The sparsely populated corridor.

“You! Since when did you start doing things you never used to do?!”

Fides shouted, his voice filled with rage.

“Didn’t you hear what Mother said yesterday?! You were told not to leave your palace today! Why did you suddenly show up at a banquet you never attend, and why did you start talking about the Association?!”

Ardiana looked at Fides expressionlessly.

Silent until now, she finally opened her mouth.

“It seems there is a mistake in your words, Brother.”

“......What?”

“Today’s ceremony is being held to wish good fortune upon those departing for the Central Continent. And there is no reason someone who is also joining the campaign should not attend.”

“How dare you!”

“And one more thing. Why exactly should I obey the Empress’s orders in the first place?”

Fides’s face froze.

He let out a strained laugh, as if doubting what he had just heard.

“What? Did you just call Mother... the Empress?”

“Yes. The Empress.”

The corners of Ardiana’s lips slowly lifted.

“Until now, I obediently followed her words not because they were correct. I merely wished to avoid unnecessary trouble.”

“You... have lost your mind.”

Fides muttered and was about to say something else when—

“Fi, Fides... what exactly is going on here?”

A shocked voice rang out behind them.

Turning around, they saw Lavenia standing there with a pale face, accompanied by six maids.

Swaying slightly, she stepped closer.

Then, looking at Ardiana, she let out a nervous laugh with a trembling voice.

“......Ardiana, surely I misheard, didn’t I?”

But Ardiana did not look surprised.

She merely gazed calmly into Lavenia’s face.

Confusion, anger, and humiliation were all mixed together there.

Beneath the hem of her luxurious gown, Lavenia’s pale elegant hands trembled faintly.

Ardiana answered:

“No. You heard correctly.”

“What?”

“Until now, I yielded to you. I thought it would make things easier for everyone, and I did not wish to create unnecessary conflict.”

“Yi, yielded to me? You?”

“But it seems Your Highness the Empress mistook my patience for weakness. That is likely why you continue crossing the line.”

“Kgh...!”

“Your Highness!”

The maids hurriedly supported the staggering Lavenia.

Ardiana continued coldly:

“To me, you are merely my father’s concubine. Not the Empress, and certainly not my mother. So I will admit this much — if my silence all this time unjustifiably inflated your status, then that is indeed my fault.”

“Aah! Fides!”

Lavenia abruptly turned toward her son.

She clutched at Fides’s sleeve as though demanding he say something immediately.

Grinding his teeth, Fides glared at Ardiana.

“......I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but you’d better stop before you do something you’ll regret, Ardiana.”

His voice was sharp and overbearing.

But Ardiana merely let out a quiet laugh.

“Regret? It seems Brother is mistaken about something as well.”

Fides’s brow twitched.

“Have you already received an official appointment as Crown Prince from His Majesty?”

“......What?”

“Not empty talk about favor. Not baseless promises that the throne will be handed to you. Tell me, what official recognition have you actually received?”

Fides’s mouth fell slightly open.

His face slowly flushed crimson.

“You—!”

“I have always been curious what exactly it is you possess. By what right does the son of a secondary wife, who has not even received an official appointment, speak about succession? Legitimacy is not obtained through words.”

Ardiana turned her gaze aside.

One of the maids supporting the Empress accidentally brushed against her hand with the edge of her sleeve.

Ardiana immediately moved her hands in front of herself and interlocked her fingers, as though shaking off something filthy.

“The fact that I have lived quietly all this time does not mean I know nothing.”

When her blue eyes flashed coldly, Lavenia’s maids unconsciously stepped back.

Ardiana turned toward Lavenia once more.

“In that case. I believe it would be best if you withdrew from today’s banquet, Your Highness the Empress.”

Lavenia’s eyes widened.

Fides stared at Ardiana as though he could not believe his ears.

“What nonsense are you spouting?! You’re throwing my mother out? Right in front of the banquet hall?!”

“The person who determines the order of imperial banquets is the woman standing at the very top of the hierarchy among the imperial women, Brother.”

“.......”

“And therefore, while the Empress’s seat remains vacant, it should be obvious who possesses the authority to decide the fate of this banquet.”

Ardiana smiled.

“I hope you will exercise good judgment and refrain from ruining such a distinguished event.”

“What exactly is happening, Viscount?”

Inside the banquet hall, where neither the princess nor the prince had yet returned, the nobles quietly whispered among themselves while stealing glances at the Emperor, who sat deep in thought.

“I don’t understand it myself. But the atmosphere feels extremely strange...”

“Hasn’t Her Highness the Empress arrived yet?”

“No. She likes making a late entrance, but even this is excessive...”

“Young Master! Young Master!”

At that moment, another nobleman who had briefly gone out into the garden hurried back inside.

With an excited face, he dragged the gathered nobles closer to the columns and continued:

“Do you know what I just saw outside the banquet hall?!”

As though his throat had gone dry, he greedily emptied a glass of cold water from a nearby table.

“The princess ordered Her Highness the Empress not to come anywhere near the banquet!”

The listeners immediately burst into murmurs.

“What nonsense. Usually it’s the opposite.”

“That’s exactly what I thought! But that was really what happened! Her Highness the Empress couldn’t even say a word, and on top of that...”

“And on top of that?”

“The princess said this to the prince! She said, ‘What right does a prince who hasn’t even been officially appointed possess?’”

Several nobles reflexively turned toward the Emperor.

Then lowered their voices even further.

“What is happening? Could all this really be true?”

“I’m telling you! I don’t understand what’s going on either! It’s already unsettling enough having mercenaries attending the banquet, and now the princess has completely changed...”

“Come to think of it... those nobles from the late Empress’s faction who returned to their territories. Wasn’t there recently talk that some of them were coming back to the capital?”

“I heard that too. Apparently their wives are even preparing to appear in society again...”

“What if they were summoned back here?”

“That’s enough.”

At that moment, someone raised a hand.

“His Majesty is still present. This place is still...”

The nobles awkwardly coughed and fell silent.

A heavy stillness settled over the group.

And precisely then—

“Your Highness the Princess!”

The banquet hall doors opened, and Ardiana stepped back inside.

When the nobles realized Fides was not beside her, they held their breath.

“Your Highness the Princess, you look beautiful today.”

The noblewomen standing in Ardiana’s path hurriedly greeted her with exaggerated politeness.

Even those who normally treated her as though she did not exist.

Everyone instinctively ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) sensed the same thing.

The direction of the wind had changed.

But Ardiana did not spare anyone a glance and calmly walked onward.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, she sat down in Fides’s seat.

The Emperor’s brow twitched.

So faintly that only Ardiana noticed it.

As the Emperor raised his wineglass, Ardiana spoke:

“Your Majesty.”

The Emperor did not even turn his head toward her.

But smiling coldly, Ardiana quietly continued:

“Until now, I remained silent so as not to trouble you unnecessarily. But I believe you should know now.”

“.......”

“You may find this difficult to imagine, but Brother has been continuously sending assassins after me.”

The Emperor visibly flinched.

Only then did he abruptly turn his head.

Confusion, anger, and alarm all mixed in his gaze — concern over whether anyone nearby had heard her words.

“And while we are speaking of it. Earlier, you stated that the main figures of today’s banquet are those soon departing for the campaign.”

“.......”

“And by tradition, at ceremonies like this, the Emperor bestows gifts upon those departing.”

With a trembling hand, the Emperor set his wineglass back down.

Ardiana lowered her eyes slightly.

“It pains me to leave the palace behind while carrying only my brother’s hatred with me. So I would like to ask for one favor.”

By now, her voice had returned to its normal volume.

And naturally, the nobles’ attention shifted toward the two of them.

“During the recent assault on the ancient palace, the King of the Dead and I destroyed the heart of the Magic Crystal together and became close friends. Therefore, I would like the King of the Dead to be allowed to freely visit my palace until the day of departure.”

“.......”

“And if the King of the Dead’s lack of title appears improper to you, then I ask you to take this opportunity to grant him both a name and status.”

The Emperor drew in a deep breath, as though he had only just remembered how to breathe again.

She called it a request.

She called it a favor.

But he understood perfectly well.

It was a threat.

And at the same time, the price he would have to pay for all the recklessness Fides had committed until now.