Still, maybe—just maybe—Octavia might be able to do it. If so, all the more reason to run away now. So why am I sitting here with my arms crossed, thinking about it? While Raven was groaning to himself, his ears suddenly picked up the sound of footsteps once again. He knew that, right now, there was no one being held in this tower besides him.
Someone was coming up the stairs. He only heard one pair of footsteps. At first he thought that they might be bringing him his meal or something, but when he saw who emerged at the top of the staircase, he grimaced. It was Prince Henry. The man who had built the laboratory where Raven had once been held.
“Raven L. Osvard, I presume.” His expression was dignified, but he couldn’t hide the cloying look in his eyes. Raven knew that look very well. These were the eyes of an angel who coveted the tools of the empire.
“I know your history. Let’s leave it at that. I never would have thought that you had survived that explosion. You did well to evade me. And on top of all that, to think you managed to claim the title of marquis and boldly live that lie.”
Raven was silent a moment. “I wonder what you might be referring to. Do you mean the accident that befell the house of Osvard? If that is what you mean, as a member of the royal family, you should know better than I that it was only an accident.”
“So you still intend to play dumb. Well, fine. I will soon know for certain. As long as I have you, I can resume my research. I’ve even had time to train replacements for the researchers you killed.”
Just as Octavia had feared, Prince Henry was onto Raven. But still he maintained his smile, feigning ignorance. Though he intended to run, he was not so kind as to simply tell Henry, “You’re right.” Still, if he did run, he knew that would be tantamount to the same admission.
“If you submit to me, I am willing to let you remain a marquis.”
“I am afraid I do not quite understand what you are trying to say. If you are referring to the reason I am here, that was a false accusation.”
“If my elder sister were to learn of your powers, you could be mistaken for a scion of the empire and sentenced to a life of confinement in the royal castle. Not allowed to flee or to die, but kept under lock and key for the rest of your life.”
Huh? Raven blinked in surprise. A life of confinement? Not execution? Not death? This was the first he’d heard about it. He had always heard that descendants of the imperial bloodline were hunted down with extreme prejudice by the queen’s inquisition, and were considered villains who exploited their ability to use the empire’s dangerous heirlooms to overthrow her rule. This was at least what the wider population understood. Could that understanding really be wrong?
Seeing Raven’s expression, Henry laughed. “We angels have surprises of our own. But in the tower of confinement, far up in the sky, you won’t be able to use the Imperial Heirlooms. The tower was built for that very purpose. Compared to a life there, wouldn’t it far preferable to cooperate with my research and continue a life of privilege as a marquis?”
In that case, Octavia—or Her Majesty the Queen, heiress to the empire, as the Heirlooms called her—would not be killed if her true identity was made known, but instead imprisoned until her death?
The thought of this shook Raven for some reason. This tremor caught Raven off guard, penetrating the very bottom of his heart, as he realized something most unwelcome. She would end up just like me? Just why was she so set on saving him? He was no longer listening to Henry, who continued to opine how much better off Raven would be, receiving his patronage. He grimaced now out of regret for his own foolishness, that he had thought only of fleeing and not of remaining to finish uncovering Octavia’s secrets.
“I’ve made every concession for you. Surely you are not unsatisfied with this arrangement?” said Henry.
What should I do? pondered Raven, his head spinning. Then he heard Octavia’s voice echo inside his head.
So please, do not flee from anyone but me.
“For the time being, once tomorrow’s audience is concluded, I will have you moved to my palace.”
“I am extremely pleased to have received your attention, but I must apologize. I still have no idea what you mean by research, or anything else you’ve been saying.”
“What did you say?”
“Perhaps you are under some sort of misapprehension? Alternatively, you might have me confused with someone else.”
Henry still hadn’t managed to wring any sort of commitment out of Raven, who only grinned back at him.
Henry began to raise his voice. “Do you really think you can defy me and still live?”
“You might very well say that, but I still haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about. In the first place, if I really had the sort of powers you’re talking about, wouldn’t I have been able to escape from here in the blink of an eye?” Henry, growling, found himself at a loss for words. “More importantly,” Raven went on, “I am innocent, so I believe I will be set free. The detective is surely investigating on my behalf as well.”
“Hmm. Again with that woman. Edward has been wanting to put her in her place for some time now. Perhaps it’s because they’re able to inherit the earldom, but the women of the House of Reine have often been quite insolent. Ah, but in the end, she is naught but a human female. There’s nothing she can do.”
This man, who stood here sneering at Raven, knew nothing about Octavia. Raven should have been fine with that, but hearing him insult her really boiled his blood. For this single moment, he actually looked favorably upon the likes of Edward, who at least considered Octavia a hated enemy.
Henry let out a deliberate, exaggerated sigh. “I consider myself a generous man. When tomorrow’s audience is concluded—when you have at last reached the judgment that this so-called detective cannot save you—I will pose you the same question. Then, I think you will change your mind.”
“But the contest is not decided yet, is it?”
“It is. No matter how much Eliza tries to help her, there is nothing she can do in such a short span of time. And if the unthinkable were to happen, in the worst case, I would simply have to offer you up as a sacrifice. Even if you decide to tell them everything, that woman will not be able to protect you.”
That was right. If anyone was in a position where they might have to run away, it was Octavia herself. After all, she was the real thing.