The Shattered Pendant

Seeing Seamus’s eyes sparkle at the mention of the library, Chase asked, “Would you like to go now?”

“Yes! I’d love to.”

The quiet boy’s sudden excitement made Chase nod. “Then we shall head to the Central Palace. And… please, speak comfortably to me.”

“……But.”

Knowing Chase had been a prince, Seamus found it difficult to drop formalities. Compared to the Crown Prince they had just met, Chase seemed remarkably ordinary, yet as an imperial citizen who revered the royalty as descendants of God, Seamus found it hard to treat someone with imperial blood like a mere servant, even if he had lost his status. Sensing Seamus’s hesitation, Chase spoke flatly.

“I am just a servant now.”

Speaking as if the past didn’t matter, Chase absentmindedly fiddled with the pendant hanging around his neck. Looking at his lonely silhouette, Seamus asked before he could stop himself.

“Is it not… difficult for you?”

The moment the words left his mouth, Seamus gasped. Of course it’s difficult. Realizing such a question could sound like a mockery to someone in Chase’s position, his face turned pale, but Chase did not react sensitively.

“……A little.”

Chase smiled lonely, as if thinking of someone, leaving Seamus at a loss for words.

“Still, the Prince is being kind to me now.”

Seamus wanted to point out that the Prince was the reason he had lost everything in the first place, but fearing he would make another mistake, he bit his tongue. Beside the cautious Seamus, Chase simply looked wistful for a moment; he didn’t seem consumed by agony or resentment.

“Shall we proceed to the Central Palace?”

“Yes…… I mean, sure.”

Seamus felt a bit relieved by Chase’s calm demeanor. As he followed, Seamus felt a strange dissonance between the Crown Prince he had heard of in rumors and the one he had just encountered.

Which one was the real Prince? Seamus began to grow curious. The image of the Prince—someone who didn’t lose his radiance even amidst the blindingly ornate palace—flashed through his mind, making him feel small again.

‘Mother, how on earth am I supposed to “capture” someone like that?’

He must see that face in the mirror every day; would anyone else even catch his eye? Comparing his own dull brown hair to the Prince’s rose-tinted silver locks, Seamus let out a sigh. He wondered what kind of delusional confidence his mother had to say such things. Lost in thought over his mother’s bias, they soon arrived at the Central Palace.

Heading toward the western wing, which served entirely as the library, Seamus was stunned by its sheer scale. The western wing was five stories tall, with the center of every floor except the first being hollowed out to create a massive, open atrium. Each floor was vast, and with the entire wing dedicated to books, the collection was staggering.

“There are two more levels underground, but those are restricted to the Imperial Family.”

Forbidden texts and materials only royalty could view were kept there. For Seamus, however, this was more than enough.

“Can I… borrow books?”

“For now, it’s a bit……. Once your pass is issued, you’ll be able to.”

Chase answered Seamus, who was struggling to suppress his formal speech. The pass was an internal identification used within the palace, something Seamus needed as he currently held no formal title. With it, he could roam the palace freely—except for restricted areas—and borrow library books.

Seamus’s heart fluttered when Chase mentioned he would likely receive it tomorrow before their lessons. He looked around the first floor with an enchanted expression. Controlled by magic, the temperature and humidity were perfect, and the sunlight filtered in just right.

He was loath to leave. As he finally forced his heavy feet out of the Central Palace, he ran straight into someone.

“You are……”

“Hic!”

It was the Emperor. Having met the Crown Prince for the first time today, running into the Emperor as well made Seamus’s mind go blank. Fortunately, the Emperor’s gaze was fixed not on him, but on Chase.

“I greet His Majesty, the Light of the Empire and the Proxy of God.”

Chase, recovering his senses first, hurriedly prostrated himself. Seamus followed suit, bowing deeply in a panic. Even if it was an accidental encounter, he was terrified he might be punished for impertinence depending on the Emperor’s whim. Yet, the Emperor was occupied entirely with Chase.

‘Is he paying attention because Chase is his son?’

Rumor had it the Emperor was a man devoid of emotion, but seeing both him and the Crown Prince today, Seamus wondered if the rumors were entirely wrong. However, when Seamus stole a glance at the Emperor’s face, there was no trace of fatherly affection.

It was the face of someone looking at a curiosity, which Seamus found unsettling. Even his mother, the Countess, who was not a woman of deep affection, had never looked at him with such a clinical expression. Seamus stared up at him, forgetting his manners, but the Emperor didn’t notice him, his eyes still locked on Chase.

“……Rise.”

At the Emperor’s permission, Seamus and Chase stood up. Perhaps because he was nervous, Chase’s hand slipped as he rose, and his finger caught on his pendant chain.

“Ah!”

The chain snapped, and with a metallic tang!, the pendant hit the floor. The thumb-sized gemstone of an indecipherable color, encased in gold and silver, rolled across the floor and stopped at the Emperor’s feet.

“Ah……”

As the pendant tapped against the Emperor’s boot, Chase’s face turned white. While he hesitated, unsure whether he was allowed to pick it up, the Emperor reached down and picked up the pendant himself.

Noticing its unusual shape, the Emperor examined it in his palm before holding it out to Chase.

“A peculiar pendant.”

“……Pardon?”

Chase looked bewildered. Why was the Emperor speaking as if he were seeing it for the first time?

However, looking at the Emperor’s face, Chase realized he wasn’t feigning ignorance—he truly did not recognize it. Chase bit his lip as a cold realization struck him. His mother, Dhalia, had told him this belonged to his father. How could this be?

Chase was in a state of shock as he took the pendant back. The Emperor, staring intently at him, tilted his head slightly.

“I wonder what made that child change.”

“…….”

“I thought perhaps it was because of you, but I am not so sure.”

Seamus sucked in a breath. The Emperor wasn’t interested in Chase because he was his son, but because of the Crown Prince. Seamus checked Chase’s face, worried he might be hurt, but Chase seemed lost in deep thought. He didn’t look particularly disappointed, which relieved Seamus slightly.

“What part of you changed that child? If not you, then what was it?”

Muttering his curiosity, the Emperor turned and walked further into the Central Palace. Seamus, who hadn’t even dared to breathe properly until the Emperor left, finally let out a long sigh of relief.

Even after the Emperor had vanished, Chase remained frozen in thought. Seamus waited silently for him to process his mind.

“I think that’s enough for the tour…… if there’s nowhere else you want to see, shall I take you to the carriage depot?”

“Ah, yes. Please…… I mean, thanks.”

Under Chase’s guidance, Seamus boarded the Taranto carriage waiting at the depot and left the palace. After confirming the carriage had departed safely, Chase fell back into a trance as he walked back.

‘That look… he truly didn’t know what it was.’

He felt the pendant pressed against his palm. Dhalia had no reason to lie to him, so if the Emperor didn’t recognize this…

‘Could it be?’

The memory of the last time he saw Dhalia flashed before his eyes—her telling him that he would eventually learn the whole truth. Chase covered his mouth, reeling from a truth he wasn’t ready to face.

“No. It can’t be.”

It was impossible. There was no way the Emperor wasn’t his biological father. If that were the case, why would he be allowed to live? Impersonating royalty was a capital crime in the Empire. For a mere human to impersonate a descendant of God was the ultimate sin.

‘What have you done, Mother?’

This was far more dangerous than trying to poison the Crown Prince. The hand covering his mouth trembled with terror.

‘If the Prince…… no, if His Highness finds out.’

If the Prince, who had finally become kind to him, learned this truth, wouldn’t he revert to his old self? He was a man with immense pride in his royal blood; he would never tolerate a commoner who had dared to impersonate a prince.

Just when he thought the tragedies had finally ended, Chase felt the world spinning. He couldn’t stand there forever, so he forced himself toward the Crown Prince’s palace. His steps were precarious, as if he were walking a tightrope over a bed of blades. One wrong step, and the sharpened edges would tear him apart.

‘No one can ever know about this.’