If Chernosser had something to say to me as a Prince, I could ignore him by pointing out that Perdes was also a Prince.
But if it was a message from the Emperor, things were different.
Even though I didn't feel like it and didn't want to hear it, I had no choice but to sit down because I had to listen.
Chernosser sat at the very top, and Perdes and I sat across from him.
While the servants set up our dishes and brought out our food, I drank some water and looked around at them.
The servants who entered the restaurant could not look me in the eye.
It might be because Chernosser didn't tell me that he came to the restaurant for breakfast.
Of course, Chernosser had threatened to never report it, but it should have been reported anyway.
Even the fact that he threatened to do so.
'I guess I need to tidy things up a bit.'
After being away for over two years, discipline has become very disrupted.
It was important to periodically weed out potentially impure servants so that something like what happened in Rene's time would not happen again.
I thought I should take this opportunity to find out what happened to Rene, so I asked Chernosser, who was leisurely tearing open a loaf of bread.
“Please tell me the Emperor’s message, Your Highness.”
Chernosser took a sip of his drink and replied.
“I’ll tell you after I finish breakfast.”
Perdes intervened.
“I understand that His Majesty’s message must be delivered first, regardless of time and place.”
“...”
Chernosser looked at Perdes with displeasure, but he couldn't say anything because what he said was true.
“Ahem.”
Instead, he let out a discontented cough and spoke with an incongruous weight.
“You don’t have to listen so tensely. It’s good for you and for Lady Leopold.”
Is anything good for me and Perdes?
“Take this first.”
As Chernosser waved his hand, the escort knight who had been waiting a few steps away approached and handed Perdes an invitation.
Perdes glanced at the cover of the gold-bordered invitation and answered absentmindedly.
“It’s an invitation to the New Year’s party.”
“You see right away. I’m so happy as your older brother because it seems like your stupidity has been cured a lot.”
If you just listen to what he says, it sounds like he's praising Perdes, but the look in his eyes as he looks at Perdes is cold and full of contempt.
Chernosser turned to me and continued speaking.
“As you can see, His Majesty the Emperor has invited you two to the New Year’s party. As the Crown Prince and Crown Princess to be.”
Is she not the Duke Leopold's daughter but the Crown Princess?
And there was one questionable note about the invitation.
“Can I see the invitation too?”
I received the invitation from Perdes and checked the contents.
The invitation had my name and Perdes's name written prominently.
...Is that how it is?
“Is there a problem, Young Lady?”
“No, nothing.”
Of course, there was a problem, but I couldn't tell Chernosser, so I smiled and folded the invitation as if nothing had happened.
Perdes asked Chernosser.
“I wonder why His Majesty suddenly invited us to the New Year’s festival.”
The New Year's Eve celebration took place on the first weekend of every year, but Perdes was never formally invited.
But it was natural for Perdes to be puzzled by the sudden invitation.
It was the same for me too.
"Hmm."
Chernosser thought for a moment as if he hadn't expected to be asked such a question, then shrugged his shoulders and said.
“I’m not sure about that part, but maybe it’s because you’re a grown adult now?”
“I understand that even if you are not an adult, you can participate in the New Year’s festival.”
“That’s true. For a normal person.”
Although Chernosser openly mocked Perdes for not being normal, Perdes responded indifferently, “I see,” and ate his bread.
“...”
Chernosser's expression crumpled when Perdes did not show the desired reaction.
He glared at Perdes as if he was going to kill him, then suddenly turned to me and asked.
“Now that Perdes is an adult, you two will get married soon?”
At those words, Perdes' hand, which was tearing open the bread, stopped for a moment, but I, sitting across from him, was the only one who saw it.
“Probably so.”
I answered vaguely because I was afraid that if I said that for sure, I would be used as an excuse later.
“The answer is strange. Are you sure you’re getting married or not?”
Then Chernosser bit and hung on tenaciously like a hyena that had found its prey.
It really is annoying. I replied with a sigh.
“I will do it when the timing is right.”
It was still not a proper answer, and this time Chernosser did not back down.
“Hmm. When would that be? Spring? Or summer? Oh, it’s hot in summer, so maybe it’s fall?”
“...I didn’t know that His Highness the Prince would be so interested in my marriage story.”
“Of course not. If Perdes hadn’t caught Young Lady’s eye, I would have married you.”
I remembered someone's famous saying that people drink soup first without even thinking about who will give them bread.
I found it strange that he still wanted to marry me even though I had treated him so badly and humiliated him.
That must mean he wanted the position of Duke Leopold that much.
Perdes joined the conversation.
“I hope you don’t tell my fiancée any strange stories.”
“What a strange story. I was just talking about the past.”
“It’s a fabricated past.”
"What?"
Chernosser glared at Perdes with a hollow laugh.
“You may not have realized it at the time because you were stupid, but Young Lady and I had a sincere exchange of feelings.”
“I’ve never done that before.”
This time I answered. Then Chernosser looked back at me.
“Are you denying what happened just now, Young Lady?”
“There was nothing wrong with His Highness the Prince, so there’s no need to deny it. Oh, there was something.”
I put my hand on her slightly tilted cheek and said with a smile.
“For example, when I was dealing with Pushik...”
“...!”
Chernossor's face was crumpled to a degree that was incomparable to anything I had seen before.
The hand holding the glass of water began to tremble.
Clang-
"slShit!"
Finally, Chernosser dropped his glass of water and stood up, spitting out harsh curses.
And then, without saying a word, he just went out.
The escort knight followed silently behind him.
As for the knight who like the master, the knight escorting Chernossor did not greet us either.
The knights he brought before were quite polite, but that guy is really no good.
“It’s refreshing.”
Perdes chuckled as he looked at Chernosser's missing body.
I agreed and called my servant over and told him to throw away all the dishes Chernosser had used.
Nothing he had ever put into his mouth he wanted to rewrite.
“But why did you look so upset when you saw the invitation earlier? Is it because you don’t want to go to the New Year’s party?”
“That’s true, but there’s something else on my mind.”
“What’s on your mind?”
When I nodded, Perdes thought for a moment and then moved to the seat next to me.
"I looked at him in surprise at his sudden behavior," said Perdes.
“I think this way we can talk quietly.”
“In that case, it would have been better to kill the servants.”
"Ah."
Only then did Perdes realize the method and frowned.
And then he asked carefully, watching my expression.
“Shall we go again...?”
"It's okay."
There's no need to do that, I left Perdes and the servants behind.
“Then tell me.”
In the spacious restaurant, there were only Perdes and I left, so even if I spoke normally, my voice seemed to echo.
There might be ears eavesdropping outside, so it's probably better to sit like this and have a quiet conversation.
“Both my name and Mr. Perdes’ name were written on the invitation.”
“Really? Why is that... Wait a minute.”
The space between Perdes' eyebrows narrowed.
“If Young Lady graduates as scheduled and returns to the duchy, it will be after the New Year’s festival.”
“Yes.”
But the fact that my name was on the invitation sent through Chernosser meant that the Emperor already knew that I would return now.
The only people who knew that I was returning to Leopold Estate without attending the graduation ceremony were Prince Philos, the Academy President, several teachers, and May.
None of them seemed to have any connection to the Emperor, but you never know.
Among them, there may be a spy hidden by the Emperor.
So it gave me the creeps to think that he might have been reporting every detail of my life at the Academy.
I hope I didn't make a mistake?
I was nervous because even a small mistake could catch the Emperor's eye and lead to me being caught.
So, as I was thinking carefully, hoping that I had not made any mistakes, Perdes took my hand in his large, cold hand.
“Don’t squeeze too hard.”
"Ah."
I realized I was holding the fork too tightly.
I must have been holding it so tightly that the fork mark was clearly visible on the inside of my palm.
“Young Lary couldn’t have made a mistake. If you had, the Emperor would have brought you back from the Academy right away.”
That's... that's right.
“So don’t worry and just relax.”
The tension that had been tightly held loosened at Perdes' affectionate words.
“Thank you, Perdes.”
"You're welcome."
Perdes smiled brightly like Aid, then frowned when he saw the invitation.
“I guess we should attend the New Year’s festival?”
"No."
"Yes?"
Perdes looked back at me, puzzled by my answer.
“You’re not going to attend? The Emperor himself sent the invitation, so if you don’t attend, you’ll be in big trouble.”
“I answered wrong. It’s not that I won’t go, it’s that I can’t go.”
“What does that mean?”
“There will be a severe snowfall in the next two days, and train service will be suspended for about two weeks. So, even if I wanted to participate in the New Year’s festival, I wouldn’t be able to.”
"I see."
It was a somewhat absurd statement predicting the future, but Perdes nodded seriously.
“Do you believe me?”
“Why? Should I not believe it?”
“No, that’s not it. You don’t usually believe in things like that.”
“That’s right. I wouldn’t have believed it if someone else had told me.”
Perdes looked at me with one hand on his chin and smiled.
“But I believe it because it’s Young Lady. Because the future that Young Lady predicted was all true.”
“Ah, I see.”
“So, I have a question...”
Perdes hesitated for a moment, perhaps because it was difficult to say, and then asked carefully.
“Who do you think Young Lady will marry in the future?”
But if it was a message from the Emperor, things were different.
Even though I didn't feel like it and didn't want to hear it, I had no choice but to sit down because I had to listen.
Chernosser sat at the very top, and Perdes and I sat across from him.
While the servants set up our dishes and brought out our food, I drank some water and looked around at them.
The servants who entered the restaurant could not look me in the eye.
It might be because Chernosser didn't tell me that he came to the restaurant for breakfast.
Of course, Chernosser had threatened to never report it, but it should have been reported anyway.
Even the fact that he threatened to do so.
'I guess I need to tidy things up a bit.'
After being away for over two years, discipline has become very disrupted.
It was important to periodically weed out potentially impure servants so that something like what happened in Rene's time would not happen again.
I thought I should take this opportunity to find out what happened to Rene, so I asked Chernosser, who was leisurely tearing open a loaf of bread.
“Please tell me the Emperor’s message, Your Highness.”
Chernosser took a sip of his drink and replied.
“I’ll tell you after I finish breakfast.”
Perdes intervened.
“I understand that His Majesty’s message must be delivered first, regardless of time and place.”
“...”
Chernosser looked at Perdes with displeasure, but he couldn't say anything because what he said was true.
“Ahem.”
Instead, he let out a discontented cough and spoke with an incongruous weight.
“You don’t have to listen so tensely. It’s good for you and for Lady Leopold.”
Is anything good for me and Perdes?
“Take this first.”
As Chernosser waved his hand, the escort knight who had been waiting a few steps away approached and handed Perdes an invitation.
Perdes glanced at the cover of the gold-bordered invitation and answered absentmindedly.
“It’s an invitation to the New Year’s party.”
“You see right away. I’m so happy as your older brother because it seems like your stupidity has been cured a lot.”
If you just listen to what he says, it sounds like he's praising Perdes, but the look in his eyes as he looks at Perdes is cold and full of contempt.
Chernosser turned to me and continued speaking.
“As you can see, His Majesty the Emperor has invited you two to the New Year’s party. As the Crown Prince and Crown Princess to be.”
Is she not the Duke Leopold's daughter but the Crown Princess?
And there was one questionable note about the invitation.
“Can I see the invitation too?”
I received the invitation from Perdes and checked the contents.
The invitation had my name and Perdes's name written prominently.
...Is that how it is?
“Is there a problem, Young Lady?”
“No, nothing.”
Of course, there was a problem, but I couldn't tell Chernosser, so I smiled and folded the invitation as if nothing had happened.
Perdes asked Chernosser.
“I wonder why His Majesty suddenly invited us to the New Year’s festival.”
The New Year's Eve celebration took place on the first weekend of every year, but Perdes was never formally invited.
But it was natural for Perdes to be puzzled by the sudden invitation.
It was the same for me too.
"Hmm."
Chernosser thought for a moment as if he hadn't expected to be asked such a question, then shrugged his shoulders and said.
“I’m not sure about that part, but maybe it’s because you’re a grown adult now?”
“I understand that even if you are not an adult, you can participate in the New Year’s festival.”
“That’s true. For a normal person.”
Although Chernosser openly mocked Perdes for not being normal, Perdes responded indifferently, “I see,” and ate his bread.
“...”
Chernosser's expression crumpled when Perdes did not show the desired reaction.
He glared at Perdes as if he was going to kill him, then suddenly turned to me and asked.
“Now that Perdes is an adult, you two will get married soon?”
At those words, Perdes' hand, which was tearing open the bread, stopped for a moment, but I, sitting across from him, was the only one who saw it.
“Probably so.”
I answered vaguely because I was afraid that if I said that for sure, I would be used as an excuse later.
“The answer is strange. Are you sure you’re getting married or not?”
Then Chernosser bit and hung on tenaciously like a hyena that had found its prey.
It really is annoying. I replied with a sigh.
“I will do it when the timing is right.”
It was still not a proper answer, and this time Chernosser did not back down.
“Hmm. When would that be? Spring? Or summer? Oh, it’s hot in summer, so maybe it’s fall?”
“...I didn’t know that His Highness the Prince would be so interested in my marriage story.”
“Of course not. If Perdes hadn’t caught Young Lady’s eye, I would have married you.”
I remembered someone's famous saying that people drink soup first without even thinking about who will give them bread.
I found it strange that he still wanted to marry me even though I had treated him so badly and humiliated him.
That must mean he wanted the position of Duke Leopold that much.
Perdes joined the conversation.
“I hope you don’t tell my fiancée any strange stories.”
“What a strange story. I was just talking about the past.”
“It’s a fabricated past.”
"What?"
Chernosser glared at Perdes with a hollow laugh.
“You may not have realized it at the time because you were stupid, but Young Lady and I had a sincere exchange of feelings.”
“I’ve never done that before.”
This time I answered. Then Chernosser looked back at me.
“Are you denying what happened just now, Young Lady?”
“There was nothing wrong with His Highness the Prince, so there’s no need to deny it. Oh, there was something.”
I put my hand on her slightly tilted cheek and said with a smile.
“For example, when I was dealing with Pushik...”
“...!”
Chernossor's face was crumpled to a degree that was incomparable to anything I had seen before.
The hand holding the glass of water began to tremble.
Clang-
"slShit!"
Finally, Chernosser dropped his glass of water and stood up, spitting out harsh curses.
And then, without saying a word, he just went out.
The escort knight followed silently behind him.
As for the knight who like the master, the knight escorting Chernossor did not greet us either.
The knights he brought before were quite polite, but that guy is really no good.
“It’s refreshing.”
Perdes chuckled as he looked at Chernosser's missing body.
I agreed and called my servant over and told him to throw away all the dishes Chernosser had used.
Nothing he had ever put into his mouth he wanted to rewrite.
“But why did you look so upset when you saw the invitation earlier? Is it because you don’t want to go to the New Year’s party?”
“That’s true, but there’s something else on my mind.”
“What’s on your mind?”
When I nodded, Perdes thought for a moment and then moved to the seat next to me.
"I looked at him in surprise at his sudden behavior," said Perdes.
“I think this way we can talk quietly.”
“In that case, it would have been better to kill the servants.”
"Ah."
Only then did Perdes realize the method and frowned.
And then he asked carefully, watching my expression.
“Shall we go again...?”
"It's okay."
There's no need to do that, I left Perdes and the servants behind.
“Then tell me.”
In the spacious restaurant, there were only Perdes and I left, so even if I spoke normally, my voice seemed to echo.
There might be ears eavesdropping outside, so it's probably better to sit like this and have a quiet conversation.
“Both my name and Mr. Perdes’ name were written on the invitation.”
“Really? Why is that... Wait a minute.”
The space between Perdes' eyebrows narrowed.
“If Young Lady graduates as scheduled and returns to the duchy, it will be after the New Year’s festival.”
“Yes.”
But the fact that my name was on the invitation sent through Chernosser meant that the Emperor already knew that I would return now.
The only people who knew that I was returning to Leopold Estate without attending the graduation ceremony were Prince Philos, the Academy President, several teachers, and May.
None of them seemed to have any connection to the Emperor, but you never know.
Among them, there may be a spy hidden by the Emperor.
So it gave me the creeps to think that he might have been reporting every detail of my life at the Academy.
I hope I didn't make a mistake?
I was nervous because even a small mistake could catch the Emperor's eye and lead to me being caught.
So, as I was thinking carefully, hoping that I had not made any mistakes, Perdes took my hand in his large, cold hand.
“Don’t squeeze too hard.”
"Ah."
I realized I was holding the fork too tightly.
I must have been holding it so tightly that the fork mark was clearly visible on the inside of my palm.
“Young Lary couldn’t have made a mistake. If you had, the Emperor would have brought you back from the Academy right away.”
That's... that's right.
“So don’t worry and just relax.”
The tension that had been tightly held loosened at Perdes' affectionate words.
“Thank you, Perdes.”
"You're welcome."
Perdes smiled brightly like Aid, then frowned when he saw the invitation.
“I guess we should attend the New Year’s festival?”
"No."
"Yes?"
Perdes looked back at me, puzzled by my answer.
“You’re not going to attend? The Emperor himself sent the invitation, so if you don’t attend, you’ll be in big trouble.”
“I answered wrong. It’s not that I won’t go, it’s that I can’t go.”
“What does that mean?”
“There will be a severe snowfall in the next two days, and train service will be suspended for about two weeks. So, even if I wanted to participate in the New Year’s festival, I wouldn’t be able to.”
"I see."
It was a somewhat absurd statement predicting the future, but Perdes nodded seriously.
“Do you believe me?”
“Why? Should I not believe it?”
“No, that’s not it. You don’t usually believe in things like that.”
“That’s right. I wouldn’t have believed it if someone else had told me.”
Perdes looked at me with one hand on his chin and smiled.
“But I believe it because it’s Young Lady. Because the future that Young Lady predicted was all true.”
“Ah, I see.”
“So, I have a question...”
Perdes hesitated for a moment, perhaps because it was difficult to say, and then asked carefully.
“Who do you think Young Lady will marry in the future?”
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