When we met again, Brantley sometimes had those inexplicable eyes. Looking into those eyes for too long made my stomach churn uncomfortably, so I looked away and chuckled as if nothing was wrong.
“I told you. I want to make money.”
“If you’re going to lie, do it more properly. And if you’re teasing, put some effort into it.”
I looked up and stared straight at him, “I’m neither lying, nor teasing you.”
Brantley really doesn’t understand my feelings at all.
“Then what?”
“I’m angry.”
“What?”
Brantley’s wasn’t expecting such an answer.
I glared at his gentle and handsome face resentfully and said, “I’m really upset because you’re trying to handle everything by yourself, leaving me out. It makes me feel lonely!”
“Wh- What?” Brantley’s eyes trembled.
Seizing the moment, I poured out my feelings, “You’re trying to ruin Duke Eisen. Because you want to get back at him for cornering you.”
“That’s… not true.”
“Of course it is!”
He’s trying to hide it again.
I spoke to the bewildered Brantley.
“Why are you trying to handle such a difficult task alone? And in such a dangerous way.”
“…”
“Is it because your goal isn’t just revenge?”
Brantley flinched at my words.
“Are you trying to bring down Duke Eisen because you want something else?”
At this point, Brantley trembled like a boy caught doing something bad.
I let out a big sigh, “Did you think I wouldn’t know what you wanted?”
“Y- You knew?!”
Brantley was so shocked that he stuttered and his voice cracked, something very uncharacteristic of him.
He shut his eyes tightly, his face pale as he took a rough breath and, as if making a resolution, spoke with determination.
“I don’t know what you think about me, but I’ve liked yo…”
“I know. You don’t have to say it.”
“What?”
Brantley’s face, previously resolute with confession, looked bewildered. He seemed greatly surprised by my words that I already knew.
I shrugged, “Of course, I know how you feel.”
“W-When did you figure it out?”
“It’s been obvious for a while now.”
“Then you know I…”
“You want to reclaim your status, right?”
“…”
“You want to regain your position as a prince… Wait… Brantley, why is your expression like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Brantley turned his head with a strange expression I’d never seen before. Suddenly, he ran his hand roughly through his hair.
There was definitely something wrong.
“Brantley? Are you really okay?”
“I’m fine. I just feel like an idiot.”
“Huh?”
“I never thought you’d feel lonely. That’s my fault.”
I wondered what he was talking about, and then I realized he was mulling over what I had blurted out earlier in a moment of frustration.
Then he spoke, “Let’s do this together. Your plan, that is.”
I wasn’t expecting his sudden acceptance.
“Really?”
Brantley nodded, “I can’t stop you now, so I might as well watch closely what you’re doing step by step.”
His expression was troubled, but his tone was quite resolute when he said he’d watch over me. Receiving his approval made me so happy that I jumped on the spot.
“Great! Then let’s move on to the next phase before the market gets violent.”
“The next phase?”
Currently, the market has shown mixed reactions. With the appearance of the luminescent variant, the decline of the Morning Glories had halted, and some variants were starting to rise.
However, most people were still acting as bystanders.
They had already experienced the price drop of the Morning Glories once it passed its peak.
‘The luminescent variant has only been revealed to the world once. So, no matter how much Duke Eisen tries to revive the craze, to others, it will feel like an mirage.’
But even a mirage, if talked about enough, starts to feel real. The rising prices of a few variants, fueled by anticipation, were proof of that.
Will the value of the Morning Glories really rebound? Or will that expectation be as fleeting as a mirage?
Now, while people are uncertain, is our chance.
“It’s time to turn their suspicion into reality.”
***
“This is the first batch of the promised bulbs.”
The representative from Hellas extended a small box. And a knight from the house of Duke Eisen carefully took the box and opened the lid.
Duke Eisen peeked inside and a smile spread across his face.
White, round bulbs were showing off their splendid appearance.
There were only five, but even if he could grow these into flowers, they would yield tremendous profit.
‘Besides, I’ll soon receive an additional batch.’
Duke Eisen grinned widely.
He handed the box to a short man waiting behind him.
“Take good care of these. They’re worth more than your life.”
“Yes, master,” the man replied politely.
The man with rough and calloused hands, accepted the box. Though short, he had a thick build. This man was specifically hired by Duke Eisen for cultivating Morning Glories.
‘When I looked into a poor noble who had presented some fine Morning Glories at an exhibition, I found out this man with a green thumb…’
Duke Eisen had immediately snatched the employee to work under him. This man would surely be able to cultivate the luminescent variant as well.
The employee headed to the greenhouse with the box.
Once inside the greenhouse, with the door closed and alone, his face turned icy.
‘For my Big Bro, I’ll work hard on these Morning Glories.’
He was, in fact, a mercenary loyal to Brantley. The so-called noble from the countryside was a mercenary in disguise. They had infiltrated Duke Eisen’s household to spy on him.
Initially he was here to gather information, but the employee had recently received a new mission. That is to carefully cultivate the Morning Glories.
‘Anyway, the luminescent variant will lose its glow over time,’ he had been told.
This variant would revert to its original state eventually.
Duke Eisen would suffer a huge loss in the end.
‘When Duke Eisen loses his temper and makes a fuss, Her Highness and Big Bro will move on to the next phase.’
In the meantime, his job was reporting Duke Eisen’s movements. He clenched his fists thinking Eisen was the enemy of his Big Bro.
“Brother, why are you angry?” His trembling ceased when he heard a young boy’s voice.
It was Tommy, who worked in the stables.
“Tommy, when did you come into the greenhouse?”
The man asked, brightening up with a smile that didn’t suit his stern appearance.
Tommy, about ten years old, pulled out some carrot pieces from his sleeve.
“The stablehand gave them as a snack, but I wanted to share them with you!”
Seeing the dirt-covered carrot pieces made the man feel a different surge of emotion.
‘They gave him leftovers meant for the horses!’
The people in this household were truly beyond redemption. He understood why his Big Bro despised the Duke’s house.
Originally, it was Tommy’s mother who worked here. But when she fell ill, young Tommy had to work in her place.
The man pitied Tommy and treated him well. As a result, the boy often came looking for him like a puppy seeking affection.
“I had a lot of snacks earlier, so I’m full. Here, why don’t you have this candy instead?”
Holding back his anger, the man took some candy from his pocket. He always kept a few pieces for Tommy. Tommy’s eyes widened as he put the candy in his mouth and beamed.
“Brother! Are you going to eat onions as a snack?”
“Onions?”
Tommy pointed to the Morning Glories bulbs, calling them “onions.”
The man let out a hollow laugh. No matter how expensive they were, to a child, they just looked like onions.
“Well, they do look like onions. Don’t worry about it, they’re nothing important.”
He dismissed it casually. But Tommy’s eyes never left the bulbs.
***
“Bro-brother! Please help us! I beg of you!”
Late at night. One of Brantley’s men, who should have been at Duke Eisen’s estate, came running in a panic.
Brantley and I, who were in the greenhouse, brought him inside.
“What’s going on?” Brantley asked. He seemed just as surprised by his subordinate’s condition.
“We need help!”
“What kind of help? Calm down and explain.”
“Well…”
The subordinate, choking back tears, frowned as he saw the glowing Morning Glories.
“It’s all because of those flowers! Because of those worthless flowers, Tommy is in big trouble!”
“Tommy?”
The subordinate began to cry.
“He’s a boy who works at Duke Eisen’s estate. A kind and innocent kid. But…”
According to him, the boy had touched the variant bulbs Duke Eisen had acquired.
Thinking they were small onions, since they looked similar and because the subordinate had said they were “useless things,” the boy assumed they were discardable.
“What did the boy do with the bulbs?”
“He roasted them to eat. He also gave some to his starving mother at home…”
“What?”
“It’s all my fault. I didn’t explain properly. Tommy is so good-hearted that he immediately confessed, even though he must have been scared when the estate was turned upside down because of the missing bulbs.”
The subordinate looked as if his world had collapsed.
A commoner boy touching such valuable bulbs. It was obvious what Duke Eisen would do to him.
I asked, listening to their conversation, “Where is the boy now?”
“I’ve hidden him in a safe place. Duke Eisen doesn’t know it was me yet.”
“What about the boy’s mother?”
“She’s still…”
“Duke Eisen will target his mother first.”
The subordinate turned pale hearing my words.
“Let’s go to the boy’s mother. I have an idea.”
