The palace was filled with tension as the king stared intently at his soldiers, who continued to follow his instructions. Since it was a war, he couldn't just jump at the scene and start fighting. He had a lot of preparation to do.

When it came to the citizens' evacuation authority, he had to make sure that it was passed on to a trustworthy individual. Secondly, a few high-ranking soldiers were required to remain in the palace to handle a few situations and send reinforcements if necessary. He also had to find the officials and call them for an urgent meeting in the court to give his instructions in case he died in the war. ​​

Finally, he could breathe a sigh of relief after going through the first two steps. He was still in the court while having a last-minute meeting with his officers about the war strategies. At this time, not just court officials but also his soldiers had been standing before him, giving him frequent ideas about it.

He was still wearing his war robes, but the strategies they had developed earlier to fight with the enemies head-on needed to be changed. This was the reason why the meeting was taking so long.

The official on the right side stared fiercely at the king and said, "Your Majesty, I think there's a mole among us!"

The king knew about this from Zion, but he still pretended to be surprised. "Really? Why do you think so?"

"Earlier today, we had received the information from our scouts in the eastern region. According to their claims, the enemies lacked cannons. This is why we devised a strong strategy to prevent the war. We also spent a great deal of time and effort guarding the eastern gate with as many good soldiers as possible, but it was all for nothing." The officer's expressions turned darker as his fist tightened. "If this keeps going on, I'm afraid that we would lose. They will be reaching the boundary wall of our kingdom soon enough. From what the surviving soldier had said, the enemies are only fifteen minutes away!"

"This time, we even agree with the right officers." The ministers on the left side spoke one after another, nodding their heads with others. "We need another strategy now, but what's the guarantee that it won't be leaked to our enemies? We should do something about it!"

"That's right. We will have a backup plan!"

The right-side officer frowned. "And let our enemies know that we are aware of their tactics? Absolutely not! I suggest we should let His Majesty deal with this personally."

"And what would he do alone?" The officer on the left side retorted. "Someone would have to tell him whether or not his plan is flawless. It has always been this way! For every king in our dynasty, getting approval from the court officers is the first step in any war! It's not enough to skip a step just because there's a mole among us. Let us focus more on finding this person who had leaked the previous strategy we had acquired."

"Do you really think we have time for that?!" The other officer glared at the person on the right side. "The enemy is going to approach within fifteen minutes! Do you even know what that means? We are all going to die! And we don't even know who attacked us."

Even though he knew his son was plotting against him, the king refused to tell these officers. He wanted to save his son from the clutches of these officers. While he was aware that many of them were spies, he also knew that some sought justice. They wouldn't have to wait long to take action against Bradley, especially after finding out the truth. He knew that at some point, he would have to tell them, but he couldn't. He felt helpless in his heart when he thought about the choices he was being forced to make.

A loud noise brought him back to the present as he stared at the officer who just hit the table and glared on the other side while opening his mouth to argue about war. Rhesus's lips pursed as he heard them arguing like they were at the grocery store.

His eyes squinted after hearing all of this, and he rubbed his forehead.

The king was still baffled as to why his son was acting in this manner. The king would have given his life for his son if he'd asked. Why, then, did the prince decide to destroy the Vanne dynasty?

After making many mistakes in his youth and ending up forcing the dynasty into a state of chaos, the king realized how grave it was to kill his entire family in one go. Even his worldview had changed after managing the kingdom for so long. He was serious in his role as this race's leader, still feeling regretful for his actions.

The light in his eyes dimmed as he pondered this. Is this his punishment? Suddenly, someone familiar entered the courtroom with fanfare as he was contemplating this. When he saw a certain princess enter the court, his eyebrows shot up.

It was Edda.

"What're you doing here?" As he frowned and studied the princess' expressionless face, the king had a bad feeling in his heart. Edda had never before walked toward him with an expressionless face. She had shown him respect in the past, even though he could tell it was pretentious on some level.

He knew that the girl was harmless.

There was a difference in the air today, however. His displeasure stemmed from her actions of entering the court without his permission. Then, before he could ponder more on this topic, Heath Vanne, another of his brothers, marched up behind Edda.

What was his third brother doing with the daughter of his second brother? And where the heck was Linton? He hadn't seen him at all in the palace.

Rhesus's brows furrowed, but before he could get a chance to say another word, the girl who was walking ahead of everyone stopped at the center and looked up at him. Her face contorted as she became enraged. "Where's my father?!"