Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Unexpected Guilt
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Ryan Streugen never imagined he would feel any guilt toward Marso Etwar.
The moment Leti's true identity was revealed, Ryan saw a kind of despair on Marso Etwar's face that he had never witnessed before.
He had thought she would invoke morality and fight him over it. If so, he had planned to confront her with all his might.
Until the moment she stared at him with an expressionless face and stepped aside.
That woman wasn't capable of such a thing.
She wasn't even human anymore—just someone who had tormented Resuan solely for his attention.
A person's true nature doesn't change. No matter how much she altered her attitude over a mere year, it couldn't erase everything he had seen before.
He thought she was finally revealing her instincts. But he was wrong.
Her deep navy hair, like the evening night sky, cascaded in waves. Her eyes, filled with hatred toward him, trembled.
For a moment, he thought this woman might cry.
...And at that realization, he felt a twinge of guilt. A vague thought bubbled up that maybe he had truly been wrong.
'No way.'
It was an unfamiliar experience. An emotion he believed he could never have toward Marso.
Of course. All this time, he had tormented Marso relentlessly and lied to Resuan without a shred of guilt simply because Marso was the villain.
The reason he had planted Leti in the marquis's household was the same.
Marso had to be the villainess.
“...”
Ryan tightened his grip on the hand supporting Leti and widened his eyes.
That cunning woman must have done something to him.
He couldn't waste any more time.
Ryan brushed past Marso. His resolute footsteps seemed unchanged, as if nothing had happened.
Until his head turned back.
Unknowingly, Ryan's gaze followed Marso's retreating figure.
Then his eyes met Darsi's, who stood beside her.
The hatred in those eyes burned even more fiercely than before. Darsi, staring at him with chilling eyes, moved his lips. It was distant, but Ryan could clearly make out what he said.
'See you later, little brother.'
Ryan flinched and whipped his head forward.
It was just a fleeting emotion. Even this would pass.
That was what Ryan believed.
“Her condition isn't serious. Just wrap it in bandages and let her rest for a few days, and she'll recover completely.”
Perhaps because they had seen the doctor so quickly, Leti was safe.
The incident right in front of them seemed resolved, but Ryan's mind was still tangled up over Marso's face from moments ago.
It was because of the nagging worry that maybe his judgment had been wrong.
Ryan ruffled his hair and headed to his office. It was about time to start preparing to become crown prince.
'And I need to meet the emperor.'
If he hadn't killed Emperor Kies, he needed to meet him and discuss Darsi's existence.
Just who he was, and how to deal with him.
He had never even dreamed of competing for the crown prince position. It had always been his. And it had to remain that way.
He wasn't an easy opponent, so he needed to find a perfect way to kill him. Magic was powerful, but everyone had weaknesses.
...Ah, and.
'I need to look into who nullified those rumors about me.'
He had been wondering why the bad rumors about Marso hadn't spread for so long.
Lost in thought about where to start, Ryan suddenly lifted his head at the sound of someone calling him.
“...Kaisen?”
There stood Kaisen, his rival in the fight for Resuan's love and the knight commander.
After bowing his head in a polite greeting, Kaisen got straight to the point.
“Have you met Lord Darsi?”
For a moment, Ryan doubted his own ears. How did Kaisen know about someone he himself had only just met today?
It was suspicious enough to make him wonder if they were in on it together.
'The very fact that he's mentioning that name in front of me...'
It was an extremely ominous sign. And soon enough, it proved true.
As Ryan irritably furrowed his brow, Kaisen replied in a flat tone.
“I believe he is the one suited for the emperor's throne.”
“...Are you going to challenge me?”
Ryan growled. It wasn't surprising that Kaisen had chosen Darsi.
As the current prince and future crown prince, Ryan could offer Resuan far more.
For someone who had risen from slave to mere knight commander, Ryan must have been a thorn in his side.
“I know what you're thinking, but... he's not that cowardly.”
Kaisen slowly shook his head. His gentle eyes firmly conveyed his opinion.
“He simply thought about what would be right for this country.”
“You think a rogue like that is fit for the emperor's throne?”
His eyes must be seriously crossed. Or maybe brainwashed. Everyone had clearly fallen victim to that man's brainwashing.
The reason it hadn't worked on him was probably because he hadn't met some condition.
Having already been burned once by Darsi, Ryan's mindset was twisted as he sneered.
“Isn't this just sour grapes because Resuan didn't choose you?”
Just recently, Resuan had come to him in tears. She hadn't explained why she was crying, but Ryan was simply glad she had come to him in her time of need.
He had felt like he was finally the one chosen.
That fact had spread quietly among the nobles, and Kaisen knew it too.
“How dare you—Resuan—”
Kaisen's eyes widened at his words. He couldn't tolerate any insult to Resuan.
As Kaisen reached for his sword, another voice interjected.
“No, he just realized sooner that I'm far superior to you.”
Darsi, who had muttered this while placing a hand on Ryan's shoulder, swung a fist at his cheek.
“Guhk—”
Ryan groaned and crumpled to the floor. He was genuinely shocked by the power of the one who had struck him.
It was equal to his own.
'...He's not just some mage who only wags his tongue?'
Ryan, who had assumed his physical strength would naturally be superior, had to rethink that.
Darsi narrowed his eyes and lowered his voice.
“You crazy bastard. What if we get caught right in front of Marso?”
“Ridiculous. I left immediately—”
Darsi cut off Ryan's words and twisted his ear. Even the way he tilted his head boredly was like a masterpiece painting.
“And you still can't get it through your thick skull. Pathetic.”
There were no servants around. This, too, must have been Darsi's doing.
Darsi approached Ryan as he got to his feet and tapped his head.
“What's in there? Air?”
Kaisen watched the two with a blank expression before bowing his head in a polite greeting. Meanwhile, he was plunged into confusion.
...Marso? The unexpected name made him cock his head. What did he mean by getting caught in front of Marso?
He knew she was the only person besides his motives of revenge and reclaiming the throne who had kept Darsi here—and his accomplice—but the name was too familiar.
Kaisen's face drained of color.
Surely not that Marso...
“Lord Darsi. You don't mean the person you're talking about right now is...”
That 'Marso'?
“Is there another Marso besides the one from the Etwar House?”
“...You said you became crown prince because of her.”
At the questioning tone, Darsi nodded readily.
“Yeah, if I'm going to become prince and wield power, I have to fulfill what she wants, right?”
“What if what she wants is wicked—”
“She wouldn't want something like that to begin with. If she did, she'd have a good reason.”
His mind was in turmoil. The Marso that Kaisen knew and the Marso that Darsi knew were clearly different.
Or perhaps there really was another person.
Could someone as cold-blooded as him really soften like that?
Ryan, listening to their exchange, was utterly dumbfounded. Hey, I'm still right here?
“You think you can become crown prince to begin with? The crown prince is a noble and meaningful position! Someone who can devote themselves to the empire's prosperity and peace...”
Unable to tolerate the continued nonsense, Darsi drew the gun from his waist and smacked his temple with it.
Then he whispered in Ryan's ear.
“Then you definitely can't go any further. The person who's been sacrificing even their own kin for the empire's peace and prosperity all this time is standing right in front of you.”
As he said it, the faces of the mages who had been captured as prisoners before him flashed in his mind.
It had been to survive, but the fact that he had fought against fellow mages was a stigma Darsi would carry for life.
If he stayed in the empire for revenge, he knew he would one day have to face them—which might be why he had tried so hard to leave. Perhaps out of fear of confronting the sins he had buried deep in his heart.
Burning incense and spacing out made it feel like everything vanished.
But even so, having to face all of it, he didn't want to see Marso unhappy.
Because he saw himself overlaid in her image, which seemed different yet similar.
Because if he couldn't be happy, at least he wanted Marso to be.
Was this pity, or a sense of kinship?
One thing was clear. This was not love.
It could not be the emotion of the mother who had bound him to his father's side and left.
Unlike his mother's love, this was sacred and beautiful.
His mouth tasted bitter.
Darsi grabbed Ryan by the collar, flung him into the office, and slowly turned his gaze.
He was well-versed in the rumors circulating in high society and the imperial palace these past few days, but he didn't believe them all.
...Which was why the rumor about Marso's lover still puzzled him as to why it had made him lose his reason so completely.
He had a strict rule: never judge someone until he had collected rumors and met them in person to experience it firsthand.
So he needed to find out.
“Kaisen Hopen.”
“...Yes.”
“It seems you have something to say about Marso.”
About the actions Ryan and Kaisen had taken toward Marso.
And about Resuan, whom they were protecting.