Chapter 13
“They’re friendly to us, but they say rebellion feels unsettling as long as the king is alive. The Tar people hate traitors, so it’s probably because they’re concerned about their reputation.”
Lutenn replied.
“They said if the king were to die on his own and they could take the throne, they’d surrender immediately. A calculating and pragmatic person, really.”
“So if the king suddenly drops dead, the problem would be solved. With no heir, the throne would naturally go to his brother.”
Carsiel let out a sigh, and silence lingered in the office for a moment.
“By the way, why do you keep fiddling with that handkerchief, Your Highness?”
Lutenn tilted his head and asked. Only then did Carsiel realize he had unconsciously been handling the white handkerchief again.
“Oh, don’t tell me that’s her?”
Gale’s eyes lit up.
“The woman from Apellimion?”
“Watch your mouth. She’s the only heir of the ducal family.”
“But she is a woman, isn’t she? I heard she’s really beautiful.”
Gale said with a broad grin, and Carsiel shot him another warning glare.
“Shouldn’t we consider the possibility that she was sent by the Empress?”
Lutenn asked with concern, but Carsiel shook his head.
“I don’t think so. Maybe it wasn’t intentional from the start, but because of her, Balthazar’s dignity took a hit. The Empress probably can’t stand her right now.”
“That’s quite amusing. Speaking of which, I did hear the rumor—Viscount Gideon and Prince Balthazar kissed at the banquet?”
Gale chuckled.
“I heard it from my younger sister too. Said the tea parties are in a frenzy right now.”
Lutenn chimed in. It was a rare moment where he and Gale were on the same wavelength. Lutenn, who was usually serious, had a twinkle in his eye.
“Apparently both their mouths were hanging open. Is it true that Prince Balthazar was the one who initiated it?”
“Stop spouting nonsense. It was just an accident.”
Carsiel cut off Lutenn.
“There’ve been similar rumors about me and Lutenn, you know.”
“Well, my parents thought it was true and told me to try to get closer to you.”
“See?”
Honestly, deep down, he had a tiny urge to join in the gossip for once, setting aside his usual seriousness.
If it was about Balthazar’s disgrace, it would be even more exciting. Besides, Carsiel had witnessed it up close.
But now wasn’t the time for that.
“Still, it wasn’t a meaningless incident.”
Gale said.
“It gave you a little trust in Lady Iris, didn’t it?”
“It did, at first. But now there’s another reason.”
Carsiel flipped the handkerchief to check Iris’s initials stitched into it. He had seen them many times, but he habitually ran his fingers over the embroidered letters again.
“All the soldiers have been detoxified from the Thornbat venom, right? Gale, how’s your condition?”
“I’m perfectly fine. I didn’t see a doctor since I went home, but the medicine I was given worked immediately.”
“I’ve recovered too. The medicine was nasty, made me vomit several times, but that grumpy old man sure is skilled.”
Lutenn answered after Gale. Carsiel smiled softly.
“Then that’s everyone recovered. For the record, I threw up a few times too. Gale must be lucky.”
“I’ve got a strong stomach.”
Gale replied with a grin, brushing back his long tied-up hair.
“To think an illness that nearly wiped out our squad was cured so easily…”
Carsiel sighed in disbelief.
“If we win this battle, wouldn’t the greatest credit go to Lady Iris Apellimion?”
“Well… I wouldn’t say I trust her completely, but I do owe her my life.”
Lutenn replied, scratching his head.
“The rest of the unit probably feels the same. Her name is starting to spread quietly.”
“You too, Gale?”
“Well, she’s the goddess of war who saved the unit, isn’t she?”
Gale said.
“I’ve been curious to see her face. Is there any chance she’ll show up at another event?”
Carsiel fell into thought as he looked at the giggling Gale.
‘Once you’re healed, please trust me, Your Highness.’
‘…’
‘There’s so much I want to give you, and things I want from you too.’
That’s what she had said, cupping his cheek with this very handkerchief.
It had a faint lilac scent—or was it her hair? Now, the handkerchief held no scent, and he wasn’t sure anymore.
“Trust me,” huh.
As Lutenn had said, he owed her his life, so he couldn’t not trust her at all. Without reinforcements and in their previous state, they could’ve died right there.
But what did she mean by giving and receiving?
“Your Highness?”
Lutenn’s voice brought Carsiel out of his thoughts.
“Gale, you said an invitation arrived this morning, right? From House Morin?”
“Yes, they want us to come see some magical beast they captured. A winged horse or something…”
Gale said, pulling a white envelope from his coat.
“Your invitation is probably somewhere under that stack of documents.”
“If someone’s interested in Thornbats, they’d likely be curious about a winged horse too, right? They’re both magical beasts, and the latter’s prettier.”
Carsiel propped his chin with one hand, mumbling to himself.
“Women like pretty things, don’t they? Lutenn, don’t you think?”
“Well…”
“Send word to the Duke’s house… No, wait.”
Carsiel tapped his desk thoughtfully.
“Judging from how she didn’t get along with the heir’s proxy, Sub-Baron Penton might not welcome my contact.”
He had seen Iris and Bartol exchange cold glances at the banquet. And Iris had reached out to him in secret—without even explaining why.
He didn’t know the full situation, but it seemed she wasn’t entirely free under Penton’s proxy authority.
“Guess I’ll just barge in.”
“…What?”
Lutenn looked at Carsiel with a blank expression, but he only gave a faint smile.
He trusted his instincts.
And he wanted to see her again.
The deep green eyes that met his without fear—he wanted to look into them under the bright sunlight, for as long as possible.
“Young Lady, I’m back.”
Marie peeked her head in through the door. I jumped up from behind my new mahogany desk.
“Done with shopping? You’re early today.”
“Sir Deus helped me. Here, I got the key.”
I took the key she handed me and put it in my pocket.
It was the key to the hidden vault installed under my room’s stone floor.
Three days ago, a technician I’d secretly brought in had installed an additional lock and handed over this key. According to him, opening the vault required both the key and my fingerprint.
In other words, no one could steal what was inside without me knowing.
After handing me the key, Marie started pulling out clothes and books from a large bag—everything I had ordered.
“Sir Deus really helps a lot. He moved this desk for me last time too.”
“Of course.”
Marie replied.
“He said thanks to you, he could afford medicine for his elderly mother. He’d even give his life for you, he said.”
I smiled faintly.
It was well known that Sir Deus, a knight from the Apellimion household, didn’t get along with Uncle Julius. Despite his circumstances, Julius didn’t grant him any leave, nor did he pay enough to treat his sick mother.
Despite his excellent swordsmanship, Sir Deus never got promoted, probably because he openly expressed dissatisfaction toward Julius.
“What about the others?”
“You chose the right people. They all seem to like you. The lemon cake from the kitchen is proof.”
Marie pulled a small bundle from her pocket and placed it on the desk. When I opened it, the fresh scent of butter and lemon burst out from the vibrant yellow cake. My mouth watered involuntarily.
It had been so long since I had enjoyed such luxury.
Julius and his wife Lucilla had only returned to the capital this morning—two weeks after the banquet.
In that time, Marie had sold the treasures hidden under my bed and turned them into nearly 120,000 gold. And I had already spent nearly all of it.
As bribes for the staff.
