Maybe this was an inevitable outcome.

With secrets that had to be buried, there wasn’t a single person to consult with, no matter how twisted things got.

In stark contrast, thanks to her royal bloodline, there was no shortage of money. Given those circumstances, what do you think Yuli would choose to relieve her stress?

Drinks and gambling.

And throw in a touch of abuse of power and arrogance.

The stifling situation and isolation turned a pure, innocent girl into a perfect disaster.

How much pain must she have been in to end up like that?

It’s genuinely tragic.

It certainly is pity-inducing, but…

“…You guys coordinated this, right? There’s no other explanation for this.”

Forget the poker face; she looked like she was playing her cards all over her own face. Losing to the game and throwing a tantrum was a sight to behold.

“Do you even know who I am?!”

Trying to hide her identity with a disguise, yet throwing a fit about being disrespected for not being recognized.

“YOU XXXX XXXX XXX XXX XX….”

As a citizen from a Confucian state where adults can’t even watch adult content, those words were so vulgar, they felt impossible to say.

The foul language just rolled off her tongue.

“What a lousy bastard I run into after so long!”

With loud sighs, she downed a bottle of harsh liquor… but it didn’t seem to satisfy her, so she even tossed the empty bottle at that old man!

‘Was that a bit too much…?’

A sigh slipped out naturally.

After all, she was meant to be a bodyguard, right?

If she got caught doing such things, her already tarnished reputation would be completely destroyed.

Stopping antics like that was part of my job.

So, how should I act here?

I was certain about that without needing to think twice.

It was obvious who had messed up.

So I rushed over and said…

“What’s your issue? What’s a kid doing dressed in armor pretending to be a knight…?”

Ka-Pow!

I slammed the bald dude’s head down.

His head turned bright red.

The guy stared at me, dumbfounded.

Thinking back on it, it was hardly surprising.

Those guys hadn’t cheated in that card game; in fact, our princess had such a fit that they couldn’t even take the money they’d won!

So obviously, they were shocked to get hit out of the blue.

But what can you do?

‘If you didn’t want this, you should’ve been born a noble.’

That’s how the world works.

It doesn’t matter if they didn’t know the other’s status; even if they were just upset for no good reason, it was clear Yuli being a princess meant the fault lay with them.

I understood how hard it had been for her, having played the previous game and all, and I wanted to protect her as best I could.

Sure, it’d be a lie if I said I felt no guilt for that innocent old man.

‘Honestly, this dude got lucky.’

If I hadn’t been so merciful, he would’ve probably been decapitated without a question by someone else.

Right now, getting beaten up like a dog in summer, he probably wished he could kill me on the spot, but if he knew the situation, he might actually be grateful to me.

Insulting a royal in the Empire and getting off with just this? Pure luck, if you ask me.

Having rationalized everything simply, I returned to the princess, wondering if she was feeling better now.

And what I faced when I got back was…

“……?”

In that brief moment, I must have eaten something wrong.

The princess had this truly bizarre expression on her face.

*

“How did you know?”

The words escaped the mouth of the drunken Third Princess without thought.

And it made sense; she couldn’t comprehend the antics that had just unfolded right in front of her.

‘There’s a time to act, isn’t there?’

From the outside, it was clear who was in the wrong. Sure, she had royal status, but…

That guy was a bodyguard.

In other words, he was Swordmaster-level strength.

So there was no need to cower in front of someone like Renya, who could squash her like a bug at any time.

So the reaction that boy should’ve had in this situation was pretty clear.

Acknowledging the reckless rumors, he’d sigh over being tangled up with such rotten company.

And if more bad word got out, it was best to pray it passed quietly.

Yet the boy didn’t do any of that.

He even looked like he didn’t think much of her.

He simply unhesitatingly took her side.

“I thought you’d overlook it. Do Swordmasters have some kind of keen insight?”

That’s why those questions popped up.

Sion’s expression was still clouded with confusion.

It seemed she didn’t grasp what was happening.

In this situation, one fact was apparent.

‘He doesn’t know.’

He had no idea what had really occurred.

The reason she got upset wasn’t just because of the gambling loss, but because a man had indecently rubbed her leg under the table!

Disgusting as it was, if this situation blew up, not just him but his whole family would be at risk.

I’d tried to hint for it to be resolved quietly.

But now he was too drunk to read the room, and my subtle hints hadn’t landed.

Seeing the disturbing smiles on the male goons as she realized they were all in on it and how they’d been harassing her led her to shout…

“You all conspired, didn’t you? There’s no way this could happen otherwise!”

It seemed like she was just being picky since she lost at cards, but he had no clue about the backstory at all.

He acted obliviously and still did something about it.

“So why did you hit him?”

It was a situation that made no sense.

So she asked Sion that very question.

And the reply was…

“Because… I’m on the princess’s side?”

That was such a simplistic answer.

His bewildered expression was as if he was saying, “Why ask out of nowhere?”

…It was truly bizarre.

From an objective viewpoint, clearly, she was in the wrong here.

Anyone unaware of the details would see her as just a drunkard throwing a fit.

But still, that boy walked right up to those guys without a second thought to punish them.

All of that was, by all counts, an immoral and irrational act. It certainly had to be…

But for some reason, I couldn’t help but smile.

‘Someone’s on my side… someone who’s on my side…’

It didn’t matter who was right or wrong.

Someone who would back her up no matter what.

That feels… incredible.

Using words she wouldn’t be able to express with her limited vocabulary from distancing herself from books, she quietly mumbled a thank you, before laughing joyfully and diving back into drinking with her knight.

*

Something strange happened.

The plan was getting derailed nonstop.

And thus, the Empire’s Swordmaster Heinrich.

…Or more precisely, the ‘Holy Pope of the Holy Church’ hidden under that identity frowned silently.

Renya.

He was concerned that the concealment technique placed on the saint, blessed by the goddess of victory, had slipped for just a moment.

But more importantly…

‘That girl, Yuli.’

She was undergoing a change.

That girl couldn’t go through this.

She had to remain thoroughly isolated, resenting and cursing everything. Only then would the plan unfold.

The corpse in front of him.

Even through a merely blessed hero, such interference was possible. That’s why the saintess was vital.

To corrupt the goddess of light, there was no way to achieve that without her.

‘Sion.’

Even after erasing memories and stripping away divine power, Renya was instinctively drawn closer to victory.

That kid’s odd affection for her and why, for some reason, he kept sticking close to the saintess were all unsettling.

It all made me uneasy.

He’d ruin everything.

That feeling started to intensify.

The Black Fangs, who had stolen the Holy Sword and abducted numerous Dwarves, had probably restored the sword.

Just thinking about that troublesome obstruction made things even more bothersome.

I wondered if they might be the same person.

Of course, it was absurd to think that the Black Fangs would not know they themselves were the Black Fangs while serving the Second Prince.

Still, it seemed farfetched.

‘Anyway, it’s extremely irritating.’

Heinrich frowned again at that thought, but it didn’t last long.

Looking back, the answer was simple.

If there’s something obstructing the plan… just eliminate it. It’s incredibly easy to sow distrust among people.

There wouldn’t be any more hiccups in the plan.

Destruction was on the horizon.

Everyone would fall into an abyss together.

Then…

That kid wouldn’t be lonely anymore.

With that thought, the white-haired old man gave a menacing smile with unfocused eyes.