Chapter 58
“Fei!”
Irene hurriedly examined my complexion. See? I’m still this weak. She won’t really send me away, right? Even with Master nearby, it’s still worrying.
“This won’t do. Your face is too pale. I’ll take care of Taran’s matter.”
“But what if you overexert yourself and collapse?”
“I’m much healthier than you, you know.”
Still, my sister doesn’t need to strain herself. Why isn’t he stepping in? Shouldn’t you be scoring points at a time like this, Second Prince?
“It’s my business. I can’t let you trouble yourself, sis.”
“If it’s for you, Fei, I welcome it. I can do it with a happy heart.”
Irene’s smile was caring.
Hmm. Is the Second Prince not planning to act? He should dislike seeing my sister strain herself too. I know that right now, my sister is busier than anyone. And I’ve seen how heartbroken she is after losing our father. Yet he’s not stepping up? For a moment, I thought about cutting him off from the brother-in-law position.
“I’ll take care of it.”
Finally, the Second Prince stepped up. It was a close pass. If he hadn’t, I was going to drive a wedge between them. I can’t acknowledge a man who won’t even do this much for my sister as a brother-in-law.
“I appreciate the sentiment, but I can’t trouble Your Highness.”
Irene said politely, bowing her head. It’s a statement that might sting the Second Prince a bit. It’s like drawing a line, saying he’s an outsider.
Sure enough, a fleeting bitterness passed over the Second Prince’s face. It was a very subtle change in expression. Just the corners of his eyes drooping slightly before rising again. My sister probably didn’t notice. Not because Irene lacks observational skills, but because she’s too focused on me to pay attention to the Second Prince.
“How can you call it trouble when it’s about the empire’s people? It’s originally my job to do. If they’ve suffered an injustice, it’s my duty to resolve it. Isn’t that why we brought them out?”
The Second Prince glanced at me while saying “we.” But he doesn’t need to be wary of me, does he? We’re family. Why can’t he think that scoring points with me would be more beneficial?
Ah. It’s not that he can’t think of it, he just instinctively dislikes it, I guess.
He’s smart and rational, but he acts emotionally when it comes to Irene. His head knows I’m her little brother, but emotionally, he dislikes having another man around. Thinking of it this way, it was a bit cute.
“Even so…”
Irene seemed a bit burdened and was about to refuse. Then the Second Prince suddenly approached me. I glanced at my sister and saw her face softening as she looked at the Second Prince.
I can see signs of mutual feelings developing.
“Guide me. Who are these wronged imperial citizens?”
“Are you going in person?”
“Yes. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
His eyes rolled towards me. Since he had his back to Irene, he showed his displeasure without restraint. This… it seems he’s caught on to my intentions. That I’m trying to get the Second Prince to handle the troublesome task.
‘So that’s why he was slow to offer.’
Yet he stepped up anyway, for my sister’s sake? As expected of a man in love. I’ll acknowledge him as a brother-in-law.
“Rather than Your Highness moving directly, it might be better to summon Taran here.”
The implication being that since he’s a local lord, we can just call him in to deal with it-
“If that satisfies you.”
He understood.
“I’m grateful for any help. My sister will think the same, right?”
I spoke sincerely to the Second Prince who participated in my show despite knowing everything. Still, he scored some points with my sister, so it’s not a loss, is it?
“Of course. Thank you, Your Highness.”
The Second Prince’s cheek twitched at Irene’s bright voice. He’s that pleased with a polite thank you? Seeing the prince’s attitude, I felt good inside, thinking Irene would likely live happily as in the original story.
After calling Taran to the tent, we discussed our plan. When I apologized for not being able to go myself, he waved his hands frantically, saying it was okay. The Second Prince listened to the details and immediately drafted a summons for the wicked lord.
This side of things will progress smoothly without needing to worry now. Even if the lord is innocent, Taran’s Kans seal will be erased.
Thanks to this, I returned to my tent with peace of mind. My sister came along and left, Master dropped by to check on my condition, and Luwen stayed by my side taking care of me. Taran also wanted to stay, but I sent him out as he seemed to want to spend time with the people he was happy to see.
So Luwen and I were left alone, chatting leisurely, and it was when we were about to go to bed late at night. There was a presence felt outside the tent. Luwen immediately went on alert. What could be dangerous when we’re surrounded by our own people?
“I apologize if I’ve come too late.”
The person who entered, gracefully pulling back the curtain, was the Second Prince.
“No need to get up. I thought we could have a chat.”
The Second Prince said, gesturing to Luwen. Normally, I would have said there was no need to send him out, but somehow it didn’t seem like he had come just to say hello. If that’s the case, it would be easier to talk without Luwen present. I did as the prince wanted.
“Luwen, could you step out for a moment?”
“Yes. I’ll wait at the entrance.”
Perhaps because it was the Second Prince, he left without any suspicion.
The Second Prince sat down on the chair prepared next to the bed, crossing his legs. He loosely folded his arms and wiggled his index finger. Perhaps because he was inherently noble-looking, he appeared elegant despite his disagreeable posture.
“You probably know why I’ve come.”
“I’m not sure. Did I do something wrong…?”
I answered with an innocent face, showing a slightly shrinking appearance. I made a show of being anxious, fidgeting with the edge of the blanket in my fingers.
The prince, who had been staring at my behavior, let out a snicker.
“You’re similar to me. Let’s stop pretending, it doesn’t work on each other. I came to have an honest conversation.”
So he had noticed everything after all. I let go of the blanket I was holding and answered.
“Please speak. Do you have something you’re curious about?”
“What’s your reason for dumping the Kans on me?”
“Why would the reason matter? What’s important is that it benefits Your Highness, isn’t it?”
“It benefits me. How, specifically?”
Asking when he already knows. Does he want to check how much I’ve figured out? It would be easy to say I’m only looking at the problem right in front of me, but I feel like I’d be in trouble if this person underestimates me.
After pondering for a moment, I decided on the direction of my answer and opened my mouth.
“First, you can gain points with His Majesty the Emperor, who loves his people. In a way, it might be like a small stone piled on the path to becoming Crown Prince, but sometimes small differences can overturn results.”
The prince nodded slightly. It was an arrogant attitude telling me to continue.
“Secondly, you’ve gained favor with my sister, whom Your Highness loves dearly. Because you helped me, whom my sister loves, and made efforts in various ways to rescue me.”
“The Kans child was something you could have easily resolved. Yet you deliberately brought it up in front of Irene to move me. That arrogant act doesn’t seem justified as a reason.”
He seems a bit angry. Is it because he’s never experienced being used by others in his life?
“Instead, let’s consider this as settling our debt.”
“Debt? When did I ever owe you a debt?”
“Have you forgotten? They say the perpetrator easily forgets. Your Highness is no different, I see.”
“You should carefully consider whether your memory might be distorted.”
He really seems to have forgotten. Can’t he guess at all? Wow, this is absurd.
“Have you forgotten that you sent the Fifth Prince as a messenger to test me? It was a great wound to me… You know I could never harm my sister.”
“Considering your reputation at the time, it was naturally something that needed to be addressed. Moreover, I don’t know what you whispered to Irene then, but she treated me coldly for a while, which was tough.”
Was he considering that incident as us being even? Is that why he’s been behaving so well all this time?
But who decided it was over? Isn’t an apology supposed to be given until the victim accepts it? How can he say we’re even when I haven’t forgiven him? At that time, I just let it slide because it wasn’t convenient to deal with.
“Such a trivial thing couldn’t heal the wound in my heart.”
The wiggling index finger stopped after touching his forearm.
“So, you’re saying you dared to use me just because I tested you a bit?”
He seemed angry, but also looked pleased, so it was puzzling. I couldn’t tell which emotion was weighing more heavily.
Anyway, I can’t like a person whose true feelings are so hard to read. Just when you think they’re revealing themselves, they hide like a ghost when necessary.
