Chapter 14
‘In any case, this time…’
The fingers tapping on the armrest suddenly stilled.
Cedric clenched his fist tightly.
A murderous glint flickered across his handsome features.
‘I’ll have to root out every last impure element.’
Noah was his one and only younger brother.
Although he hadn’t exactly been much of an older brother so far…
At the very least, he had no intention of leaving alone anyone who might hurt Noah.
A few days later.
The Second Prince’s Palace was brimming with liveliness.
And with good reason—today was the day Noah and Eugénie were going on a picnic.
‘That wench dares try to monopolize His Highness the Second Prince…’
Janet kept shooting sharp, unfriendly glances toward the kitchen.
Inside, the staff was busy preparing the picnic lunch.
“What about the ham-and-cheese sandwiches?”
Noah’s eyes sparkled brightly as he looked at Eugénie.
She smiled warmly.
“Of course, I’ve packed them.”
“And you’ll make that drink too, right?”
“Oh, you mean the lime mojito? Don’t worry, I’ve brought all the ingredients.”
Noah’s face lit up.
“Can’t you make me one right now?”
“No, if you drink too many cold things, your tummy will hurt,” Eugénie chided gently, shaking her head.
“Let’s have it nice and chilled when we get there, okay?”
“Tch.”
Noah puffed out both cheeks in protest, but didn’t push further.
The sight was so adorable that the maids bustling about couldn’t help but smile.
Everyone seemed happy—except Janet, whose mood was in shambles.
‘I really don’t like this.’
Her eyes narrowed into slits as she glared at Eugénie.
‘I can’t get a read on what she’s thinking.’
Since their verbal clash, Janet had been plagued by a strange unease.
Frightened by her violent display, Noah had been keeping his distance from her.
Meanwhile, Eugénie only grew closer to him.
Feeling a strong sense of crisis, Janet had tried to cancel the picnic altogether.
‘Maids going on an outing together with His Highness the Prince? Are you in your right mind? Have you no regard for his dignity?’
‘Well, His Highness the Second Prince has already given permission.’
Eugénie had merely given an infuriating little shrug.
‘That question of yours is basically the same as asking if His Highness himself is in his right mind, isn’t it?’
‘……’
Recalling how Eugénie had scored a hit with that remark only worsened Janet’s mood.
‘If this so-called picnic ends well, won’t His Highness like her even more?’
She bit down hard on her lip.
Objectively speaking, the situation didn’t look good for her.
The picnic had already brought Eugénie and Noah much closer, and now even the maids were warming to Eugénie.
The only silver lining was that Eugénie wasn’t actively trying to pick fights with her.
If it were Janet, she would have used this favorable situation to force Eugénie out.
But Eugénie seemed content just to spend time with Noah like any ordinary day.
‘Hmph, naive little thing.’
Janet gave an inward sneer.
In fact, Eugénie’s insistence on the picnic had worked to her own advantage in one respect.
Namely—
‘I’ve managed to set aside some emergency funds.’
Her eyes glinted with a sly light.
She had already prepared double sets of ledgers to get through the routine inspections.
The problem had been that she’d siphoned off the reserve funds, making it difficult to actually hold events that required those funds.
‘…Do you have any idea how much wasteful spending is involved in taking His Highness out of the palace?!’
That outburst had come from a real place.
But thanks to Eugénie’s push for the picnic, Janet now had a reason to restore some funds.
‘This picnic aside, what if that wretched girl tries to start something else later?’
At present, Janet’s emergency stash was quite ample.
Small events like picnics or tea parties could be easily covered.
It stung to have to put back even part of the money she’d already pocketed, but…
‘It’s fine.’
She soothed herself.
‘Once this is over, I’ll have the chance to get rid of her. Then I can fill my purse again.’
For now, there was only one factor she had to be careful about.
‘As long as His Majesty the Emperor stays out of it.’
So far, she’d made good use of the reserve funds she’d skimmed off—on luxury carriages, an expensive townhouse in the capital, lavish clothes and shoes, fine jewelry…
Her taste for luxury had grown so bloated that she was spending money like water.
Looking back, she almost regretted not agreeing to the picnic from the start.
If she’d known she could pull in extra funds this way, she would’ve gladly approved it then.
The sum she could free up immediately was limited, but more than enough for a simple outing.
Now she only worried that she might have drawn suspicion.
‘Well, it’s fine.’
She mentally tallied her current resources again.
There was enough to handle small-scale events at the Second Prince’s Palace.
‘As long as His Majesty doesn’t come, there won’t be a problem.’
If the Emperor attended, that was a different matter entirely.
Even if he forbade extravagance, an emperor was still an emperor—
There would be the guards and attendants dispatched, the items for his use… everything would have to be of a different standard.
Her current stash couldn’t possibly cover such an event.
Still, she shrugged.
‘What are the chances His Majesty would come here? He’s shown no interest in Noah whatsoever.’
In fact, that lack of interest was precisely what had allowed her to control the palace’s affairs so freely until now.
Just then—
“Lady McRae!”
A maid came running toward her in a panic.
Janet’s eyes instantly sharpened.
“What’s the meaning of this commotion?”
“It’s…!” The maid panted, catching her breath.
“There’s a message from the Imperial Palace!”
Janet blinked, thinking she’d misheard.
“From the Imperial Palace? Why all of a sudden?”
“His Majesty says… he wishes to join His Highness the Second Prince on today’s outing…”
“What?!”
Janet was aghast.
But she didn’t even have time to process the shock.
A man appeared from behind the maid.
‘No… it can’t be!’
Her eyes flew wide as she stared at him.
Even in casual clothes for a light outing, his nobility couldn’t be hidden.
Hair as black as the night sky, posture straight and elegant, and those proud violet eyes that carried an oppressive weight with a mere glance.
It was the Emperor, Cedric.
“We greet Your Majesty the Emperor.”
“We greet Your Majesty.”
Everyone in the Second Prince’s Palace hurriedly bowed.
Cedric took his time looking around.
Among the staff were Noah and Eugénie.
His violet gaze lingered briefly on Eugénie, who stood with her head bowed, before shifting to Noah, who was clutching her skirt.
Noah stared at him with wide, startled eyes.
“B–Brother…?”
For a moment, a mix of emotions flickered through Cedric’s eyes—
A heavy guilt, a sense of responsibility… and a fondness he could not quite hide.
“It’s been a while, Noah.”
He bent down to meet his brother’s gaze.
“I hear you’re going on a picnic today.”
“Y-Yes, but…”
Noah fidgeted with his fingers, looking away.
It was obvious he was happy to see his brother, yet shy about showing it.
Cedric’s eyes crinkled with a smile.
“Would you mind if I joined you?”
“R-Really?”
“Of course.”
At that easy reply, Noah beamed.
“Yes!”
“I’m glad I can spend some time with you today as well.”
Cedric’s warm gaze rested on Noah—then he slowly lifted his eyes.
