"Did you know?" Fern's voice was solemn, despite her adorable, puffy eyes. Hilda nodded with a sigh in her heart as she looked at her.

In contrast to the rage she expected, Fern asked calmly, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Hilda smirked as she listened to her words, "what could you do about it? It was an order from someone who none of us could defy. Do you believe there is a way for you to avoid your fate? Listen to me; you have no chance of escaping this courtyard, let alone escaping your fate."

"Is that why you pushed yourself on me?"

Hilda couldn’t but laugh at her, saying, “How many times do I have to remind you that you've forced yourself on me?” As a result, there was an awkward silence. Fern just stared at her (H) without saying anything.

"You and I were both drugged," Hilda explained. "Because I don't have a clear memory, I could have made a mistake. I'm sorry."

Fern was about to say something when the door burst open. Her other maid rushed in. "My lady, the imperial edict has arrived," the maid confessed before Fern could yell.

"Slow down." Hilda reminded Fern before she exploded. "It's my father's order. Be respectful and avoid doing anything inappropriate."

"Do you believe I always say or do something inappropriate?" Fern frowned as she exited the room.

Nonetheless, the maid remained motionless. "Your highness, they had also requested to meet you," she explained.

“Me? Why?” Naturally, the maid was unable to satisfy her curiosity. As a result, Hilda also left the room.

"... leave the manor and go back to the Count's manor. You'd be known as Count Fern Longsas from then on." Hilda waited behind the wall while the eunuch read the imperial edict.

"Come forward, Fern Ashgard, and accept the edict."

"This subject has come to receive the edict." Hilda dared to speak out only after Fern had accepted the golden scroll.

“Oh! The prince has also arrived.” The eunuch pretended to know Hilda for a long time. Hilda nodded and bowed, although she had never met him before. She had never seen any other eunuch besides the chief eunuch before.

"I have an important message for the imperial prince. Please accept it." The man standing behind him came forward and handed Hilda a wooden box as the eunuch ordered.

"The chief had ordered me to deliver these materials to you." The eunuch smiled and pulled a letter from his robe. "He had also said to deliver the letter to you," he added.

Hilda couldn't help but frown when she heard the word chief. The chief was the imperial palace's chief eunuch. 

While ministers of the Left and Right delivered the emperor's words to the empire, the chief eunuch carried out the emperor's words within the imperial family and harem. 

It won’t be wrong to say that the chief eunuch was representative of the emperor inside the imperial palace. Naturally, this implies that the emperor had directed him to do so.

“I wish the imperial prince will be able to achieve success.” The eunuch gave a salute to Hilda. "I hope the prince will use it well," he said, stealing a glance at Fern.

The eunuch and the party did not waste any time. He left without saying anything as soon as he completed his work. And the courtyard door slammed shut. 

Hilda returned her gaze to Fern, who was still on her knees and staring at the golden scroll in her hand.

"Your highness, please return to your room," the black-armored knight said as Hilda was about to say something.

"How long do I have to stay?" Hilda couldn't help but inquire.

“That...” The black-armored knight was at a loss for words. Someone else came to his aid. "The prince doesn't have much longer to wait. The punishment period will be over soon."

Soon, another knight in black armor appeared. Someone had exquisitely designed his black armor using gold. 

Anyone who had lived in the imperial palace would be very familiar with this man. Garnet, the champion, was the captain of the imperial guard.

"As soon as the prince completes the task, he will be able to leave. The brightest sun expects great things from the prince. I hope the prince doesn't betray his faith," Garnet said, looking her in the eyes.

Hilda locked her gaze on him for a moment before entering the building. Even if she needed to force her way out of this place, she didn't want to fight Garnet.

Fern, too, gave Garnet another look before entering the building. After the door closed, the red spell flickered for a moment before everything returned to normal.

"There was something off about him." Garnet pondered. Eric had ordered him to guard Hilda, which he thought was excessive. 

However, it was an order from the emperor. Naturally, he couldn’t ignore it. When he looked into those cold eyes, he realized it wasn't the little girl she knew. No matter what, he couldn’t wash off his uneasy feeling.

“I won't do it,” Fern screamed as she threw the golden scroll to the ground with all her might. "I'm not going to marry that jerk. I won't...aahhhh..."

No matter how loud she screamed, it didn't make her feel any better. Soon she turned to Hilda, who was reading the letter with a frown on her face.

"Can you tell me what you're doing in my room?" Fern yelled.

Hilda only sighed as she looked at her. But before Fern could have another outburst, Hilda handed her the letter. Fern was initially perplexed, but she read the letter.

"Who do they believe I am? Am I some kind of slave? Are they attempting to sell me without even conversing with me?"

Hilda remained calm despite her screams. "It's not they. It's he," she explained. " He is the empire's emperor. Of course, he will not consult with you."

“You...” Fern clenched her fist but couldn't think of anything to say in response. "He may be the Emperor, but he is only my uncle. He should not have the final say in my marriage. My mother should make the decision."

"Or your father." Hilda elaborated.

"What are you on about?" Everyone knew Fern disliked discussing her father. It naturally irritated her when Hilda mentioned him. "Are you telling me that an excuse of a human had decided my marriage against my will?" she persisted.

"Both yes and no."

"Do not create a riddle."

"Your father had made the decision about your marriage." Hilda looked at her before saying, "but, it is not the person you know."

"What? That disabled person couldn't even communicate. How could he have done that?"

"Fern, pay attention to me." Hilda took her hand in hers and drew her to sit beside her. "The emperor is your father," she (H) said, ignoring her struggle. "Your uncle is not only your father but also your brother's. You have no connection to Lord Ashgard."

Hilda wasn't sure if Fern was too shocked or if she (F) thought Hilda was a fool because she (F) continued to stare at Hilda without saying anything.

"You are free to believe whatever you want. I don't want to impose my beliefs on you." Grabbing the wooden box and crumpled letter, she said, “Neither, I will force myself on you.”

"I'm already a bad person in their eyes. Disobedience would not make me any worse than I am." Hilda smiled and opened the door to leave.

But first, she added, "It would be better if you didn't eat the food they'd bring you. If you must eat, then make sure you close the door tightly. Tonight, no matter what happens to you, I'm not going to come to your aid."

And the rest of the day went by without them interacting at all. It was only when the time for dinner the maid returned to invite Hilda.

“Leave,” Hilda said this without even looking her in the eyes. The young, seductive maid's attire remained unchanged. Their eyes, however, were filled with only one emotion. It was terror.

"But, your highness," the young maid explained.

"Don't compel me to repeat myself," Hilda said, raising her hand to stop herself. Hilda's bloodlust was visible in her eyes as she asked, "Or did you forget what happened to the other one?"

A shiver ran down her spine as she remained silent in response. She ran away without looking back when Hilda told her she had to leave again.

Hilda opened the wooden box once more. It contained three fruits, two vials of golden liquid, and one pill. She took out the letter she'd left in the box and reread it.

Fern was supposed to go to the count's manor after five days. After the marriage, she will spend a month in the count's bed-chamber, without seeing any other man.

By the time Fern would come out of the bed-chamber, Hilda would already leave for the border. So Hilda had to make sure that the count had an heir within these few days. They've also sent two fertility-boosting liquids from the imperial treasury. One is for her, and the other is for Fern.

The emperor had sent three Golden Marrow fruits and one cultivation condensation pill as a reward. The Golden Marrow fruit strengthened the knight's bones and blood, while the pill would significantly boost her cultivation level.

Although most princes drank these elixirs on a regular basis, Hilda was no ordinary prince. She'd only eaten the fruit twice, and she'd never seen the pill before.

"It wouldn't matter if I finished the task or not, as long as I used it before they took it back." She popped the cherry-like fruit and lay down on the bed, praising her genius.

It took a few moments for her entire body to begin to heat up. Hilda was no stranger to this sensation. However, what worried her most was the pain that would follow.

The pain quickly escalated to the point where beads of sweat formed on her forehead in the middle of the cold night. It was as if someone had poured molten lava into her vein.

Hilda wanted to wipe the sweat from her eyes, but another wave of pain washed over her. Every bone in her body felt like it was being bitten by millions of ants. It wasn't just her bones. All of her organs were experiencing the same sensation.

Hilda had been through it before. So she knew what to expect. However, when the endless pain returned, she lost consciousness again.

The next time she opened her eyes, the pain was significantly reduced. However, her intuition told her that someone had entered her room.

In the dim light, she could see a silhouette approaching her bed. She could hear heavy breathing from the person who had just entered her room before she could see who it was. She appeared to be in a lot of pain.

Hilda attempted to move in order to put some distance between herself and the person. Her body, however, had not yet recovered. Even though she was no longer suffering, she had the impression that someone had filled every organ in her body with lead. She was unable to move them at all.

Meanwhile, the individual dragged the heavy body and climbed onto the bed. Only when the person sat on Hilda's abdomen did the person come into Hilda's line of sight.

"What are you doing, Fern?" She couldn't say it clearly, but she still inquired. 

However, the problem was that Fern wasn’t in her right mind and wasn’t wearing anything at all.

This is a regular chapter. Enjoy.