DSB 81

“As you can see, things are in chaos around here.”

“Ah, I understand what you mean. The Young Master is a frightening man. Your Highness must find it hard to deal with him.”

Lebel listened to Norman’s words while reading the emperor’s letter. Even in the letter, Yutis was still treated like a monster. It seemed they were worried he might suddenly change his mind and invade the empire.

It was the empire that needed to avoid war. Now that winter was over, the North was free to move again, so they would be even more cautious. They believed they had to deal with him quickly before he bared his fangs. And foolishly, they were convinced that once the Hestro family was gone, victory would be theirs.

“Well, you can’t handle him either.”

At that, Norman’s mouth tightened. Lebel’s careless remark seemed to have hurt his pride.

“You cannot be sure of that.”

“Your head would fall off before you finished reciting a spell.”

“……”

That was why everyone avoided Yutis. No matter how demonic he was, his body was still human. Just as Karon and Lebel couldn’t fully use their power, Norman too could only use as much as his body could handle.

Norman’s smile faded a little. When Lebel felt the killing intent, he grinned.

“That’s why I’m anxious… and afraid.”

Lebel’s smile was meant as mockery toward Norman, but to Norman, it looked like he feared Yutis.

Then his eyes sparkled.

“I thought so. You could not speak honestly back then because others were watching, right? Who wouldn’t be afraid when their husband turns into a monster?”

“I am afraid.”

But for a completely different reason.

‘I’m afraid he’ll die.’

Unlike Lebel, who was a demon, Yutis was human, and death would be the end for him. That was why it made sense for a demon like Norman to be the one to face him.

“Does Your Highness know why they turn into monsters? There’s an old legend tied to the Hestro bloodline.”

“…A legend?”

“They say a corrupted dragon lives in the North. That’s the northern demon, the very origin of the Hestro line.”

[He knows quite a lot. Did he figure that out while wandering around my territory, pretending to investigate?]

Lebel never imagined he would hear about Yutis’s ancestry from Norman’s mouth. He had only heard from Michael that a demon lived in the North, but could that demon have been a fallen dragon?

“The North survived because of that bloodline. And do you know why the North finally accepted Your Highness as their bride? For an heir.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“I mean they’ll do anything for an heir. Many Omegas who married into the Hestro family have died, either during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth. You should think carefully, Your Highness. They’re not ordinary humans. You’ve seen what they become during rut, so you know.”

Lebel started to understand what Norman was really trying to say. The emperor’s letter also carried the same threat, saying it would be better to cooperate if he didn’t want to die.

“Especially since Your Highness is frail. Pregnancy will be difficult, and childbirth will kill you.”

“I see. So even though the North wasn’t happy about accepting me, they did it for the sake of an heir, and they’ll make me bear a child regardless of my condition.”

“Exactly! That’s why they’re so concerned about Your Highness’s health. It’s all for the North’s sake.”

So he twisted their concern for his health into that reasoning. But if Yutis really wanted that, he would’ve been far more forceful when his heat hit.

But he’d learned something. The reason Yutis kept refusing him when he went into heat.

He had already told him he couldn’t conceive, but he’d been worried. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if it did happen.

“I’ve heard everything. After you went through your heat together, your life was in danger. To the point that a priest had to be called late at night.”

“The rumors were true. I couldn’t even stay sane.”

Even thinking about that time still irritated him. He’d insisted on stopping until the very end, even though he ended up doing it anyway.

“Now that I’m here, you won’t ever have to go through that again! His Highness the Crown Prince deeply regretted sending his beloved younger sibling to the North under His Majesty’s orders. You know how much he worries about you.”

Norman looked at Lebel with concern. But Lebel had seen that same expression countless times, on Yutis’s face. Compared to that, Norman’s concern looked painfully artificial. As for the Crown Prince, he wasn’t even worth discussing.

“His Highness the Crown Prince said he couldn’t let the ungrateful North, which stole the Empire’s land, also take his only sibling’s life.”

Norman suddenly grabbed Lebel’s hand. Since no one else was around, his behavior became bold. Karon, who had been silently listening nearby, bared his teeth as he the demonic energy emanating from Norman.

[How dare you use such low-level magic on someone like this!]

Well, Lebel had expected as much.

Mind control magic. A method of seduction that bends the target’s will to the caster’s. Demons were skilled in mental magic. They stirred up human desire to take over their bodies or spread chaos in the human world. It might have worked on an ordinary human, but Lebel was a demon.

‘So that’s how he gathered his information.’

The details Norman knew had always been strangely specific. There was no way Northerners who hated Imperials would give him information willingly, so he must have used this method. Especially here in Hestro Castle, where the servants were extremely tight-lipped about Yutis’s condition.

‘Norman intends to take me no matter what.’

Not for the emperor or the crown prince, but for his own purpose. He wanted to use Lebel’s body to summon a demon. Since a demon’s spirit needed a vessel to stay in the mortal world, ‘Lebel’ had once been chosen as that vessel years ago, but every attempt had failed.

If Biakin was connected to Norman, then he probably knew about the summoning as well. His regret when Lebel tried to leave that day had likely been for that reason.

But things were different now. Lebel carried demonic energy within him. Even though every past attempt had failed, this time was different. Lebel’s body, weaker than Yutis’s but infused with demonic energy, was the perfect vessel for summoning.

Lebel didn’t resist Norman’s magic. It couldn’t affect him. He simply looked up at Norman with feigned calm, as if enchanted, and asked,

“How exactly do you plan to save me?”

Norman smiled and took something out from his robes.

“If you drink this, your heart will temporarily stop, and everyone will believe that Your Highness has died. Then I’ll retrieve you.”

Convinced that Lebel had fallen under his charm, Norman proudly offered the poison. Lebel looked at the shimmering liquid in the vial, then placed it on the table and looked toward Karon. Karon sniffed the bottle.

[It’s poison. No doubt about it.]

[What are my chances of surviving it?]

[In your current body, you wouldn’t last.]

He prepared poison like this, yet claimed he wanted him to live. There was only one way his death could benefit the empire: they would gain the upper hand in their relations with the North. That was how much they despised it.

Norman’s real plan was clear. He would poison him, steal his body under the lie that his heart had only “temporarily” stopped, and then attempt the summoning again.

A powerful demonic energy could remain even after death, lingering as a sentient remnant, just like the severed demon beast’s head they’d once seen.

If he died in the North, the empire would have a perfect excuse to protest. And then the crown prince and Norman could use his corpse to summon a demon.

Everyone’s interests aligned perfectly.

“Don’t you wish to live freely? After all, hardly anyone in the empire or the North knows your face. You’ve already paid the price when you became the North’s bride.”

“……”

Lebel didn’t answer. Instead, he asked something else.

“Did Biakin agree to this too?”

Norman’s brows twitched. He had been mentioning the crown prince over and over, yet looked confused when he suddenly brought up a third person. Seeing that reaction, Lebel became certain. This man didn’t even know the crown prince’s name.

How could someone not know the name of the master he claimed to serve, yet speak his name so fluently, and sometimes look at him with that feverish expression, as if he was entranced by his demonic presence?

Lebel was used to that kind of gaze.

And then Karon spoke. He said he recognized that scent from somewhere. Demons rarely summoned other demons, since a summoned one could become a rival.

With that, Lebel understood. Both now and before, Norman had chosen “Lebel” as his vessel for one simple reason.

‘Because we share the same name.’

Names were sacred to demons. Which meant the being Norman wanted to summon was Lebel himself. The absurd situation almost made him laugh.

“You went to all this trouble for me,?”

“Yes, exactly! All you need to do is drink this, Your Highness. I’ll handle everything after that. You can even take it right now!”

Lebel stared coldly at Norman, who was shouting in excitement.

Just as he thought, the one Norman wanted to summon was Lebel. The moment he saw his red eyes, the same crimson as that being’s blood, he became certain his body could serve as the vessel. And since he also held the status of an imperial prince, he would make the perfect host for the “one” he wished to bring back.