“This is the stable. I spent most of my time here.”
“Here?”
As Ariel showed Ludwig around the kingdom, she had intended to downplay her situation, suggesting she was merely a farmhand.
“You mean to say you slept here too?”
“Yes, I slept on piles of hay.”
“Is that so…”
Ludwig glanced at the horse droppings scattered on the ground and decided against stepping any further into the stable.
“Phil, good to see you. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
The stable’s horse neighed happily upon seeing Ariel, who then pressed her cheek against its.
‘Can he be any happier, almost like a child? He must have had a tough time in Charden. To be so moved just by coming home…’
Ludwig chuckled softly.
“What were you doing in Charden?”
Ludwig was curious, but Ariel was too engrossed in her reunion with the horse to hear him. Then, she noticed a few stones missing from the stable’s midsection.
“Oh, the stones…”
“Stones? You weren’t a bricklayer, were you?”
“What? Yes.”
Ariel, distracted, responded absently to Ludwig’s question.
The employers in the Kingdom of Charden must be heartless. To make someone as frail as him work as a bricklayer… Unacceptable.
“You’ve had it tough. Aren’t you tired?”
“I’m fine. Your Highness, you should go in and rest.”
“Alright, I’ll go in and rest. I’ll have the maids prepare your bed so don’t sleep in the stable.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Ludwig sighed as he looked around the guest room prepared by the queen. Even though it was supposedly the best room available, it was pitifully humble.
“Is Charden’s treasury really in such a dire state? I’ll have to come up with a plan when I get back.”
He sent a message through a leaf to Elias but got no response. Ludwig then turned to Robert for advice.
—What should be done for someone who misses their homeland?
—Send them home.
—What if they can’t go?
—Create a similar environment or setting.
—What should I bring from their homeland?
—What could you possibly want to bring from impoverished Charden?
Ludwig, irritated by Robert’s sharpness, tried to sleep.
***
“Father, Mother!”
Ariel visited Ludwig’s office late at night, avoiding his gaze. Her anxious parents stood up quickly and embraced her.
“Ariel, are you doing well?”
Linda, looking at Ariel’s masked face, burst into tears.
“Our dear daughter, Ariel. Have you been suffering?”
“No, I’m doing better than expected. The Crown Prince has been kind to me.”
Upon hearing this, Philip and Linda exchanged skeptical glances.
“Look at this mask! The Crown Prince had it specially made for me.”
“Really? That’s good to hear.”
Ariel spoke cheerfully, showing off the mask, and her parents scrutinized it, seemingly convinced by her words.
“Mother, look what I brought.”
“Oh, what are all these things?”
From Ariel’s bag came a multitude of items: dishes, cups, soap, shoes, hats, and even a sofa.
When the sofa appeared, her parents stepped back in surprise, and Linda asked in astonishment.
“Did you clear out the imperial palace?”
“Something like that.”
Ariel laughed sheepishly.
The moon hung brightly outside, illuminating the newly transformed office.
‘I really wanted to replace that old, torn sofa. I’m glad I could.’
If she were to return to Charden, everything would be different. She was determined to make it so.
***
The eyes of the staff and knights at the Crown Prince’s palace widened. A horse was tied to a tree in the palace garden, and stones were piled up like a mountain nearby.
“What is all this?”
“They’re planning to build a stable next to the detached palace.”
“A stable? Now they’re even building a stable?”
Elias asked incredulously, “What else have I done now?”
“Plenty! You demolished the detached palace because it wasn’t to your liking and built four new ones: the East, West, South, and North Palaces. Did you not?”
“Did I do that?”
“Just stop making impulsive decisions and commands.”
Elias’s face turned red with anger, but Ludwig nonchalantly responded.
“Is it such a big deal if I decide to build just one stable?”
“Why a stable next to the detached palace? A person who wouldn’t even enter the stable because of the smell of horse manure…”
Listening to this, Robert, who also thought it best to discourage this latest whim, chimed in.
“The Crown Prince’s palace should be vast. As Elias said, you built four mansions and only use the closest one. So, are you planning to visit the others by horseback?”
“Yes, yes, that must be it. But who will build this stable?”
Robert asked a surprisingly sharp question, but Ludwig kept his cards close to his chest.
“Don’t worry, it’s all taken care of.”
Ludwig, with his hands clasped behind his back, watched from his office window to see if Ariel was coming.
While flying on the magic carpet with Ariel at dawn, he had stuffed everything possible into his space bracelet.
He was eager to create an environment similar to Charden.
‘I wonder if Rapun will be happy? He’ll probably love seeing the horse, but did I bring the stones for no reason?’
Shortly after, Ariel, leaving her quarters for the Crown Prince’s palace, blinked in disbelief at what lay before her.
“Oh, isn’t that Phil? Don’t tell me those stones are from Charden?”
Anna, shocked, asked with wide eyes.
“I brought them here.”
Ludwig, stepping out to meet Ariel, replied with a pleased expression.
“But, why?”
Anna, confused, asked, and Ludwig glared at her for the unnecessary question.
“I heard Rapun used to work as a bricklayer in Charden.”
“A bricklayer?”
“Why are you so surprised? Didn’t you work together with the Charden royal family?”
“Yes, but we worked together…”
Anna’s mouth hung open in shock.
‘Could it be that His Highness brought Phil and even the stones from Charden for the princess, who has transformed into a man? Does he truly care for her?’
“Ahem, while this isn’t Charden, I thought it’d be good to engage in similar work.”
“What?”
Ariel, puzzled, suddenly remembered her offhand comment about being a bricklayer in Charden.
“I’ve ordered that all the trees and plants in the garden be uprooted. Once the ground is ready, start building the stable.”
“Yes, I’ll build the stable with these stones.”
Ariel clenched her fist and spoke enthusiastically, and Ludwig, watching her determination, couldn’t help but smile.
“How long will it take?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Take your time. If you need anything, talk to Robert.”
“Yes.”
“I’ll be going now. Continue with your work.”
“Where are you going, Your Highness?”
“I’ll be at the detached palace. From there, I can easily see whether you’re working or not.”
Ludwig smirked mischievously and turned to leave.
“He’s lost his mind.”
Robert, following Ludwig, clicked his tongue, and Ariel and Anna genuinely agreed.
***
Through a crystal ball, Ariel was seen stacking bricks. She was clumsily placing them one by one, but due to her inexperience, the stones kept rolling off.
“What is Ludwig thinking, making her stack stones now?”
Ian, upset, moved to the window.
In his hand was a letter from Alexei.
‘It looks like I can go earlier than expected, I need to tell Ariel how I’ve felt about her for so long.’
Ian’s ease seemed to evaporate. He used teleportation magic to where Ariel was in the garden of the detached palace.
“May I help you?”
Ian approached Ariel, who was building a stable, and asked. Ariel greeted him warmly.
“Mage!”
“What are you doing?”
“Building a stable.”
“Here?”
“Yes. His Highness wants to ride horses.”
“Ha, I thought you were all about appearances before, but now you’ve even got pretense down. I’m not a fan, that’s for sure.
Somehow, I needed to get Ariel out of the palace quickly.
“Ariel, I came because there’s something I need to tell you.”
Ian spoke with an unusual tension, his expression anxious.
“Yes, what is it?”
“It’s important.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m a bit busy right now.”
“When will you be available?”
Ariel was so busy stacking stones that she didn’t even look at him as she responded. Ian, trying to suppress his disappointment, asked.
“Um, when I’ve finished building the stable.”
“I see.”
Seeing the stones just beginning to stack, Ian felt frustrated.
Once the stable is done… he could use magic, but wouldn’t Ludwig notice?
“No choice, then. I’ll have to stack some stones while Ariel is asleep.”
The next morning, after hosting a delegation and retiring early, Ludwig went to the detached palace’s garden and was shocked by what he saw.
When he had left the previous day, just a few stones were stacked, but now they were forming a rough shape.
“Did Robert help? Or perhaps the knights?”
Despite his strict instructions not to help, it shouldn’t have been built so quickly. He needed to keep Rapunzel by his side for a long time…
“Maybe I’ll stretch my legs this morning.”
Thinking about demolishing everything before Rapun arrived, Ludwig began to move.
Ariel went to the detached palace garden early in the morning.
“Huh?”
The stones were just as she had stacked them the day before. Or perhaps they even seemed a bit lower.
“That’s strange, why does it seem like the pile gets lower every day, no matter how much I build?”
Is it because I’m not skilled enough? Though it seemed like she had to work harder, these events repeated daily and the progress didn’t seem to matter.
Ariel would stack a stone, play with Phil, stack another stone, eat lunch, stack another, and then read with Ludwig.
Though officially a bricklayer, it was no different from playing.
Ian had been stacking stones in Ariel’s place every night. But by the next day, the stones were always knocked down.
“…Hmm.”
He had a hunch about who might be responsible but couldn’t say it out loud.
Meanwhile, Ludwig knocked down stones every dawn, wondering who could possibly be doing this every night and considering putting a guard on watch.
However, being happy watching Rapun all day, he’d often forget by the evening.
***
Marisa learned that Ludwig had traveled to Charden with the servant.
She viewed Ludwig’s actions as a slight against herself and the House of Carmen, her engagement. She wouldn’t just watch his antics any longer; both Ludwig and the servant would not be left alone.
Late at night, a carriage carrying Marisa headed to Duke Dominic’s home, with Leo following.
Leo had taken leave to visit his parents.
Marisa was led to the reception room, where Duke Dominic and his eldest son Lucas were waiting, along with other high-ranking nobles.
“All greetings. I am here not as the fiancée of the Crown Prince but as Marisa von Carmen of the House of Carmen.”
“While I invited you here at Lucas’s suggestion, why would you participate in deposing the Crown Prince while engaged to him?”
“I’ve determined that I cannot have a future with the Crown Prince. He only knows how to adorn himself and show off, and is not fit to be the emperor of the Romanov Empire.”
“I see your point, Countess. But how can we trust you?”
“Under imperial law, homosexuality is strictly prohibited and punishable by beheading. I will see the Crown Prince executed.”
Leo, who went to the reception room to find his father and brother, overheard Marisa’s conversation. The moment he saw Marisa, he sensed trouble, but her words about executing Ludwig sounded all too serious.
Throughout his engagement, Ludwig had completely disregarded Marisa. Had Marisa been a typical noblewoman, she might have just felt angry or resigned. But she was too clever and accomplished for that.
In fact, Leo was appointed as the Crown Prince’s chief servant because Duke Dominic wanted to plant a spy, though Leo himself was politically neutral.
Observing the Crown Prince, he lacked in many ways, but he was not unfit. He could become a decent emperor with a competent chancellor, and already Elias was beside him as the next chancellor.
And Marisa knew that, too.
Marisa often spoke of her feelings for Ludwig when drunk, saying it wasn’t love, but seeing him with the young servant wasn’t easy.
Leo hoped that neither Ludwig, Marisa, nor Rapunzel would get hurt.
He silently prayed.
‘Please stop. Stop Marisa’s feelings for Ludwig, and my feelings for her too.’
🍉🍉🍉
