Chapter 26

Klein smiled as he recalled the Emperor's stern gaze and the subtle wink he had given him. It was kind of cute... When he reluctantly made a heart shape with his fingers, the Emperor burst into laughter, which was endearing. "Do I really have such an effect?" Klein felt a bit embarrassed and quickened his pace. While overt love might be fun, secret love had its own charm.

"Hey."

The merchant's heir approached while Klein was in a particularly good mood.

"Your Highness."

Klein heard his name called and saw the approaching man, but he walked on without a word. He didn't consider Tahir a rival, but he was still a concubine, one with the potential to shake the Emperor. Klein didn't want to talk to such people. However, Tahir approached with a smile, matched Klein's pace, and greeted him.

"Hey. We've never had a proper conversation before. This is a good opportunity."

Klein drew a clear line with a curt voice.

"What do we have to talk about?"

"Why not? We'll be together for a few years."

But Tahir responded naturally with a smile, and Klein's attendant was secretly impressed. After seeing the brash Klein, the smooth Tahir seemed quite novel.

"Why are you here?"

However, Klein remained curt, while his attendant was impressed.

"Actually, I met His Highness Haysin in Karisen before."

"So what?"

"I just wanted to start a conversation."

To respond to such provocation... Klein's attendant was impressed again, almost clapping. Klein frowned and looked at Tahir. The merchant's heir, who had suddenly approached and stuck by his side, didn't seem to mind anything, or was he just pretending? Klein asked with a haughty gaze.

"Can we have a more private conversation? Why did you come here as a concubine, Your Highness of Karisen?"

"Are you dissatisfied?"

"Considering you could have taken a more prestigious position, it's surprising."

"That's true."

"Is there any other reason?"

"Hmm. The Emperor has been in love with me since before he became Emperor."

"!"

"But since I didn't easily accept it, he resorted to this."

"Ah... Really?"

"You probably wish it was fake."

Klein shook his head arrogantly. Tahir blinked and glanced at his subordinate, who seemed bewildered by the story he had never heard before.

"You don't believe it?"

"No, how could I not believe it? I believe it."

Tahir's eyes narrowed, but his thoughts were different. He was thinking, "Prince Klein doesn't know about the relationship between his brother and Emperor Latrash." Klein, seeing this, felt annoyed and asked.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Ah... I'm sorry. Seeing you just makes me... feel a bit sad."

"You're a guy who gets upset for no reason."

"Ha ha. I often hear that."

"Strange guy."

"Since we met by chance, let's talk more about your brother."

Why talk about a brother who isn't even here? Klein frowned, but Tahir naturally hid his intentions.

"Our merchant guild trades with foreign countries, especially with Karisen recently. Knowing about His Highness Haysin would be useful."

Tahir asked naturally, laying the groundwork.

"What is His Highness Haysin like?"

"Greedy. He won't let go of anything he wants or needs."

"Ah, unexpected?"

"Also, a workaholic."

"Hmm."

Tahir crossed his arms and nodded, and Klein grabbed his shoulder to stop him. Tahir stopped, and Klein laughed coldly, whispering.

"Merchant. I don't know what you're up to, but if you help my brother or win his favor, he'll chase you even if you run. So there's no need to calculate."

* * *

"Klein? Hasn't the letter arrived yet?"

Haysin, the Emperor, asked, and the chief secretary laughed awkwardly.

Not a single one. Haysin sighed. What a useless brother... Although he had sent the deputy commander of the royal guard, Axian, it took almost two weeks to travel from Karisen to the Tarium Empire. Even if they traveled non-stop, they wouldn't have arrived yet. Despite knowing this, Haysin was curious about the news from Tarium, all because of a woman he loved, loves, and wants to be loved by. Haysin sighed and looked at the sparkling chandelier. Every time he blinked, the dazzling light changed direction. In between, he recalled Latil from a few years ago. He remembered lying on the grass, looking at the sun together. They had a contest to see who could keep their eyes open longer. He had proposed the contest and kissed Latil's cheek while she was looking at the sun. As a penalty, he kissed her lips. The soft and warm sensation on his lips was so vivid.

"..."

Haysin sighed. The longing accumulated day by day, weighing him down. The weight of his emotions was so heavy, yet invisible, making it impossible to show others how much it hurt. Then, a knock was heard.

"Come in."

A different secretary entered the office, approached Haysin with an urgent look, and handed him a thin piece of paper.

"Your Majesty, the investigation results on the matter you mentioned are here."

The chief secretary glared at the new secretary. 'Is there only one matter? You should specify which one!' The new secretary, tense, didn't notice. Haysin silently opened the paper and read it. It contained the results of the investigation into the disappearance of the letters and gifts he had sent to Latil over three years. According to the report, about half of the gifts were safely sent from Karisen, but the other half were stolen before leaving Karisen. -The culprit who stole the letters and gifts is believed to be the Duke of Daga. Even if they weren't the ones who stole them, the Duke of Daga must have ordered to hide the fact that the Emperor's items were stolen. The investigator had already confirmed this with the officials who lost the gifts and provided a list of their names. The report stated that they were threatened and bribed by the Duke of Daga to keep silent.

"Duke of Daga..."

After reading the report, Haysin crumpled the paper. The Duke of Daga, the father of Empress Aini, had been monitoring the Emperor since he ascended to the throne. Before sending the marriage envoy abroad, Haysin couldn't even write a personal letter. As Haysin consolidated his power, the situation gradually reversed, but the Duke of Daga was still a nuisance. Because of this, Haysin couldn't recognize Aini as his wife or empress. He knew she didn't actively help her father, but she didn't stop him and enjoyed the benefits he provided. In fact, when the Duke of Daga investigated Haysin's every move and provided the information, she read and used it. However, Haysin didn't feel betrayed by her. It was inevitable. From the beginning, they weren't a married couple but shared a crown. Aini was not his wife but the Duke of Daga's daughter. Haysin sighed heavily, took out a cigarette from his desk, lit it, and put it in his mouth. As he closed his eyes and exhaled the smoke, his anger burned darker, but his mind cooled.

"What will you do, Your Majesty?"

"Let's deal with it all at once. Keep this too."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Haysin could bet 100 million barts that the Duke of Daga, if Aini, the empress, bore an heir, would assassinate him and more. Aini would mock his corpse, saying she finally made him pay for killing her lover.

"First... Loert."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Bring me some paper."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

On the paper brought by the chief secretary, Haysin quickly wrote a message to Latil. Half of it was lost here, and the other half was lost in Tarium. Latil needed to know and prepare. After quickly writing the message, Haysin sealed it with wax and handed it to the chief secretary.

"Don't send it through the postal service. Have a trustworthy person deliver it directly. You can disguise it as part of another envoy, like the marriage envoy before."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

* * *

On the evening of the incident, Latil went to see Gestas without hesitation. It was to comfort Gestas and also to warn the person who threw the stone. A warning that if you bully someone, you'll take care of the bullied person even more.

"Your, Your Highness?"

Gestas, who had been told Latil would come, was still flustered when Latil arrived.

"Are you okay?"

Latil led the flustered Gestas to the bed and asked, checking his hair. He thought he would have been hit around here. But his forehead and head were clean.

'Ah, he said he wasn't hit.'

The guard had deflected it with his sword. Latil, remembering this, touched Gestas's hair and then let go. Gestas, feeling Latil's fingertips, shuddered as if electrocuted.

"I'm, I'm fine. I wasn't hit."

"The guard seems to be quite skilled."

"Yes. Because I'm often ill, my father chose him carefully."

Latil, about to respond, blinked, recalling something.

'Was Gestas often ill?'

He knew Gestas was gentle and mild, but not that he was often ill. He hadn't heard that he was sick anywhere. In fact, Gestas had broad shoulders, was tall, and had a good complexion. When did he become ill? But some people look healthy on the outside but are weak inside, so Latil let it go. Even his brother, Prince Leian, was like that. Of course, Leian was just bad at sports, not often sick.

"Gestas, do you remember what I said before?"

"If it's what Your Highness said... Ah."

"Do you remember?"

"Yes."

Gestas blushed and fidgeted with his fingers.

"Tell me if someone is bullying you..."

"It's still valid, so remember it."

Latil sat next to Gestas, untangled his fingers, and met his eyes. The light brown eyes, which couldn't even meet his gaze, were endearing.

"I'll protect you."

Gestas smiled faintly and nodded, and Latil reached out and hugged his head. Despite his large build, he felt like a big, crying dog that got hit everywhere. After patting his back, Latil reminded him several times to tell him if someone bullied him, and Gestas nodded each time.

'Hmm. He's really delicate. I need to take more care of him.'

* * *

The next morning, Latil woke up groggily, rubbing his eyes. Gestas, who seemed to sleep a lot, was deeply asleep, almost as if his soul had left his body.

Latil stared at him for a while and poked his soft cheek. He mumbled and frowned for a moment but didn't wake up. Latil smiled inwardly. He wasn't as handsome as Lanan or Klein, nor as striking as Carail or Tahir, but looking at him now, he had a well-proportioned, good-looking face. After smoothing his hair, Latil got out of bed and left. Seeing Latil leave without Gestas's farewell, his attendant looked bewildered, alternating between the room and Latil.

"Let him sleep. Don't wake him."

After instructing Gestas's attendant, Latil returned to his room. But when he got there, he found an unexpected visitor.

'Prince Klein?'

A visitor who had come once before. Prince Klein. He was sitting in the same chair in the corridor as before. Klein's attendant, familiar with the situation, was resignedly refilling his coffee. As Latil approached, Klein smiled and stood up, but after two seconds, he showed a dissatisfied expression.

"Why are you here? What about your room?"

"I was waiting for Your Highness. You never came."

Latil laughed sarcastically.

"You really don't resemble your brother."

"Thank you. I often hear that."

It wasn't a compliment, but Latil chuckled.

"How long have you been here?"

"Not very long."

Klein answered lightly, but a knight standing by the door shook his head slightly. It was a long time. Latil looked at Klein's clean silver hair for a moment and impulsively suggested.

"Let's have breakfast together."