Royal Palace Prison:
The heavy, damp air pierced the lungs like a cold dagger. Dim torches cast long, stretched shadows across the stone walls.
Ashlor stood inside the cell.
His teeth were clenched so tightly the grinding of enamel could almost be heard. A thick vein bulged and throbbed on his forehead. His right foot struck the stone floor over and over with barely restrained fury.
Tap… Tap… Tap…
Valcryst stood a few steps behind him. The mark of Itsuki's slap was still swollen and red on his face. His lower lip was slightly split. With a voice that tried to sound firm but couldn't hide its tremor, he said:
"Father… what happens now?"
Ashlor slowly turned his head toward him.
His gaze… was dangerous.
Through clenched teeth and a voice sharpened by anger, he said, "Don't talk so much, you useless brat… If you had stabbed Itsuki with the dagger back then, we wouldn't be in this situation. We could've done something… taken Arisa hostage… and I would've forced Kais to put the crown on my head."
Valcryst frowned. He was still inexperienced… but not foolish.
"It's like you don't know Uncle Kais… He's the kind of man who'd cut off someone's head with a single move if they even looked at his family wrong. And you wanted to stab Itsuki… then take his beloved little daughter hostage?"
Each word was gasoline on fire.
Ashlor's breathing grew heavier.
The vein on his forehead bulged further.
His teeth ground harder.
Suddenly—
With a savage movement, he lunged forward, grabbed Valcryst by the collar, and lifted him off the ground. The boy's legs flailed in the air.
Bam!
He slammed him violently against the stone wall.
The stones trembled.
"Stop calling that damn Kais 'uncle'!!"
Ashlor's eyes were red. His face trembled with rage. His breath struck his son's face.
Valcryst let out a muffled groan of pain, his hands gripping his father's wrists—but he didn't dare resist.
And at that very moment—
Creeeak…
The thick prison gate opened.
A heavy white light poured into the cell.
Both of them froze in it for a moment.
Within the light… stood an imposing silhouette.
A long cloak draped over massive golden armor. The edges of the armor gleamed like sword blades under the light.
The sound of boots echoed through the corridor.
Tap…
Tap…
Tap…
With each step, it felt as if the air pressure increased.
Ashlor's rage died.
Not from calm—
But from a fear deeper than anger.
His grip slowly loosened from his son's collar.
The figure stopped before the cell bars.
And silence…
A silence deadlier than any scream.
When Ashlor saw the man's face fully revealed in the light… his breath caught for a moment.
Cold sweat ran down his temple. It felt as if someone had poured a bucket of ice down his spine. His hand slackened, releasing Valcryst.
Valcryst coughed and staggered to his feet, clutching his throat. He was breathing heavily. Beads of sweat gathered on his face, and his gaze shifted between his father and the man before them.
A deep, heavy, merciless voice shook the prison:
"Let me see… what justification do you have for your crime… Ashlor?"
His name echoed like a death sentence.
Before the bars stood Kais.
Emperor of the Shamrocks.
The most powerful man in the world.
The palace corridor was long and silent… only the sharp sound of their steps echoed against the cold stone.
Arisa walked ahead, her cloak swaying behind her. Zeno followed slightly behind, hands in his pockets, frowning.
"Is Itsuki really that bad?"
His tone sounded casual… but concern lingered beneath it.
Arisa suddenly stopped and turned around. Her eyes widened.
"Do you seriously not understand what you did?!"
Zeno paused.
Raised an eyebrow.
Touched his chin as if reviewing a simple problem.
"As far as I remember… I punched Itsuki… then he said something… 'weak'… then I punched him again… and I think he passed out."
A few seconds of silence.
Arisa took a deep breath.
Not from exhaustion… from controlling her anger.
"You were destroying half the capital, Zeno."
She started walking again.
"When you lost control… the ground cracked. The southern walls collapsed. Your shockwave reached the central market."
Zeno furrowed his brows.
"You're exaggerating."
Arisa stopped. Turned. Locked her gaze into his.
"Vail had to hide underground."
Her voice lowered.
"If he had reacted even a little later… there'd be nothing left of him but a crater of blood."
Zeno's steps slowed.
A brief image flashed in his mind.
His fist.
Shattered earth.
Pressure.
The sound of breaking.
His hand unconsciously clenched into a fist.
"I just… when I hear the word 'weak'…"
His voice grew quieter.
"Something breaks inside my head."
Arisa looked at him. This time not with anger… but worry.
"You don't just get angry, Zeno…"
Itsuki's chamber door was near. Torchlight flickered across the carved wood.
"You turn into something even I can't stop."
Zeno fell silent.
For the first time… truly silent.
Behind the door, the sound of Itsuki's heavy breathing could be heard.
And for the first time—
Zeno asked himself:
What if next time… no one is there to stop me?
Arisa sighed.
"This time we were lucky… my father arrived."
Her hand rested on the handle. The door opened softly.
Warm light spilled across her face.
"Next time, I'm not sure—"
Her words froze.
Her eyes widened.
Her lips remained half-open.
Several seconds of silence.
Zeno, standing behind her, frowned.
"What happened? Why are you frozen?"
He stepped forward, passed beside her, and looked inside the room—
And at that moment—
His cheeks turned red.
His eyes widened.
He didn't blink.
Like a robot, very slowly…
He made a full one-hundred-eighty-degree turn.
And without a word, faced the door.
Inside the room, on the bed, Itsuki was half-sitting…
And his wife, worried yet smiling through tears, was holding his face and kissing him.
Itsuki noticed them and opened his eyes.
"Oh…"
His wife suddenly realized too and quickly pulled back.
Arisa finally snapped out of it, her face red.
"W-We'll come back later!"
Zeno still stood with his back to the room. Hands clasped behind him.
Like a soldier on guard.
Under his breath, he muttered:
"I didn't see anything."
A few seconds of pause.
Then even more quietly:
"There wasn't even anything to see."
From inside the room came Itsuki's weak but mischievous voice:
"If you were going to come in, knocking first wouldn't have been a bad idea."
Without turning around, Zeno replied:
"I did knock… you didn't answer…"
Arisa elbowed him hard in the side.
"Shut up!"
Royal Prison of the Shamrock Palace:
Kais's golden armor gleamed beneath the torchlight—not like gold… like restrained fire. His heavy cloak moved calmly behind him. His eyes… cold, piercing, emotionless.
Ashlor was suffocating.
His throat was dry. His heart pounded so loudly he could hear it himself. But years of politics, betrayal, and survival had taught him how to hide fear behind a mask of pride.
He straightened slowly.
Lifted his chin.
"Crime?" His voice was slightly hoarse but unbroken. "I was merely defending my right."
Kais didn't even blink.
He took a single step forward.
The cell bars seemed heavier under the pressure of his presence.
"Right?" His voice lowered. More dangerous. "Your right was to stab my heir? Or to use my daughter as a bargaining tool?"
The prison air thickened.
Valcryst instinctively stepped back.
For a moment, Ashlor couldn't answer.
Kais's gaze… like an invisible blade cutting through skin. Reading him. Lies, fear, intent… all of it.
Sweat dripped from beside Ashlor's ear.
Yet he forced a faint smile.
"You always thought you were stronger than me, little brother… but the crown was mine."
For the first time, Kais's eyes darkened slightly.
An invisible power trembled in the air.
The torches flickered.
Fine cracks formed along the stone walls.
Valcryst looked around in fear.
Kais spoke calmly:
"The difference between you and me, Ashlor… is that I didn't fight for the crown."
A brief pause.
"I fought to protect this empire."
Silence.
Heavy.
Deadly.
And for the first time, Ashlor understood…
This meeting was not for questioning.
It was for judgment.