As Julian marched back toward the dining hall, his mind was racing. ’37% affection, but he won’t let me touch him? He won’t even look at me? What is his problem?’

He felt a nag in the pit of his belly ’again’. He needed to calm down. Maybe grab a drink of that wine again.

It had been helping him sleep better these days, though he still had the chills and startling wakes.

Suddenly, the system chimed, blocking Julian’s way with its translucent window.

>[QUEST COMPLETED]

He checked the completed status.

> [MANDATORY QUEST: The Trip To The South — COMPLETED]

> Reward Unlocked: 300 SP, ’Imperial Favor’ Rank 1, and the recipe for the [High-Tier Soul-Stabilizing Potion].

> [Current Survival Points: 405]

Julian stopped in the middle of the hallway. He couldn’t even be happy at the reward because of what the Duke was doing.

He felt agitated, irritated, and frustrated, but he let it out with a single breath and then looked at the recipe that appeared in his inventory.

[High-Tier Soul-Stabilizing Potion]

Ingredients: 1x Heart of a Northern Pine (Available in the shop), 3x Sun-Seeds (Available in the shop), 1x Imperial Moon-Fern (Location: Forbidden Palace Garden), 1x Liquid Starlight (Location: Forbidden Palace Garden).

It was a complex list of herbs, some of which he recognized from books as being native to the Emperor’s private garden. But he didn’t worry about that... Yet.

’Finally,’ Julian thought, though his victory felt hollow. ’I have the recipe. Now I just need to survive the man who currently can’t stand the sight of me for whatever his reasons may be.’ 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

He looked at the other reward.

Rewards Granted:

’Imperial Favor’ Rank 1 (Passive: Palace guards and staff are 15% more likely to grant requests).

This meant that if he had to go to the palace, the staff would be nice to him to some extent.

Well, he didn’t need to worry about that because he had no plans of going to the palace anyway.

Julian kept heading back to the dining hall and had no idea that back in the study, Duke Alaric had slumped into his chair, covering his face with his hands, whispering to himself in the empty room, "How am I supposed to sit at a table with him when all I can think about is... that?"

Julian returned to the dining hall to find Lucius’ hopeful gaze, but when he saw that his father did not come too, that hope fell into disappointment.

Julian sighed and went to sit down, petting the bow’s head.

"I tried to bring him over, but the Duke just has too much work going on." He said. "He can’t leave it yet. But I’m sure he’ll come to the table as soon as he’s done."

Lucius nodded, though there was a dissatisfied pout on his lips.

Julian took one more look at the empty head chair and then scrunched, frowning as he recalled the Duke evading his hand.

He didn’t know why it displeased him so much, but that fact stayed, and it caused Julian some sort of discomfort.

’I won’t think about it any longer. At least now I have the recipe for the potion.’

It wasn’t as great as buying the potion itself, but it was still something. A guaranteed good night’s sleep was the same as gold to him.

He had been using the alcohol method to drown himself to sleep, but after the second night, his body began to get used to it, and that was a problem.

’How do I secure the ingredients only found in the Emperor’s garden, though?’

It was a huge problem. Not just anyone could go there.

And as if his worry had been heard by the will of the world, the Duke stood before him during Lucius’s evening lesson, and passed on a news that Julian didn’t know if to consider good or bad.

"Pardon?" He blinked, struck with disbelief. "We’re going where?"

"The Imperial Palace." Duke Alaric said as he folded his massive arms.

Julian gulped, still looking at the Duke with disbelief. After avoiding him for days, he suddenly walks up to him and gives him such news?

Was he serious?

Or did he never consider that he was being rude with his avoiding attitude, even if Julian was ’just’ a tutor?

"And why am I going there?" Julian asked.

"I’m going to see the Emperor," Duke said, and Julian nodded.

Yes, yes, going to see the Emperor after making his way to the Capital was important, but that didn’t answer the question.

He felt a cold sweat rolling down his spine.

What did the Duke’s going to see his brother have anything to do with him? Why was he being dragged along?

Part of him wanted to celebrate because he had been contemplating how he’d get to the palace and get the ingredients that were there, but then again, this was still thrusting himself into the most dangerous place in the world, and to meet the most dangerous man, too.

He thought, ’I would rather wait for the ingredients to fall from the sky than meet the Emperor.’

But of course, the Duke wouldn’t hear of it.

And with that, first thing in the morning, they were on their way to the Imperial Palace with Julian sitting like a lifeless doll, with no soul in his eyes, and asking himself where it all went wrong.

At some point in the carriage, Julian felt like he was being watched, but when he raised his head, the Duke would shift, and his gaze would be in the opposite direction.

Julian knew the Duke was watching him, but he just didn’t have proof to prove it.

Still... He looked at little Lucius, who was nervously pouting, anticipating his meeting with the Emperor.

"Lord Lucius, remember what we learned during etiquette classes, and you’ll be fine," Julian said, trying to boost the young one’s confidence, but that only made him teary-eyed, feeling overwhelmed. "What’s wrong?" He asked, but Lucius wiped his face with his small arm, putting up a firm expression.

He was going to do well, he told himself. He wouldn’t disappoint his father and his teacher.

Lucius was the Emperor’s nephew, but whether the Emperor would be kind to him was still unknown.

This... Was their first meeting.