Chapter 191
The Second Prince attached a sealed letter to an eagle and sent it off, then changed into comfortable clothing and secretly slipped out of the imperial palace.
Now, it was time to fulfill his duty as a younger brother and bid farewell to his older brother’s final journey. With such nice weather, it would be pleasant to enjoy a peaceful time with Irene, commemorating the removal of a troublesome enemy.
‘I wonder if I should tell Irene that my brother is scheduled to die.’
He didn’t want to reveal his cruelty, but he also thought that if she knew he had definitively eliminated the threat posed by her brother, the Young Lord, she might pay more attention to him in the future.
‘She’s had shadows on her face lately… Knowing this fact might put her mind at ease.’
In reality, she frequently brought up topics related to her brother during their conversations.
The Second Prince acknowledged Fei’s abilities, but he didn’t find him as lovable as Irene did, so he couldn’t understand her. Especially since Fei was physically weak.
Of course, mentally, he was quite strong. During the hunting banquet, his movements when confronting the assassins were quite elegant. His fighting style of deflecting attacks with minimal movement to conserve energy suited him perfectly.
‘He’d be troublesome as an enemy.’
He knows how to utilize his strengths and compensate for his weaknesses. He’s also willing to do whatever it takes to achieve his goals, and he’s smart enough to effortlessly interpret letters that were deliberately sent in a convoluted manner.
‘Above all, he surmised my brother’s collusion with the enemy.’
The Second Prince couldn’t discern what thought process led to that conclusion. However, he believed that even if it was information stumbled upon by chance, intuition was as good as skill. How many examples were there of imperial family members being poisoned or assassinated during power struggles? With good intuition, one could avoid such dangers.
‘The terrain where the Kans have settled is also like that.’
If war had broken out without knowing about Heis’s betrayal, and if the enemy had discovered the mountain pass first, there was a high probability that friendly forces defending that front would have been annihilated. It was that dangerous a path.
The map of the Empire was etched in his mind down to the smallest roads, but he couldn’t know information not marked on maps, so he probably would never have known. And since it was strategically important and close to a fortress, he would have deployed his most trusted commander there. And he would have inevitably lost that person.
‘It would be nice if he became my ally, but he just won’t come over.’
He wasn’t sure by what criteria Fei helped him, but thanks to him, he was able to deal with Heis much earlier than anticipated. Without Fei, it would have dragged on for several more years. So it was natural for him to feel greedy.
‘Come to think of it, I also need to decide what to do about Luwen.’
The attendant that the Vinter Young Lord cherishes dearly. He heard that this man had reached the realm of aura.
The Second Prince wanted to overhaul the current outdated system. Support the cultivation of capable individuals, and ensure they receive treatment commensurate with their proven abilities.
‘Merits can be accumulated afterward.’
He believed Luwen could be used as a starting point for this. He was the first aura user in the Empire, no, the continent. There could be no better exception.
Moreover, he could cover up the shame in the imperial palace caused by Heis with the emergence of a hero known as the “Aura Master.” It would be catching two birds with one stone.
‘Honorary Count? Duke?’
Even as an Aura Master, he was still inexperienced. A Duke’s title might be excessive, but it would be good for attracting attention decisively.
‘The key is convincing Father.’
When his thoughts turned to the Emperor, who had visibly weakened, perhaps due to Heis, the Second Prince’s face clouded with worry. As he was sighing, his eyes suddenly caught sight of silver hair that was noticeable even from a distance.
‘I heard Irene was at the mansion?’
Then the only person left was Fei Vinter. It would not be an exaggeration to say that such distinctively shining silver hair belonged to only the two of them in the Empire.
“Huh.”
The Second Prince inadvertently exclaimed in admiration. The Vinter Young Lord, smiling brightly for some reason, was captivating the attention of those around him. Meanwhile, Luwen seemed busy surveying the surroundings vigilantly.
“Hahaha.”
Weren’t they just like himself and Irene? The siblings were both adept at enchanting people, but only they themselves remained unaware. Thus, only those beside them suffered.
The Second Prince, stroking his chin, followed the two with his presence concealed. But he was quickly detected by Luwen. Their eyes met directly.
“I see you all here.”
Pretending as if he hadn’t been following them, he approached the two, waving his hand. Belatedly, the Vinter Young Lord also noticed him and turned around.
“…Hello, Your Highness.”
Where had that beautifully smiling person gone? Now he was clearly showing his annoyance at being interrupted, giving him a pointed look.
‘Only these siblings treat me so casually.’
Moreover, wasn’t he now positioned to become the Crown Prince? Though the coronation hadn’t taken place yet, it was a foregone conclusion that he would become the future Emperor of the Empire. Who else would treat him as an intruder?
Yet, far from being displeased, he was only amused. The reason was clear. The woman he loved and her capable brother. The Second Prince was always generous to outstanding talent.
“If you’re looking for my sister, she’s at the mansion.”
“I know. I was on my way there when I spotted you.”
The Second Prince suddenly wondered how he would react if told about conferring a title on Luwen. He might dislike it, since once he received a title, he could no longer remain as a guard.
‘He seems to like that guard quite a lot, I wonder if I’ll earn his resentment.’
Even now, he’s not particularly fond of me. But being disliked was a different matter. If he was viewed unfavorably by Fei, Irene would be angry.
In truth, the Second Prince had never considered others’ feelings when making decisions. But if it involved the brother whom his beloved cherished dearly, that was a different story. Just imagine if he took away his guard and Fei became depressed.
‘Just imagining it is dreadful.’
It was certainly the first time he had stepped back to ask for someone’s opinion on something he deemed worth exploiting. The subject probably had no idea he was receiving special treatment.
“Since we’ve met, there’s something I’d like to ask you. Shall we go somewhere quiet for a moment?”
“I came to watch the prisoner escort, which seems about to begin. Will it take long?”
“My business will be quick. It’s just that it would be troublesome if others heard.”
“For such matters, it might be better to be cautious, so perhaps you could send a letter? As you can see, it’s crowded, making it difficult to find a quiet place.”
Fei Vinter answered, looking around, and then smiled slightly. If they went to the outskirts, finding a quiet place wouldn’t be difficult. His response was polite, but it was essentially a dismissal, telling him to leave quickly.
“I will reply as soon as possible.”
Judging that to be insufficient, he drew a firm line, as if placing a period at the end of a sentence.
“I understand.”
In any case, Fei Vinter would likely need time to consider. Besides, he was on his way to meet Irene. He agreed plainly.
“Then may we take our leave?”
“Ah, yes. Sorry for detaining you. See you next time.”
“Take care, Your Highness.”
The Second Prince accepted their farewell and left first.
‘But the atmosphere was different from before. Has something changed?’
The look and expression on the Vinter Young Lord’s face as he looked at Luwen was sweet to an unfamiliar degree. Previously, he didn’t view him as a mere attendant or guard, but this was a different kind of affection.
The Second Prince stopped walking and turned around. Despite the distinctive silver hair, he was already hidden among the crowd, out of sight. After trying to find traces of Fei Vinter in the crowd, the Second Prince soon gave up and turned back.
* * *
“Hrrrgh! Mmmmmph!”
Bloodshot eyes, disheveled hair, covered in black dirt with torn clothes in places, eyebrows raised fiercely, movements like a beast lunging forward, drool dripping through the gag. These were all characteristics of the criminal convulsing before me.
Even with his status fallen, he could have at least tried to appear neat for his final appearance with whatever help he could get. It seems there wasn’t a single person around who truly served him.
‘Or they’ve all been dealt with.’
As he walked in chains, resigned like a man who had given up everything, the moment he spotted me, vitality suddenly returned to his eyes, and he lunged forward menacingly. But it was futile, as the chains were too short for him to reach me.
“Wow, scary.”
This was a taunt. Not genuine fear.
But Luwen blocked my view, turning his arm back to hide me. This wasn’t so bad either, so I just tilted my head to the side to observe the criminal.
He kept struggling and threatening us, not heeding the command to stay still, until finally a knight roughly yanked the chain. This caused the criminal to lose balance and fall ungracefully, rolling on the ground. Laughter could be heard from the surrounding crowd.
‘To think this is the First Prince’s end.’
There isn’t a single person who respects him. No one is saddened by his pitiful state. If it were the Second Prince there, there would have been underground movements to rescue him.
But this man seemed to have no such loyal followers. Since the Second Prince, whom we met earlier, didn’t warn us to be careful, it means he hadn’t detected any traces of a rescue party.
‘It’s possible, though. There might be people waiting for surveillance to loosen to take away the criminal.’
However, the Second Prince isn’t one to be trifled with. Perhaps he had made secret plans to deal with any risk of the criminal defecting to the enemy country. Though he had lost his status as royalty, the criminal’s mind was full of imperial secrets known only to the royal family, so he would have value for exploitation.
This is assuming he safely reaches the enemy country, but the probability isn’t zero. Well, knowing the Second Prince I’m familiar with, he wouldn’t leave any dangerous potential threat. That’s also why I haven’t taken any separate action.
I watched the criminal, who seemed as if afflicted with rabies, but soon lost interest.
“Let’s go to the clinic now.”
Behind me, I heard a howl filled with resentment.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
