CHAPTER 183: CONFLICT IN THE MORNING

The next morning...

"So, what’s up with calling me this early?"

Nolan opened the door with a lazy yawn, his eyes drifting to Rafine, who stood in front of him with an excited look.

She seemed even more beautiful than before. Her already charming face had a touch of light makeup—just enough to make her even more alluring.

Her long blonde hair was tied into a neat bun, with a few strands falling gracefully over her right shoulder. She wore a striking red dress made of fine cotton, trimmed with lace along the collar, skirt, and sleeves.

Her figure was slim and captivating, but in that dress, her curves stood out even more, giving her an exquisite look.

Rafine smiled brightly and said, "I came to collect your promise from last night. Didn’t you say you’d introduce me to one of the higher-ups at the Blue Moon Trading House? So, let’s go meet him!"

Nolan: "..."

The corners of his mouth twitched, and a flicker of annoyance passed through his eyes.

With a long sigh, he stepped aside, opened the door wider, and pointed at the wall clock above the bed.

"Don’t you see what time it is?"

Rafine glanced at the clock, her brows knitting together.

"Six in the morning," she said flatly.

"Good, you can tell the time," Nolan said with a small nod, as if impressed, before grumbling, "So why the rush? It’s still early. I was having a nice dream, and you just had to wake me up. Do you know how irritating that is?"

Six in the morning was sacred to him—the peak of his sweetest dreams. Yet this damn girl had barged in and yanked him out of his dream world.

Didn’t she realize how hard it had been for him to get a good night’s sleep these past few days?

Being scolded like that, Rafine felt both annoyed and embarrassed. Admittedly, she was at fault—after all, it was still very early in the morning when she came to Nolan’s place and woke him.

Even so, she wasn’t entirely to blame. The night before, she’d been too overjoyed at the thought of the Austin family finally escaping their crisis to fall asleep.

Surely, Nolan would understand her, right?

With that thought, she regained her composure and gave him a dissatisfied look.

"All right, I admit I was wrong," she said casually. "But six o’clock is a perfectly reasonable time to get up, you know, Your Highness. If you were a good prince, you’d already be awake, bathed, and on your way to meet the Emperor to discuss your people’s welfare. Instead, here you are—still in bed, slacking off, and ignoring what’s happening outside. It makes me wonder if this is your usual routine."

Nolan: "..."

Damn... how dare this girl lecture me? Is she trying to guilt-trip me with moral pressure? He grumbled inwardly.

He opened his mouth to snap back but stopped himself, forcing the words down.

I must be patient. Don’t lose control, he reminded himself over and over. Arguing with a woman is pointless. I must not be provoked.

Meanwhile, Rafine caught sight of Nolan’s expression and couldn’t help but smile triumphantly.

Hehehe... finally, I’ve got this annoying man under control, she thought, giggling silently.

For some reason, seeing Nolan cornered filled her with immense joy, as if she’d just won a prize from the Imperial Palace.

But then—

"I don’t care about your excuses. Honestly, I’m a lazy, useless prince. So just leave me alone."

Before Rafine could respond, Nolan slipped back into his room and slammed the door shut with a loud bang.

Rafine: "..."

Veins bulged on her forehead as she clenched her teeth in frustration.

Bang! Bang!

"Annoying man—I mean, Your Highness, open the door! Or I’ll break it down!"

"Your Highness, open up quickly!"

Meanwhile, Luvistar, who had been sleeping soundly in the next room, woke and glanced at the noise with a tired expression.

His Highness and Young Lady Rafine are really close, but they fight every day like a married couple. Don’t tell me they’ll actually become one, he thought.

He shook his head with a small smile. "That’s impossible... right?"

Shrugging off his thoughts, he pulled the blanket over his face and went back to sleep.

...

"Damn! How did this happen? How could they fail to eliminate both of them?"

Inside his room, Zarak clenched his fists and slammed the desk in frustration.

His round face was flushed, breathing heavy as if he’d just run five kilometers nonstop.

His eyes fixed intently on the black paper in his left hand—the report that the assassination attempt on Elina and Nolan had failed miserably.

"Damn..." he muttered with hatred. "How could they fail? Isn’t the Blood Moon organization the strongest in the eastern continent? This makes no sense!"

He had deliberately hired an assassin group from another continent to avoid the Imperial Palace’s investigation.

Among all organizations, Blood Moon was the strongest, with an almost flawless kill record. Targets marked by them rarely survived.

But the reality was different. They failed, and both assassins sent were killed instead.

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down, then crumpled the paper into a ball and tossed it aside.

"They really are trash," he muttered in annoyance.

He opened his drawer, pulled out a pen and a sheet of paper, and quickly wrote a note. Folding it neatly, he slipped it into a gold envelope.

"Victor!" he called out coldly.

Whoosh!

A gray-cloaked man suddenly appeared behind him.

"Does the Prince require anything?"

The man knelt on one knee, showing respect.

Zarak handed him the envelope and ordered, "Send this to the Blood Moon Organization. Have them send all their elite operatives to the eastern territories to kill Nolan and Elina. As for payment, they have nothing to worry about—I’ll add a generous bonus to the mission. All I want is for Elina and Nolan to be eliminated. Don’t let either of them return to the palace alive. Do you understand?"

The man accepted the envelope and nodded firmly. "Don’t worry, Prince. I will deliver your orders."

"Good!" Zarak nodded with satisfaction. "Now, leave."

Without another word, the man vanished like a gust of wind.

Zarak walked to his bedroom window, a cold grin spreading across his face.

"Hehehe..." His laughter was filled with cruel satisfaction. "Nolan, oh Nolan... Maybe you were lucky to survive before. But that luck won’t last. Soon, I promise you won’t return to the palace. And you, Elina..."

His eyes narrowed, burning with envy and hatred. "Your fate will be the same as your brother’s. Don’t blame me for cruelty—blame your brother and your foolish courage to join this battle for the throne. From the moment you chose to fight, you sealed your own death... Hahaha!"

His cold laughter echoed through the room.

Unbeknownst to him, a shadowy figure stood silently in a dark corner, watching him.