The sky above the NEO Kingdom hung heavy and starless that night, as if it too understood the filth and intricacies hidden behind the palace’s majestic walls. Behind the great hall where the royal banquet had just ended, a man stood alone, his back straight, his advisor's robe flowing as flawlessly as ever. His face was calm, his eyes sharp as they stared at the main doors that had just closed after the king's announcement.

The son of a concubine had now been crowned the Crown Prince. Jeno didn't cheer. He didn't need to. Satisfaction was already written all over his face, not from loyalty or joy, but from the success of a plan that had unfolded perfectly. He remembered every step that led to this moment... the words he had whispered into the king's ear each night, the forged reports, the twisted tales of the princess's attitude, the minor missteps he turned into scandals. All cloaked in wise counsel and false concern, as if he were the kingdom's moral compass. When in truth, the only path he guarded was the one to power. And the king believed him. Far too easily.

The Crown Princess, once revered by the entire court, was now nothing. Her title stripped, her rights revoked. She didn't even know who had first planted the seeds of her father's hatred. Because the only person left who still treated her with civility… was Jeno himself. Irony. Because out of all the faces in the palace, his was the one soaked most in blood.

Days after the ceremony, the prince, now the official heir, summoned him once more. This time, it was more serious. Darker. He asked for something different. Not just to remove her name from the royal line... but to remove her very existence.

"I want her gone. Not just from the palace, but from history."

Jeno remained silent for a long time after hearing those words. For the first time, the ambition burning in his chest collided with a flicker of conscience he thought long dead. Because he knew… at this point, the girl had no one left. Ever since the Queen died, her allies had abandoned her. No one believed her. No one protected her.

Except him.

Another cruel irony. Because now the princess... the one he had betrayed so skillfully came to him late at night, kneeling behind the palace library, crying, asking if there was anyone left in the world she could still trust. And Jeno who knew every lie began with his own mouth, could only look at her in silence. He knew that one more step… and she would be gone forever.

But the reward promised by the Crown Prince was immense. Wealth, land, status beyond his origin. A noble title through marriage that would erase his low birth forever. Yet somehow that night, as he walked back to his chambers under that starless sky, Jeno felt as though all the gold being offered would burn his hands if he dared to touch it. And sitting alone in his empty room, he whispered to himself...

"She still trusts me. That's the most dangerous part."

**[ WELCOME TO AU NCT! LEE JENO IS HERE! HAVE A GOOD TIME<3 ]**