* * *
A sharp sound echoed through the grand hall.
Ed had struck her hand aside, stepping in front of the Grand Duke protectively.
Though he didn’t fully understand what the Emperor had done to the Grand Duke, Ed was certain of one thing—he could not allow her to touch him.
The Emperor’s booming voice rang out.
“How dare you!”
Unfazed by the reprimand, Ed locked eyes with the Emperor and spoke clearly.
“I request permission to heal the Grand Duke myself.”
The Emperor opened his mouth to refuse, but Ed continued firmly.
“I am the Grand Duke’s consort, after all.”
Ed stood resolutely, shielding the Grand Duke.
The Emperor sneered.
“You, heal the Grand Duke? How laughable.”
Ed ignored the scorn and turned back to the Grand Duke, taking his hand.
Blue light began to emanate from Ed’s fingertips, wrapping around the Grand Duke’s wrist.
The luminous glow climbed upward like vines, dispelling the blackened marks as it moved.
Wherever the light touched, the Grand Duke’s skin returned to its original pale color.
The Emperor and his mage stood frozen in shock.
“This… this can’t be,” the Emperor muttered, disbelief etched across his face.
The mage’s thoughts raced, unable to comprehend what he was seeing.
‘How? The restraints should have nullified all magic. That curse—crafted with the blood of countless lives—should have been unbreakable. Could he possibly be…?’
Ed paid no mind to the stunned onlookers.
His focus was solely on the Grand Duke, steadily purging the curse from his body.
The room remained hushed, captivated by the sacred blue light that filled the space.
Mmm.
A beautiful melody, its origin unknown, resonated throughout the banquet hall as if echoing through one’s very soul.
It was a calm, soothing harmony, reminiscent of being submerged in the tranquil depths of the ocean.
The attention of the nobles shifted.
No longer were they fixated on the Duke’s dark blemish, but on the luminous radiance emanating from the mysterious figure—the next Duchess.
Sensing the shift, the Duke moved, his large frame shielding Ed from the crowd.
Ed, who had been mesmerized by the Duke’s fingertips, lifted his gaze at the sudden movement.
“Ed.”
When Ed first touched the Duke’s hand in the imperial palace to heal him, no light had emanated.
But as their bond deepened and their emotions grew into love, Ed’s influence on the Duke grew stronger.
The Duke’s eyes flickered, reflecting the intensifying blue light radiating from Ed.
Yet, even such pure brilliance couldn’t extinguish the dark, fervent desire that lingered in the Duke’s gaze.
Ed felt the same.
He couldn’t bear the thought of anyone else touching the Duke’s hands, his body. He wouldn’t allow it.
Fixing his gaze on the Duke, Ed poured more of his power into the healing.
Finally, the blue light, which had purified the dark blemish—the “divine punishment” that the Emperor so loudly condemned—sank into the Duke’s body, finding its resting place.
In that instant, both Ed and the Duke shuddered, their bodies trembling in unison.
“……”
“……”
In the silence, they exchanged an unspoken conversation, sharing the same sensation.
The world around them vanished, leaving only the rhythm of their breaths.
As the spellbound crowd recovered from their daze, they replayed the extraordinary scene in their minds.
“The chosen one of the oracle…”
“The true Duchess-to-be…”
Though none dared speak the words aloud, all present shared the same thought.
The Northern Blade, Asnel Linden.
His fated partner was undoubtedly that man.
The Minister of Finance, who had been observing the unfolding drama, glanced at the Emperor.
The Emperor’s eye twitched uncontrollably.
His face was set in a grim expression, his furrowed brows contorted with rage.
The Minister let out a small sigh.
Despite his shortcomings, the Emperor was still his liege—and the ruler of this empire.
As a loyal subject, the Minister stepped forward to offer the Emperor an out.
“Your Majesty, it seems there has been a misunderstanding. Perhaps someone mishandled matters along the way. For now, wouldn’t it be prudent to conclude the banquet and investigate the matter thoroughly later?”
This was a roundabout way of shifting the blame onto others while absolving the Emperor of fault.
But the Minister overlooked one critical detail: the Emperor’s inferiority complex toward the Duke and his boundless resentment.
The same inferiority complex that led him to commit atrocities, such as wiping out an entire race in response to the oracle.
“No! The only ones at fault here are the Duke and that impostor!”
At the Emperor’s furious declaration, the Minister’s face twisted in foreboding.
The Emperor drew a dagger from his robe and sliced his palm.
Pressing the bleeding hand against the crimson gemstone embedded in his royal scepter, he unleashed a dark, ominous smoke.
Wuuuuung…
As the strange sound reverberated, the Duke pulled Ed into his embrace.
The hall continued to tremble, and even the glass windows began to shudder violently.
“…Your Majesty.”
The Duke, prepared to evacuate Ed if necessary, kept his eyes locked on the Emperor.
While the nobles struggled to mask their unease, the court magician whispered urgently.
“Your Majesty, the artifact is still unstable and unsafe to use.”
The crimson gemstone at the scepter’s core exuded an eerie fog that thickened and rose into the air.
“What does that matter? If you’d let me act earlier, this wouldn’t have been necessary! Those traitors defied my authority, and I should have struck them down immediately!”
The Emperor snapped, tightening his grip on the scepter.
The black fog condensed into a swirling mass, climbing toward the ceiling.
The court magician’s gaze wavered as he stared at the ominous sight.
“If something goes wrong… and people die…”
“Then it will be even simpler to frame them,” the Emperor interrupted, his eyes glinting with madness.
“Not only did they reject the Duchess chosen by my authority, but they also rampaged and massacred everyone in the hall.”
“Using forbidden magic, no less,” the magician added gravely.
“But the power isn’t fully under control. Even you could be at risk, Your Majesty.”
“Nothing will happen to me, the sun of this empire!”
There was no reasoning with him.
The court magician bit his lip.
He had come too far to turn back now.
For his coveted position as court magician, he had helped eradicate an entire race and researched countless forbidden spells.
Screeech.
A sharp sound pierced the air as cracks spread across the ceiling glass, the lines branching out rapidly in ominous patterns.
The magical lights flickered erratically, casting the nobles’ faces in alternating shadows and glimmers.
Despite their rising terror, none dared leave a banquet not formally concluded by the Emperor.
At that moment, the Emperor raised the scepter high.
The black fog, now a towering pillar, shot violently toward the sky, shattering the ceiling in a deafening explosion.
Glass shards rained down as the nobles recoiled in fear.
“What… what is that…?”
Some, overwhelmed by panic, dashed for the exits, but the doors were locked tight.
Ha ha ha!
Amidst the chaos, an incongruously hearty laugh echoed.
The startled crowd turned toward its source.
“…Your Majesty…”
There, seated on the throne, was the Emperor, head thrown back, laughing uncontrollably.
‘Has he gone mad?’
As the same thought crossed everyone’s mind, the court magician’s sharp eyes caught a chilling detail.
In the dimly lit hall, it wasn’t visible to the distant crowd, but he could see it clearly: black veins streaked across the Emperor’s skin, resembling the Duke’s prior blemish.
‘Could it be…?’
The magician turned abruptly toward the real Duchess.
Hidden in the corner, the false Duchess, her presence now overshadowed by Ed’s brilliance, lifted her veil slightly and smirked.
A shiver ran from the magician’s feet to the top of his head.
Clutching his staff tightly, he muttered under his breath.
“He’s succumbed to dark magic.”
Driven by his inferiority to the Duke, the Emperor had sought to summon his own dragon and turned to forbidden magic.
Unlike natural magic, dark magic demanded a heavy price—a price paid with countless lives sacrificed as offerings in his stead.
The magician gritted his teeth.
“I warned him repeatedly of its dangers…”
But the Emperor, unable to wait for the magic’s stabilization, had pursued it in secret.
Now, his loss of control threatened everyone in the hall.
* * *
