The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away - Chapter 9.1
Leslun, not yet knowing he had become Kailos’s aide, lay flat on his back, his two fingers fidgeting restlessly.
He still hadn’t been able to come down from the Crown Prince’s bed. The more his body sank into the mattress, the more comfortable it felt, the more uneasy his heart became. How had things turned out like this?
Leslun still couldn’t believe the person he had become entangled with was Crown Prince Kailos.
Kailos was not born of the current Empress. On the day the Empress failed to produce an imperial heir, the Emperor had brought forward a boy, claiming him as his own blood.
That very day, the young boy was made the empire’s only prince and entered into the imperial registry as the Empress’s son.
In the capital, rumors spread that the Crown Prince was born of a handmaiden who had spent one night with the Emperor. Everyone who carried those rumors met with the Emperor’s merciless hand and were eradicated.
Many whispered in secret that the Crown Prince’s temperament was the spitting image of the Emperor’s.
Even after Kailos’s birth, the Empress bore no further children. Not even a princess. Thus, the only bloodline to inherit the throne was Kailos.
Though the common origin of his mother was regrettable, Kailos was exceptionally gifted. From childhood he excelled in many fields, and the Emperor comforted his regret by saying that even this brilliance was proof the boy resembled him.
With the Emperor’s trust as his foundation, Kailos was free to display his talents. When he became Crown Prince, he never doubted the throne would one day be his.
That was—until the birth of his younger brother.
When the Empress gave birth to Cassian, everything changed. Even before the infant could walk, his very existence shook Kailos’s position.
The Emperor’s support had been Kailos’s greatest and only power, but even the Emperor—who had praised him so highly until then—began to change his attitude.
“Your bloodline is in question.”
He was speaking of the maternal blood flowing through the Crown Prince’s veins. In an instant, Kailos had become a liability. He endured, barely surviving, walking a tightrope.
That was why, the moment he ascended the throne, he cast out his younger brother. It was also the decisive moment he became the true antagonist opposing the protagonist.
The Empire’s second prince, Cassian, was the very protagonist of this novel.
From the day the protagonist returned to the Empire, the two were locked in an endless struggle. That was how the story began.
And now Leslun had been caught within a whirlpool of that storm he had never wished to be entangled with.
He was slowly coming to realize that fact.
Leslun, face pulled into a miserable frown, stared blankly at the mural painted on the ceiling. Then he heard the sound of approaching footsteps in the distance.
Unlike before, these steps carried no hesitation or uncertainty—clear and full of confidence.
Reflexively, Leslun tried to raise his upper body, but because he had lain stiff for so long, his body refused to obey him.
In an instant, he lost his balance and flailed. The way his arms stretched out looked rather ridiculous.
Fortunately, the bed was soft, so he wasn’t at risk of crashing to the floor. Still, tangled in the messy sheets, Leslun scrambled upright, lifting his head with embarrassment lodged in his throat.
“Bored, were you?”
Kailos stood in the doorway, arms crossed, looking down at him. His voice was calm, but the corner of his mouth curved faintly upward.
Why that expression? The question flitted through Leslun’s mind, but he lowered his head silently.
Kailos walked over at a leisurely pace and stopped near the bed. His gaze swept over Leslun, who sat tense, not quite upright.
Slowly. From top to bottom.
Leslun reflexively clutched the blanket he had been holding, gathering it tight against his chest.
“Congratulations.”
The abrupt words made Leslun’s eyes widen.
“You’ve earned your life.”
The fragile bubble of hope burst instantly. That was not what he wanted.
“My family?”
“Greedy, aren’t you. If you bet one thing, you should only take one in return.”
Kailos smiled lazily. His eyes gleamed with amusement as he watched Leslun’s feelings play out so openly across his face.
But within that gaze was a chill. You dare bring up your family in front of me, just after meeting with the Empress?
“I thought you’d be sharper at calculations than that. Was I wrong?”
His cold eyes carried the weight of a merchant tallying sums. It was impossible to tell if he was being sincere, or if this was merely a test.
It was indeed Leslun’s mistake that he had not secured the Crown Prince’s promise to save his family. He bit his lip hard and lowered his gaze.
To say he wasn’t disheartened would be a lie, but more than that, worry pressed on him first.
If he said he was going to his parents, would the Crown Prince really let him go so easily?
Count Camilo must already have realized he had vanished. What if he took Leslun’s parents as hostages?
Caught in these thoughts, Leslun failed to remember that the Crown Prince was still right beside him.
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