Chapter 23
“Did you… ahem, come to turn yourself in?”
Seamus looked quite flustered.
Standing behind the Cotton Candy Prince, Elshunaine glanced sideways. Meanwhile, Kilian remained expressionless.
“What are you all doing? The criminal has come here on their own, so hurry and—”
“Huh?”
Once again, the Holy Crown Prince’s words were cut off by a cute voice.
The little prince tilted his head and said,
“I think there’s been a misunderstanding!”
“What, what did you say?”
“The Guardian was with me the whole time!”
Seamus frowned and quickly snapped back.
“But she was supposed to be at the Holy Crown Palace?”
“Ah! How did you know that?!”
Realizing his mistake, Seamus quickly shut his mouth. The prince, oblivious to what had just happened, chattered on cheerfully.
“I missed my royal daddy so, so much that I begged the Guardian to take me there…”
Murmur murmur.
A low murmur rose among the people who had quietly been listening to their conversation. Seamus flinched and gestured at the court magician.
Turn off the voice amplification magic now!
The court magician, who had been blankly listening, jolted and prepared to cancel the spell—but the little prince was quicker.
“And then we saw someone really, really suspicious there!”
A suspicious person?
The court magician paused.
It felt wrong to doubt the innocent words of someone so young and clearly cursed. The people completely believed his every word and listened intently.
This time, the little prince spoke with unusually clear pronunciation.
“A very suspicious person disguised like Miss Elshunaine had snuck into the Holy Crown Palace! The Guardian tried to zap them with her divine power when suddenly soldiers barged in…”
“……!!”
Seamus’s face went pale. He stammered, staring at the prince in disbelief.
“How could an outsider sneak into the Holy Crown Palace?”
The prince paused for a moment, then straightened his back quickly in response to Elshunaine’s nudge and hurriedly replied,
“Exactly! Strangely, there were no guards at the Holy Crown Palace today…”
“……!”
Seamus, now visibly panicked, waved his hands and yanked the prince closer to him, clearly trying to shut him up.
“Ah!”
As the prince fell into Seamus’s embrace, his face—visible only to Elshunaine—twisted with annoyance. It was as if every curse in the world could be seen written on his face.
Completely unaware of that expression, Seamus smiled kindly and said,
“Oh dear! That must’ve been frightening. It seems I misunderstood greatly. The Guardian was actually trying to protect the Holy Crown!”
Hahaha!
He let out a forced laugh and glanced apologetically at Kilian, who stood with arms crossed, silently watching the comedy unfold.
Kilian must’ve already noticed how strange this situation is, thought Elshunaine, who had secretly been manipulating the prince like a marionette.
In the original story, the person suspected to be Arwen is dying, and she uses divine power out of desperation.
This time, because the intruder was disguised as her, it nearly turned into a bloodbath. Elshunaine quietly wiped her neck and once again reminded herself how much Kilian despised her.
Ugh, scary. So scary.
That could have been her lying in that position.
If she hadn’t hidden Arwen and lost her memory…
“So what? The Guardian was actually trying to protect His Holiness?”
“Exactly!”
“That was a huge misunderstanding!”
“This is practically defamation!”
Shouts echoed from the crowd gathered around the palace.
Though shocked by Seamus’s accusation of regicide, they couldn’t bring themselves to condemn him outright. Instead, they cast displeased looks at the palace terrace.
Now made to look like a man who tried to frame a hero, Seamus discreetly called over a trailing soldier.
“This prince is still young; he may have misunderstood the situation… Are you certain that’s what happened? Ahem. I mean, it’s not like she was treating the intruder or anything like that, right?”
“No! Not at all! In fact, the Guardian tried to eliminate the intruder!”
“I—I see.”
Seamus, looking increasingly nervous, kept patting the prince on the shoulder.
“O-our little prince saved the day! Quickly, send that intruder to prison!”
Trying to erase his own guilt, Seamus was immediately blocked by Kilian.
“No.”
“W-what?”
Kilian blinked and gestured to the court magician to end the spell broadcasting their conversation to the outside.
The court magician hastily ended the broadcast. Once Kilian confirmed that his voice was no longer being transmitted, he quietly said,
“The fact that someone could infiltrate the Holy Crown Palace means there may be a spy inside the palace.”
Just moments ago, this was the same person the intruders tried to eliminate. Yet now, his tone was calm and calculated, as if this had all been part of his plan.
“That’s why I recommend imprisoning the intruder in a temple prison instead.”
Seamus’s face twisted slightly.
“Are you saying there’s someone trying to assassinate His Holiness inside the palace?”
“Yes,” Kilian replied without hesitation.
Caught off guard, Seamus stumbled for words.
“Still, it’s unthinkable to bring in an external force to deal with a matter inside the Holy Crown Palace.”
“External force?”
At Kilian’s quiet words, Seamus winced, realizing his slip.
Aeterna was a holy empire. The palace and the temple were under the same authority—the Holy Crown.
Calling the temple an “external force” was a misstep. While Seamus didn’t see the temple as part of his domain, officially, they were one.
“So, it’s alright to transfer the intruder to the temple?”
At Kilian’s words, Seamus nodded reluctantly.
“…Very well.”
He realized then that his plan had completely failed.
“Hehe. So, is it all settled now, Sister?”
Later, in a quiet corridor of the palace—
The prince, fidgeting bashfully, looked up at her.
He looked cute like cotton candy, but the way he rubbed his hands together made him resemble a giant mosquito.
Elshunaine replied with a cold look.
“Yes. Good job.”
“I knew you had a deep plan all along! I could tell from the first moment—we’re meant to be partners!”
Apparently, the handful of platinum coins had been very effective. Watching the con artist prince gaze up at her with adoration, Elshunaine nodded reluctantly.
“Hmph. Yes, yes.”
“You played a major role in saving the Guardian. Are you really going to let it go without recognition?”
The prince’s flattering voice was shut down immediately.
“Yes. Let it go.”
“O-oh… But you could gain great rewards…”
“I don’t need them.”
At Elshunaine’s firm response, the prince shriveled for a moment, then cautiously asked,
“U-um… You did say you’d become my business partner, right?”
“I did.”
Revived instantly, the prince clapped his hands with sparkling eyes.
“Then when can we start?”
Doing business with this prince…
Elshunaine crossed her arms and tapped her forearm thoughtfully.
Since the New Year Festival matter seemed resolved, it was time to meet her piggy bank—no, her gold—and start their venture.
“I’ll contact you soon.”
“Yes!”
After parting ways with the hopeful prince, Elshunaine stayed one more night in a room he provided.
The palace was in such a commotion that the security was suddenly tightened, making it hard to leave that same day.
The next day, all she had to do was leave the palace.
“Why didn’t the Guardian go straight to the temple?”
“Yeah, I heard she returned to House Haunbert instead.”
Elshunaine stopped mid-step as she heard two nobles whispering in the hallway while she skipped along, ready to hide herself with a scroll Ashray had given her.
Kilain didn’t go to the temple?
Ssssshh.
It was like she could hear the blood draining from her face.
He went back to House Haunbert?
“He left in a rush yesterday, didn’t he?”
“Yeah. Like someone hiding something at home. Do you think he was worried?”
“Hmm. The intruder was disguised as Lady Elshunaine, right? Since she hasn’t been found, maybe he went to check the mansion just in case?”
“What a devoted man.”
He went straight to House Haunbert?!
The nobles’ remarks about Kilian’s “devotion” didn’t even register with Elshunaine.
If you rode nonstop by carriage from the palace, you’d arrive at House Haunbert in a day.
Then I have only… two hours left?!
Eeep!
Elshunaine panicked, stomping in place. She quickly tucked the scroll Ashray had given her back into her robes.
What do I do now?!
The fact that he went directly to the mansion meant he was probably going to check if she was still there!
But I’m here!!
Elshunaine screamed internally.
