Upon hearing that His Majesty the Emperor had arrived, Madame Chunet hastily got up and left.

I hadn’t thought Hadel, the king of timidity, would come find me so soon!

“Y-Your Majesty!”

Hadel was truly in front of the door, staring at me with a panic-stricken expression.

My goodness. 

I haven’t prepared myself to meet you yet…

“Kyaaa!”

It happened immediately.

The moment our gazes met, I was laid down onto the bed as my eyes shook. As his breaths touched my nose, I could feel the yearning from my memories coming back up.

“You.”

While I was trying my best to ignore the memories flooding in, the voice that came from Hadel’s mouth was full of anxiousness.

He purposefully came even closer to me and grabbed my silver hair with one hand.

We made eye contact again, and Hadel’s pretty dark pink eyes started shaking.

“Just who are you?” he asked roughly, as if he was a growling beast.

I wanted to tell him “it’s me” and “I’ve returned,” but I glanced at where the Head Maid had been standing.

Although she’d left as soon as Hadel entered, she was definitely listening in on our conversation.

Plus, the soldier from the Ru Tribe was probably surveilling me and watching the situation from outside the window.

Rahu, was it?

Regardless, because I was being observed, I couldn’t speak freely.

“Your Majesty, I didn’t think you’d visit me today.”

It was the truth.

Weren’t you the kid who’d think and think about what you wanted to say, only finally speaking when your thoughts were on the verge of rotting?

“What a strange method of seduction.”

A strange method of seduction? Isn’t interpreting what I said as seduction strange in and of itself…?

I suddenly became worried that even his mind had gotten sick. Did my concern show in my expression?

The hand grabbing my hair tightened as his face crumpled and darkened.

“Do it again.”

“…Your Majesty?”

“I told you to do it again.”

Yes, but what exactly are you asking me to do again?

Although I was on the verge of letting such complaints come out of my mouth, I held them in because something bad could happen if I messed up.

I had to be extra careful until Hadel acknowledged that I was Ashella.

“What… are you talking about?”

“Was it just a coincidence?”

What do you mean?!

As I watched Hadel, who was seemingly having a conversation with himself, I carefully placed my hand on his.

He flinched, but then his body started trembling and his expression hardened.

His gaze followed my hand.

What, do you hate holding hands with me that much? You liked it so much before.

Though his actions made sense since he didn’t know who I was, I felt strangely betrayed.

“Just what are you up to…!”

Hadel suddenly clasped his mouth shut.

Tap.

First, with my thumb.

I lightly tapped the back of Hadel’s hand.

Taaaap, tap tap.

Taaaap. Tap.

Be careful when you speak.

The more I moved my fingers, the more Hadel’s deep pink eyes widened.

Ugh. I would’ve created more finger signs if I had known I’d be using them in such a nerve-wracking situation.

Although I’d thought about what I wanted to say for a while, I decided to pass on the most urgent things first.

It’d be bad if Hadel happened to say my name or any suspicious words, after all. We could speak ambiguously to an extent, but there’d be no fixing it if we said something too suspicious.

Given the way his eyes started violently shaking, he must’ve understood my signals. His pupils, which were darting around as if there was an earthquake, suddenly lost their focus.

“Keuk…!”

He suddenly clutched his head and lowered it.

I was surprised and grabbed onto Hadel’s arm.

“Your Majesty! Are you unwell somewhere?”

Though I wanted to warmly call him “Hadel,” it wasn’t possible yet. I had to wait because there were many watching eyes.

Well, to be exact, they were ears—not eyes.

While I briefly lost focus, worried about the situation outside, Hadel reached his arm toward my hair once more.

The soft and fine silver hairs sparkled as they slid through Hadel’s fingertips.

Something must have displeased him—his expression made it seem like he wanted to rip my hair. In the end, all he did was tremble as it fell out of his grasp.

“Yes. Valkirino has prepared something really amazing this time.”

In front of me, Hadel’s pink eyes appeared to burn red. That’s how emotional he was.

“Should I give them a passing grade this time? Seeing as they changed both the hair and eye color, their devotion is quite admirable. Not to mention, they somehow found out about these absurd hand gestures and taught you them.”

“I didn’t dye it, Your Majesty. This is my natural ha—Your Majesty? Your Majesty!”

Hadel, who had been holding onto my hair, suddenly staggered.

It seemed there was something wrong with his body somewhere.

“A royal physician! I’ll call a royal physician! Your Majesty!”

Bam!

Hadel coldly slapped my hand away before getting up unsteadily.

Even while swaying like he might collapse at any moment, he fixed me with a turbulent gaze.

“What tricks did you… use on me, agh!”

In Hadel’s eyes, which were still shaking, I saw many emotions flash by: shock, panic, haste, and fury.

“Are your… headaches bad?”

My heart hurt beyond words as I watched him scrunch up his eyes and grab his head.

It’s my first time seeing you in so long, yet I have to watch you be in pain and struggle like this.

I didn’t know it’d be this bad, Hadel.

“Your Majesty, are you having trouble sleeping properly?”

Hadel occasionally suffered from headaches.

It was especially bad when he couldn’t sleep properly for several days in a row.

Hadel was showing the symptoms he’d displayed when he’d had headaches from insomnia—that is, scrunching up his eyes or harshly opening and closing them—rather than from when he was dazed and muddled because of a cold.

“Your Majesty.”

Out of concern, I took one step closer to him and outstretched my arms.

But the more I approached him—no, even more than that—Hadel backed away in surprise.

His pink eyes and my silver eyes met in midair.

After a brief moment of silence, I opened my mouth once more.

“Your Majesty. You need to sleep properly for—”

“Close that mouth.”

But Hadel would not permit it.

His low voice was obscured by his rough breaths.

Hadel, who lightly let out retching noises, grinded his teeth before staring at me head on.

No, Hadel. Don’t grind your teeth!

What are you going to do if your teeth get destroyed because of it?

I barely managed to restrain the words that were about to escape me.

Seeing me opening and closing my mouth again, Hadel spoke coldly.

“If you don’t want to die… Don’t say or do anything else.”

After he scarily threatened me, he leaned an arm against the table next to him.

Collapse! Crash!

The corner of the wooden table broke way too easily.

Oh my gosh. Hadel, when did you get so strong…

I didn’t even have time to be shocked, because Hadel swayed and stumbled like he was going to collapse again. And right as I was about to reach my arms toward him in surprise…

“Huh…?”

Hadel disappeared.

Right before my eyes, he disappeared like the wind.

All that was left in his place was his smell, which pressed down lightly onto my heart.

* * *

Bang!

The table broke into two pieces.

Taimon was sweating and bracing his entire body, because it seemed the crazy Emperor had begun his crazy actions once more.

“Haa. Haa…”

Hadel breathed roughly. While stepping on the remains of the broken table, he strangely brought up a corner of his lips.

He paid no mind to the splinters he had from the table he’d just broken with his bare hands, despite the blood dripping down them.

He wasn’t in the mood to worry about something like that.

“Taimon.”

At his low growl, Taimon—who had been hiding in the shadows—suddenly showed himself.

“Please give your command, Your Majesty.”

Hadel took a deep breath while looking at Taimon, who was kneeling with his head bent.

I can’t lose my reason.

I can’t lose my self-control over an attack and shock of this degree.

“That woman.”

As Hadel spoke, he grinded his teeth together.

The woman with colors like those of Asha.

The woman who deceived me with those ridiculous hand motions.

I was really surprised at the beginning since they were so similar to the hand signs I’d made with Asha.

I’d gone to the Lily Palace to confirm whether it was a coincidence or not, but that woman was definitely acting like that because she knew something.

Sure, it was a sign I’d made with Asha, but it’s not like it was a secret at the time.

They might have asked the people who’d worked at the de Ach Viscounty so they could make her seem as close to Asha as possible.

They really put a lot of effort into this.

They probably prepared for a long time.

How dare they take Asha away from me and then put a fake Asha in her place?

If Asha had really been alive all this time, why didn’t she come looking for me until now?

So Asha truly didn’t exist.

She was now actually…!

Stab!

This time, a sword was unsheathed at a speed nobody could see and was subsequently deeply embedded into the marble floor, creating cracks.

In response to Hadel’s monster-like actions, Taimon used his trembling hands to lightly grab onto the handle of his sword. If a fragment came his way, he needed to safely block it.

Luckily enough, though, Hadel had no more outbursts. He closed his eyes and breathed roughly while spitting out words.

“Did you not finish your investigation into what relationship she has with the de Ach Viscounty?”

“…I apologize. It’s because she appeared so suddenly. Plus, the Valkirinos are blocking all contact with the de Ach family.”

“Haa…”

Hadel’s exhales were filled with laughter mocking no one but himself.

“How pathetic.”

There was no way that woman was Asha, but he still couldn’t bring himself to kill her. Even after he’d reached out his hand to do so.

“Investigate her and her relationship with the Valkirino Duchy thoroughly.”

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

“I’m expecting meaningful results as quickly as possible.”

Taimon bowed his head, and his inner thoughts became cold alongside the final chilly command he’d received.

No matter how weak the Emperor was to silver-colored women, who knew it would cause such an impact.

Thinking that his innocent subordinates would die for no reason, Taimon disappeared into the shadows with a heavy face.