"Move."
Rael didn't raise his voice.
He didn't need to.
The moment he carried Esmeralda back into the ballroom—
Everything stopped.
Music faltered.
Conversation died.
Even the air itself seemed to hesitate.
"...Call the physician," he ordered.
"Now."
Servants scattered instantly.
Aziel returned at the same time, breath slightly uneven—rare for him.
"The physician is on the way." a voice called out.
Rael didn't respond.
Didn't look at anyone.
His entire focus—
Was on the woman in his arms.
"...Esmeralda."
Still no response.
Her breathing was shallow.
Too shallow.
"Lay her down."
The physician's voice cut through the tension as he arrived, already kneeling beside her.
Rael didn't hesitate this time.
Carefully—too carefully—he lowered her onto the prepared couch.
"...What happened?" the physician asked.
"She was unconscious when I found her. Barely breathing." Rael replied with worry.
The physician's expression sharpened.
"...When?"
"Minutes ago."
"...Good."
Both men stilled.
"...Good?" Rael repeated, voice dangerously quiet.
"It looks like she's been poisoned but since you found her early, it means we may still have time," the physician said quickly. "If we act now."
"My baby!" The Duchess and Duke approached with tears visibly seen on the Duchess' eyes.
"Esmeralda..." The Duke held it in— he had to hold his wife who was already very hysterical.
"Clear the area," Rael ordered.
No one argued.
No one lingered.
Within moments, the space was empty—
Except for the physician, the Duke and Duchess, the crown prince, the marquis,
And one unmoving girl.
The physician worked quickly.
Checking her pulse.
Her breathing.
Her pupils.
"...Weak," he muttered. "Slowed... but not stopped."
He reached into his kit.
"...This isn't a simple toxin."
Rael's gaze darkened.
"...Explain."
"...It's designed to suppress the body gradually," the physician said. "It weakens the heart... slows breathing... induces collapse."
Aziel's expression tightened.
"...Lethal?"
"...If untreated," the physician replied.
Silence.
Heavy.
"...Then treat it," Rael said.
The command was quiet.
But absolute.
The physician didn't waste another second.
A vial.
A measured dose.
Careful movements—precise, practiced.
"...This will counteract the worst of it," he said, administering the antidote. "But she will need time."
Rael watched every movement.
Every breath.
Every second.
"...Come on," he murmured.
Soft.
Too soft for anyone else to hear.
"...You don't get to lose here."
Time stretched.
Unbearable.
Slow.
Then—
A breath.
Slightly deeper than before.
The physician exhaled.
"...She's stabilizing."
Rael didn't move.
Didn't react immediately.
Just watched—
As if confirming it himself.
"...She'll live," the physician added.
And only then—
Did something in Rael finally loosen.
Not relief.
Not entirely.
But enough.
"...Good," he said.
The Duchess exhaled heavily and then lost consciousness.
"Marian!" The Duke caught her.
"Your Highness, I would like to bring my wife and daughter to our estate for further care." The Duke pleaded, tightening his grip on his wife.
"That is for the best." Rael replied.
Not sooner, Esmeralda and the Duchess were taken away from the scene and moved to the Ducal estate.
---
"...Your Highness."
The person he had planted on Esmeralda appeared.
Whispered to his ear a simple name that made him furious.
"Arrest her." He said with conviction.
"Understood."
----
Not a few moments later—
"...The lady has been quickly apprehended."
Silence.
Then—
"...Bring her."
Lady Virelle was dragged in.
Gone was the composure.
Gone was the grace.
Her hair slightly disheveled.
Her breathing uneven.
Her eyes—wide.
Panicked.
"...Your Highness, I—"
"Stop."
The word cut cleanly through the room.
"...Do you know what poison was used?" he asked the physician.
The man hesitated.
"...A diluted suppression toxin," he said carefully. "Rare, but not impossible to acquire. Expensive—if obtained properly."
A pause.
"...Or cheap," Aziel added quietly, "if obtained through the wrong channels."
Rael's gaze shifted slightly.
"...Like mercenaries."
Silence fell.
And then—
The realization settled.
Not sudden.
But sharp.
Rael turned.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
And finally looked at her.
"...You hired them."
Not a question.
A statement.
Lady Virelle froze.
"...I—no—"
Her breathing quickened.
"You didn't intend to kill her then," he added.
A step closer.
"Just remove her."
"...I didn't—"
"You panicked when it failed."
Her lips trembled.
"...I—"
"You learned the investigation was closing in."
Her knees weakened.
"...Please—"
"And so you acted again."
Silence.
Absolute.
"...Why?"
That broke her.
"...Because she had everything!"
The words erupted from her—raw, uncontrolled.
"I loved you!" she cried, looking directly at Rael. "And she—she didn't even try—!"
Rael didn't react.
Not to the confession.
Not to the desperation.
"I was better than her!" she continued. "More proper, more refined—"
Her voice cracked.
"But she was richer!"
Her hands shook.
"Her family had power—connections—everything I didn't!"
Her breathing turned uneven.
"At least..." she whispered, voice trembling, "I thought, at least I could humiliate her."
A hollow laugh escaped her.
"At the tea parties... that was enough..."
Her gaze darkened.
"But then even that was taken away."
"The Empress stopped inviting me," she said.
Slowly.
Bitterly.
"And she started favoring her."
Her eyes lifted—wild now.
"I lost everything because of her!"
"...So you hired mercenaries," Aziel said quietly.
She flinched.
"...I just wanted to scare her," she whispered.
"Just once..."
A pause.
"...But it failed."
"They were caught," she continued, unraveling. "They said they were being investigated—traced back—back to me—"
Her voice broke.
"I didn't have time—!"
"...So you poisoned her," Rael said.
Still calm.
Still cold.
"I panicked!" she cried. "I didn't have a choice—!"
"You always had a choice."
Silence.
Crushing.
Rael stepped forward.
Slow.
Measured.
"...You approached her alone," he said.
"...Yes—"
"You insisted she take the drink."
"...I—"
"You watched her drink it."
Her lips parted.
No sound came out.
"...And you waited."
A pause.
"...For her to collapse."
That was it.
The final thread snapped.
She broke completely.
"...Yes!" she cried. "Yes, I did!"
Tears streamed down her face.
"I wanted her gone!"
Silence.
Rael looked at her—
And there was nothing there.
No anger.
No sympathy.
Nothing.
"...Take her."
The guards moved.
She struggled.
Cried out.
But it didn't matter.
Nothing she said—
Nothing she did—
Would change anything now.
The room fell silent again.
Rael turned back immediately.
As if she no longer existed.
Aziel watched.
Silent.
And for the first time—
Certain.
This was no longer just politics.
And that—
Made everything far more dangerous.