Chapter 5

The first time Deric saw Irene was on the evening of his return to the Empire with the end-of-war treaty. The royal palace had invited all the nobles in celebration of his return home; however, Deric, the main character of the event, was not the least impressed.

At the mere age of 10, he had to leave his homeland with his teeth clenched hard, in an effort to not cry. So, he wasn’t at all impressed by the kingdom’s gratitude towards him returning after 14 years.

Born as an only son, he was a warmhearted prince who was loved by his parents, subjects and all. But the life he led in the Kingdom of Elsion was enough to completely change any human.

Those were days when he had to live without dying.

There was not a single day of peace in the mansion that the King of Elsion mockingly provided them. Poison, assassination attempts, kidnapping… Almost every night, someone from his entourage died. Deric, who had been a crown prince since birth, soon realized that to protect his people, he would need to be strong and to be strong he’d have to conceal his weaknesses.