The meticulously copied reports and evidence were scattered throughout the banquet hall. The papers fluttered like extras in a breaking news bulletin, filling the hands of every noble present and spilling onto the floor in heaps.

After a brief silence, screams erupted from all directions.

“Good heavens! Is this true?”

“My God. To think the young princes were kidnapped and sold to a fanatical cult.”

“Even with evidence, I just can’t believe it...”

At that moment, the queen put an end to the murmurs.

“If you wish, I can summon all the witnesses mentioned in these records to this very place.”

Her confident demeanor was enough to sway the politically astute nobles. The tide was quickly turning.

“I—I remember that time. The circumstances all fit together...”

“No wonder the prince seemed cautious of the Order. It wasn’t just because of collusion with the church state but because he had been compromised! Now it all makes sense!”

“To think such heinous acts came from those with such innocent faces...!”

“So until now, we were all deceived by Prince Hadeil!”

Chaos and shock filled every corner of the banquet hall.

“No, no! This is a lie! Fabrication! Incitement!”

“...”

“I-It’s a conspiracy! The queen’s plot!”

Hadeil shouted, veins bulging in his neck, but no one listened. Even his own followers were stunned by the cruelty and horror of trying to eliminate the young bloodline.

Almost everything was coming to fruition. Queen Raviosa quietly turned her head, feeling her breathing grow heavier.

Her gaze fell on Marchioness Lecandro, who was as shocked as the others.

“Will you still oppose me, Sword of the Royal Family?”

“...As you wish, Your Majesty.”

The nine twin swords ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) that had been guarding Hadeil were neatly folded and retrieved. Lecandro stepped back, making way for the royal guards, and Hadeil was left lost in thought.

“Marchioness Lecandro! What are you doing?! Protect me at once!”

“Your Highness.”

“Yes! I am a prince! Isn’t it your duty to protect me...!”

“My apologies. I do not protect the prince. I protect the royal family.”

“...!”

Freed from all restraint, Queen Raviosa immediately commanded.

“Arrest the criminal.”

“L-let go! Let me go!”

“Use force if necessary.”

“I-I am the first prince of Vinchester! The primary heir! You cannot treat me like this!”

What followed was far from dignified. Knowing that being restrained meant the end, Hadeil violently resisted.

His pristine formal wear was ruined, his once-tidy platinum hair disheveled, until finally the exhausted prince was forced to kneel on the floor.

“Ugh...”

Ligares approached him, but instead of bending to meet his eye level, he grabbed his collar and swung a fist.

Bam!

“Your Highness!”

“Ah! What are you doing...!”

Shouts around them were ignored by Ligares. The soldiers were all loyal to the queen, so none actively intervened.

Instead, they held Hadeil firmly, demonstrating their allegiance.

Ligares’ fists rained repeatedly on Hadeil’s face.

“Because of you!”

“Ugh!”

“Our brother! Reminic!”

“Ugh, no, it wasn’t me!”

“Shut up! Don’t deny it!”

“Ugh! P-please...!”

“You want to live? Then bring Reminic back first.”

“Stop! Gah!”

“Can’t do it? Then just die.”

“Ugh...!”

With merciless blows, Hadeil’s face quickly lost all semblance of its original form. Blood and teeth flew with each punch.

Such brutality was rare in the refined royal palace, and it spoke volumes of deep-seated hatred.

“Die!”

Marchioness Lecandro finally intervened to stop the frenzied Ligares.

“Second Prince, please stop...!”

“Haha! Ha, hahaha...!”

A sudden mad laughter echoed through the hall—not Ligares’, but Hadeil’s.

Perhaps from the beating, his blue eyes gleamed chillingly from swollen sockets.

The two princes’ gazes locked, madness meeting madness.

“Yes, I did it! I ordered the death of those pests!”

“...”

“The younger brother failed, but the older brother was handled well! Doesn’t matter. You were never the focus; the real target was your brother. How could I stand to hear that brat called a sage king’s heir?! Isn’t that right?!”

“...You.”

Just as Ligares raised his fist again—

“But you killed him too!”

“...What?”

“You survived by sacrificing your brother’s life! What makes you different?”

“...”

It was sophistry, but Ligares could not retort.

I hated my brother.

...

I wish he were dead.

...Yeah.

Memories pushing through the past froze Ligares’ heart cold. The demonic expression broke down, revealing an emotion other than anger:

Overwhelming guilt.

“...”

His chest rose and fell rapidly. Though his body struggled to breathe, his mind felt suffocated.

Weak emotions gripped his throat. To survive, as always, he masked his feelings, covering guilt with blazing rage.

“I will kill you!”

Ligares swung again, but the crazed Hadeil only laughed madly and spat venomous curses.

“I saved you only to see you grow into this worthless bastard! Your brother Reminic must be rolling in his grave! Haha!”

“Shut up!”

“Entrusting this country to such a vengeful man? Haha! Madness! Madness! If you ruin the kingdom, will you say it’s Reminic’s fault too?!”

“Don’t put my brother’s name on your filthy lips...!”

Just then, someone powerful enough to restrain Ligares appeared.

“Enough.”

“...Your Majesty.”

“Stop this, Liga.”

“Yes, mother.”

Calming Ligares, the queen slowly rose from the throne.

Her steps toward the beaten Hadeil were calm and graceful as always.

“Your Majesty, Queen...”

Hadeil, slightly more conscious, looked up at Queen Raviosa pleadingly. But it was a futile appeal.

Suddenly, the clang of metal came from a soldier’s waist nearby.

Guh-ack!

Blood burst from Hadeil’s mouth. His pierced body trembled violently like a spasm before settling into stillness.

“Liga, leave something of mine behind, won’t you?”

The blood-soaked queen smiled with unfocused eyes. Moments ago, she had borrowed a soldier’s sword to pierce the heart of her enemy.

It was hard to believe that such delicate arms wielding a longsword, with no formal training, could be so steady.

The hatred of a mother who lost her child made all things possible.

“Ugh...!”

Nervous nobles nearby covered their mouths to suppress screams.

Gasping sounds filled the air. Amid it all, Queen Raviosa spoke loudly as if to everyone, or perhaps to herself.

“I can do anything for my son.”

She raised her head and gazed at the ceiling, or rather, the sky beyond. Usually, one revenging lets out mad laughter, but from her lips came a sorrowful name.

“...You see? Reminic.”

Straightening her posture, she returned to her iron queen self.

“Throw the traitor’s body into the underground prison and leave it to rot. No tomb, no gravestone. No one shall ever speak the traitor’s name again.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“And hang this sword that executed the traitor in my chamber. Do not wipe off the blood.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The royal guards and head maid obeyed and withdrew. Meanwhile, the queen returned to the throne with dignified steps.

Perhaps it was because her face was smiling like a blooming flower now that even the enemy’s blood splattered across her body seemed like a ruby-encrusted ornament — she was beautiful.

The declaration continued. There was still business to attend to.

“Dear great nobles of Vinchester, I regret to inform you that this morning, King Ferat passed away.”

No one was shocked or opposed by the unfortunate coincidence of the king’s death on this day. Instead, all swallowed dryly and thought:

‘What was coming, has come.’

The stage was set; it was only natural the plan would now be fulfilled.

‘The only rightful heir is now Prince Ligares.’

‘The queen will finally place the crown on the head of the son she bore herself.’

‘The long and arduous succession war will at last end...’

Everyone anticipated the obvious course. But then, a variable intervened.

“...!”

Suddenly, Marchioness Lecandro raised her head sharply and glared toward the entrance.

“Everyone, be alert!”

“Marchioness Lecandro?”

The royal knights grasped their swords. Beginning with the Aura Master, more and more sensed danger and paled.

Just as even those without awakened third power turned pale with fear—

Crash!

The banquet hall doors were flung open as if pierced by a battering ram. With rhythmic footsteps, an uninvited guest appeared.

“...”

A pink-haired woman clad in black ceremonial robes strode alone down the red carpet.

No escort was necessary. Her noble bearing armed like armor and her overwhelming presence made it feel like she was crossing a battlefield, not a banquet hall.

The first to shake off instinctive awe was, unsurprisingly, Marchioness Lecandro.

“Who is that?”

There was no need for a warning to the threatening intruder as the Aura Blade flew directly toward her.

“Mercury’s Barrier.”

However, this intruder wielding extraordinary power appeared to have brought an entire fortress with her. The Aura Blade was completely deflected by a silver wall.

The knights who had awakened high-level Aura immediately recognized it.

“H-holy power?”

“She countered a master-level Aura.”

“Rank 8? No, wait, could it be...!”

In one clash, they sized each other up.

‘Rank 9 holy power. Above me.’

After concluding her judgment, Marchioness Lecandro twitched her eyebrows and whispered quietly.

“Your Majesty, beware.”

“...”

But the queen was not listening. She was staring wide-eyed at the intruder, forgetting even to blink.

“You are...?”