The atmosphere of the room became tense at the emperor's wrath. The old court doctor blinked. "Keep it in, Your Majesty. Acting in such a way is not good for the lady's health."

Ridrian was taken aback at Lavis' blunt reminder. He willed himself to calm down and sighed. He glanced at Iona and wiped her forehead with a tired expression on his face. "Lavis, tell it to me straight. Why is Iona not waking up even with the help of divine healing?"

Lavis sighed as the questioning was directed at him, "As you may know, divine power is not as almighty as we think it is. For example, even the mental scars Your Majesty has is something that could not be completely healed."

"I already know that. Did I ask you to say what I already know about the futility of the divine power?!" The emperor roared. Doctor Berman felt restless.

"Your Majesty, may I say something?" The doctor said.

The emperor nodded with an annoyed gruff.

"Thank you. Last month, when the young lady was gravely injured, I was really surprised when I examined her. Her whole body was undoubtedly ruined, and it was surprising to see her alive."

"... Ruined?" Ridrian raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"I heard that you prolonged her slavery before she entered the palace. At that time, she found out she was going to undergo an examination and it seems like the poison had caused her to lose her voice. She would have permanently lost her voice and suffered more internal injuries."

"... Oh."

The loss of her voice from being poisoned was something Raven, who first found her, already knew from the reports, but he didn't think it would cause any more internal injuries.

There's no way an ordinary woman could withstand such a poison, Raven had thought.

After seeing Iona's wounds, Lavis told him that poison of that kind would be fatal if it was wrongly handled.

Ridrian clenched his fist so tightly his veins were bulging out of his skin. The deadly consequences of the poison was dawning on him, making his thoughts circle back to her former owner, Earl Russen. Berman slowly looked at the emperor's eyes and continued,

"Since then, I've been giving her medication for her injuries, but the healing process was really slow. From my observation, something psychological must be causing the delay."

"Psychological?"

"I heard that her neck and internal injuries were healed because of Lavis' power. Not waking up after two days when holy power was already administered is definitely caused by some mental disturbance."

Ridrian was at a loss for words. He didn't know what to think. Mental reasons?

On her first day at the palace, he gauged her strength by intimidating her, followed by a raid on the promenade and on the same night, her life was threatened because of the intruding assassin. Then to make matters worse, she was pushed by her maids and rolled down the stairs causing her to sustain injuries. She even showed up at his study to stop him from running wild.

And two days ago, the emperor himself threatened her with his intimidating stance that she could not breathe properly. He recalled how she appeared then, stammering, 'I didn't run away, Your Majesty.'

Ridrian's face paled. He hoped that the woman who had gone through so much would be okay. This slender yet strong woman had endured a lot of hardships in her life. He felt like he was the one who cornered Iona to face such misfortunes, making him feel awful.

It felt like he was the one who pushed her to her limits. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't be here unconscious and beaten. There were some things she came to know about, but she never minded anyone's business.

At best she was a doll, the woman he had been with for three months. Whenever he was with her, he felt at ease and comfortable even though something strange was stirring inside him. He couldn't understand why he was so anxious. He used to remind himself that she's just a doll, one that he could push away should there be any problem. He admired her perseverance through it all, and he felt ashamed for not bothering to improve her situation.

Guilt washed over him like a tide. He neglected her all this time.

Two days ago, he returned to his bedroom without telling anyone to rest his mind and body. When he got there, Iona was nowhere to be found. The hallway and bedrooms were empty and he was just so shocked. When he woke up, she was already clutching his forearm.

But even if she couldn't stand it and ran away, there was nothing left to say.

He grabbed her violently and she lost consciousness, and the emperor couldn't quite feel his body anymore. All the dolls that have escaped so far had lost their lives from his very hands. But when he thought Iona ran away, he even wondered if she'd cut him off with her bare hands once he reached her. Ridrian closed his eyes for a few seconds before opening them once again. Sighing, he rubbed his face as he came to a realization: he has no intention of letting her go.

He rubbed his dark eyes with his palms before calling his half-brother, "Lavis." It sounded weak, and Lavis could only guess what he's about to hear was not going to be pleasant.

"Yes, Your Majesty?"