Chapter 1
Andres stood behind Celina, pressing the dagger in his hand against her throat. He wanted to kill her as quickly as possible, for she was his country’s ultimate target. Killing her would bring great satisfaction to his homeland—but not yet. There was information they still needed from her.
Despite the blade pressed against her throat, Celina remained perfectly composed. She did not move, did not resist, did not call for help. She simply waited in the bathtub filled with icy water.
Making no effort to conceal her nakedness, Celina remained exactly where she was. She was the most powerful weapon of the Northern Empire—and its princess. Celina Quintana.
Celina possessed white hair, lashes, and brows, inherited from the noble blood flowing through her veins. Every child born of the imperial lineage shared these traits; it was the one feature that never changed.
Pale skin that matched her hair, a slender waist, well-proportioned curves, and long legs—this was Celina’s graceful body.
She turned her eyes—shades of the deepest blue—toward the figure standing in the corner of the tent, arms crossed. His face was hidden.
Nearly six foot three, he stood motionless, as though merely observing what was about to unfold.
So you’re the reason he hasn’t killed me, Celina thought.
Andres broke the absolute silence.
“You don’t look afraid, Princess.”
The corner of Celina’s lips curved upward.
“I have no reason to be.”
Frowning at her response, Andres pressed the dagger harder, just enough to break skin. A thin line of blood trickled down and dripped into the ice-filled water.
A pleased smile spread across Andres’s face. The pleasure of hurting his enemy delighted him. He wanted to cause her more pain—to burn her to ashes in his flames.
“Who would have guessed that the blood of you ice bastards is red?”
He laughed, believing his joke to be clever, but no one else joined him.
Celina let out a deep sigh at the shallow cut and the foolish remark. She saw him as nothing more than an uneducated brute.
Then she parted her sealed lips.
“It seems the Fire Kingdom suffers from a lack of education. Too irresponsible to leash its dogs, and too cowardly to face its enemy in a fair fight.”
She was provoking them.
Andres felt his entire body burn with rage. Fire mana gathered in his hands as he prepared to strike—but then he felt it. Another presence. A different mana. Dense, powerful, merciless fire.
He restrained himself, extinguished the flames in his palm, and stepped back, pulling the dagger away from Celina’s throat. No matter how much he hated it, he had no desire to die.
At last, the mysterious man waiting in the corner approached Celina. He examined her without shame, his gaze lingering over her exposed body. He took a strand of her long white hair between his fingers and stroked it.
He spoke calmly.
“Is your courage born of faith in the imperial power you carry… or simple foolishness?”
Celina pulled her hair from his grasp, rose from the tub, and stepped out.
Andres moved to lunge at her, but the mysterious man raised a hand, stopping him. Andres remained frozen, alert.
Celina walked to a chair, took the towel draped over it, and covered herself. She then sat down, crossing one leg over the other. Resting her elbow on the armrest, she leaned her head against her hand.
“I simply trust the Fire Empire.”
The unexpected words left both men staring at her in shock.
The mysterious man had not anticipated this. He had expected her to fight—to regret defying them before dying by their hands.
Excitement surged through Andres, driving him to speak without thinking.
“So you’ll sell out your country?!”
Celina sighed once more. How could someone this shallow have joined the Fire Army?
She spoke again.
“I believe the Fire Empire is powerful enough not to rely on ambushing a defenseless enemy—and proud enough not to kill them in a private space instead of the battlefield. After all, you are a society that prides itself on strength and honor.”
The mysterious man smiled. Just as he had expected, the Princess of the Northern Empire was as intelligent as she was powerful. Under normal circumstances, her empire would never resort to such games—it was too strong for that. The only reason this had happened was the Crown Prince: Elio Del Fuego.
During the war, the princess had wounded him, infuriating Elio so deeply that he had devised this scheme behind his father’s back. And he had involved his brother as well.
Damian Del Fuego.
Damian slowly lowered the hood of his cloak from his head to his shoulders, finally revealing his face.
Crimson eyes stood out sharply against his straight black hair. Though his bangs nearly brushed his eyes, the red of his gaze was impossible to miss. His lightly tanned skin was flawless.
As Damian revealed himself, Andres grew uneasy, casting glances as if urging him not to do this. Damian, however, seemed unaffected.
“You are right, Your Majesty. The Fire Empire is not the kind of empire that would play such games.”
Celina fixed her gaze on him, smiled faintly, and rose to her feet.
“Then I assume you have no further business here.”
Damian bowed respectfully before her, then signaled to Andres with his eyes that it was time to leave.
Though Andres did not fully understand Damian’s actions, he had no choice but to obey—after all, Damian was a prince of the sacred empire.
Nodding in reluctant understanding, Andres exited the tent. Damian followed after casting one last glance at Celina.
As Damian was about to leave, Celina called out to him.
“I owe you. I will make sure to repay that debt.”
Damian stopped without turning around.
“I’ll make sure you do.”
With that, he left the tent without another word.
A week had passed since the assassination attempt on Celina’s tent. The Northern Empire was shaken by the news, but relieved that no harm had come to her.
Upon learning of the attempt on his daughter’s life, Emperor Thomas Quintana unleashed his fury upon the responsible authorities. Throughout it all, Celina remained silent.
Soldiers came before her constantly, offering their sincere apologies, but Celina knew the incident had nothing to do with them.
After all, it was Celina herself who had ordered everyone to stay away from her tent from the very beginning.
