But Ridrian saw right through the façade he wore; he knew what he had done, and the only thing stopping him from opposing openly was his lack of power. There was nothing he could do then. Not long after, Marquis Crayes grew furious when he realized his daughter's efforts were taken over by the Crown Prince himself. He was upset not because his daughter was abducted by the royalty, but he was actually mad about the fact that she had brought the Crown Prince's wrath upon herself, jeopardizing her own position.

He took the Crown Prince's side and blamed Ridrian for everything that had happened, saying he was nothing but a shameless prince whose jealousy towards the Crown Prince prompted him to harm his fiancée. Ridrian chose to stay silent as the weight of Liliana's disappearance numbed him on the inside. The Marquis proceeded to take care of himself and remained right next to the emperor.

After the news that shook the empire, what I read next in the original book broke my heart even more.

To prove their innocence, concubine Yuria hung herself in her bedroom, the one where she shared with her son Ridrian. The latter on the other hand was left alone in the basement where the Crown Prince trapped him in and he almost burned to death. He managed to escape from his attempts, and after that, he no longer smiled.

Then, the former emperor ordered a suitable swordsman to drive Ridrian away, but still, he persisted.

Three years after Liliana disappeared, he found her in the town bordering the Lehman Kingdom where the local wars were always taking place. The one who informed him was one of his subordinates who knew of his distress, telling him he had spotted someone who greatly resembled Liliana.

Ridrian went there as fast he could, going inside a closed room in a brothel where everyone had escaped from. The scent of grime and blood invaded his nostrils the moment he opened the door and he could only shout in horror,

"Lily-!"

The walls were vandalized with curses, all written in blood. Unable to digest the scene in front of him, he saw Liliana at the corner looking lifeless. The joy of seeing her once again disappeared as soon as it had come. Liliana was clearly at the receiving end of all kinds of abuse and torment for the past three years. There wasn't an ounce of dignity left of her.

She saw Ridrian and smiled faintly. Completely destroyed from the inside out, a desperate wish were uttered from her lips,

"Kill me."

And he knew he had no choice but to grant Liliana's dying wish.

He blamed himself for not finding her sooner, berating himself repeatedly for failing to protect her. His wrath was directed to those who treated her so menacingly.

The black Lotuboru was driven straight through Liliana's chest. He embraced her lifeless body as he wailed and howled, crying for three consecutive days and nights.

He buried Liliana, grabbing his sword with a clear resolve and after a year, the Emperor of Ivant was changed.

***

The emperor, who visited the central temple of Theres for the prayer festival, was now locked up in his room for the second day all because of a sudden illness.

The Temple of Life and Abundance announced the emperor had fallen sick, and they were fidgeting on their spots and refused to give further explanations. Nothing else was said, and everyone in the detached palace kept their mouths shut looking like their necks were about to be sliced off any moment.

Same goes for Lavis. He was the only one who visited the private chambers of the emperor. He stayed by his side and carefully watched his expression. He was the lone person in the temple who pretended to listen to him, and he was close to exploding.

His aggressive half-brother was up for two nights now. Ridrian was staring at the blonde woman who was unconscious on the pristine white bed. He was seated next to her for two days, looking utterly distraught.

Ridrian, are you worried about her?

After Ridrian had lost Liliana, it was the first time Lavis saw him exhibiting emotions that were not anger. He wondered about the doll who had caused quite a change in Ridrian's demeanor, and he thought about the extent of Ridrian's feelings towards her.

"We'll take our leave." The attending servants announced after clearing out the items used by the royal court. Ridrian, Lavis, and the court doctor who had treated Iona were the only ones left inside the room.

After a long, long silence, the emperor spoke, "Court doctor."

"Yes, Your Majesty?"

The emperor took a deep breath, "How is Iona?"

"There is nothing to worry about. She is sleeping soundly at the moment." The doctor assured.

Ridrian fumed at those words. The three court doctors who had accompanied him on this visit had examined Iona for two days, and he was tired of hearing them say there wasn't anything wrong, "Nothing to worry about? So how come she is not waking up!"