The Return of Johann
The moment Morgan and Philip realized that the intruder was Johann, their faces turned ghostly pale.
They had never once been caught harassing the princess—until now.
With his arm gripped tightly, Philip shouted frantically.
“Y-Your Highness! This is all a misunderstanding—!”
“Were you about to strike the princess just now?”
“N-no! It’s not what it looks like—!”
Despite Philip’s desperate denial, Johann’s expression remained unchanged. Pure contempt.
Without a word, he shoved Philip, who fell to the floor with a loud thud. A torn page fluttered down and stuck to his face.
“I will be formally raising this issue. I’ll inform Father.”
“B-but—”
“Leave.”
The twins, who had been about to protest further, shut their mouths at once. It was the look in Johann’s eyes.
An overwhelming presence, far beyond what one would expect from someone his age. Johann’s golden eyes resembled those of a predator.
There was only one thing they could do.
Trembling all over, the twins fled the scene as if running for their lives.
Johann watched them coldly, as if they were trash, then turned his gaze to Seraphina.
“…Princess.”
Something was wrong with her. She stood frozen, unresponsive, her eyes void of light or focus.
Had she been frightened by what just happened?
Johann called out again.
“Seraphina.”
Only then did a flicker of awareness begin to return to her vacant eyes.
As if jolted awake from a long daydream, Seraphina blinked rapidly and looked up.
Johann was standing before her. And she remembered everything—what had just happened, and what she had been thinking.
As the twins threatened her, the seed had awakened a powerful will to protect its host.
She had managed to suppress it, but what if Philip had actually struck her?
A chill ran down her spine.
She had tried to resist the will of the seed, but she had nearly given in to it.
If Johann hadn’t shown up when he did…
‘I might really have collapsed the bookshelves.’
Each of those bookshelves, made from solid hardwood and filled with countless tomes, weighed well over 100 kilograms.
Had they toppled over, the twins would not have walked away unscathed.
Relief washed over her, so intense that her legs nearly gave out. And knowing that the one who saved her was Johann multiplied that relief tenfold.
“Johann… brother!”
Her brother who had died. The Johann she was seeing now—this was the first time she had met him since returning.
How dearly she had missed him.
In her past life, he had died a wretched death fighting to protect her. That beautiful face, she remembered all too vividly, had been hung from the ramparts.
She hadn’t met him immediately after her return because Johann had been recovering in a secluded summer palace.
He had always been frail since childhood, spending more time there than in the palace. The magic that flowed through that land had a healing effect.
So Seraphina had been counting the days until his return.
“Have you come back from the summer palace? Are you feeling alright?”
Instead of answering, Johann glanced down.
Torn pages lay scattered across the floor. A few had even landed near his feet.
He might have asked what had happened, but instead he turned silently and walked away.
“I’ll report what happened today to Father. Carry on.”
“Ah… bro—”
Before Seraphina could even finish, he had quietly and quickly left the library.
Left alone, a faint sadness spread across her face.
‘It can’t be helped. He doesn’t like me right now.’
Though they were siblings, Seraphina and Johann had always been distant.
There were several reasons for that.
With Johann mostly residing at the summer palace, they rarely had time to see each other. And from Johann’s point of view, there was no reason to be fond of her.
‘Father and Mother… always gave me all their attention.’
As the child of prophecy, Seraphina naturally drew her parents’ focus.
Afraid she might cause trouble, they fussed over her constantly. And after their mother’s death, all of Killian’s attention had turned to Seraphina.
The sickly prince had no choice but to spend his days alone at the summer retreat.
It was only natural for him to become quiet, and to grow distant from both Seraphina and their father.
‘Of course… things did get better later on.’
At first, Johann had been cold. But after Seraphina nearly died…
She vividly remembered the look on his face as he wept beside her severely injured body.
And after she miraculously survived, Johann slowly began to open his heart to her.
He started listening to her nonsense, even indulging her whims. Even after war broke out, he had fought for her.
He could have betrayed her, and no one would have blamed him. But he stayed by her side until the very end—and died for her.
Seraphina clenched her small fists tightly.
‘I have to treat him well in this life, for everything I failed to do before. Even if it doesn’t change his heart…’
He might reject her. He might cast aside her efforts or even burn them to ashes.
Even so, Seraphina didn’t care.
As long as she could do something for him—anything—that alone made her happy.
* * *
The soft sound of raindrops pattering against the windows echoed through the room. The sky was cloaked in thick gray clouds.
Despite it being midday, and all the lights being turned on, the room remained dim.
On such days, Johann always felt his body grow heavier.
He lay sprawled on the bed, breathing weakly. His short hair was tousled on the pillow, his face pale.
His frail constitution made him sensitive to weather. On rainy days like this, it felt as if he were being buried alive.
Though, it wasn’t only the weather that was dragging him down.
‘…Three more days until I can return to the summer palace.’
Johann stared blankly at the ceiling. Though it was his own room, it somehow felt unfamiliar.
Despite returning to the main palace after a long time, he felt no joy. It was his home, and yet far more awkward and uncomfortable than the summer retreat.
Here, the only people were his distant father and estranged sister. Neither felt like family.
Once Seraphina was born, all of their parents’ attention had gone to her.
Every move the princess made stirred the court and public alike. It was inevitable.
After their mother’s death, their father’s gaze had been fixed solely on Seraphina.
‘Not that he didn’t give me things, too.’
Killian had built Johann a beautiful summer palace, hired top physicians, and fulfilled every material request.
But that was it.
Anything that could be handled with money, he took care of. Beyond that—nothing. Not once had he visited Johann at the summer palace.
Whether it was a blessing or a curse, Johann had grown indifferent to such things. He didn’t feel any deep disappointment or resentment.
But that didn’t mean he loved or understood his father.
To Johann, Killian was no longer family—but closer to a stranger.
And strangers can’t disappoint you.
His uncle Theodore or his father Killian—there was little difference in the distance Johann felt toward either of them.
And the same was true for his sister, Seraphina.
‘Was it six months ago that I last saw her?’
They only met two or three times a year, at most. It was nearly impossible to build any sort of bond in that short time.
And Seraphina had always been the type to cry easily, to scream when upset. For Johann, who was sensitive to noise, she was someone to avoid.
‘Though… she did seem different this time.’
Johann thought back to the twins and the princess standing in the library. He had only come to retrieve a few books to read during his stay.
At first, he had no intention of interfering. He figured she’d cry and scream until things resolved themselves as usual.
But unexpectedly, the princess remained calm. She didn’t even fight back.
When Philip, unable to control his anger, raised his hand, Johann could no longer remain a bystander. It wasn’t affection that moved him.
He simply hated noise. He just wanted peace during his stay in the palace.
‘…But the princess was acting a little strange.’
After chasing away the twins, when Seraphina looked at him—
Normally, she would have kicked up a fuss, asking why he didn’t do more. Or she would’ve cried and begged for sympathy.
But this time, her eyes… only shimmered with joy.
[Johann, brother…!]
Anyone could tell.
Seraphina’s voice, her gaze, her expression—overflowing with happiness, love, and longing.
That his name could carry such warmth… Johann had forgotten what that felt like.
And to realize that warmth was directed at him left him bewildered.
‘Why? Why is she so glad to see me all of a sudden?’
Was it because he’d protected her from the twins?
No—it didn’t feel like that.
He still remembered those clear eyes looking at him. That sweet voice calling him “brother.”
‘Is this just another whim of hers? Or is she plotting something…?’
Knock, knock.
A light knock sounded at the door.
Johann slowly sat up, leaning against the bed’s headboard.
It was probably a maid or the doctor.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, Seraphina…!”
The unexpected visitor startled Johann. He hadn’t been expecting her.
Seraphina had never once come to see him.
To the young princess, Johann had always been a difficult figure.
He wasn’t someone who indulged her like their father, nor could she treat him like a servant.
She had always avoided him—and yet now?
“…Come in.”
Still puzzled, Johann gave his permission. It was curiosity that made him allow it.
The door creaked open, and soft pink hair fluttered into view.
It was as if spring flowers had bloomed in the gloomy room.
Watching that youthful face look up at him, Johann felt that strange sensation again.
Those eyes, that expression…
He couldn’t understand why she looked so happy to see him.
Or why her face was filled with such joy.
