MLHRGD 105

#105. A Dangerous Invitation (1)

“I’ll step out for a moment.”

“Mm. Don’t be too late.”

After Sasha saw him off, Pavel left the guest room and walked toward his destination.

It was the quarters where the Volkov knights were staying.

Sasha had said earlier that her words were just a joke, but Pavel couldn’t accept them so easily.

‘I’ll call Nikolai, so he can prove that I’ve never once looked at another woman.’

Sasha said her teasing wasn’t serious. But Pavel wasn’t ready to just end the matter there.

Who could say what might happen? Even a spark thought to be dead could suddenly flare up and burn down a forest. Even a doubt that wasn’t really a doubt could ruin their relationship.

Pavel wanted to prevent even that small chance.

As he was about to move, a voice called from behind.

“Count Volkov!”

He turned automatically, and there was a familiar face. Smiling brightly and waving her hand as she approached—it was Princess Irina.

‘How troublesome.’

Thinking that, Pavel turned back around silently.

“Count Volkov?”

“……”

Her puzzled voice followed, but Pavel walked on as though he hadn’t heard anything.

He turned his back on her and went in the opposite direction.

After Sasha’s earlier suspicion, he didn’t want to be caught alone with Irina like this.

But her next words forced him to stop.

“Be careful of Ruslan.”

It was too blunt to misunderstand, but hard to guess her real intent.

“……”

Pavel looked at her in silence, waiting.

Irina clenched and unclenched her fists stiffly, her eyes glancing nervously around them.

If left like this, she would say nothing. Pavel decided to ask first.

“What do you mean by that?”

Irina let out a long sigh.

“I mean…”

After a moment’s hesitation, she began to explain.

“Our grandmother, Empress Natalya, was devoted to conquest in her youth. She expanded the empire with such zeal that people even called her greedy. Her ultimate goal was unifying the empire.”

“……”

“But about ten years ago, she began to refrain from unnecessary killing. Her fierce spirit weakened. Now she rarely gets angry. She rules more gently, kindly.”

“…Are you giving me a history lesson about the empire right now?”

Even at his sarcastic tone, Irina didn’t get angry. She continued seriously.

“Ruslan is exactly like the young Empress. He laughs outwardly, but inside hides a sharp blade no one notices…”

Remembering the unsettling look she had seen in Ruslan earlier, Irina swallowed hard.

“But that will soon end. The Empress is eighty this year. Since last year, her health has declined.”

It was clear what she meant: the Empress might soon die. Then Crown Prince Ruslan, already officially recognized as heir, would take the throne.

“But before he turns his blade outward, he’ll clean up the inside. The empire must first be united and solid before he can fight external enemies without worry. If that happens…”

“We will be the first sacrifices.”

Irina’s face brightened, thinking Pavel now understood the seriousness.

But his next words were still guarded.

“Then why are you telling me this?”

“…Because I’m a pacifist.”

“……”

“Two suns cannot rise under one sky.”

A crooked smile tugged at Pavel’s lips.

“I have no intention of joining in a battle for the throne.”

Drawing a firm line, Pavel tried to leave again. Irina looked desperate.

“And!”

She raised her voice to stop him.

“Ruslan sees the Countess as special.”

Her hurried words made Pavel stop cold. Slowly, he turned back, his face dark.

“You mean my wife?”

“Yes.”

“……”

“Didn’t you notice? Ruslan treats her differently.”

Of course Pavel had noticed. That was why he had poured his emotions into the final match, even though he knew he shouldn’t.

His eyes hardened.

“To be exact…” Irina’s voice lowered, “Ruslan isn’t obsessed with the Volkov family. He’s obsessed with the Countess.”

“……”

“He truly believes she is a token of luck. I even heard him muttering insane things—that he saw her in a dream.”

Irina recalled Ruslan that morning.

“It was her.”

Freshly awake, he had stared blankly into space, his eyes hazy.

“The woman I saw in the revelation…”

His eyes had shone strangely, making her uneasy. She had brushed it off as nonsense from sleep.

But later, after the match—

“I must not lose her. For the future I saw in the dream, yes… for that glorious destiny, I need her…”

The way he muttered like a madman had frightened her.

What dream? What future? What revelation?

Irina shook off her confusion. That wasn’t the point now.

She straightened and spoke firmly.

“I’m telling you this because I want the Countess and you safe.”

“……”

Pavel looked at her silently.

“To be honest, I want you on my side. I’ve worked hard for it, and I don’t want to lose it.”

“……”

Pavel kept watching her, but this time his raised brow clearly asked: Since when were we ever on your side?

‘Ugh, so rude!’

Irina’s eyes narrowed, her voice muttering in frustration.

“At least the Countess must like me more than Ruslan.”

Only then did Pavel acknowledge her words. Indeed, Sasha had shown goodwill toward Irina at the ball.

“Understood. I’ll be cautious.”

He answered curtly and again tried to leave. Irina quickly asked,

“And the gift? The one I gave you information about in my letter—did it go well?”

Pavel thought of the item still in the drawer of his townhouse room. After receiving Irina’s letter, he had ordered it from the best workshop, and only received it that morning.

He had wanted to go with Sasha so she could choose for herself, but there hadn’t been time. So he ordered it alone.

Still, he wasn’t worried. He knew her taste well—years of shopping with her across the Volkov lands had taught him.

He pictured the ring: thin, simple, a bit old-fashioned, without much decoration. He smiled faintly, imagining it on Sasha’s finger.

Irina noticed. “Did the Countess like it?”

“……”

Pavel didn’t answer. He couldn’t. He hadn’t given it to her yet. Of course, he believed she would like it.

‘Tonight, I’ll know.’

After returning from the palace banquet, he planned to give it to her—with carefully prepared words.

Though their marriage hadn’t started like others, he still wanted to propose properly.

They had confessed their hearts and become like any other loving couple. Now, the proposal.

If she accepted…

He chuckled, recalling their first night years ago when they had only slept, children still.

“…Why are you smiling?”

“……”

If she accepted the ring, then their true first night as husband and wife would come.

He even wished for a wedding ceremony again, though he knew Sasha wouldn’t agree. Still, at least that first night…

“Hey! Are you listening?”

“…I should go. My wife is waiting.”

Pavel bowed slightly, then walked away—in the opposite direction he had planned earlier.

He no longer cared about finding Nikolai.

That could wait. Right now, he just wanted to see Sasha.

“Ha!”

Left behind alone, Irina laughed bitterly and glared at the spot where he vanished.

“Seriously… how infuriating!”

The imperial banquet hall was prepared to celebrate Pavel’s victory.

After the formal greetings, the dishes were served one by one.

This banquet’s menu had been arranged under the direction of Crown Prince Ruslan.

When the attendants placed the last plate, Ruslan—sitting at the head seat in place of the absent Empress Natalya—raised his glass.

“To Count Volkov’s victory. Cheers.”

Though he must have been furious about his crushing loss in the final match, Ruslan’s face showed not the slightest hint of anger.

Seeing that, Sasha felt relieved.

‘He won’t take out his anger on Pavel.’

Just before the banquet, Pavel had stepped out for a moment. When he returned, he told her he had met Princess Irina. That had left Sasha tense.

“The Crown Prince is watching us, so be careful. She warned me. It didn’t seem like a lie.”

Sasha didn’t take those words lightly. The way Ruslan’s hollow eyes had lingered on her and Pavel felt threatening.

‘Even setting aside my personal feelings, politically there’s enough reason for him to keep us in check.’

Just in case, she had released the spirits to secretly monitor Ruslan, to make sure he wasn’t attempting anything underhanded.

Perhaps he might use ingredients dangerous for Pavel, or even slip poison into the food.

She considered every possibility and had the spirits investigate thoroughly. But they found nothing.

Whether Princess Irina’s words were true or false could be considered later, once they safely returned home after the banquet.

‘If it isn’t the food, then at least for tonight, everything should pass without trouble.’

Thinking that, Sasha answered Princess Irina’s repeated small talk politely, out of courtesy.

But then—

“What’s wrong, Count? Does it not suit your taste?”