Chapter 71

Before the emperor appeared, it was the nobles who were chattering.

It was probably because the timing of the party was oddly specific.

Those born on the same day also happened to meet misfortune on the same day.

Ten years ago, today.

The former emperor died, and his surviving son disappeared.

And yet, on a day like this—one that wasn’t even her birthday but a full week away—they insisted on holding a birthday celebration ball.

It was a long time ago, but the shock of losing two direct imperial bloodlines remained unchanged.

Especially for the current emperor, who had been close to the former emperor, it was only right that he honor today in mourning.

Of course, there had been emperors in the past who threw extravagant parties around their birthdays.

They were simply vain, but was the man before her truly acting out of such petty vanity?

Adam smiled beautifully, belying his true thoughts.

“But still, isn’t it strange that there wasn’t any real investigation from the temple, even though His Majesty passed away so suddenly? Those who served him said he had shown strange symptoms.”

Though standing behind him, Adam could feel it.

The nobles were flustered and suspicious, but the reason for the former emperor’s swift succession was clear.

And the empress’s child, born on the day the emperor died, had vanished as well.

“…A person of the temple has no right to interfere in imperial matters.”

“Yes, if I were truly a person of the temple, that is.”

“…”

The emperor’s eyes gleamed with fury.

He clenched his teeth so tightly his jaw could have locked, but he couldn’t afford to show his anger.

Adam stepped closer, as if to offer a polite bow, smiling as if he were pleased.

“If you intended to poke at my weaknesses, you should’ve considered that yours might be exposed in return.”

This time, his voice was quiet.

But it was perfectly audible to the emperor, who was glaring and watching Adam’s every move.

“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”

Unable to conceal his rage, the emperor clenched his fist so hard that his nails dug into his palm.

Seeing the blood trickling down from his fist, Adam descended from the dais again, hiding his sneer.

And then he quickly sought out Eveline.

She had been secretly watching him from behind a curtain.

Though she couldn’t hear the words spoken, her eyes blazed as she mouthed them silently.

Adam strode over and pulled her into the terrace.

He closed the curtains to shield them from outside view and stepped closer to her.

It was a completely different demeanor from the confident strides he’d taken before the emperor moments ago.

Now, his movements were tinged with anxiety.

What benefit had he hoped to gain by bringing her here in the first place?

Eveline quietly looked into his face.

‘What was the emperor trying to show me?’

Adam kneeling beneath him, bowing his head?

As if hoping that she would see such humiliation and leave his side.

Just like that nobleman at the hunting ground who once scoffed that heroes were nothing but severed strings.

They dressed her in fine clothes, as if whispering she could have it all if she would only let go of him.

To discard the useless man.

Eveline let out a short scoff.

‘Does he really think I’d leave Adam over something like that?’

All he’d managed to do was raise her anger toward the emperor another level.

Eveline glared fiercely at the emperor, who was likely just beyond the curtain.

‘Whatever he is, he’s unpleasant!’

He didn’t even appear much in the game, so she didn’t know much about him—but the way he clung to Adam annoyed her.

Trying to kill him? Even worse!

“Eve. Let’s try to leave without drawing too much attention.”

She slowly nodded.

Even earlier, just talking with Adam had drawn curious stares from onlookers.

There were more eyes on her now than during the hunting competition—it was enough to make her skin crawl.

As they stepped off the terrace, the nobles’ eyes immediately turned to Adam, as if they’d been waiting.

Perhaps because he had knelt to the emperor moments ago, their expressions now carried blatant amusement.

No one—not even on the emperor’s birthday—would kneel like that.

But Adam had.

Because he was an unwelcome commoner hero in this place…

And he even expressed gratitude for the emperor’s “generosity.”

Of course, there were some who seemed bothered by this behavior.

Among those who didn’t hide their mockery, a few responded with blank faces—or even open displeasure.

There weren’t many of the latter, but…

‘That person…’

Eveline noticed someone and shifted her body to get a better view.

She flapped her arms to get Adam’s attention as he walked ahead.

He watched her for a moment, then offered what he thought was a logical conclusion.

“…You want me to carry you?”

Adam awkwardly reached out his arms.

‘No, that’s not it!’

Did he really just make a joke like that in such a serious moment?

Really, his terrible sense of humor deserved recognition.

In the end, Eveline gestured for him to lower his head.

“His Highness Crown Prince Judis is over there. It looks like he has something to say to you.”

“Don’t worry. I don’t.”

…That’s not something you just brush off!

Was he always like this, even before she arrived?

Flustered, Eveline grabbed his arm and pulled.

“Right now, even a single ally is precious!”

Can’t he see all those hostile stares aimed at them?

Judis would be a strong ally to have on Adam’s side.

Seeing Eveline’s determined expression, Adam relented with a reluctant nod.

At last, he made eye contact with Judis and gave a small gesture as if signaling him to come over.

To others, it would appear as if Adam was signaling to Eveline.

Eveline stepped aside to give them space to talk comfortably.

“There’s no need for you to step aside, Eve.”

“No, I’d just like a moment alone…”

Trying to stay upright as if everything was fine had already drained her.

Eveline went to where Adam had mentioned the carriage would be and watched the two from afar.

They had slipped out to the deserted garden and were speaking in the distance.

The palace garden seemed like the perfect place for secret meetings—ideal for conversation.

She couldn’t hear their discussion, which left her frustrated.

As she removed the uncomfortably large earrings, she tried to guess what they were talking about.

From a distance, Adam and the crown prince seemed to be having a discreet tug-of-war.

The way they looked at each other—as if even being near was repulsive—made the whole thing look like a farce.

‘What are they doing?’

Watching them, who would believe one was the crown prince of an empire and the other a hero who saved the world?

Adam let out an exaggerated sigh and, after some back-and-forth, received something from Judis.

He looked exhausted, wiping his face like the brief standoff had completely worn him out.

“Eve, let’s go back.”

“Okaaay.”

Eveline obediently took his arm and stepped into the carriage.

She finally pulled off the long gloves that had been bothering her.

Adam, sitting across from her, hesitated a moment before speaking.

“Eve, if we go to the Demon King’s castle…”

“Yes?”

“…No, never mind.”

But Adam only mouthed words for a long while, never saying anything meaningful in the end.

‘I thought I could say it.’

Adam didn’t understand what was happening to him.

Even earlier—why couldn’t he get the words out?

The thought of Eveline not being by his side made his heart sink so much it surprised even him.

In the end, he didn’t say a word and rubbed his lips in frustration at his own silence.

“So what exactly was it that the crown prince tried so hard to give you?”

It felt strangely similar to when he had passed that thing to her—what was it, the Second Aeuguseus?

The crown prince hadn’t been able to discard the flute he had intended to give to Adam, nor leave it behind, so he’d left it carefully placed on a cushion.

Every so often, he only dusted it off with a duster.

Adam seemed to have noticed the flute’s existence but said nothing.

Did he recognize it as belonging to the crown prince?

And yet, he didn’t bother hiding it. He just left it out in the open, probably thinking she wouldn’t switch sides because of that.

As if suddenly remembering, Adam rummaged through his coat for the crumpled box.

“It’s nothing special. If you want it, you can have it.”

He answered indifferently, almost tossing the gift to her.

It was a small box, but surprisingly heavy.

When she peeled off the rough wrapping, radiant gold came into view.

“…”

Eveline was so shocked her eyes nearly popped out as she looked from the glittering gold to Adam’s bright golden eyes.

Then she muttered with a stiff expression, stating what she had just realized.

“…His Highness the Crown Prince is actually a very kind man, isn’t he?”