“Episode 2”
After that day, I heard various stories from Lucas.
“Your mother was treated unfairly. She didn’t deserve to go like that.”
When discussing the former Empress, who had passed away after being dethroned, Lucas’s eyes welled up with tears.
“It’s all because of that noblewoman. If it weren’t for her, your mother wouldn’t have fallen into such a trap.”
He clenched his fists.
The days Lucas spent in the palace felt like walking on thin ice.
Lucas’s mother, the former Empress, had no significant power, as their household was on the brink of ruin.
According to Lucas, their fall from grace was all due to assisting the current Emperor.
However, as soon as the current Emperor ascended to the throne, he ignored the weakened Empress.
“Your mother almost didn’t become Empress. My grandmother wanted someone stronger to be Empress.”
When I heard those words, I genuinely wanted to do something about the Emperor instead of Lucas.
“No, he’s just trash, isn’t he? He treated her devotion like trash?!”
Like many royal families, Lucas’s childhood was filled with heartbreaking stories.
“To think this beautiful child endured such an unhappy past… Is that why he’s so harsh and distrustful? Because he was betrayed and can’t trust people?”
I tried to find some reasonable explanation for his behavior and see the good in him.
Already having developed feelings, how could I possibly resist? I believed that understanding and reciprocating his feelings would bring happiness.
So, I became an irreplaceable childhood friend to Lucas.
His typically stoic demeanor also played a role in it. Our family wasn’t necessarily bad; we just weren’t affectionate.
As I was the youngest, I didn’t receive much attention from my parents.
They, like many nobles, believed that children could be left to the care of nannies.
While I had no complaints about my life, I didn’t realize I was looking for someone to share affection with.
My older brother, quite older than me, would sometimes stare at me intently when he returned from the academy, and his gaze was sometimes intimidating.
Although we exchanged greetings with proper manners when I grew older, that was it.
My brother had no significant interest in me, and I felt the same way.
That’s how it was said to be.
As such, with his harsh demeanor and the harsh tone of his words, our relationship became more distant, which, in turn, contributed to it.
So, it’s only natural that my heart would be drawn to Lucas, who I saw frequently and shared many stories with.
Moreover, his face was perfectly to my liking.
One day, Lucas poured out his heart to me, tears streaming down his face.
“Alicia, I… I really want to right the wrongs done to my mother.”
It was a day filled with heavy rain, and… it was also the day we had visitors at the mansion.
But for some reason, Lucas seemed extremely anxious and grabbed me, pleading,
“You won’t betray me, will you? I trusted you and told you everything. If you betray me…”
Could I resist my beloved, shedding tears and pleading so earnestly?
Moreover, I deeply empathized with Lucas’s sense of injustice.
Before I knew it, I was determined to pave a way for him, my childhood friend and beloved.
Lucas had been good to me, and his feelings were genuine!
So, from that day on, I began to devise various plans to restore Lucas’s position.
At the age of twenty-three, Lucas and I entered the capital.
So many things had happened by then, and our hardships were beyond description.
Lucas was a deposed prince, declared missing in the capital, so entering without preparation was too risky.
For him to confidently return to the capital and reclaim his status as a prince, he needed a reason recognized by the Emperor.
After all, it was the Emperor himself who deposed the Empress and expelled Lucas from the capital.
Furthermore, as Lucas mentioned, power struggles among the numerous concubines within the palace were fierce.
The Emperor had six sons and four daughters, most of whom had different mothers, leading to intense competition among them.
Lucas’s twin brother had been eliminated when the former Empress was deposed.
For this reason, Lucas found himself in a situation where he needed the Emperor’s meager protection to survive.
“Our household couldn’t afford to take a stance.”
The Blantyre family was renowned for its neutrality.
Despite our close relationship and journey to the capital together, Lucas considered our friendship merely as the naivety of a noblewoman’s daughter, completely unrelated to the Blantyre family.
Lucas was deeply disappointed by this.
“It would have been nice if the Blantyre family supported me, but there’s nothing we can do. Alicia, you’re not exactly loved in your household, are you?”
When I blurted out my apologies without realizing, I should have noticed something.
Reflecting on the times we spent together, I simply brushed off his words, thinking it was just Lucas being anxious, as usual. Anyway, there were all sorts of demon hunting, border disputes, and the commercial successes I achieved using my knowledge from my previous world and the influence of being a Blantyre family heiress. Only after “Lucas Delrick” became a national hero for all those endeavors could he enter the capital. Even before that, there had been several invitations from the palace, but I had always held him back.
“We need to wait a little longer, Lucas.”
“Alicia, aren’t you being too cautious?”
“Trust me, please. You know I’ve always wanted what’s best for you.”
“Still…”
Three years before coming to the capital, when the fourth invitation came, Lucas was extremely anxious.
“I’ll go alone if I have to, Alicia. I just need to prove myself. I’ve always done so.”
What nonsense was he spouting? Even though I was deeply infatuated with him, I wasn’t blind to right and wrong.
“I’ve always proven my abilities. You need to trust me. You’ve always said timing is important.”
I inwardly sighed. Why did he insist on doing things against my advice? Was there a part of me that was drawn to challenges, just like my former favorites?
Undoubtedly, my taste was flawed. But if I had turned away at the first obstacle, I wouldn’t have lived a life devoted to my favorites.
“Yes, Lucas. Timing is crucial. So, just wait a few more days. The atmosphere in the capital is really… unsettling.”
“…Unsettling?”
“Yeah.”
At my words, Lucas, who had been ready to leave for the capital at any moment, hesitated. Because until then, I hadn’t been wrong about anything I said so seriously.
Lucas Medlak’s first demon-hunting battle was a lesson in overconfidence, where he charged ahead, believing himself to be strong enough, only to end up breaking one leg. It was as if, like my former favorites who thought they were successful because I and other fans bought dozens of albums, streamed their songs, and used various accounts to boost their rankings, he thought he would succeed solely based on his looks. After that, I had to anticipate how many reckless things Lucas might do and consider how many variables I had to plan for. He probably didn’t realize that. But despite wanting to give up, his smile upon returning safely, thanks to my plan, kept me going.
“Alicia, you’re the only one for me. I wouldn’t have made it this far without you!”
His words enchanted me like magic, keeping me by his side. And just a week after I said the capital was unsettling…
And a week after I said the capital was unsettling…
News came from the capital. One of the emperor’s concubines gave birth to a son, but unfortunately, all the babies in the nursery died.
“Ah, Alicia, my salvation, my precious Alicia. You must continue to stand by my side. Please!” Lucas trembled with anxiety as he spoke. More than any other news, the sacrifices of the concubines and their children due to palace intrigue kept him trapped in anxiety. Whenever that happened, I had to spend all day comforting him, saying soothing words until he calmed down.
I wasn’t exactly normal either, finding some satisfaction even in such moments. It was a line I shouldn’t cross as a fan, to revel in the thrill of being the one my favorite relied on.
Lucas held out for another three years after that. And when he finally told me that he succeeded, the seventh invitation from the palace arrived, and Lucas Medelike stood confidently before the emperor.
“Your Majesty, do you not remember me? I am Lucas, your second son!” Lucas captivated the emperor with his polite and earnest demeanor.
Fortunately, Lucas Medelike was not a bad actor like my former favorite. “I have always thought only of serving Your Majesty and the Empire. I did not use my fame for personal gain. I only, only thought of being of assistance to the Empire.”
“That… guileless heart.”
“I tried not to set foot in the capital until the end. I thought it was the right thing to do as a sinner who brought such disappointment to Your Majesty’s heart. But, but.”
Lucas shed a single tear, as I had instructed. A single tear, beautifully crafted! There was indeed considerable power in the tears of a handsome man.
“I wanted to see Your Majesty, who treated me warmly in my childhood, even just once, and I wanted to call you ‘Father.’ Please forgive me! I will leave the palace now and live a life of service to the Empire.”
Lucas really disliked saying what I told him to say. But if the emperor rejected him after all that…
Indeed, Lucas wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, despite his handsome face. It wasn’t something I, as a complete fool, should be saying, but it’s true.
However, the emperor, who shared some of Lucas’s simplicity, quickly softened at his words.
“My son Lucas, how could you say such things! Do you know how much I searched for you? To think you felt regret in my heart! I did suffer from your absence! Now, finally, I can see your face!”
He shamelessly claimed that Lucas had merely gone missing.
It was a perfect card to play—a hero like Lucas Delic, who would quell the rivalry among the concubines and the succession struggle between the princes and princesses.
I had calculated it, but Lucas was only thinking of the joy of entering the palace that day and showed me a very beautiful smile.
“It’s all thanks to you, Alicia. You’re the only one for me. Truly.”
He held my hand tightly, slightly tipsy, swaying like a child.
The night breeze blowing over the palace terrace felt good.
Everything was going well, or so I thought.
And that night, I met him.
Lucas’s half-brother, Joshua Medelike.
