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"… Over time, Her Highness's mind was broken," the butler said. "She began distancing herself away from everyone, and her smiles became fake, plastic. That smile she showed last night as she hugged your arm… that was the first genuine smile I have seen on her face for a long time."

"… That's cruel."

I looked down at the ground and clenched my fists. If she was to be treated like this… perhaps it would've been better for her to die when she was born and not have to suffer through all this.

"… Slowly, her personality became split. Sometimes, she would be cheery and innocent no matter what anyone said to her, while other times, she would suddenly turn dark and ruthless, murdering the servants and guards sent to watch over her. Eventually, her quarters became desolate, without anyone to care after her. She was forced to learn and do everything by herself."

"… So that's where she learned her cooking skills from, huh?"

.

"That girl… she may be a princess in name, but here in the city, everyone treats her as if she does not exist. The king first planned on marrying her to another nation to secure a political relationship with them, but all the suitors had heard of her before. The "Cursed Princess", they called her. None of them wanted to marry a crazy killer like her who could break at any time. Then, the queen made a suggestion to the king."

"… What was it?"

"… If they could not marry Her Highness off, they could at least send her away to a different place — a different Realm. With the excuse of telling her to find herself a suitable husband there, the king sent her away, thinking she would never be able to find someone given her bloodthirsty and psychopathic nature. But… she found you."

"… Yeah. Because she doesn't just kill for no reason," I muttered. Though I came close to angering her a few times.

"The king and queen, unfortunately, do not realize that. They think of Her Highness as nothing but a nuisance, something they needed to get of."

"… I see. But the prince… he seems to be obsessed with her, for some reason," I said thoughtfully. "Any idea why?"

"That is most likely because he believe himself to be the only man stronger than her, thus able to contain her. He too does not love Her Highness wholeheartedly, but instead only wants her as a possession. Ever since a young age, he has always looked down on her and saw her as a plaything for him, but only now that they are both of age has he actually began making moves."

"How repulsive," I remarked, stroking my chin. "And I'm guessing he's so pissed off because I managed to defeat him today, which essentially proves that I can also contain Axilia."

The butler nodded. "That would be the case, yes."

"So… it seems the core feeling making Axilia the way she is right now is loneliness. I think now that she has me… that will heal over time. But that won't fix her personality, unfortunately…"

"Indeed it will not. Once her mind has been split like this, it cannot be repaired. However… it can still be mended, so long as you treat it with care."

"I understand. But you know… despite the rest of the kingdom completely neglecting her… you, old geezer, seem to actually care about her. Why is that so?"

"That…" He clenched his fists and swallowed some saliva, as if debating whether or not to tell me this. I waited patiently for him to make his decision — pushing anything right now was not wise.

After several seconds, he finally spoke again.

"… It's because I am her grandfather."

"… C-Come again?"

Now this, I was not expecting. The butler… is Axilia's real grandfather?! As in, he is her real mother's father?!

"I am sure you are both confused and skeptical. Therefore, allow me to explain," he said, clearing his throat. "When I was younger, I joined the castle as a servant. Over time, I began making my way up the ranks, eventually arriving at the position of head butler I am at today. Love, however, was forbidden for the workers here."

"… Then how did you…"

"Patience, boy. I am getting there. Although love was forbidden… the girl I had been in love with at the time was just too difficult for me to forget. As such, I would sneak out of the castle on my breaks to meet up and spend time with her, much like the king had done with Axilia's mother. Eventually, the girl I was in love with and I had a child, but I could not care for it. The girl, however, did not mind and raised the child all on her own. That child would then grow up to become Princess Aucerina's mother."

"Did she… know about you being her grandfather?"

"Yes, she did. Even now, I visit her from time to time. After the queen found out about her and the king, she told me about Aucerina. And now that I know she is my granddaughter… I will never let any harm come to her."

"Yeah? Well, you failed miserably, as clearly seen," I snorted mercilessly.

"G-Guh… your words cut deep, boy. But know that even a head butler like myself is just a servant of this castle in the end. There are limits to what I can do, and protecting her emotionally is not one of them, given how her mental issues directly relate with the king, queen, and prince. The only thing I am able to do is protect her physically."

"So… you are willing to do anything to protect her?" I taunted.

"Yes. For she is my granddaughter."

"Even treason, if it comes to it?"

"… Yes," he replied once more, albeit this time with some hesitation.

"I see. That's all I needed to hear. Whenever I need you, butler… I'll be counting on you."

"… Just what are you planning, kid? You will never be able to fight this entire kingdom by yourself."

"Who said anything about fighting?" I chuckled. "I'm not stupid enough to try and fight against an entire army by myself. But for my plan to succeed… I do need to take out someone in particular."

"… Who?"

I smiled. "The prince, of course."

"W-Wha… as in… permanently?"

I nodded. "If I don't get rid of him, he will chase Axilia and I down back to the Living Realm, where I'm planning on taking her. This place… it's not worthy of being her home."

"You are planning on taking her to the Living Realm?"

"What, got a problem?"

The butler shook his head. "No, none at all. I will miss her, but… I do agree that it is better if she leaves this place behind. However…  given her current state… will she just listen to you?"

"Oh, you misunderstand. I'm not just going to rope her away tonight or anything. There are certain things that need to happen first. For instance… showing her what love and friendship truly is."

"… Love, I understand — you can do that. But friendship? No one here will show that to her."

"You're right. No one here will. But if my calculations are correct… someone should be coming into the Death Realm sooner or later. Someone both you and I know."

"Who…?" The butler was confused. I grinned smugly and opened my mouth to tell his puzzled wrinkled old face who the person was, but then, my eyes suddenly widened.

"The barrier… shit!"

I immediately turned tail and ran back to the house, sensing the barrier I erected being torn down.

"Wha- kid, what are you- ugh, wait!"

The butler ran after me at a pretty shocking speed for his age, and together, the two of us headed back to the house to see who was trying to hurt Axilia.

*****

- Earlier, The Living Realm: Long Family Residency -

"Take a seat, all of you," Ling Xin said, motioning for the other girls in the room to all sit down. Then, she glanced at the people who didn't need to be in the room, standing off to one side. "Patriarch, matriarch, and you two. Leave. The contents of this conversation is not for you to hear."

The two she was referring to were Ming Hao and Long Lu respectively, who rose up in dissatisfaction.

"Hey, wait," Ming Hao cut in, narrowing his eyes. "With all due respect, Shadow Empress… Xuan Kai is our friend. If you know what happened to him and whether he is still alive or not… we'd like to know as well."

At this, Ling Xin shot him a dark glare that was unusual for her, causing both of them to gulp in fear and back off. The patriarch and matriarch, seeing this, hurriedly brought the two away and shut the doors. Ling Xin eyed them for a moment more, then set up a Sound Barrier around the room and took a deep breath.

"Since you are all Xuan Kai's lovers… I think you deserve to know this."

"… Do you truly know where Master is?" Mei Gui asked, being the first to speak up.

Ling Xin nodded. "Yes. But whether he is still alive or not… I don't know. The only thing I can tell you is that he did not die from the fall."

"Then where did he go…?" Feng Mian asked in worry, biting her lip.

Ling Xin gritted her teeth and clenched her fists tightly on the couch she was sitting on, then closed her eyes.

"It's a place I know very well. And its name… is the Death Realm."