chapter 06
The expression vanished from Benedict’s face.
He stared at Ioret for a long moment before muttering quietly,
“You’ve changed, Ioret.”
He took a step closer to her.
The warmth had drained from his gray eyes, replaced by something chillingly sharp.
This was the duke’s true face.
“Why have you changed? Since when? The you I knew never looked at me like this.”
“……”
“Why does it feel like you don’t trust me?”
Lowering his head slowly, he gazed at her intently.
At a distance where his breath brushed against her nose, his gaze moved from the bridge of her nose to her lips. A deep hunger spread through his dark pupils.
After closing his eyes briefly, Benedict pulled her into an embrace.
“I think I left you alone for too long. I’m sorry.”
“……”
“Let’s talk later. After the Founding Day, I’ll come to wherever you are. Don’t push me away, alright?”
Ioret let out a faint laugh.
The Benedict she remembered from the past would have kissed her without hesitation.
He had been a man who couldn’t hide his youthful affection, often saying he wished she would grow up quickly.
But now, looking at him again, she could see his ambition.
He was someone who sought to climb higher. He had become engaged to her because of her bloodline, but the moment he judged her no longer worth investing in, he discarded her without hesitation.
A man who carefully weighed people’s value, maintained a polite distance under the guise of kindness, used them until they were no longer useful, and then coldly erased them.
That was likely how he succeeded in her previous life—becoming the husband of the queen of this nation and ruling Elovis from behind her.
“That was your last chance to kiss me, Benedict.”
Not far away, Catherine stood watching them.
Keeping her gaze fixed on Catherine, Ioret leaned her cheek against Benedict’s neck and whispered,
“Stop pretending to be my friend while trying to frame me. I don’t have time to deal with my sister’s lover right now.”
“Ioret. If there’s still a misunderstanding—”
“If you want to report this to Catherine too, go ahead. That would be the clearest proof that you’ve become her loyal hound.”
Benedict’s shoulders stiffened slightly.
Ioret pushed him away and turned her back.
“What were you doing with Ioret, Duke?”
Catherine glared sharply at him.
Even after Ioret had left the garden, Benedict’s gaze had remained fixed on her retreating figure.
“That is not something Your Highness needs to concern yourself with.”
His voice was more curt than usual. For a man who rarely showed emotion, it was an obvious shift.
The crack in his composure irritated her.
“You embrace another woman in front of your fiancée and tell me not to concern myself?”
“You were the one who instructed me to maintain a friendly relationship with Princess Ioret.”
“So? What did she say?”
“……”
“It’s suspicious. She’s acting out of character. For once, she looked me straight in the eye, separated herself from Lissy, and even requested Sir Perein as her guard from Father. Did she give you any hint beforehand?”
“She seemed relieved that the wedding was postponed, so I comforted her. Other than that… well, she did seem somewhat sensitive, but not entirely different from usual.”
“Is that the truth?”
“Do you doubt me?”
Benedict relaxed his lips into a smile. His gaze toward Catherine was gentle yet firm.
“You wound me, my beloved.”
“My beloved who never visits my chambers. Yet you went in and out of Ioret’s room as if it were your own.”
The duke maintained a silent smile.
Benedict Valer was the strongest card Catherine held—and the hardest to control.
As composed and cold as his refined appearance suggested, his true thoughts were difficult to read. Like looking through layers of glass, she could only grasp distorted fragments.
He was dangerous to keep close. And yet, she needed him.
More precisely, she needed the unshakable status and pure bloodline of House Valer above all else.
Bloodline.
The one thing Catherine lacked—and her only weakness.
The daughter of a commoner queen.
That single flaw in her otherwise perfect life had given rise to a deep-rooted inferiority complex.
And so she crushed her younger sister even more ruthlessly—so thoroughly that Ioret would never even dare to resist, stripping everything from her.
Among the things she took, the most valuable was the Duke of Valer.
At a slight gesture from her hand, Benedict understood and bowed his head.
“The only person I love is the Crown Princess, who will one day ascend the throne.”
A polite kiss fell upon Catherine’s red lips.
It soon deepened into something more heated. Yet even as their tongues entwined, the duke neither closed his eyes nor looked at her—as if his mind was elsewhere.
A flicker of unease passed through Catherine.
She pulled his hand down to her chest.
At the blatant invitation, Benedict let out a faint chuckle and finally met her gaze.
I took him from Ioret, but I can’t yet be certain he’s truly mine. Once Ioret is gone from the palace, I must immediately arrange a royal marriage with him.
Though she couldn’t marry Ioret off during the Founding Day, it didn’t matter.
She had already sent the royal physician to Count Castlein. The moment he recovered enough to move, the wedding would proceed.
Feeling his hand tighten over her chest, Catherine smiled.
No matter how desperately Ioret struggled now, her fate was already in Catherine’s palm.
Ioret wandered the palace grounds for a long time.
Servants and maids openly followed her with their eyes—it was clear they were all Catherine’s spies.
Surrounded on all sides. I wondered if there might be a way out, but that’s wishful thinking.
Catherine held authority not only over the royal guards but also the capital’s defense forces.
Even leaving the tower required Catherine’s permission. There was no way she could leave the palace.
She had narrowly avoided the marriage for now by involving the king, but it was only a temporary measure. It was time to move to the next step.
If Catherine gains command of the central army and border forces, it’s over. If she takes full control of the military, I won’t stand a chance no matter what I do.
What she needed most now was power.
A blade to protect herself—and a blade to aim at Elovis.
She needed two swords.
The first one should have already arrived at the tower.
Ioret quickened her pace.
“Greetings, Princess Ioret.”
A tall knight with black hair and green eyes stood waiting at the entrance of the tower.
His black uniform, adorned with gold thread and an eagle insignia, marked him as a member of the Black Eagle Knights.
He knelt on one knee before her.
“I am Lucian Perein, assigned to serve as your guard for the time being. I will do my utmost to ensure your comfort.”
“So you are Sir Perein.”
Ioret studied him with a strange feeling.
Despite his refined features, what stood out first was his quiet demeanor.
His eyes, faintly double-lidded, paired with a straight nose and firm lips, gave him a clean and disciplined appearance. Beneath long lashes, his gaze was deep and clear.
Lucian Perein.
Second son of Marquis Perein, and vice-captain of the Black Eagle Knights.
The very knight Ioret had requested from the king.
The problem was that the Black Eagle Knights were currently under Crown Princess Catherine’s command.
Moreover, the Perein family openly supported Catherine. In reality, Lucian’s true master was Catherine—which was why Ioret had deliberately invoked the king’s authority.
“How long did Father order you to guard me?”
“He did not specify an exact duration, but I was told approximately seven to ten days.”
“So it’s temporary.”
“Even so, I will give my utmost—”
“Remember, what you received is a royal command. For at least a week, you belong to me. If you do anything unbecoming of a guard, disobey my orders, or leak information about me to others, I will report it to Father as a violation of his command.”
“…Understood.”
As a royal knight, he could never be free from the king’s authority. Defying a royal order meant immediate dismissal.
So for the duration of that command, whether he liked it or not, Lucian would have to serve Ioret faithfully.
Of course, once the king’s order expired, Catherine would summon him and interrogate him about everything.
Even so, the reason Ioret chose him was simple.
In her previous life, when she was being led to execution, he had been the only knight who treated her with respect.
“May you rest in peace in God’s embrace.”
