At the grand welcoming gala in the Imperial Palace of Aureth.
The grand ballroom of the Holy Empire of Edrath was a sickening display of gold leaf, blinding crystal chandeliers, and the overwhelming scent of overly perfumed nobles.
Hundreds of aristocrats were currently cheering, practically throwing themselves at the line of returning knights who had just secured the Northern border. At the front of that line stood Sir Lucien Arden—shining in silver armor, a crisp white cape draped over his shoulders, looking every bit the continent's flawless, holy savior.
And high up on the royal dais, sitting on a velvet chair next to his insufferable sibling, was Kagen.
He was wearing a suffocatingly tight, high-collared black royal uniform stitched with silver threads. He had been practically dragged out of his comfortable, warm bed by his personal servants because"royal etiquette demanded his presence."
Internally, Kagen was a vibrating mess of absolute, unadulterated fury.
'Look at them,' Kagen thought, resting his chin heavily on his hand, staring blankly at the crowd.
'They are cheering for a guy who has literally severed my spinal cord fourteen times. Look at his perfect hair. Look at that stupid, righteous jawline. I hate it here. I want to go home. I miss having a croissant. If I have to listen to one more trumpet fanfare, I am going to jump out of that stained-glass window.'
Because he was so physically exhausted and profoundly annoyed, Kagen didn't bother putting on his usual fake royal smile. His face was entirely deadpan. His heavy lids drooped over his crimson eyes, his lips were pressed into a flat, cold line, and his posture practically screamed, *'Every single one of you is beneath me.'*
Below the dais, a group of high-ranking noblewomen whispered behind their silk fans.
"Look at Prince Cassian," one whispered, shivering. "The knights have just risked their lives for the empire, and his Highness looks like he's judging who to execute first."
"How cruel," another murmured. "He hasn't applauded once. He truly is as cold and heartless as the rumors say. He despises the heroes of our kingdom."
Kagen heard the whispers, but he literally did not have the energy to care
'Yeah, yeah, I'm a monster, whatever. Just hand over the buffet food and let me leave quietly.'
Just then as Emperor Cedric finished his grand speech, praising the knights' holy devotion, Sir Lucien Arden stepped forward to bow, his body oozing with chivalrous honor and loyalty for the empire. And as he raised his head, his piercing, ice-blue eyes swept across the royal family, eventually landing directly on Kagen.
The moment their eyes locked, Kagen's entire soul internally cringed into the fetal position of terror.
'Oh, gross. He's looking at me,' Kagen's inner voice shrieked, a cold sweat breaking out down his spine despite his completely frozen exterior. 'Don't look at me! Look at the Emperor! Look at the shiny medals! Look literally anywhere else, you giant, terrifying executioner! God, my neck hurts just looking at him. Please don't come over here. I am a plant. I am a piece of furniture. You do not see me!'
From the outside, however, Kagen didn't blink. He just stared back down at Lucien with a dark, unmoving, intensely somber glare, his crimson eyes reflecting the glowing chandeliers like twin pools of fresh blood.
Lucien paused, his hand resting on the hilt of his holy sword. As he looked up at the young prince, a deep, unsettling chill ran down his back. The rumors about Prince Cassian faking a sick leave to avoid his academy duties were well-known, but Lucien hadn't expected...this.
The prince wasn't throwing a tantrum. He wasn't acting like a spoiled brat. He was sitting there like an ancient, dark deity, looking down at the holy knights with a look of pure, unbothered hostility. There was no joy in the prince's eyes, only a heavy, ominous darkness that seemed entirely out of place in a celebration of light.
'Perhaps he really does carry darkness within him,' Lucien thought, his jaw tightening as he maintained the intense eye contact.
'Judging by how hostile he is towards the holy knights and the heroes of the continent... Why does he look so somber instead of celebrating? It's as if our victory displeases him.'
Lucien's ice-blue eyes narrowed imperceptibly.
'That prince—he is really bad news. I should watch him closely.'
Up on the dais, Kagen noticed Lucien's eyes narrowing and internally lost his absolute mind.
'Why is he narrowing his eyes?! Is he judging my posture? Is he planning the execution already?! I didn't even do anything! I'm literally just sitting here! That's it, I'm faking a relapse. I'm going back to bed, I can't do this anymore, I can't stand him.'
Just as Kagen was about to get from his seat, Lucien took a purposeful step forward, his heavy leather boots and silver greaves clicking against the polished marble floor. His eyes remained locked on Kagen, his posture rigid with the solemn duty of a protector who had just identified a threat to the realm. He was going to greet the royal family, yes, but more importantly, he was going to test the waters with this dark, brooding prince.
Kagen saw the knight make a direct beeline for the dais. He saw the cold, calculating glare. He saw the massive, muscle-bound frame that had sliced his head off more times than he could count on two hands.
'Nope. Absolutely not. Cancel subscription. I am unsubscribing from this timeline immediately,' Kagen's brain shrieked in pure, unadulterated terror. 'He's coming over here. Why is he coming over here? Who knows what that holy knight of a lunatic is thinking in his big head?! He's probably thinking my ink-black hair matches the dark prophecy from chapter three. For sure he wouldn't hesitate to cut me down on the spot because that's just how crazy he is!'
Before Lucien could even reach the base of the stairs, Kagen abruptly stood up.
The sudden movement caused his heavy velvet chair to scrape loudly against the stone platform. The sound echoed over the polite murmurs of the nobles, drawing immediate, shocked gasps from the nearby court.
"Cassian," Crown Prince Adrian hissed under his breath, his fake, perfect smile tightening. "Where do you think you are going? The ceremony isn't over."
Kagen didn't even look at his brother. He didn't look at his cold-eyed father, the Emperor. He just turned on his heel, his black cloak billowing behind him like a shadow, and began walking toward the grand doors leading to the inner palace.
Leaving amidst a royal gala was considered a massive breach of etiquette. But doing it right as the continent's greatest war hero stepped forward to greet the royal family? It was a blatant, devastating insult.
Below the dais, Elias—who had been standing at attention near the pillars—nearly choked on his own spit. His face went entirely pale as he scrambled to follow behind the prince, keeping his head low, his hands shaking in his white gloves.
"Y-Your Highness!" Elias whispered frantically, jogging slightly to keep up with Kagen's aggressive, terrified power-walk. "Please, Your Highness, I beg of you, wait for the event to end! The Emperor is watching... Sir Lucien is watching! This will cause an uproar among the nobles!"
Kagen didn't even look back. He just aggressively waved a dismissive hand in the air, silently telling Elias to shut up and keep moving.
'I don't care about the nobles! I don't care about the uproar!' Kagen's internal thoughts was a chaotic mess of curses. 'I am leaving because if I stay here for two more seconds, I am literally going to pee my pants! Did you see his eyes, Elias?! He was looking at me like I'm a piece of premium steak and he's a starving wolf! I am going back to my room, locking the door, pushing the wardrobe in front of it, and never coming out again!'
Down on the ballroom floor, Lucien froze mid-step.
He stared at the empty space on the dais where Prince Cassian had just been sitting, then he looked at the retreating back of the black-haired prince. The ballroom had fallen into a tense, suffocating silence. The nobles were whispering furiously, casting stolen glances at the Knight Commander to see how he would react to such a public humiliation.
Lucien's hand tightened around the hilt of his sword until his leather glove creaked. His ice-blue eyes darkened to the color of a winter storm.
To Lucien, this wasn't a scared kid running away to hide under his blankets. This was a calculating, arrogant villain showing open contempt for the holy knights. The prince hadn't just ignored him; he had actively turned his back on the defenders of the empire, signaling to everyone present that he stood firmly against the forces of light.
'He didn't even deign to speak to me,' Lucien thought, a dangerous, quiet anger settling in his chest. 'He flees the moment I approach, as if my holy mana repels him. He is mocking the Northern expedition. He is mocking the crown.'
Lucien looked toward the shadows of the inner palace hallway where Kagen's cloak had just disappeared.
'You cannot hide your darkness forever, Prince Cassian. If you are plotting something against this empire... I will find out about it and I will root you out.'
****
The Imperial Dining Hall: The Next Morning
Kagen had never slept better in his entire life—or rather, his entire fourteen lives. After successfully escaping the ballroom without getting decapitated, he had barricaded himself in his bedchamber, buried himself under five layers of silk blankets, and slept like a log.
He woke up feeling refreshed, safe, and utterly convinced that his plan of "doing absolutely nothing" was a flawless survival strategy.
'See?' Kagen thought cheerfully as he sat at the long, marble imperial breakfast table, cutting into a perfectly poached egg. 'No drama. No shadow magic. I just have to lay low, eat luxury food, and ignore the plot.'
Unfortunately, the rest of the royal family was staring at him like he had grown a second head.
The atmosphere in the imperial dining hall was thick with tension. Silver cutlery clinked softly against porcelain. Sitting at the head of the table was Emperor Cedric, looking as cold and unyielding as a stone monument. To his side was Crown Prince Adrian, watching Kagen with a sharp, calculating gaze masked by a polite smile.
Emperor Cedric set his teacup down with a sharp *clink*.
"Cassian," the Emperor's voice boomed, dripping with royal displeasure. "Your conduct last night was an embarrassment to the royal bloodline. To turn your back on Sir Lucien and walk out of a grand gala celebrating the empire's heroes... you humiliated the crown. Explain yourself."
Elias, standing against the wall behind Kagen, visibly trembled, bracing himself for the usual explosion. The original Prince Cassian would have smashed his plate, screamed at his father, and accused the knights of being arrogant peasants.
Instead, Kagen just swallowed his food, wiped his mouth elegantly with a silk napkin, and looked up with a perfectly calm, docile expression.
"I deeply apologize, Father," Kagen said smoothly, his voice entirely soft and respectful. "My faked—*cough*, I mean, my medical exhaustion caught up to me quite suddenly. The noise of the trumpets gave me a terrible migraine, and I realized I was too unwell to represent the royal family properly. I chose to leave rather than faint on the dais and cause a larger scene. It was a lapse in judgment, and I will accept whatever punishment that you deem fit for my mistakes."
He even offered a polite, remorseful little bow from his seat.
'There,' Kagen thought, internally high-fiving himself. 'A flawless, textbook apology. No screaming, no fighting. Now pass the pastries so I can go back to bed.'
The entire dining hall went dead silent.
Crown Prince Adrian froze, his fork hovering halfway to his mouth. His eyes widened in absolute shock.
'Did my brother just apologize?' Adrian's mind raced, his paranoia spiking to dangerous levels as he stared at Kagen's calm face. 'Him? Cassian Valemont? The imperial venom? He didn't scream? He didn't throw a tantrum? He just calmly took the blame... What the hell is he up to? Is he plotting a coup? Is he trying to make me look bad by playing the submissive martyr?!'
But while Adrian was spiraling into political paranoia, Emperor Cedric's cold eyes softened just a fraction. He observed Kagen's pale skin and calm, unbothered demeanor.
'Perhaps my son is truly not well,' the Emperor thought, completely misinterpreting Kagen's profound laziness as lingering physical frailty. 'He is usually so volatile. For him to be this quiet and compliant, the magical exhaustion must be taking a severe toll on his body.'
A slow, proud smile crossed the Emperor's face.
"I see," Cedric said, clearing his throat. "If your health is truly that fragile, then it is fortunate that a solution has already presented itself. In fact, you should be pleased, Cassian."
Kagen paused, a sudden, horrible feeling washing over his gut. 'Pleased? I don't like the sound of that word in this world.'
"Sir Lucien Arden approached me after the gala," the Emperor continued smoothly. "He expressed grave concern over your... unique condition. He noted how somber and overwhelmed you seemed, and out of his profound loyalty to the crown, he made a direct proposal."
Kagen's fork slipped from his fingers, clattering loudly against his plate.
"A... proposal, Father?" Kagen stammered, his internal poker face rapidly cracking.
"Yes," Emperor Cedric beamed, entirely unaware of the psychological damage he was inflicting. "Sir Lucien has volunteered to personally serve as your royal guard during your recovery. He will watch over you closely, accompany you back to the academy when your leave ends, and ensure your safety at all times. I have already accepted."
Adrian's jaw practically dropped. He glared at Kagen with intense, burning jealousy. ,'To have the continent's greatest war hero, the Emperor's Sword, acting as a personal bodyguard?! Why does Cassian get him?!'
The Emperor folded his hands, looking thoroughly pleased with himself. "I am certain you are honored to have such a hero by your side, Cassian. Who wouldn't be? Even your siblings are jealous of your good fortune."
Up against the wall, Elias looked like he was about to faint.
And Kagen? Kagen's entire soul had just departed his body.
'Honored?!...did he just say honoured?' Kagen's brain was screaming in a pitch only dogs could hear. 'HONORED?! He didn't propose to guard me out of loyalty! He thinks I'm a terrorist! He thinks I'm plotting a dark magic rebellion! He's volunteering to be my bodyguard so he can watch me like a hawk and find an excuse to chop my head off again!'
Kagen looked out the grand dining room window. Far down in the palace courtyard, standing at absolute attention in his gleaming silver armor, was Sir Lucien Arden. As if sensing Kagen's gaze, the knight looked up, his ice-blue eyes locking onto the dining room window with a deadly, unblinking intensity.
'I am dead,' Kagen thought, his face turning a ghostly shade of white as he stared down at his future executioner. 'I am fourteen times dead, and now I'm going to make it fifteen. I hate my sister so much.'
*****
At Prince Cassian's Private Chambers: An Hour Later
Kagen was pacing. Actually, scratch that—he was hyperventilating.
"Elias," Kagen whispered frantically, grabbing his poor servant by the shoulders as he trembled in fear. "We need to pack. Right now. We are going to the border. No, wait, the border has Lucien. We are going to the Abyssal Ruins. Do you think shadow monsters take roommates? Because anything is better than what is coming through that door."
"Your Highness, please calm down!" Elias pleaded, trying to gently untangle his hands from his master's expensive silk shirt. "Sir Lucien is a hero! He is the Empire's Sword! His presence outside your door means no assassin would ever dare to—"
"I don't care about other assassins, Elias! *He* is the assassin!" Kagen shrieked internally, though outwardly it just came out as a strained, desperate wheeze.
Before Elias could offer any more unhelpful, commoner logic, a heavy, synchronized *clank-clank-clank* echoed down the corridor. It was the sound of high-grade imperial steel armor. The sound Kagen usually heard right before a cold blade parted his head from his shoulders.
The footsteps stopped directly outside his bedroom door.
*Knock. Knock.*
Two sharp, precise raps against the heavy oak. They sounded like the ticking of a doomsday clock.
"Your Highness," a deep, smooth, and utterly terrifying voice vibrated through the wood. "Sir Lucien Arden. I have been assigned by His Imperial Majesty to serve as your personal guard. I am requesting entry to establish our daily security protocol."
Kagen froze. His breath hitched. His eyes darted to the grand balcony window.
'Could I survive a three-story drop? No, Kagen, think. In timeline eight you broke both legs trying to escape through a window and Lucien just carried you to the chopping block in a wheelbarrow. Do not try the window.'
"Your Highness?" Elias whispered anxiously. "Should I open the door?"
Kagen swallowed the massive lump of dry panic in his throat. He smoothed down his tunic, forced his trembling hands into his pockets, and assumed his best 'I am a very fragile, very bored prince who definitely isn't a dark mage' posture.
"Open it, Elias," Kagen said, his voice cracking slightly on the 'it'.
Elias pulled open the heavy oak door.
Standing in the frame, practically blocking out the light from the hallway with his massive, broad shoulders, was Lucien. Up close, he was even more intimidating. He wore his pristine knight commander uniform, a silver cape draped over his back, and his hand was resting casually—yet deliberately—on the hilt of his holy sword. The faint scent of snow and ozone magic clung to him.
Lucien stepped into the room, his sharp, ice-blue eyes instantly sweeping the space. He scanned the corners, the wardrobe, the balcony, and finally, he let his gaze drop heavily onto Kagen.
Kagen's heart was hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. 'Look at him. He's looking for the dark magic catalysts. He's checking if I have ritual chalk under my fingernails. Oh god, my palms are sweating, if he shakes my hand he'll know I'm guilty of... something!'
Lucien removed his silver-crested helmet, placing it under his arm, and gave a stiff, formal bow.
"Greetings, Prince Cassian," Lucien said, his tone perfectly polite, yet completely devoid of any warmth. "It is an honor to protect you during your recovery."
From the outside, Kagen looked like a masterpiece of aristocratic aloofness. His crimson eyes were hooded, his expression deadpan, looking down his sharp nose at the knight.
"Sir Arden," Kagen replied, his voice a cool, slow drawl. "My father is overly dramatic. As you can see, my 'exhaustion' is merely a matter of rest. There is truly no need for the realm's greatest hero to waste his time standing outside a sickroom. I'm sure you have wars to win or... things to polish."
Lucien's eyes narrowed by a fraction of a millimeter.
To Lucien, the prince's words confirmed everything. The casual dismissal, the lack of gratitude, the subtle dig about 'wasting his time'—Cassian was deliberately trying to push him away.
'He's uncomfortable with my presence,' Lucien noted internally, his knightly instincts flaring. 'A guilty conscience always seeks isolation. He wants me gone so he can continue whatever covert operations he started last night when he left the gala.'
"Your safety is never a waste of time, Your Highness," Lucien said smoothly, taking a deliberate step forward. The distance between them closed, and Kagen had to actively fight the urge to scream and hide behind Elias. "As the hero of the continent, it is my sacred duty to ensure that the darkness threatening this empire—from the borders, or *within the palace walls*—is thoroughly contained."
Lucien looked dead into Kagen's crimson eyes, letting the threat hang heavily in the air.
Kagen's soul practically left his body and took a taxi out of the capital.
'HE KNOWS!' Kagen's brain went into a full, screaming, red-alert panic. 'Within the palace walls'?! That was a direct hit! He's calling me the darkness! He's already written the execution warrant in his big, righteous head, he's just waiting for me to trip over a rug so he can call it a treasonous act and decapitate me!'
Despite the absolute code-red meltdown happening inside his mind, Kagen's external face remained completely blank, a mask of profound, elegant boredom. He merely raised a single, skeptical eyebrow.
"Is that so?" Kagen murmured, turning his back to Lucien to walk toward his bed, entirely unaware that turning his back *again* looked like the ultimate gesture of villainous arrogance. "Then do try to keep the noise down, Sir Arden. I am still recovering from my migraine."
Lucien watched the prince's retreating back, his jaw tightening. 'So arrogant. So cold. He treats the holy order like mere servants, yet his eyes carry a heavy, calculating weight. He is a dangerous element. I will not leave his side for a single second.'
Outside, Lucien stood guard like an unyielding statue of death.
Inside, Kagen faceplanted into his pillows, biting the fabric to muffle his tears.
'I want my mom. I want my modern apartment. I want to sue my sister for damages. This is a hostile work environment.'
'I want to go home!'
*****