The next day, I was painting with Forti as my model to calm my anxious heart when Raki came running in.
“The date for Viscount Bellos’s execution has been set!”
“What?”
The question ‘Already?’ nearly burst out but I swallowed it back down. For Arleigh’s side, Viscount Bellos was a ticking time bomb. They would have wanted to deal with him quickly and wrap up the illegal auction matter, but until now they hadn’t been able to achieve their goal due to opposition from Eldon’s supporters in the imperial capital.
But now that the Emperor had given Arleigh the Imperial Brilliance Medal and backed him up, there was nothing to hold back about. This was the natural course of action.
“When?”
“They say it will be carried out tomorrow inside the prison.”
Usually, to give the condemned time to prepare their heart, they would set a period of about two weeks from the sentencing date. Even for high treason, they give three days. So they’re saying they won’t even give the minimum period.
At least by carrying it out inside the prison rather than in the plaza, they made it seem like they were maintaining courtesy toward a noble, but this too was merely a trick to prevent Viscount Bellos from revealing the truth.
The difference between what one has experienced oneself and what one hasn’t is great. Rather than Viscount Bellos who was about to be executed for false charges, I first thought of his young son’s face.
That reckless little brat who had tried to offer even his own body… And I had boldly declared to Forti that Viscount Bellos would be fine.
I looked at Forti with an apologetic heart, and he stood up abruptly.
Was he angry at me for presenting hopeful theories that wouldn’t come true? Or did he want to comfort the young child who was a beastman like himself?
“Forti, where are you going?”
“To Patrick. Raki, do you know where Viscount Bellos’s house is?”
“I don’t know where it is, but I can find it quickly.”
“Then find it for me.”
Forti nodded and grabbed his sword. In that instant, I got goosebumps. His violet eyes had sunk down coldly. A strange chill emanated from his calm appearance.
“Forti, why are you looking for Viscount Bellos’s house?”
“To kill him.”
“What?”
“To kill him for Patrick.”
I felt a twisted crack in his bright and calm expression. It wasn’t an innocent mistake from a lack of common sense, nor was it a psychopathic instinct for slaughter. Some other sensation was enveloping him.
“Fo-Forti! What are you saying! You’re going too far with your jokes! You’ll shock the young master!”
As I stood there in a daze, having lost my words, Raki intervened. But Forti continued speaking in a clear voice as if he didn’t understand.
“Patrick isn’t human. He’s not a beastman either. He’s young. If his father dies, there’s no one to protect him. He’ll suffer. It’ll be hard.”
He calmly conveyed his thoughts. And he looked straight at me.
“So I have to make it easier for him.”
“……”
He was sincere. He was truly speaking for the child’s sake. His voice, speaking forcefully as if recalling something, trembled faintly along with a thin smile.
“I’ll make it easier for him.”
He repeated the same words as if making a vow, and I reflexively grabbed Forti’s hand.
“I’ll save him!”
“Hm?”
“I’ll save Viscount Bellos!”
“…Really?”
“Yes. He won’t be executed. Patrick’s father will return to Patrick.”
“You’re lying. You said that before too.”
Resignation mixed with sadness seeped from Forti’s eyes. Seeing his drooping ears, I gripped his hand even more tightly.
“No. This time it’s different! I’ll stop it, not Eldon!”
“Rosenthal…”
“I’ll resolve it. So don’t think such things!”
I was most worried about Forti recalling some painful memory, more than the man about to die for false charges and the son who would be left alone. That’s what people are like, I suppose.
I called Hereis, who had been standing in silence.
“Harry.”
“Yes.”
“Could you protect Patrick, the young master who is Viscount Bellos’s son?”
Originally, Grand Duke Curtis, who had been struck down at the party venue, would be imprisoned without being able to lift a finger. And Viscount Bellos would be punished with his mouth shut, and Patrick’s secret would be protected. But now the situation had changed.
Grand Duke Curtis was pressed for money, and Viscount Bellos, though his title was low, had solid assets including fertile southern territory. His wealth and his son who was a beastman half-blood would be good prey.
“Yes. That’s a simple matter.”
“Raki, you stay with Forti.”
“What about you, young master?”
“I’ll go out for a bit.”
“What? Where are you going?”
“I’m going to see His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“What? Do you know where His Highness is?”
“No.”
Where Eldon had gone was a secret. I had to pretend I only knew it was a southern island.
“Then how are you planning to go?”
“Seha-gun will know. I’ll contact him through Seha and request a teleport.”
Seha said he had stayed at the Crown Prince’s Palace after the party ended.
“I’ll come with you.”
At Hereis’s words, I shook my head.
“No. I’ll be back soon. The young master Patrick must have been very shocked to hear the news of the viscount’s execution, so I’m asking you to take care of him.”
“But…!”
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen my fiancé’s face, so I want to see him. It’s a date, so don’t interfere.”
I couldn’t take Hereis. I made excuses and grinned. Then Hereis bowed his head slightly without a word. He seemed to reluctantly accept but still be worried.
“I’ll be back before dinner, so don’t worry.”
I smiled even more brightly on purpose and left the room.
Seha’s room was on the third floor where the Crown Prince and Crown Princess’s rooms were located. The head chamberlain’s room who served the Crown Prince at close quarters was also on the same floor, but for an ordinary attendant to stay on the third floor was an enormous privilege. As expected, the main shou buff was amazing.
I was climbing the stairs to the third floor with long strides when I collided with someone who came running from the end of the corridor.
“Ah!”
I hastily grabbed the stair railing. I nearly rolled down the marble stairs to instant death. As expected, Eldon and my compatibility was the worst. I had been peaceful the entire time staying at the annex palace, but the moment I arrived at the Crown Prince’s Palace, I nearly entered a gruesome death ending.
As I barely managed to right myself by gripping the railing, I saw a letter that had fallen at my feet.
[Arleigh Generoanth]
On the top of the envelope where the recipient is written, the name of the Third Prince was written. As I picked up the white envelope, the person who had bumped into me snatched the letter away.
“Please give it here!”
“Seha…”
It was Seha. Then did Seha write a letter to Arleigh? Why on earth?
Throughout the original work, Seha had shown a somewhat wavering appearance of not going all-in on Eldon and being strangely indecisive, but that was only to the extent of ‘not severely blocking those who come’—he had never contacted Arleigh first…
“What’s the matter?”
Seha hid the letter behind his back and shot back icily. Look at this guy? Even though I’m clearly the Crown Prince’s fiancée, he’s glaring daggers at me when he hasn’t even received a concubine’s certificate yet.
The status system was still uncomfortable and I still couldn’t adapt well to it, but whenever I saw Seha, I felt the urge to recite the Keltan Empire’s etiquette rules.
‘Did I come somewhere I shouldn’t? This is my fiancé’s palace, you know?’
I firmly suppressed the words that were pouring out and smiled warmly. Seha was the absolute top who received this world’s love, and I was the absolute bottom who would be brutally killed if I took even a slightly wrong route.
“How was your trip to the south? You must have been very tired, right?”
“…No.”
They say you can’t spit on a smiling face, right? When I showed a benevolent smile that was the epitome of warmth, Seha softened his venom and shook his head.
“You must have been so tired serving His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“……”
Seha firmly shut his mouth. Did I make some verbal mistake? I showed him a perfect virtuous wife-style smile that could be used as a textbook even in the Joseon era, but his reaction wasn’t good. Was I so warm that it seemed like I had ulterior motives instead?
“…Are you mocking me?”
“What?”
“While I was sincerely assisting His Highness the Crown Prince, you were receiving the Third Prince’s affections? Even if the Third Prince was the real lifeline, to mock His Highness the Crown Prince’s person like this, it’s really too much.”
What is this bastard? He arbitrarily stamped Eldon as a rotten lifeline himself, so why is he saying I’m too much? He’s the one who’s too much.
After smiling and saying one word, I became an opportunistic villain bottom in an instant. But that wasn’t the problem right now.
Anxiety was plainly revealed in Seha’s expression. If Eldon had found evidence, it wouldn’t be this reaction. He definitely didn’t find the secret ledger.
“Where is His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“Why?”
“Because I want to see him.”
“What will you say when you meet him? Are you going to declare breaking off the engagement?”
Seha’s eyes widened as he shouted nervously. What on earth is that guy thinking that as soon as I said I’d meet Eldon, he brought up breaking off the engagement as if a seizure button was pressed? Of course it’s true, but is that something to say in this situation? From his expression, it didn’t seem like he had fallen in love with Eldon and wanted me to break off the engagement or anything like that…
“What?”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to abandon His Highness the Crown Prince as soon as the Third Prince receives the Imperial Brilliance Medal? You’re really too much. Don’t you have even basic loyalty as a fiancé?”
He’s lecturing me while pretending to be righteous. No, it also seems like he’s subtly forcing me to stay by Eldon’s side.
He’s not thinking something like he’ll go to Arleigh while I’m with Eldon, or something like that, is he?
“Seha-gun, I heard that His Highness especially cherishes you, so I tried to treat you with the courtesy due to a concubine, but your words are too much.”
“…I apologize. I just felt sorry for His Highness’s feelings of being betrayed by his fiancé, so I…”
Every single word makes me out to be the bad guy. This is absolutely not a level of inner strength I can handle. I was about to refute but closed my mouth. I hate fighting and struggling. I just want to live peacefully, roundly and roundly.
“Betrayal, you must have misunderstood. It’s your first time in palace life, so that could happen.”
“It’s not a misunderstanding…!”
“Tell me where His Highness the Crown Prince is.”
Boom. I coolly cut off Seha’s words and got to the main point.
