Mom and Eciel were powerless. Dad was bound by magic.

It wasn’t a situation where I could easily escape magic on my own.

As long as my family was held hostage, if the emperor wished, I would have to enter the magic circle at any time.

Did the vague ’emotional wounds’ that Mom didn’t bother to explain in detail include this?

Both Mom and Dad must have had stories they couldn’t bring themselves to express directly, knowing that I was listening.

There was no way they didn’t consider this magic on Dad when going to the capital.

‘…wait. Did Mom and Dad do not realize that I could be bound by magic like this?’

The emperor stopped again the moment that thought crossed my mind.

The reception room where he welcomed our family was left behind long ago. Now, it seemed the emperor’s footsteps were clearly heading outside the palace.

Why did he suddenly stop?

“Why are you here at this hour?”

A genuinely puzzled question.

I raised my gaze from the ground.

Before me stood a young boy.

There were a few people who looked like attendants behind him, but since the emperor focused on him, I also turned to look at him.

Bright platinum hair. Clear green eyes. A clean and gentle demeanor. He looked about seven or eight years old…

He was the emperor’s son.

I recognized him because he had all the distinctive features of the imperial family.

The green eyes looking at me were widening in surprise, revealing the wonder inside, much like Eciel when she was astonished.

“Uh, I-I mean, I wanted to see Fermata… I was thinking about asking my father when Duke Chelsiers entered the palace…”

The boy stumbled over his words slightly.

He didn’t seem like someone who usually stuttered to begin with; he just seemed surprised to see me.

It was a simple story; he wanted to see Fermata and asked his father to inform him when he entered.

Each moment he looked at me, he seemed increasingly astonished, prolonging the anticipation indefinitely.

Still, like my parents did to Eciel and me, the emperor patiently listened to the prince’s story.

“Um… by the way, who is this child?”

At the end of the poorly concluded story, the boy looked directly at me and asked.

The child’s speech was now almost stable that it seemed like I could sketch out the form of the enormous curiosity contained in that question.

The emperor smiled.

“Who do you think she is?”

“With my limited thoughts, perhaps, could she be Duke Chelsiers’s daughter?”

I almost burst out laughing.

‘Both the situation and the dialogue are different.’

When I was brought here, I remembered practicing greetings with Eciel in the carriage. It felt like a well-scripted play.

This boy was even younger than Eciel.

His eyes sparkled with pure admiration for Astariol, his eager expression transparent with the desire to satisfy his curiosity was enough to leave me speechless.

Perhaps, if I was to create a whirlwind here, he might clap his hands in admiration just like Eciel.

“Exactly. She is Duke Chelsiers’s daughter and an Astariol. Say hello, Callen.”

Then the emperor’s gaze returned to me. I spoke like an actor on stage.

“It’s an honor to meet you. I am Claire, the eldest daughter of Duke Chelsiers, the leader of the East.”

The boy couldn’t help but let out an exclamation. Even his smooth cheeks slightly reddened with excitement.

If it was Eciel, she might have greeted me warmly and even held my hand.

But maybe because of his dignity as a prince…

The boy just stood there awkwardly, but happily replied.

“Nice to meet you, Princess Chelsiers. We are, uh… cousins, right? We are close relatives, aren’t we?”

Cousins? Had you ever seen my mother?

I chewed on the sudden, nervy question. Because those words threw me a tiny clue.

Even if he was young, he was still the emperor’s son and the crown prince.

He couldn’t be unaware of the complex issues between the Duchess and the current Emperor.

Yet, the prince called me his cousin.

‘It must have been okay to freely mention the relationship between the deposed emperor’s daughter and the current emperor.’

It also meant that the emperor was also favorable to my mother’s reinstatement.

‘…is Mom going to be okay?’

I still recalled the faint sound of weeping clinging to my back, but I lifted my lips and smiled.

It was easier than I thought.

“I won’t dare to consider us relatives. Please just consider us intimately if you will.”

That response seemed unexpected to both Callen and the emperor. They blinked almost simultaneously.

However, the situation had to be handled.

The emperor chuckled slightly, but the boy seemed a bit flustered. In the awkward atmosphere, the emperor redirected the conversation.

“Are you going to ask Duke Chelsiers to show you the Fermata?”

“Yes? Oh, yes!”

“Although Duke Chelsiers is currently in the palace, it seems it will be difficult to see him today. Return now. I’ll tell you next time.”

Yeah. It would be difficult to show himself being bound by magic like a captured wild beast.

As I was thinking such cold thoughts, the emperor’s son smiled as he looked towards my direction.

“Well then… until we meet again, princess.”

“I will eagerly await the day we meet again, Your Highness.”

I replied with formality, but the boy seemed disappointed by my courteous words.

With a face full of lingering attachment, he turned away, gradually distancing himself.

Only after the crown prince had completely disappeared from sight did the emperor start walking again.

I followed suit.

For a while, the uneven silence punctuated our steps, unsettling the depths of my mind.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, the emperor spoke.

“Oh, by the way, do you know my name?”

“Ah, yes. Evan Arthur Sisla Klein Tidosa-Jerlim, Her Excellency Clarisse Nisanna Jerlim…”

The emperor clicked his tongue in pure annoyance.

“Stop. Even with Astariol’s memory, really. A child who hasn’t received proper noble etiquette training…”

He was right. I hadn’t received such training separately.

All the knowledge I possessed.

The names, lineage, etiquette, titles, formalities, and the history surrounding them… All of it came from newspapers and books I had consistently read since long ago.

Thick volumes of history praising the achievements of all past emperors. Newspapers obsessed with praising the current emperor’s accomplishments and virtues, dedicated to extolling the glory of the tyrant.

It was a time of unprecedented prosperity and development.

Countless praises echoed everywhere. Even in my eyes, they weren’t entirely wrong.

I had traveled to many places. Though not affluent, I had seen lives that although not wealthy, but not difficult either.

The reign of the tyrant melted away like snow under the spring sun, following nature, while the emperor, embodying glory, blessing, and legitimacy, led the new world.

The emperor who led the development and revival suddenly stopped and personally opened the door.

“Ta-da.”

He even made a clicking sound with his mouth, as if expecting something.

‘…I don’t know how to react in this situation.’

I blinked momentarily, then glanced briefly at the knight behind me, silently asking for guidance.

But he avoided my gaze.

I wish I hadn’t dismissed the knights earlier so roughly.

The emperor gestured impatiently with an unamused expression.

“Just come in.”

It was the first time in my life someone had said this to me.

“If you instruct me, I’ll do it…”

“No, no. That’s the problem with you guys.”

“Yes?”

“You need to be creative. You want me to teach you how to make something pop out with just a push? It’s fun when you figure it out yourself and go ‘wow!’ without me teaching you.”

So, he wanted me to say ‘wow!’ next time. I should prepare myself to be surprised again next time.

The emperor pushed the door further open to let me in.

It was my first time stepping into the small palace attached to Reilheim’s main palace.

However, unlike Reilheim, this palace didn’t seem to be managed at all. It was evident that people rarely visited here.

The silence that enveloped the entire palace was eerie, almost palpable. It felt as if the silence would break nervously if stepped upon.

It was strange.

However, as the emperor led the way into the spacious hall of this palace, I felt an even stranger sensation.

An almost instinctual aversion. A profound sense of disgust suppressing rationality …a psychological rejection that couldn’t be explained with logic and reason.

My steps halted at the doorway.

Strange. I didn’t know what was strange, but here, it was truly strange.

‘…what on earth is here exactly?’

My mind raced urgently.

Why was I feeling such intense pressure now, precisely? However, the only reason I could guess with my limited information was the ‘submission’ magic.

And if I were to be ensnared by that magic here, my mother…

Mom had already carried a lot of guilt. Could my mother endure the spell even entangling her daughter’s entire life?

The answer was already clear.

‘My mother would never be able to stand it.’

In the end, I stood still at the threshold. Whether psychologically or logically, I didn’t want to enter.

Even though I clearly knew that if the emperor wished to give the order, it couldn’t be avoided.

As if he had anticipated my reaction, the emperor spoke as if nothing was amiss.

“It’s okay. You’re perfectly normal.”

“…Your Majesty.”

‘I really don’t want to go in.’

Perhaps he had expected such a response.

Without showing any surprise, the emperor swung the door wide open. Then, he stepped into the hall himself.

Inside the door, there was absolutely nothing.