Cold rain poured from the black sky like needles.

Kael Arden knelt in chains at the center of the execution platform, soaked to the bone as the entire imperial plaza watched him in silence.

No.

Not silence.

Whispers.

Mockery.

Hatred.

“The traitor deserves worse.”

“I heard he sold military secrets to the enemy.”

“He betrayed the Crown Prince himself.”

Kael lowered his eyes.

The chains around his wrists clinked softly as he laughed under his breath.

How pathetic.

After giving his entire life to the empire… this was how it ended.

A traitor.

A liar.

A disgrace.

The executioner standing behind him lifted a massive sword onto his shoulder. The blade reflected flashes of lightning across the dark sky.

Below the stage, nobles watched with satisfied smiles.

Some looked relieved.

Others looked terrified.

Because everyone in the empire knew one thing.

The moment Kael died…

The Crown Prince would become a monster.

Kael slowly closed his eyes.

Memories flashed through his mind like shattered glass.

The first time he met Lucien Valecrest.

A lonely thirteen-year-old prince standing silently beneath winter snow while the palace servants whispered that he was cursed.

Those crimson eyes had terrified everyone.

Everyone except Kael.

“You’re bleeding.”

That was the first thing Kael had ever said to him.

The young prince stared at him coldly.

“So?”

Kael had sighed before handing over a handkerchief.

“You should at least bandage your hand before it gets infected.”

Lucien looked at the cloth for a long moment.

Then quietly asked:

“Aren’t you afraid of me?”

Kael remembered laughing back then.

But now…

Now his chest hurt so badly he could barely breathe.

Because somewhere along the way…

He had become the person who hurt Lucien the most.

A guard suddenly stepped onto the platform and unrolled a royal decree.

“Kael Arden,” he shouted loudly. “You are charged with treason against the imperial crown, conspiracy with enemy forces, and attempted assassination of His Highness the Crown Prince.”

The crowd erupted instantly.

“Execute him!”

“Traitor!”

“Monster!”

Kael remained still.

There was no point defending himself anymore.

The truth no longer mattered.

In the end, he had still betrayed Lucien.

Even if it was to save him.

Even if he had no choice.

The guard raised his voice again.

“By order of the Emperor, Kael Arden shall be executed immediately!”

Thunder cracked across the sky.

The executioner stepped forward.

Kael slowly lifted his head toward the palace in the distance.

The windows of the Crown Prince’s tower were dark.

Of course.

Lucien would never come.

Why would he?

Kael had abandoned him.

Used him.

Lied to him.

If Kael were Lucien… he would hate himself too.

The executioner raised the sword high above his head.

For a brief moment, the world became strangely quiet.

Then—

BOOM!!

The palace gates exploded open.

Screams erupted across the plaza.

Soldiers were thrown aside like broken dolls as black-armored knights stormed into the square.

At their center rode a man covered in blood.

The crowd instantly froze.

“Th-The Crown Prince…”

Lucien Valecrest stepped down from his horse slowly.

His black uniform was stained crimson.

Rain dripped from his long dark hair as those terrifying red eyes swept across the plaza.

Everyone backed away in fear.

Even the executioner trembled.

Kael’s breath caught painfully in his throat.

Lucien…

Why are you here?

The prince walked toward the platform without speaking.

Step.

Step.

Step.

Each footstep echoed through the dead silence.

The Emperor’s guards moved nervously.

“Y-Your Highness,” one noble stammered. “The execution has already been approved—”

Slash.

Blood splattered across the stone.

The noble’s head rolled across the floor.

The crowd screamed.

Lucien didn’t even glance at the corpse.

His eyes remained fixed only on Kael.

Cold.

Furious.

Broken.

Kael felt his heart shatter.

He had never seen Lucien look like this before.

The prince climbed onto the platform slowly until he stood directly in front of him.

For several seconds, neither of them spoke.

Rain poured between them.

Finally, Lucien reached out with trembling fingers and touched the chains around Kael’s wrists.

“…Too late,” he whispered.

Kael stared at him in shock.

Lucien’s hands were shaking.

The feared Crown Prince…

was trembling.

“Lucien…”

The prince suddenly laughed softly.

But it sounded more painful than crying.

“They touched you.”

The temperature around them seemed to drop instantly.

Every guard nearby turned pale.

Lucien looked at the executioner.

“Did you raise your sword against him?”

The executioner collapsed immediately.

“Y-Your Highness, mercy—”

Before he could finish speaking, Lucien drew his blade.

A single strike.

Blood sprayed across the rain-soaked platform.

Kael’s eyes widened.

“Stop—!”

But Lucien kept moving.

Anyone who insulted Kael.

Anyone who approved the execution.

Anyone who stood in his way.

Lucien cut them down without hesitation.

The imperial plaza became a nightmare of screams and blood.

Kael felt horror crawl through his chest.

This was the beginning.

The beginning of the tyrant everyone feared.

Because of him.

Because Kael died.

“Lucien…” Kael whispered weakly.

The prince froze instantly.

Slowly, he turned back.

Rain hid the expression in his eyes.

But Kael still heard the pain in his voice.

“If you had asked…” Lucien said quietly, “I would have destroyed the world for you.”

Kael’s vision blurred.

The poison in his body was spreading too quickly now.

Ah.

So that’s why everything felt cold.

His execution had begun long before today.

Someone had poisoned him.

How funny.

After all this…

he still couldn’t even tell Lucien the truth.

Kael smiled faintly.

“…Sorry.”

Lucien’s eyes widened.

For the first time in his life, the Crown Prince looked terrified.

“Kael?”

His body collapsed forward.

Strong arms caught him instantly.

“KAEL!”

Kael could barely hear him anymore.

Everything faded slowly into darkness.

But before consciousness disappeared completely…

he felt something warm against his forehead.

And a broken voice whispering desperately:

“Please… don’t leave me again.”

Darkness swallowed him whole.

Then—

Kael opened his eyes.

“Please… don’t leave me again.”

Kael’s eyes snapped open.

He inhaled sharply, his entire body jerking upward as if dragged out of deep water.

Warm sunlight spilled across his face.

Birds chirped outside the window.

For several seconds, he could only stare blankly at the unfamiliar ceiling above him.

No rain.

No blood.

No execution platform.

Kael’s breathing turned uneven.

“…What?”

His voice sounded hoarse.

Slowly, he looked around the room.

Dark wooden shelves.

Stacks of documents.

Silver curtains moving gently with the wind.

This was—

“My office…?”

Kael froze.

No.

That was impossible.

His gaze immediately dropped toward his hands.

No chains.

No wounds.

No poison-darkened veins.

Just pale fingers trembling violently.

A sudden knock came from the door.

“Lord Kael?”

Kael’s heart nearly stopped.

That voice—

The door opened slightly, and a familiar servant peeked inside.

“Are you awake? His Highness is requesting your presence at the training grounds.”

Kael stared at him speechlessly.

Ethan.

He died during the palace massacre.

Kael remembered seeing his body in the palace corridors covered in blood.

But now…

Alive.

Everyone was alive.

The servant blinked nervously. “Lord Kael?”

Kael stood up so quickly that the chair behind him crashed onto the floor.

“What year is it?”

Ethan looked confused.

“…The 14th year of Emperor Cassius’s reign?”

Kael’s blood ran cold.

Three years before his death.

Three years before the empire collapsed.

Three years before Lucien became the tyrant feared across the continent.

Kael stumbled backward slowly.

Impossible.

He died.

He remembered it clearly.

The rain.

The execution platform.

Lucien’s voice.

“If you had asked… I would have destroyed the world for you.”

A painful tightness spread through Kael’s chest.

Lucien.

Without thinking, Kael rushed toward the mirror near his desk.

The reflection staring back at him looked younger.

Less exhausted.

His eyes still carried light in them.

Back then… he had not betrayed Lucien yet.

Back then, there was still time.

Kael gripped the edge of the table tightly.

“…I came back.”

His pulse thundered painfully.

This wasn’t a dream.

He had truly returned.

Then—

Memories hit him all at once.

The poison.

The conspiracy.

The nobles secretly working against Lucien.

The fake evidence.

The rebellion.

And finally—

His own choice to leave Lucien alone.

Kael shut his eyes tightly.

In his first life, he believed distancing himself from Lucien would protect him.

Because everyone feared the Crown Prince.

Anyone close to him became a target.

Kael thought sacrificing himself was the right thing to do.

But in the end…

Lucien still lost everything.

The empire burned.

Thousands died.

And Lucien became exactly what the world feared.

A monster.

Kael’s fingers curled slowly.

No.

Not this time.

This time he would change everything.

Even if the entire empire turned against him.

Even if Lucien hated him in the future.

Kael would never let him walk toward that ending again.

“Lord Kael?” Ethan asked carefully. “Should I tell His Highness you’re unwell?”

Kael immediately looked up.

“…His Highness?”

“The Crown Prince,” Ethan answered. “You were supposed to assist him during today’s sword training.”

Kael’s heartbeat stopped for a second.

Today.

That meant—

This was the day he officially became Lucien’s personal strategist.

The day everything truly began.

Kael swallowed hard.

In his first life, he approached Lucien carefully.

Politely.

Coldly.

He kept his distance.

And maybe…

that was where everything went wrong.

This time would be different.

“Prepare my coat,” Kael said quietly.

Ethan blinked in surprise.

“At once.”

The servant quickly left the room.

Kael turned back toward the mirror one last time.

He looked terrified.

But beneath that fear…

something else slowly appeared in his eyes.

Determination.

This time, he would save Lucien.

No matter what it cost.

—

The royal training grounds were loud with clashing swords and shouting knights.

Young nobles gathered around the arena while royal guards stood watch nearby.

But the moment Kael arrived…

the atmosphere changed instantly.

Whispers spread through the crowd.

“Lord Kael is here.”

“The genius strategist?”

“I heard the Emperor personally recommended him to the Crown Prince.”

Kael ignored them all.

His eyes searched the arena desperately.

Then he saw him.

Lucien Valecrest stood at the center of the training grounds holding a sword in one hand.

Black hair shimmered beneath sunlight.

His movements were elegant, fast, merciless.

Even at nineteen, he already carried terrifying pressure.

A knight charged toward him.

Three moves later—

The knight’s sword shattered.

The entire arena fell silent.

Lucien lowered his blade calmly.

Cold crimson eyes swept across the crowd.

Everyone immediately looked away.

Everyone except Kael.

For a brief second, their eyes met.

Kael’s breath caught painfully.

Alive.

Lucien was alive.

Not covered in blood.

Not broken.

Not looking at Kael like he had lost everything.

Just… alive.

And somehow, that hurt even more.

Lucien frowned slightly.

“…Kael Arden.”

Even hearing his voice again made Kael’s chest tighten.

The Crown Prince walked toward him slowly.

The closer he came, the quieter the training grounds became.

Lucien stopped directly in front of him.

“You’re late.”

Kael stared at him silently.

Lucien’s expression remained unreadable.

But Kael remembered things nobody else knew.

Lucien hated physical contact.

Lucien stopped sleeping during storms.

Lucien secretly drank bitter tea whenever stressed.

Lucien always looked cold when he was actually worried.

And right now—

his fingers were tapping lightly against the sword handle.

A habit he only had when irritated.

Kael suddenly realized something terrifying.

He missed him.

Far too much.

Lucien narrowed his eyes slightly.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

Kael opened his mouth before his brain could stop him.

“…Because I’m happy you’re alive.”

Silence.

Complete silence.

Every noble nearby looked horrified.

Even the royal knights froze.

The Crown Prince himself seemed slightly stunned.

Kael realized too late what he had just said.

Damn it.

In his first life, he would never speak this emotionally.

But before he could fix it—

Lucien stepped closer.

Very close.

Close enough for Kael to feel his body heat.

Those crimson eyes locked onto his face intensely.

Then the Crown Prince spoke quietly.

“…Strange.”

Kael’s heartbeat sped up.

Lucien tilted his head slightly.

“It sounds like you’ve lost me before.”

Kael’s entire body froze.

“It sounds like you’ve lost me before.”

The words echoed endlessly inside his head.

For one terrifying second, Kael wondered—

Does he remember too?

But Lucien’s expression remained calm.

Cold.

Unreadable.

The training grounds had gone completely silent around them. The nobles nearby looked as though they had forgotten how to breathe.

Nobody spoke to the Crown Prince like this.

Nobody survived acting strangely around him.

Yet Kael had practically confessed emotional attachment in front of half the royal court.

Kael forced himself to stay calm.

“…Your Highness is overthinking.”

Lucien studied him carefully.

Those crimson eyes always felt dangerous.

Like they could peel apart every lie hidden beneath skin.

Then suddenly—

Lucien stepped even closer.

Kael instinctively stopped breathing.

The Crown Prince lowered his voice enough that only Kael could hear.

“Am I?”

A chill crawled down Kael’s spine.

In his first life, Lucien only spoke this softly when he was interested in something.

Or someone.

Before Kael could respond, one of the noble sons nearby laughed awkwardly.

“Y-Your Highness, perhaps Lord Kael was simply nervous—”

Lucien glanced sideways.

Instantly, the noble went pale and shut his mouth.

The Crown Prince turned back toward Kael calmly.

“You’re assigned to my side starting today.”

Kael nodded slowly.

“I know.”

Another pause.

Then Lucien asked:

“Do you regret it?”

Kael stared.

In his first life, Lucien never asked that question.

Back then, the prince accepted everyone’s fear silently.

As if he already expected abandonment.

But now…

Something felt slightly different.

Kael lowered his gaze carefully.

“If I regretted it,” he answered quietly, “I wouldn’t have come.”

The training grounds became even quieter somehow.

Lucien’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Then unexpectedly—

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

Tiny.

Almost invisible.

But Kael saw it.

And it nearly shattered his composure.

Because in his previous life…

Lucien rarely smiled.

Especially not like this.

The Crown Prince suddenly turned away.

“Follow me.”

Kael immediately walked after him while the surrounding nobles stared in disbelief.

The whispers exploded the moment they left the arena.

“Did His Highness just smile?”

“At Kael Arden?”

“Impossible…”

Kael pretended not to hear any of it.

But internally, his thoughts were spiraling.

Something had changed.

Even if only slightly.

And Kael didn’t know whether that was a good thing or not.

—

The palace corridors felt painfully familiar.

Sunlight spilled across marble floors while servants bowed nervously as Lucien passed.

The Crown Prince ignored all of them.

Kael walked half a step behind him silently.

Three years.

He had once walked these same halls every day.

Discussed military plans beside Lucien.

Shared late-night tea during storms.

Watched the prince slowly carry the weight of the empire alone.

And then—

left him behind.

Guilt twisted violently inside Kael’s chest.

Suddenly, Lucien stopped walking.

Kael almost bumped into him.

“You’re distracted again.”

Kael immediately straightened. “My apologies.”

Lucien turned slightly.

“You’ve apologized twice since arriving.”

Kael blinked.

“…Have I?”

“Yes.”

The prince’s gaze lingered on him strangely.

“You act like someone awaiting punishment.”

Kael’s throat tightened.

Because Lucien wasn’t wrong.

Some part of him still felt trapped on that execution platform.

Still waiting to die.

Lucien watched him quietly for several seconds before speaking again.

“…Who hurt you?”

Kael looked up sharply.

For a moment, he forgot how to breathe.

Because Lucien’s voice didn’t sound cold.

It sounded angry.

Dangerously angry.

Kael forced a small smile.

“No one.”

Lucien clearly didn’t believe him.

But before he could continue questioning—

“Your Highness!”

A knight hurried down the corridor before kneeling quickly.

“The northern ambassador has arrived earlier than expected.”

Kael’s expression changed instantly.

Northern ambassador.

He remembered.

In his previous life, this meeting became the first step toward the conspiracy against Lucien.

The ambassador secretly worked with corrupt nobles inside the palace.

And Kael—

Back then, he failed to notice it.

Lucien looked mildly annoyed.

“They were scheduled for tomorrow.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The knight hesitated before adding nervously:

“They requested a private audience.”

Kael’s eyes darkened slightly.

Private audience.

Of course.

That was where the manipulation began.

Lucien turned toward him suddenly.

“You’re coming with me.”

Kael blinked.

“In the past, you attended these meetings alone.”

“I changed my mind.”

The answer came too quickly.

Kael stared at him in surprise.

Lucien looked away first.

“…You’re my strategist now. Start working.”

Kael almost laughed.

Somehow, despite his cold expression, the Crown Prince sounded defensive.

It was strangely familiar.

And strangely comforting.

Kael lowered his head slightly.

“As you wish, Your Highness.”

Lucien stared at him for another second before continuing down the hallway.

Kael followed silently.

But his mind was already racing ahead.

This was his first chance.

His first opportunity to change the future.

And this time—

he would not fail.

—

The royal audience chamber was already prepared when they arrived.

Large golden pillars stretched toward the ceiling while royal guards stood motionless beside the doors.

At the center of the room stood three men dressed in northern formalwear.

The moment Lucien entered, all three bowed.

“Your Highness.”

Lucien sat lazily upon the elevated chair near the platform.

Kael immediately noticed it.

The blond man standing in the middle.

Duke Serdan.

Beautiful smile.

Gentle voice.

Poison hidden beneath silk.

In the future, he would become one of the main people responsible for destroying Lucien.

And in Kael’s first life…

he trusted him.

Like a fool.

Duke Serdan smiled warmly.

“It’s an honor finally meeting the empire’s brilliant Crown Prince.”

Lucien looked bored already.

“Get to the point.”

The duke chuckled lightly.

Directly beside Lucien, Kael noticed several nobles exchange awkward glances.

Everyone feared Lucien’s personality.

Everyone except the people planning to use him.

Serdan’s gaze suddenly shifted toward Kael.

“And this must be Lord Kael Arden.”

Kael felt disgust crawl through him instantly.

Because he remembered this man laughing during his execution.

“I’ve heard many wonderful things about you,” Serdan continued smoothly.

Kael smiled politely.

“And I’ve heard nothing about you at all.”

The room went silent.

One of the northern nobles nearly choked.

Lucien slowly turned his head toward Kael.

Kael kept smiling calmly.

But internally?

He was done being polite to snakes.

To his surprise—

Lucien suddenly laughed.

A real laugh.

Low and brief, but unmistakable.

Every noble in the room looked utterly horrified.

Because the Crown Prince of the empire—

was laughing because of Kael Arden.