"They have the Consort."
The world seemed to stop.
For a brief moment, I wondered if I had heard him incorrectly.
Mother?
I stared at the knight.
"You must be mistaken."
The knight lowered his head even further.
Silence fell.
Mina's small hand grabbed my sleeve.
"Brother..."
Her voice trembled.
Even Benedique looked unusually serious.
Father adored Mother more than all his other wives combined.
Everyone in the Dark Realm knew it.
As the bearer of the Sin of Lust itself—a sin that forbade genuine love—Father had still given Mother a fragment of his soul.
The Demon Lord could tolerate insults directed at himself.
He could tolerate challenges.
He could even tolerate assassination attempts.
But anything involving Mother?
That was different.
I suddenly understood why the emergency bell had been activated.
The Heaven Faction had essentially grabbed a dragon by its reverse scale.
Without another word, I began walking.
The atmosphere throughout the palace had changed.
Servants hurried through the halls.
Royal guards occupied every corridor.
Several powerful auras I recognized from the capital were gathering inside the palace.
Dukes.
Marquises.
Generals.
The strongest figures of the Dark Realm were arriving.
Father wasn't treating this as a diplomatic incident.
He was treating it as a declaration of war.
"Brother."
Mina called from behind me.
I stopped.
"You should stay here."
Her eyes widened.
"But—"
"Mina."
She immediately fell silent.
"I'll find out what's happening."
After a moment, she reluctantly nodded.
Benedique placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I'll stay with her."
I looked at him.
For once, he wasn't smiling.
"I know this isn't the time for jokes."
"...Thanks."
His eyes widened.
"You thanked me."
"I did."
"Can you do it again?"
I immediately continued walking.
"Wait!"
His voice echoed behind me.
"That one didn't count!"
Good.
At least he was still himself.
The Hall of Night stood at the center of the palace.
Massive black pillars stretched toward the ceiling.
Ancient runes glowed faintly across the walls.
The chamber itself could easily accommodate several thousand people.
Today, it was full.
Every important figure in the Dark Realm was present.
And every single one of them looked furious.
The moment I entered, countless eyes turned toward me.
"First Prince."
Greetings echoed throughout the hall.
I nodded absentmindedly.
My attention was fixed on the throne.
Father sat there silently.
His expression was calm.
But dark shadows drifted around him like living creatures.
The pressure alone made the air feel heavy.
"Royen."
Father's voice echoed through the hall.
I stepped forward.
"Father."
"Sit."
A chair emerged from the shadows beside the throne.
I sat down.
The surrounding nobles stared at me with complicated expressions.
The meeting resumed.
A duke stepped forward.
"Your Majesty."
His voice trembled with rage.
"The Heaven Faction has crossed the line. We should mobilize immediately."
Murmurs of agreement spread throughout the chamber.
"The army stands ready."
"We should march on the Holy Empire."
"This insult cannot go unanswered."
Father remained silent.
The atmosphere grew increasingly tense.
Finally, a figure standing near the center stepped forward.
Unlike everyone else, he wore pure white robes.
The Heaven Faction's envoy.
The envoy bowed politely.
"The Holy Emperor sends his greetings."
No one responded.
The silence was painful.
The envoy continued anyway.
"The proposal remains unchanged."
Father finally spoke.
"Proposal?"
The temperature inside the hall dropped.
Several nobles shivered.
The envoy swallowed.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Father smiled.
It was not a pleasant smile.
"Threatening me with my wife."
The shadows surrounding the throne twisted.
"Then demanding one of my children."
The envoy's face turned pale.
"And you call that a proposal?"
Nobody spoke.
The pressure continued increasing.
Even I felt uncomfortable.
The envoy looked moments away from collapsing.
Yet somehow, he endured.
"Your Majesty."
His voice shook.
"The Consort remains unharmed."
Father's smile vanished.
The envoy immediately regretted speaking.
The hall fell silent once more.
Everyone knew the truth.
Whether Mother had been harmed or not no longer mattered.
The offense had already been committed.
The moment someone laid hands on her.
The envoy hurriedly continued.
"The Holy Emperor wishes to negotiate."
Father laughed.
The sound echoed throughout the chamber.
Unfortunately, nobody else joined him.
"I have spent twenty years negotiating."
The smile disappeared.
"Do not mistake my patience for weakness."
The shadows expanded.
"I tolerated your provocations."
The hall darkened.
"I tolerated the deaths of my kin."
Several candles extinguished themselves.
"I even tolerated your schemes because they remained within the boundaries of our agreements."
The envoy's legs trembled.
Then Father stood.
For the first time in my life, I witnessed the full presence of the Demon Lord.
The room itself seemed unable to withstand it.
The shadows became an ocean.
The ceiling disappeared into darkness.
Even the runes carved into the walls flickered.
The nobles immediately knelt.
The generals knelt.
The guards knelt.
Even the envoy collapsed.
Only I remained seated.
Not because I was strong.
But because Father had shielded me.
His crimson eyes stared at the envoy.
Then he spoke.
"Tell me."
The shadows roared.
"What gives your Emperor the confidence to touch what belongs to me?"
The envoy's face lost all color.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Finally, he managed to speak.
"The First Prince."
The entire hall froze.
Father narrowed his eyes.
The envoy lowered his head.
"The Holy Emperor requests the First Prince's participation in the Royale."
I frowned.
"The moment the First Prince enters the Royale..."
The envoy hesitated.
"...the Consort will be released."
Father laughed again.
This time, it sounded even worse.
"You expect me to sacrifice my son?"
"No, Your Majesty."
The envoy quickly shook his head.
"The Holy Emperor swears upon the heavens that no harm will come to the First Prince."
Nobody believed him.
Not even slightly.
The Royale had claimed countless lives.
Everyone knew that.
Then the envoy spoke again.
And the entire room changed.
"There is another reason."
Father stopped smiling.
The envoy slowly raised his head.
"The First Prince possesses the qualification."
Qualification?
The nobles exchanged confused glances.
Even Father frowned.
"What qualification?"
The envoy looked directly at me.
For the first time since entering the hall, his gaze focused entirely on me.
"The qualification to enter the Sanctuary."
The room exploded into chaos.
"What?!"
"Impossible!"
"The Sanctuary still exists?!"
Even Father looked surprised.
Which immediately told me something important.
The Sanctuary was significant.
Very significant.
The envoy continued.
"According to the ancient agreement."
His voice grew stronger.
"The Sanctuary opens once every thousand years."
The nobles gradually fell silent.
"And the opening will occur during this year's Royale."
A strange chill ran down my spine.
A thousand years.
Ancient agreements.
Hidden qualifications.
Everything sounded suspicious.
The envoy stared at me.
"The First Prince is the only eligible participant besides the Saintess."
Father slowly sat back down.
The shadows calmed.
Yet somehow, that felt even more dangerous.
Because Father was thinking.
Whenever Father started thinking, someone usually suffered.
The hall remained silent.
Then Father suddenly looked toward me.
"Royen."
I met his gaze.
"Yes, Father?"
A smile slowly appeared on his face.
Unfortunately, I recognized that smile.
It was the same smile he wore whenever he planned something troublesome.
"What do you think?"
Every noble turned toward me.
The pressure was immediate.
I sighed.
Honestly, I preferred sleeping.
But apparently, fate had other plans.
If Mother was truly involved...
Then I no longer had the luxury of staying uninvolved.
I looked at the envoy.
Then at Father.
Then at the countless nobles waiting for my answer.
Finally, I spoke.
"Okay."
The hall became completely silent.
The envoy's expression stiffened.
Clearly, he hadn't expected me to agree so easily.
Then I continued.
"But tell your Emperor to prepare one million Crystal Runes first."
The envoy blinked.
"...What?"
I leaned back in my chair.
"If he wants me to risk my life, then he should at least pay an advance."
The hall fell silent again.
Then several nobles coughed.
A few lowered their heads.
One general looked as though he was trying very hard not to laugh.
Even Father stared at me for several seconds.
Then—
The Demon Lord burst into laughter.
The shadows shook.
The palace trembled.
And for the first time since entering the Hall of Night, the suffocating tension disappeared.
"Excellent."
Father grinned.
"Make it two million."