"A child of trust. That's a cunning trick, isn't it? Well, that's the only way to get a woman of low blood become an empress and stay beside you."

The story that Ruve heard from the Duke of Jenna ignited a burning anger.

Oh, you were no different from me too, right? You've been acting so noble and arrogant when you've been mixed with the blood of a humble commoner like me . I couldn't stop laughing. The more I thought about it, the more I couldn't stop thinking. So what's better than me? You took everything away from me?

( This part, i think Jenna told Ruve about Tia who have a "low blood" too )

The more Ruve thought about it, the more ridiculous he was.

Then what are u better at than me, taking away everything from me?

The corners of his mouth twisted violently. Ruve was jealous but could not hate her because unlike him, who had the blood of a poor commoner, he thought Tia deserved all of it because she was born into a prestigious family. ( Marquis Family )

But what? You're a low blood? Then what do you deserve? You took everything from me. What the hell are you!

Ruve paused after breathing heavily in anger. So there was a low blood flow on the Marquis's wife ( Jeremiah ) ? He was struck by an unexpected fact, but he felt deeply guilty ahead of him.

What did I just say? Did i dare say low blood flows in Jeremiah, who i used to think like a mother?

Ruve heart was heavy. I despised my mother for denying her mother, and I have done the same thing to her.

A little bit of guilt added to the lost anger. Having grown in size, it turned into anger again and into greater guilt, and finally into hatred.

It's because of you. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have been so guilty. I didn't have to be sad because I didn't love you. I didn't need to feel ashamed. Every time I reflect on my shortcomings, I have never felt a sense of regret. So all this is for you. Because of you!

END FLASHBACK

"There's the Emperor!"

"There will be a tremendous reward for those who bring in the emperor! You must bring him alive!"

Suddenly there was a cry that awakened the fragile consciousness. The ground echoed with the sound of the heavy hooves. Ruve felt a faint smirk of white snow which was holding him back. He could hear the friction of the metal, and he could see something of silver lining gleaming in his blurred vision.

"We'll stop you here. Go ahead!"

"Yes. We must obey your last command."

"......Yes, I ask you to do the rest of the work." Let's all meet again in that world."

Someone rushed round him. A hot liquid trickled down from the chest that was heavily struck by the iron armor, blood flowing back from the neck to the lips

Ruve breathing in a dense bloodstream that paralyzes his nose. HIs eyes closed with the feeling of swaying up and down like riding a horse.

"Me, get me off. I can't get on...….”

The voice of the whining woman came to his ears. A green forest suddenly appeared in the dark view. The white horse seemed relaxed on the surface, but in fact, it was on edge because of the woman who couldn't sit still and wriggled for a moment. What does this woman know how to do? He frowned with a sudden surge of annoyance. The basic culture that any aristocrat should learn, why can't she even ride a horse?Ruve sighed as he saw a woman who turned white as if he would be confused right away.

"Where am I? Who are you?”

I felt awkward dealing with her. I was amazed by the woman who came to me a crown prince without fear. I have always been under pressure to do better between My Emperor Father who is already so talented, and her Marquis daughter, who is already praised as a great empress. The woman named Jieun, who knew nothing about me, was a very comfortable being. You didn't have to be compared to anyone in front of her. I could just be myself.

"I want to go home. Let me go."

Ruve was envious of Jieun who missing her family, it's an unfamiliar feeling for him. When he was told about his parents, he used to find Emperor majesty or Marquis Wife and myself. He was soaked with the illusion that he was loved, and he was able to taste a moment of happiness in the cold reality. The more he got, the more he got fed up with those who treated him only as political successors or political partners.

"Why don't you make her your crown princess?"

What Duke Jenna had hinted at was very embarrassing for him. As soon as she was born, Tia presence as a companion was as natural as breathing to him, so Ruve never thought of welcoming a woman other than her no matter how much he hated and disliked her. Such a thing didn't even exist in the first place.

Is that why? Considering what he hated, it was natural to give up at once, but Ruve couldn't do that. No only because the forces supporting her were concerned, but for some reason, there was a greater sense of rejection. He couldn't imagine himself attending an official event with a woman other than Tia or see another man beside her. So instead of saying yes, Ruve just said

"I'll think about it."

***

"Some old man called Duke came and said something, but I couldn't understand anything. By the way, can't you just skip some etiquette? What's so hard about it?"

Ruve looked at Jieun, who came without fear, asking for help. It was a little absurd, but he trying to think of it as a comfort. He had a lot of work to do, but she kept begging to get out of the side, so Ruve put his pen down silently.

He wandered through the garden, listening to the endless talk of the whole time. As he inhaled fresh air, he felt a little relieved from his frustration these days. As he was walking with a lighter heart, he suddenly saw something of silver growing among the trees. For a moment, his feet stopped without even realizing it. The woman who was walking in a disheveled position turned to him.

"Greetings to the Crown Prince, the sun of the empire."

It was a perfect posture. Ruve saw a person who would be his companion walking with another woman. Whenhe saw her expressionless face with no emotion, he felt like he was losing his affection.

What the hell did I expect? For her, my existence is nothing more than a political partner to unite for the benefit of the faction.

Even if he informs her that he will attend a banquet with another woman, or even declares that he will destroy his engagement, even if he promises to marry another woman, She still was expressionless. An emotionless face, empty eyes, and a voice. Ruve was terrified when he saw her treated him coldly like his father. It wasn't human already. It was just a doll that moved for her family and her faction.

But Ji was different. She laughed, cried, got angry, and upset. Showing a stark emotional change, she really seemed alive. Ruve was annoyed at her speech, but he was able to laugh enough for it. He thought he loved Jieun. He never received it before, so he believed it would be love even if he didn't know exactly. Unlike Tia who like a doll made only for the emperor, Ji-eun is a woman who only looks at him, so Ruve thought it was natural to love her.

***

"Shut up."

He don't know when, but strangely enough, his irritation and anger have increased. Ruve didn't know the reason, but it was even more so when he saw the queen.

I didn't want to see any expressionless face, no lifeless eyes, and no one.

Perhaps it was more annoying to see her that way because of her resemblance to the Marquis. There was a time when his body was moving before he could clean up his thoughts. Even in the middle of nowhere, to cut off the unpleasant bell.