Evelyn could only watch when Fabian slowly got up from his seat. There was nothing more she could say or beg him for as she had blown her heart out in front of him.

It was now up to Fabian to determine if he should get rid of her and leave. Like what happened in the past, Evelyn couldn’t stop what he chose.

“…….I.”

His voice that was filled with confusion rang faintly in her ears.

“Get up.”

Evelyn hesitated for a moment, but before she knew it, Fabian’s sturdy arm had lifted her body.

“Never kneel before me again and don’t even say terrible things to hurt me.”

His gleaming black eyes stared at her were still burning with rage. Fabian’s voice sounded a little sore, and Evelyn dropped her tears that had gathered in her eyes since a while ago.

“……I’m sorry I’m still a tactless husband.”

Fabian’s hand gently wiped away her tears. It was only then that Evelyn felt the hands of her fate clock began to move.

The needle that had been stopped for years seemed to move again. The solid wall that had ceased their time for so long finally collapsed.

“When the hatred inside me begins to run wild, somehow, I can’t see anything. That’s a true nature of the Emperor who rules this Empire.”

So were the previous Emperors. It wasn’t Fabian’s fault, but Evelyn saw an apology in his eyes.

“But when you called my name….at that moment, I realized what I was doing.”

It was something Evelyn couldn’t do in her previous life. But Fabian saw her as she took a step and called his name.

“Thank you for considering someone like me as your husband, and also for calling me the father of that child.”

Evelyn choked, and she shook her head.

“And I won’t disappoint you again.” Fabian embraced Evelyn, who could barely swallow her cry. It was the first change he had ever experienced as the chill that pierced his skin and ate his life gradually faded and then disappeared like a lie.

“I will listen to your story. Not as an Emperor, but as your husband.”

Evelyn nodded. Only in front of her Fabian could throw his Emperor status. It was hard to imagine how difficult it was to do and what kind of patience he needed to suppress the anger and madness buried in his bloodline.

“Thank you, Fabian.”

Evelyn decided to believe in his true feelings as it was Fabian’s genuine heart, which was just like herself.

“Now Sir Philip is investigating precisely the poison in Adrian’s body. I don’t think the Empress is the culprit.”

“Why?”

“If it were me, I wouldn’t use such reckless methods, and I definitely wouldn’t leave behind any evidence. The Empress Dowager was once the Emperor’s wife. Could she survive all this time in this Palace if she were careless like that?”

For a moment, Fabian frowned. He didn’t want to defend his mother, but Evelyn said something that made sense. If his mother were a reckless woman, she would have died before she became an Empress.

“No one in the Empire would act foolishly after plotting a crime like this. She had enough time to get rid of the evidence, but why would she put the poison in the place where it was easy to find?”

The more Evelyn thought about it, the more she felt lost in the labyrinth. But then, there was speculation that suddenly crossed Evelyn’s mind.

“The real culprit…..wants to confuse us.”

If the intention was to trap them in the labyrinth from the beginning, then things closely followed the plan of the actual killer.

“If she was going to use poison, why would she not use a stronger poison to kill the Prince? Why did she keep the poison as evidence for us to detox it? Even though she had plenty of time to get rid of it.”

Fabian’s face became severe as it wasn’t a negligible story.

“Sir Philip said that if we did a hasty detox, Adrian could be in danger. If … What if the culprit had deliberately left evidence for it? The killer … wanted the child …..die … with our hands …. “

Evelyn bit her lip as she couldn’t continue her horrible-sounding words. Fabian then approached her and wrapped her shoulders. He also didn’t even want to imagine such an ending.

“Evelyn. You must think with a cool head. The only thing that was different from Adrian’s daily life was his interaction with my mother. And that’s an irreversible fact. “

“I know, but maybe the Empress is the carrier of the poison. But, I doubt if it is the Empress’s plan …”

“So, you’re saying my mother was used by a real culprit without her knowledge?

“I think so. The Empress stayed for a while at Duke Metis’ residence… If that person were Duke Metis, he could have used her even though they are blood siblings.”

Fabian nodded his head. He couldn’t help but agree about Sagan’s personality, “He’s a person who can kill someone to get something.”

“He had no other way to approach Adrian. The only way was through the Empress Dowager. At least, Duke Metis had a strong motive to do so.”

There was not much to tell about it. But there was one more person who had the same motive.

“David, maybe he’s also been in contact with Duke Metis,” said Evelyn.

“That’s right. But…….”

It was difficult for Fabian to be sure. Since all of this was just a presumption, and if it turned out that Adrian was really poisoned by the star-flower poison, then he must be treated immediately.

Fabian was also reluctant about it. “We are thoroughly investigating where the Duke of Metis is staying. Soon, the results will come out.”

“That’s not enough. Sir Philip will run out of time.”

Fabian could read her mind when Evelyn gave him a definite look, and he frowned on her idea without realizing it. “No…No, you can’t.”

“I want to do everything I can. I… I don’t want to regret it.”

Fabian shuddered when he recalled a dark-horrid space he couldn’t bear. “It’s not a place for women to go.”

The dungeon was a bloody place where many corpses were lying around. It was the place where David was imprisoned. The darkest part of the Imperial Palace, where no rays of light could enter and where the sacred relic was kept.

The big black stone on the dungeon was called a sacred relic. It was a curse-like object that could absorb human life.

“You don’t know what’s in there. Not now. He won’t last long and will confess soon. Human or non-human, no one can stand it.”

“But didn’t Your Majesty already go there?”

“But I’m….”

“For Adrian’s sake, why can’t I be stronger than you?”

“Evelyn.” Fabian sighed, but he knew it wasn’t enough to persuade her. “Is it difficult for you to believe because I could interrogate him directly?”

“That’s not it…..But I think there’s something between him and me.”

“What?” Fabian flinched his eyes at her unexpected words.

“I always find it strange. But every time I met him, my mind always went blank…… I felt that somewhere in my memory had faded. “

“He’s a weird person. He must have used something like magic.”

“Maybe, but then… I talked to him in Felice’s royal garden. Back then, I thought it was just a trivial story, but as time passes by, I feel like I’ve forgotten something every time I think of him.”

“Evelyn, you are caught up in his trick. You have been misled by him as if he’s God, and he always talks about himself as a guardian”.

“But, what if that’s true?”

Evelyn also knew the story from the ancient book. She didn’t think all the contents of the book were real. At least, if David had a similar power…… it must have something to do with the miracle that happened to her.

“Your Majesty.”

Evelyn also probably wouldn’t have believed it if she hadn’t witnessed it personally. But the fact was that she had died lonely at the age of thirty, and it wasn’t a dream.

Everything was real that she returned to her twenty.

“Really…… If there’s a miracle beyond human common sense, and if there is someone that has something to do with it, can you say that he has nothing to do with it?”

“Evelyn, I don’t know what you’re talking about right now. It’s better to calm down a little…….”

“Fabian, do you believe me?”

“Off course, I just told you to calm down because you look very confused now.”

“No, I’m very conscious now. And I know it’s hard to believe.”

“What?!” Fabian narrowed his eyes and looked at Evelyn. “I believe you.”

“So do I. But I know it’s not easy for you to accept things beyond your common sense.”

Evelyn didn’t dare to tell Fabian that she had died once, returned to the past, and gave birth to Adrian. She couldn’t even tell her parents. Even Evelyn had a hard time believing it.

“Fabian, believing is not for something you know. Even if you don’t know, even if you don’t see it, even if you can confirm it in the future … you have to accept everything. Like closing your eyes on a dark cliff and leave your hand to me.”

Even once in their entire lives, people found it impossible to do it. But just once, she had to make him believe in her.

“Fabian.”

Evelyn couldn’t explain it in words because it was something that didn’t even make sense in this world, and the person in front of her was the Emperor who ruled by reason.

Still, she couldn’t give up, and she reached out her hand first. Her fingertips trembled, knowing how stupid and ridiculous it was.

“Only once… … Can’t you close your eyes and hold my hand?”

“I don’t know why you’re saying this right now, Evelyn.”

“Yes, I know….. I know it’s hard for you.”

Evelyn wanted to share her memories, but it was not easy. That’s why their relationship always had a hard time connecting. The closer they got, the harder it was for them to fill the tiny gap.

“Fabian, there’s a story I can’t tell you in words. I don’t have time for that right now. But I…… I’m more desperate and serious than ever.”

Evelyn eagerly hoped that the sound of her heart would reach him.

“I can’t explain it, but I know this is the way to save Adrian. Instinctively…..That’s how I felt.”

That was a more plausible word to tell than saying she had returned to the past after experiencing death.

“Please.”

Evelyn’s voice faltered.

“Just once…… close your eyes and hold my hand. Just once. Only this time. And whatever happens to me after that, I’m fine.”

If she took the wrong path, then it wasn’t just Evelyn herself who would fall into the abyss.

“No, I hate this.” Fabian looked straight at Evelyn, “I’ll never let you go over the cliff.”

His eyes filled with her shadow.

“But if it’s your hand, I can hold it for the rest of my life.”

Fabian grabbed Evelyn’s hand. Before she knew it, her body temperature was back to normal.

“I believe….”

There was no hesitation in his voice.

“I will believe it, whether I open my eyes, close my eyes, know it, and don’t know it.”

Fabian still couldn’t understand what she meant. But Evelyn said to believe in her. So there was no other way.

“So…do you…?”

Fabian nodded to Evelyn’s trembling voice.

“I don’t know what to do, Fabian, but will you follow my will?….. Even if it’s dangerous?”

Evelyn didn’t know what would happen when she met David. It was like taking Fabian down into an endless, unknown path.

“What are you afraid of?” Fabian effortlessly put an end to Evelyn’s worries.

“My life has been yours forever.”

As usual, his calm and nonchalant words touched Evelyn’s heart warmly.