Chapter 1: It’s Been a While, Adele

“Watch out for the silver wolf!”

Rumors about a wolf appearing in the imperial palace had recently begun circulating among the guards, but the man didn't believe it. He had been guarding the palace for 20 years and had never heard of such nonsense—a silver wolf in the palace?—before.

“Come out, wherever you are!” he even shouted into the rain-filled darkness as he passed through the forest of the imperial palace, but only the sound of rain hitting the leaves answered him.

When the man was about to turn, thinking he had expected this outcome… Crack! Lightning struck, and something glistened among the bushes.

‘… Is it the silver wolf?' The man, who had been nervously looking, gradually became flustered.

Standing up among the bushes was a beautiful man with silver hair wet with rain. On top of that, he was completely naked.

'Could he be an aristocrat who was enjoying a secret love affair with his lover?'

The man lifted the lantern in his hand to see blood all over the picturesque face of the naked man, who was getting closer and closer. There was no expression on his face as he wiped the blood away with the back of his hand. His blue-gray eyes with unknown depth were also indifferent enough to give goosebumps.

'Wait! Isn’t this-’

The man with goosebumps unconsciously started backing away, tripped on something in the mud, and fell.

“Th-this!”

That ‘something’ was the carcass of a deer that hadn’t even cooled down yet.

Rustle! At that moment, the trees and bushes deep in the dark forest shook wildly as something approached quickly.

Out of fear, the man looked up in surprise, and the black shadow that suddenly jumped out brutally rushed at him.

“Aaaagh!”

***

“Congratulations on your birthday, Your Majesty!”

As the imperial couple appeared on the spiral staircase, the nobles came forward one by one and offered their blessings along with their attendants, who were carrying all sorts of gift packages, from fine ceramics and silk to expensive jewelry, rare medicines, and expensive art. Numerous gifts piled up like a tower beside the emperor.

Finally, it was Adele's turn.

Clack, clack…

As she crossed the banquet hall, the chatter and laughter of the people ceased. Some even stared at her as they drank. Adele slowly made her way to the emperor in the silence where time seemed to have stopped. Her gait was arrogant and confident as if she was the star of the banquet. Her exceptionally slender and fair neckline was dazzling underneath her neatly upturned black hair. Her deep green eyes were somehow secretive and seductive. But it wasn't just her beauty that mesmerized people.

"Goodness! Isn't that mourning clothes?” someone whispered. Taking it as a signal, everyone started to whisper.

“Wearing mourning clothes on His Majesty's birthday. She’s out of her mind, indeed.” They must be referring to the black dress Adele wore.

Adele had expected this reaction.

At the end of each year, the emperor's birthday banquet was held also as the year-end party. It was the largest and most splendid banquet in the Karleim Empire.

It was said that the women from aristocratic families prepared their dresses to be worn that day throughout the year because they would be the subject of gossip—whether envied or ridiculed. Hence, no one dared to wear a black dress.

Yet Adele had done the unthinkable!

“By the way, what is she holding in her arms?”

“It’s not an urn, is it?”

“It can’t be, but…that woman might do that.”

Adele looked down at the box in her arms. It was a gift for the emperor, but its shape and size really looked like an urn. Mourning clothes and an urn were a perfect match.

“I wonder why His Majesty invites such a woman every year.”

That was what Adele wanted to ask: Why did the emperor invite her to this banquet every year? Nominally, she was the wife of a former marquis of a prestigious family. However, no one including herself welcomed her here, so why?

“There’s no evidence that she poisoned her husband, or so they say.”

“But the whole world knows about it, so how can she shamelessly show her face?”

Everyone spoke as if they wanted her to hear. But the more she listened, the more she raised her head impudently.

The first time she had attended the banquet without knowing anything, she had suffered so much when she heard the terrible rumor. However, after about eight years, she had become used to being criticized.

That didn’t mean Adele wore a black dress on purpose. There was a saying that the more you get cursed at, the longer you live, but she wasn’t perverted enough to enjoy being cursed at.

The truth was, she had only one silk dress of the finest quality. She dyed the originally cream-colored garment pink the following year and red the year after that; she mended and wore the same gown over and over. The red dress had finally turned purple, and because the color had gotten darker, black was the only option left.

So Adele decided—to be a heretic at the banquet rather than a lame, poor woman wearing an old dress for years.

'It’s not like my reputation can get any worse.’

She took a deep breath and bowed respectfully to the emperor.

“Congratulations on your birthday, Your Majesty.” Since she had no attendant to carry her gift, she delivered the box that looked like an urn herself.

Upon receiving the box, the emperor's chamberlain did not hide his confusion.

“Your dress is very impressive today, madam,” the emperor said. It was very unusual for him to mention a woman's dress, but everyone snorted as he had said in a sarcastic tone. It was clear that Adele's mourning dress-like gown had offended him.

Adele smiled lightly and answered clearly, “Black symbolizes unity, Your Majesty. I wore it hoping that many countries would be united under the imperial flag.” After all, there was a saying that the interpretation is better than the dream itself.

The emperor laughed silently at the blunt reply. "So, what is in this strange container?"

"Desserts I made myself."

Desserts.

Laughter erupted instantly.

There were dozens of cooks exclusively for the emperor in the imperial family. In addition, the banquet hall was overflowing with colorful desserts.

“To offer His Majesty a gift that commoner children would love to receive.”

"I know, right? How insane.”

Despite the whispers, Adele did not flinch. “I made them with my own special recipes, so they will definitely taste different from anything you’ve had before.”

Her confidence seemed to intrigue the emperor. “I wonder what they taste like.”

“They’re probably tastes to die for. Isn’t that so, former Marchioness Oswald?” the empress intervened, displeased. She was smiling, but her gaze toward Adele was cold.

The people around made meaningful eye contact—as if feeling a sense of duty to help since the empress had started it.

“I think the late marquis really liked the desserts made by his wife.”

"Your Majesty, her special recipes were not verified. They could be dangerous.”

Everyone believed Adele had poisoned her husband, the marquis, with food. Even without any evidence, as long as many people believed it, it became the truth.

A woman who had brutally poisoned an old marquis of her father’s age after marrying him to raise her social status, and a slut who seduced her stepson, blinded by lust—Adele, the wicked woman of the Karleim Empire! The rumor had been the truth for everyone for some time.

'It’s all nonsense.’

As the villainess who had poisoned the marquis, Adele was always an outcast at the banquets. People always watched her with keen attention, preparing to spread malicious rumors no matter how she reacted.

'It’s all right. Nothing new.’

Adele, who had hardened her heart, replied nonchalantly, “Unfortunately, I only started making desserts to appease my grief of losing the marquis. He would’ve loved them if he had eaten them in his lifetime, so I wanted to share them with His Majesty. I guess I was too greedy.” She bowed her head politely, smiling subtly, despite feeling that the fake smile would cause a cramp around her mouth. "If you're uncomfortable with them, Your Majesty, you’d better just throw them away."

She wanted to return home quickly.

'As soon as I return, I'm going to take off this suffocating dress.'

And she would bake sweet cookies and soft bread that would melt the tongue.

At that moment, a pleasant, low-pitched voice echoed through the banquet hall. “May I try them, Your Majesty?”

***

The people stepped back and made a way for a man in a black uniform with golden epaulets as he appeared in the middle of the banquet hall. He was a slender, tall, young aristocrat in his late twenties.

“He must be Count Vice!” someone shouted, making the hall noisy.

Count Vice, the hottest man in the empire, was a hero who had made the biggest contribution to ending the war with a neighboring country that had lasted for about ten years. Rumors circulated that he was a member of the royal family of a fallen country when he had suddenly stood out in just five or six years. But the most important thing was that he was still single.

Today was his first appearance in the socialite scene. The news of his coming had been a great excitement for the womenfolk.

And he exceeded everyone’s expectations. No, he was completely different from what they had expected, as he was too beautiful to be a brave hero.

His silvery-white hair fluttered short with each step, and pale blue-gray eyes glowed mysteriously. His sharp features and tightly closed mouth were cold, like a glacier.

"I’m late, Your Majesty." He bowed before the emperor without a hint of a smile. His impression was cold like he had never smiled before.

“And you covet my gift despite your tardiness?”

“Will you not allow it?”

“I will allow it since you want it.” The emperor nodded, and the chamberlain opened the box and handed it to Count Vice. Inside the box were carefully crafted cookies, cupcakes, and small tarts, all beautifully wrapped individually. The misunderstanding that it was an urn embarrassed everyone.

The count picked up one of them and put it in his mouth. Everyone watched nervously for nothing. Most women, of course, looked at his lips in interest. The red and glossy lips were so enchanting that they forgot he was a man.

After a while, the count said to the emperor, “It’s the best cookie I’ve ever had.”

“How unexpected. I didn't know you were fond of cookies.”

The count’s eyebrows knitted. “Did you think I feasted on raw meat or something?”

The emperor laughed loudly and spoke as if wanting everyone to hear, “It's in the past now, but no beast is more violent than you are on the battlefield. Though I fell in love with that wildness of yours.”

"I won’t accept your invitation next time if you keep saying that.”

“Hey, you’re too petty. I am the emperor.”

"That's why I let you off the hook."

“Yes, how very sweet of you.”

As the people listened in, they were amazed by the conversation between the emperor and the count. Rumors had spread that the emperor was cold-blooded, and most nobles sweated in his presence. But the two men exchanged words like they were joking, and it even seemed like the emperor was losing on purpose. It was clear that the rumors that he liked the count very much were true.

"Then shall I try one?"

After tasting the cookie, the emperor recommended it to the empress and others with a satisfied expression. "It's such a waste to eat alone. Everyone, try one."

Everyone scrambled to put one in their mouths. They didn't forget to praise the emperor and Count Vice for the deliciousness of the desserts.

In no time, the villainess Adele had become a dessert master.

***

But Adele looked even worse than before. Her face was pale, as if she was about to collapse at any moment. Her deep green eyes remained fixed on Count Vice.

Maybe it was because of his hair. It wasn't common to have such beautiful silver hair. No, it wasn't just his hair. The count looked too much like him.

'Cris…’

Even though ten years had passed, she still got a little emotional when she thought of that name.

The boy who stood in her way, unable to tell her not to go. A chapped hand that pulled the end of her sleeve, with tears dangling from his long eyelashes.

Adele shook her head quickly as the memories of that day came to mind.

‘There’s no way!'

This man was Count Vice. Although the count was a war hero, he was also said to be wealthy, owning diamond and gold mines and several banks. But the boy she knew was an ordinary miner's son. He would have been a miner by now, and if he had married early, he would have been a father. And he must be living his life completely forgetting her.

More than anything else, such icy eyes couldn't have belonged to Cris, because the boy had a warmer and more beautiful smile than anyone else.

‘Yes, that’s Count Vice. He's just a look-alike...’

***

The banquet hall was filled with dance music after a while. Women flocked to Count Vice with eyes twinkling. They wanted him to ask them for a dance, as by being his dance partner today, they would be the envy of the socialite scene for a while.

But the count slipped through the crowd and moved somewhere else.

Tap, tap.

He approached Adele without hesitation with his long legs in boots.

Everyone looked on in disbelief, and even Adele's eyes widened. Despite thinking it was impossible many times over, she couldn't take her eyes off him.

'Could he be Cris…?’

Half of her wished it was true, but the other half wished it wasn’t. It was tragic to meet like this after leaving like that, but she really wanted to see the boy who had always been on her side at least once before she died. The boy who had always been with her in her happy times.

Tap.

Finally stopping before Adele, Count Vice politely bent one knee and stretched out his big right hand. “Will you be my partner?” he asked for a dance.

For a moment, Adele's world seemed to stop. There was no sound, nothing else to be seen. She stared at the dazzling, silver-haired man then placed her hand on his as if she was possessed by something.

The large, firm hand gripped hers. His long arm wrapped around her slender waist and held her close. Adele was trapped in the man’s broad, strong arms as she stared in amazement.

Soon after, a soft, deep voice whispered, "It's been a while, Adele."