Having achieved our objective, Ascan and I hurriedly exited the Crown Prince’s office. We had found the seal and needed to leave before our identities were exposed.

As we passed through the corridor, Ascan grabbed me as if signaling me to stop.

At first, I didn’t understand why. But soon, I heard the steady footsteps of people approaching this way.

Ascan pressed me against the wall and drew close. In an instant, we hid ourselves in a secluded corner.

Somehow, we ended up so close that I could feel his breath.

Though it was an urgent moment, my heart reflexively pounded.

Afraid my heartbeat might be heard, I held my breath even tighter, waiting silently for the people to pass—when their conversation reached my ears.

“The Emperor has passed away. Where could His Highness the Crown Prince be right now?”

“Tell me about it. Just a moment ago, knights from Duke Retanda came demanding to know His Highness’s whereabouts—they were terrifying.”

“I accidentally overheard one of the attendants who serves closely beside His Highness say that he occasionally disappears like this. No one knows where he goes.”

“To vanish on a day like this… Could he perhaps be hiding a woman somewhere?”

“Pfft, does His Highness seem like that kind of person? He’s so gentle it’s worrying.”

Listening to the palace servants’ conversation, I realized one thing.

Perhaps Retanda still hadn’t located Crown Prince Shusain.

Naturally, I had assumed Retanda would be the first to secure Shusain in a safe place. But maybe that wasn’t the case.

I looked at Ascan with an expression of surprise, and he gazed down at me.

Without speaking, we both sensed we were thinking the same thing.

“Ascan, isn’t it suspicious that there’s still no word from the Crown Prince’s side? Maybe his whereabouts really are unknown.”

“Indeed. I thought he’d be under the Duke’s protection—this is unexpected.”

“What if… we find the Crown Prince first? What then?”

At my question, Ascan’s golden eyes shimmered with sudden light.

“That would be no different from seizing a golden opportunity.”

“Exactly. I think so too.”

Where on earth could Shusain be?

I sank unconsciously into deep thought. Watching me, Ascan spoke softly, as if cautioning me not to harbor too much hope.

“Realistically, if he’s hidden somewhere even the Duke can’t find, our chances of discovering him first are extremely slim. It would be wonderful to secure the Crown Prince, but expecting that is difficult.”

He was right.

Shusain was under the protection of Retanda and the Emperor’s faction.

With only the information we possessed, we couldn’t possibly locate Shusain before they did.

But I held one secret no one else knew.

‘I’m sure I read something like this in the novel…’

Precisely—I was someone who had read the novel .

Though many events had changed now, the fundamental settings remained unchanged.

When the story touched upon the Largent Empire, I recalled reading that Shusain occasionally disappeared alone somewhere.

‘Where was that place again?’

The problem was, I couldn’t remember exactly.

As I frowned, trying to piece together the hazy memory, Ascan beside me urged me forward, as if signaling we had no more time to waste.

“Let’s leave here first. This isn’t a place to linger.”

“Right.”

We needed to quickly take the seal and leave, then forge a false document stating that Shusain had abdicated the Crown Prince position.

Unless we somehow bought time, there’d be no way to stop Shusain, who held first priority in the imperial succession.

With Emperor Petro now deceased, not even a moment’s hesitation was permissible—I hurriedly followed Ascan.

It was at that moment.

My eyes fell upon the paintings hanging along the corridor.

Each depicted vividly lifelike pet dogs and cats. Though each painting showed different puppies and kittens, they all shared one thing—they were undeniably adorable.

‘Ah!’

Seeing the paintings, I suddenly recalled details about Shusain from the novel.

Unconsciously, I stopped walking. Ascan turned back, his expression puzzled.

“What’s wrong?”

“I think… I know where the Crown Prince is.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

Ascan stared at me, bewildered by my abrupt statement.

I repeated myself, my voice now brimming with certainty.

“I know the Crown Prince’s location.”

Shusain, whom so many were desperately searching for, was unexpectedly still inside the Imperial Palace.

Of course, this was a place no one had predicted. He stood alone in an abandoned, derelict wing of the vast palace grounds.

Directly before Shusain lay a small grave.

Within the humble, poorly marked burial site rested the puppy he had raised as a child.

‘Bibi, today more than ever, I miss you terribly.’

Bibi was the name Shusain himself had given to the fluffy white puppy.

Since childhood, he had been frail and gentle-natured, and Emperor Petro and Empress Laila had struggled endlessly to change that disposition.

They subjected him to every kind of physical exercise and even harsh military training. Anything they believed might toughen Shusain, they pursued without hesitation.

But Shusain would often fall ill for days after even slight exertion, and rough activities clashed completely with his temperament, making them unbearable.

He suffered deeply from failing to meet his parents’ expectations, yet he simply could not become the ideal Crown Prince they envisioned.

No matter how hard he tried, he could not alter his innate nature.

In truth, he preferred quietly reading books and admiring flowers over studying imperial statecraft or wielding a sword. Above all else, what he longed for most was to keep a pet.

But Petro and Laila fiercely opposed it—so much so that he never even dared to dream of it.

They feared that his already timid nature would grow even weaker if he kept a pet.

Though many envied him as Crown Prince, since childhood he had been nothing more than a puppet, never allowed to do anything according to his own will.

‘Father and Mother always tell me to act more manly, but they’ve never once truly listened to me.’

Petro and Laila wished for him to grow independently, yet to achieve that goal, they never granted Shusain a moment of true freedom.

In reality, within that confinement, he gradually lost his own will and learned only obedience.

From his perspective, he had lived his entire life doing only things he disliked. Not once had he been allowed to pursue what he truly wanted.

Even the position of Crown Prince was never something he had desired.

‘I… don’t particularly want to become Emperor.’

Shusain had never once coveted the imperial throne.

He had already lived his life as Crown Prince under constant suppression, forced to conform to its demands. Becoming Emperor would merely extend that life.

As Emperor, not only Petro and Laila but countless others would suffocatingly dictate every action he must or must not take. Yet, timid as he was, he couldn’t even properly say he didn’t want to.

The first and only act Shusain had ever undertaken with true personal will was secretly raising Bibi, the stray puppy he’d found, within this abandoned palace wing.

Knowing others would surely oppose it, he kept it utterly secret. He visited quietly and cared for the puppy in secret.

Here, within this forsaken wing, he could live freely—not as Crown Prince, but simply as Shusain, exactly as he was.

Though the time he spent rolling around happily with Bibi was terribly brief, it was blissful.

‘I’m sorry, Bibi. Your death… it’s all my fault…’

His opportunities to visit the abandoned wing in secret were limited, and without constant care, Bibi had tried to escape alone—and met with an accident.

One day, when he returned to the wing, he found Bibi’s body discarded like trash, killed by a cart.

Shusain cried until his eyes swelled shut that day. Silently, without telling anyone, he built this small grave here.

He wished he could have buried Bibi in a proper, honored resting place—but he was a powerless Crown Prince, unable even to grant that simple wish.

Shusain hated forcing or commanding others, and the crushing weight of knowing his choices could determine life or death terrified him.

He simply wanted to live quietly, without hurting anyone—but the position of Crown Prince stood impossibly far from such a life.

─Do you have any idea how hard I worked to make my son Emperor? I’ve eliminated countless children who might become future rivals. If I’d succeeded in dealing with the Second Prince as planned, no one could have challenged the throne.

Shusain had once overheard his mother, Laila, saying this.

It had been a shock.

He knew others whispered behind her back, claiming the Empress was power-hungry and eliminated any child not her own.

But he hadn’t believed it.

The Laila he knew was strict but benevolent—he never imagined she could commit such brutal acts.

Yet the truth was different.

Like the rumors said, Laila had indeed schemed to prevent half-siblings from being born, all to ensure Shusain became Emperor.

He felt chills.

He couldn’t comprehend why securing the throne for him was so important that she would commit such inhuman acts.

─Mother, tell me honestly… Did you truly plot to prevent other children from being born?

At the time, Laila had been slightly startled to realize Shusain had overheard—but that was all.

She felt not a trace of guilt for her actions.

─You heard? Since you know now, I won’t deny it. But understand this—it was all for you.

That made even less sense. And simultaneously, he grew angry.

He had never wanted it—yet she called it “for him.”

Even if they were half-siblings, he never wished to ascend the throne by killing them. He wanted no part in hurting his family or anyone else.

But the imperial throne…

Politically, opposing factions had to be eliminated. If necessary, he would have to wield a sword to enforce his will.

It was not the peaceful life he desired.

“…Haa.”

Shusain unconsciously let out a deep sigh.

He wanted to run away. Though everyone desired the imperial throne, honestly, he thought dozens of times each day about giving it up.

Yet he couldn’t say so—not only because of his timid nature, but because of his parents’ expectations.

Petro, his face visibly ill, always urged him:

─This throne must be yours. Imperial succession demands legitimacy—only then can disputes be avoided.

Laila echoed the same sentiment.

─I’ve lived my entire life with my eyes only on you. Understand? I’ve devoted my life to helping you ascend the throne.

Whenever Shusain felt suffocated to the point of death, he came here, to Bibi’s grave. Remembering the happy times with Bibi brought him comfort.

Here, at least, he could momentarily escape the crushing weight of reality.

This place, unknown to all others, was Shusain’s sanctuary.

He gently smoothed the small grave with his palm and murmured softly, his voice bitter.

“Bibi, I’m sorry, but I must go now. I’ll come back again next time.”

Recently, as Petro’s health worsened, pressure on Shusain had intensified. He wished he could stay longer, but now he had to return.

As Shusain gazed wistfully at the small grave and turned to leave—

Thud thud. He heard footsteps approaching this place.

He had never encountered anyone here before, so Shusain stared in startled surprise toward the direction of the sound.

Emerging slowly from the darkness were two figures—a man and a woman.

The man was astonishingly handsome; the woman, breathtakingly beautiful—unforgettable at a single glance.

Neither possessed ordinary appearances; had he met them before, he surely would have remembered.

Shusain stared fixedly at the unfamiliar pair. They were none other than Ascan and Tanashia.

Tanashia, spotting the startled Shusain, spoke first.

“See? I told you I was right.”

Ascan looked at Tanashia, astonished.

“How on earth did you know?”

“Secret.”

As they exchanged words among themselves, Shusain asked as calmly as he could manage.

“Who are you two? What brings you to this abandoned wing at such a late hour?”

To that, Tanashia smiled brightly and replied.

“We’ve come to escort His Highness the Crown Prince. We knew you’d be here.”

“How did you know I’d be here…? No, wait—what do you mean, ‘escort me’?”

Ascan spoke firmly, as if refusing to entertain further questions.

“If you come quietly, we won’t harm you.”

The intimidation packed into those few words was immense. It was a threat: comply peacefully, or face consequences.

Shusain didn’t know it, but Tanashia and Ascan had no time to spare here. They needed to take him somewhere Retanda couldn’t find him—every moment counted.

Gulping unconsciously, Shusain swallowed hard.