With a plink, a water droplet fell, snapping the man back to his senses as he lifted his head.

“Uh, uuhh…”

A barely coherent groan escaped his throat. His voice was so hoarse it scarcely sounded human anymore.

From outside the cell, someone suddenly extended a jug filled with water. The dirty wooden jug contained water. Under normal circumstances, the man would have refused it. However, after nearly a week without food or drink, that didn’t matter.

The moment he recognized it as water, his mind went blank, and he didn’t even pause to see who was offering it.

As he lunged forward, the taunting hand withdrew, leaving only the cruel bars to trap him.

“Oh, are you alright?”

A cold voice.

A voice so irritating that just hearing it was enough to send shivers down his spine. The vile villain who had snatched away the companion worthy of his esteemed master.

“You should be careful. You’re not well.”

“This…di….dir…!”

His dried lips barely moved. Each attempt to speak caused his tongue to split, oozing blood. The blood that flowed moistened his dry tongue.

“Dirty… scum!”

The words his barely functioning tongue managed to spit out were those of criticism. But the other seemed to have anticipated this, replying with a sneering tone.

“The one who lunged at the water offered by this ‘dirty scum’ is the one making big claims.”

“If.. I had known…it was you… I would have chosen death…”

“Even though you were desperate enough to jump without seeing who it was, you still put on airs. Even knowing that I am the only one who comes here. Yet you still manage to show such bravado, impressive really.”

With a sarcastic voice, the man furrowed his brows.

“You keep quiet well. Not just bravado, but you seem quite loyal as well. Still, you do realize revealing your identity isn’t so difficult. After all, if I were to hang your head in the street, it would be your family who would come running, weeping.”

Thus, Enfrise de Blaim, the thief of the imperial blood, remained undeterred.

Rumors said he was ruthless and cruel. Known for decapitating servants as a pastime and abusing maids as his specialty, they said the cries of the dead and violated never stopped in his mansion.

Such a man wouldn’t hesitate to commit the things he speaks of.

“You, you—!”

“How dare you address a Grand Duke so informally? It seems your master has failed to educate you properly. Just for that, you deserve punishment, let alone for coveting what belongs to the Grand Duke.”

With a chilling smile, the Grand Duke unsheathed his sword. The sword slid out with a clear, well-maintained sound.

How ferocious must one be to keep such a weapon in pristine condition? How many has he killed?

“You… filthy… scoundrel! Who are you to claim… yours! My mas…ter, you insult, cough!”

The blood that should have helped him speak was insufficient to soothe his parched throat. There was no way he could try to scream with a voice that had lost its strength. It was unclear whether his throat was torn or he was vomiting blood, though the Grand Duke didn’t flinch.

“Well, I have a pretty good idea who stands behind you. Even if you don’t speak, there are ways to gather information. Yet why do you think I insist on hearing it from you?”

“You think… someone like you… a scourge upon this world… could bend me to his will!”

He spat out the blood that had welled up, which the Grand Duke coldly observed before suddenly smiling.

As if everything until now was a lie.

Like an ordinary young man.

“In truth, I was hoping you wouldn’t mention your master’s name from the start.”

The Grand Duke, holding his sword, spun it menacingly over the prisoner, who, trying to move back, placed his hands on the floor.

At that moment—

“Aaaah… Aaaaack!”

—A hoarse scream tore through his cracked throat.

The sword, pinning his withered hands to the floor, didn’t budge despite the man’s struggle. The blood soaked the sword, turning its pristine blade a chilling red.

“To make you suffer as I once did… for trying to steal her from me. And…”

The Grand Duke’s thoughts drifted to Chaperil, feverish and gasping. Even the small hand that held him in the middle of her terrible nightmare.

If it weren’t for this man. It was unforgivable.

…How dare he.

The one who brought upon the threat of death.

“For the disrespect you showed her, wouldn’t the light punishment of merely severing your head hardly suffice? Only pain so severe that you beg for death might begin to compensate.”

He had lost his mind.

Verdi, seeing the Grand Duke’s mad eyes, felt fear for the first time.

“I already heard it from Chaperil herself. She revealed your name to me. Verdi, wasn’t it?”

The man, Verdi’s breath halted momentarily.

Could the Miss have told this man everything? Even knowing it might lead to his death? Why would she do that, knowing it could bring trouble to her?

Why?

“Your name wasn’t on the servant list of County Rivette. So, which family’s servant might you be?”

“I am… I belong to no one…”

“You said it yourself. Someone told you Chaperil was in my mansion and was waiting for you. That must be your master, right?”

“With your filthy mouth…! The Miss’s name…”

Were his struggling words not heard? Or was there simply no intention to listen?

The Duke, still with a crazed smile, continued to gaze at Verdi.

“That familiar tone of voice, and the confidence in your claim that Chaperil would know you. Putting all this together, it’s not hard to deduce your master. Jerenic de Kaun, Count Kaun.”

Verdi’s face turned pale.

He had never anticipated it would be like this. Knowing the Grand Duke’s cruel nature, why had the Miss divulged everything? Could it be…

Was she hoping that Master Jerenic would die at the hands of this man?

Impossible!

The Miss had even rejected his marriage proposal, waiting for Master Jerenic. She wouldn’t have fallen into the clutches of this blood thief.

Yet, there was no denial.

— I won’t be leaving.

Her eyes, when she said this, looked calm.

The Miss was always polite, but she spoke comfortably to Verdi, who had long observed her and Master Jerenic. It was as if she was speaking to the servants of the Rivette household. Though in that secretly hidden mansion in the woods, the Miss spoke with such formality to him.

Could that already have been a sign? That the Miss had fallen into the hands of this vile and cruel man.

“What have you done… to the Miss… You dirty…!”

“Well, what does that matter to you, who will soon be tortured to death in this dungeon?”

The Grand Duke effortlessly withdrew the sword that had been deeply embedded in the ground before he thrust it again at Verdi, who was clutching his wounded hand and glaring at him.

“Speak now if you know anything. That way, at least, I can grant you a swift death. Otherwise, if you remain silent.”

The same golden eyes that once belonged to the audacious empress who shamelessly claimed her lover’s child as the emperor’s shone differently in the Grand Duke. Where the empress’s eyes resembled hollow golden orbs, the Grand Duke’s were more like those of a predatory beast.

Verdi involuntarily clenched his hand and stepped back.

The golden eyes curved like crescent moons.

“Let me offer you a choice. Who should I torment next, the first person who rushes here for your body or your master? Which of the two shall share your fate?”

* * *

Stubborn man.

He never revealed his master’s name, likely knowing that Enfrise, a grand duke without solid backing, couldn’t rashly meddle with another noble family even if it was a declining County barely holding onto its noble title.

“Grand Duke?”

“…Yes?”

Pulled from his thoughts, Enfrise was startled to find Chaperil so close, tilting her head curiously.

“Did that man willingly speak? Who ordered him to it?”

Ah, that was it. That was why he’d recalled that memory. Enfrise carefully chose words that wouldn’t scare Chaperil too much as he composed his reply.

“Unfortunately, despite being detained for interrogation, he remains silent. However, with the information you provided, we’ve identified which household he belongs to.”

“Wasn’t he from the Rivette family? He spoke as if he knew me.”

…Should he lie? Or should he be honest?

Enfrise no longer wanted to lie to her. His sins had caused Chaperil to lose herself, but through those same sins, he had gained too much.

If she ever recovered her memory and grew to detest him… That must surely be the punishment he deserved. A punishment worthy of the crimes he had committed—losing everything and his own heaven.

It felt infinitely close to death.

“…Do you remember Count Kaun?”

“Kaun?”

“Yes, Count Kaun.”

Trying to recall, Chaperil crossed her arms and pursed her lips. What always seemed a cute gesture now filled him with dread.

It was more terrifying than any formidable enemy.

Even more than his own father.

“Um… I really can’t remember. How does that person know me?”

“Because you were close to Jerenic de Kaun, the master of that man named Verdi.”

He intentionally omitted the word ‘fiancé’. Perhaps God would forgive such an omission.

A tiny bit of selfishness.

“Um…”

Chaperil tightened her arms across her chest and tilted her head, chewing her lip as she thought. Suddenly, she looked up.

Perhaps.

…She remembered something.

A single bead of sweat trickled down Enfrise’s cheek.

__