CH 58

It is a well-known story that His Royal Highness the King's brother was so good that His Majesty the King insisted that the throne should be given to his younger brother.

According to Kane's father, the Prime Minister, the King often blurted out that if it had not been decreed that the throne be inherited by the firstborn son, he would have given it to his younger brother and gone on with his hobby of fishing.

His Royal Highness the Younger Brother always supported his elder brother, saying that he was better suited to assist him, but a mistake could have led to a situation in which the brothers would be competing for the throne.

In particular, when the king decided to marry the current queen when he was the crown prince, there were many voices calling for the abolition of the crown prince and for his younger brother to become the king.

However, this idea disappeared when the younger brother married the princess of a small country in the central region that had been destroyed by the Morvian Republic.

Considering the relationship with the Republic of Morvia, it was not a good idea for the queen to be a princess of a fallen country. The daughter of an impoverished northern marquess with no power was a better choice, and the crown prince's marriage was approved as it was.

"But why does everyone believe such a ridiculous story?"

"It is not only Mariabelle's story. Their behaviour of late has been decidedly strange."

"It seems that my brother also advised him to change his mind as much as possible."

Percy, who became Edward's aide after Kane, tries to advise him without using harsh words as much as possible so that he will not repeat his brother's mistakes.

"However, it doesn't seem to have touched Edward's heart too much."

"He is more attracted to Simon's sweet words."

"Simon is your brother's assistant and in charge of foreign affairs, isn't he? If... information about the empire is not accurately conveyed to your brother, then..."

"I don't think that is the case..."

"Although he is not well known because he does not like to be seen, Simon is fluent in languages and can even manipulate the languages of the Republic of Morvia and the northern barbarians."

Although it is said that Edward read foreign letters of intent himself, in reality, Simon would have translated them and given them to Edward.

It is also possible that Simon received the imperial letters first, which did not need to be translated.

With the exception of Kane's brother, Percy, all the other members of Edward's entourage were close to the Duke of Danzel.

Simon, who had been neutral until recently, was said to be close to the Duke of Danzel, who was involved in the importation of wheat.

"Even so, my brother wasn't that unreasonable either. I wonder if true love is something that blinds people so much?"

Cedric, who was still a child even though he had grown up, did not understand love or romance.

"But it is frightening to think that it can make a person so foolish."

"Even people with common sense change when they fall in love."

"Edward has a spoiled personality, but I am sure he is not that foolish."

"If he had not met Annette, he would have reigned peacefully with Mariabelle."

"I wonder if he would have."

"Love is a temporary passion; love is an eternal melody. I will ruin myself with this love, but I will not regret it."

Suddenly, Kane spoke in a theatrical tone.

Cedric recalled a scene from a play he had seen several times: the encounter between a young man, who sneaks into the ball of a rival family as a test of courage, and a girl who announces her engagement to her cousin at the same ball.

"A line from Jeanrod, perhaps."

"But the love that began with that encounter ends in tragedy with their deaths."

"Yes," he said.

"Desdemona and Distazo. Desdemona is the one who decides to become a martyr in love, even though she knows she is avenging her parents."

'Yes... I guess love has always made people stupid..."

He looks a little shifty, like a child of his age.

Kane feels a smile on his face at this rare sight of his master.

"But love makes people grow. It makes you strive to make the other person happy."

"I wonder if Mistress Annette is... happy."

"Annette, whom I sometimes see at the royal palace, seems to be getting more and more emaciated."

Cedric disliked Annette, who took the position of Edward's fiancée, but even so, she seemed to be a different person from the beginning, to the extent that he can't help but sympathize.

"Never in my wildest dreams did I think that Annette, who didn't know anything about etiquette and spoke bluntly to Cedric, would still be better off."

"I am afraid to speak personally, but if Edward loves that girl, he should not have folded his hands. The water of the royal palace does not suit a flower that blooms in the field."

"Moreover, Edward had a perfect fiancée named Mariabelle."

"In terms of status, beauty, and knowledge, there was nothing that Annette had over Mariabelle."

"But she had won Edward's heart with her smile, and now that smile is often clouded, I wonder if Edward and Annette have any regrets."

"Now it can't be returned to the wild anymore."

"Yes."

"In the first place, why did brother Edward go to a place like a tavern?"

When travelling by carriage from the Grand Duke's castle to the royal palace, he sometimes passed through the streets of the royal capital, but for safety's sake he doesn't open the windows and look outside, so Cedric doesn't know what the city was like.

The streets, which he can see a little through the curtains, are clean, but he has never seen a building that looks like a tavern.

"When Edward told me that he had seen Annette in a tavern, my first thought was, how could the crown prince of a country go to such a place?"

At the time, Kane did not have an answer and could not reply, but since then, he had asked his brother Percy about the situation very carefully, so he answered immediately.

"It seems that Brian Chester, an apprentice escort knight, took him out on what he said was a social tour. At first, they were going to take him to a tavern near the main street, but His Highness Edward said he wanted to see more of the stores further back."

"The Chester family is a branch of the Duke of Danzel, right?"

"Yes."

"Then, Duke Danzel may have been trying to set something up against Edward from the beginning."

"Simon's moves of late have been completely unreadable."

"He used to be a loyal confidant, but recently he seems to be advising Edward on this and that."

Without a clear picture of Simon's intentions, Cedric could not know what he would do next.

"Also, I don't really understand Duke Danzel's movements here. I thought he was fighting with Simon, but he's not."

"For Duke Danzel, it would be better to destroy the Marquise Berkeley's family itself than to receive Mariabelle as a side concubine."

"That way, he would have a monopoly on the sale of wheat."

"It is certain that they are in touch with the Republic of Morvia, but it is hard to get them to turn tail."

"So far, they haven't acted publicly... It was your brother Edward who captured the Marquis of Berkeley. I wonder if Edward really intends to make Mistress Mariabelle his concubine."

"He seems to be influenced by the idea that she would be happier as the concubine of the man she loves. He says that she only needs to make up for what she lacks in terms of office duties. There is nothing that she lacks."

"Why can't he see things from a bird's eye view? And why doesn't His Majesty go out from behind the scenes?"

"The king is the only person who can bring this situation under control."

"But he has not been seen for a long time, saying that he fell ill."

"Is he alive or not?"

"To find out, come with Mistress Mariabelle to the royal palace. There we will unveil everything."

"I agree. The pieces are falling into place. The time has finally come to avenge your father's death."

Cedric nodded at Kane's words and looked out the window at the sky, which was turning a deep blue as the sun went down.