The next day.
The intense sunlight pierced Cesare's eyes painfully.
The silence without any sign of popularity was somehow preceding.
He woke up and jumped up from his seat. His muscles were exposed through his disheveled shirt.
Cesare quickly scanned the empty bedroom and walked into Medea's space. It was an uncharacteristic and hasty step.
"Medea."
She wasn't there, nor was she in the space where the door was opened.
'Yesterday...'
He clearly remembered returning to the mansion and lying beside Medea as she slept.
He stroked the soft back of her hand, and at some point, he fell asleep without realizing it.
'I... Sleeping next to you without permission?'
Suddenly nervous, Cesare quickly took off his shirt and threw it away. The thin line tunic fluttered and snuggled down to his firm shoulders and waist.
"Your Highness. Did you sleep well?"
"I see you."
As he walked quickly through the hallway, the greetings of his subordinates flew in one after another.
But it did not reach Cesare's ears.
Wherever he passed, his eyes searched for Medea.
The longer she went unfounded, the faster his heartbeat became.
He didn't know why he felt anxious like a lost child.
Then, shr heard a loud commotion from somewhere. Naturally, he went there.
The rattling sound of the dishes made a clear sound like a silver bell from time to time.
The attendants who walked back and forth between the kitchen and the dining room with trays bowed down when they found Cesare.
"Your Highness, you have woken up. His Excellency is already holding the morning. Her Highness is the same-"
"Is Dea here?"
Cesare's hasty pace slowed him down.
"Yes, she is inside."
Before he could finish answering, Cesare walked past them and headed inside.
Pulling on his tunic to straighten out the disheveled wrinkles, Cesare calmly walked into the dining room as if nothing had happened.
However, the first thing that caught his eye was not the wife he was looking for.
"The sun is in the middle of the sky, boss."
He chewed the steak in his mouth and waved his hand.
Perhaps because of the scolding yesterday, he was cheating and had a big mustache on his nose.
"Early... You're here."
"The boss is late. Why do you keep sleeping so late that you can't get used to it since yesterday?"
Gallo frowned at Medea.
"I arrived a little early, but you can tolerate this kind of rudeness, right? Her Highness the Princess, no, Her Highness the 1st Princess, must have spent the first day in Katzen in peace, so I should be relieved."
"Lord Gallo is very attentive, but it's rude."
Soft speech. Turning his head to follow the clear voice, Cesare finally found his wife sitting at the end of a long table.
Their eyes met.
Her eyes sparkled with green. A smile on the corner of her mouth.
At that moment, Cesare's hardened eyes softened.
The nerve cords that had been sharp melted away like a snowman in the sun.
"So, I told you that what happened when the boss was training in the Tower of the White Night, and that he got into trouble because of his mask, right?"
Gallo soon finished the story. Cesare, realizing that he was talking about his old self, looked at Gallo coldly.
"Actually, it's the boss's fault. What do you do if you just hide your extroversion? Since your arrogant disposition has not changed, why don't you get into trouble in a tower full of people who are so proud?"
But Gallo didn't give up at all.
"Hmph, it's yesterday's reward, boss."
His multi-colored eyes were playful, as if he was provoking Cesare.
As long as Medea wanted to listen, he knew that Cesare couldn't keep his mouth shut.
"You have a hard backside."
"Well, Your Highness."
Behind Cesare, Mrs. Tollin appeared with a kettle.
She poured steaming hot water into the teacup. The fragrant scent of tea filled the dining room.
"I don't know how long it's been since Your Highness slept so late. I think it was about seven before you headed to the tower."
A gentle smile appeared on her face.
"... I guess so."
Cesare, who couldn't bear to look at the old lady, raised his eyebrows briefly and replied.
"Hurry up and sit down."
Mrs. Tollin held out the teacup to Cesare.
It was because she knew he didn't eat breakfast.
And the end of the long table.
He pointed to the seat opposite Medea.
According to continental etiquette, the husband and wife sat at the top of the table, facing each other.
"...Your Highness?"
"I'll eat here from now on."
But Cesare casually headed for the seat next to Medea, holding only a teacup.
"Boss, you've never sat there. You always sat at the table..."
"Like you, I'm going to try something new today."
Laughing at Gallo's mustache, Cesare replied.
The maids standing side by side behind the fireplace giggled silently.
The sight of men gathering on both sides of Medea created an atmosphere as if she were the sole owner of the palace.
'Go back to your place.'
Medea glanced at him as she tucked away from him.
"It's too far."
However, he only took a short sweep and took a leisurely sip of the tea.
"You were here, Your Highness."
Just in time, Neril entered the dining room.
"Lord Neril!"
As soon as Gallo saw Neril, he jumped to his feet. The ridiculous müstache was hurriedly thrown somewhere.
"Good morning. Have you had breakfast?"
There was a strange flush on the copper-colored skin. He always had a bright face, but his eyes were even brighter than usual.
"Why are you worried about my sister, Bob?"
Saya, who stood in Neril's way, blocked his line of sight.
"Huh? No, you're saying let's eat everything, so it's good to eat well, right...?"
Gallo, embarrassed by the young maid's unexplained hostility, scratched his head, and Saya snapped at him.
"Take care of your friends! Sir Terence has run out of energy!"
If Terence had heard it, he would have stopped eating and drinking in shock, but Saya didn't care at all.
'Why don't you keep your eyes on my sister?'
The girl, who had lived on the streets since she was a child, was particularly quick to understand people's relationships.
Who is the reason why the troublemaker, who was arguing with the First Prince until a while ago, suddenly has a bright face?
"No, I don't. It's okay."
Neril, who had no idea why Saya was curling up like a cat, replied to Gallo casually, leaning into Medea's ear.
Medea nodded.
"I'm leaving."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Her gaze glanced at Cesare. He nodded quietly, as if he understood.
After Medea and Neril left the restaurant, Gallo was still sitting in the middle of the room.
"What did Sir Neril say?"
"That's none of your concern."
Cesare replied dryly, patting Saya on the chin.
Saya was standing at the entrance of the restaurant like a gatekeeper and glaring at him, so just as Gallo was about to lift his buttocks, Alpha came in.
"My lord, this is a message from the Imperial Palace."
"..."
The Emperor's seal was stamped on the end of the stiff envelope.
Cesare's face, which had a faint smile on his face, suddenly hardened.
***
The Reception Room of the Emperor.
"Kensington."
Neril opened the door, and the happy face standing by the window turned around.
"Your Highness, have you been strong?"
His hair was cut short. A hawk's nose that is stuck to a crooked nose.
The man in his old coat and crumpled hat looked like an ordinary passerby who could be anywhere on the street.
"You're almost unaware from the outside."
"Don't make fun of me."
Kensington smiled and waved his cane-clasped hand.
If it wasn't for the cane in his hand, she wouldn't have thought he was the same person.
While admiring the Red Foxes' skills, Kensington put the materials on the table.
"Now that the coronation ceremony has been completed safely, you will have to go to the Imperial Palace soon."
"Yes, so I think you need your opinion."
Before meeting the Emperor, it was necessary to understand the current structure of the Katzen Empire.
"At the time of the coronation, it seemed that Your Highness was a little pushed between the Eastern Empress and the Western Empress."
Kensington was impressed by Medea's astute handling of the subtle battle of wits between the royal family in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the coronation.
"Yes, you saw it right away. The fourth Princess has been expelled, and her father has also fallen ill, and the Emperor has been noticeably declining lately."
Kensington unfolded Katzen's map and continued.
"On the other hand, East Empress's father, Count Montfort, is in the spotlight with the recent adoption of the salt tax reform plan."
She marked the strongholds of the vassals of the Western Empress and those who supported the Three Princes on the map.
In particular, the flags were densely gathered around the capital.
"From the reorganization of the salt tax to the fixed tax system for guilds, I heard that the national treasury has increased three times since last year. The Emperor was also very satisfied."
Kensington had no more hesitation in dryly referring to his old master as the Emperor.
"Count Montfort has been a financial adviser since he got along well with the elders... Therefore, it is rumored that the position of the president of the Senate has almost cemented in him this time."
"...If so."
Medea tapped her fingers on the table.
It was time to organize Kensington's report in his head.
"The imperial family's money is also in the hands of the Western Empress. It means that we have to shake this side before the Eastern Empress Monument..."
"It won't be easy."
Kensington took a short breather.
"The Third Prince has grown too much, and the Emperor is openly hostile to us. Even the neutral nobles are too wary of the First Prince."
The First Prince's excessively cruel actions actually prevented them from entering.
From the beginning, the First Prince faction was as closed from the inside out as it was powerful.
The story of Jared, a 10-star general who died at his hands, also spread widely, adding to the fear of the nobles.
"Since the return of His Highness Cesare, the voices calling for the Crown Prince to be crowned First Prince are getting weaker and weaker."
Kensington shook his head.
"The current Emperor Katzen will never make His Highness the First Prince the Crown Prince with his own hands."
As the Emperor's henchman, he knew best.
Perdiccas II, who is going crazy with his inferiority complex and hatred for his eldest son day by day, only wants to break his son's wings.
'I don't think I can give you wings.'
Without anyone's help, the First Prince did not care that the wings were created by squeezing his own blood.
"It's okay. I don't intend to oppose the Emperor in the first place."
Medea picked up the pawn on the chessboard.
The real strength of a pawn is that it can remain a pawn until the end of the game.
"It's enough to take one step forward now."
Only when they reach the end will everyone know. How the pawn hidden by Medea is reborn.
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