The large secret room without any windows was filled with various rare taxidermy items.
The neck of a rare silver deer was hanging on the black wallpaper, and the glass bottles placed on the white table contained small spirits of different colors caught in the fairy forest.
“Hmph, hum, hum~”
Arthur, the owner of the secret room, hummed his song repeatedly in his own studio located in the corner of the secret room.
Arthur's platinum hair glistened in the lantern hanging on the wall.
A moire-patterned butterfly, with a blue glow all over his body, was flapping its wings eagerly for life in his hand.
“I’ll even let you live in a taxidermy box. Because I am generous.”
Arthur smiled and placed the live butterfly into the square taxidermy box.
The butterfly, which was flapping its wings vigorously inside the taxidermy frame, soon became limp, probably because it knew it was trapped.
“Have you given up already? Jey. Try harder!”
Arthur tapped the taxidermy frame with his hand as if he didn't like it.
The butterfly flapped its wings feebly a few times before eventually refusing to emit light on it own.
Arthur clicked his tongue and threw the stuffed animal into the trash can.
“Why do all beautiful things not last this long? Is there really no way to permanently preserve something alive and fresh?”
As Arthur muttered, a middle-aged butler wearing a monocle who was silently looking at him in a corner announced the current time.
“Sir, the current time is twelve thirty-two minutes past noon. It's already been two years and two hundred and sixty-four days since you locked yourself in this secret room and studied, and it's been exactly that time since I took care of all the work that the master had to do...”
“...”
"Master? Are you listening to me?”
Arthur was completely lost in his own thoughts.
The middle-aged butler raised his monocle and sighed deeply.
“I don’t know why the Master, who was once called a genius wizard, would attempt to taxidermy a living thing. By nature, living things have a strong tendency to resist when faced with a crisis, so it is impossible to keep them fresh.”
"...”
Damn, he had a hard time convincing him today.
The butler closed his eyes with mixed feelings.
“Even such a tiny creature cannot endure being confined in a narrow box for a few minutes, but it would be impossible for a living human being.”
Arthur muttered. His swamp-like voice sent shivers down the butler's spine.
“Master, who on earth are you trying to taxidermy?”
“No, when I actually saw it, if it didn’t live up to my expectations, I would be so heartbroken that I wouldn’t be able to wake up... Should I just live with expectations in my heart? I will never see you again.”
“So, who are you talking about now?”
Arthur's golden eyes glowed yellow like a snake.
He had pale skin as if he had never seen sunlight for a single day, and if it weren't for the strangely glowing eyes, you could have believed he was a corpse.
“Angel of Brillion. Do you know it, butler?”
“...Yes, I’ve heard of it.”
“There are rumors that she is really, really beautiful, and I would be very heartbroken if the actual product did not live up to the rumors. Something that isn't beautiful pretends to be beautiful. I simply cannot tolerate such cruel acts.”
He seems like a pervert. The butler swallowed his curse words in his throat.
However, it was nice to show interest in someone.
At least there is some will to come out of this secret room.
“Already, Duke Gregrick delivered a letter this time.”
As soon as the name Duke Gregrick came out of the butler's mouth, Arthur furrowed his eyebrows.
“Why that cunning bastard? He’s not even close to me.”
“...First of all, I brought it right away to show it to the owner first.”
The butler took out a letter from his pocket and sent it to Arthur.
Arthur, who had read the letter with a somber expression at first, was so excited that by the time he read the last sentence, his cheeks were red and he was moaning happily.
"Alright! I have to go to the imperial palace right now.”
***
“So in other people’s eyes, we are officially lovers?”
At Seliya’s words, Dietrich, who was cutting steak, stopped moving.
Dietrich looked at Seliya quietly.
When he stopped what he was doing and looked at her, Seliya pressed his forehead.
“Between your eyebrows. It’s crumpled.”
Dietrich furrowed his brows without any sign of displeasure.
Seliya saw this and let out a soft laugh.
“Why aren’t you angry?”
“Why should I be angry at you? We are lovers.”
This time, Seliya's brows furrowed at Dietrich's words, which were highly misleading.
Why are you acting like a fake lover and speaking as if it were real?
“Your eyebrows are crumpled.”
Dietrich returned exactly what Seliya had said.
However, because he could not touch Seliya's forehead with the hand that was holding his utensils, he did not press between her eyes as Seliya did.
Instead, he put a steak, cut into bite-size pieces, into Seliyah's mouth.
Her soft lips parted and she deliciously took the steak he gave her.
Seliya's eyes widened as she chewed the steak in her mouth.
Dietrich looked on with a gentle expression as she happily chewed the steak as if she were savoring it.
Dietrich continued to feed her food, which Seliya found delicious.
He feeds one morsel into her mouth, then another morsel.
Dietrich was so absorbed in feeding only Seliya that he did not eat a single bite himself.
She seemed to be eating only herself, so Seliya offered Dietrich a piece of her steak.
“You eat too.”
“...”
"Hurry."
When Seliya suggested it again, Dietrich reluctantly ate a piece of steak.
Dietrich ate his steak with a solemn look on his face.
Seeing that, Seliya closed her eyes and smiled.
“I think it tastes even better when I eat it with you.”
At Seliya's words, Dietrich felt a tickle in his chest.
'...Epilepsy?'
Dietrich felt this sensation for the first time in his life.
So, he couldn't figure out where exactly this tickling sensation was coming from.
Dietrich suddenly made a serious face, and Seliya tilted her head.
"What's the matter?"
“...Nothing."
Dietrich fed Seliya some food.
After finishing the mashed potato soup and steak, vanilla ice cream and sweet macaroons were served for dessert.
“But wasn’t there originally a chef in the mansion?”
“...Actually, my assistant Anderson is a good cook. I asked him to take over as chef for the time being.”
"Ah...”
With tears in her eyes, Seliya paid a heartfelt tribute to Anderson, who had prepared the dish.
The vanilla ice cream and macarons made by Anderson were amazingly delicious.
***
“Hey, Illeon. You knew everything from the beginning, right?”
These were the first words Balt uttered when he personally visited the palace where Illeon was staying.
Ieon, who was looking at a thick Bible, raised one eyebrow.
“What do you mean you knew everything?”
“The Crown Prince will be imprisoned in the tower and virtually dethroned, the Crown Prince’s face will be ruined, and...”
Balt's dark gray eyes flashed sharply.
“Are you really going to break a covenant that has existed for hundreds of years? To sit on the throne?”
This is why I don't like quick-witted guys.
Illeon hid his thoughts and asked back, pretending not to know anything.
“What do you mean an oath? Wait, do you think I did this to take over the throne?”
“Don’t act like a fool. Planning all this? A bastard as wicked as a snake...”
The smile on Illeon's face disappeared like a lie.
“It’s okay to insult me, but don’t insult the God I worship by calling him evil. It is a remark that even I cannot forgive.”
“...Do you still believe in that absurd prophecy?”
Balt looked so tired that he was about to die.
“Do you know how many people have died because of that damn ‘prophecy’? When I think about that time... I want to cut my wrists because I signed your words without any doubt.”
“...”
“Just joking around in moderation. If you really want to sit on the throne, do it the right way. Don't use dirty tricks like back then. You damn fanatic.”
With those words, Balt left the room.
Bang!
The door closed violently.
Illeon's expression, which had always had a gentle expression, became cruelly distorted.
He thought Balt was just an idiot because his muscles were unnecessarily large, but Balt was also the head of the Portman duchy.
“I brought him here thinking he would be useful, but instead it turned out to be poison.”
Illeon gathered his heart and prayed to the God he served. After finishing his prayer, he opened the Bible to the first page.
There may be things he doesn't like along the way, but everything will go as it should.
God has always been on his side, and he is the only being connected to God.
But, why?
The images of Dietrich and Seliya that he saw earlier lingered in his mind.
Illeon saw at a glance that the two had gotten together in advance to announce that they were a romantic couple.
No matter what kind of conspiracy they plot, they will look like good lovers in the eyes of others.
It wasn't a bad decision.
But...
'It can't just be seen as a fake lover...'
Despite being fake lovers, the two seemed genuinely happy.
'What a strange thing.'
Although Illeon has insight into people, the two acted so well that it was confusing whether they were real lovers or fake lovers.
'... Let's wait a little longer and we'll find out.'
There are many cards in his hand. So there is no reason to be impatient.
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