Chapter 99

Why did Tashir laugh like that just now? Afterward, Tashir, still smiling as usual, leaned on Latil and said lightly, "Can I come like this?" But that ambiguous smile that flashed for a moment kept lingering in Latil's mind. Since Tashir, who never did that, did it, it was even more noticeable. Jealousy? No, it wasn't jealousy. Jealousy requires someone to be jealous of, and Tashir's jealousy? Then, perhaps...

"I was planning to stop by somewhere else, but I had to come back because of you?"

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure it out, so Latil eventually stopped thinking. Now, about Gestas.

"One thing at a time."

Latil pressed his cheeks to manage his expression and approached Gestas's door. When Latil appeared without any prior notice, the guard standing in front of the door was startled and exclaimed, "Your Majesty!" Then, before Latil could even ask if Gestas was there, the door was flung open, and Gestas's attendant, Tri, sprang out like a spring. When Latil raised his hand awkwardly and looked at him, Tri's mouth twitched, and his expression changed as if he had seen a pile of money fall from the sky, and he shouted,

"Your Majesty! You've finally come!"

Gestas must have been waiting for me a lot. Just by looking at Tri's expression, Latil could roughly guess what had been happening in the room until now.

"Gestas?"

"He's inside!"

When Tri opened the door wide, Latil patted Tri's shoulder and went inside. After passing through two doors, he saw Gestas standing awkwardly by the door. It seemed he had hastily prepared a large vase of flowers when he heard Latil coming in.

"Did you want to hold the flowers below your face?"

But holding a vase like that. Latil found it absurd and laughed, making Gestas' face, neck, and ears turn red as he quickly put the vase down and stood up.

"I didn't know you would come suddenly... I wasn't planning to hold it, it was Tri..."

"Today, you're holding pottery instead of books."

"Your Majesty..."

When Gestas made a sad face, Latil took his arm and led him to the sofa. When he sat down next to him, Gestas still had a faint smile on his red face. Seeing this, two thoughts simultaneously came to Latil's mind. One was, "Gestas doesn't seem to be a spy after all." The other was, "He acts like he loves me so much, but he probably did the same with my mother."

"Of course, it's not a bad thing to try to please a powerful person to survive. Even though Gestas followed my mother around, he didn't betray me."

But while thinking this, Latil couldn't help but speak.

"There's something I'm grateful for, and something I want to ask."

"Anything, Your Majesty."

"Lord Chancellor helped me, right? Thank you. Thanks to him, I came back smoothly."

"Your Majesty..."

Gestas looked down and smiled faintly. Seeing this from the side, Latil noticed his long eyelashes. A fragile appearance. It seemed like he would start crying immediately if Latil said something. Because of this, Latil couldn't immediately say what he wanted to say next.

"Your Majesty?"

Latil just stared at his profile, and Gestas gave him a puzzled look. But Latil quickly turned his face back, making Gestas' eyes widen even more.

"Your Majesty?"

"You look beautiful from the side."

"Me?"

"Stay like this."

Gestas, looking utterly confused, still looked in the direction Latil had told him to. Did I act too strangely? Latil cleared his throat and corrected himself, "No, just be comfortable." Then he revealed the purpose of his visit.

"By the way, I heard you found a bird."

"A bird?"

"Yeah. I was thinking of raising a bird too. If you're already raising one, I wanted to learn how to do it. And to thank you."

"I don't raise birds."

But Gestas answered without any hint of suspicion.

"Then the bird you found..."

"I did some basic treatment, but I didn't know how to treat it further, so I had Tri take it to the department that handles carrier pigeons."

"Oh, I see."

"Yes."

Gestas had a look that said, "But when did that happen, and why are you asking now?" The conversation became awkward, and Latil rubbed his chin. It was an awkward and very awkward time. Sitting there without talking to each other, Latil realized how comfortable he felt with Tashir. It couldn't be helped. Tashir could chatter away even when Latil was silent. He only kept his mouth shut when he was thinking hard and had a sly smile on his face.

"It's also comfortable with Lananwen, but in a different way."

I know he's a quiet and calm person no matter who he's with.

"Hmm... so..."

In the end, Latil muttered to himself and then asked the question he had stopped asking because Gestas looked too delicate.

"People say you were close to the fake when I was away."

As soon as he said it, Latil scolded himself, "I decided not to ask!" But the question was already out. Now, saying, "No, don't answer," would be strange, right? So, Latil, thinking, "Since it's come to this, I might as well hear the answer," crossed his arms and looked at Gestas. But as soon as he saw Gestas's expression, Latil regretted asking the question. Gestas looked like he would be blown away by the wind and found in a neighboring country.

"I'm not doubting you."

Latil quickly added, trying to act as if nothing was wrong.

"It's a strange thing to say. A strange thing, but... I thought you might have something to say to me about this."

Latil leaned back on the sofa and looked at the back of Gestas's head. He turned his head, looked at him with round eyes, and waited for him to say something about this. A plausible excuse. An explanation to defend himself. Something like that.

"..."

But Gestas just stared at him with a sad expression. Latil wanted an accurate explanation, not just a sad look. Thinking he might be scared, Latil maintained a wide smile. But Gestas still said nothing. He just lowered his eyes and tightly held his own hands.

"If you stay silent like that, the rumors will seem true."

Even when Latil threw in a bone-dry joke, it was the same.

"Aren't you going to say anything?"

When Gestas still remained silent, Latil finally muttered, "Fine," and stood up. He still didn't think Gestas was a spy or that he had betrayed him to his mother. But with him being so silent, the whispers of the people came to mind, making him feel unpleasant.

"I was... busy with other things and came. I'll come back later."

He couldn't be angry at Gestas, so Latil made up an excuse and left for the corridor.

* * * After the emperor left, Tri approached Gestas and asked, sobbing,

"You should have been honest, young master! You were the first to notice the fake, and the Duke of Artaxi had the Chancellor instruct you to mingle with the fake!"

"He wouldn't believe it."

"Even if he doesn't believe it, you should have said it! Are you going to be wronged like this?"

Tri jumped up and down, but Gestas only smiled sadly.

"It's fine. He'll know eventually."

And the more he gets angry now, the more regretful he'll feel later. Gestas kept the rest to himself. He wasn't the type to blab about his secret plans. So, he intended to stay silent until Latil stepped into the trap of regret he had set. That's why he had so much to say but held it back. But Tri, not knowing this, just found the situation frustrating.

"Aren't you angry, young master?"

"I'm more... disappointed that His Majesty forgot our promise. Just that."

"!"

At Gestas's weak mutter, Tri finally stopped jumping. He had forgotten about it too. Tri remembered the birthday promise Gestas and Latil had made. The promise to go out together. The promise that wasn't kept because the emperor was mistaken for a fake and had to leave the palace. Tri's mouth twitched as he tried to console the dejected Gestas.

"At the time of your birthday, it was too urgent. Besides, now he's busy dealing with the aftermath of Prince Lean and the former empress, and he has to handle the black mage issue..."

"That's true."

But when Gestas's expression didn't improve, Tri stopped complaining and forced a smile.

"Of course! He must have forgotten everything else because he overcame the crisis of being chased away. He'll remember and take care of it, young master."

* * * No, it's just a rumor, people are saying strange things, you didn't go as often as the rumors say, something like that, right? Why don't you say it? Is it that hard to say? Latil, who had returned to his room, wasn't in a good mood either. He even suspected that Gestas might really like the fake more.

'What if Gestas says he prefers my mother's personality?'

Latil frowned. Should I send him to my mother? But that would be too... strange.

'That would sound really strange.'

Latil sat at his desk and pressed his temples. After seeing Gestas, he felt even more stifled. At times like this, he should joke around with Sernut, but Sernut hadn't returned yet. He should come back quickly after hearing that Latil had regained power.

'Is something really happening to him?'

Latil anxiously bit his lip, pushed the documents on his desk to one side, and laid down with his arms crossed. Sernut is strong, but his enemies aren't just Lean. Moreover, the other enemies are terrifying monsters. Can Sernut still show overwhelming power against them? Among the knights here, Sernut is the strongest, but when Lean overwhelmed them with numbers, he had to flee. What if the monsters attack in large numbers?

'Terrible.'

That's not all. Latil recalled the noble zombies created by Prince Haeum, wielding axes and entering the banquet hall. What if something like that happens here? Although Tella doesn't launch aggressive attacks like Haeum, there's a possibility that Haeum and Tella could team up to send zombies here. Or, even if Haeum isn't involved, Tella has mentioned saving her mother. Whether it was in a dream or not, he can't tell. Anyway, if Tella releases zombies to save the concubine Anakcha...

'Ah! That's it!'

* * * At that moment, Sernut was sinking into the swamp with his heart pierced.