Varkas reached the carriage in moments and tossed her down onto the seat as though discarding baggage.

Rubbing her throbbing backside, Talia glared at him with furious eyes.

Then she froze.

His face had hardened into something terrifying.

Looking down at her with the expression of a man whose patience had finally snapped, Varkas spoke through clenched teeth.

“Did I not warn you to stop causing troublesome incidents?”

Talia faltered only briefly before shooting him a defiant glare.

“Why should I listen to you? Who the hell do you think you are?!”

“At the very least, more than a princess in name only.”

A cold sneer touched Varkas’s lips.

Heat surged violently through Talia.

She sprang to her feet. If she did not slap that arrogant face immediately, she felt she might suffocate from rage.

But Varkas moved faster.

Leaning over her, he restrained both her arms before pinning her beneath a flat, emotionless gaze.

His dry eyes, devoid of even a trace of pity, swept over her ruptured cheek and the bruised neck that was surely already darkening black and blue.

An exhausted sigh escaped him.

“Do you truly understand nothing? No one here is going to actively protect you. If His Highness the Crown Prince truly sets his mind to it, no one can guarantee your life.”

“Why do you care?”

Talia shouted sharply.

“If I vanished from this world, wouldn’t you be the most relieved person of all?”

“I cannot deny that.”

Even though she had expected the answer, it still felt as though her heart had begun bleeding.

Varkas continued with cruel calmness.

“However, I cannot allow Your Highness’s actions to endanger the Crown Prince’s standing. So if you wish to self-destruct, I suggest you do it with your own hands.”

Talia forced strength into her burning eyes.

Varkas slowly straightened.

The sharp edge of emotion had already vanished from his face, replaced once more by the flawless mask of an imperial knight.

In a businesslike tone, he added,

“I’ll summon a healing mage for now. Recover yourself afterward and get some rest.”

Talia answered by grabbing the goblet lying on the floor and hurling it at him.

The silver cup struck his chest before clattering onto the ground.

Varkas looked at her with cold exhaustion before finally turning and stepping out of the carriage.

Talia slammed the door shut violently.

The tears she had desperately held back finally spilled down her cheeks.

Afraid someone outside might hear her sobbing, she hurriedly covered her mouth.

The crying trapped in her throat tightened around her breathing.

She wanted to suffocate just like this.

* * *

At the summit of Ulgram Hill stood only a solitary white temple said to have been built by Emperor Darian to commemorate Osiria’s independence.

The pilgrims stopped before it and stared up at the magnificent snow-white structure with reverent awe.

Despite the passage of countless years, the temple had remained almost perfectly preserved.

People traced the prayer inscriptions carved into the walls and admired the statues of legendary heroes while sinking into religious ecstasy.

But the Crown Prince seemed utterly unmoved by the relic left behind by his ancestors.

Leaping down from his saddle, Gareth swept an indifferent gaze over the arched entrance.

“So this is the second holy site?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

One of the attendants answered nervously.

The servants, fully aware that the Crown Prince’s mood had been abysmal since yesterday, all wore intimidated expressions as they carefully watched him.

Only Varkas remained as calm and composed as ever.

“There are no resident priests stationed here. We will prepare the ceremony ourselves.”

Varkas approached and spoke beside the Crown Prince.

Gareth glared at him with strange hostility before abruptly turning away.

“Then stop wasting time and hurry up.”

The moment the order was given, the attendants immediately began parking the carriages near the temple and unloading supplies.

The retainers of the First and Second Imperial Princesses, who had arrived later, joined the activity as well.

While the soldiers efficiently erected tents, the servants pulled ceremonial incense burners, sacred trays, silver pitchers, and candlesticks from heavy chests and polished them until they gleamed.

Once the preparations were mostly complete, the maids immediately began assisting the Crown Prince and the First Imperial Princess with their appearance.

Watching the scene from a short distance away, Edrick slowly approached the carriage where Talia remained shut inside.

If she intended to participate in the ceremony, it was about time to ask her to prepare herself as well.

And yet, strangely, he could not bring himself to speak.

Staring at the tightly closed door, Edrick scratched the back of his head roughly.

The image of the Second Imperial Princess from the previous night resurfaced in his mind, twisting his stomach unpleasantly.

The arm he had raised to knock gradually fell back to his side.

Instead, Edrick looked toward the Crown Prince’s tent erected nearby.

Servants were filling a large bath with hot water outside while building a fire beneath it, yet Gareth merely lounged in a chair, leisurely sipping wine.

The sight left a bitter taste in Edrick’s mouth.

‘After beating his own sister into that state, he doesn’t seem to feel even the slightest shred of guilt.’

He had heard rumors that the Crown Prince struck the Second Imperial Princess, but he had never imagined it was that severe.

Remembering the sight of that tiny, fragile woman being punched across the face and strangled by a man built like a mountain, Edrick slowly clenched his fist.

Thankfully Sir Varkas had been nearby.

Otherwise, a horrifying tragedy might truly have occurred.

Edrick stared down at his cold, sweat-covered palm before finally turning away.

In any case, Talia Roem Gwirta would almost certainly refuse to participate in the ceremony.

There was no reason to waste energy on it.

Swallowing a heavy sigh, he started toward the temple—

Then suddenly, a rattling sound came from behind him.

“Hey. You.”

Startled, Edrick turned around.

His eyes widened at the sight of Talia standing at the entrance of the carriage with her arms crossed.

As though absolutely nothing had happened, the woman stepped down from the carriage wearing her usual arrogant expression and tilted her chin.

“Go bring the maids.”

“...What?”

Talia shot him an irritated look as he merely blinked stupidly at her.

“Are you ugly, stupid, and deaf {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} too? I said bring the maids immediately. I’m going to prepare myself.”

Edrick stared blankly, utterly dumbfounded by the verbal abuse he had just received for the first time in his life.

Then he hurried off to summon the attendants assigned to her by the Empress.

For some reason, seeing Talia viciously running her mouth again made relief spill from him in the form of a quiet sigh.

The healing mage had completely treated her injuries last night, but after barely eating all day and suffering through such brutality, he had honestly worried she might collapse bedridden.

‘Thankfully, she seems fine.’

Then again, this was a woman who had mocked the Crown Prince without a shred of fear immediately after barely escaping death.

There was no way someone like her would break so easily.

Letting out a hollow laugh, Edrick immediately ordered the servants to bring water while instructing the guards beneath him to straighten their uniforms properly.

The Second Imperial Princess had finally decided to participate in an imperial ritual for once.

As an imperial guard knight, he intended to attend to her properly.