By Zephyria 
But as they say, escaping from hell is just the same hell. Refusing to return to the mansion and choosing to go to the Imperial Palace was not much more comfortable. Not a single noble was showing off their splendor as usual. Like the sky that was only cloudy even though it was past noon, Andrew took his place among the nobles who were all wearing neat black mourning clothes. Even those social greetings were not necessary now. He finished his exchange with the surroundings with an appropriate nod, just like he had done in front of the temple, and silently looked ahead.
At the very front of the nobles lined up in order was Duke Grachio. If it were according to the original order, the only Grand Duke in the empire, a member of the Graham Family, should have been in that position, but not only the Grand Duke but even a collateral member of the Graham Family was not allowed to enter. On the surface, they said that the road over the Mountain Range would be rough, so they told them to rest comfortably, but was that really an order given out of respect for the Graham Family? It was probably a measure that was quite conscious of Carlisle Graham, who had courted Noah Hamilton.
Duke Grachio was standing two rows in front of Andrew. Because he was positioned diagonally, Andrew could see his complexion at a glance even from behind. His old face, which was already wrinkled, was still widening his eyes and burning with anger at the Crown Prince.
“His Highness Adrian Pearson, the glorious Pearson who will receive the choice of fate in his body and fly into the sky of the great Bellestria, enters.”
Soon, the door slowly opened with the Chamberlain’s solemn voice. Adrian Pearson, who had not yet ascended to the throne but had already taken control of all the power in the empire, walked out with a relaxed attitude and personally looked down on his subjects. Just a few days ago, he had looked so haggard that he seemed to be following the dead Emperor, but it had only been a few days and he had already regained all his former composure. There was no major change in his body or face, which had lost weight. Rather than an actual physical change, it was the change in his state of mind that was reflected in his eyes and attitude.
“Oh, who is this? It’s my only uncle, Duke Grachio.”
This morning, before sending people to the temple, the Crown Prince had himself registered as a member of the Empress. The Empress and Duke Grachio, who had already been deprived of all their authority, could not say a word and could only helplessly watch the grown-up Crown Prince take even the legitimacy that he could have argued with.
“I know that you tried to have me as your son-in-law, but how could you, as a daughter-in-law, dare to covet your cousin?””
Even though it was a place to formalize the death of his blood-related father, the Crown Prince’s attitude was too light. The way he was ridiculing Duke Grachio felt more serious. But what could he do? Now, no one in this empire could stop him.
Duke Grachio seemed to be trembling and barely trying to suppress his anger. The blood vessels bulged under his thin, old skin.
“Surely you’re not upset, are you, Uncle?”
“…Yes, Your Highness. How could I dare to be?”
It was an impudent answer mixed with the sound of gnashing teeth, but the Crown Prince smiled pleasantly as if he was amused, and the other nobles desperately turned their eyes away from the embarrassing sight. Everyone was pretending not to see and not to hear. After all, weren’t they the humans who had been pretending not to see and not to hear that the Emperor, who had been half-dead for several years, had become a real corpse? If there was anyone who could say the right thing now, they would have done it long ago.
“Thanks to your consideration, I was able to say my last goodbyes to my father safely. I want you to go in one by one and say hello to my father.”
The absolute being, who was only called the Crown Prince but was already as good as enthroned, passed by Duke Grachio with a refreshing attitude. And then, instead of heading straight to the main hall, he deliberately turned his steps and came close to Andrew, the representative of the Hamilton Count Family, and patted the Little Count’s shoulder.
Only then did the commotion break out among the people who had been stopped as if they were dead. Listening to the murmuring, it was roughly about how His Highness’s affection for Noah Hamilton was endless. I don’t know what kind of expression he used to listen to the faint praise from the surroundings. Andrew clenched his fists tightly.
Andrew Hamilton was a perfect human being, lacking in no aspect, be it innate appearance or talent. It was almost comical to say he lacked nothing, as he excelled far beyond others in everything he learned. If the Hamilton Family had valued martial arts and he, as the Little Count, had learned swordsmanship from a young age, he would undoubtedly have become the empire’s strongest swordsman. If they were a family of scholars with tradition, Andrew Hamilton would have become a scholar surpassing all others. However, since the Hamilton Family’s foundation lay in commerce, he had merely honed himself to suit the nature of the group he was to lead. It wasn’t an attempt to gild his own image, but an objective truth.
Even if Noah Hamilton hadn’t been chosen by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and selected as Empress… even if Noah Hamilton had remained by his side merely as Countess Hamilton… Andrew was confident that within a few years, he would stand higher and further ahead than where he stood now.
Perhaps that was why he was so presumptuous. If he were to acknowledge the love for Noah Hamilton that he had been unable to admit due to his lofty pride, he believed that Noah Hamilton would choose him as well. Therefore, he never even considered groveling from the start, begging for Noah’s affection.
It was the biggest mistake of his life. It was natural that what appeared beautiful in his eyes would also appear beautiful in others’ eyes… yet he easily concluded that Noah would forever remain confined within the walls of the Hamilton Family.
“Next is the Hamilton Count’s turn.”
In the blink of an eye, it was his turn. Andrew immediately entered the Emperor’s bedroom. A musty smell permeated the air. It would probably take a long time just to get rid of the smell that had seeped into this bedroom. Noah… would be staying in the Empress’s residence instead of here, so perhaps that was fortunate. Andrew, harboring such disloyal thoughts, lowered his head and pretended to mourn appropriately.
The Emperor’s corpse, thickly coated with preservatives to prevent decay, looked so gruesome that it was difficult to recall his dignified appearance in life. The sight of this pitiful human being, unable to die for so long, stubbornly clinging to life by force, and unable to return to a handful of soil even after finally finding rest… it resembled his own abandoned and rejected love. Only that made Andrew Hamilton’s heart ache.
After offering his respects and exiting, an Imperial Palace attendant, specifically assigned to him, was already waiting. The attendant politely greeted him, saying that he would be serving the Hamilton Family members when they came to the Imperial Palace to pay respects to the Empress in the future. Adrian Pearson’s intentions were clear. He didn’t care whether they were relatives or not; he intended to nurture the Hamilton Family’s power. Not to seize it for his own power as the already powerful Emperor, but as useful hands and feet for Noah Hamilton, who was now taking his first steps in the new place called the Imperial Palace.
Wasn’t that a remarkably considerate affection for an absolute ruler? Perhaps it was because Adrian himself had grown up enduring humiliation from the very bottom of the Imperial Palace since childhood. Andrew felt that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince’s behavior of cherishing and respecting Noah to this extent was fortunate, yet it still felt terribly awful.
All the nobles except him were gathered in the Hall of Glory, waiting for the last person to finish paying their respects. Andrew rested comfortably in the guest room prepared by the Emperor. His body was comfortable, but his heart was in hell.
“You may return to your residence now.”
“…Thank you for today.”
It was well past midnight when Andrew, once again guided by the so-called exclusive attendant, left the Imperial Palace. Because representatives from all the noble families in the empire, except for the Grand Duchy of Graham, had gathered, it took a long time to offer the final respects.
“Not at all. We will serve you without any shortcomings when you come next time. Ah, and…”
Just before getting into the carriage, the attendant skillfully slipped a thick envelope into Andrew’s jacket, unnoticed by anyone. He added that it was a letter personally written by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and urged him to deliver it directly to the Crown Princess.
“Also, it is a message that the Crown Princess does not have to attend the memorial service tomorrow. His Royal Highness said that there would be no greater joy than if the Crown Princess personally graced the occasion with her presence, but he could not bear to make her suffer by standing for a long time for such an unimportant event.”
“…I see. Understood. I will probably attend all the upcoming State Funeral events alone.”
“The Little Count is indeed wise. As you may know, the coronation and Royal Wedding are scheduled to take place as soon as the State Funeral period ends, so His Royal Highness wishes the Crown Princess to focus on taking care of herself and preparing for the more important events.”
As Andrew returned to the mansion, leaving the attendant bowing respectfully behind, he was overwhelmed with the urge to reach into his jacket and tear the letter written by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to shreds.
But he couldn’t do that. Far from tearing the letter, he trudged through the dimly lit hallway, barely illuminated by a few fireplaces, and went straight to Noah.
Since Allen’s return to the mansion, Noah had been staying in the Heir’s Chamber, which he originally used. No matter how dark it was, Andrew could find his way there from the entrance of the mansion even with his eyes closed.
Nevertheless, he couldn’t dare to go. He didn’t have the strength to face Noah, who had already fallen in love with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and no longer intended to accept his love.
He could give the letter tomorrow in the daylight, but once he had an excuse to visit, he couldn’t suppress his steps.
Knock, knock.
“…Noah, if you’re awake, may I come in for a moment?”
After knocking and waiting for a while, Noah must have been awake, as there was a rustling sound inside the room. Light footsteps gradually approached the door.
“…Brother?”
Soon, the door creaked open, and a white face, which he hadn’t seen in what felt like ages, appeared dazzlingly before his eyes. Andrew had to grit his teeth and endure. He wanted to kneel down right away. He wanted to confess this agonizing love for him right away.
“I came to deliver something. It’s a letter from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Ah, from Adrian…”
The intimate name that slipped out like a sigh was not his. The lips that had once called him Andrew no longer called him that.
Andrew Hamilton barely suppressed the surge of resentment and took out the envelope from his jacket, handing it to Noah. In that brief moment when Noah received the envelope…
“…Ah.”
“……!”
Their fingertips brushed. Lightning struck his crown like a flash.
Noah, who had exclaimed, quickly clutched the envelope and tried to move away from him…
Andrew moved even closer. He forcefully pried open the half-open door, stepped inside, and tightly embraced his slender shoulders.
He couldn’t bear the injustice any longer. He had investigated it several times. The male Omega who had given birth to Noah had distanced himself from the Hamilton direct line a long, long time ago, six or seven generations back, and he and Noah were practically strangers who couldn’t even be counted by kinship. How could he be Noah’s brother? How could he simply not be allowed to love him?
“No more. No more, please, don’t distance yourself from me, Noah.”
“…Brother.”
He was thirsty, and even more desperately so.
“Don’t call me that.”
“……”
“I have never, not even once, been your brother.”