As soon as Ail arrived at the imperial palace of Karileum, the first thing he did was completely ignore the people waiting for him with intense expressions and head straight to the northern palace to collapse into bed. It seemed like he had no intention of even showing his face, as he couldn’t be bothered to deal with them. Ruth was so stunned by Ail’s bold and reckless behavior that he couldn’t help but laugh. So this was the kind of plan he had in mind. However, while he might avoid the ministers, he wouldn’t be able to escape from the Empress Adiba.

After returning to the northern palace, Ruth bathed and changed into the neat, formal attire of Karileum. He then went to his room and spoke gruffly to Ail, who was lying half-naked on the bed, sprawled out.
“Go to the Golden Palace.”

“Why?”

“The Empress will be arriving soon.”

“She said she’d be here soon anyway.”

As expected.

“Do I really have to be there in that uncomfortable position?”

“Of course you do. Who do you think this is for?”

Ail lazily glanced at Ruth and made a remark that scraped at his conscience. Ruth was aware that it was his fault, but when it came to the cause, Ail’s actions, which had even made him run away, played a part as well.

“I don’t think the Empress will like me.”

“What’s the problem with that?”

“It’s a problem when the person you’ll be seeing constantly dislikes you.”

“Don’t worry about it. Besides, I won’t be making you a concubine, so there’s no need to worry about my mother.”

The concubine was under the Empress’s authority. Even if Ail became Emperor, before marrying, his former mother, Adiba, would manage Ail’s concubines. This was actually one of the reasons Ail kept Ruth in the northern palace. He didn’t want to get his mother involved with Ruth. His mother would do anything to expel Ruth from the imperial palace.

“Still…”

Ruth was uncomfortable around Adiba in many ways. Although they hadn’t met much, it was natural for Ruth to feel uneasy in her presence, given his position. No mother would welcome her son’s male lover, especially when political tensions were involved.

Seeing Ruth’s gloomy expression, Ail quickly changed the subject.

“By the way, haven’t you heard from the Kaizel family?”

“Huh?”

“News from Lyman Kaizel. I thought you’d have heard something by now.”

“Nothing.”

“Really? It’s later than I expected. In that case, we’ll have to catch Eilen.”

Ail responded suspiciously and then fell silent, as if deep in thought. Ruth, wondering what kind of trouble he was planning, stared at his face intently. Without even looking this way, Ail gestured for him to come closer. Following that silent signal, Ruth obediently sat on the bed. Ail then beckoned him even closer.

“Is there something you want to say?”

Judging that getting any closer would be too risky, Ruth chose to ask first instead of moving any nearer. Ail looked at him, displeased.

“Why?”

“The Empress will be coming soon, so you need to prepare.”

“I’m a sick man.”

“…You don’t look sick at all.”

“I am sick. Just lie down. Come here.”

“Why don’t you just go to the Golden Palace?”

“They won’t call for me there, even if I die.”

“True.”

Ruth responded as if it was obvious. Throughout their journey, Ail had tried multiple times to pull him into his bedroom. Each time, they had argued and debated, and Ruth had managed to push him away and escape. Thanks to that, Ail was clearly quite frustrated, but even with his superhuman stamina, he still couldn’t sleep with Ruth while his injuries weren’t fully healed.

“Stiff.”

Even though Ail spoke as if it was boring, Ruth continued to stare at him without changing his expression. Ail, noticing Ruth’s impassive face, suddenly clicked his tongue and bent down. The sudden sound of his groan made Ruth startled, and he grabbed Ail’s shoulder.

“Does it hurt?”

“…Yeah…”

Ail’s voice, as weak as though he were dying, caused Ruth’s face to pale in concern.

“I’ll get the doctor. Meril…”

As Ruth tried to get up to call Meril from outside the door, Ail suddenly grabbed his waist, causing him to lose his balance. His knees hit the bed, and his body was pulled down toward Ail. Ruth quickly reached out to steady himself on the bed, preventing himself from fully collapsing. Ail clicked his tongue.

“This is why knights are so… You’re too well-trained.”

“Huh?”

“When something like this happens, you’re supposed to just fall into my arms.”

Not understanding his words, Ruth tilted his head. He wondered what kind of person would collapse into a patient’s arms like that. Looking into Ail’s eyes, he seemed to understand the implication, and Ail smiled mischievously.

“Couples joke around like that.”

With the declaration of “couples,” Ail’s playful smile made Ruth realize that he had been tricked. Ail had always shown his true self only when it came to Ruth. Ruth didn’t know how he treated the fleeting lovers who had passed through his life. He couldn’t adjust his behavior to those situations either. And, in truth, Ruth wasn’t clever enough to catch on to things like that.

“So, I guess you were holding other people like that, huh?”

Changing the topic, Ruth teased him, and Ail’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected remark.

“I don’t know about that. I’ve never been in a relationship. Don’t tease someone older than you.”

“Are you jealous?”

“Yes.”

The answer came so straightforwardly and quickly that Ail relaxed and burst into laughter. While his reaction was honest, what struck him more was the fact that Ruth had never mentioned anything about age before. It made him realize that Ruth was really quite upset.

In fact, Ail had never once thought of Ruth as an elder. When they first met, even though Ruth was looking up at him, Ail only considered him a subordinate, never once thought of him as an older person. That was still the case. For someone who was twenty-six, Ruth was incredibly naive and didn’t understand the ways of the world. Ail remembered something Kamiel had once said—Ruth wasn’t politically inept because he was unintelligent, but because he couldn’t understand the inner workings of those who played politics. Ruth couldn’t predict the thoughts or actions of villains. That was because he was still innocent. And Ail couldn’t help but wish that Ruth would remain that way forever.

“If you’re jealous, why don’t you just try it?”

“I’m not so shameless that I’d fall onto an injured person. The Empress will be here soon, so please get dressed. I’ll call Meril.”

This time, Ail, as if unable to avoid it, quietly got up and sat. Ruth, confirming that, was just about to call Meril when they heard a knock on the door. Then, Meril’s tense voice came from outside.

“The Empress has arrived.”

At those words, Ruth immediately stood up. Ail, however, didn’t seem to care about his clothes and just pulled the blanket over himself, lying back down. When Ruth urged him to get dressed, Ail ignored him and replied.

“Let her in.”

A moment later, the door opened, and Adiba entered, wearing a light brown dress. Ruth bowed deeply to greet her, but she didn’t even glance at him, ignoring his greeting as she moved toward the bed. The maidservants who followed her hurriedly brought a chair and placed it beside the bed, and Adiba sat down gracefully.

“So, how are you feeling?”

Her concerned question was met by Ail, who raised himself and replied carelessly.

“I’m fine.”

“Why not go to the Golden Palace and rest? I heard your injuries are serious.”

“This is more comfortable. Ruth, come closer.”

Ail spoke to Ruth in a completely different gentle tone than how he spoke to Adiba, which made Adiba’s sharp gaze shift to Ruth. Ruth, feeling the tension of being scrutinized by both of them, was at a loss. He couldn’t casually approach Ail in front of Adiba, yet disregarding Ail’s request wasn’t an option either. After a brief internal debate on which was worse, Ruth finally made a decision and politely spoke to Adiba.

“I’ll step out for a moment. Please talk amongst yourselves.”

He figured he could avoid any consequences if he just left. If things got uncomfortable, he could simply not return to the room. With this somewhat carefree conclusion in mind, Ruth quietly left the room, followed by the maidservants. Only then did Adiba’s expression soften. Looking at him, Ail spoke as though he had been waiting for this moment.

“There’s something you can do for Mother.”

“What is it?”

“You need to negotiate with Salina.”

“Negotiate?”

“I’ll be breaking off my engagement with Salina soon.”

At these words, Adiba’s face brightened instantly. She smiled brightly, as if this was something she had been eagerly waiting for. Ail looked at her with soft eyes. Contrary to her desires, he had no intention of breaking up with Salina and marrying one of her relatives. He only needed her help to get rid of Salina. If Ail were the one to ask for the break-up, Salina would likely demand that he honor his promises, so he planned to use his mother’s influence.

“How do I do it?”

“It’s simple. Salina kidnapped Erita Jenin and Elsen Miel. Find out the truth and confront her.”

When Ail mentioned the thing that would make Adiba most furious, she immediately let out an angry exclamation.

“Was that something Salina did?”

“Yes. I just found out myself.”

Ail said this without showing any emotion. Adiba, who had long considered Salina a thorn in her side, became even more enraged, her anger rising as she took deep breaths. This was exactly what Ail had been hoping for, setting the stage for what was to come.

“Call Salina tomorrow and tell her that. I’ll take care of the rest.”