Chapter 11
While Blake was debating whether or not to ask, he arrived in front of the reception room and stepped inside.
Seated on a dark green velvet sofa in the white marble reception room, Blake finally spoke.
“Is there a report today?”
At those words, Ronald, whose attention had been completely occupied by the bird’s nest on the back of Blake’s head, jumped in surprise and hurriedly pulled out his report documents.
The next moment, he completely forgot about the messy hair and quickly began reporting the schedule.
It was the moment Vivian’s irresponsible faith that someone would surely tell him vanished into the distance.
“After your private meeting with His Highness Crown Prince Edwin, you will need to review the documents regarding the selection of a new administrator for the Riner Territory.”
“Fire the bastard who recommended the corrupt administrator too. We’ll need someone new for that position as well. Incompetent idiots are nothing but parasites feeding on the blood of the territory’s people.”
“Yes, understood. Ah, and we received a message from Elio of the McCain Cartel in the east. It seems a demonic beast has appeared in the eastern region again. Ophelia’s prophecy was correct once more.”
“…How many sacrifices did this prophecy require?”
“…A total of one hundred.”
“Damn it.”
A curse escaped from between his crimson lips.
Ronald lowered his head and bit down hard on his lip.
Ophelia, the Empire’s Saintess and Imperial Prophet.
Whenever her words came true, they were grateful for the chance to prepare for the future, yet they were also depressed by the horrifying price that had to be paid.
She was a woman with mysterious powers.
The unbelievable figure who had supposedly served as the Imperial Prophet since the reign of the current Emperor’s grandfather.
A mysterious woman who neither aged nor died.
And Ophelia’s prophecies were absolute. A single word from her could determine matters of great importance for the Empire.
Of course, Blake LeBlanc was the only person who refused to be controlled by Ophelia’s prophecies.
If he had not personally seen and verified something himself, he never made hasty judgments.
At that moment, the loud voice of a knight waiting outside the reception room rang out.
“His Highness Crown Prince Edwin Albert Cardenas has arrived.”
The door swung open, and a gentle-looking man with pale pink hair entered the room and greeted him.
“Hello, Duke Blake LeBlanc. It’s been a long time.”
His voice was soft and sweet, like fluffy clouds and cotton candy, filled with warmth and familiarity.
A servant approached Edwin, who sat on the sofa opposite Blake, and poured tea into his cup.
The way he lifted the teacup with his delicate fingers was so elegant and refined that it resembled a waltz.
“You made me come all the way here personally, yet no matter when I see you, you always act more like a master than I do.”
“Have you been well?”
“Yes. Thanks to you, our Empire is always at peace. I was delighted when I heard the news of your victory after another successful war against the demonic beasts. It truly suits Blake LeBlanc, the man who supposedly cuts down even his own knights whenever he gets bored.”
“……”
Regardless of what Edwin said, Blake merely stared at him blankly.
Leaning lazily back in his chair without even offering a response to the Crown Prince, his posture was arrogantly relaxed.
Edwin’s gentle eyes twitched slightly—so subtly that no one else would have noticed—but he quickly composed himself and continued.
“Besides, it seems we’ve grown closer while we haven’t seen each other. This is the first time I’ve seen your hair in disarray.”
Only then did Blake react.
Upon hearing that, he unconsciously rubbed the back of his head.
Feeling the stubborn tuft of hair sticking out, which he had not noticed earlier, he lightly bit his tongue.
…Vivian, that brat. She definitely saw it and chose not to tell me.
That mischievous teddy bear had most likely pretended not to notice even after seeing it.
Simply because she thought it would be funny.
She really was impossible to predict.
Grinding his teeth, Blake stared at the troublesome person before him.
“Anyway, since we won the war, it means we’ve defeated Ophelia’s prophecy once again.”
“Prophecies are not always correct. Often, people fail to see the truth hidden behind convincing words.”
“Haha, that’s exactly what I’d expect from Duke LeBlanc. Even the great Ophelia can’t manipulate you. Sometimes I think I’d even kneel if it meant making you truly become my person.”
“That is not something I desire. I’ll decline.”
“Oh dear, I wish you wouldn’t draw the line so firmly. Think carefully, Duke. If you come to my side, I can give you many things. I can even return your first love, Lea Everett, whom my half-brother stole from you. After all, there are many things I need to reclaim from Ian as well.”
He has taken so much from me.
As Edwin said those words, he wore the gentle and sweet smile people so often praised.
However, the moment he mentioned his half-brother Ian, Blake did not miss the hatred hidden beneath it.
Ian Garner Cardenas.
The illegitimate prince who had suddenly appeared over a decade ago and turned the Cardenas Imperial Family upside down.
Ian was also Blake’s longtime friend.
To be more precise, he had originally been the friend of Lea Everett, Blake’s childhood companion.
This man seemed to have more than a few misconceptions about him, but Blake had no intention of correcting them one by one.
All he wanted was for this exhausting meeting to end as quickly as possible.
“Regardless, I hope the Duke carefully chooses the one he will serve as his true ruler—”
Crash!
At that moment, a loud noise of something falling and breaking came from outside the reception room.
“…I didn’t catch what you just said.”
Edwin’s gentle eyes briefly distorted with irritation before he smoothly continued.
“I hope the Duke carefully chooses the one he will serve as his true rul—”
Crash! Bang! Bang!
“Kyaaaa! What is that?!”
This time, an even louder crash was followed by a maid’s scream.
Still smiling despite the vein bulging on his forehead, Edwin finally turned to Blake and asked,
“What in the world is causing that commotion?”
After glancing around nervously, Ronald quickly rushed outside the reception room and returned almost immediately. It took him less than a minute to assess the situation.
“What happened?”
“Well… it seems to have simply been a disturbance caused by frightened maids. I’ve already given them a stern warning.”
“Frightened?”
As though he found the idea amusing, Edwin tilted his head with a graceful smile.
“Do servants working for a cold-blooded family without a drop of mercy always live in fear? I’m genuinely curious.”
His fingers casually traced the handle of his teacup as if he meant no offense.
Ronald suppressed the surge of anger rising within him.
Without any visible emotional reaction, Blake looked at Ronald and asked,
“Tell me briefly what caused it.”
“You may find it rather absurd.”
“Now I’m curious too. Let’s hear it.”
Urged on by Edwin, Ronald reluctantly explained what he had just heard.
“One of the younger maids claimed she saw a shadow swaying like a ghost at the end of the hallway. But because it looked furry, she thought it might be a rat or some other animal and approached it. Then she said a doll with rolled-back eyes suddenly disappeared behind a statue, and the statue fell forward…”
Scrape—
With that sound, Blake abruptly rose from his seat, his face turning completely pale.
“Duke LeBlanc?”
Beneath his dark brows, his deep eyes were twisted with unmistakable seriousness.
It was the instinctive reaction of someone who had realized something.
Knowing that it was improper to stand before the Crown Prince did, Ronald fidgeted anxiously behind him.
Blake briefly addressed Edwin.
“Please excuse me. I have something to attend to.”
Bang!
Although he was technically walking, his strides were so large that it looked as though he was running as he left the reception room.
Ronald hurriedly offered an awkward farewell and followed after him.
Silence filled the reception room.
Left alone, Edwin recalled the expression he had just seen on Blake’s face and frowned.
“…What’s wrong with him?”
Unaware that it was all because of a single teddy bear that had escaped its room.
That careless Blake.
If he truly wanted me to stay put quietly, he should have locked the door.
“Hehe.”
Although hiding behind a white marble statue of unknown origin and accidentally breaking one before fleeing had admittedly been a mistake.
Sorry, Blake.
I’ll find some way to compensate for it.
If I can just return to Holloway Castle, I’ll ask Max to throw the most expensive statue he can find through the portal before it closes.
Writing apology letters in my heart with every step, I secretly wandered through the mansion until the risk of being discovered became too great, forcing me to hide inside a large white porcelain vase.
I was wondering when I should come out.
That was when I heard voices.
“You heard that Crown Prince Edwin is visiting today, right?”
“Ah, that Crown Prince Edwin? The one as kind and beautiful as an angel descended from heaven.”
Crown Prince Edwin?
So Blake went to meet the Crown Prince?
Finally learning the identity of the guest was a huge relief.
At the same time, a little worry crept in.
Blake’s hair was sticking up pretty badly.
Still, Crown Prince Edwin…
Where had I heard that name before?
“Ahh… I wish I could see him just once. I wonder how beautiful he is. They say he’s incredibly kind too.”
“Really? Where is he?”
“In the reception room. But you already know that. Why are you asking?”
“Huh? I didn’t ask anything.”
“Hey, don’t say things like that. You’re starting to scare me.”
A brief silence followed.
Then two pairs of eyes slowly turned toward me.
The two women exchanged glances while staring at the white porcelain vase, and soon one of them began walking toward me.
The maid’s shadow fell across the circular opening.
“A teddy bear?”
The maid who found me gestured to the other maid.
“There’s a teddy bear in here. I definitely heard a sound coming from here, but why is there a teddy bear?”
“Seriously. Who would put a teddy bear here? Actually, our mansion doesn’t even have dolls to begin with.”
Just as a suspicious hand reached out to grab my ear—
A large figure appeared without making a sound and stopped them.
The hand that gently picked me up was so familiar and careful that I unconsciously rolled my round eyes upward.
And then I saw him.
“…Found you, my teddy bear.”
It was Blake, who had come running over so fast that his pure silver hair had fallen into disarray.
