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Chapter 15
Frederick stared at the returned bouquet with a strange expression.
“…The princess sent this back?”
“Yes, Your Highness. Her Highness the Princess and even all of her ladies-in-waiting apparently have flower allergies.”
Frederick’s longtime attendant watched his expression nervously. Outwardly, Frederick seemed kind and gentle, but he hated having his will defied.
Frederick raised an eyebrow.
To the attendant—tense and trembling—Frederick spoke coldly.
“If that’s the reason, then it can’t be helped. Throw it away.”
“…P-pardon?”
The attendant’s eyes widened.
“I said throw it away. What use is a flower with no owner?”
Frederick narrowed his eyes. As expected, the legitimate imperial princess was troublesome. Her difficult nature stirred his competitiveness at times, but mostly it exhausted him. He sighed quietly and gestured.
“Prepare the carriage.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
The attendant stiffened and answered loudly.
It was still early afternoon when Frederick’s carriage stopped before the Naval Residence. Frederick narrowed his eyes up at the building.
I wonder if he received the gift I sent.
A faint smile curled on his lips. There had been no news—so he came in person. By now, Duke Lucian should have personally reported the plague outbreak to the imperial palace and shut down the residence.
But strangely, it was quiet.
That was precisely why he had come today.
Even after stirring the entertainment district for information, he heard nothing about the residence. None of the women who had once shared their bed with Frederick knew anything about Duke Lucian. As if he’d developed some newfound obsession with cleanliness, he didn’t keep any woman near him.
Frederick ground his teeth.
A shallow hostility toward Duke Lucian lifted its head.
“Crown Prince…?”
A guard recognized the carriage and hurried over with a deep bow. Frederick, who had been standing before the carriage, rearranged his expression and smiled warmly.
“I came without notice. I’m here to see my uncle.”
“It is an honor to receive you, Your Highness! I am Joseph of the 1st Division!”
“A pleasure, Joseph.”
Frederick replied with a soft laugh.
“May I enter?”
There was faint hope in his voice. If the guard showed even a hint of discomfort, it meant everything was going according to plan. His sudden visit shouldn’t have given the residence time to hide anything… certainly not if trouble was occurring inside.
“Yes, Your Highness!”
But contrary to Frederick’s expectation, the gates opened smoothly. His expression stiffened ever so slightly.
“No problems in the residence lately?”
“No, Your Highness. Thanks to your concern, all is peaceful.”
Frederick’s eyebrow twitched. Was Lucian simply hiding things well? Or… had he actually—
Found a solution?
Frederick forced down his discomfort and smiled pleasantly.
“How could that be due to me? It must be thanks to Lady Medeia’s watchfulness. Where is my uncle?”
“He should be in his office. I will guide you.”
Frederick nodded and followed. As they walked, he discretely examined the residence. It was lively, bustling, brimming with energy.
Not a single shadow of plague.
“Ah, Your Highness.”
A knight he recognized greeted him.
“Sir Matteo. It has been a while.”
“I heard you came to Florence. Did you enjoy your travels?”
Matteo smiled politely.
“More or less. Though you knew I was here, yet didn’t come greet me? I must say, I’m offended.”
“I’ve been away for some time and accumulated much work. His Grace is inside.”
Matteo deflected effortlessly.
Just like his master—insufferably arrogant.
Frederick smiled sweetly despite his irritation. Matteo opened the office door. At the sight of the face he despised, Frederick’s mood plummeted.
Duke Lucian slowly lifted his head. The moment their eyes met, Frederick barely swallowed a curse.
A prince who will never be emperor.
Despite the weight of that truth, Lucian held not a trace of intimidation. That infuriated Frederick.
He never understood why the empire needed so many royals. Frederick alone was enough—only he possessed the qualifications to be emperor. His half-brothers, and Lucian as well, were meaningless.
Like rats gnawing at the imperial treasury.
And Frederick intended to clean up the mess the imperial family had made.
The most troublesome among them was still Duke Lucian.
“Uncle. It has been a while. How was Medice?”
“Thanks to the Crown Prince’s concern, I returned well.”
“I too have fared well thanks to your hard work. Was your journey comfortable?”
Lucian curved his lips into a thin smile. Hearing Frederick ask yet again about the journey twisted something in him.
Frederick glanced around.
“Come to think of it, Valeck is nowhere to be seen.”
Frederick had no right to speak Valeck’s name. Duke Lucian replied in a low, quiet voice.
“There was… a complication on the way back. We were attacked by a Kraken.”
“A Kraken? But this is their spawning season—they shouldn’t leave the depths.”
“There are always variables.”
“Then Sir Valeck is…?”
“A regrettable loss. I’m surprised you remember him.”
“He was your longtime companion, was he not? Of course I should remember.”
Frederick tried to read Lucian’s expression. But Lucian—damnable Lucian—betrayed not the slightest ripple of emotion. Matteo was the same.
Master and servant alike—insufferably alike.
Frederick clenched his teeth. He didn’t like this. Not one bit. A Kraken? Not a plague?
Lucian, too, hid his hostility well. Watching Frederick wag his tail all the way here made his stomach twist.
The dead-seren poison—he knew exactly who had used it.
So it was you.
Lucian rested a hand on the desk. The imperial family was always like this. Demanding loyalty as if it were natural, and betraying him just as naturally. Just as they had three years ago.
Three years ago—it had been Frederick.
The reinforcements he’d promised never came. Lucian’s forces, who had braved the sea to save the pleasure cruiser from sea monsters, were nearly wiped out. Lucian stared coldly at Frederick.
“Have you met your fiancée?”
“If you mean Princess Belisa, yes. She is exactly as rumored—wise and beautiful. No wonder Father is impatient.”
Lucian smiled faintly. Frederick was greedy. He had to obtain everything he wanted, and despised losing anything of his own.
But that wasn’t enough.
His unjustly drowned soldiers were still wandering the sea.
“If the Crown Prince is pleased, then my efforts were not in vain.”
The tension between the two was suffocating. The aides shrank back, while Matteo silently observed every flicker of Frederick’s expression.
“How about dinner tomorrow evening with Princess Belisa?”
Frederick suggested with a gentle smile. Lucian’s smile deepened.
“A fine idea. If the Crown Prince arranges it, I will make time.”
“Thank you, Uncle. Then I should return. I must inform my chef that we’ll have guests.”
Lucian nodded. Frederick left the office still hiding his slyness. As soon as his figure disappeared, Lucian’s expression chilled. Matteo bowed his head.
“It seems certain it was him, does it not?”
His voice was dark—filled with raw hatred toward Frederick, perhaps equal to Lucian’s own. Lucian nodded.
“I learned to return more than I received.”
“…”
“The dead-seren poison—let us acquire it ourselves.”
Lucian’s blue eyes sank like the deep sea. They would see who would be dragged into the depths first.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Lucian smirked crookedly.
