Chapter 46

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After finishing dinner, Olivia visited Silas's room to discuss the search for the sword. They decided to use Silas's room for these discussions.

If they used Olivia's room, Taylor would eavesdrop, and if they tried to get rid of her, she would definitely start suspecting something. It was easier to use Silas's room and send Colin, the guard, outside. Colin would agree to leave if Silas said, "Let us have a moment alone."

"Olivia, you've come to the same conclusion, haven't you?"

"Yes, Prince Silas, you have too?"

"Yep. Kings are all foxes or raccoons, so King Wilson is probably no exception."

Although it was a harsh way to put it, Olivia couldn't deny it when she thought of King Jules. When she saw Jules grinning, it seemed like he was planning his next deception.

"So, this is...?"

"Yep. This is the 'Selection Ceremony,' not just in form, but in reality."

"That makes sense..."

Olivia sighed.

The conclusion Olivia and Silas reached was that this was the 'Selection Ceremony.' King Wilson said it was just a formality, but it was actually a real 'Selection Ceremony.' In other words, they were trying to determine whether Edward or Eugenia would be the next king.

"But... King Wilson said he didn't hold the 'Selection Ceremony' because Princess Eugenia didn't want to be king."

"That's true, but personal wishes are often ignored. I said I wasn't interested in being king, but I was dragged into it by various means. Of course, I don't regret it now."

This referred to how Olivia was used as bait to drag Silas into the throne dispute. Alan was about to step down as crown prince, but for the time being, it wasn't decided who would take his place. King Jules, who wanted to resolve the bet with the queen quickly, would likely want to designate Silas as the crown prince, but Queen Barbara wouldn't allow it. Since Barbara was serious, the situation would remain at a stalemate without a decisive move.

(Queen Barbara probably wants to finalize Alan's engagement as soon as possible.)

Alan had been the crown prince and was close to winning the bet, but the tables were turned. Barbara's options were limited, and one of them was Alan's engagement. Barbara had given up on a domestic lady and was now targeting a princess from another country who would be suitable as a queen. She had already failed with Princess Florentia of Lebonor and was now looking elsewhere. Poor Alan, but if Olivia interfered, she might suffer the consequences. It was unfortunate, but Alan would have to accept it since it was something her mother was doing.

"Should we tell him about this?"

"Yeah, but let's wait a bit. If we can't find the sword by searching the rooms in the castle, our suspicions will be confirmed. It won't be too late to act then."

"That's true. It's better not to cause a stir in an unclear situation."

If this was really the 'Selection Ceremony,' the sword wouldn't have been left in the room but hidden. It wouldn't be in an easily discoverable place.

"Actually... if we assume this is the 'Selection Ceremony,' I feel like we're being tested from the moment we realize it's the 'Selection Ceremony.'"

"I think so too. The sooner we realize it, the more we can outmaneuver the others. ...Ah, I hate it. Do kings really have to deceive and manipulate people so much?"

Silas frowned, but Olivia only smiled wryly. Silas might not realize it, but he had a talent for deceiving and manipulating people. He could lie with a smile when necessary. Though it might hurt him to hear, when she saw Silas with a dark smile, she realized he was truly the son of King Jules and Queen Barbara. In that sense, he had more talent to be a 'fox' or 'raccoon' than Alan, whose emotions were easily visible.

"But if this is the 'Selection Ceremony,' the sword must be hidden somewhere in the castle, right? King Wilson said it's hidden in the same place every time. That means it's a place that's hard to find, but can be used repeatedly. Where could it be?"

Olivia tilted her head as she looked at the castle's floor plan.

"Well, I have no idea where it could be... but if it's a place that has been used for generations, it might not be on the floor plan?"

"Not on the floor plan? Does that mean there's a room that's not being used?"

"Ah!"

"Exactly."

Silas's sapphire eyes sparkled with excitement.

"This castle was built six hundred years ago, right? In old castles, there's usually..."

"A secret room!"

"That's right."

Olivia's emerald eyes sparkled just like Silas's.

A secret room. What a wonderful word.

"In stories, secret rooms often contain historically valuable books, antiques, and other things."

"We don't know if this castle's secret room has anything like that, but it might still have old furnishings."

"I want to see it."

"Sure, I thought you would. It might be a bit disrespectful, but I'm getting excited like a treasure hunt."

Although it wasn't confirmed yet that this was the 'Selection Ceremony,' the possibility was very high.

"But if it is, Silas and I are on different teams, so we'll have to compete to find it first."

"Ah..."

If it was the 'Selection Ceremony,' they wouldn't work together to find the sword but compete to see who finds it first. Olivia's face clouded over at the thought, but Silas smiled as if he had a good idea.

"Hey, how about we make a bet?"

"A bet?"

"Sure. For example, if I win, I want Olivia to kiss me and tell me she loves me. By the way, a one-second kiss doesn't count. It has to last at least five seconds."

"!"

Olivia started to say, "No way," but her words got stuck in her throat when Silas continued.

"If I lose, I'll give you any book from my personal collection as a gift."

"!?"

Olivia swallowed hard.

Silas had several valuable books that weren't even in the library's restricted section. They were kept in a locked bookshelf, and Olivia had only seen the titles.

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Really, really?"

"Yep."

"Any book?"

"Sure."

The scales in Olivia's mind tipped decisively.

"I'll take that bet!"

Silas smiled smugly at Olivia's eager response.

Thank you for reading!

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