IWTGHFW CHAPTER 42

Chapter 42

“Visiting hours are over now. Everyone, please leave.”

At the doctor’s words, Sean and I moved back to the drawing room. The butler, who had been watching me with concern, served us warm tea. Only when the warmth seeped into my body did I realize that I had been trembling all over.

Sean, sitting across from me, wore an expression that said he understood everything. He had probably felt the same emotions himself.

Once the trembling had subsided a little, I finished the rest of my tea and asked Sean,

“How much do you know, Sir?”

“I’m not sure how to answer that.”

“The person who warped me here was the King of Aint. He said he made a deal with the Crown Prince while sending me.”

Sean bit his lip, as if debating whether he should say more. I deliberately set my teacup down with a sharp clink. Startled, Sean let out a small sigh and spoke.

“It’s not something we can hide anyway. I only learned about it later, after the Captain was attacked.”

“What’s the content of the deal?”

“There’s not much to it. As you know, finding the Prince of Aint—that’s the condition for getting the Second Prince back.”

“And the reason for sending me back to the Empire?”

“So we can devote all our resources to finding the Prince of Aint.”

He was twisting and dodging his words so much it was irritating. I frowned, and Sean quickly added,

“For some reason, His Majesty the Emperor is interfering with the search for the Prince.”

“I guessed as much when I heard he refused Aint’s envoy.”

“As expected of you, Ail. Then you also know that we can’t openly search for him.”

I nodded. If the Emperor was obstructing things for some reason, then no matter how powerful the Crown Prince was, he couldn’t just poke around wherever he pleased.

“But the King of Aint is demanding we go all out.”

Ah.

That was when I finally understood.

The King of Aint, who had coincidentally taken the Second Prince hostage, wanted to find his own son.

The Crown Prince, who couldn’t openly search because of the Emperor’s obstruction. And since the Second Prince was officially “exiled to the south,” the Crown Prince also had to mind the nobles’ opinions, so public investigation was out of the question.

But with his personality, there was no way the Crown Prince would abandon his beloved younger brother.

So, how could the Crown Prince conduct a large-scale search? The answer was both simple and difficult.

“The Crown Prince wants to become Emperor.”

“Shh. You can’t say something like that so directly. And I don’t think it’s quite that far yet.”

If the Crown Prince became Emperor—or at least gained power equivalent to it—then whether he searched for Aint’s Prince or waged war to get the Second Prince back, he wouldn’t have to worry about appearances.

But that was one thing. What did that have to do with sending me back?

As if he had read my mind, Sean let out a deep sigh.

“You’re smart, Ail, but when it comes to your own matters, you’re oblivious.”

“Why are you suddenly insulting me?”

“It’s not an insult, it’s the truth… Well, never mind. Right now, for the Crown Prince to gain power rivaling the Emperor’s, he needs forces. Do you know the largest neutral faction?”

“That’s obviously the Knights… Ah, so that’s why he needs Ron.”

“Exactly. If the Metailer family supports the Crown Prince, the Knights will naturally follow. Well, except for the Imperial Guard, but he’ll get most of them.”

“And what does needing Ron have to do with me?”

“Phew.”

Sean looked at me as if I were the densest person alive.

Which was kind of insulting.

When I glared back, Sean shook his head and dropped a bomb.

“You’re the only one who can move the Captain. The Captain likes you. A lot.”

My heart was pounding.

It felt like at least an hour had passed since I’d lain down, but my mind was still wide awake.

The Captain likes you. A lot.

Sean’s bombshell kept echoing in my head.

Ron likes me? Ron? Me? Why?

Let’s think logically. Ron is a marquis. And not just any marquis—one of only two in the Empire, since there are no dukes. The highest of the high nobility. Beyond a gold spoon—he’s a diamond spoon. On top of that, he’s handsome, tall, well-built.

And despite having it all, he has zero interest in women, so his personal life is spotless. He’s the perfect eligible bachelor, the kind you only see in dramas.

Why would he like me? Sure, I’ve always had a strong sense of self-worth. Even though I’ve become Ail now, I still have some pride in this body. The body changed, but my soul stayed the same.

Back at the company, I’d led… well, not over ten, but at least more than one successful project. And here? In just one month, I’d proven myself enough to be scouted by the audit team.

I mean, that’s worth some self-esteem, right? You have to be at least a little competent.

But that’s beside the point.

Reality check: this is a society where social status decides everything. And Ron, a marquis, and me, a low-ranking palace worker from a commoner background, live in completely different worlds.

…Still, Sean isn’t the type to lie for no reason.

No gain for him in making up something like that. And now that I thought about it, Ron had been unusually kind to me. Getting angry and worried whenever I was in danger. Fussing over every little thing I said or did like a kid with a crush.

I just thought Ron was like that by nature. Which was already strange for the captain of the Imperial Knights, but still more believable than him liking me. But if it was all because he actually liked me…

“This is insane…”

I covered my burning face with both hands. My feet began tapping rapidly on the bed without my permission.

Insane, insane, insane!

My pounding heart had shifted from a fast beat to a frantic gallop.

“Ron and I… like that…”

Before I knew it, my imagination had skipped all the steps and jumped to the highest level, making my heart race even faster—so fast it was almost painful.

After indulging in dangerous fantasies for a while, I stopped abruptly, coming back to reality.

I shouldn’t be thinking about this when Ron was lying injured. I forced myself to calm down and focus on the real problem.

Right now, the most urgent things I needed to do were:

1. Tell Ron to side with the Crown Prince once he wakes up.
   → But that can only happen after he wakes, so I’ll have to wait.

2. Mishi… well, no need to worry there. She was left in Aint because of the Crown Prince’s deal.

3. Figure out what to do about Narrein.

The third point weighed heavily on me again. Narrein had attacked Ron—thinking of saving him felt like a betrayal.

“Sigh…”

And so, another sleepless night dragged on.

The knights’ headquarters, once always filled with shouts of exertion and fiery enthusiasm, was now shrouded in silence. The oppressive mood was so thick even summer birds avoided the place. The order had fallen into a swamp of stillness.

Right after returning to the capital, Heffy had been scheduled to head to the eastern border. He’d complained about having to leave when the captain had nearly been assassinated, but there was nothing more he could do here. Once even noisy, loud Heffy left, the suffocating mood only worsened.

Ron was still unconscious. Vice-Captain Sean was doing his best to fill the captain’s role, but even he couldn’t stop morale from plummeting.

Everyone respected Ron and followed him sincerely. Until his return, the gloom wouldn’t lift.

Rheinolf swung his sword out of habit, trying to chase away unwanted thoughts.

“Your sword feels heavy.”

“…”

This wasn’t really training—he was just swinging to avoid thinking. Naturally, his swordplay was heavier and rougher than usual. He knew it himself, but someone still felt the need to comment.

When he turned, Finance was standing there with a slanted posture, watching him.

Normally, Rheinolf would greet a senior knight, but right now he had no desire to talk to Finance.

He ignored him and kept swinging. Finance frowned.

“Looks like you’re becoming like your comrade.”

“…”

“The discipline of this order is falling apart. The captain got attacked by some kid, I hear.”

Rheinolf tried to ignore him. He was determined not to react.

“So, when’s Ail coming back from leave?”

“…Why do you care, Sir?”

Rheinolf’s voice was low and cold. Finance smirked.

“I hear she’s gotten quite pretty. I’m curious.”

If he had stopped there, Rheinolf might have let it pass. He didn’t want to think about it or get involved.

“Different flavor from a maid, I bet.”

But Finance crossed the line.

The sword that had been cutting through empty air suddenly changed course, aimed straight at Finance. The senior knight flinched and tried to back away, but Rheinolf was faster.

Rheinolf had joined the order at sixteen, thanks to exceptional talent—until Narrein passed, he had been the youngest ever to join.

Under Ron’s command, he’d endured harsher training than most, so there were few in the order who could match him.

Finance was not one of them.

“Rhein!”

Another knight called out urgently, but by then Rheinolf’s blade had already pierced Finance’s shoulder.

Blood splattered. A scream rang out.