“I want to know,” you said softly.

He glanced at you and gave a small smile. “Know what?”

You sipped from your cup of tea. “Why you always paint me,” you said, looking at him from the corner of your eye.

He was calm. Polite. A smile still lingered on his lips.

“I suppose that was a difficult question, my lady. It seems I cannot give you an answer.”

“Is that so?” you smiled, folding your arms as you continued. “Only I understand, Duke Raphael. That you want to claim me. Even though I am a queen!”

He still remained indifferent. The smile didn’t fade from his lips. Slowly, he stood up.

“Really?” he sighed, whispering under his breath.

You slowly closed your eyes and then opened them again. His gaze fell to the ground, as if his mind was tangled with something else.

“I only wonder, my lady… I have but one talent, and that is painting. Just to pass the time. It truly isn’t what you think.” he said.

You let out a soft sigh and stood up as well. The servant approached you, as if ready to escort you out.

“I hope that is the case, Grand Duke. I don’t want any incidents or rumors to spread. Be very careful,” you said firmly, your words cold as ice.

He watched you as you walked away. Slowly, his smile faded, and his eyes hardened into frozen steel.

Because he was still in love with you. The one who had known you since childhood. The one you abandoned back then, but who never abandoned you. The one who still hadn’t let you go—and fought because of you.

They called him Grand Duke Raphael. A title of savagery. They called him the bloodthirsty beast of the endless fire…