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Chapter 26
I looked down at the letter and let out a hollow laugh.
To roughly summarize its contents, it went something like this:
What happened before had merely been an unfortunate misunderstanding, and if I returned, he would be willing to accept me once again…
Crunch.
Without realizing it, I crumpled the paper in my hand, then quickly startled and smoothed it back out.
“Whoa, that scared me. It was so ridiculous I almost tore it apart.”
No matter how insane someone was, there had to be limits. How dare he say something like this?
And yet, the truly unfair part was that if this had been the real Evelynn, she probably would have gone back to him willingly.
“…His ulterior motives are way too obvious. Painfully obvious.”
Unless someone was an empty-headed fool, no one would believe this letter was sincere.
But Ludwig needed a fool he could manipulate however he pleased, and that fool was none other than Evelynn Rosenthal.
‘He really does know how to use his head.’
It seemed he clearly understood what role Evelynn could still play in this situation, now that every spy he’d planted had been exposed.
Suppressing the urge to crumple the letter up and toss it into the trash immediately, I carefully placed it back into the envelope.
Then I picked up the box.
‘Now, what could be inside this?’
As I slowly opened the lid, an extravagant necklace revealed itself.
An emerald-and-diamond necklace. One glance was enough to tell it was absurdly expensive.
‘…He’s trying to win me over with this?’
I picked up the necklace and held it to the light. Countless jewels glittered brilliantly.
It was a necklace perfectly tailored to Evelynn’s tastes—the kind of gaudy luxury she adored.
“Well… it is pretty.”
But that was all. Beauty with no substance beneath it.
At that moment, a familiar sound effect rang out.
Ding!
[Please choose one of the options below.
- Accept the necklace.
- Return the necklace.]
…There’s actually an option to reject it?
I narrowed my eyes and examined the system window.
“What? It allows that now?”
Even if it was all just an act, I’d expected there to be only choices that pushed me toward the crown prince…
It seemed that thanks to the freedom points I’d diligently accumulated lately, the range of actions I could take had expanded even further.
Just as I casually moved to select option two, something suddenly struck me as odd.
‘…Wait.’
I reread the choices carefully.
“…There are no parentheses.”
There were no parentheses explaining or dictating my actions. Just two short lines.
Accept it, or return it. And whatever I did afterward… would be entirely up to me.
“Can I really interpret it that way?”
Despite my question, the system window simply floated silently before me without answering.
A wordless affirmation.
The moment I confirmed that reaction, my hand moved to option one.
“Go big or go home!”
Grinning mischievously, I put the necklace back into the box neatly.
Then I rummaged through the drawer and pulled out an elegant sheet of stationery.
‘Alright then, let’s write a letter worthy of Evelynn.’
Holding the quill pen, I thought for a moment before curling my lips into a smile and beginning to write.
“…The moment I saw the necklace, I was reminded of your deep and beautiful grass-green eyes. Everything I am belongs to you, Your Highness. Without you, I cannot even breathe…”
“Pfft, perfect.”
I poured every cringeworthy phrase I knew into the letter.
Just imagining Ludwig reading it and recoiling in disgust put me in a good mood. He had always hated hearing Evelynn speak of love with every fiber of his being.
No… maybe he had simply hated Evelynn herself.
Wearing a wicked grin, I waved the paper gently to dry the ink.
Once it had fully dried, I slipped it into an envelope and sealed it with wax, stamping it with the Rosenthal family crest. When I pulled the bell cord, Genie soon entered the room again.
“You called for me?”
“Send this letter to the imperial palace. Make sure it’s delivered directly to the Crown Prince.”
“…Pardon?”
Genie stared at the letter in shock.
“M-My lady, are you serious?”
“If not, then what?”
“But aren’t you with the Second Prince…?!”
“Quiet!”
Genie gasped in surprise.
It was the most startled I’d seen her in a long time. Especially lately, when she’d been looking at me like I was a stone and didn’t seem afraid of me at all.
Her reaction startled me instead, and I accidentally stammered.
“I-I mean… did you really think I would accept an engagement with the Second Prince?! The sight of that dark hair alone makes me sick!”
“But…”
“I said quiet! His Highness the Crown Prince still loves me. Isn’t that obvious from this necklace?!”
I irritably pulled the necklace from the box.
The moment Genie saw the dazzling cluster of jewels, she fell silent.
She looked at me with pity in her eyes.
My eyebrow twitched, but instead of snapping further, I sharply turned my head away.
“You should just do as you’re told. Why are you talking back so much?”
“…Understood. I understand, my lady.”
With a dejected expression, Genie finally accepted the letter from me.
In any case, pretending to side with Ludwig was a card I could use someday. I had already explained things to Rakiel in a similar way.
In other words, I’d become a double agent.
Smiling in satisfaction, I carefully put the necklace away deep inside the drawer once more.
Rip! Riiip!
Inside the spacious room, a single sheet of paper was violently shredded and scattered into pieces.
The man with sunlight-bright golden hair looked as though he had witnessed something horrifying, his face pale.
He even gagged repeatedly, as if nausea were rising in his throat.
“Damn it…”
His hands trembled as he hurriedly pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and frantically wiped his fingers.
If he didn’t, it felt as though those unbearably cheesy words might somehow infect him.
At that moment, one line that had escaped destruction fluttered down to his feet.
“…Every night, I fall asleep whispering Your Highness’s name…”
…Should I change my name?
For a brief moment, Ludwig seriously considered it.
But he quickly shook his head, realizing how absurd the thought was.
What nonsense was that? The Crown Prince of the Empire couldn’t simply change his name because hearing it spoken disgusted him.
With a cold expression, he ground the scrap of paper beneath his shoe. The paper crumpled and became stained.
“…Ha. Well, I knew I’d have to deal with this eventually.”
That idiot woman was still hopelessly in love with him. She’d even forgotten that her own family had been betrayed.
“Well, I didn’t expect all the spies I planted to get exposed…”
Those incompetent fools.
Just what had they done to get caught one after another?
This was why subordinates couldn’t be trusted. No matter how carefully he planted them, they always failed eventually.
And he certainly hadn’t expected Duke Rosenthal to notice so quickly.
‘How did he figure it out?’
Jonas—that useless idiot—must have spilled everything under torture.
In the end, Ludwig had no choice. He had to reach out to Evelynn again.
Though every inch of his body rejected the idea and his skin crawled at the thought, there was no more reliable option.
She was the type of woman who would wag her tail and come running after the slightest bit of affection.
“Stupid bitch.”
By the time she regretted it, it would already be too late. By then, she herself would have led her family to ruin.
Since it had come to this, he intended to use her until she became completely useless.
“You called for me, Your Highness?”
A voice came from outside. The head attendant entered the room after being summoned.
With his back turned, Ludwig walked across the floor littered with torn scraps of paper and leaned against his desk.
“How is Father these days?”
The head attendant bowed deeply.
“The same as ever.”
“The old man’s life is annoyingly long. I thought he’d be dead by now.”
The harsh words spilled casually from Ludwig’s lips, but the head attendant didn’t react. He was clearly used to it.
In fact, he lowered his head even further, as if agreeing.
“The physician says he does not have much time left. At most, until the end of this year…”
“Too slow.”
Ludwig turned around and sat against the edge of the desk.
His face was twisted into a frown.
“It seems my dear little brother has started making moves. Amazingly enough, he actually thinks he can oppose me.”
“…You mean the Second Prince?”
“Yes.”
Rubbing his fingertips together, he muttered:
“It looks like he met with Duke Rosenthal yesterday. Find out what they discussed.”
“…Understood.”
“Oh, and as a reply to the letter, choose an appropriate gift and send it to Lady Rosenthal. There’s no harm in putting in a little effort.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The head attendant bowed and backed out of the room.
Left alone, Ludwig smiled coldly as he gazed out the window.
His green eyes, fixed upon the view outside, were filled with chilling frost.
