: * * :

After taking Leilia to the hotel, Cassel said he would walk alone before heading to the academy dormitory.

His steps were heavy as he trudged away.

Senior Juron.

There were other men who coveted Leilia. As Lucis mentioned, she was popular and other men had asked her to marry them. However, because of her familys objection, he also added that men from other noble families no longer proposed to her anymore.

He glanced up at the sky as he walked.

With her cheeks flushed red as she drank., her long brown hair hung over her ears as she smiled sweetly with her lips parted when she smiled.

It was a beautiful sight to behold enough to want to covet.

Shes very charming when she smiles.

People in the academy had said this about her.

So, Cassel always imagined that. What did she look like as a child, and what would she look like when she grew up now?

And their first meeting it was intense. However, the second time they met, the drunken woman opened her eyes slightly and smiled at him. She relaxed and smiled gently, leaving him mesmerized.

Before he knew it, he was laughing along with her.

His heavy steps stopped abruptly. After standing for a while, he sat down and buried his face between his legs.

Im a bad guy.

He thought it was a relief that her marriage proposals were turned down.

It was only their second meeting yet he realized he didnt want anyone else to see her smile. His heart only grew bigger. At the same time, the mind that thought it was okay to be her paramour, just to stay by her side, was cracking.

Leilia.

I want to hold her.

I want to covet her.

He wanted to be in a position to officially hold her in his arms so desperately. Leilia Eloisa, his first love and supporter, who became his only hope after his mother died when he was young.

The heavy heart was falling down.

Cassel closed his eyes.

He didnt know if pure love was possible anymore.

While the stars were twinkling in the sky, there was always darkness lurking beneath them. As he continued his steps without saying anything a word, he realized he couldnt stop the darkness from growing.

: * * :

Waking up the next day, Leilia, who suffered from a hangover, eventually went home though it was only after promising the worried Lucis that she wouldnt drink for a while.

It was the end of early spring and the beginning of summer. The leaves had turned from chartreuse to vivid green, and the sunlight was intense, even in the morning.

In the meantime, she also handled things quickly.

As the relationship between the Empire and the Kingdom of Seitria had grown increasingly strained, the Seitria branch of the merchant association was dismantled. She always sold the Seitria branch of the Hyllan association to the coveted merchant. As the takeover was completed without much fuss, the locals were able to work as they were.

Lucis had a hard time.

Then, she sighed.

Cassel.

After graduation, Cassel stopped sending letters, saying that he would contact her through Natale when his place of residence was decided later though she never heard from him.

She had an ominous feeling.

Should I find out through people?

Thoughts of him flooded her mind, and Leilia didnt even notice the newspaper.

Soon, she regained her composure and focused on the newspaper once again. According to the information flowing across the association, war was about to break out. What she was most curious about was which prince would be participating in the war this time.

This was because the direction of the association may have to be changed depending on who participated.

As she was expecting it to be announced, probably today or tomorrow, as she expected, an article was published announcing that the Kingdom of Seitria had declared war. She wasnt surprised as she had already guessed it.

Which of the three princes would it be?

Leilia muttered as she read the next line.

In the Roten Empire, according to imperial law, the prince had to participate when war broke out. Then, the prince who participated in the war would be forced to participate in all the battles and let him die, and after, they would use his death as a morale booster to win the war.

Of course, no prince would volunteer for such a cold battlefield. They would surely enter only through some sort of deal. Since there was a high possibility to be the prince who lost the power struggle, it was possible to guess the future power situation by looking at what was to come.

However, as she read the next line, Leilias complexion turned pale.

Why is he here?

She hurriedly read the paper.

It was written that the Emperor had secretly dated a commoner lover during his academy days and that she had died after giving birth to his son alone.

The newly crowned princes name was Cassel Jen Roten.

There was no one who didnt know what it meant to announce that there was a new prince in this situation.

Is Cassel going to the battlefield?

Leilia took a deep breath.

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