Although Lilith seemed furious, she ultimately let Maur ride her carriage back to the Violet County Manor.

The royal golden carriage rolled to a smooth halt before the gates of the Violet County Manor. Maur lifted the curtain, ready to jump out—when silver-haired, gray-eyed Lilith suddenly seized his left hand, the one parting the fabric.

Maur twisted to glare at her. “What? Don’t even think I’ll thank you!”

It was just a ride.

If Lilith hadn’t held him back, he’d have escaped long before Mavis woke.

Lilith stared silently. The carriage’s cramped air filled her nostrils with the lingering scent of moss incense clinging to Maur—alongside the rich fragrance of Swamp Rose, and other traces imperceptible to humans but impossible for her, as a beastkin, to ignore.

“You should consider the consequences of your recklessness, Maur.”

How could she pretend ignorance when the evidence was this obvious?

So last night… Maur and Mavis really had *done it*.

…Even if Maur had been involved with a woman, Lilith wouldn’t be this troubled.

But it had to be the young master of Duke Fred’s house!

Only three dukes existed in the entire Somaria Empire—each commanding elite cavalry units guarding the borders.

Lilith’s brow furrowed; her grip tightened unconsciously.

“In three months, Athena returns from the northern frontier to the Royal Capital for your engagement. If your affair with Mavis surfaces now… do you grasp what happens?”

A royal scandal would void the betrothal.

Mavis? As a duke’s heir, Duke Fred’s influence could bury the matter. At worst, he’d retreat to the family lands, still privileged.

But Maur?

The Violet House held no mines, no thriving trade, negligible taxes. Their sworn knights barely formed a two-thousand-strong unit—just enough to keep up appearances. Before the engagement announcement, they were utterly obscure.

When the Empress named the Violet House’s eldest son as suitor to the First Princess? Nobles were stunned.

What did the Empress gain from allying with a fading count’s line?

Athena—the Dawn of the Empire, blessed by twelve angels at birth, destined to rule—deserved a foreign prince traveling miles to become *her* consort.

So why *him*?

“The nobles of the Royal Capital see you as a stain on the Dawn Princess’s radiance,” Lilith murmured.

Yet greedily, they whispered: *If Maur qualifies… why not our heirs?*

“Your antics—cheating exams, bullying nobles—the Empress overlooks them *only* because you’re Athena’s fiancé. Others seethe but stay silent.”

After all, monthly carts of treasures rolled from the Dawn Princess’s residence to the Violet County Manor. Proof of her devotion.

But if that protection vanished?

How would he survive the backlash?

Worse—

“I know noble circles are open,” Lilith said gravely. “Lovers are an open secret. Even the Empress isn’t bound to one consort.”

“But of all people—you chose *Mavis*!”

Between men? Taboo, even here. In some lands, gallows-worthy.

Thankfully, Lilith guarded the dressing room last night. No one else should know.

But Mavis’s behavior today… they’d grow careless. Trouble was inevitable.

She’d thought Maur understood the stakes.

Instead, his eyes lit up. “Wait—you mean if my relationship with Mavis leaks… the engagement to Athena gets *canceled*?”

*This* was good news?!

Maur had been desperate to break free. Since dreaming his fate, he knew: as Athena’s canon fiancé, he’d die no matter the heroine’s choice. If he couldn’t eliminate her first, shedding this identity was critical.

“What nonsense!” Lilith stared, horrified. “Are you mad? If exposed, do you think you’d *leave* the Royal Capital alive?”

A scandal tarnishing Somaria’s light—the Dawn Princess?

The Empress would silence the culprit. Maur would “fall ill” before the ceremony. A dead fiancé’s rumors couldn’t stain Athena’s purity.

Lilith never doubted her mother’s ruthlessness.

Maur finally paled, silenced by fear—

Then his eyes sparkled like starlight. He grabbed Lilith’s hand, his palm burning with excitement.

“Silly dog! I’ve got the *perfect* plan to annul the engagement!” he cried, radiant.

Lilith’s world went quiet.

“You…”

Her fingers tightened around his retreating hand. His gaze—bright, earnest—unlocked a memory: their very first meeting.