Inside the palace, Emperor Alexander paced restlessly after receiving the news of Prince Kael’s return. A rare trace of panic showed on his face.
Deep down, regret flooded his heart. If he had known that Prince Kael would one day stand again, he would never have turned a blind eye to the humiliations the man endured over the past three years.
From the very beginning, Emperor Alexander had known that Prince Kael’s background was far from simple. Anyone sent out from a powerful guild would never be ordinary. That was precisely why he had granted Prince Kael the title of prince and ensured he lacked nothing in food or shelter.
Yet as ti passed and no improvent appeared, he gradually mistook Prince Kael for nothing more than an illegitimate child cast out to the guild by so martial family of the North, soone whose existence was an eyesore. His attitude had slowly cooled, politeness replaced by indifference.
Who could have imagined that a man crippled for three long years would one day rise to his feet again?
Now, that once-overlooked prince had returned to the Imperial City, no longer broken, no longer weak. And the Emperor could not help but feel that the balance he thought he understood was about to shift.
Alexander was now almost certain that Prince Kael’s sudden recovery had everything to do with Zora. No matter how he tried to rationalize it, the conclusion was unavoidable. If Prince Kael had been crippled for three years and then stood up the mont Zora rose to prominence, the answer was obvious. She must have cured him.
The mont this thought took root, regret surged through Alexander’s heart like a flood. If he had known that Zora would reach such heights one day, he would never have allowed Prince Philip’s engagent with her to be annulled, no matter the pressure or ridicule at the ti. Looking back now, every step he had taken felt like a fatal mistake.
What he could not understand was this. If Zora was truly so capable, how could she have been so useless in the past? For years, she had been known as waste, mocked by the entire Imperial City.
A fraud.
In Alexander’s eyes, Zora was the greatest deceiver he had ever encountered.
What made it even worse was that even General Helius had been kept completely in the dark. What exactly was Zora plotting all these years? The more he thought about it, the colder his heart beca.
At this point, regret alone was aningless. Alexander clenched his fists, forcing himself to calm down.
Since Prince Kael and Zora had returned, this was also an opportunity. If handled carefully, he might still be able to ease Prince Kael’s resentnt. Otherwise, the consequences would be far beyond what he could bear.
anwhile, Prince Philip seed even more restless. He couldn’t understand his parents’ reaction. Ever since they learned of Prince Kael’s return, both his father and mother had been unusually tense. Why would they be so alard?
Unable to hold it in any longer, Prince Philip turned to Empress Penelope. "Mother," he asked seriously, "what exactly is Kael’s identity? Why are you and Father so uneasy? Was his mother soone powerful or sothing? Is that why even Father was worried?"
The Empress looked at her son, her expression complicated. After a long pause, she let out a deep sigh, as if a heavy burden pressed on her chest.
"Philip, my song," she said slowly, "Kael’s background is not as simple as you think. In my opinion, you must find a way to repair your relationship with him. If he truly bears hatred toward you because of what you did in the past, even your father and I won’t be able to protect you."
Those words struck Philip like a thunderbolt. His face changed instantly, color draining away.
Even his parents... couldn’t protect him?
Did that an Kael’s power surpassed even his father’s authority?
The thought made his heart sink. Such a figure should never have appeared in Elysia, much less lived for three years as a crippled prince, enduring mockery and humiliation.
Images of his past arrogance flashed through Philip’s mind. The coldness with which he had treated Prince Kael, the disdain, the insults. A chill ran down his spine at the possible consequences.
"Mother," he said urgently, his voice tight, "tell everything. What is really going on?"
In the past, he had listened to rumors and guessed at the truth, always believing Prince Kael was nothing more than an illegitimate son of his father from so unknown commoner, an embarrassnt cast aside. Soone like that deserved no respect in his eyes. Even if such a person had died back then, he would not have cared. But now that it didn’t seem that way, Philip couldn’t help but want certain clarity.
Empress Penelope closed her eyes briefly before opening them again. At this point, there was no reason to hide the truth any longer.
"Kael..." she said quietly, "He is not your brother or a son of your father. He cos from a top martial guild."
The mont those words fell, Philip’s face turned deathly pale.
He finally understood.
No wonder Kael had always looked down on him. No wonder his calm arrogance had never wavered, even when he was crippled. Compared to Kael’s true background, Prince Philip’s status as a crown prince of a tiny empire in the south was nothing more than dust beneath his feet.
His heart trembled as realization crashed down on him. In truth, between the two of them, the difference had always been that between heaven and mud.
Over the years, the pride he had once worn so naturally, the arrogance with which he had looked down on others, must have been nothing more than a farce in Prince Kael’s eyes.
Philip felt a bitter smile rise in his chest. If he were placed in Prince Kael’s position, he knew very well that he would never have been able to remain as calm and restrained. He would not have endured in silence, nor swallowed humiliation with such composure.
For a long ti, he had believed Prince Kael to be nothing more than his father’s illegitimate son. With that assumption, the contempt and cold treatnt he showed felt justified. But now, knowing Prince Kael’s true background, everything took on a completely different aning.
A man of such exalted status, falling from the clouds to the mud, forced to live for three years as a cripple, mocked and scorned by all...
How could an ordinary person endure that? The more Philip thought about it, the more he felt a chill creep into his bones.
Only soone raised by a truly powerful force could possess such terrifying patience and forbearance.
Empress Penelope sighed softly, her expression heavy with fatigue and helplessness. "The situation back then was extrely complicated. Your father and I were not without difficulties of our own."
She paused, then continued in a low voice, "Kael’s identity is indeed noble, but his leg injury was the reason he was sent here. There were rumors that soone did not want him to live peacefully in Elysia. Because of this, your father and I never stopped your actions openly."
Her eyes darkened slightly. "But his identity is not sothing that can simply be erased. Once his guild intervenes or any variable arises, those above will never acknowledge what happened here. When that ti cos, your father and I would be the ones pushed out as scapegoats."
It was precisely because of this that, over the past three years, she and Alexander’s father had constantly weighed every decision. They dared not let Prince Kael live too comfortably, yet they also dared not truly harm him.
Originally, they believed that once the guild recalled him, Prince Kael’s status would naturally return to what it once was, and Elysia would be left behind. What they never expected was this outco.
Prince Kael stood up.
A miracle.
After three full years of disability, he stood again.
The man he was now was no longer the crippled prince confined to Elysia, nor the abandoned existence everyone once mocked. He was a true young lord, noble and untouchable.
Even the Emperor of Elysia and herself would now have to treat him with respect, never daring to show the slightest disrespect.
Only then did Philip truly understand. Everything his mother had said was not exaggeration, but the most balanced approach they could take at the ti.
"So that’s how it was..." he murmured, letting out a long breath.
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