Chapter 24

Ratil clicked his tongue.

"Have you ever seen such a bastard?"

The patience he had tried to cultivate since becoming emperor snapped, and a vulgar curse slipped out. It was understandable. Ratil had been away from the capital to meet his older brother, Prince Leian, during the time his father was assassinated. Because of this distance, he had lost the palace to Tilla for half a year. But what? Who assassinated whom? Even if he wasn't the one who directly committed the act, being pointed out as the mastermind was equally absurd. The longer his father lived, the more advantageous it was for Ratil. The main issue that those who opposed Ratil consistently pointed out was her short period of princess training. This was a flaw that could be improved the longer his father reigned. But what? Did I kill my father? In a fit of anger, Ratil was about to tear the letter but took a deep breath and barely managed to relax his grip.

'No, I shouldn't get excited over this. I shouldn't be swayed by nonsense.'

However, he couldn't hide the anger on his face, and three of the knights looked at him curiously.

"What is it about?"

"Read it. You'll be speechless."

Suneut took the letter Ratil handed him and quickly scanned it.

"..."

Since the content was short, Ratil immediately asked.

"Have you read it?"

"Yes."

"What do you think?"

"The person who wrote this letter, I really want to cut off their head. Their brain must be full of oil, which would be good for the blade."

"Wow, that's cruel."

When Suneut glanced at him, Ratil grinned and patted his back.

"I like it."

Only then did a smile appear on Suneut's face. On the other hand, Ratil, after receiving the letter and placing it on the table, sighed and rested his chin on his hand. The content of the letter was one thing, but there was something else that bothered him.

"Sir Suneut. The person who wrote this and the one who defaced my father's grave, they don't seem to be the same, do they?"

"I also find that strange. If the person who defaced the grave was the assassin, this letter would be contradictory."

"Exactly. A regular assassin wouldn't leave a letter boasting about their assassination."

It was as if someone had left a mark on the grave saying, "I killed the emperor," and next to it, a letter saying, "You killed the emperor." Completely opposite claims. Ratil tapped his fingers on the table, deep in thought.

"First..."

"Yes."

"We have no choice but to investigate, either way."

"Yes."

"Indeed."

"..."

"..."

But why is he doing this? Ratil looked at Suneut for a moment and raised an eyebrow. It seemed like everything had been said. Suneut didn't leave. Suneut was a bodyguard knight whose duty was to stay by Ratil's side, but this was Ratil's bedroom. Even as a bodyguard, he wouldn't stay in the room without an order.

Curious, Ratil looked at him, and Suneut asked with concern.

"Aren't you doing too much desk work lately?"

Since the time she was a princess, Ratil had followed the knights to learn swordsmanship, causing a commotion. Contrary to people's expectations that she would only learn basic self-defense, she showed unexpected talent and consistently practiced swordsmanship. Even after becoming the heir.

"Yeah, it's busy."

Ratil chuckled and pointed to the documents on the desk.

"I'm looking at these."

It wasn't an act. There were indeed endless matters to handle every day. With the incident of the late emperor's grave being defaced, things were only getting busier, not easier.

"It will be busy in the future too."

Suneut glanced at the documents Ratil pointed to. Seeing the thick stack, he frowned slightly but then turned back to Ratil and suggested.

"You must be stressed. Would you like to use your body a bit? If you don't mind, I can spar with you."

"A sparring match? Now?"

Ratil checked the clock. It was 9:30 AM. Normally, he would have gone to the public office by 9:00 AM to receive important reports from the night. But it was already 30 minutes past, and if he went to the office now, it would be around 10:00 AM. There was a state council meeting at 11:00 AM.

"Hmm."

After a brief moment of thought, Ratil nodded.

"Alright."

* * *

Holding a rapier, Ratil briefly took a stance and then charged at Suneut. He was one of the few knights who could freely swing his sword without holding back, so he attacked with full force from the start. Suneut deflected Ratil's sword with the tip of his own and moved gracefully. The swords clashed dozens of times, so fast that it was hard to see the direction. The knights in training stopped their actions and surrounded them, cheering.

Ratil swung her sword with a smile, and when Suneut thrust his sword at her, she dodged to the side and launched a final attack. Due to the speed, Suneut's sword continued to slide toward Ratil. This was as far as Ratil had calculated.

However, at the moment Ratil was sure of victory, Suneut immediately retracted his sword and cut hers. Ratil managed to block Suneut's sword, but the difference in strength was significant. Ratil's sword ultimately rolled away.

Damn, Ratil grumbled, and Suneut laughed and asked.

"Did I win?"

"When do you ever not win?"

Ratil grumbled and picked up her sword herself. If someone else picked it up for her, there was a risk of an ambush when passing the sword, so she had been taught to always pick up her own sword.

"I live by the sword. If I lose to Your Majesty, I can't be the head of the knights."

Suneut's tone was soothing but oddly sly. Ratil chuckled and put away her sword. Despite her grumbling, she felt less stifled after the intense exercise. Probably that's why Suneut suggested a sparring match out of the blue. He must have noticed her distress over the grave incident and deliberately encouraged her to move her body. Suneut's consideration was always like this.

'Should I thank him?'

Ratil pretended to adjust her sword and glanced at Suneut. Despite the intense exercise, not a single drop of sweat appeared on his forehead. Looking at him calmly, when their eyes met, he only grinned mischievously. Ratil hesitated and decided to skip the thanks. It felt awkward to formally express gratitude.

"Strange, Your Majesty."

"What is?"

"You were about to say something but swallowed it back."

"No, I wasn't."

"You were about to say something nice to me."

"No, I wasn't..."

Suneut laughed at Ratil's continued denial and took out a handkerchief from his pocket, offering it to her. Ratil wiped her forehead with the handkerchief he offered. Despite the intense exercise, Suneut's handkerchief was cool. Curious, Ratil pressed it to her cheek.

"Strange..."

It wasn't as cold as if it had been taken out of ice, but it was still surprising that his body temperature remained cool after such intense exercise.

"I don't know what you find strange, Your Majesty."

"Huh?"

"To me, it looks strange to see you rubbing your face with my handkerchief."

"!"

"A bit embarrassing."

Suneut said with a completely unembarrassed expression, and Ratil quickly pulled the handkerchief away. But it seemed he had already gotten what he wanted, as he was already grinning.

"Please do that when I'm not looking, Your Majesty."

"That's not it."

"But there are too many witnesses."

"What witnesses? Hey, you. Did you see anything?"

A randomly pointed knight immediately shouted, "No! I didn't see anything!" Suneut clicked his tongue and shook his head, then muttered slyly.

"Perhaps that knight has forgotten that he spends more time with me than with Your Majesty."

The knight who had flattered Ratil looked at Suneut with a hurt expression, as if to say, "Then what should I have answered?" But Suneut had a "tough luck" look. Ratil couldn't help but laugh, holding her stomach. Indeed, despite the other concubines, Suneut was the most comfortable to be around. Sometimes he was too comfortable, which could be annoying.

"Hmm."

Then, Suneut made a strange sound and narrowed his eyes. His gaze was directed behind Ratil, and his lips curled up slightly.

"It seems there are witnesses not just here."

"What do you mean?"

Ratil followed Suneut's gaze and turned around. Far away, one of Ratil's concubines was standing with what seemed to be attendants or servants. The concubine, noticing that Ratil was looking at him, bowed and greeted her. It was Lanawen. Ratil smiled and waved, but her hand awkwardly dropped. The concubine bowed again and immediately turned away.

"…That was really embarrassing just now."

"I'll pretend I didn't see it."

"But you said there were too many witnesses."

"What can I say?"

* * *

When the emperor looked at the head of the bodyguard knights and smiled brightly, the head of the bodyguard knights laughed in return. They looked good together. It seemed as if a bright pink light was floating around them, almost annoyingly so.

"..."

Lanawen, feeling bad, turned around and walked away briskly.

"Ah, young master!"

The attendant, who had been watching the emperor and Suneut, hurriedly followed Lanawen.

"Are you just leaving?"

The attendant asked, catching up to Lanawen. They had made eye contact with the emperor, and both had noticed each other's presence. The attendant had expected them to go closer and greet each other, but Lanawen only bowed from a distance and turned away, which was puzzling.

"Your Majesty waved at you just now."

Thinking he might not have seen it, the attendant asked, but Lanawen replied coldly.

"I know. I greeted him, didn't I?"

But you're just leaving? The attendant was flustered and stammered.

"You should go and... greet him properly."

But the attendant couldn't finish his sentence.

"That guy."

Lanawen cut him off.

"The one with the emperor. The head of the bodyguard knights, right?"

"Yes, Sir Suneut, the head of the bodyguard knights."

The attendant's question was cut off, and his expression was not good. The attendant observed Lanawen's mood. What was bothering him? His face, usually cold, now clearly showed irritation. The attendant, careful not to hurt his master's pride, asked cautiously.

"Young master, are you bothered by something?"

Lanawen pressed his lips together. Bothered? Of course. There was no way he wouldn't be. They were laughing and talking while fencing together, the emperor was rubbing his cheek with the handkerchief given by that man, and the man was laughing at the sight, with the surrounding knights looking on happily... It looked like a married couple. Lanawen's thoughts ran wild. The deeper he thought, the faster he walked, and the attendant had to almost run to keep up. Suddenly, Lanawen stopped, and the attendant, almost bumping into him, exclaimed, "Ouch!"

"Why are you doing this, young master?"

"Maybe it's because of him."

"What do you mean?"

"Did he make you resist my advances?"

"Huh?"

"Surely, Sir Suneut was a friend of Prince Leian. The late emperor always favored him. Thanks to that, he naturally became one of the closest to Emperor Latrasil. Right?"

"Yes, I've heard he is an excellent swordsman."

The attendant's straightforward praise darkened Lanawen's mood. His displeasure was evident.

"Young master?"

The attendant raised an eyebrow at Lanawen's unusually cold demeanor. It was a ridiculous thought, but he wondered. Is our young master... jealous? His cold attitude was always the same, but today it was particularly intense. Before watching the sparring match between the emperor and the head of the bodyguard knights, he had been smiling faintly and even making jokes. Then, they met.

The two, walking on the white path in the harem, encountered Gestar, who was coming from the opposite direction. The attendant nodded to the attendant behind Gestar, but Lanawen brushed past Gestar without a word. There was no greeting. Gestar, unable to meet his eyes, looked down and smiled bitterly. The attendant, feeling more apologetic, hesitated and then chased after Lanawen. Suddenly, the attendant felt uneasy. Even though they weren't in a deeply loving relationship, the jealousy was overwhelming. If he truly fell in love with the emperor...

"Ugh."

The attendant rubbed his arm with his palm. It seemed like something very scary would happen.