Chapter 80

[Verphin missing. Knights wearing dark blue armbands are attacking the imperial palace. Requesting assistance.]

He must have written it in an incredible hurry; ink was splattered all over the parchment. Hoping he had read it wrong, Byon read the telegram over and over.

As though he had noticed Byon’s complexion paling like the snow piled nearby, Eidan snatched the parchment from his hand.

‘Dark blue armbands? Did Michelle manage to escape prison in the meantime? It would be impossible for Michelle, a mere knight, to escape the palace prison alone, which means she still has someone inside the palace…. No, setting all that aside, what the hell are the palace knights doing!’

While Byon forced himself to remain calm and assess the situation, Eidan’s hand holding the parchment began to tremble.

“W-What is going on? If they’re wearing dark blue armbands, aren’t they Lady Michelle’s knights? Why are they attacking the palace….”

Ignoring Eidan’s frightened gaze, Byon strode into the cave. Muddy water from the melting snow soaked the hems of his trousers, but this was no time to worry about such things.

After taking control of the palace, Michelle would proclaim to the entire world the crimes he and the Grand Duke had committed in order to establish her justification and legitimacy.

If that happened, not only the Empire but the duchy as well would surely hunt him down.

Cornered, Byon rapidly revised his plans. Even if he had to abandon the war with the Empire, he absolutely had to preserve his position as heir to the duchy...