Chapter 74

Eugène’s face hardened, masking his agony. The sheer rigidity in that look finally wiped the smirk off Viscount Despan’s face.

“I shall pretend I heard no word of what you just said.”

“Baron Amieux?”

“His Majesty is only thirty-two years old. Do you not think it is too early to talk about the succession?”

Though he stopped short of uttering ‘treason’, too close to an outright threat, Eugène’s displeasure ran deep enough to justify the term.

He was aware that succession matters were paramount for the imperial in-laws. But for heaven’s sake! Prince Sigeber was only seven. Were they truly to pit children against each other in some grotesque succession race? While a vigorous Emperor still in his prime reigned?

“You seem to be taking it too far, Baron Amieux. All I meant was that a man must always be prepared-.”

“Prepared for what exactly?”

Viscount Despan, who had planned to bring Eugène into the faction of Marquise Lamott by appealing the existence of the Emperor’s eldest son, Prince Sigeber, was considerably flustered by his unexpectedly overly tough response.

Nobles who used indirect speech in any situation rarely revealed hostility outright, least of all toward imperial relatives whose future influence demanded caution. Therefore, Viscount Despan had never imagined that his overture to Eugène would backfire so badly.

Initial shock and fluster gave way to flaring anger. How dare this unofficial male concubine presume to admonish him?

“Given your excessively hasty temperament, certain preparations must be made for you, Baron. Flowers that bloom prematurely wither early by nature.”

Viscount Despan sneered at him contemptuously and brushed off his hands. As if he had touched something filthy. Eugène stared at him incredulously. If anyone should be offering warnings here, it was he to the Viscount, not the other way around.

If he carries on like this, he’ll soon catch the Emperor’s notice. How does he plan to handle the consequences? Careless actions might drag the innocent Prince Sigeber into trouble because of his foolish uncle.

“Viscount Despan-.”

“That you are hasty seems to be the adviceWeshould give you. What do you intend by rushing so soon? This reckless pace invites dangerous misinterpretations.”

But someone else had spoken before him. Startled, they looked in the direction of the sound and saw the Emperor leaning his shoulder against the corner of the nearest labyrinth, watching them obliquely.

The Emperor had made no attempt at concealment, yet the two men were so engrossed in conversation that they did not even notice when he came so close. Viscount Despan’s face drained of color upon spotting him. For Eugène, too, this was an inopportune encounter as his stiff bow couldn’t mask his discomfort.

“DJkb- DJkb PGjItEN.”

TaI OhrIbJb’t VGRI aGH SJwV tQwvI EkbwIH EJ QvI, vJSH GwH QhrIwIEbGiSI. CQtvJkwE mItrGw, LaJ BwIL rbIvQtISN aJL aQt GvEQJwt LJkSH iI QwEIbrbIEIH, tEJJH LQEa aQt aIGH kwGiSI EJ bQtI, aQt YGvI iSGwvaIH EJ G tQvBSN rGSSJb, EbIhiSQwV AQJSIwESN Qw EaGE AIbN trJE.

“CQtvJkwE mItrGw.”

snw qJWwCMC’T WfwCkfOx TPgCw grMOw kgCCfwt JMCw bwfxnP PngO g ndOtCwt bMCtT. KpPwC g WCMrMOxwt TfrwOkw, nw pfOgrrj TWMvw, nfT ZMfkw xCgZw. HfTkMdOP LwTWgO TPMMt pCMcwO, PCwJYrfOx YwjMOt kMOPCMr – grr wmkdTwT PCgWWwt fO nfT PnCMgP – YwpMCw YwOtfOx fOPM g twwW YMb, kMrt TbwgP tCfWWfOx tMbO nfT Ygkv.

“Iw- IwT, IMdC lgDwTPj.”

“WeloveOurchildren equally.Wedo not cherishOurdaughters any less, nor doWehold higher expectations for the firstborn son. Flawed or gifted – all areOurflesh and blood. ForUs, it is impossible not to love them.”

“Yes, of course, I know. I am aware. Your Majesty truly cherishes the imperial children.”

What the Emperor intended to say with such a preamble was unclear. However, Viscount Despan – his conscience burdened with numerous transgressions – quickly fell over himself to agree, offering enthusiastic nods to each point.

“What do you thinkWemean by this?”

“Ye-Yes? Please forgive me, Your Majesty. This subject is foolish…”

“Welove all of them equally. AndWeintend to continue doing so. Yet precisely becauseWewear this crown, some would twist a father’s love into political tools. If you were inOurposition, what would you do? Would you simply let be those who sow discord between parent and child and create conflict between siblings?”

Ebroin V asked in a voice so calm that it was rather uncomfortable. That whisper-quiet interrogation triggered in the Viscount an instinctive spinal rigidity, his body recognizing the danger before his mind could articulate it. As the implications unfolded within his consciousness, a systemic hypothermia of the soul took hold. What he had just heard was a warning more terrifying than any threat he had ever received before.

“I spoke without proper thought. I beg forgiveness for my impertinence.”

No excuses would work now that he had been caught right in front of him. Viscount Despan immediately fell to his knees and begged for forgiveness. Forehead pressed to the floor, his entire body shook violently as the pleas kept tumbling from his lips, with each word being another desperate bid for mercy

The Emperor looked down at Viscount Despan with bored eyes.To spare or eliminate.The mental scales tipped back and forth even in that brief moment. Viscount Despan, keenly aware that his very life hung in the balance, anxiously closed his eyes like a prisoner awaiting sentencing.

“Be grateful that you are the kin of Sigeber. For the sake of the first prince’s face,Weshall overlook this once.”

By some miracle, the scales of imperial judgment tipped toward mercy. The Emperor had decided that mere intent, without actual treasonous deeds, warranted this single act of clemency.

“Thank you for giving me this opportunity, Your Majesty. Such lapses in judgment shall never be repeated.”

“It would be in your best interest to do.”

Though Viscount Despan swore sincerely, fully aware of his narrow escape, the Emperor’s unsettling replies never softened. The Viscount, overwhelmed by this unrelenting frost, executed a deep bow before hastily retreating. Eugène’s suppressed breath, held in sympathetic tension with the Emperor’s dominating presence, escaped at last when Viscount Despan’s figure had disappeared into the distance.

“Your Majesty?”

But he chose the wrong timing to catch his breath. As soon as Viscount Despan left, the Emperor grabbed his left wrist and began to move in stride.

The Emperor was heading not toward the outer gardens but toward a secluded annex overlooking the Stag’s Garden. Eugène’s body lurched violently when suddenly yanked forward, his jaw tightening against the discomfort of struggling with the renewed pain in his wounded right shoulder.

“Why are you doing this, Your Majesty?”

“The wound on your shoulder, has it not reopened?”

Eugène asked a question to the Emperor, who was dragging him along without a word, and he received an answer he hadn’t expected. The unexpected reply came in a voice layered with anxiety and aged fatigue before the Emperor opened the annex door and pushed Eugène into the nearest visible bedroom.

Eugène nearly tripped over the threshold in his haste to get to his feet, but steadied his wobbly legs and looked around. Fortunately, there was no one in the room, nor did it seem like it had been assigned to someone else. There was no dust, as if it had been cleaned in time for the hunting competition, but there was no sense of life, as if no one had been there for a long time.

“Wewant to see the wound.”

The Emperor said so, and then he took it upon himself to pull Eugène’s justaucorps down and put his hand on his shirt. Eugène hurriedly grabbed his hand, embarrassed that the Emperor would not give him the chance to do something he could do himself.

“Please wait, Your Majesty. This is too-”

-Strange. But before he could say that, the Emperor had already stripped off his coat. The justaucorps dropped soundlessly as shirt buttons gave way. Pressed against the wall by the door, Eugène found his torso exposed before he could react. The white bandage stood out starkly against his copper-tanned complexion.

The Emperor tilted his shoulder to inspect the wound. The wound had indeed broken open as feared, though the damage appeared minor. Only a single crimson blotch, no larger than a thumbnail, marred the bandage’s sterile whiteness.

“The bandage needs to be changed.”

The Emperor’s composure returned only after personally confirming the wound’s condition. Meanwhile, Eugène was flushed with awkwardness and kept his gaze fixed across the room as he adjusted his disheveled shirt while keeping his head low.

“If I go to my tent, I will find a new bandage.”

These days, Eugène carried bandages wherever he went. The court physician had advised that, for hygiene and ventilation, it would be good to change it at least once a day. Upon hearing this, the Emperor took something out of his pocket and showed it.

“We prepared this thinking it might be needed. How fortunate. Use this.”

What the Emperor took out was indeed a linen bandage. This revelation made clear to Eugène that the Emperor’s presence in the back garden hadn’t been accidental.

“Was Your Majesty looking for me?”

An Emperor wouldn’t idly carry bandages. To Eugène’s tentative question, the Emperor nodded frankly.

“The wound on your shoulder only occurred toUsafter we separated. While forgotten, it was manageable, but once remembered, it botheredUsunbearably. Horseback riding cannot possibly benefit healing…Wemight have unnecessarily brought you out…”

Emperor Ebroin V uncharacteristically trailed off and clicked his tongue quietly. Though attending hunting competitions was practically an obligation for healthy noblemen, the Emperor seemed to treat it as his personal fault.

Surely he spoke out of concern. Had he not genuinely cared, such a busy Emperor wouldn’t have personally sought him out. Yet the words left Eugène with an unsettling chill.

Brought? No, there was a flaw in the Emperor’s words. It was Eugène himself who decided to attend the hunting tournament, knowing the condition of his wounds and knowing that riding would do little to help his recovery. It was his judgment, not the Emperor’s, that put him in this position.

Now he found himself once again caught in the Emperor’s orbit, though this time not by design but by the sheer force of that overwhelming concern.

Eugène smiled bitterly upon realizing he’d instinctively grabbed his shirt like a maiden defending her virtue.

“It would be difficult to rebandage the wound while standing. May I sit for a moment?”

Just because the Emperor treated him like a fragile noblewoman didn’t mean he had to act like one. Eugène released his defensive grip on his clothes and removed the shirt himself. Untying the bandage with his own hands, he made his request to the Emperor, who looked momentarily flustered before granting permission.

“Please hand me the bandage.”

Eugène sat down and unwrapped the rest of the bandage. Had an attendant been present, they’d have disinfected it, but here there were neither antiseptics nor attendants. Eugène applied pressure with the used bandage to stop the bleeding and made his second request. This indifferent manner seemed to unsettle the Emperor, whose brows slightly furrowed. Being perceptive, he noticed the dissonance in Eugène’s attitude.

“…… You seem displeased. Is something troubling you?”

The Emperor carefully observed Eugène’s expression while handing over the requested item. Eugène, without needing assistance, Eugène skillfully wrapped the bandage around himself and quietly asked.

“What do you think of me, Your Majesty?”