For the One Who Hates Me - Chapter 23

Thump, thump, thump.

Karl’s footsteps echoed hollowly in the empty hallway.

“…”

He hadn’t completely trusted Aura from the beginning. But he couldn’t resist her, so he willingly went to bed with her. If she had been plotting something, he was willing to be fooled to some extent. The desire to hold her body was greater than the urge to dig into her mind.

But he never expected her to help with a rebellion. ‘Now… now I’m really okay.’ That was the look on her face. A smile that made his willingness to be fooled turn into a desperate desire to believe her. How could she have smiled like that and done what she did?

If it was just a rebellion, he wouldn’t have been so angry. The moment he was about to leave the room, he had asked her, without thinking, if she was scared. After he said it, he realized what he wanted. He wanted her to be scared, to beg for his forgiveness. If she had done that, he would have let everything go. But she refused even that, as if she didn’t care if their relationship was ruined.

Ultimately, Karl couldn’t forgive himself. He couldn’t forgive himself for being a fool who held on to her until the very end.

Just then, Josh appeared out of the darkness. “Your Majesty.”

Karl could guess why Josh was here. He had ordered him to keep an eye on Isen. “Isen?”

“He’s still in the East Forest. He seems to be waiting for someone. Should I continue to watch him?”

“…No. Let’s go.”

“It’s cold…” Even though it was early spring, the dawn was still chilly. Isen cupped his hands and blew on them. ‘Is sister-in-law not coming?’

Aura’s words had been bothering him. ‘If you change your mind, there’s no need to come. Neither for you, nor for me.’

‘No. She can’t refuse my offer. I have to trust her and wait.’

In Isen’s eyes, Aura was still a princess of Zenia, not an empress of Kasa. There was no way she would ignore the suffering of Zenia for her own comfort.

Rustle…

He heard the sound of footsteps on fallen leaves behind him. He turned around, expecting to see Aura, and was surprised.

“…Brother.”

Bam! Karl’s fist landed on Isen’s face. Isen fell to the ground helplessly. The impact was so strong that his body slid all the way to the forest wall. Blood gushed from Isen’s mouth. Karl grabbed Isen by the collar.

“You’re trying to involve my wife in a rebellion?” Karl’s voice was as sharp as a sword.

Only then did Isen understand the situation. One of two things must have happened. Either Aura had failed, or she had told Karl everything. No matter what the reason, the conclusion was the same. He wouldn’t survive this. The thought made Isen’s mind turn cold.

“I’ll ask you two questions, Isen.”

“…”

“Who is behind you?”

“…You already know, since you’ve come all this way.”

“No. You tell me. With your own mouth.”

Karl didn’t say he didn’t know. Isen seemed to have noticed something and asked, “Is there a reason you need me to confess?”

“…”

“You want to completely exclude your sister-in-law from this, don’t you?”

He was right. Karl needed clear evidence to go against a royal like Lion. If Isen didn’t confess, the only person left to blame was Aura.

Karl gritted his teeth and grabbed Isen’s neck. “Confess. I’ll spare your life.”

“Ugh… ha, haha…” Isen laughed bitterly through his pain. “You want to spare my life…”

“Why would you do something so foolish? All the evidence points to you. Didn’t you know that Lion was using you as a shield?”

“How could I not?”

“…”

“I have someone to protect. Just like you’re trying to protect your wife.”

Karl suddenly remembered something. ‘He also mentioned something about his mother… it seemed important.’

“Your mother?” Isen’s eyes widened. For the first time, he was visibly shaken, and his lips parted. Karl let go of his neck.

“Her name was Lian Kasa, wasn’t it? Where is she?”

“…”

“…Sutra Castle?”

Isen’s body trembled as he looked away. Karl could already guess the situation without hearing it. For some reason, Lian Kasa was being held hostage by Lion.

“…Just confess. I’ll spare you and I’ll take care of your mother’s problem. Whatever it is.”

“B-Brother… are you serious?”

Karl grabbed Isen by the collar and pulled him close. “And I’ll ask you one more thing.”

“…”

“Did you tell Aura about the Pin?”

Isen was more confused now. How did Karl know about the Pin? In truth, Isen didn’t know much about it himself. He had only told Aura what Lion had told him.

In contrast, Karl seemed to know everything. The moment he realized this, Isen lost his will to fight. “…Yes.”

Karl’s eyes turned cold. He grabbed Isen’s collar even tighter. “What did you tell her?”

“That it was in y-your study… that’s all…”

“It looks like you were talking about something you don’t even understand.”

“Ugh…”

“You really had no idea how terrible it is.”

“Y-Yes?”

Karl threw Isen to the ground. Isen fell weakly. Karl spoke to the knights who had come with him. “Lock Isen in the dungeon. I’ll hold a trial tomorrow at sunrise and hear his testimony.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The knights helped Isen up. Isen didn’t resist at all.

As Karl turned to leave, whoosh! An arrow came flying toward them.

“P-Prince Isen!”

Karl turned back at the knight’s cry. Isen blinked his big golden eyes and looked at Karl. Karl saw the arrow in his chest. He saw the blood spreading, as if it had pierced his heart.

Isen closed his eyes and fell to the ground.

“Prince! Prince!” The knights called out to him in shock, but it was no use. Karl’s Adam’s apple slowly rose and fell.

“Josh.”

“Y-Yes, Your Majesty!”

“Close the palace gates and search this entire area. Find the assassin.”

“…Yes.”

Josh led the knights away. But Karl knew. If the person who shot the arrow was Lion, he wouldn’t be caught so easily.

“Theo.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“We’ll say Isen committed suicide. Hold a grand funeral befitting a royal, and bury his body in the royal tomb.”

Theo thought to himself. ‘He’s trying to erase all traces of Isen’s rebellion… but wouldn’t that make it harder to corner the one behind him?’ But Theo said nothing and retreated. He respected Karl’s decision to protect Isen’s honor.

A knight who was tending to Isen’s body approached Karl. He held out a blood-soaked book. “This fell out of Prince Isen’s pocket. Would you like to see it?”

Karl suddenly remembered Aura’s words. ‘I got information from Isen, and in return, I gave him a novel. A very interesting novel.’

‘Did she really give him a novel?’ Karl silently held out his hand. The knight respectfully placed the book in his hand.

He opened the first page. Inside, there was an increased note.

‘Give up, Isen. His Majesty the Emperor knows that Duke Lion is behind you. You cannot win. I will pretend that today’s conversation never happened, so accept His Majesty’s negotiation. If that is not possible, run away. The most important thing is for you to survive, and that is all we wish for.’

Aura sat on the bed, staring blankly out the window. The morning sun was just beginning to rise, filling the sky. The north tower was a small dot in the distance. She had been staring at the tower for hours.

‘That tower is the perfect place for you.’ Karl’s words wouldn’t leave her mind. He knew her too well. He knew exactly where the unhealed wounds were in her heart, and how to make them fester.

The north tower seemed to be mocking her. It seemed to be asking if this wasn’t where she belonged. Why else would she be unable to take her eyes off of it?

Aura gripped her skirt. She wanted to go for a walk. But would she be able to? She felt that if she opened the door, she would see the knights standing there, telling her she couldn’t leave in a polite tone.

Knock, knock. A cautious knock was followed by Mina entering the room. Mina was surprised by Aura’s gloomy face but spoke calmly. “Your Highness, I saw His Majesty the Emperor in front of your room.” In front of her room. Aura looked at the door. “His Majesty asked me to give this to you.”

Mina carefully held out a book. The novel was stained with a dark red blood. Seeing it, Aura realized one thing. ‘Isen is dead.’

Aura took the book. The pages were stuck together with dried blood. She opened the cover, and the note she had left was still there.

Aura had prepared three books. In one, she had put a note naming Lion as the culprit. In another, she was named Duke Thane. And in the last one, she had named both. No matter who was behind it, she had wanted Isen to give up the rebellion. She didn’t want any more bloodshed.

And… she didn’t want Karl to have to spill any more blood either. But unfortunately, Isen seemed to have never read the note.

“Your Highness… I’m not sure why His Majesty would say this, but…”

“…”

“He said you are free to go wherever you want.”

As if by a twist of fate, Karl had seen the note. Aura didn’t know if it was a blessing or a curse.

Rustle. Aura crumpled the note.

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