Chapter 104
As expected, our Duke must have had a plan. Bringing Princess Berieta, that slippery eel, into the State Council to turn the strong unity of the northern nobles into a mud pit…
“No.”
Tessarion answered flatly. I had been expecting some grand, clever scheme from him, but…
“Huh? N-no? Then today I really dug my own grave…”
“Eat quickly. You need to take your medicine and sleep.”
“Te–Tessa…”
I snatched the whole soup bowl from his hand—he was trying to shut me up by feeding me—and drank it in one go. Then I grabbed his wrist and clearly called him.
“Duke Tessarion.”
He looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“After what happened in today’s council, our relationship will have been reported to the whole world, including His Majesty the Emperor. Are you saying you didn’t think about the disadvantages we might face later? What if His Majesty delays the wedding and says he won’t send military supplies because you sent Princess Berieta to the battlefield?”
“The gains are bigger than the losses.”
“There’s another gain?”
“Yes.”
Wow. I thought I had just dug my grave deeper, but apparently there was some merit I didn’t know about! I was really curious what had traded my dignity and life for this “gain.”
“To stand confidently before His Majesty, we’d need a lot of money and military power… Did a great mage appear in the North to freeze all the monsters? Or did someone discover a magic stone mine? Or maybe… word came that my father hit the jackpot in the Eastern Continent…”
“No.”
He gave a faint laugh and slowly brushed my face. As if wiping away something at the corner of my mouth, he rubbed lightly—light yet not light, a rich touch that made me stare at him like I was spellbound before snapping back to my senses.
I roughly rubbed the spot his hand had touched, when his next words struck my head.
“There’s nothing more important than your life.”
“…”
I froze in place.
❖ ❖ ❖
Beriete opened the door and frowned. Even in the middle of the day, the spacious room was dark, and the smell of alcohol filled the air. She wrinkled her brow further when she saw musicians and dancers sprawled on the floor. At her signal, the young knight behind her quickly removed the unconscious people to clear a path.
“Sigh. Sir, when did you start drinking?”
“His Highness the Crown Prince hasn’t taken a single sip.”
Beriete looked around at the wreckage, then suddenly turned back. An elderly white-haired man lowered his head with a sigh.
“Truly, not a drop. To cheer him up, I brought in musicians, dancers, and jesters, and for three days he played, but His Highness neither ate, nor slept, nor smiled.”
Beriete glanced at a man being carried out, covered in blood.
“Then… what is all this?”
So he had done all this in a perfectly sober state? Stunned, Beriete closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead.
“My apologies, Princess. The fault lies entirely with me.”
“What exactly were you doing for three days?”
“I tried many times to counsel His Highness and stop him, but… injuries among the knights kept piling up, and it was impossible to stop him. The weather was bad, and when I heard you were unwell, I couldn’t report to you immediately… I have no excuse.”
From the elder’s grim look, it was obvious—Heliot must have threatened him not to tell her.
Beriete swallowed a deep sigh and began to walk, crushing underfoot the ache from the lingering curse that always flared in bad weather.
Amid bloody stains, shattered vases and cups, undergarments of unknown owners, and vomit, Heliot sat slumped against the wall.
Without looking at her, he mumbled blankly,
“Oh… you’re here now?”
Beriete stood before him with a stiff face. Though dressed in lavish clothes and jewelry to prove his status as Crown Prince, his cracked lips, bloodshot eyes, and rough skin made him look like a beggar who hadn’t eaten or slept in days.
“Please… get a hold of yourself, Your Highness!”
“…”
She was tired of scolding him.
“This petty protest of yours is getting old. Is it really worth all this jealousy over a training sword and a promise of a small fief? Do you have to ruin so many people just to feel better?”
“…”
“Even here in the North, you’re no different! Ah, but at least you’ve kept your promise to quit drinking—how admirable. You’re so admirable I can’t even lift my head.”
Beriete clicked her tongue sharply. Maybe bringing him here had been a mistake.
She clenched her fists, ready to use her special move to drag his wandering mind back and bombard him with nagging if needed.
“Beriete…”
Heliot called her name with a sigh and looked up at her.
“Do you know the Duke is planning to marry Roy Dover?”
That was the second hottest topic in Claremont Castle. Everyone knew—Madame Mores, all the maids and servants—and it came up every time over tea.
“I heard it’s basically a marriage scam to get Roy’s dowry. Why?”
“They… went on a date…”
“A… date?”
“I saw it… hugging and dancing, reading books together, feeding him every meal, going for walks, horseback riding, hunting, tea time… They were busy dating…”
“Well, dancing and reading are standard for social debut training. You’re not sulking because Roy served the Duke, are you? What is this? Did you get a message from His Majesty?”
“…y…”
Heliot slouched and sighed heavily. His voice was so faint Beriete couldn’t hear him, and her irritation spiked.
“What?”
“I said… I’m jealous…”
Beriete let out an incredulous laugh through her nose.
“Oh, so our Highness was jealous? Ha… why this pity party again? I’m risking my pride and life trying to win over the northern nobles, and you’ve been tormenting people for three days just because you’re jealous of the Duke?”
“That ruthless war demon… even he gets to have romantic dates, kisses, and sex… but me… I’m the only one who’s not loved… I want a fiery love, a forbidden love, something thrilling… Why did I even come all the way here…”
“Huh?”
“Ah… life… so boring… Should I just kill Roy Dover and reset everything…”
Beriete clicked her tongue, wondering if this was another attempt to harass her with crude words. But then she remembered what he’d just said.
“Your Highness, what… what did you just say? Roy what?”
“Oh, our beautiful, ambitious Princess Beriete… what a shame. Fell for some nobody servant knight, huh? Backstabbed just like that. How’s it feel?”
“…”
“Now do you get how I feel? How about we cause some chaos together?”
Heliot shifted his gaze from nowhere to her face, smirking. Judging by Beriete’s expression, she was just as shocked—her once-confident face had gone stiff and pale.
