Her Highness, the Crown Prince's Consort
Chapter 16. Her Highness, the Crown Prince's Consort.
Zork slowly looked down at the fragment of the Holy Grail in his hand, then at my hand gripping it. The words spoken while holding the Holy Grail. Not manipulation—this was the prince’s complete, untainted will. In other words, it was sincere.
“...Your Highness. What you just said—”
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
I tightened my grip on the Holy Grail.
“This girl is my fiancée. This village is my fiancée’s hometown. And tonight’s gathering is a celebration of my visit to my fiancée’s homeland.”
The words flowed out smoothly. Strangely enough. Once I spat out the first sentence, the rest came without hesitation.
“...Your Highness. With all due respect, this girl has no family name—”
“So?”
I stared straight at Zork.
“Is there a law that says a member of the imperial family cannot take a commoner without a family name as their fiancée?”
“...That is—”
“If there is, bring it here. I’ll read it for you myself.”
Zork closed his mouth. There was no such law. It was simply rare. It had never been forbidden. After all, love between royalty and commoners had always been a popular subject in every era.
Zork stared at me for a long time. Those cold eyes flicked back and forth between the Holy Grail in my hand and my face. A prince who could hold the Holy Grail without the slightest tremor. Proof that this was not manipulation. Proof that it was genuine.
“......”
He slowly withdrew the blade from Era’s throat.
Srrrng.
The sound of the sword sliding back into its sheath. Only then did Era let out the breath she had been holding.
“...Haa...”
Zork knelt on one knee again.
“...I have committed a grave offense, Your Highness.”
“......”
“However.”
He lifted his head.
“...You called her Your Highness’s fiancée.”
Zork spoke slowly. His voice was low, but a blade lay hidden within it.
“According to imperial law, those with Black Star Veins cannot form a bond with anyone.”
“......”
“Are you aware of this?”
A heavy silence settled over the plains. The campfire crackled once. In that moment, the sound of the flames rang like thunder.
I looked down at Era, who was pinned beneath me and staring up with tear-streaked eyes. Her dazed face, still wet with tears. My mind raced.
‘According to imperial law, those with Black Star Veins cannot form a bond.’
‘In other words, since Era has Black Star Veins, my claim that she’s my fiancée is invalid.’
‘Then there’s only one answer.’
I slowly opened my mouth toward Zork.
“...Era is.”
“......”
“Not a Black Star Vein user.”
Zork’s eyes narrowed. For a brief moment, those cold pupils seemed to waver. As if surprised. And then, as if it were an obvious lie.
“...That could be a misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding?”
I deliberately lowered my voice a little. Arrogantly. The Leon from the original story I had observed for the past few days would never back down in a situation like this.
“On what grounds are you slandering my fiancée by calling her a Black Star Vein user?”
The evidence was actually overflowing. Black blood. Mental manipulation. Illusionary barbed wire. The eerie calmness of the villagers. But how much of that could Zork actually present as proof?
The black blood was still something only I knew about, and mental manipulation and illusions could be performed by someone other than Era even if they possessed Black Star Veins. Zork was merely suspicious based on the detector’s reaction and the circumstances. He had no actual evidence.
Realizing this, Zork fell silent for a moment before shifting his attack in a different direction.
“...First of all. When exactly—”
“...?”
“—did you become engaged?”
The question cut in sharply. He was looking for a hole. A flaw in the absurd claim that the prince had gotten engaged to a commoner. Time, place, circumstances. If any inconsistency appeared, he would pounce on it.
I answered without the slightest pause.
“A few days ago. Verbally.”
“...Verbally, you say?”
“That’s right.”
Zork stared at me for a moment.
“...And since when have you known this girl?”
“For a long time.”
I answered without hesitation.
“We used to sneak out of the imperial palace to meet in secret.”
The lies flowed smoothly. Because I was still holding the Holy Grail, these words were not the nonsense of a manipulated prince, but the complete will of a sane mind.
The black crystal embedded in my palm pressed coldly against my flesh. Zork stared at me intently. His eyes scanned my expression inch by inch, searching for any crack in the lie.
A prince secretly meeting a commoner. Sneaking out of the imperial palace. It wasn’t common, but it wasn’t impossible either. Stories of young royals hiding their identities and roaming the streets had existed in every era.
I could see from his face that Zork was weighing that possibility. But he pressed further.
“...Do you truly know—”
“......”
“—who this girl really is?”
There was a strange weight to those words. As if he were already certain that the prince did not know the girl’s true identity. As if he wanted to say: This girl is a Black Star Vein user, and you’ve been bewitched without realizing it.
At that moment, my expression hardened completely. How would a prince react? If it were the arrogant and cold imperial prince Leon I had imagined in my head for the past few days—
“You.”
I spat coldly.
“Do you even realize that what you’re doing right now—”
Zork’s shoulders stiffened slightly.
“—is an insult to both the prince and his fiancée?”
“......”
“The head of the Maryeokche is interrogating the identity of my betrothed in the middle of the night, in the middle of the frontier.”
I took a step forward.
“Have you imagined how this will be reported to the imperial family?”
Zork slowly lowered his head.
“...I apologize for my rudeness, Your Highness.”
But when he raised his head again, the suspicion in his eyes had not faded at all. If anything, it had grown even firmer.
“...However.”
“......”
“If this girl is a Black Star Vein user.”
Zork’s voice sank like ice.
“She must be dealt with immediately.”
Zork reached into his coat and pulled out something slender. It was a needle. A silver needle with a tip as sharp as an awl.
“With this needle.”
He held it up to the campfire light. The sharp tip glinted, reflecting the red flames.
“We can determine whether she has Black Star Veins or not.”
The color of one’s Star Veins was revealed through blood. If she had Black Star Veins, black blood would flow. Just as I had learned Era’s identity from the black blood on the needle, a single drop would be enough for Zork as well.
…!
The moment it pierced her, it would all be over. If even a single drop of black blood appeared, the engagement, the threats—everything would be finished. A prince who had protected a Black Star Vein user. It was a crime for which even my life could not be guaranteed.
Zork slowly approached the pinned-down Era, needle in hand. One step. Then another.
“...Hic…”
When Era saw the needle, she sobbed and struggled.
“...Huk… N-no…”
With her wrists twisted and pinned, her shoulders crushed beneath a boot. Even though she couldn’t run, she twisted her body desperately, trying only to avoid that silver needle.
But the Maryeokche agents held Era’s arms firmly, forcing her small hand open. Soon, the tip of her finger was exposed.
Zork slowly brought the needle toward that finger. The sharp tip hovered one span away. Half a span. A fingernail’s length. And just before it touched—
“How dare you!!!”
A roar burst from my mouth.
“......!”
Zork’s hand froze in midair. The agents, the villagers—everyone turned to look at me at once.
“How dare you try to draw my fiancée’s blood!!!”
I staggered to my feet. My head spun from standing up so suddenly. But if I collapsed here, Era would die.
“Do you think—”
I took a step toward Zork.
“—you’ll get away with this?”
“...Your Highness. This is for the safety of the imperial family—”
“Right now.”
I cut him off sharply.
“If you stab her with that needle.”
Slowly, but with a heavy voice, I cut each word like a blade.
“I will wipe out your entire family line.”
“......”
“Three generations. All of them.”
“Know that and act accordingly.”
I glared straight into his eyes.
“...”
But inside, I was shaking like crazy.
‘Is this even allowed?’
‘Wiping out three generations? Do I even have that kind of authority?’
‘...’
‘No, whether a prince has that authority or not, right now, in this place, the prince’s words are as good as an imperial decree.’
‘Push forward. Don’t retreat even an inch. …The moment I retreat, Era dies.’
On the outside, I remained as cold as ice. On the inside, I felt like I was standing on the edge of a blade.
“...”
Once again, a heavy silence fell over the plains. Zork, still holding the needle, looked at me, then at Era pinned beneath the knights, then back at the Holy Grail in my hand.
A prince who could grip the black crystal without the slightest tremor. If he were under the mental manipulation of a Black Star Vein user, this would have been impossible. People under control were usually somewhat dazed, somewhat off, and their speech tended to slur.
Zork had seen such people countless times throughout his life. But the prince before him right now was far too clear. Far too resolute. He had answered every question without hesitation. It was too consistent to be a lie. Too sharp to be manipulation.
‘If he can act like this even while holding the Holy Grail…’
The scales in Zork’s mind began to tip.
‘This is not manipulation. At least, not in this moment.’
‘Then this must be His Highness’s true intention.’
And defying the true intention of a prince was something even the head of the Maryeokche could not afford, even if he had ten lives.
“...”
After hesitating for a long time, Zork slowly put the needle away.
“......”
Swoosh. The silver needle disappeared back into his coat. Then Zork knelt on one knee again.
“...I will correct my ways, Your Highness.”
“......”
“I apologize for my rudeness.”
Then he turned his head and slowly bowed toward Era, who was still pinned to the ground.
“To Her Highness, the Crown Prince’s Consort.”
“...!”
Era’s eyes widened at the title.
Crown Prince’s Consort.
“I apologize for my rudeness.”
Zork signaled the agents with his eyes. The hands pressing Era down all withdrew at once. Though freed, Era couldn’t even stand. She simply sat there on the ground, trembling violently.
It seemed the shock of barely escaping death had not yet faded. Zork slowly reached for the sword at his waist.
“For this sin—”
Srrrng.
He drew the blade.
“—I shall apologize with my own neck—”
He brought the blade to his own throat without hesitation. As the head of the Maryeokche, he had drawn his sword against the prince and placed a blade against his fiancée’s throat. He intended to take responsibility with his life. That was the way of the Maryeokche. They wielded their blades with conviction and offered their necks with conviction when they erred.
But—
“No. That’s enough.”
I raised my hand to stop him.
“...Your Highness?”
“Do better in the future.”
Zork froze with the blade still in his hand.
“...Ah?... Understood.”
He looked utterly bewildered. The prince who had just threatened to wipe out three generations of his family had suddenly withdrawn the threat. It didn’t make any sense to him.
But I simply waved my hand once. The reason was simple. If this man died here, things would become even more complicated. The suicide of the head of the Maryeokche. I had no confidence I could handle how that would be reported in the capital or what kind of aftermath it would bring.
Besides, this man had simply been faithful to his beliefs. The belief that Black Star Vein users were dangerous. The mission to protect the prince. That belief itself was not born of malice.
“Put the sword away and stand up.”
“...Yes, Your Highness.”
Zork slowly sheathed his blade and rose to his feet.
“...Haa.”
I glanced sideways at Era. She was still sitting there with a dazed expression, staring only at me. Her face said she couldn’t keep up with everything that had just happened. Becoming a fiancée, being called the Crown Prince’s Consort, nearly dying and then surviving—it all seemed like a dream to her. She couldn’t tell what was real.
I turned back to Zork.
“...For now.”
“Yes.”
“Call a carriage. We’re returning to the capital.”
“Understood, Your Highness. How many seats should I prepare—”
“Two seats.”
Zork paused for a moment. A carriage for just the prince and his fiancée.
“...Yes! Understood!”
Zork bowed deeply and gave orders to the knights. The group in black coats began moving in perfect order. Mounting horses, organizing torches, withdrawing the hands that had been watching the villagers.
Clip-clop. Clip-clop.
The Maryeokche crossed the plains to summon the carriage. The murderous aura they had arrived with was gone without a trace. Now they looked like escorts carrying out the prince’s orders.
From the eastern horizon, the light of dawn began to faintly illuminate the plains.
“...”
The long night was finally coming to an end.
Once the Maryeokche had completely disappeared from sight, I slowly approached Era, who was still frozen in place. She looked up at me. Her face was streaked with dried tears, lips slightly parted, still unable to speak.
I crouched beside her and brought my mouth close to her ear. Then, very quietly, I whispered.
“...Hurry. Send the villagers back to the village.”
“......”
“And erase their memories.”
“...!!!”
Era’s head snapped up to look at me. Her eyes were filled with disbelief, as if she couldn’t believe I had known from the beginning that she possessed Black Star Veins. The prince who had just stood before the Maryeokche and shouted without retreating even an inch that “This girl is not a Black Star Vein user” had actually known everything and protected her. She couldn’t understand why the person who had just tried to sever her tendons would now protect her. Her eyes asked—
Why?
“...Since when…”
Era barely managed to speak. Her voice trembled thinly.
“...Since when have you known…?”
I didn’t answer her question.
“...Haa.”
I simply let out a long sigh and collapsed right there on the spot.
“Huuu…”
All strength left my legs. After being tied up for days, walking for eight hours, getting hit in the head and passing out, then engaging in a tense standoff with the Maryeokche and their blades—I didn’t have a single ounce of energy left to stand.
“...”
I braced myself with both arms behind me and slowly looked up at the sky. The dawning sky. Red and blue light mixed together. It was the first open sky I had seen in days. In the capital, it was always obscured by the glow of the Star Tablets that lit the city all night. This was the real dawn sky that could only be seen in a remote frontier village like this.
And only then did my mind truly return.
‘Fuck.’
‘What the hell did I just do?’