Just so everyone’s aware, this novel doesn’t have a regular release schedule yet… It is one that I picked up to give myself a break from my other ones. I currently have 7 novels I’m working on including this one but once I get a couple completed, this on will get a regular release schedule. Honestly I read ahead and I think this could be one of my favorites, so I’m looking forward to it getting on a regular schedule! Enjoy!
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Standing in front of the door, Leona took a deep breath before opening it without knocking.
“Derek? Did you check on what I asked?”
“…”
Millard was reading a book by the window, relying on the light of the setting sun. He didn’t even raise his head. The bright red light of the sunset shone on his cold, pale blonde hair. As Leona remained silent, Millard continued to turn the pages of his book without looking up.
“Derek, did the princess take her medicine properly today…?”
He probably meant to say something after that, but when Millard looked up, he froze. The princess was standing right in front of him. Millard quickly grasped the situation and tried to avoid her, but Leona slammed her hand against the wall, blocking Millard’s path. Millard turned his head and suppressed a sigh.
“…Princess Leona.”
“Brother, are you well? I just stopped by to say hello.”
“…Your brother is Aiden.”
“You are also my brother.”
“You probably didn’t tell Aiden you were coming, did you?”
Millard turned away, abandoning his plan to avoid her, his pale red eyes not even meeting hers.
Leona tilted her head to make eye contact with Millard. Millard avoided her gaze again. After about three attempts, Millard took two steps back, biting his lip, and finally met her gaze.
“Princess, I don’t understand what this is about.”
” I came to tell you that I enjoyed the sweets you sent.”
“…I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re being annoying, I’d appreciate it if you left.”
“I skipped one dose of the medicine, but I took it at lunch.”
“…I don’t understand why you’re telling me this. Whether you take it or vomit it out, do whatever you want.”
“Oh, I actually threw up everything I ate earlier…”
Attempting to gauge his reaction, Leona thought in the next moment that she shouldn’t have said that.
Millard’s cold face suddenly turned towards her, and he approached quickly with a twisted expression.
“When? What did you eat? Was it something strange? Were the sweets spoiled…?”
“No, no, it was a lie.”
“…!”
Although Leona spoke quickly, Millard just returned to his expressionless state, not believing her words. He immediately opened the door and called out loudly for an attendant.
“Brother, it was a lie, I’m sorr…”
“Derek! Didn’t I tell you not to let anyone into my quarters?”
The attendant hurried over, looking back and forth between Leona and Millard, flustered. Leona tried to say something, but Millard cut her off.
“Why did you let this noisy princess into my quarters? Get her out immediately!”
“Y-Your Highness, how could you say such a thing to the princess…”
“I don’t want to see her! Get her out of here!”
At Millard’s angry voice, the attendant looked at her with tearful eyes. Leona sighed and slowly turned away without further resistance.
“It was a lie, I’m sorry.”
These were the words she left behind before leaving.
But as she turned away, there was an indescribable certainty in Leona’s eyes.
The face that had turned towards her, at the mention of her vomiting, was etched in her memory. Even though it was something from her very young days, it came vividly back to her just by facing it again.
Millard, who always stayed by her side when she was feverish with a cold, the Millard of their days as close cousins, had always looked at her with that worried, almost crying, twisted face.
* * *
‘Did Julie know?’
Leona thought as she lay down on her empty bed. From the day after Leona visited Millard, his palace was tightly locked and she couldn’t get in no matter what. After knocking on the door all morning, Leona gave up on bothering Millard and returned, thinking about what she’d missed over the past time.
Thinking back, Julius would sometimes talk about Millard first. When she looked sullen, hearing someone speak kindly about a person who disliked her, he quickly stopped.
But still, since the person was royalty, he couldn’t speak badly, and it was the same when he spoke about Brother Aiden… As she thought about it, Leona realized that Julius rarely spoke about Aiden.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door.
“Prince Aiden is here.”
“Oh? Bro…ther?”
In the past, she would’ve been delighted, but now she felt a chill, goosebumps raising on her arms. The memory of the night when he tried to drag her to the imperial army suddenly came to her. Leona bit her lip, then relaxed her face and quickly told them to open the door.
“Leona!”
“Brother, what brings you here?”
As she tried to get up from the bed, Aiden rushed over and sat her back down. He handled her carefully, as if she were a precious porcelain doll.
“I heard you vomited everything you ate?”
“What? Ah, no…”
Did the lie she told Millard yesterday spread to him? But how? Aiden soon provided the answer.
“The healers informed me last night. They said it wasn’t a serious illness, so I was relieved, but I rushed over out of concern.”
It was hard to read the emotions hidden behind his face that resembled her own. At times like this, he seemed as kind as ever. But why had he tried to sell her out then? For what reason? If he had only tried to hand her over to the empire, she might have understood. But why the resistance forces as well?
“Is your voice okay?”
“…What?”
Prince Aiden gestured behind him with concern in his friendly voice. His attendant was holding a medicinal decoction.
“Do you know how worried I was that your voice could be damaged, when I was told that you vomited up everything you ate?”
“My voice…”
“Hearing it now, it’s still beautiful. Thank goodness. No matter what, you must protect your face and voice. This is a medicinal decoction that’s good for the throat.”
Leona quietly looked down at the bowl of medicine. Her voice? Was her voice really that important? Important enough to say, ‘no matter what’?
“Do you still dislike bitter things? You’re almost of marrying age, but you’re still so childlike.”
“Oh, brother…”
“John, make sure the princess takes all her medicine and give her some candy.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The attendant bowed politely. Aiden said he was busy with work and had to leave, patting her cheek before departing. Leona wore a fake smile as she saw him off.
“…Your Highness, please drink the medicine.”
Leona looked down at the bowl in silence. In the past, she wouldn’t have thought anything of it. This face and voice were parts of herself. She would’ve thought he was being kind and considerate, that he cared about her.
“Why is Brother always so busy, to the point that he can’t even stay with me?”
Leona asked, pulling the sheets roughly to feign a tantrum. The attendant, thinking it was a princess’s whim, stepped back to avoid spilling the medicine and answered.
“Count Dieterand has come to visit and they have important official business to discuss. Despite that, he ordered this medicinal decoction for you and personally came to visit.”
“Hmph, Brother is always busy.”
“Your Highness, please show mercy.”
“When Brother becomes the crown prince, won’t he be even busier? Hmm?”
“Even then, he will always prioritize your safety above all else.”
Leona hid her sinking eyes and held out her hand toward the decoction. The attendant bowed deeply and handed it over. She drank it all in one go and received the promised candy, then dismissed the attendant, saying she didn’t like him being here in place of her brother. The attendant left without blinking at her act, smiling politely. As soon as the door closed, Leona opened the terrace window and rushed to the garden, stuck her fingers down her throat and vomited up everything she had just drank.
‘The decision to designate a crown prince is entirely Father’s.’
Even if she had spoken of the crown prince, it was still inappropriate for even a princess to speculate. The king had yet to speak of designating a crown prince. Yet, didn’t the attendant respond as if it were already decided? Even if there is no one above Aiden…
…No one?
‘…Was this it?’
She couldn’t understand why Aiden, not just a nobleman, but a prince of the kingdom, would ally with the empire. What for? As long as the kingdom remained intact, he would become the crown prince and then the king, ruling the country. So why?
‘Because he wasn’t sure he would become the crown prince!’
Even though Aiden has come of age, he has not yet been acknowledged as crown prince. Until now, Leona had ignorantly thought that if her brother found a good partner, wouldn’t he then be designated as crown prince accordingly? She had never considered any other possibility, thought no other possibilities even existed.
She had been foolish.
There had been another possibility.
‘Brother Millard…’
He was a direct descendant of Terenzio, the former king’s eldest son. He may have just as strong of a claim to the throne as Aiden. Aiden must have grown impatient as the crown prince designation was delayed while Millard remained alive, leading him to take an unthinkable path, a path he should not have taken.
As she thought about it, Leona covered her eyes, tears welling up from vomiting.
No, it was because Aiden had the temperament to choose a path like that, that the crown prince’s designation was being postponed.
