Chapter 4

Third Person.

At the Raypord Manor.

In the heavy atmosphere, the eldest son, Shuilla, sat on the sofa in the parlor, gradually piecing together the situation like a puzzle.

The shameless sister who clung to the Crown Prince.

The sister who denied it several times.

She said she was just greeting him, that she wasn't in love.

I scolded Muulan for her flimsy excuses.

I couldn't stand how detestable she was.

To be honest, I don't remember all the words I threw at Muulan.

I didn't even remember how many times I said them.

I just spewed out the words that came to mind in my frustration.

How did my sister, Muulan, take it?

I couldn't imagine. My mind resisted even trying to imagine it.

"Brother..."

Startled, I looked up to see my young brother standing in front of me with a worried expression.

"What's wrong, Tyler?"

Shuilla managed to force a smile.

"Muulan said goodbye..."

I gasped.

Was Muulan serious? She left with Father, wearing a simple dress, and even took a trunk.

She left behind documents asking to be removed from the family. Even without her signature, she could leave the house.

"That's...," Shuilla, at a loss for words, was interrupted by Tyler, who was gripping his white tail tightly.

"Sister said I wasn't to blame."

"Huh...?"

"She hugged me and said I wasn't to blame."

The anxious young Tyler just wanted to be affirmed.

Shuilla, feeling a painful constriction in his throat and chest, forced a smile.

"Ah, Tyler, you're not to blame."

He hugged him and said,

"You're not to blame."

If only he could have said the same to his sister.

But he never saw her again.

How could he, who was at fault, have the nerve to say those words to her?

He would never understand.

At the royal conference room.

Amid the accusatory gazes directed at Lord Raypord, who had caused his daughter to make a terrible decision, Muulan was granted permission to speak.

She claimed that she was the Crown Prince Lud's "fated mate."

"I have the right to 'mate dissolution' and took 'remedial measures' without declaring 'mate status.' For nearly two years since our first meeting, I have been in constant turmoil. This is not just my problem. Every day, I questioned whether this decision was right. I searched the royal library for alternatives, but I continued to struggle."

She paused, then glanced coldly at the adults in front of her.

"What about you?"

Her cold question left the kings and queens puzzled.

"Speaking as someone who was once the 'fated mate,' was the Crown Prince suitable to be the next king?"

Her statement sent shockwaves through the room.

"Disrespectful!" cries echoed, but Muulan remained unfazed.

"Why don't you consider why I chose 'mate dissolution' when I never even harbored affection?"

The counter-question made everyone think.

Muulan was said to have clung to the Crown Prince, but that wasn't true.

She claimed she never had any romantic feelings from the start.

Was there really a lady who didn't get carried away by the handsome Crown Prince being her 'fated mate'?

No, that led back to her previous disrespectful statement.

Muulan Raypord decided on 'mate dissolution' because she believed the Crown Prince was unsuitable to be the next king.

"What right do you have...!!"

The queen let out a hoarse cry, her tear-streaked eyes glaring at Muulan.

Her tears were likely due to her son losing his 'fated mate.'

"I only had the right to 'mate dissolution.' As a mere viscount's daughter, I couldn't advise the Crown Prince to change his arrogant behavior like the royal couple could."

Muulan, coldly, repeated her statement.

After questioning the Crown Prince's suitability as the next king, she criticized the royal couple.

The dignitaries were speechless.

Muulan turned her criticism on them as well.

"What about the more influential dignitaries? Some of you have seen the Crown Prince's behavior toward me. Did you think it was acceptable for the next king? No one ever reprimanded him, which is why he is the way he is now."

Everyone's faces turned grim.

The Crown Prince's character was the only flaw, everyone thought.

But no one reprimanded him, not even his parents.

"I believe his arrogance grew because his parents, who should have reprimanded him, did not."

"But, but...!"

The queen gripped her fan so tightly it might break, unable to admit her fault but desperately wanting to blame Muulan.

Muulan continued calmly and flatly, as if trying to convince them.

"Is it right for someone who imposes unreasonable demands on servants and shows no gratitude or respect to be in a position of power? Is it right for someone who boasts of their abilities, looks down on others, and belittles them to be in a position of power? Can such a person become a king who cares for his people? Even if you think so..."

She closed her eyes briefly, but when she opened them, her gaze was unwavering.

"I, who was the 'fated mate,' did not think it was right."

That was all.

The 'fated mate' of the Crown Prince, who was to be the next king, could not allow it.

To prevent the arrogant Crown Prince from becoming king, a mere viscount's daughter made a decision that shook the kingdom.

Anyone who entered the royal castle had seen the Crown Prince's violent behavior.

Even younger nobles had heard rumors.

While he might have restrained himself in front of the royal couple, his arrogant attitude was well-known.

They excused his behavior because he was excellent.

Everyone in this room had accepted the arrogant Crown Prince.

Only Muulan, who was the 'fated mate,' did not.

That was the result.

The heavy silence in the conference room was broken when the door opened.

In came the subject of everyone's discussion, Crown Prince Lud.

He stumbled forward, pale, trying to approach Muulan.

Tension spread through the room.

However, some foolish people still held out hope.

Maybe everything could be resolved.

"Mu, Muulan..."

Lud, hesitantly, called out. Muulan looked at him expressionlessly, greeted him with a curtsey as usual.

Calmly, indifferently. There was no emotion, no hint of love.

Lud, only now realizing,

that Muulan had never thought of him at all,

felt a pain that tore at his heart.

"Why... why is this happening?"

"Lud, stop. Go back to your room."

The king's voice of restraint went unheard.

Lud's hand reached out, but he couldn't move, and his hand fell short.

Muulan's gaze was cold and emotionless.

"I'm sorry for being cold. I didn't know! Please! Revoke it! Muulan!"

He pleaded desperately.

"Should I forgive you just because you didn't know? Is it acceptable to insult someone you only greet as a 'fated mate'? Is it acceptable to ignore them rudely? Is it acceptable to throw vases and wooden swords at them, even if it's just for fun?"

"Huh..."

Muulan, as calm and flat as before, continued without raising her voice, as if trying to convince him.

Lud, swallowing hard, broke out in a cold sweat, clutching his chest.

"When I first met the Crown Prince, you were kicking a dragon in the face. I thought you were a terrible person. The servants said, 'Not again,' so it wasn't just a one-time thing. After the formal meeting, I understood you were my 'fated mate,' but how could I have feelings for someone who could do such things?"

Lud could only breathe shallowly, hearing that even recognizing him as her 'fated mate' didn't change her feelings.

"No servants were directly harmed, but is it acceptable to be violent to dragons, who are a noble race? You bullied a lower noble's son just for bumping into you. You are a cruel and terrifying person."

"No, that's not..."

"Many people fear the Crown Prince. Do you not know that servants work in fear of when your power might be directed at them? The weaker nobles feel the same."

"No, no, that's not true!"

His denials were too weak to have any meaning.

"An arrogant, violent Crown Prince who boasts of his abilities and shows no consideration or gratitude. That is who I saw for 333 days."

"A... aah..."

The image of himself in Muulan's, the 'fated mate's,' eyes.

Hearing it, Lud despaired.

His eyes darted around, desperately searching for words. Finding none, he collapsed on the spot.

"If such a person were to become the next king, many people would suffer. Most of all... I could never be the companion of such a person—"

She didn't finish, out of mercy.

To a dragon person, those words were like a sharp blade.

"On the king's order, take Lud back to his room."

Lud, dragged away by the royal guards, struggled but couldn't stand properly.

Muulan, already resolved, showed no reaction.

"Wait! Muulan! Please! I beg you! Don't leave me! Muulan!!"

Lud thrashed and struggled, but was dragged away.

Muulan, mercilessly, showed no response.

She had already made up her mind, and it wouldn't waver.

Muulan, who was the 'fated mate.'

Lud, who had lost his 'mate.'

The king groaned, trying to accept the reality.

"Here are the records of books I found on 'fated mates.' I couldn't find a way to change the fate of a dragon person who has lost their 'mate,' but scholars might have some hope."

Muulan placed the papers on the conference table.

"I am leaving this kingdom. Having deprived the next king of his qualifications, I cannot stay. It's up to you to handle the rest."

No one objected to Muulan leaving the kingdom.

It was taboo to suggest she return as a 'fated mate.'

No one even knew how to do it.

Even her father couldn't tell her to stay in the kingdom.

He couldn't guarantee her safety after she had shaken the kingdom.

The decision was made.

Lud, who had lost his 'fated mate' and even the mark of the royal family from the beast god, was no longer the Crown Prince and was confined to a palace.

He wasn't treated as a criminal. It was the least they could do for someone who would wither after losing their 'mate.'

The new Crown Prince was the former Crown Prince's brother, a duke who had already renounced his succession rights.

A new gemstone was born and shone during the ceremony.

The fact that Lud had lost his 'fated mate' was made public.

To clear Muulan's name, the general course of events was also revealed.

The royal couple would take responsibility, and the former duke and duchess, now the Crown Prince and Princess, would take the throne once preparations were complete.

Lud's fate after losing his 'fated mate' was not mentioned, but the people thought it wouldn't be long.

It was a well-known fact, even to children, that beast people, especially dragon people, wither quickly after losing their 'mates.'

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Next, the perspective of the trash Crown Prince.

2024/02/03