My smile stayed frozen.
She just said it.
She really just said it.
"I like you."
What a nice timing, huh?
Just when I was about to start planning how to kill the Emperor.
My eyes subtly narrowed.
Because if I accepted her feelings…
If I became her boyfriend…
Then I'd have an unshakable reason to walk into the Imperial Palace.
No one would question it. Not the guards. Not the court.
Not even the Emperor itself.
Because I'd be his daughter's lover.
His precious little Ella, the Second Princess.
It would be the perfect cover.
No need for tricks, nor infiltration.
Just a clean path straight to my target.
She could be damn useful.
But then—
As I thought about it…
As I imagined saying "I like you too," and placing a gentle hand over hers…
As I pictured us holding hands in the garden, smiling in front of her father like nothing was wrong…
I realized something.
I felt nothing.
Not guilt.
Not excitement.
