TAPGB - Chapter 56

TAPGB - Chapter 56

 The Abandoned Prince's Ghost Bride 

"...... Gift box?"

It was a fairly long gift box. It floated in the sky and landed gently on Lucian's lap. Lucian found a card attached to the gift box. He chuckled after reading it.

"It's from Caesar."

'Kid! How have you been? I tried to find some time today, but the old guys just wouldn't let me go. Instead, I prepared a nice gift for you, so don't be too disappointed! Happy birthday, kid!'

"I almost felt disappointed, but I'll see to it this time." 

Lucian giggled and unwrapped the gift box. The moment the contents were revealed, Dio jumped up from his seat.

"Well, that's..!"

Caesar's gift was a long sword.

The scabbard was simple overall, but had detailed work here and there, which caught his eye.

When he pulled out the sword, the seemingly sharp blade fascinated the person.

The blade is pure white, and even the handle is plated with pure gold. like...

[It feels like a sword made entirely for you.]

"... Huh." 

It seems to be the image of Lucian in his original form, not disguised with a necklace, but with a sword. 

"Now, give me a second!" 

Dio, the son of a weapon shop, immediately recognized the value of the longsword. He handed over the sword and a shaky breath escaped his lips. He very carefully ran his fingertips over the blade. Then, surprisingly, the tip of his finger was cut without even feeling any pain. Dio opened his eyes wide as his blood poured out.

"Dio!"

"It's okay, this much will be better if you apply saliva. By the way, this is no joke. This is my first time seeing such a great sword. "I would believe it if they said it was made by dwarves."

For a moment, I and Lucian's eyes met. Dwarf...

Wouldn't Caesar be enough?

"Have you prepared any presents?"

Before Dio could dig further, Lucian spoke.

"Why isn't it there? Of course, there is! However... Looking at this, my gift is a bit shabby..."

What Dio handed over was a belt specifically for carrying a sword sheath. As the son of a weapon shop, he always prepared things related to weapons.

"I bought the best one possible... It's too shabby to be used for such a good sword?" 

As Dio looked sullen, Lucian put it on his waist and sheathed his sword. He looked around for a moment and grinned. 

"Do you like it?" 

"It's comfortable to wear too. I'll use it well."

"... Hmm, if you say so." 

The atmosphere became more cheerful. Lucian's face, which had been filled with dark clouds only in the morning, opened wide. I was relieved that he had gotten rid of her thoughts about Leopold.

I wondered if I should at least say thank you to Caesar later.

***

The time when the sunset slowly sets and darkness falls. In the imperial palace, people dressed up in gaiety were enjoying a party. Today was the Crown Prince's birth banquet held for the first time in three years. Perhaps to prove that the Crown Prince was alive and well, a special banquet was held at the Diamond Hall this year. A diamond scepter that even the Empress can use only with the Emperor's permission. Holding a birth banquet here means that the Crown Prince is receiving strong support from the Emperor.

In any case, Leopold is the only heir to the throne, and since both the Emperor and Emperor support him, there would be no fool who would hate Leopold.

'Still, I have to treat people well today...'

Harry glanced at Leopold next to him with anxious eyes. Leopold was smiling and interacting with people as usual, but he could see it in the eyes of his old friend Harry.

That he was strangely sagging and listless. After he had finished greeting people for a while, Leopold wiped his smile and sighed. Harry hurriedly stood in front of him, afraid that someone would see him. 

"Are you very tired?"

"No."

"Did you know that you sigh every 10 minutes? I know it's hard for you, but please bear with it for just one hour. Your Highness, you will be in trouble if you cause trouble on an important day like today."

"I know. But I don't know why it's so difficult. This hasn't been the first time...."

Probably because of Lucian. Harry heard the whole truth from Leopold two days ago.

'Harry, you are my friend, aren't you?'

Harry and Leopold's relationship is a bit ambiguous to define as friends.

They met when they were two years old and became close friends, but there was a mixture of adult circumstances and advanced political strategies between them. When Harry was young, he may have been friendly with him without knowing anything about it, but when he grew older, he had to learn in detail how to assist the Crown Prince and how to please him. Only then will he be able to occupy the seat next to the next Emperor.

Can they really call that a friend?

However, the moment Harry saw Leopold struggling, all the strategies and calculations he had learned were completely lost.

'Your Highness, I am completely your person and friend. I will share your pain. So tell me what happened.'

This was the moment when Harry accepted Leopold as a true friend without even realizing it. Of course, he was scared to learn such a heavy truth, but his heart ached to think that the two brothers had to bear the full burden.

"Your Highness, Lilith is coming."

But the most urgent thing right now is the birth banquet in front of them. Harry clearly saw Leopold move forward with a big smile after sighing.

"Happy birthday, Your Highness. There were so many people that it was a little late to come see you."

"No. I was so out of my mind that I couldn't take care of my only fianecé. You're beautiful today, Lilith."

Leopold, who used to feel restless whenever he saw Lilith, was so preoccupied with other things today that he could not fully see her. It was an incredibly simple response, but Lilith actually liked it more.

When Lilith held out her hand, Harry stabbed the dazed Leopold in the side. He danced his first dance with Lilith with a smile like a painting, as if he had never done it before. They were both only 15 years old, so they still had some baby fat and youthful looks left, but everyone thought that in three years, they would become a more beautiful pair than anyone else here.

Only Harry was concerned about Leopold, whose eyes had lost all emotion.

***

"Leopold, is he okay, right?"

"... There doesn't seem to be any problem so far."

Serena and Ruber watched Leopold dancing with Lilith with worried expressions. Leopold greeted the people without any problem as if the commotion that had happened the day before was a lie.

Ruber wonders if Leopold has returned to his usual self, but the image from two days ago is so strong that he keeps watching him.

"What on earth did Leopold see?"

"Well. I couldn't really guess anything."

After Leopold left, Ruber looked through the archives he had been reading. He was wondering if Leopold might be able to find out what he was looking for. But there was nothing to connect with, and Ruber couldn't find even the slightest connection.

'No, I have one guess.'

When Lucian's existence becomes known.

If, by chance, Leopold found out by chance that he had a twin brother, which is absolutely ridiculous, Ruber could understand his strange behavior a little. But what he's looking for probably isn't in the archives.

There are now less than ten people who know of Lucian's existence and more than anything, Ruber did not record anything about Luvian because he was afraid that even a little bit of Lucian's story would get out.

Lucian was not even born.

'Because only then can we protect Leopold.'

Because only then can we protect Lucian. There can't be twins in the imperial family. It is an unavoidable sacrifice to save the two.

"I heard before that Leopold goes out a lot. Do you have any idea where he goes?"

"I heard that he is going to visit the home of the Marquis Graham."

"It's Graham... It seems like he gets along better with Leopold than I thought."

"According to what the maid said, they are closer to each other than other children. I think our bond is deeper because we have been together since we were 2 years old."

"Hmm, I see... Hmm?" 

Ruber, who was nodding his head with a heavy face, caught Leopold leaving the party.

"The banquet is still in full swing. When Serena hurriedly got up and tried to follow him, Ruber stopped her.

 "Let's leave him alone. You did everything you needed to do."

"But..."

"You should consider yourself fortunate that you have maintained your position without any problems so far. I know it's going to be hard for you, but let's just look at it this time."

".... Then, should we not attach people?"

When Ruber nodded, the nearby chamberlain understood his words and gave orders to the others. No one will bother Leopold until today passes.

'Leopold, there will come a day when you can tell me your concerns, right?'

Ruber could only look at his son's back.

***

Even after dancing with Lilith, Leopold's condition showed no signs of improving. Harry finally opened his mouth after looking inside the empty gold.

"Yesterday, I met Dio."

Leopold's shoulders trembled. So on he turned his head.

"Dio said that Lucian is not in very good condition these days. Just in case, he suggested that we come together to the banquet, but he said that Lucian would not like it, so he declined."

"Dio..."

"And he told me to bring Your Highness back later. I don't know what's going on, but he said we need t  tell each other openly and make up."

For the first time, light came into Leopold's empty eyes.

"Today is also Lucian's birthday."

".... That's right, it's Lucian's birthday"

 Leopold looked around with new eyes.

An extravagant banquet. People flocking here just to celebrate themselves. It was the most spectacular day of the year, so much so that everyone talked about it, but in Leopold's eyes, it was like a fancy gift box with empty contents.

"Your Highness, no, Leopold."

At that time, Harry called Leopold by his first name instead of his honorific title.

"If I were you, I would go see my brother."

"But Lucian made me...."

"You hate it? Things like that happen, too. But Lucian said he knew everything from the beginning. But in the end, he accepted you and remained your friend even while hiding his identity. Then wouldn't Lucian also want something from you?"

"..."

"Are you going to never see him like this? There is a time for reconciliation. If you miss this period, you may never have another chance."

Leopold's fist gained strength. Harry chuckled as his expression became quite serious.

"I'm going to Lucian." 

"Okay, well thought out." 

Once Leopold made his decision, he did not hesitate at all. But before he left, he returned to Harry and whispered to him.

"Thank you, Harry. I will definitely repay this favor."

 "It's okay. Go quickly, beg with both hands and apologize."

"I'm the Crown Prince, right?"

"Lucian is the Prince too."

".... Okay, okay. A big-hearted brother should take care of it."

Although he grumbled, Leopold's face became brighter. Rather, seeing him leaving the hall with a face full of anticipation, Harry couldn't help but smile.

"Uh? Harry, where has His Highness gone?"

At that time, Schlan appeared with his peers. Schland was also Leopold's playmate since childhood, but Leopold did not keep him as close to him as he did.

'Because Schlan is Count Neofin's puppet.' 

Perhaps because he is still immature, he has a habit of telling the Count straight about what happened at the imperial court. Although it may not be intended to transfer information, it is more dangerous. 

Harry deliberately spoke as if to make everyone listen.

"Your Highness wasn't feeling very well today, so he went home early."

"What? Where is he hurting?"

As Schlan raised his voice, some of the people who followed him began to whisper.

"It looks like his stamina has decreased because he had to worry about a lot of things in addition to preparing for the banquet. He said it would be okay if he rested for a while, so you don't have to worry too much."

"Okay? I'm glad he's not sick. I wanted to introduce him to my friends today, but it's a shame." 

"There will be another chance next time."

Schlan held onto Harry and innocently introduced him to his friends, offering to introduce them to him as well. Unlike Schlan, who thought nothing of it, his friends began to flatter Harry as well, playing the abacus in their heads.

Harry felt tired again. It was something he always did, but he couldn't figure out why he was so tired today.

'Ah, that's because it's different from when we all played together before."

Harry suddenly remembered the time when he was playing comfortably and without thinking with Dio, Lucian, and Leopold. When he was with them, he could play comfortably without worrying about the dignity of nobility or profit or loss.

'Your Majesty, please make peace. Wouldn't that give me a place where I can feel comfortable?'

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