# Chapter 219
[Your Majesty, your eyes must have grown quite dim. To think you would send such nonsensical drivel. As a subject, I am deeply concerned, so I shall act as if I never saw this letter.]
“Impudent...!”
The letter was short, but it was incredibly disrespectful.
The Emperor wanted to drag the Duke of West here immediately and force him to prostrate himself, but it was galling that he could not do so.
He crumpled the letter violently and gnashed his teeth.
He had declared he would title the fiancé as a Saintess in the Emperor's name. He was going to make everyone in this empire revere her.
And yet, he dared to reject the offer? To kick away such honor?
“Must I lock down the Duke of West’s residence again?”
As the Emperor muttered with an irritated face, the Chief Attendant, who was standing by, advised in a low voice.
“Since the Duke of West is not moving, it would be best to wait and see for now.”
“Why hasn't the Crown Prince's abdication proposal come up yet?”
The Chief Attendant’s face naturally darkened.
“That is... I heard the Chancellor is currently persuading the nobles.”
“What? I gave the order, so why is persuasion necessary!”
“I apologize, Your Majesty.”
“Tell the Chancellor to bring forward the Crown Prince's abdication proposal immediately.”
“I shall do so.”
As the Chief Attendant bowed and answered politely, the Emperor added more.
“Since the West is being so stubborn, I have no choice. Bring the Lady of Adria to me.”
The Chief Attendant’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Your Majesty, that will not be easy.”
“I told you to drag her before me by any means necessary!”
“...I understand.”
The Chief Attendant answered weakly and withdrew.
* * *
A quiet night where the moonlight hid and even the sounds of insects had faded.
Alecfet swallowed a groan as he looked up at the night sky, which was as black as an abyss.
No matter how powerless a Crown Prince he was, could it be that he didn't have a single person of his own in the Imperial Palace?
Information that the Emperor wanted the Lady of Adria reached his ears quickly.
Until now, he had endured even when he was ignored. Because the Emperor was his father. Because he was the ruler of the empire.
But now, the Emperor was trying to touch even Dia, whom he had resolved to protect with everything he had.
“Sigh...”
A complex sigh escaped his lips.
The Emperor had lost his judgment, the nobles were divided, and the empire was in peril.
He was the Crown Prince. He could no longer just remain hunched over.
If he did nothing and merely watched the situation unfold, he would be no different from the Emperor himself.
Alecfet closed and opened his eyes slowly to bid farewell to his past self, who had only ever hesitated.
His golden eyes, which usually flickered warmly, shone with strength.
“Bring Captain James Miller to me.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The attendant bowed deeply and withdrew, struck by the Crown Prince’s unfamiliar demeanor.
A moment later, James, the Captain of the Imperial Guard, entered.
“Did you call for me?”
“Captain.”
At the title 'Captain,' James answered with a look of tension.
In private settings, the Crown Prince had always called him 'Teacher.'
To call him 'Captain' meant this was an official setting.
“His Imperial Majesty’s reason has been clouded by illness.”
A shadow fell over James’s face.
He, too, had sensed the Emperor’s abnormality, but having the fact confirmed by the Crown Prince made his heart heavy.
“I will be leaving my post for a while.”
James’s face stiffened at the statement that he would defy the Emperor’s order and escape detention.
“Do you understand why I am telling you this on purpose, Captain?”
“...Yes.”
It was a sign to decide whether to follow the current Emperor or follow him, the Crown Prince.
James had never doubted that the Crown Prince would become a magnificent and wise ruler once he inherited the throne.
However, he had not yet rightfully inherited the position.
The Crown Prince rose from his seat and walked forward slowly.
As if telling him to block the way now if he was going to block it at all.
James stood dazed for a moment before blocking the Crown Prince's path.
“Is this the Captain’s will?”
At the Crown Prince’s cold gaze, James shook his head slightly with a sad face.
“I will withdraw the knights. Please wait just a moment.”
“I understand.”
James swallowed a bitter smile and hurried away.
* * *
The moonlight was still hidden behind black clouds; it was a pitch-black night.
Alecfet entered the Duke of West's residence secretly, using a path he had used to sneak in before.
In the past, he had come to meet the Duke of West through this path and had overheard a conversation between Marin and Dia.
As memories of the past surfaced, his tense lips relaxed slightly before hardening again.
Tonight, he had also come to meet the Duke of West, but his mindset was worlds apart from back then.
The moment he cautiously stepped into the garden, he felt a presence.
As he quietly watched the front, a blurry figure was already standing before him.
“I greet the Crown Prince.”
The Duke of West’s voice drifted over, as if he had been waiting for him.
His form seemed to blend into the dark night, but his gray eyes were vivid.
Did the Duke of West guess with what intent he had come here?
Alecfet took a deep breath. The humid summer air entered deep into his lungs and left.
Then, he chose and spoke the words he was about to say along with his warm breath.
“Duke of West. I want to protect Dia.”
“…….”
“But I am foolish, and only one way to protect her comes to mind...”
Alecfet held out his hand boldly toward the Duke of West.
Just then, the moonlight that had been hiding behind the black clouds revealed itself, illuminating the Crown Prince’s white hand.
The Duke of West lowered his head slightly and looked down at his hand.
“...I reach out my hand like this.”
The Duke of West raised his gaze silently and met his eyes.
Alecfet spoke again without withdrawing his extended hand.
“I intend to become the Emperor. Will you help me?”
“Is that resolve solely your choice, Your Imperial Highness?”
It was a question asking if it wasn't a choice he was being pushed into by the nobles.
A cool breeze blew behind his back, which had been wet with tension. Alecfet smiled, his eyes curving.
“It is solely my choice.”
Only then did the Duke of West raise his hand and firmly grasp the Crown Prince's.
“I have been waiting for that answer.”
Alecfet smiled faintly. His heart, which had been tightened with tension, relaxed with a sense of relief.
The Duke of West did not rush him like the other nobles. Instead, he waited until the very end for him to make his own choice.
Alecfet suppressed the hot emotions rising from deep within his chest and spoke honestly.
“Thank you.”
He realized once more that the Duke of West’s crouching within the residence all this time was solely for his sake.
“I will accept that gratitude later.”
The moonlight hid behind the black clouds once more, and their hands, firmly grasping each other, were also veiled in deep darkness.
* * *
The noble families of the capital secretly mobilized their private armies.
They had no time.
If the hasty Emperor were to forcibly decide on the Crown Prince's abdication, it would disrupt the plan to enthrone the Crown Prince as the new Emperor.
They had to oust the Emperor while the Crown Prince still held his position.
A heated tension hung over the faces of the nobles, who even held their breath.
Soon, the history of the empire would change because of them.
Edena, with a strict face, spoke firmly to the Commander of the Eastern Knights.
“Depart at dawn.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
Smith turned to the Commander of the Southern Knights, his brows furrowing slightly as if apologetic.
“To think I am ordering you to do such a thing after meeting again for the first time in a long while.”
“We only follow our Lord.”
The Commander of the Southern Knights bowed his head and replied.
“Thank you.”
“My sin for not protecting my Lord all this time is great. I will give my life to make this matter a success.”
The Commander of the Southern Knights swore with a determined face.
* * *
The Emperor's office.
The Emperor cast his gaze out the window with eyes full of irritation.
Nights of insomnia were not a new thing, but tonight, sleep especially would not come. The path to the bedroom felt far, so he buried his back deep into his chair.
Looking at the black night sky, his chest felt tight as if he had fallen into the deep sea.
When will the sun rise?
Strangely, he missed the sun today. He felt like he would only be able to breathe once the sun rose.
The Emperor raised his hand to rub his chest, which felt as if it were blocked, when the Chief Attendant entered with a knock.
“Your Majesty.”
“What happened with the Lady of Adria?”
The Emperor asked while still keeping his gaze out the window.
“I have not been able to bring her yet.”
Persuading the Lady of Adria with a letter was impossible from the start.
“Tsk. To think the processing of work is this slow. Where is the Captain? Tell the Captain to drag her here if he must!”
Sparks flew from the Emperor’s eyes. He felt as if he could only survive if he held even one weakness of the West in his hands.
The Chief Attendant, looking at the Emperor who was obsessed with the West with a pitying gaze, lowered his eyes.
“Yes, I understand.”
To forcibly bring the Lady of Adria while avoiding the Duke of West’s eyes?
That also made no sense, but he had to at least pretend to comply when the Emperor was being so forceful.
“I shall go find Captain Miller—”
Just as the Chief Attendant was about to report to the Emperor to go find the Captain, the office door suddenly opened.
The Chief Attendant turned his head and stared at the person who entered the office with wide eyes.
“...Your Imperial Highness the Crown Prince?”