Chapter 56
“No. Thoughts that come late at night are always meaningless.”
Amelia threw off her blanket and rose from bed, slipping her feet into her slippers. She didn’t think she’d be able to sleep anyway. More than that, she was uneasy about leaving the child alone. Her chest tightened with worry—what if something happened again?
Draping a shawl over her shoulders, Amelia walked cautiously down the hallway. Even if it meant dozing off in a chair, she intended to stay by Ian’s side.
“……”
Just as she neared his room, Amelia caught sight of a tall figure slipping out through the door. The silhouette wasn’t unfamiliar. How could she forget the man who emerged from the shadows in the dark of night?
Why is he here?
Confusion, anxiety, and fear flashed through her eyes in rapid succession. Was he here to harm Ian?
“…No way.”
She rushed forward, flinging the door open before the guards could stop her. The sudden motion sent the thin canopy by the crib fluttering into the air.
Howard’s wife looked up in alarm. Beside the crib stood a man, his hand resting on the wooden frame, quietly gazing down at the child. He turned calmly toward her.
Amelia didn’t avert her gaze. If he had come to harm Ian, she wanted her eyes to warn him—not while I’m here.
“I don’t know what you came for, but—”
Her voice faltered. Her eyes had landed on the man’s right hand inside the crib.
“Do you think I came to kill him?”
Ivan’s index finger was being grasped tightly by Ian’s tiny hand. Despite being a father who had only just shown up after everything, his posture spoke of desperation—like he couldn’t bear to be any farther away.
That was all. He hadn’t done anything to harm the child. He was simply watching over Ian, just to make sure he was safe—like someone who came not to hurt, but to see.
“If I wanted to kill him inside my own palace walls, there are far more efficient ways to do it.”
The words unspoken—What do you take me for?—hung heavy in the air. Ivan let out a humorless chuckle and gently removed his finger from Ian’s grasp. Through the wooden bars, Ian’s tiny face scrunched up in a whimper.
“The maid is dead.”
“……”
“No evidence, so punishment is difficult.”
Ivan merely glanced down at the crying baby once more, then turned and walked out, past Amelia without another word.
“It’s okay, Ian.”
Without even thinking, Amelia rushed to the crib and scooped up the sobbing child. As she comforted him, she glanced back at the door.
The place where Ivan had stood was now cleaned and tidy, but Amelia still remembered how long the stains and dampness had lingered after his visit. Just like the persistent emotions she’d tried and failed to wash away.
The things that don’t disappear even after someone’s gone.
Perhaps Ivan, too, was burdened by emotions he couldn’t shake off, no matter how hard he tried.
Feelings like that.
A final hope.
The maid who had attempted to poison Ian had died by her own poison—but even that wasn’t enough for Ivan to offer forgiveness. The rumors reached Amelia’s ears as well.
Some believed it was a justified punishment for harming someone so precious. Others thought his retribution had been too cruel. But, as always, Ivan paid no mind. He had never cared for others’ opinions.
“High Priestess, at least try to eat properly.”
“I’m fine.”
“You could lie him down where you can still see him.”
Madam Howard, clearly troubled, tried to persuade Amelia. Ever since the incident, Amelia hadn’t let Ian out of her arms for a single moment—not even during meals. She never returned to the dining hall and insisted that Ian always be within her line of sight.
“High Priestess, please listen to Madam Howard.”
Louis always sided with Madam Howard. And that only made Amelia more suspicious of him.
“At this rate, people might start saying the High Priestess gave birth herself.”
Louis spoke plainly, though others wouldn’t have even considered the possibility. He seemed worried that such baseless rumors might spread.
“Ian is as good as my own child.”
Amelia declared. The maids, including Madam Howard, looked visibly moved. Only Louis gave a faint, disapproving smirk.
“Madam Howard, I’ll keep Ian with me again tonight.”
Madam Howard didn’t object. After all, she bore some guilt—even if it hadn’t been intentional.
With the older woman’s permission, Amelia returned to her bedroom with Ian right after dinner. Truthfully, there wasn’t much else she could do but stay locked in with him.
“Just watching you like this, time flies.”
Ian had become so gentle it was hard to believe he was the same baby who once threw the palace into chaos. Once he adjusted to the new environment and Amelia’s constant presence, he settled down completely.
“Right?”
She tapped his chubby cheek with a finger. Ian gurgled and flailed his limbs happily. Whatever he was feeling, he looked cheerful. Amelia couldn’t help but smile in return.
“I can’t keep you locked indoors forever, though.”
She wanted to take him out to the gardens, let him feel the sunshine, watch people pass by… maybe even catch sight of the cats that sometimes wandered through.
“……”
But reality was far less peaceful. Even the cry of a stray cat startled her. Though night had already fallen, Amelia remained tense while Ian babbled on the bed.
The footsteps of patrolling guards, the distant meow of a cat in heat, the lonely cry of a bird, even the wind brushing past the windows…
“I told you to get rid of that useless thing, Louis.”
Once she realized Ivan hadn’t come to harm Ian, the fear didn’t subside—it worsened.
Aaron had always wanted Ian gone. If Aaron and Duke Russell were truly behind the poisoning, they would come again—when security was lax, when Amelia was alone. Or they might disguise the act, make it seem like a wild animal had snuck into the palace.
Amelia didn’t know how to stop them. Not unless she sided with Ivan… and let him kill them.
Without even Ivan’s protection, Ian would always be in danger. If Ivan kept pretending not to care, Ian wouldn’t survive.
“I’m sorry, Ian.”
Thoughts like these left her unable to sleep. She was terrified that someone would sneak in and take Ian away while she slept.
“I’m too powerless… too stupid.”
She hated how all she could do was sit there and stare at Ian helplessly, not knowing what to do to protect him.
And in those fearful, desperate moments… she never thought of any god. The face that came to mind was the cold, expressionless man who once looked at her with icy eyes.
The Emperor of Escliffe.
Ivan Wade Escliffe.
Ian’s father.
The man who had once pretended to love Amelia Escliffe.
Would it have been better if she had just closed her eyes to his lies? Would things be different now? The thought tortured her. It felt like she’d destroyed even the smallest chance for Ian’s survival with her impulsiveness.
“……”
She wanted to go to Ivan—even now—and beg him. For the sake of the child, resentment and hatred no longer mattered.
After all, Ivan had thrown himself into dirty water to save Ian, despite his obsession with cleanliness. He even came to check if the child was okay. He clearly cared.
Surely, he wouldn’t want his own son to be murdered by the likes of Duke Russell and Aaron.
Amelia finally made up her mind.
She would beg.
She would strike a deal.
She would do anything—if only Ivan would protect Ian as he’d once promised.
“Madam Warner, did His Majesty agree to the request?”
At dawn, Amelia had asked to meet Ivan with Ian. Warner promptly relayed the request to him.
“His Majesty has refused the audience.”
And with those words, Warner returned with a troubled face. A day passed. Then two. Then three. But Ivan never responded.
In that time, the second divine prophecy claimed another life.
People who drank the water began vomiting blood, writhing in agony before they died. The village was small, but nearly everyone in it perished. It wasn’t something that could be brushed off.
And then the third prophecy was delivered:
The river that ran through Escliffe would dry up.
