TAPGB - Chapter 132
The Abandoned Prince's Ghost Bride
“I guess I’m not the only one who felt that way?”
“Somehow, something is strange.”
That night, Lucian secretly gathered people together and told them what had happened that day.
“B-but... You were sure it was Leopold.”
Harry, who heard about the situation, denied it. His denial wasn't something he couldn't understand.
Because honestly, everyone here is hoping that this suspicion is an illusion.
“..Now that I think about it, the faces of the knights standing guard in front of Leopold’s room were unfamiliar.”
Dio's position is the Emperor's dedicated bodyguard. Even though he is not leading the knights, he sits in a very important position and knows the faces of most knights.
Especially all the knights who are trusted by Lucian and Ruber.
“Not only Jordi but also the other knight who stood guard in front of Leopold’s room today. I haven’t seen those two very much.”
“I know Jordi. This is the guard knight who has been by Leopold's side since he was 5 years old. He’s not a bad person.”
Harry retorted. Nevertheless, Dio did not give up his doubts.
“Then why didn’t he stop guarding Leopold’s room until recently?”
"That...”
“So far, only people who have been through the hands of me and Father are allowed to stand guard. But it's still weird. Father knows that Jordi is Leopold’s dedicated escort.”
“I’ll look into that.”
“Check out the other knights who were on guard today as well.”
Dio nodded his head with a stern face.
“But Leopold is Leopold, but the Princess was also a little strange, right?”
“Did Leah feel it too?”
“Yes, the atmosphere was somehow different from usual. She always glared at me when she saw me, but today was different. People won’t suddenly change in just a few days...”
“..I thought she would do something when we were left alone, but she just avoided me.”
“Lilith?”
"Yes."
It was so bizarre that even Harry was taken aback.
“Okay, let’s do it this way.”
After gathering her thoughts, Leah told the three of them what to do tomorrow.
“He’ll probably say he wants to go for a walk tomorrow too. Just do as I say then, okay?”
“...”
“If the other person is really Leon, try to avoid situations where the two of you are alone. Because no one knows what danger may lurk.”
There was silence at Leah's warning. Leah let out a sigh when she saw these people looking depressed.
“I don’t want to be suspicious either. But I think we all know that if we leave it like this, something bigger will happen.”
Everyone's faces sank gloomily, but she soon composed herself, thinking about their sincerity.
***
As the day dawned, Lucian spent time no different from usual.
He enjoyed breakfast with Leah, and did some morning work, and after he had a quick lunch, he and Leah headed to the room where Leopold was at the same time he always went.
“You didn’t forget what I said, right?”
"Of course."
“I guess Dio went to investigate?”
The escort who followed behind Lucian was someone other than Dio. However, he was the person who escorted Lucian so often that Leah became familiar with his face.
“He went to investigate about your brother’s escort, so he’ll find out in a little while. Harry said he had contacted the temple, and James decided to prepare for any unexpected situation.”
“Okay, then we just have to check.”
Leah and Lucian exchanged glances and then entered Leopold's room.
"Come on! I was waiting for you to come!”
As expected, Leopold welcomed the two people, and Lilith, who was next to him, was sitting like a doll.
After that, it was just as expected. Leopold said he wanted to go for a walk like yesterday, and Lucian happily handed over the clothes he had packed in advance to him.
“We’ll go.”
Leopold linked arms with Leah and waved his hand. Just before the door closed, Lucian exchanged glances with Leah and turned his head.
Lilith had already moved far away from Lucian.
Lucian got up from his seat and immediately approached Lilith.
Lilith trembled and looked up at Lucian.
“I think we have something to talk about.”
“...I don’t have one.”
Lilith stiffened her face and looked away from Lucian. But Lucian clearly caught her trembling hands.
“What are you afraid of?”
“What am I afraid of?”
Although she denied it, there was clearly fear in her voice. At that time, like yesterday, the door opened and Jordi took a peek inside.
“What’s wrong?”
Lilith trembled when she saw him and turned her head. Lucian realized what she was afraid of.
“Does a single knight open the door without knocking?”
Lucian lowered his voice and glared at Jordi. Jordi paused and lowered his head.
“I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable. I just heard a loud noise inside...”
“But that doesn’t mean you can open the door without knocking. If you do that one more time, I won’t forgive you.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Jordi bowed his head and closed the door. Lucian looked at the door for a while and waved his right hand in the air.
A magic barrier surrounded Lucian and Lilith.
“Well, now no one can hear us.”
“...”
“Tell me honestly what you are afraid of and what you tried to tell me yesterday.”
“Is this an order..?”
Lucian, who was silent for a moment, shook his head.
“No, please.”
After seeing the solid golden eyes, Lilith eventually burst into tears and buried her face in her hands.
“Leopold told me a few days ago..."
Next, Lilith confessed to Leopold's ridiculous proposal. The more he heard the story, the more Lucian's face hardened.
***
“You mean Jordi? Well... I haven’t seen much of anything lately.”
“Still, he used to see His Majesty’s guard often and saw him, but starting five years ago, I stopped seeing him often.”
“...Yes?"
At the same time, Dio was asking his fellow knights about Jordi.
In addition, when he investigated the person who was guarding him yesterday, it turned out that he was one of the knights who guarded Julius in the past. Yes, it was a low-level escort.
Nevertheless, Dio could not easily ignore his words.
‘Julius was the first Emperor.’
Anxiety rose up his throat.
“We don’t know.”
"I get it. Thanks for your effort."
After making a fuss, Dio took a step back.
As he was wandering around trying to approach another person, Dio suddenly felt a deadly force flying towards him.
He didn't do anything stupid to react the way he did. He just looked around, pretending he didn't know anything.
'One, two... No, four.’
There were a total of four eyes focused on him. Everyone was looking from different directions, and their gazes were both secret and blatant.
‘If it wasn’t for the dragon, I wouldn’t have noticed this.’
The reason Dio became a guard knight was simply because he needed someone to be Lucian's hands and feet. His inaction was poor compared to other knights.
He became a guard knight for Lucian's needs, but he could not stay like this, so Dio received separate training from Age.
As he was trained directly by the dragon, Dio's inaction was a disaster.
At his current level, he could at least compete with the Knight Commander.
‘It’s better. If you approach me from the other side, I might be able to find out something.’
Dio thought of using their surveillance in reverse. As he began his investigation again, an unexpected person approached him.
"Sir! Meet Sir Albert!”
“No more formal greetings.”
A person who makes even Dio, the Emperor's right-hand man, nervous. He was Ruber's dedicated escort and Dio's direct superior.
He knew that Dio was asking about Jordi, so he brought Dio to his office.
“Are you asking about Jordi?”
Albert said as soon as the door closed. Dio, sensing that his eyes were a little different from usual, nodded his head.
“Yes, I was a little worried. From what I found out, it is said that he was a knight who had been protecting His Majesty Leopold since he was young... I wonder why I haven’t seen him even once in the five years since His Majesty fell.”
Albert was silent for a moment and then leaned against his desk.
“...Jordi was transferred to another location by order of His Majesty the Emperor.”
“Are you talking about His Majesty, Emperor Ruber?”
“Yes, the reason was because he could not protect His Majesty Leopold.”
When Leopold fell in the temple, his old guard knights, including Jordi, were with him.
Although Jordi made the excuse that he was not involved in the ceremony and did not know what was happening inside, it did not ring true to the ears of his father, who thought his son might die.
“But this time, when His Majesty Leopold woke up, he called them. To be honest, the Emperor did not deserve it, but we had no choice but to comply with His Majesty’s request.”
When Dio learned the truth, it felt like he had been hit on the head.
‘...He was with Leopold during the temple ceremony?’
So does this mean that he was not originally Leopold's person, but a spy prepared by the first Emperor?
Jordi's excuse given by Albert was plausible, but Dio's intuition told him that his excuse was false.
If, as he suspected, Leopold's guard knights, including Jordi, were temples or agents of the first Emperor, he could tell without thinking too much about who Leopold had summoned them.
"Shit!"
Dio muttered a curse and hurriedly walked away. Seeing his suddenly urgent appearance, Albert tilted his head.
“Sir Albert! Something big might happen at the palace. Just in case, please further strengthen the security of His Majesty the Emperor and Empress Dowager. especially! Make sure your security consists of only those you trust!”
“What happened? But!”
“It’s complicated to explain, but just know that this is an emergency. Please."
Albert fell into tears as he looked at Dio's serious eyes. If it were normal, he wouldn't have followed everything Dio said without giving him a reason...
‘Lord Dio is not the type of person to do that.’
Over the past five years, the two have come together in many ways, whether they like it or not. Dio, whom he has seen for five years, is not a person who will talk nonsense.
“I will do as you say. Could it be that those who were following you outside had something to do with this?”
“..It’s the enemy.”
"Right. You should quickly go do your business. I will take responsibility for His Majesty the Former Emperor.”
“Thank you for believing in me.”
Dio bowed like that and hurried out. And he ran to where his men were.
‘Lucian, Leah... !’
Dio prayed and prayed that nothing major would happen before he arrived.
***
“It’s so frustrating to just stay in my room.”
“Walking like this for an hour a day would be good for your health. Suggest it to Lucian.”
“I was already thinking of doing that. Anyway, I have to switch places with him later. Wouldn’t it be okay to just say we’re rehearsing from now on?”
I smiled, but inside I examined Leopold's actions with cold eyes.
He was imitating Lucian even in his stretching. He hasn't done anything suspicious yet.
In fact, what was important now was not Leopold but other people.
‘It would be difficult if you were to sneak in and hide when you found out we were watching.’
They must not yet realize that we suspect Leopold of being Leon.
So for now, I was going to act like usual, listen to Lucian and Dio tonight, and decide what to do.
Before that, I had been acting without any suspicion that he was Leon, so it wasn't that difficult to deal with Leopold with a smile on my face.
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