The Emperor has been looking more and more for his eldest son these days.
Last night, he called Clive to come into the palace early in the morning.
Clive was in no hurry to go there because the emperor would only talk about trivial things, but his father said he wanted to have breakfast together, so Clive had to leave early.
Yulik asked Clive as he looked out the window of the carriage heading towards the Imperial Palace.
“Why did you do that last night?”
“What?”
“After the lady left the library, you screamed argh! Wait no, was it ahh?”
“You don’t need to know.”
“What happened with the lady?”
“I said you don’t need to know.”
Yulik had a lot of fun with Clive’s new look over the past few days.
The prince doesn’t know how happy it is to have someone to play with after a long time.
Clive can only be satisfied when people or things are under his control, but it didn’t seem to work for Eirene.
Clive’s screams were something that would go down in history.
Mrs. Hanon couldn’t believe it and asked several times if Clive was really yelling.
He wanted to know what happened between the two of them last night, but he managed to hold it in because he was afraid of being scolded if he asked more.
Even if he were to ask Eirene, she wouldn’t know or tell him, and as time goes on, he can only hope that Clive will tell him.
* * * * * * * * * *
The Emperor, who invited Clive to breakfast, did not attend.
Only Clive sat down at the large table, but he ate a delicious breakfast alone.
“Is there a problem?”
Clive asked the servant who brought fruit after the meal, and the servant answered politely.
“The Pope has come.”
“He comes here often.”
He didn’t ask because he didn’t know.
Clive knew that the Pope had come to the Imperial Palace yesterday, the day before yesterday, and even before.
It is not unusual for these two to meet frequently. It was for the sake of the safety and development of the Empire, but the Pope gradually went further.
It wasn’t just yesterday or today.
A long time ago, the incident started when Clive had to give up the crown prince’s seat.
The Pope is implementing his plan over time.
“Liquor is perfect with fruits. I’d like a drink, please.”
“Yes. I will prepare it.”
The only royal family member that drank in the morning was Clive.
The servant brought a bottle of liquor without saying anything because it was a frequent request from him.
A drink for Clive was a bottle.
The amount of alcohol in the bottle rapidly decreased.
The servant watched silently, but every one of Clive’s actions will spread within the palace in less than half a day and will cross the high wall of the Palace tomorrow.
Clive moved his chair back and forth. Despite the squeaking sound, the servant just looked at him.
Yulik, who was standing some distance away, motioned for him to stop, but he ignored it.
Unlike the servant, Yulik couldn’t give up. He frowned and shook his head, and this time, Clive pretended not to know.
The alcohol was gone in the blink of an eye.
“I have to go. Please tell His Majesty that I have eaten well.”
The servant, who was looking at the empty bottle and the untouched fruits, clicked his tongue behind Clive’s back as he left.
Clive pretended not to hear. Because he can’t put a lock on his mouth even if he punishes him.
He left, hoping that the servant would spread the word about everything that happened today.
Clive walked slowly down the hall, looking left and right.
There was nothing to see since he was born and raised in the Imperial Palace, but every time he came, he looked at it as if it were a spectacle.
He stopped at the noise of construction. The fountain that was installed last year seemed to be replaced.
Destroy it, dig up the ground, and reinstall it.
In recent years, they have continued to change the structure of the Imperial Palace.
He doesn’t know what his father, the Emperor, is thinking.
He didn’t want to see him no matter how much he asked, so in the end, he agreed.
He hoped his father could use a plausible excuse, but the emperor kept his mouth shut.
His father’s indecisiveness is his flaw, but the current emperor of Weinfeld was merciful to the people of the Empire.
People wondered how a son like Clive came from such an emperor.
The former empress, who passed away after giving birth to Clive, was even more suspicious because Clive’s biological mother was gentle.
Genetic mutations are everywhere.
Clive saw himself as such a case.
Everyone says that he changed after he came down from the crown prince position, but his personality was the same from the beginning.
He just worked hard when he was Crown Prince.
“Big brother!”
Clive heard someone call him.
He knew who he was without seeing it because he was the only one who could call him a big brother.
It was Florian, his younger brother by another woman and the current Crown Prince.
Florian, who struggled to walk with the support of his servants, struggled to speed up.
Clive walked quickly towards him.
“I came out after hearing the news that my brother had come.”
A bright smile spread across Florian’s face.
“Again, again with the big brother. I have told you not to do it in public.”
As much as he told him to call him ‘Grand Duke‘, he always called him ‘Big brother‘.
“This is a private place.”
“We are inside the Imperial Palace.”
“It’s just us, big brother.”
Clive couldn’t say more to his smiling brother.
“You seem to be in good condition today.”
“Because it’s cloudy.”
Strangely, Florian often gets sick on a sunny day and spends most of his time in a chair or bed.
He became much more sensitive on sunny days, saying his skin and eyes were burning, but on cloudy days like today, he could come out of the bedroom himself. Of course, he needed someone’s help.
Those who were unaware of their relationship did not see them as half-brothers.
They were very similar, but only their eye color was different because they inherited from their mothers.
“Yes, you have to be healthy.”
When Clive reached down trying to stroke his little brother’s hair, Florian wrinkled his nose and covered it with his finger.
“Brother. Have you been drinking?”
“Yes.”
“Drink in moderation. You will get sick.”
“It’s like water to me, so it’s fine.”
“I’m worried.”
“You punk.”
Clive messed up Florian’s hair.
The little boy became a boy and grew up to be a man, worrying about his older brother.
Although he was still hysterical at times, he was a kind-hearted little brother.
So Clive was worried.
“I won’t drink any more today.”
“Drink with me later.”
“The Empress will scold me.”
“We can drink secretly.”
At a time like this, he was still a little boy.
“Let’s drink when you are healthy.”
“Yes. You promised. Now let’s go for a walk.”
Florian, who hates stepping on the ground or grass, went out with him today.
His chirping voice revealed that he felt good.
* * * * * * * * * *
The sky grew darker and darker as he waited for the carriage after parting with Florian.
The temperature did not drop much today, so it was probably raining instead of snowing.
The carriage arrived and Yulik opened the door.
Just as he was about to get in, Clive spotted an approaching carriage and waited to see who it was.
The carriage stopped and the door opened.
The person who appeared was Aishe.
“Yulik, is there a banquet at the Imperial Palace today?”
“No. I did not hear anything about it.”
There is no banquet, so why did Aishe come?
He had a bad feeling.
As she stepped out of the carriage, Aishe met Clive’s eyes and she turned like a startled rabbit and managed to control her expression.
After taking a deep breath, she gently walked toward him with a shy face and stood in front of him.
This was the Aishe that Clive had known during that time.
Though he had not seen her face under the veil, she acted the same way.
“Greetings, Grand Duke.”
“Miss Vikes, what brings you here to the Imperial Palace?”
“I’m meeting the Duchess of Dyke.”
My older sister? Since when did those two become friends?
If he didn’t know that Aishe Vikes was the real Aishe Phineos, he would not have cared about it.
His older sister was originally a person who liked to hang out with people.
But it’s different when it comes to the Phineos.
What is she up to?
He was moving carefully so as not to make a mistake, but he had to speed up.
“Have a good time. See you later.”
“Your Highness!”
Aishe with an innocent smile grabbed Clive’s sleeve as he was about to get into the carriage.
“What are you doing?”
Her smile disappeared.
With his cold gaze, Aishe let go of his sleeve.
“I’m sorry!”
“I hate getting grabbed, Miss Vikes. I’m sorry if I scared you. Do you have anything to say?”
Aishe’s eyes widened as if she was about to cry, she tried to laugh.
“How is my cousin doing?”
“Cousin? Oh, my fiancee? I didn’t know you two were cousins.”
“We are distant cousins, so no one knows. I heard the news that she was invited to Derevell Palace.”
“She is very comfortable and we are having a good time. With me.”
Aishe’s moist eyes quickly dried.
Clasping her hands together, she took a step toward Clive.
“I heard that you’re having a ball soon. Could you please invite me too?”
Her bright voice is full of coquettishness.
“I’ll send you an invitation.”
Clive, who answered roughly, shook his head and got into the carriage.
He closed the curtain of the open window without even looking at Aishe, who was still standing.
He was offended just by looking at Aishe’s face, who told lies without remorse.
* * * * * * * * * *
“Just by the appearance of Miss Vikes, the surroundings brighten up. She was like a big twinkling star.”
Yulik spoke with admiration, but Clive just looked out the window with his chin in his hand.
Clive smirked.
“Nonsense, what a star.”
“Excluding personal feelings and honestly speaking up, she shines.”
“I don’t know.”
Seeing Clive, who refused to the end, Yulik shook his head and became quiet.
He remained silent, then suddenly leaned forward and put his face under Clive’s chin.
“But since when did you start hating when someone grabs your sleeve?”
“Since a long time.”
“So when? I’ve never heard of it before.”
“You have been neglecting me for so long. You!”
“You can’t talk about it that way. Oh, gosh.”
Yulik, who sat upright, pushed up his glasses.
It was his habit before they could start talking seriously.
“Miss Vikes birth documents were intact. I also investigated the servants, relatives, and the people from their estate, she has been there since she was born. She was often away from her home for medical treatment due to her frail condition. It’s a good excuse to go back and forth between the two families without a doubt.”
They even made up birth documents when Aishe was born, but maybe even before she was born.
He wondered why she is pretending to be the daughter of the Vikes family.
“I even approached the servants who work for Phineos, but they didn’t even budge.”
“We have been preparing for so long, you have to thoroughly handle the servants. Still, keep approaching and find out. Maybe someone can tell you.”
“Yes. What about Kylo Phineos?”
He was the twin brother of Aishe Phineos.
Kylo, who rarely goes outside, only occasionally showed his face at important banquets in the Imperial Palace.
He had even seen Clive.
Most recently, it was the engagement ceremony.
He looks just like Aishe.
Clive never thought of matching the two because they were from different families.
The more he knows, the more interesting it is.
“Kylo Phineos makes weird noises when he drinks.”
“Didn’t you say he doesn’t drink?”
“Yes. That’s right. He is quiet and doesn’t talk much. He always said that he had a beautiful sister in hiding whenever he’d been drinking.”
Clive, who had been looking out the window the whole time, turned to look at Yulik.
An ally was in that house.
Of course not, but if Kylo had bad feelings for Eirene, he wouldn’t have called her a beautiful sister.
“Did you meet him?”
“He rarely goes out these days. I can’t meet him, so I’m waiting. It was difficult to find out about his drinking rumors.”
“I heard that he has a cautious personality. Keep your distance.”
Clive’s gaze turned to look out the window again.
He is glad he met Eirene.
If he hadn’t met her, he wouldn’t have noticed this was happening at the Phineos. It’ll take him a long time to figure it out.
He was grateful to Eirene.
If they follow the secretive Phineos family, they will know the exact relationship with the temple.
