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Chapter 6
“…Your Highness?”
“Why.”
Rakiel answered flatly, a cold damp handkerchief pressed against his jaw.
“…Um.”
“What.”
“Are you injured?”
“Yeah.”
He flipped the handkerchief over and pressed it to his jaw again. Beneath it, a glimpse of reddened, swollen skin showed through.
His adjutant, Hagen, looked down at him with a strange expression as Rakiel continued reviewing documents.
“Did you… get into a fight?”
His voice was thick with suspicion—like someone staring at a younger sibling who’d gone out alone and come home beaten up.
The moment Rakiel noticed that look, he shut his mouth tightly.
“So, how exactly did this— no, wait, who…?”
“……”
“……”
“…What.”
“…Did you at least win?”
“Are you kidding me?”
What am I, a child?
The irritated retort rose to the tip of his tongue before he swallowed it back down.
After all, he really had gone out alone without guards and come back injured, so he didn’t exactly have grounds to complain.
“I don’t know what happened, but you really shouldn’t come back looking like this. You are a prince, after all.”
“And just what kind of attitude is that toward a prince?”
“It’s the sincere concern I have for Your Highness.”
“……”
Forget it. Talking is pointless.
Rakiel waved his hand dismissively.
The gesture clearly meant: Get to the point. Why did you come here?
“Well then— it happened just as Your Highness predicted.”
“What did? Duke Rosenthal?”
“Yes.”
Hagen nodded.
Hagen Kirchner had been Rakiel’s strategist throughout the war, always by his side while he served as commander-in-chief.
Even after the war ended, he continued assisting him as his adjutant. He was also one of the people quietly working behind the scenes to place Rakiel on the throne.
Their faction was still small, but all of them shared the same belief: Crown Prince Ludwig was unfit to become emperor.
Ludwig undeniably possessed charisma and the boldness to lead others, but his personality was excessively cruel and twisted. In the end, that disposition caused some nobles to turn their backs on him.
Still, Ludwig held the official position of Crown Prince, so for now they could only operate beneath the surface.
“The day before yesterday, Crown Prince Ludwig informed Lady Evelynn Rosenthal that he was breaking off their engagement. It seems he’s already settled matters with Duke Rosenthal as well.”
“I figured as much. Things between them had looked awkward for a while.”
“Once this becomes known in high society, it’ll cause quite the uproar.”
“…There’ll be plenty of speculation about Duke Rosenthal’s next move.”
“Exactly.”
Nearly sprawled into his chair, Rakiel tapped lightly on the desk.
“So?”
“We received contact first from Duke Rosenthal’s side. They said they’d like to meet.”
“The excuse?”
“They claim they want to discuss trade along the western border.”
The excuse was just an excuse.
A ducal house that had just had its daughter rejected by the Crown Prince only had one reason to seek out the Second Prince.
“Is there a chance Duke Rosenthal might side with us?”
Hagen thought for a moment before answering.
“It’s not impossible. Supporting Your Highness would certainly be an enormous gamble, but no one knows the future.”
“…Are you trying to say me becoming emperor is a gamble?”
“Well, it’s the truth.”
Hagen shrugged casually, and Rakiel let out a dry laugh.
It was true.
Ludwig’s faction was solid and powerful. Rakiel, on the other hand, had only recently returned from war, and because of the trauma he’d suffered there, he hadn’t properly shown his face in society for years.
In other words, for the nobles, choosing Rakiel’s side was practically the same as preparing for the destruction of their entire family.
“Compared to Grand Duke Kashien, we’re definitely lacking… but we don’t exactly have many options.”
Rakiel muttered.
“At the very least, the benefits outweigh the losses.”
“I suppose so. Even if their influence is weaker, a duke is still a duke.”
“You could also become engaged to Lady Rosenthal.”
“…What?”
Rakiel stared at Hagen in disbelief.
But Hagen answered calmly instead.
“Were you planning to do nothing? You know perfectly well that the strongest alliances are built through political marriage. And since her engagement was just broken off, the timing is ideal.”
“Do you even know what kind of person Lady Rosenthal is?”
“Of course I do. I simply mean that if you wish to become emperor, you can’t only do things you like.”
“Hah. As if Lady Rosenthal would ever agree to marry me. That woman chased after my brother like a fanatic.”
Rakiel had only met Evelynn once before.
It had not been a pleasant memory.
“Your Highness doesn’t resemble the Crown Prince even a little, do you?”
“…What?”
“Hmph. I’m saying you’re not my type at all.”
Ludwig and Rakiel truly were complete opposites. Just from appearance alone, it was difficult to guess they were brothers.
Ludwig, with his blond hair and green eyes, seemed to sparkle even in bright places, and people naturally gravitated toward him. Rakiel, meanwhile, struggled with people as much as his dark hair suggested.
Still, it wasn’t something anyone should say directly to someone they’d just met.
So naturally, his first impression of Evelynn had been terrible.
Lost briefly in the memory of their first meeting, Rakiel frowned. The handkerchief pressed to his jaw had long since lost its coolness.
‘Ah… that woman was from the ducal house too, wasn’t she.’
The woman who had slammed the top of her head into his jaw and fled.
The Rosenthal ducal crest had definitely been embroidered onto her robe.
After a moment of thought, Rakiel spoke.
“I’ll go there myself this time.”
“…To the ducal estate? We already received word that Duke Rosenthal intends to visit in a few days.”
“If bringing Duke Rosenthal to our side would make him a strong ally, then it’s better to show some sincerity.”
“You don’t really need to go that far.”
Hagen continued, as though trying to stop him.
“Now that the engagement with the Crown Prince has been broken off, Duke Rosenthal has nowhere else to turn anyway.”
“No, it’s better to settle things directly from the start. And besides…”
“…?”
I’d like to see that woman’s face again.
Rakiel swallowed the rest of the sentence.
If he visited the ducal estate, there would surely be at least some chance to see the maids. Especially if he ended up meeting Lady Rosenthal herself.
It wasn’t that he was angry over getting hit in the jaw.
If anything…
He found it interesting.
As he absentmindedly rubbed the swelling that had mostly gone down, he thought exactly that.
Watching him silently, Hagen finally asked:
“So who was it? Who dared punch the jaw of the Empire’s Second Prince?”
“…You’ll get hurt if you find out.”
* * *
Jini was a maid employed by House Rosenthal.
Becoming a servant for a noble family was considered a huge success among commoners.
The pay was decent, and the working conditions were incomparable.
Aside from having to cater to the whims of the nobility—or occasionally fearing for your life—it was an excellent job.
That was why Jini couldn’t quit.
“Disgusting! Can’t you see how filthy this is?! Clean it up immediately!”
“Y-Yes, ma’am…!”
Jini hurriedly bent down and gathered the shattered teacup fragments. She cut her finger in the process, blood forming instantly, but she didn’t even have time to check the wound.
Her mistress, Lady Evelynn Rosenthal, was infamous for being picky and cruel.
Jini hadn’t worked at the estate for long, but the senior maids often shared terrifying rumors.
Stories about servants dragged into underground dungeons and tortured simply for stepping on the hem of her dress. Stories about fingers being cut off for failing to procure a gown in the exact color she wanted.
Of course, none of those rumors had been confirmed.
But considering Evelynn’s temperament, Jini genuinely felt that if she moved even slightly too slowly, she might really be dragged away under some fabricated accusation.
Thankfully, Evelynn remained unusually quiet while Jini cleaned the floor with trembling hands.
That itself was rare.
It almost looked as if she were focused on something else entirely, staring blankly into the air.
Jini found it odd, but she didn’t dare mention it. She only needed to do the work assigned to her.
Once the day’s duties were over, she gathered her things and stood up.
“Jini, are you going home again today?”
A coworker asked.
“Yeah. Today’s the day I promised to stop by.”
“Really? That sounds rough.”
She hurried out of the estate.
There was only one reason Jini refused to quit this job.
“Big sis!”
“Noona!”
Her sick mother and five younger siblings.
She was supporting all of them by herself.
“Mhm, have you all been well?”
‘…Hm?’
As usual, Jini entered the shabby shack filled with the smell of rot and dampness, but immediately frowned at the strange feeling.
It looked exactly the same as always.
And yet, something felt different.
“Zen, did something happen?”
Her oldest younger sibling hesitated before answering.
“N-Noona, um… Mom…”
“…!”
Startled, Jini rushed into the inner room with loud clattering footsteps.
There, her mother sat up drinking water handed to her by one of the younger children.
And unlike usual—
her complexion looked far healthier.
