Chapter 30
“The entire continent has come to want Kanoe Bluebell.”
Leaning lazily against the backrest, the man lifted a teacup. The subtle aroma of coffee spread through the room.
“Of course, that includes me. Her face is quite to my taste.”
His eyes narrowed as he glanced down at the wanted poster. Violet pupils, the same color as his hair, shimmered under the light.
They looked endlessly languid and carefree—yet there was the same leisure as a predator looking down at its prey.
“…Your Highness, your jokes have grown lately.”
At the calm voice from across the table, the man indifferently raised the wanted poster.
“Take a good look. Isn’t she cute here, smiling so awkwardly?”
Soft sky-blue hair and transparent, watery eyes. The woman in the picture wore an unpracticed smile, as though the situation was unfamiliar to her.
Even through that clumsy smile, the clear, radiant light of her eyes drew attention irresistibly.
“Well, if you grew up alongside her from childhood, it’s only natural your judgment would be less than objective.”
The man set the poster down, as if his companion’s reaction bored him, and flipped through a disorderly stack of newspapers.
“No, perhaps you’re the one being most objective of all.”
The faint curve of his lips followed. It was impossible to tell if it was a sneer or genuine amusement.
“And that’s precisely why you doubled her bounty, isn’t it?”
He casually lifted the cup to his lips. Through the steam rising above the tea, his alluring eyes shifted slowly.
“Lev Valentir.”
Across from him, Lev quietly moved his hands, tidying the table with unfaltering poise. He smiled softly.
“…Crown Prince Ashton. You are aware, are you not?”
Ashton shrugged, feigning ignorance. At that, Lev’s calm voice continued.
“Just how dangerous Kanoe Bluebell’s awakened water ability truly is.”
Honestly, what a dull man. Ashton cast Lev a fleeting, unimpressed glance for not even humoring a joke.
“With the bounty increased, not only citizens but more factions will target her. Pirates, mercenaries, assassins… they’ll all turn their eyes toward Kanoe.”
Ashton’s eyes narrowed slightly. He set his cup down again, tilting his chin with renewed interest.
“Because the information that she hasn’t left the Silent Sea has already spread.”
“So you intend to send small fry into the Silent Sea?”
Once, the Aquilaea Empire had lost countless naval forces there.
Unstable currents, treacherous terrain, and the occasional appearance of abyssal monsters.
Underestimating that sea, the royal house had suffered bitter losses. Afterward, they resolved never to deploy the navy there again.
This time was no different. Rather than forcing their fleet, the royals sought another approach.
The mysterious assaults along the coasts had scattered their troops.
And for someone, that confusion was the perfect chance to move.
Lev tilted his cup slightly, smiling serenely.
“I merely stirred the waves.”
The brown liquid trickled down the inner wall of the cup.
“Who will flounder in them… only the Sage of Astrel could foresee.”
That answer pleased Ashton. A faint smile deepened his lips.
For such a rigid man as the head of House Valentir, Lev was surprisingly candid. Ashton disliked dull people—but those who did not conceal their desires, he found tolerable.
“Opportunity comes the moment the fog clears.”
He rose slowly and moved toward the window. Soft sunlight spilled through golden curtains.
Ashton picked up a rose. A crimson drop welled at his fingertip where the thorn pricked him.
“When Kanoe Bluebell steps out of the Silent Sea.”
His quiet voice reverberated in the room.
“All one must do is reach out a hand.”
Gazing at the rose in his hand, Ashton added lowly:
“A single flower is enough to lure the insects hiding nearby, don’t you think?”
Snap.
The rose’s stem broke.
Slowly, he turned his head.
Lev Valentir—he was a man who kept honor closer than people. He gripped his house tightly, yet easily let friends slip away.
Ashton found that rather amusing.
“I look forward to the day you ascend as head of your noble house.”
Lev slowly rose and bowed his head.
“It would be an honor, Your Highness.”
The greeting was courteous yet flawless. As he withdrew, silence fell. Ashton stared at the empty spot for a while before turning his gaze to the window.
The imperial flag fluttered in the breeze. Beyond the glass stretched a dazzling blue sky. A truly peaceful afternoon, if nothing else.
Ashton gently set the rose down and chuckled quietly.
“A man who abandoned his friend, and the woman who doesn’t even see him as human.”
A playful smile tugged at his lips.
“What an amusing picture.”
“Stifling.”
In the carriage, Lev loosened his tie with deliberate slowness. Facing Crown Prince Ashton was always exhausting.
If he let his guard slip even a moment, the man would sever an ally’s head without hesitation—yet he still joked so easily.
“Report, sir. In front of the Veritas newspaper office, Frederic’s eldest son, Demian, has appeared.”
“…A newspaper office?”
Lev’s brows rose slightly at his aide’s report.
“Nothing unusual—he simply bought a paper, read it, and exchanged a few words with citizens.”
“That sounds just like him.”
Demian, the so-called problem child of Calenon, appearing in the capital was nothing new.
Lev received the reports only because Frederic’s movements required monitoring.
‘At this rate, I’ll memorize the names of all Demian’s women.’
His expression soured briefly, but he listened halfheartedly to the rest of Demian’s activities as his gaze wandered to the window.
Golden domes and white spires passed by. After visiting the palace, heading toward House Helenium was as natural as routine.
From the day Tiana had fallen into a coma.
“We’re moving now.”
The carriage rolled smoothly. Pale sunlight poured outside. Lev turned his eyes, devoid of emotion.
“Stop speaking carelessly of the woman I love.”
The words from the day he had confronted Kanoe replayed in his mind.
“…Though it was you who ruined everything.”
Why was she unshaken? Why had she only grown stronger?
He slowly clenched and opened his fist. The emptiness in his hand was strangely hollow.
While he was lost in thought, the familiar mansion came into view. In the garden, yellow heleniums shimmered under the sunlight.
“Lord Lev, you’ve arrived!”
“Hello, Heinz.”
Stepping out, he followed the butler down the quiet hallway. As always, his intent was only to leave a gift and depart.
Yet he paused before Tiana’s room. The heaviness pressing on his chest refused to ease.
After a brief hesitation, he spoke quietly:
“…Would it be all right for me to see Tiana today?”
“Of course, Lord Lev. Lady Tiana would be glad to see you.”
He gently pushed the door open. Setting the gift box carefully on the table, he walked slowly toward her bedside.
Soft sunlight streamed through the window. Her pale face lay still, breath faintly rising and falling.
Lev drew in a quiet breath.
At the Bluebell Hotel incident, a lethal toxin harmful to ability users had been detected in the sleeping incense used in the rooms.
That night, a young girl of the Florence family, inheriting beastkin blood, had died. And Tiana had fallen into a coma.
‘If only Kanoe hadn’t left you alone that night…’
It was said Tiana’s survival was a miracle—her healing ability had barely clung to her life.
‘If she had waited with you until you fell asleep, as usual.’
But neither House Helenium nor the palace healers could discover why she would not awaken.
‘That night wouldn’t have ended in such cruelty.’
Lev inhaled slowly, then opened his eyes again. The familiar helplessness weighed down his chest.
At that moment—Tiana’s eyelashes trembled faintly.
“…Lev?”
His fingers flinched. Her dry lips had shaped his name, and Lev’s eyes wavered violently.
Focus gathered in her sun-bright scarlet eyes. A fragile, vanishing voice murmured softly:
“Kanoe is…?”
Lev sucked in a breath, unable to believe what he was seeing.
But this was no illusion, no dream. It was reality.
Tiana Helenium—had awakened.
