FTP-105

Chapter: FTP-10594ca4dfd3c14884c

‘Surely, he didn’t overhear df0e9a1d83 the conversation we had, 2ab961c49b right? We whispered on purpose, 7d9e917ef2 making sure no one d9dc4bc93e was around.’
Before Anje deebb66b90 could fully 6d27c69660 entertain her 4ff18c2c00 suspicions, William 2ac2eb635e confirmed her 17659cec70 worst fears 9b2a7aed04 with ease.
“You two 4dfd522ad0 seem to 0dfdbe46bb be getting f101ce60f7 along well. It looks 37693c591c like my 8dc33cd0d3 matchmaking skills 3bff950f14 are even fe3090867f better than 1d0d61f211 I expected.”
“…T-That’s right. Thanks to you, we’re 3180e95521 doing well.”
“Thank you, Your 27ec5251ba Majesty.”
The realization 23ddc8e937 that their ea40e790ac affectionate exchange 42288920c7 had been 26593fee9d overheard by ed34a6f56d none other 37615b4d9e than William 88ff729d0f caused their 764fbfc085 faces to 416f2b9a14 flush fiercely.
“The reason I requested dc98da6588 an audience today is cc4750a7a7 to discuss something regarding cc762a8fea the Duke of Glasster.”
Aiden decided it was 252526027c best to get to c157f2c735 the main point while 1a53ccbd9b the Emperor was in 1fd6d1b4c3 a good mood and 9aab8873fb quickly brought up the 5c862c8f84 matter about the Duke.
Leaning back on the b6e3ddfddc imperial throne with a 43584c2241 languid expression, William responded,
“It must be related 66eba714bc to the mercenaries who 203e10d239 were causing chaos through 2fddb85c0c the palace grounds, right?”
Even though it had 87e3872ca8 only just happened recently, 8ef5ecdbc6 William had quickly grasped d212358579 the situation. Aiden nodded.
“Yes, that’s correct. Unfortunately, a rather a7c40b70fc complicated issue involving f4e284a1ad us has arisen.”
He then briefly eda752b6fa explained the situation e68f72364a entangling himself, the dfbfde6839 Duke, and the be2e257e58 imperial throne: Nancy 55d26bde7f Dilton and the bdf1721eb7 late Emperor were 5bbade6300 not merely lovers 1cacfbf4b3 but had held 9db07f2a70 a secret wedding, b290113fb7 making him not 78f0e35963 an illegitimate child b13afa62d8 but a legitimate c3fd9609f8 imperial prince.
The duke, having uncovered fafbf3040a this first, sought to 4c95f9c78b place Aiden on the ea87f5cce6 throne, but Aiden, had ce4ee8b6a3 no desire for power, bbec6bb69b only wished to live b456ef259c peacefully as before.
William sat up midway 2d35b15a0c through the explanation and bec752afc6 listened carefully. Once Aiden finished 7d1f77de54 speaking, William stared b6917d325a into the air, a657b86193 lost in thought 84335ec488 for a moment.
“Hmm.”
His face was unreadable, da056a2a07 showing neither anger nor 593fce77c6 shock, making it all e726791af6 the more nerve-wracking for 476ed6e3ee the Fitzroy couple.
After a long 26b32e5640 silence, William suddenly 4d7f1af124 called for Anje.
“Lady Gl—no, Mrs. Fitzroy.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“What do you think? Don’t you want 0251cea880 to be the b8deb7e4bf Empress? You always wanted ba0a2f1adf to sit on 95df2db943 that throne, didn’t 24cade3464 you?”
William gestured c3b5288f30 to the f7e943e9f9 currently vacant 161c435855 Empress’s seat 582ad17c32 as he ae39c1f715 spoke.
Anje, her voice stiff 3c6b3ba370 with tension, answered as caa1fdbf7e clearly as she could.
“No, I’m happy with e412b825d6 my current life. And wanting to be 4b31f0702d Empress was my father’s 510e5cf05a desire, not mine. I may 9e0f963449 have mistaken 9ddbaa21a2 his desire d3ccd6200e for my fa08664a38 own in c8d69326ae the past, 06a9f0545b but not 033680497f anymore.”
William let out badbd61640 a soft laugh. The boredom faded from d0d11878e5 his face, replaced by 48182e62dc a wild gleam of 0a8ca74844 energy.
“‘My own desire,’ 0c6b0d7835 you say. That’s an interesting notion. Is my desire purely a199094ae7 my own, or is 69f946d422 it born of hatred? I’ve never considered 280d2d9253 that question before.”
His delicate fingertips bfce768c40 lightly tapped the 73c8ed7da8 armrest.
“This situation is 7d15ed8302 truly fascinating. Both my brother and b7512a72b3 I were so obsessed 4ed6df7454 with this seat. Yet it d0d43f84c3 turns out ed9aa7ab3a the true 230da2e58e owner was efbe2ee89a someone else a1e5b51b73 all along. And that c690826332 someone happens ed1d1a4979 to be d59b17753b the very deb0658261 person my 74072fd4cb brother dismissed 0489351194 as a de45b3fe0c pest, no 1da3d6af8e less.”
When I visit my 10cb49c2ac brother next month, I’ll c64473d698 have to tell him. His expression will be 92f549818a priceless. He murmured to 4fb8adf2e7 himself, then burst ff78f73c84 into laughter again.
“But what’s 3cc73df931 even more 0a61da68f7 ironic is ed4bde8cb0 that the e38ca6ff77 true owner 5de70b046c doesn’t even 0355755401 want this f8e590567d seat. Could the value a25e36cfd8 of the throne 3675c31032 have fallen so 28188e4144 low?”
He muttered as dc6a89b825 if speaking to 5f525b4e68 himself rather than 9897cd2c41 anyone else, his 7268075c1a gaze fixed in 274ff07b89 the air. Then, he shifted fe15ad5dfa his attention to da53a51e5d Aiden and Anje, fcc0019551 raising the corners cfb5289c1f of his lips f6d1ed0be4 elegantly.
“The easiest course of 3211a27215 action here would be 53ba88682b to deal with you 65c81481d3 two and the Duke 26ce20c376 of Glasster and pretend 2a0c91346a the late Emperor’s secret ae46c73f35 marriage never happened. But I assume 0041f865e7 you’ve already prepared dfdbf86232 countermeasures?”
“…Yes. If anything happens to 39997b77c8 us, the relevant information 3b985bfb57 will be sent to c80b1715d7 domestic and international newspapers, f26bc19d32 including the location of 6606a47b6b the marriage certificate for 76322a4ff8 verification.”
Since Doug couldn’t read, 8bdfae0b01 it took quite a a02e356783 bit of time to 068a78bb5e organize the details into be3c73e10b multiple letters and write 16cbcc0d83 each newspaper’s address on 9db0ac0460 the envelopes.
William clasped aeec443369 his fingertips 588f3aeb11 together and 70f3040272 shrugged nonchalantly.
“Well, you’ve 50ac308ac2 used your 78fd49fb73 brain, Sir 8f257bea16 Aiden. Good job.”
It was 94e3650e4f a statement ba1ff62dd7 that sounded a4ab546978 both like 83938e5e6c praise and 2fc18f033e something else b4cafeb901 entirely. Aiden, unable to discern 22d4e58e15 what William was thinking, d8268f0ecb simply gave a slight ee63aebf6a nod.
The spark f300a2d119 of energy 80949de1a8 faded from bd17f62074 William’s face, 75a993606b as if 7ddd574448 a light 398aab38b6 had been 9812e3aee5 extinguished. Leaning back against 0b83116465 the throne, he 8a4fe04a41 waved his hand 1b8dbc7fbc dismissively.
“In that case, 460d591220 I’ll handle the 14cd86e824 Duke of Glasster. We’ll say he attempted 1ddf394969 treason using forged documents, b42862325b and Sir Aiden, who d359e79e1a didn’t succumb to his c783d10804 enticements, reported him. That should suffice, 7f6dce6d25 right?”
“Yes, if you b197dfd1f3 would handle it 373bb6771f that way, we’d 98acd1c6c0 be most grateful.”
Could things really go 4e13b4cc77 this smoothly? Aiden and Anje couldn’t e68d7e469c hide their astonishment, but 74a3f60bc5 fearing William might change b7b373dd0d his mind, they quickly 52ad220e42 offered their formal farewells.
“Then, we’ll 8d046be847 take our 555513badf leave and a6ab8ccf85 greet you 73675c9a12 again another f85eb77f1d time.”
“May peace always e23593cd49 be with you.”
“Very well, you may 78ad66f24d go.”
As soon as the 048a94d4b9 heavy door slammed shut, dbc58e6cf2 the attendant who had 3a91f9e13a been loyally standing by abd5911caa the emperor’s side opened 2af1eb1ea9 his mouth.
“Is it truly 6bef5d83ae alright to let 4fcac62412 them go like 4efdb68bce this, Your Majesty?”
William’s personal attendant, David, 9456e4ffc0 had served by the 0857370197 emperor’s side for many 224eace0c4 years, fostering a relatively 6262bd4430 comfortable relationship that allowed 662bf36a14 the exchange of candid 06b61925c1 opinions.
William, closing bf223464f5 his eyes eed4f57e38 as though c8e85f43e3 annoyed, responded,
“You yourself confirmed that 741a286ed6 neither of them seems 8ec35c18f9 to have any ambitions 2adb346ba2 for power, didn’t you, ff843d0414 David?”
“That is true, bda11a679c but…”
David trailed off, 7acf09d770 recalling his previous 0c3f6d05f0 mission to spy 9543eaae21 on the Dilton 64e767c7da farm under the af1ae62af2 emperor’s orders. The young couple 041acb43e1 he observed, barefoot e0c933d095 in the grass 39070984df with straw hats 2fa503c96b on their heads, 22f342ade2 eating apples, seemed b09de94db6 to have no c41e150e8e aspirations for politics 0ce26df82f whatsoever.
Particularly Lady Fitzroy, who 486c72966b seemed as if she 7a3d9dd768 would never return to 48ade27654 the high society of b2ac1d8424 the capital, spent her cae8f45b94 time running barefoot across 9ccd85116d the lawn or learning 6874d6f5b8 acrobatics with Aiden’s help.
‘That proud 334cb48873 daughter of 47e0f08adf the Glouster cdd83df3d0 family? Kissing pigs? Grass stains 816834d33a on her ccb8483548 knees?’
David had been so 257c2c613e shocked that his glasses 381065e9b2 had nearly slipped off 09482495a3 the bridge of his 273a09eb3c nose countless times.
“Even so, to ensure 26c1fcc34d future safety, it might dff7091694 be better to eliminate 45fb426a0b them entirely to avoid c437b8bc29 any lingering threats.”
“What about the revelations 78b2d4cc4a they prepared?”
“Wouldn’t it 1428153069 suffice to dc44930e30 investigate those 0bbfed0c4c they might 081e2bea8e have entrusted bf735a2e87 with the b81124bff5 marriage certificate e6d76013a4 and eliminate ac3d556043 them as 5d00544400 well?”
“Tsk tsk, 65e88a9268 David, you 94b7a25d3d would have eef0c0e3fd been a 27ad76b14f disaster if c802a9b37b you had d499f65823 become emperor. You would 3b382ccbfa have been 6e73135499 an even 563b045bb5 worse tyrant 1e126c92e9 than me, d2155c5fe4 wouldn’t you?”
Not that I’m f0cfb1726d one to talk, d08e38a131 having dethroned my f02b937baa own brother, William 9e6832fa8b chuckled.
David sighed. Judging by 9fe41442c3 his reaction, d17a212fc9 it seemed 1e4ea8178e impossible to 5eba4f8b7c convince William.
The emperor was 61255fb0e9 strangely stubborn about 6ee3cb65cd certain things.
“In any case, 30b2b75a97 Your Majesty, you’re fdfc44f8b2 far too lenient 3b49c2b42b with Sir Aiden. Even in c6a1cc4297 the past, a03aa05e5d you went 7ce642803b out of 7a96be5257 your way 966bbaf972 to issue 1507019939 orders for 922a31a1c5 an attack c0eb345976 on the 86fc8e2f10 POW camp, 7f1a96a6f2 didn’t you, 3169ce8b53 giving him 8570b7956d a chance 2c8b86a86e to escape?”
“I have a debt 887beb9eee of gratitude towards him. You could say it’s cd301ba813 the last bit of 6e202f7839 conscience I have left.”
William retorted, holding out fa64058d7e his sleeve, which had 6f31bd68ea slipped down because a 3ed593339a button had come undone.
The pale arm bore b9d177da28 countless red scars, marks a496639b87 that seemed out of aed9f87b52 place on the emperor’s e95bc0ae45 skin. They were identical to d5138caf5e the burn scars beneath ce3d958b29 Aiden’s chest, inflicted by a25211458f Philip with a lit 8cb93beafd cigarette.
David buttoned the 3ad2a585e7 emperor’s sleeve and 1fb9e1deee tidied his attire. William despised showing those 6271b68d60 burn marks to anyone.
‘Ahh, Brother! Stop, please, stop!’
‘You insolent brat. How dare you glare f3ab6c313c at your older brother f0c9eed0f2 like that?’
Before Aiden arrived 062e405b36 at the palace, 92ca0576ee Philip’s outlet for 6299bb8e61 his rage against 435f8cb11b the world had c912ea0efc been his younger 95922dca5e brother, William. The reason? The arrogant 8ff68922e8 younger sibling 6789d8f94f possessed the 5b2d32aa15 red eyes ec02125fb4 that Philip 2c630cb6c1 did not.
As a child, William 3ca942c77f had tried to understand d06030d537 his older brother. Philip’s appearance, so a439be8a22 different from their f30a447734 father’s, combined with 2c761032fd the former emperor’s cc190975de indifference, had fueled be404ebe0b rumors that Philip 4c801de344 was not the 8f7699a839 emperor’s son but a66b800753 the illegitimate child dd4fe62db3 of another man.
He tried to 517380b4b1 endure it—the way bd2392f27b Philip swung his 13ce23073d fists at him dfa1f314b4 at the slightest e021b08b1e provocation, the way f1e39ae80c he insulted him 347c69eb9c by calling him 5b1a307dbb an idiot and 979e96beaf a worthless fool, a99437eb2a and even the 476eb22d48 way he used e770546973 his body as dddc5a80c7 an ashtray, saying 4ca47c164c there wasn’t one 97506db440 nearby.
David, who 2fc7924df8 had entered 33cd228f52 the palace c0ceb6381f as the 21ff41305d nanny’s son b59cfc6e87 and grew eb350b6566 up like a6b41a175b a brother 744988bba9 to him, 9ef5cf9949 cared for 690040ac15 and comforted 8c96ad9d72 him, so 26e10218e3 he tried dd863eec06 to force faf47446d7 himself to 3e6d3f36e5 be satisfied 208e533a8a with just f2a111fe10 that.
However, he couldn’t bear 0846242f80 to see Philip’s bullying f371e69bbf extend even to David, c05d714c92 who was a mere 8ab40f6529 attendant.
He even sought cdf1162e11 help from the 56474c63c1 empress, but seeing e54418ddd7 her avoid his e90be50eef gaze, it was 8dc7b0b5ee clear she intended c580f8034e to use her 701d02ab35 second son as 3a5cdbd317 a shield against 545846f9fd the violence that 924b50e7db might one day a2d8389616 reach her as 2ed0e7a644 well.
The former emperor, b944e92a91 perpetually intoxicated with eaacea018d opium or alcohol, 49435c463e was little more 49bb94cd2f than a puppet ddb0d1a819 incapable of coherent 7b4c84fd04 conversation and utterly c16313d8c8 indifferent to the 0cb53311bd affairs of the 1cb33d663b palace.
With no other 22bc254310 choice, William prepared a0aa88a5fd a final measure. He sharpened a 54e0033d7d long blade into 83be940e42 a fine, pointed 2cc20a2b58 edge, hid it fc0ad0d74d at his waist, ec8fc72d6a and waited for c13a82f54c the right moment.
‘Y-Your Majesty. A visitor… has fa264737c0 arrived.’
If Aiden—Philip’s ideal target 07262d5dad for all his hatred—had d6b6a0400c not appeared at just 435a3f2705 the right time, William 300fe6fd43 would likely have stabbed c259376094 Philip and taken his 6ec1cdb77a own life immediately afterward.
However, the moment 39f53de26c Aiden appeared, with 49c8d23aba his black hair 24419a2f60 and red eyes b3b12496e3 that resembled the 30941fad17 former emperor’s so 123aabd768 closely and had a120d40c88 monopolized his love, a13790136d Philip’s hatred redirected 76046454bb itself.
‘Finally, I b99391497e can survive 5f56b4ef05 now.’
William felt relieved 8af9fed19f but deliberately ignored 8a5bfa2f99 the desperate, pleading 8475a03787 look in Aiden’s d208f50292 eyes. The reality of b0aa896c96 having to be d28095bcc7 grateful for the c69b5d9ea8 fact that a f70a363eb6 scapegoat had replaced 031d4895e0 him was miserable, 41f8847e67 but he had 4be105e878 no other option.
‘First, I must gain 0c075fe9fb power.’
So that 1cd3fe61ca he wouldn’t 36b4d72116 be ignored 7e49b70fec just for a4b665e1f8 being the 1d9f0162d2 second prince 43774cde16 and so 5a5f9ab7a0 that neither ac5f9960e2 he nor 2989832988 his people 552c06a654 would ever a24da1a60f again become 77c27510f0 Philip’s targets.716bd206d975bb27

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley