing in his heart.

“So wake up.”

Ethan didn’t know yet how to define such a desolate feeling.

“Wake up, Nanny……”

Before he knew it, Claude put his hand on Ethan’s hand which was holding Sarah’s hand.

“Huu, hueoing.”

The voice of the crying child was almost silent. Sarah became an indispensable existence for that child too. He didn’t know what magic Sarah did to him and Claude when she came to Ambrosia. One thing was certain, Ethan and Claude knew that if Sarah were lost, they would plunge into a swamp of no return. More than anyone else.