I Stole the Prince's First

“Ugh…” Herald groaned in severe pain from the intense headache. His head felt like it was about to split open. Memories that seemed to be cut in half like scissors sporadically resurfaced all at once. When he regained his senses, he realized Sat and Haint were holding onto him, and once again, when he opened his eyes, they were looking down at him from a different location.

When Herald opened his eyes, Sat first checked if any remnants of madness remained. Dilated pupils and reddened eyes intensified the symptoms of madness. Fortunately, Herald, who had just awakened again, was in good condition.

“Are you coming to your senses?”

“…”

The scent of blood mixed with a metallic taste, and the ringing in his ears mixed with screams. Herald, surrounded by fear-filled gazes, suppressed the curse that came to his lips. Although it was a symptom that had always been with him, for some reason, an empty feeling as if he had forgotten something unfamiliar washed over him. “The headache…”

“It’s severe.”

“For now, drink this. Drink while you listen.”

Herald, who was still writhing in pain from the throbbing sensations that tormented him, received the medicine bottle pushed in front of him. The medicine had an unpleasant smell and tasted just as bad, but he had to drink it when he showed signs of madness. Normally, he would receive the medicine and glare at it for a while before drinking it, but now there was no time for that.

Sat waited for Herald to empty the medicine bottle and then finally spoke as Herald made an uncomfortable expression.

“Langerhans young lord is on his way after finishing the interrogation. Your actions have been concluded as a punishment to Langerhans, who insulted the nobility. Witnesses even testified that Langerhans has a habit of becoming difficult to deal with when he drinks. They all will soon realize that Langerhans young lord didn’t even know you were there and yet rambled on, causing trouble for you.”

Sat spoke in a stiff manner, as if reporting the situation to a superior. It was Deneuve’s job to protect the Crown Prince, who might have seizures at any moment, and to clean up after him. In the process, many adjectives were added behind them, but he had never cared about the Crown Prince. Nor had he ever questioned the Crown Prince’s actions. It was an implicit rule among those who protected the Crown Prince.

Translators: Stardust. Read on moonlight novels only

“However, the information I heard directly from Langerhans is slightly different.”

Today, Sat decided to break that rule. He wanted to confirm Langerhans’ statement directly with his own ears.

“He mentioned that the person in question was not nobility but Retina, right?”

Sat deliberately emphasized Retina’s name when mentioning her. He wanted to believe that it was a mistake made by the irrational Langerhans. It was an absurd assumption, but he thought that Retina, who didn’t respond to provocations, had harbored resentment against the one who threw the stone. Otherwise, there was no way to make sense of the situation.

“That’s correct.”

However, contrary to Sat’s expectations, Herald readily admitted to his question. He intervened even though he had no reason to protect Retina. That’s what he was saying.

“Why?”

“Listening to him made me angry.”

“Angry to the point where you can’t feel pain even when you smash a glass with your bare hands and glass shards pierce your flesh?”

Herald finally looked at his right hand, which had been wrapped in bandages, in response to Sat’s words, which were almost like a scream. Was the pain he had been enduring even when he was still immobile due to that? It felt as though the blood he had seen just before the madness erupted was oozing from his right hand. Since then, it hadn’t come into clear focus, so it was difficult to make a definite judgment.

“You could have told us. There was no need for you, who has no connection to this, to step in.”

“Langerhans Young lord’s rambling words may have been the trigger, but as you know, it was just the outbreak of the madness that had been quiet for a long time.”

“Just the trigger?”

“That’s right.”

“Is there really nothing more you want to tell me?”

Sat probed Herald, who was calmly answering him, to see if there was something he wanted to hear directly from him. It was surprising to see the usually composed Sat Deneuve get worked up and confront him. Herald chuckled lightly. If you wish, he would gladly tell you the answer you wanted to hear.

“I like her.”

With his chin raised, his lips formed a smile, drawing an arc. Now he could speak with confidence about the true meaning of the emotions that bothered him whenever he saw her and even when he didn’t.

“That you and Reti, that you’re…”

Sat couldn’t hide his surprise at Herald’s confession. The Crown Prince, of all people, expressing his feelings so openly was unexpected. Herald simply nodded in response. There was more he wanted to say, but his headache was getting worse and his body was growing heavy. It was enough for now.

Sat’s trembling fist quivered. He had decided to place Retina by the side of the Crown Prince, but he hoped that Herald and Retina wouldn’t become close. He wanted their relationship to be purely professional. He believed that there was no romantic involvement between the two.

“But Retina… I’m sure I told you not to touch Retina. I told you that your partnership with Retina was solely for the benefit of both of you. I even said that there would be no genuine connection between you two. So how did this happen?”

But what I saw was something else entirely. Herald and Retina, who had arrived at some point, exchanged a few words by Herald’s side, and then they kissed.

He was frozen in place and couldn’t make a sound. He stood there motionless until Retina, her face flushed with embarrassment, left the room.

Translators: Stardust. Read on moonlight novels only

Sat and Herald had known each other since they were young friends, so they knew each other well. They shared everything about each other’s personalities, preferences in women, and even their sexual tastes. Herald had never spent a night with a woman due to his madness, but Sat at least knew what kind of person he was when it came to matters of the night.

With all that knowledge, Sat thought that Herald was not a suitable man for Retina. He fundamentally didn’t know how to love people. When he thought about the countless women Herald had encountered, he had always given love but had never received it in return. Most of the relationships were broken because of Herald’s detachment or the woman’s annoying clinginess.

Despite being an aristocrat and a duke, Herald was accustomed to receiving more than giving. Such an attitude had always made him look down on others. Sat couldn’t imagine Herald falling in love. Even if he received endless love throughout his life, he could never hand over Retina, a woman who was beyond compare.

“At the time, I thought she would be like any other woman. But now, I’m beginning to doubt my own judgment. How can you definitively determine someone’s feelings? Especially a woman who can’t be swayed without falling in love.”

However, Herald’s feelings were deeper than what Sat thought. To him, Retina was his only savior. No one could replace her. He had adored her from the moment he saw her, perhaps even earlier, when she first stole his attention.

“Retina won’t be able to marry you.”

Sat spoke with a suppressed voice, looking at Herald sincerely. He remembered Herald and Retina and the way they were together. She had removed her wig… she was still wearing it. Herald didn’t seem to realize she had woken up, and his confusion was evident.

“More precisely, she won’t be able to marry the future Emperor, you. As you saw with your own eyes, the Duke Deneuve holds a secret that should never be revealed to anyone.”

Deneuve, the Duke, had an accursed love for Retina, who was, in fact, a cursed being. This was a significant vulnerability in the aristocratic society. If this fact were to become known, even the powerful Deneuve family might not escape the Imperial law’s judgment. They had taken on all the risks to bring Retina to the capital.

“Retina’s hair is a wig. You know very well what that means.”

Herald had intended to reveal a perfectly constructed plan to Sat before, but he couldn’t hide it any longer.

“Her brown hair didn’t suit her at all,” he remembered.

It had taken him a long time to find her, and he couldn’t believe that the woman he had spent a night with had a wig. He had initially thought it was a mistake, but he had felt something strange from her.

“Retina is a cursed child. In reality, even if it’s a tale from wartime, the entire Empire’s population thinks that way. Those who have silver hair have lost their families, so there’s a strong hatred towards them. Over the generations, it has become associated with a curse. We’ve been living like this for over a hundred years. If they find out it’s not a curse, will they believe it? Even if it’s exposed in society, it would cause a great uproar. Can we keep that secret for a lifetime?”

Sat was afraid. Afraid of losing his sister, of Retina disappearing like her mother did overnight. He knew the danger was great, but he wanted to somehow get his little sister out of the confines of the estate. Sometimes, when Retina was lost in thought, he would stay by her side all day, never leaving her alone.

“Such talk of curses is just an ancient rumor, don’t you know that better than anyone? In fact, the cursed one is on my side.”

Herald brushed aside the golden hair covering his eyes. His red pupils, the symbol of the royal family of Rudenheim, were hidden but emitted an ominous gleam.