Episode 163

Inside the carriage heading to the imperial palace, I thought and thought again about what I needed to do once I arrived.

While I had to be careful around others, I absolutely couldn’t afford to make any mistakes in front of the Crown Prince.

Based on what I had observed so far, the Crown Prince was a highly perceptive person. If I acted in any suspicious or questionable way, he would undoubtedly notice immediately.

So, I meticulously reviewed the tasks I had to complete at the palace.

‘Since I sent the letter yesterday, he’ll definitely come to greet me, right?’

That would be my chance.

It was the only moment where a natural, unforced contact with the Crown Prince could occur.

He would surely extend his hand to me as he always did, and all I had to do was feign discomfort but not refuse to take it.

As soon as I held his hand, I would focus and delve into his mind, peering into his memories.

‘So, I’ll take my time getting out of the carriage today.’

All I needed to do was wait for the Crown Prince to open the door and extend his hand.

There was nothing difficult about it.

From my experience so far, the situation would unfold as I had anticipated, and all I needed to do was control my mental focus.

Even so, to prevent any mistakes, I continued to mentally rehearse the scenario over and over until we reached the palace.

A little while later, the carriage came to a stop.

‘We’ve arrived.’

The familiar exterior of the building came into view through the window.

A sudden wave of tension washed over me at the thought of soon facing the Crown Prince.

‘Stay calm.’

I couldn’t afford to miss this opportunity.

After learning about my ability from Noah, I now had a chance to use it to turn around the frustrating situation I’d been stuck in.

I didn’t want to ruin everything today because of needless nerves.

Taking a deep breath, I waited for the door of the carriage to open.

I waited for about a minute.

Normally, the Crown Prince would rush to open the door the moment my carriage arrived.

But this time, no matter how long I waited, the door didn’t open.

‘What’s going on?’

Just as I was staring at the door in confusion, someone knocked on it.

“Lady Anaïs.”

The voice belonged to someone else, not the Crown Prince, but his attendant. I recognized the voice from previous encounters.

Neither the Crown Prince nor the people working in his palace referred to me as the Duchess of Blighton anymore, even though the divorce hadn’t been finalized.

I considered saying something about it but quickly remembered I had more important matters to deal with today.

Still, why was the attendant calling for me instead of the Crown Prince himself?

Could it be that the Crown Prince didn’t come to greet me?

That would completely derail my plan.

But waiting inside the carriage until he arrived would seem strange as well.

Caught off guard by this sudden change in plans, I reluctantly got up.

When I opened the door and stepped out of the carriage, I saw the familiar attendant standing there.

“Welcome, Lady Anaïs.”

“Where is His Highness the Crown Prince?”

I immediately scanned the area and asked the attendant.

“His Highness has stepped away for a brief moment.”

“Where did he go?”

“His Highness has asked me to escort you to the parlor in the meantime. Please, follow me.”

I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of frustration. The Crown Prince, who usually insisted on coming to greet me even when I told him not to, had terrible timing this time.

Suppressing my annoyance, I followed the attendant into the palace and was shown to the parlor.

“His Highness will be back shortly, so please wait a moment. I’ll prepare tea and refreshments.”

“No, I’d prefer to be alone until His Highness arrives. Could you all leave?”

“Ah, understood.”

I needed to gather my thoughts after this unexpected situation.

Once I was sure the room was empty, I let out a deep sigh, sitting there in silence.

‘What now?’

The easiest opportunity for physical contact had disappeared, so I had to come up with a new plan.

Even if it was just a brief moment, I needed to create a situation where I could touch the Crown Prince.

But nothing immediately came to mind.

I had never initiated any form of contact before. Suddenly offering a handshake or making any sort of touch would definitely raise suspicion.

‘Should I aim for the next meeting?’

Though I felt rushed, this wasn’t something I should hastily force.

Since my plan had already gone awry from the start, it might be better to take my time and act more carefully.

If the Crown Prince didn’t step away next time, he would undoubtedly come out to greet me as usual.

‘Yes, I’ll wait for the next opportunity.’

With that decision made, I felt a sense of relief.

Since the Crown Prince had stepped away for other business, it would feel natural to say I’d return another time rather than waiting here.

Besides, I had no desire to see his face unnecessarily.

Just as I made up my mind to leave, I stood up from the sofa.

But then, something happened.

As I was walking toward the door, I heard a commotion outside.

‘Could it be…?’

I frowned momentarily, and as soon as the door opened, I quickly wiped the expression off my face.

The door swung open, revealing the one face I didn’t want to see.

“Leaving already?”

The Crown Prince asked, staring directly at me as he entered.

“Ah, Your Highness,” I greeted him politely.

I hurriedly bowed to the Crown Prince.

“Didn’t my attendant tell you I would return shortly?”

“…He did.”

I straightened up and answered while looking at the Crown Prince. He seemed displeased with the fact that I was about to leave, his brow slightly furrowed.

“Then why were you about to leave so soon?”

“I thought I might be bothering someone as busy as you, so I figured it would be better to just leave.”

“Hmm, that’s not the case at all.”

The Crown Prince gave me a peculiar, unsettling smile as he stared at me intently.

“Anyway, understood. Now that I’m back, please have a seat again.”

“Yes, of course.”

Inwardly, I shook my head in frustration but returned to the sofa and sat back in the same spot as before.

The Crown Prince sat across from me, exuding his usual arrogant aura.

Soon after, the palace servants brought tea and refreshments to the table. With a wave of his hand, the Crown Prince dismissed them, and they all left as swiftly as a receding tide.

“I just returned from seeing His Majesty the Emperor.”

“His Majesty?”

“Yes.”

“How is His Majesty? Has there been any improvement?”

The Crown Prince shook his head slowly in response to my question.

“No. We still don’t know why he collapsed, so we haven’t been able to find a way to treat him.”

“I see…”

I responded with a voice full of concern and sympathy.

I was genuinely worried that the Emperor might not wake up. But in reality, the Emperor wasn’t someone I could truly care about.

Lloydin was suffering because of him.

Every time I thought of Lloydin, who was likely still in the battlefield, risking his life, I felt more anger than concern.

Yet, despite all that, I found myself worrying about the Emperor’s fate for one reason only:

I didn’t want the man sitting in front of me to become the next Emperor.

No matter how much I disliked the current Emperor, I disliked the Crown Prince even more.

If the Emperor didn’t wake up and died, the Crown Prince would inevitably become the next ruler.

But if the Emperor woke up, things could change.

Everyone knew how much the Emperor adored Princess Daina. In fact, many nobles had switched their support from the Crown Prince to the Princess just before the Emperor collapsed.

If the Emperor were to recover, there was a high chance that everything would go back to the way it was.

After all, everything the Crown Prince was doing now was his own unilateral decision.

Especially if the Emperor found out about the Crown Prince’s attempt to force Princess Daina into a marriage with the Crown Prince of the Kailon Kingdom, he would be furious.

‘Let’s put that thought aside for now.’

I cut off my thoughts and continued with the meaningless conversation with the Crown Prince, all while inwardly searching for an opportunity to make physical contact with him.

But it wasn’t easy.

I couldn’t come up with a natural way to initiate contact.

It seemed like it was best to stick to my earlier decision and give up for today.

Besides, I really didn’t want to spend more time with the Crown Prince than necessary.

Just as I was about to get up under the pretense of going to the Imperial Library, which I had mentioned in my letter as my reason for visiting, a memory suddenly surfaced.

The method I had used when I first met Lloydin to maintain prolonged contact with him.

‘That’s right!’

Though this method would keep me close to the Crown Prince for longer than I would like, there was no other choice.

If I could achieve my goal, enduring that much would be worth it.