The Imperial Palace was as wide as a village, and to get to the detached palace, one had to ride a carriage.
The carriage used for transportation within the Imperial Palace was small and compact, and the ride was stable. But even with small vibrations, my wrists and ankles throbbed.
“As soon as we arrive at the detached palace, I’ll call the palace physician.”
“Yes. I should.”
In this state, it was hard to even hold a brush. Even moving my fingers slightly made my wrist tingle up to the wrist.
“I’ll also look for a mage.”
“A mage?”
“…We need to remove that.”
Raki’s gaze turned to my collarbone. His eyes quickly reddened and tears welled up.
He knew about the slave brand. Since he didn’t say anything yesterday, I thought he didn’t know, but it seems he just kept his mouth shut to be considerate of me who was kicked out on the wedding night.
“It’s fine. Just leave it.”
“But…”
“It’s okay. I know someone who can erase it, so you don’t need to go through trouble finding them.”
Once engraved, a slave brand cannot be easily removed. It’s impossible unless the slave’s owner who holds ownership grants freedom, or unless it’s a top-class mage counted on one hand even in the Empire.
If I had been sold to some strange person, I might have lived with the brand engraved for life, but fortunately Eldon won the bid for me, and there’s also Silang who has the skill to erase the brand. So I’m not worried about this.
If Eldon has any conscience, he’ll erase it. If Raki runs around trying to find a mage for no reason and this fact reaches Martin’s ears, it’ll just be a headache.
“I will do so. But if you need it, you must tell me.”
“I will.”
I wanted to pat the sniffling Raki’s head, but even raising my hand was difficult. Just as I was thinking I wanted to get off the carriage quickly, we arrived at the detached palace right on time.
As I got off the carriage with Raki’s support, I heard a refreshing voice.
“Young Master Rosenthal! What brings you here?”
Seha came running toward me with a bright smile.
So purely clear. I can feel the innocence from his voice. Though there’s only a year’s age difference with Rosenthal, he looked 3-4 years younger. But he’s calling my name casually.
In the Keltan Empire, to call someone’s name, the other person’s consent was absolutely necessary. Not a lover, not a friend, not a servant who’s followed me for a long time, and with a status difference, he should call me ‘Young Master Chendewden.’ That’s the etiquette of this world. But if I nitpick about this, I’ll only lose out.
Seha makes repeated mistakes not knowing etiquette, and Eldon and Arleigh feel favorable toward his free-spirited nature unbound by formality. And Rosenthal, who talked about etiquette and mistreated Seha, rather earned the hatred of both.
I will absolutely not follow the original.
“Hello. Seha-gun.”
“Oh, you know my name?”
When I smiled brightly, Seha was surprised and opened his eyes wide.
He’s really pretty. If Rosenthal possessed an overwhelming and splendid beauty that one dare not approach, Seha exuded the fresh clarity of a handsome boy living next door.
“Yes. I heard from His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Ah, I see.”
Seha’s face flushed pink. He must be happy just hearing Eldon’s name. It’s good that he has an innocent personality, but isn’t he being a bit tactless in front of the fiancé?
“Have you been staying at the detached palace this whole time?”
“Yes, His Highness told me to stay here. He entrusted Fushi to me. Ah, Fushi is an animal His Highness the Crown Prince cherishes.”
I know. Does he think I, the fiancé, wouldn’t know that? Why is he explaining everything?
…Wait, what are you doing, Lee Minchan? Without realizing it, I was picking on every single thing Seha said. This won’t do. Let me compose myself.
Seha is pure and kind. An innocent bottom, a charming bottom, a cheerful bottom. I must look at him prettily no matter what.
I hypnotized myself and smiled as brightly as possible.
“Starting today, I’ll be staying here.”
“Then what about me?”
What do you mean what about you! You should apologize for stealing my key first!
Whew, calm down Lee Minchan. I got worked up again right after resolving to view him prettily.
The Rosenthal in the original starts tormenting Seha from the day after the wedding. The moment I accidentally voice my thoughts or get angry, I’ll walk the irreversible route of the original.
“It would be good if Seha-gun went to His Highness the Crown Prince’s palace.”
“M-me?”
“Yes.”
If you’re here, Eldon will come here too, and if the three of us keep getting entangled, my brutal death ending will be hastened. I’ll stay cooped up in the detached palace, so you two harmoniously build your love.
“Would that be okay?”
“Of course.”
I smiled warmly.
Sending the root cause who ruined the wedding and even injured my arms and legs to my fiancé’s side. Even I think this isn’t the gentleness of this world.
At this rate, won’t I remain as the greatest cupid in the Empire’s history?
***
The detached palace, originally made to confine guilty empresses, was extremely quiet.
Duke Chendewden must have been quite disappointed in his adopted son who was rejected from the wedding night, as he didn’t send a single letter, and Eldon neglected me without looking for me as when I first entered the palace. Since I holed up here for three days, their love must have caught fire too.
I lightly rotated my wrist. Even though I used healing magic, the movement was still stiff. I could treat everything with magic, but they said doing so could create dependence on magic and cause problems later. The body would forget how to heal itself. So I decided to use magic only on big wounds and use ointment and medicine for the rest, but it was indeed very inconvenient. The legs aside, maybe I should have just asked to treat my wrist completely.
“Young master, please rest a bit. You’ve pushed yourself too hard.”
“I should.”
I put down my brush and looked at the paintings I’d drawn so far.
“Raki, could you sell these paintings for me?”
“The paintings?”
“Yes.”
I pondered deeply for several days. Eldon will soon choose Seha, and I need to leave the palace. I worried about what to do if the ducal residence holds me back, but seeing there hasn’t been a single letter so far, it seems there’s no need to worry about that.
To live outside the Imperial Palace, I first needed money. It’s not just me eating alone, I have to pay Raki’s salary too.
Fortunately, there was emergency money Rosenthal had secretly saved. It was a considerable amount, but I couldn’t look only at that for life, and I needed to find a way to make money.
The best would be to succeed as a painter, but it won’t be easy. Since this world and my painting style are so different, it’ll be all or nothing.
However, worrying in my head won’t produce a conclusion, so I was thinking of first checking how well my paintings would work.
“But you worked so hard on them.”
“I’m curious how much my paintings are worth. Just take this one, that one, and that one first. Keep it secret that I drew them.”
“Yes. I understand.”
Raki bowed with a face dripping with regret, then took the three paintings I pointed to and left the palace.
Drawing paintings is fun, but being evaluated is scary. Until I thought about selling the paintings, I didn’t care, but once Raki actually left with the paintings, my fingertips turned cold with tension.
What will happen? They won’t be turned away at the gallery being told these aren’t even paintings, right?
But being anxious like this won’t make paintings that would sell not sell, or paintings that wouldn’t sell suddenly sell. Should I finish the painting I was working on earlier? I picked up the brush again but couldn’t concentrate.
Haah, should I go see Fushi after a long time?
Actually, even after I started staying in the Crown Princess’s bedroom, I fed Fushi every day. It wasn’t stubbornness thinking if Seha did it in the original, I could do it too.
After recovering from collapsing in the orchard and passing by that area, I heard Fushi’s mournful cry. I know it doesn’t make sense, but thinking maybe he was worried about me, I brought him food, and he didn’t bark and looked straight at me. His big eyes seemed somehow sad, and from then on I steadily brought him food.
Then the fellow who used to howl at me like an enemy gradually opened his heart and even let me pat his head.
Actually, I wanted to see him as soon as I returned to the palace, but my legs weren’t good, and more than anything, that fellow had Seha. I probably don’t need to bring him food anymore.
But him not needing it is one thing, and I want to see him so should I go? Being cooped up in my room for three days makes my whole body ache.
I stood up spiritedly with a cane and left the room. But the moment I saw the sparkling marble stairs, all my will was lost.
To think I tried to rely on one cane when I injured not just one leg but both. While the condition is worse since the injury was originally more serious than the wrist. Fool.
I turned around to go back, when my ankle twisted and I ended up sitting down.
“Ah!”
It hurt so much that tears leaked out. But even if I screamed, there was no one to come. The Imperial Palace was cold, and there was no one to stay by the side of the Crown Princess who wasn’t a Crown Princess, rejected without even holding the wedding ceremony.
The servants and guards are probably all slacking off somewhere. I left them alone because it was comfortable with just Raki and me, but should I have said something?
My ankle hurt so I couldn’t stand up again, and my wrist hurt so I couldn’t crawl.
I just lay down flat on the floor. Raki will come in a few hours. Since the floor is cool, it feels nice like lying on a stone bed.
I closed my eyes and worried about how to live after safely separating from Eldon. If only the paintings sell expensively, there would be no problem….
“What are you doing?”
I opened my eyes wide at the familiar voice.
“Your Highness.”
Eldon looked down at me, then briefly glanced at the cane rolling beside me.
“Is it the situation I’m guessing?”
“Probably so.”
He clicked his tongue as if pathetic. And lifted me up.
