YWPWYLFDM 24

Chapter 24

Ayla crouched awkwardly on the handkerchief Winfred had spread out. She had never experienced someone showing her this much consideration, aside from her biological parents or the servants of the Duke’s household.

“Thank you.”

As Ayla settled on the handkerchief, Winfred lay back on his arm again, gazing at the stars.

“Thanks to meeting someone as remarkable as you, I even got to watch the stars from the rooftop. I should be the one thanking you.”

Winfred smiled genuinely, eyes reflecting the twinkling stars. Somehow, that sight filled Ayla’s chest with warmth, and she couldn’t help but smile slightly, tilting her head to look at the sky.

The Milky Way flowed brightly overhead, shining as if it might spill across the heavens.

“So, to continue what I was saying… you’re really amazing.”

Just when Ayla thought the flattery was over, Winfred uttered another awkward compliment.

“Me… amazing?”

It was the first time she had ever heard such praise. Ayla repeated his words silently in her mind, bewildered. She had never thought of herself that way.

No, rather, she had always considered it embarrassing to brag about any skill she had.

“Am I… amazing?”

She asked in a low, unsure voice. The strange mixture of emotions caused by the unexpected compliment had her unsettled, though Winfred, unaware, immediately felt like he had made a mistake.

Typically, men complimented women on their beauty or appearance rather than calling them “amazing.”

“No, no! I didn’t mean it in a bad way…”

But as he looked at Ayla’s face, Winfred realized that she wasn’t offended by his words. There was a quiet pain in her that he couldn’t fully understand.

“You are amazing. And… beautiful.”

Winfred’s cheeks flushed slightly as he spoke.

Beautiful. Her small, delicate facial features were cute and lovely. Her eyes, clear and resolute, and her small, rosy lips. Even her seemingly indifferent expression held charm.

Even as a young girl, she was stunning. It made him curious about how she would look as an adult.

“…Thank you.”

Ayla said in a dazed voice, unsure how many times they had exchanged thanks.

Lost in such trivial thoughts, she met Winfred’s honest gaze, and a sudden realization struck her.

Golden eyes resembling Byron’s—the future crown prince—and the words Byron had spoken to his dying father. The words about Roderick giving up “his place for his younger brother.”

“Could it be… Byron isn’t the emperor’s biological older brother?”

The lingering thrill from Winfred’s embarrassing compliment vanished in an instant.

“Um… Winfred, right?”

Ayla hesitated for a moment, unsure if she could call the name of the future crown prince. But this was her chance to confirm Byron’s identity, so she called out.

“Yeah. You can just call me Win.”

Contrary to Ayla’s concern, Winfred smiled brightly and even asked her to call him by a nickname.

“…Alright, Winfred. Can I ask you something?”

Ignoring his request lightly, Ayla asked with an expressionless face. Her tone was far too commanding for addressing the empire’s crown prince, but he seemed to enjoy even her audacity and smirked.

He seemed ready to answer any question she asked.

“…Do you have an uncle?”

At Ayla’s question, Winfred’s expression darkened.

Talk of an uncle was a dark tale known to all citizens of the Pelles Empire. Why Ayla didn’t know was curious, but discussing his family’s shame with her was another matter entirely.

Still, she had saved his life. Winfred resolved to speak.

“Yes. I do. No… I did. Byron Lionel Vito Pelles.”

As Byron’s name left his lips, Ayla let out a sigh.

Not consciously, but the satisfaction of finally uncovering the enemy’s true identity had made her exhale without realizing it.

“Why past tense?”

Ayla asked cautiously.

She had her suspicions, but she wanted confirmation directly from Winfred.

There was only one reason a prince like Byron would be considered a criminal worthy of pursuit. Even the line she read in Byron’s letter—“I tried and failed to hunt the old lion”—pointed to it.

A sin so unforgivable it seemed almost unbelievable.

“Ah… well…”

At Ayla’s follow-up, Winfred sighed deeply before speaking. Yet, what came out first was not a direct answer but a question.

“But… are you really from the Pelles Empire? Or are you foreign? This story is really well-known.”

Though she was young, Ayla’s intelligence and keen understanding made it unlikely she wouldn’t know about such a famous incident.

“…Circumstances. Yes, I’m from the empire.”

Her bitter expression caused Winfred’s suspicious gaze to soften. He sensed a deep wound that shouldn’t be touched.

“Ten years ago, he staged a rebellion. My grandfather, who was also my uncle’s biological father, the former emperor, was targeted for assassination.”

Her heart sank at the thought of someone attempting to kill their own father.

Though expected, hearing it confirmed the cruelty of Byron made Ayla gasp.

“Why…?”

“Because the current emperor, the second son, not Byron, was named crown prince. While my father was preparing to take the throne, Byron staged the rebellion.”

Trying to kill his own father… Such evil was incomprehensible.

“He almost succeeded. But the Knights of Weißhafen saved my grandfather. Byron fled. I don’t know the details; I was only four at the time.”

The former emperor, shocked and grief-stricken at almost being killed by his son, lingered in illness until passing three years ago.

Winfred’s expression held regret, but Ayla shook her head. That was enough information.

A silence settled between them. For children aged twelve and fourteen, discussing such dark topics on a rooftop was far too grim.

Ayla thought deeply during the quiet. She now knew Byron’s true identity, who he was, and what he was plotting. She had discovered it surprisingly quickly and luckily.

Perhaps returning to the Duke’s household would now be safe.

“No.”

Ayla shook her head. She had no proof of her identity. In her previous life, she had entered the Duke’s household at sixteen with only an old pendant—a token Byron had given her, engraved with her name. That pendant was proof of her noble status.

And…

“I want to take revenge on that devil in the same way.”

The moment of achieving her lifelong goal—being betrayed by someone she trusted more than anyone else—was a pain she wanted Byron to feel.

Though every encounter with him made her feel as if she were walking a precarious tightrope, thinking of running away, she needed him to at least feel a fraction of her despair.

She had to make him believe everything was going smoothly.

While Ayla vowed this bloody revenge, Winfred, who had been silent in the dark atmosphere, suddenly smiled brightly, as if to lighten the mood, and spoke.

“Oh, right. I forgot. Take this. It’s a token for the one who saved my life.”

Because of a drunken passerby, the moment had passed in confusion, so Ayla hadn’t needed to refuse it—but Winfred stubbornly extended the pocket watch again.

Ayla had no choice but to shake off her dark thoughts.

“Thanks… but I’m sorry. Even if I take this, I don’t think I can keep it.”

“What do you mean?”

Ayla’s apology confused him. As a prince raised with luxury, he couldn’t fathom not being able to possess even a single item freely.

“…If I have something this precious, someone might discover that I snuck out at night. That would be awkward.”

“Then just hide it,” Winfred suggested.

Ayla gave a helpless, sad smile. Hiding even a small glass vial was difficult for her.

Winfred ruffled his black hair, looking troubled.

“Even that’s hard to hide? Then I’ll handle it for you.”

Before she could ask how, Winfred whistled sharply.

Ayla blinked, surprised by the unexpected whistle in the middle of the night. But her eyes widened as a jewel-encrusted box appeared between them.