“I don’t know. I also came here via Silang-kyung’s teleport.”
“That earring. It’s a communication device, isn’t it?”
I know they divided up communication devices created by Silang’s magic to smoothly exchange information with each other at Viscount Bellos’s territory. That thing later gets corrupted into a tool for Eldon and Seha to whisper love to each other.
“N-no, it isn’t.”
“I already know. It’s connected to Leon-kyung, right? Please contact him and tell him I’m looking for His Highness.”
I’m someone who’s read the original work, you know. Don’t even think about making excuses.
“I really don’t know!”
Haah, this is getting annoying to persuade—should I have just asked Hereis to teleport me? If I went looking for him recklessly, it would obviously arouse suspicion, so I tried to go through Seha, but my insides were gradually boiling up.
“I’ll send you a letter.”
I cast my gaze toward his back where he’d hidden the letter.
“After the medal ceremony, hundreds of letters must have arrived addressed to the Third Prince, Your Highness. If you send it as is, it’ll probably be thrown into the fireplace before it even reaches Arleigh, Your Highness’s hands. However, if Seha-kun contacts Silang-kyung, I’ll use my influence to deliver that letter to the Third Prince, Your Highness.”
“I-is that really true?”
Seha asked urgently, openly revealing his inner thoughts. Honestly, I was uneasy about creating a point of contact between Arleigh and Seha, but with Viscount Bellos’s execution right around the corner, there was no time to delay. I was curious about the letter’s contents, but since he’s the main shou, it probably won’t contain anything harmful to Eldon.
Having just separated, it would be awkward to deliver it directly in my name, so I could just ask Duke Chendewden to have it sent under the name of an appropriate vassal family.
“Yes. So please tell me.”
I spoke gently yet firmly. I might have seemed quite like a Crown Princess.
***
“He didn’t even attend the Third Prince’s celebration party. It’s certain that Rosenthal declared their separation.”
The taciturn Silang spoke up. However, there was no way he, who knew nothing but magic, would have taken an interest in his lord’s love affairs. He brought up this relatively bright topic to lighten the gloomy atmosphere caused by the Imperial Medal ceremony.
The only consolation for the Crown Prince’s faction was that Rosenthal, who had been an incarnation of desire, rejected Arleigh who clung to him in the central garden and chose Eldon.
“Did you report this to His Highness?”
At Gail’s question, Leon shook his head. He didn’t know what wind had blown through Rosenthal, but that didn’t erase the past when he had approached His Highness the Crown Prince while dating the Third Prince, aiming only for the position of Crown Princess. His lord was already shaken enough, so he didn’t want to give him false hope.
“If it must be a man, that Hyeon Tribe boy Seha would be better. He’s善良, has no useless backing, and His Highness is also pleased with him.”
“That’s not for you to judge.”
Deren, the Knight Commander who disliked Rosenthal so much he had even condoned him being sold to a slave trader, spoke with displeasure. The straightforward Deren, who excelled in martial skills but was simple-minded, seemed deeply moved by the mere fact that Rosenthal had abandoned Arleigh, who had received the Imperial Medal, and chosen His Highness the Crown Prince.
“Rosenthal is the last resort. He’ll only disturb His Highness’s state of mind needlessly.”
Leon wasn’t avoiding Rosenthal simply because of past events.
The Emperor’s heart had tilted toward Arleigh. Grand Duke Curtis’s secret ledger hadn’t been found either. Right now, there was only one way to overcome the current situation: induce adultery between Rosenthal and the Third Prince to deal them a blow.
If His Highness learned that Rosenthal had abandoned the Third Prince and chosen the Crown Prince, and if he found out that wasn’t enough—that there had even been an earnest love confession—given His Highness’s nature, he wouldn’t be able to use Rosenthal.
Whether his intent was conveyed, Deren closed his mouth. Just then, a sound came from the communication device Leon was holding.
“Leon-kyung, this is Seha.”
Seha had said he would try gathering information in the capital. Had he already obtained some results?
“What is it?”
“Young Master Rosenthal Chendewden requests an audience with His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Rosenthal?”
What on earth was he scheming? As much as he wanted to ignore it, he was nominally His Highness’s fiancé. He couldn’t cut off an audience in the middle. Leon pondered and spoke.
“I’ll ask His Highness.”
***
About fifteen minutes after Seha made the request, contact came.
I went up to the secret room on the fourth floor. When I opened the door in the corner, Silang had already arrived and was waiting for me.
I’d heard that magic is restricted in the imperial palace for security purposes, and teleportation magic in particular is strictly forbidden. However, the Crown Prince uses Silang’s power to create a secret teleportation zone.
As I recalled this setting from the original work that I’d momentarily forgotten, I was once again impressed by Hereis’s skill. Hereis could teleport anywhere, ignoring the imperial palace’s barriers and restrictions, and was never caught. In the novel, he was described as the greatest mage who rivaled Silang, but Hereis awakened as an incubus possessed overwhelming power far surpassing Silang.
Anyway, when I followed Silang and transferred, I arrived at a cottage that was fancier than expected. In the original work, there were continuous descriptions of it being too shabby and humble for the Crown Prince’s status, so I’d been secretly worried, but by my standards as a commoner, it was a sufficiently nice place.
In the yard, Deren and the knights had gathered and were having light sparring matches.
“The south has warm weather, so it’s good for moving your body. Hahaha.”
“You’re right. All of this is thanks to His Highness the Crown Prince’s grace.”
“I want to come again next year!”
The knights’ terrible acting as they pretended to enjoy their vacation, pretending to be relaxed and happy, made my fingers want to curl up, but I just smiled with my eyes and greeted them lightly before moving on.
The Crown Prince’s faction was ostensibly here in the south to enjoy a vacation. They must have thought it mustn’t be discovered that they were searching for Grand Duke Curtis’s ledger. They couldn’t trust me, so such acting was natural.
I entered Eldon’s room under Silang’s guidance. Leon and Eldon were in the room. Eldon sat in a hard wooden chair in front of the desk with his arms crossed, looking up at me.
“What is it?”
“You look well.”
I’d had a worry in one corner of my heart that he might have been injured while searching for evidence, but as expected, it was needless concern.
His silver hair was just a bit longer and his skin was slightly tanned, but his relaxed and arrogant face was the same.
Somehow he seems even more handsome seeing him after a while…
If Hereis exuded a languid air as if he could seduce everyone but deliberately chose not to, Eldon possessed the nobility of royalty that would shine upright even in a muddy field.
“So you’re disappointed?”
His manner of speaking is the same as ever too.
“I’m relieved. I was worried since there was no news for so long.”
“……”
Why are you glaring? Do you think I’m being sarcastic or jealous?
“I heard you took Seha-kun? I was happy that His Highness the Crown Prince seems to have found the partner you desired. I offer my sincere congratulations.”
I showed a smile more overwhelming than when I got the limited edition marker set I’d dreamed of. Ah, come to think of it, that limited special edition—it was useless but I really wanted it, and in the end I never got to use it even once. Sob sob.
“…Did such a rumor spread?”
“Yes. I was truly happy.”
“Did you come to spout such useless words? Crown Princess.”
What pretty words you speak. If only you’d speak even half of half as well as your handsome face looks. Should I just leave?
Actually, if Eldon is deposed, it’s a huge windfall for me. The story in <Three Crowns> would end. I wouldn’t have to worry about becoming Crown Princess and dying horribly.
But until recently, I was just an ordinary young person from the Republic of Korea. I’m not selfish enough to ignore someone who’s about to be executed when they’re innocent.
“I know where Grand Duke Curtis’s secret ledger is.”
Perhaps I’ll regret this moment for the rest of my life.
The flow of the twisted story might follow the original work again, and I too might be bound by that force and face a crisis of death. Trembling before Eldon’s red sword, I might beat the ground regretting that I should have left him to be deposed back then. But still, it can’t be helped. This is who I am.
“What?”
“Is that true?”
Advisor Leon shouted. Even Silang seemed surprised.
“Yes. So please dismiss everyone first, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Dismiss? What are you trying to say? Are you trying to bewitch His Highness?”
Leon, who had been openly displaying contemptuous feelings since I entered, glared daggers.
“Leave.”
“Your Highness, don’t listen. This might be a trap from the Third Prince’s side. Young Master Chendewden, I heard you’ve been acting strangely lately—was this all foreshadowing for this moment?”
So you think I pretended to break up with Arleigh in collusion and then approached? Honestly, even in the original work, you stuck like glue next to Eldon and instead of doing politics, only disparaged Rosenthal and praised Seha—that spirit hasn’t gone anywhere. A human twisted breadstick when it comes to Rosenthal alone.
“Leon-kyung, I’m well aware of your loyalty, but your worry is a bit excessive. Even if I have impure intentions, it’s a matter for His Highness to judge. To tell him to dismiss me without even listening—are you saying you think His Highness the Crown Prince, the Empire’s hero, lacks even that much judgment?”
I used the ‘Seha speech method’ I’d just learned and smiled brightly. Then Leon’s lips trembled. Oh, this is fun? Is this why people do it?
“Leon, withdraw.”
“But Your Highness!”
“Withdraw.”
At Eldon’s firm voice, Leon bowed his head and went outside. But just before leaving, he didn’t forget to whip his head around and glare at me.
Just like the guy who, along with Martin, instigates killing me. But I responded with a leisurely smile. I don’t care if I’m marked. I’m just going to inform him of the evidence and leave, so there’s no need to care about the advisor’s opinion, let alone Eldon himself.
“How did you learn about the secret ledger?”
As soon as the door closed, Eldon shot out sharp glinting eyes. As expected, did I come for nothing? Regret washed over me, but I endured it by thinking of Forti and Patrick.
“Have you forgotten? I’m the one who first noticed the connection between Grand Duke Curtis and the illegal slave auction. The nobles whisper that Your Highness failed after trying to frame Grand Duke Curtis to slander the Third Prince, Your Highness, but I know the truth.”
“That’s not an answer. I’ll ask again. How did you know I was searching for the secret ledger?”
“You’re not someone who would run away or leave for a vacation at such an important time.”
Eldon, without uncrossing his arms, looked me up and down.
“…How did you find the secret ledger?”
