The Price Is Revenge

Chapter 1

The criminals were dragged out into the square.
Bound and kneeling, they faced the judge.

“There will be no mercy for those who dared to attempt the assassination of His Highness, the Crown Prince. Therefore, all of you will be hanged!”

Caw, caw!

The crows gathered around the execution ground, calling out as if to hasten the execution.

Even without their urging, the sentence would be carried out swiftly.

Attempting to harm a member of the royal family, even just conspiring, was an unforgivable crime.
One by one, nooses were placed around the criminals’ necks.

The onlookers began to whisper.

“Where is the Crown Princess? I heard she was involved in this.”

“Wasn’t that just a rumor? The Crown Prince and Princess are known to be on very good terms.”

Their marriage was the result of the Crown Prince’s long courtship.

In public, the couple appeared to be deeply in love.
The way they looked at each other was filled with endless trust, and their smiles seemed to say that being together brought them true happiness.

Just watching them was enough to make one’s heart fill with emotions.

“That’s right. And wasn’t it the Crown Prince who helped the Crown Princess during her most difficult times? It’s hard to believe she would betray her benefactor.”

The most esteemed daughter of the Empire’s wealthiest family, the Eckhart family—Tessa.

Tessa, who once had everything, lost her parents in a tragic accident and became an orphan overnight.
A noblewoman with wealth but no power became a target for greedy opportunists.

The Crown Prince personally stepped in to help Tessa, guiding her to become independent.
Many, including Tessa, were moved by his noble actions.

“…But I’ve heard rumors that the orders found on the assassins were written in the Crown Princess’s handwriting.”

“I heard something similar. Apparently, there’s evidence that the Crown Princess provided gold bars to the assassins.”

“And I also heard that she had frequent meetings with the mastermind behind this plot until recently.”

Too many unsettling pieces of news and evidence made it hard to dismiss the rumors as mere lies. However, by the time the public execution concluded, the Crown Princess still had not appeared.

It seemed the rumors about her involvement in the assassination plot were false after all.

The crowd left, feeling somewhat disappointed.
Most had gathered out of curiosity, eager to catch a glimpse of the woman the Crown Prince loved so dearly.

* * *

My eyes were covered with thick fabric.
I couldn’t see a thing, unable to distinguish any objects.

The air was damp and cold, so I could only guess that I was in an underground prison.

Creak—.

I heard the sound of the thick prison door opening.
“I’m here to escort you.”

It was the voice of a man I knew well.
It was Baal, the Crown Prince’s loyal bodyguard, whom I loathed.

He undid the shackles binding my hands and connected me to chains before leading me forward.
It was difficult to walk since I couldn’t see.

‘Slow down a little.’

I wanted to speak, but with a gag in my mouth, I could only follow Baal’s lead.

If only my hands were free, I could feel my way along the walls.

Despite stumbling several times, I was dragged forward by sheer force.

With my heightened sense of hearing, I could hear voices shouting in the distance.

“Therefore, all of you will be hanged!”

…It seemed the public execution was underway outside.

I had meticulously planned and executed everything, but in the end, I failed.

It was a task that would have been difficult to succeed in without *that* man anyway.

I thought of someone who had already left this world.
The only man capable of standing against Cesar.
It was foolish to dwell on someone who had died even before the assassination plan against the Crown Prince was conceived, but I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

I had my reasons—reasons why I had to kill Cesar, no matter what means I used.

Baal, who had been leading me, stopped. Perhaps we had reached our destination.

I reacted too slowly, and my forehead bumped into his back.

“The Empire’s Sun…”

“Tessa!”

He cut Baal’s words short, calling out my name.
The owner of that voice was Cesar.
The Crown Prince—the target of the traitors who were being hanged outside.
And he was also my husband.

“What’s with these shackles? What have they done to my love? Release her at once!”

“She is a criminal, whom His Majesty has commanded to be strictly watched. Even bringing her out of the underground prison required risking my life, and now you want me to undo her restraints? If I go that far, I’ll truly be killed by His Majesty!”

“Haven’t you already disobeyed the emperor’s command? One more offense won’t change much.”

“Your Highness, didn’t you only ask me to bring her?”

From their conversation, I was able to roughly grasp the situation.

I was the mastermind who had conspired with the assassins to kill my husband, the Crown Prince.
But the assassination had failed, and Cesar had survived.

I should have paid for my treason with my life, but Cesar, my husband, had shielded me.

So, instead of enduring any harsh torture, I had been confined to the Crown Princess’s palace for a while.
The emperor, who had looked at me with utter disdain, said,

“Repent for your crimes until your punishment is decided.”

Repent for what?
Cesar was the bastard who had killed my parents.
That wretch had hidden the fact that he murdered my parents and whispered words of love to me, the most revolting kind of person.
So my revenge was justified!
No, letting him live until now was the real mistake.

‘I will kill him, no matter what.’

Imprisoned in the palace, I sharpened my blade of revenge and attacked Cesar when he secretly came to visit me.
But I was stopped by the knights who always guarded him.

The enraged emperor pointed his finger at me.

“I can no longer tolerate you. Take her to the underground prison!”

“Your Majesty… no, Father! Please, show mercy, for my sake!”

“The fact that her head is still attached to her body is mercy enough!”

Cesar blocked the knights who had seized me.

“If you’re going to imprison Tessa in the underground prison, you’ll have to deal with me first.”

“You madman. Lock him up in the Crown Prince’s palace at once!”

The emperor’s furious command echoed.
Cesar was seized by the knights and dragged away, and I was thrown into the underground prison.

I thought I would be executed alongside the assassins, but another opportunity came my way.

“I want to carry out His Highness’s orders properly, but… alas, I don’t have the key.”

“If you don’t find it, you will be executed for dishonoring the royal family.”

“You’re being unreasonable! Don’t you see the effort of a loyal subordinate who even endures hardship for the safety of his lord?”

“Hurry up and find it.”

“…Alright. I need to check the situation outside anyway.”

In the end, Baal, having given in, seemed to be retrieving the key. I could hear the clinking of metal.

“I’ll be back soon after checking. Please take care of yourself, Your Highness.”

He even kindly stepped aside.
It seemed that the heavens were still on my side.
The sound of Baal’s footsteps grew fainter as he moved away. In contrast, I could feel Cesar’s presence drawing closer.

“You must have been frustrated. I’ll release you soon.”

He carefully removed the veil covering my face. Although one layer of thin fabric was gone, I still couldn’t see because of the blindfold.

“You’ve been in such a deplorable state in the underground prison…”

Cesar muttered as he removed the blindfold and gag.

“Open your eyes, Tessa.”

His gentle voice called my name with desperation.
I opened my eyes, grimacing. The light from the lamp Cesar was holding was blinding.

“I’m sorry, I’ll move it quickly.”

He set the lamp down on the floor. With the bright light gone, it was a bit more bearable.

“Are you uncomfortable? Just bear with it a little longer, I’ll release your hands.”

Cesar tenderly held my hand.
Once, holding hands like this was precious and filled with happiness…
Now, it only felt repulsive.

I had to resist the urge to push him away immediately.
It wasn’t the right time yet.
I managed to suppress my discomfort.

Using the key, he unlocked the shackles from my wrists. As the heavy iron weights clanged to the floor, my body felt lighter.

I rubbed my wrists.
Despite being bound for so long, thankfully, there were no significant issues with movement.

“Tessa.”
He murmured my name again.

He looked as if he had met a deity, with an ecstatic expression. I slowly moved my eyes. Near where he had placed the lamp, there was an empty vase on a nearby table.

“Don’t worry about anything. I forgive all your sins…”

“Who’s forgiving whom?!”

Crash—!

As soon as I heard those words, my repressed anger exploded.

I hurled myself at the vase, grabbing it, and struck Cesar’s head with all my might.

“Ugh!”

Cesar staggered, gritting his teeth.
Blood trickled down his forehead from the strike. Although the blow was effective, it seemed insufficient to kill him.

He clutched his forehead with trembling hands.

“I will… forgive you for trying to kill me… No, I will make amends. All the assassins who could testify have been killed. If you deny everything, claiming ignorance, I’ll take care of the rest…”

“….”

“So come back to me, Tessa.”