Chapter 01
Kingdom of Eneryten, year 514.
Since the current king fell ill due to old age, Crown Prince Randol Bellavia has been acting as regent.
Officially, Crown Prince Randol represented the king, but in reality, he managed state affairs together with Princess Luna.
This was of no concern to the common people, but among the nobles, invisible power struggles were ongoing.
“If you look at the history of the Eneryten Kingdom, there’s no reason Princess Luna cannot become queen.”
“No matter what, the eldest son exists, so of course, Crown Prince Randol should be king!”
The nobility had split into two factions:
Princess Luna’s supporters and Crown Prince Randol’s supporters.
As a result, even though Randol was the Crown Prince, nobody could predict who would take the throne.
The two were not the only contenders for the throne in a royal succession struggle more fierce than the conflict on the continent of Proctia two centuries ago.
The Elias Duke House was the richest and most prominent of the Eneryten Kingdom’s noble families.
A noble family that had supported Rodiel Bellavia, the first king, since the kingdom’s inception.
Even though the current duke was the third in line for the throne, they still had a lot of power, but they were not using it effectively.
***
Through the great windows of the magnificent mansion, the afternoon sun was shining brightly.
A woman in her middle years ran while holding on to the hem of her dress with both hands.
A plump-figured duchess named Lady Lisa was hurrying to her son’s study.
“Milady.”
“Milady.”
The maids and servants, surprised by the sudden arrival, quickly greeted her, but she barely noticed them.
Her only thought was to see her son.
Ignoring her noble dignity, Lisa hurried her pace.
Bang!
She opened the study door and shouted hysterically.
“Kalen! Is it true that you stood Wendy up?”
Kalen, who heard his mother’s hysterical shout, looked away from the papers he was reading and stared at her.
His short black hair was neatly styled, and under his thick eyebrows, his eyes were a clear honey colour, contrasting with his hair.
His pale face gave him a mysterious aura.
Though his eyes were the same colour as Lisa’s, they were calm and quiet, unlike her fiery gaze.
Kalen tilted his head without answering, and Lisa stepped closer to him, trembling as she asked.
“Did you stand Wendy up, miss?”
“Was that today?”
Kalen’s dry tone made Lisa turn pale.
“Kalen!”
Lisa screamed and staggered, but Conrad, Kalen’s aide standing nearby, quickly supported her.
But Lisa pushed him away and stepped closer to Kallen.
“Lady Peyton stated After an hour of waiting, Wendy walked out. Why on earth would you stand her up? If Lord Edgar finds out, how upset he will be!”
Kalen nodded, as though he were hearing someone else’s tale.
“I suppose he’d be upset. But I can’t do anything because it’s already done.
“Kalen!”
“As an apology, I will send a sufficient gift. As you can see, I haven’t had time because I’ve been so busy at work.
Lisa’s face flushed red as she looked at the piles of paperwork.
Though he was her son, she felt the urge to slap him.
But Kalen just kept working without looking away.
Before she could say anything, Conrad spoke quickly.
“It was my fault. I should have informed the duke earlier, but I forgot. I’m sorry, ma’am.”
Lisa knew Conrad wasn’t to blame.
Even though her son was of marriageable age, she was aware that he had no interest in getting married and was even less good at romance.
The family line must go on, though!
The men of the Elias family tended to have short lives.
Kalen’s father-in-law died before age 50, and her husband, Jayden, had been bedridden with an unknown illness since his early 40s.
Some even claimed that this was the reason the Elias family was cursed.
One thing was certain, whether it was a curse or not: the Elias family was valuable and few.
So naturally, Lisa worried as a mother because her only son showed no interest in marriage.
Just as she was about to explode again, her anger vanished and was replaced with concern.
She looked at her son anxiously.
“Were you feeling dizzy?”
Taking the opportunity, Kalen rubbed his head and answered weakly.
“For a brief moment, so there’s no need to worry.”
“Oh dear, I was too harsh without knowing that. But the promise with Wendy was very important.”
Lisa expected Kalen to back down here, but he straightened his posture and looked at her.
“I’m sorry. It won’t happen again. I’m always busy managing what we have.”
Even without a smile, Kalen’s face was dazzlingly handsome, but his pale complexion was pitiful.
Seeing Lisa’s sorrowful look, Kalen stood and approached her.
He gently touched her shoulder, despite his indifferent expression.
“When I get some free time, I’ll take you on a date.”
“When? You have to make time. You can’t just wait for it to come.”
“I will make time.”
“Are you reading the letters sent by the noble ladies?”
“Ah…”
Currently, free love is becoming popular in the Eneryten Kingdom.
Women with higher status often sent love letters to men they liked.
In Kalen’s case, he received three or four letters a day, but he mostly just kept them without reading.
Noticing this, Lisa gave Kalen a sharp look.
“Make sure you read all of them and write replies too.”
“All right.”
“Don’t just brush them off; you must read them carefully.”
“Don’t worry.”
Kalen promised, but Lisa didn’t fully trust him, so she spoke to Conrad again.
“You will read them.”
“Me?”
“You have to read three letters every day, write responses, and make sure to deliver them to the ladies of the nobility.”
Conrad reluctantly nodded at Lisa’s order.
“I’ll see how it’s doing.”
After giving this last warning, Lisa left, and Kalen sat down again.
He turned his eyes to the documents he was reviewing and seemed focused on work as if nothing had happened.
But poor Conrad, suddenly tasked with reading love letters, was now tugging at his long brown hair in frustration.
He threw a resentful look at Kalen.
