***
Lisette wasn’t any better today either.
Marie had told him that she wasn’t in a critical state, yet…
Rayton let out a wry laugh.
Lisette was in her bed; her eyes were shut tight and she looked so fragile that she could vanish at any moment.
Rayton couldn’t even tell if she was actually sleeping or had fainted.
Rayton tentatively stuck out his finger in front of Lisette’s nostrils.
He found himself relieved that she was still breathing, as Marie said, and bit his lip.
How long did things have to be like this?
How much longer would they have to endure it?
Rayton knew what was going on.
He knew all too well, that his mother had, was, and would continue to endure everything.
She lived for only one goal, and it was the sole reason she still existed.
It wasn’t that Rayton didn’t understand his mother, but sometimes he felt that everything was just too much.
Sometimes it was suffocating to see his mother clinging to her life and he couldn’t do anything about it… Rayton stared at Lisette for a while and left the room, telling Marie to call him as soon as Lisette woke up, no matter what time it was.
Rayton stopped by the library to get the book Sez had asked for.
<The Mages of The Den Helder Empire>
He had no idea why Sez was looking for the book.
Even Rayton, who was kind of a bookworm thought it was old and cliché.
He didn’t read it for fun, obviously, but it didn’t have anything he was looking for.
He had finished the book anyway, so there would be no harm in lending it to Sez.
Rayton went outside to look for Sez as he heard a familiar shriek.
“Die?
For what?!
What have we done to deserve all of this?!”
Rayton only could think of one girl in the palace who would say such a thing.
Soon, Rayton found Sez in the distance, getting beaten like hell by Lilien.
“You little shit!”
As always, Lilien looked as if she didn’t care if she beat Sez to death.
Rayton had already seen it numerous times.
Lilien always cursed Sez or slapped her in the face with all her might.
Rayton was familiar with the scene.
Lilien sometimes yanked discouraged Sez’s hair from behind or took Sez’s new shawl her maid… who was it… yeah, Runa gave her.
and trampled on it.….
Oh, there was a time like this.
Lilien pretended to be sweet as she lured Sez into a haunted warehouse and locked her inside.
All day long.
“I’m sure you know that Princess Sez once suffered from aphasia.”
Rayton hadn’t seen it with his own eyes since he and Sez never talked in the past, but Rayton remembered that Sez seemed to have not even cried properly.
She never cried aloud.
It was normal for kids to cry and throw tantrums, but Sez didn’t make a sound, only shedding big, sorrowful tears.
But it meant nothing to Rayton back then.
‘Like I care, they’re the same kind of worms anyway.
All with blonde hair and blue eyes, disgusting… Someone needs to get rid of them one day.’
But now…
“Stop it, Bern!”
Rayton remembered how Sez stepped in between him and Bern’s gang back at the library.
“You’re bleeding.
It might get worse if not treated.”
And that sorry mummification she called first aid, which took just a few moments to just unroll.
“I like my brother Rayton too.”
And that childish composition, too…
“Your days are numbered!
Once my brother becomes emperor, you two will be the first to go six feet under!”
Sez’s voice cut into Lilien’s shrieking.
“You’re worried, right?”
‘Worried?
About whom, you?’
That little brat was no different from the other disgusting royals to Rayton.
That was how it was supposed to be.
“Filthy?!
Creep?!
You and Bern are the creepiest to me!”
“Rayton’s way better than you!
What else have you got other than your blonde hair and blue eyes?
Nothing!”
“Are you done, you little shit?!”
Rayton was dumbfounded, speechless even.
‘Out of everyone, you’re the one to bring up blonde hair and blue eyes?
You should be begging for forgiveness and now you’re standing up for me?
That’ll only get you a harder beating.’
Rayton spotted Lilien raising her fist high in the air.
In the heat of the moment, he lunged forward and grabbed Lilien by her collar.
“Ahhhhh!”
Lilien screamed as her body was suddenly lifted against her will.
Rayton threw Lilien on the floor like she was a rag doll and looked down at Sez.
She was in terrible shape.
“R-Rayton?”
Sez didn’t seem to understand what on earth had just happened…
To be precise, she couldn’t comprehend the fact that Rayton actually stepped in to help her.
Rayton paused for a moment and reached out to Sez.
She stared at Rayton for a moment before grabbing his hand and standing up.
She looked…
messy.
Her face was caked with dirt, and her hair tangled like straw.
Her dress was torn to rags too.
However, Sez wasn’t crying.
Far from it, actually, she was now full of anger as she glared at Lilien.
She looked funny, even slightly…
adorable, despite the situation, so Rayton let out a snort.
Of course, Lilien had to ruin the moment.
“How dare you, you lowborn filth…”
Lilien was shaking.
From her point of view, her rage was justified.
Her little plaything had already fought back twice, and not just anyone, but Rayton had stepped in and shoved Lilien on behalf of Sez.
No matter how furious she was, she couldn’t just carelessly throw punches at Rayton like she did with Sez, especially when she was facing him alone, without Bern.
“Don’t think this won’t go unnoticed!”
Lilien screamed, glaring at Rayton and Sez as hard as she could.
“I’ll tell His Majesty and my mother everything!
My brother will break your arms and legs-”
She couldn’t continue, as Rayton suddenly shoved his face into hers.
Her shaken blue eyes reflected in Rayton’s bloody irises.
Lilien flinched.
His unreadable eyes alone were chilling, and seeing his face up close discouraged her.
“Shut your mouth…”
Rayton threatened her with a voice cold as ice.
“… or I’ll break it first.”
Lilien really did shut up and Sez’s jaw dropped.
It was surprising, to say the least.
How could that vicious bitch put her tail down like that?
Just from a single sentence?
But it was nothing compared to what Rayton did next.
He turned his head and looked back at Sez.
Then, he said the unexpected.
“Let’s go, Sez.”
He didn’t call her a little brat, or an idiot, or say hey, you!
Sez.
It was the first time that Rayton called her by her name.
Sez was about to answer, with the most blissful smile she had ever made.
It was at that moment Sez saw someone standing behind a window in Lisette’s quarters.
It was Eton.
‘What’s he doing over there?’
Sez looked at him anxiously, she had a bad feeling.
He seemed to have been watching everything that had happened.
He glanced at Lilien and began to mouth exaggeratedly at Sez.
“What.
A.
Bad.
Girl.
She.
Is.”
Then, he grinned.
‘Are you laughing?
Why?
No…
don’t laugh.
Don’t do that.
Please don’t do anything weird…’
Sez begged, but it was all in vain.
Eton put his index finger to his mouth with a meaningful smile and winked suddenly.
And at the same time, Lilien screamed behind Sez’s back.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
Sez jumped back, frazzled.
Quite literally, because Lilien’s hair was on fire!
Her beautiful, noble blonde hair was burning like dry firewood, making a satisfying crackling sound.
“What the hell?!
What the hell is this?!
Fire!
My head is on fire!”
Lilien freaked out and screamed like a madman.
Of course, Rayton didn’t help her.
“What in the…
what’s going on?
Princess Lilien!”
Her ladies-in-waiting soon ran over and the scene became a mess.
Sez was just standing there, looking at Lilien with a bewildered expression on her face, before turning back toward where Eton stood.
“He did this to me!
Him!
That cursed bastard did it!” said Lilien.
The cause of all the mayhem shrugged and chuckled without any trace of remorse.
“Who’s there?”
Rayton, standing by her side, turned his head over to where Sez was staring blankly.
“No one’s there.”
As expected, Rayton didn’t seem to see Eton.
But as soon as Rayton looked back, Eton’s expression stiffened.
He didn’t look like the same guy who grinned and cracked lame jokes to Sez.
He looked…
strange, almost like a different person.
‘But why, all of a sudden?’
Sez was surprised, looking between Eton and Rayton.
She held Rayton’s hand without realizing it.
“B-brother, let’s head back.”
Rayton twitched but did not shake off Sez’s hand.
He just answered quietly.
“Whatever.”
“…….”
Sez took a few steps before looking back again.
But Eton was nowhere to be found.