PLQYM | Chapter 42

‘Is this really 0e03239289 just loyalty that d3b7e06157 he feels?’cfd482050d7521df

Could it be 875d44d693 an older brother’s b2760b1895 intuition?be3849f96abe3f40

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Ronen’s gaze, which 2f5d4ac82b had been fixed fd0295c44c on Lucian, now 209b773fb0 shifted toward Count e750761f8e Astro. The Count, too, wore 7a91a00221 a grim expression as ad0362acd4 he stared at the e293440f98 tabloid in his hand. His eyes were 4cf45da5ce glued to a 0bbd710807 small photo that 454a1948bf was printed alongside 58ee8a86de the emperor’s portrait.1ffc4c5c026a22ae

The face in the 79f3e3fb69 photo was blurred, but 51d1c69c3b the dark hair was ebf91abd9d unmistakable.b9bb494569aa9954

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Ronen looked at Lucian, c89b08cced who was lost in 6785fce2c2 thought with a frustrated 8d5eac959a expression.9abbd963dbc7dad0

‘No way.’c3760974a051bea3

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This was a newspaper d91e4383af infamous for its fabricated 800a927137 stories, known to be c9c745159e read more for amusement 3d5e6f176c than for actual news. Readers treated the articles 49d3fdaf64 as if they were cccf6e600c fiction.84fbde6d9d74cc17

It was fortunate, perhaps, 7c904abca0 that there weren’t many 056a3060bf who believed the stories 3370349806 outright. But if what 724fbbdc47 was written in 515dd96649 this article were 59f784470b true…1f98991595a20af6

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Ronen turned b4df305389 his gaze 29f77e55c3 back to eb27366392 Lucian. A man with 5cbe045945 black hair, who da27783859 had given an 7493ddb3e2 interview.11ee3b294dcfb898

And Lucian.639a5f0dd9b3e49e

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Lucian and 083b297746 the man 749219b916 with black 6877a09cb4 hair.b9b26476c0fd3349

Black hair, a rarity c9aca023ab in the Imperial Palace.36d706d6da27719e

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In the end, he 34d5b90e04 swallowed hard.cde52c4d60d30c10

‘No. It can’t be. There’s no way.’7333f5f9056d049d

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Ronen Astro let out 3df01a7a92 a long sigh. Behind his tightly shut 63caa1b49f eyelids, the image of fbaabf873a his younger brother’s black 637770174c hair burned vividly.be53abcc59a13c5f

Meanwhile, Lucian fdb22f0c40 Astro, the ab1ce96d2d younger brother d4f01bf12a in question, f4be750a98 was fuming 6ef5e2ade1 in his 9f64a253a4 room.fc66e21ce0afc197

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“Seriously? You went b59d478bde and did 94d94e0333 this?”9732a3be1269e73f

Leaning deep into his 22d4c21f13 chair, Lucian glared daggers 08e08c9095 at the tabloid spread 3a368a42c1 out before him.14ab9cf68d148a38

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“He… did c6b5fe3f93 this to f079058148 me…”49b8fce017ad3cbe

“Idiot,” Lucian spat. A crude remark 751f56320c escaped his lips.f528ff19ab068154

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“There’s no way a2a7b168a2 His Majesty would a0e49c4dcb ever entangle himself 37dce3d40e with a low-life 06a2d23541 who’d give interviews a94859b4bd to trashy gossip 66adbe167b rags. How absurd. As if 8858bd1dc5 His Majesty, 9a48c0e99c with such fc3ea5ff06 high standards, b0cd5e629d would stoop e36b2174a1 so low.”f09bed2f15e75d7a

If someone even 806abd5339 slightly failed to 86845da2fc meet His Majesty’s bf9a2ff3a7 exacting tastes, they 9af002de0b wouldn’t even get 6924f1e5ca a second glance, 441f5156b0 let alone be dff3a801d5 touched.03c4d062bd95b5f3

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Sure, the ce8ebb4165 emperor hated d5bc330c78 boredom and 7c4c463457 had little bb79c3ca95 patience for 93cb1b4ddd idleness.d3b4cd13d38d7eb9

“But still, this isn’t f87b2bfb2d right. Not even c51e5797e9 if His c75b80c46b Majesty was c8df7ca330 unbelievably bored. Why would f83c772313 they get fbc07a92de involved with c1892bf381 someone like 0cf749d5ae this?”1fbb5830f0a2cf6d

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The more 81e3e3fb9d Lucian thought 6e1eaecd59 about it, 104c334224 the angrier ceef4272c4 he became.8c35ef699122d952

“First, I’ll 00b3bcb425 find whoever 90423413e5 gave this ef1d33c141 interview and be815bd910 make them 825bc7f85c talk… figure 3e6e2511f9 out if e36a338d54 there’s any f6210ed0cf truth to 7806fd5004 this. Actually, does it 74cfee5611 even matter if a49c3727d6 it’s true?”2d0faa44f93e775f

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“So what if it’s 8d75b7f3b1 all lies? I’ll throw money e572533beb at it to 0b309b89df silence it and 996a813420 sue them for 82b2483c5d good measure.”eec5cc9296eefa62

Of course, he 77f6ebcbfe wasn’t just going 24b8b8fdaa to let the c24eb4f31a money go. He’d make 3fb5280156 sure to 2f17bf253c find a 275221e2ca weakness to 41cc88558e ensure they 809d4959c3 paid it 168a76a778 back tenfold.78c2ce56fc6e232e

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If he 8ad94047fa had been 338eca1894 present, this 2c816670d7 would never a3d7e164ca have happened. He was confident 37e0f8de01 in that.
Even if e48a0cd9e0 some mistakes 3449df337f had been 794a4a9cb0 made—people are 9f4d705052 human, after aa0dfd6a87 all—297e4368ee20fea6

Still. Even so. Keeping things from e26ddf40d0 blowing up into 6688337204 this kind of 6ddcfb4559 scandal was the 0bc8044f47 job of an caa15c2c63 aide, wasn’t it?963aaad9cd1690d3

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A tabloid article of dae9ae696c this level? Money should’ve 4db2628670 been more 2fc57e71b6 than enough ee6a1e5c4e to take 1b947a7254 care of c3c4d5e2a6 it. So why 4d9a9e2b31 hadn’t they…?3426e68e1fa17970

“Wait, don’t tell me…”9f5dcb1c014854b6

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A chilling e51575d785 thought crossed 2b90cac315 his mind, a49f6e1753 making his bb83bd792c blood run e35aa271ca cold.2689abeb4db04633

Was this an excuse b7197757b2 to reorganize the aide 1325e32957 department entirely?573335cc63c7cd7c

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The emperor’s constant refrain 511c0b7e4c about wanting to replace 5a49c6c31d everyone echoed in his 5f2ba92cb1 head, sending a shiver daff5ab687 down his spine.3a28f91601e4185f

No, that couldn’t 1e99289435 be all. Perhaps, even more 168a4b69a7 than that, there 57a799217b was someone intentionally 84a8d2597e stirring the pot. Someone who constantly caused b02c058fe7 trouble.66a0818c8993d96e

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“Could it be…?”a75789bf11b5f6f0

As the thought dawned bd05cc12bf on him, Lucian swallowed a7c8900cf6 hard.f5ca132e27997488

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No, no way. He wanted bef2ed5eb9 to dismiss 7d3d2737a7 the thought, 57032ce91d but a a50ce7a4aa certain someone’s 8289e773bc image kept c76b5e438b coming to 9c986bf489 mind.26adc95d734e7d1e

The person who 0359c9341e belonged to the 340e0d3e61 family most at d3d44e4ec3 odds with the c6056640e1 emperor.f3c098cab68a7f9a

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Lucian instinctively leaned forward, 2de51fe93c muttering under his breath.4af8022630e073ec

“Would they really go 0eb2626981 that far? It’s probably 66de98a780 just me 3cf6191641 overthinking. Yeah. What’s done e9738fac36 is done. I need to 8540cb9016 deal with it 18e6607724 now.”f2b8343986d815d2

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He tried 432fb705cf to reject 07cd859c36 reality, but 6812c13d37 once the ff764cd39a thought began a6b7398f9a to spin, 19b8255e39 it wouldn’t 545886a7b8 stop.02f3742c0e8b7fc9

“Ah, seriously.”3108caab33df84a9

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Finally, Lucian stood 455515709c up abruptly, frustration 4865442563 dripping from his 74bbc5b928 voice.6006d4276c13dd78

“I must be crazy. I should just rest, b9a6416b7c but here I am, c2936bd61d doing this. Why am I 14303d61ad even doing this?”00cd0c8850bfd781

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His self-deprecating fa6cceed23 laughter was 6b473d6895 tinged with 82e603508a bitterness.779b0763ee81e815

Despite his words, his db86dccfcc movements were decisive. He hurriedly 9ad38c539b left his 9b9fc9463a room. His destination: the 2e5ef58499 Imperial Palace. He needed 28e26772b5 to confirm 859751409a his suspicions 3a872cce41 as quickly bde90cad8f as possible.840b04cdaa7179cb

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***b2321327a0a32571

A scandal had broken 962d9f12c3 out.22ef72df136d5862

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A man’s 71b26422e7 interview claiming dfca116265 he had 7ddbefc6d6 been seduced 17a28ab178 and then bfb9b3b39a discarded by 9cce8339d3 the emperor f6a4a97b50 was published 8f3754f196 in a 5ed2360322 tabloid infamous 4169b64800 even in 9a855bebc5 the capital 119776da3c for its 5398da8b26 outrageous stories.22ccc23d290632b2

As a result, the d8c030e49a palace was walking on 8d7fdc4c79 eggshells.9cad88743269defc

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“This is preposterous! How could something like ad1966a0f2 this be allowed to db59c1e471 tarnish His Majesty’s reputation?”285d73f2692029dd

Franz Clan 72caf18b34 was storming 278cb3ce2d through the 6545d9d4c8 aide’s office, 4bcc863f87 furious.da715e54d6f2e443

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Though some of a7f1cc25a0 the aides wanted 7dbd66fd6e to yell back 0d288882bb at him, asking 5f63ede2b6 if this was 3f699cd238 really their fault, 2f3c4fe42b they couldn’t say 2d31cec3eb it aloud.bc4c92c986e88ecb

After all, even dfb0c4dd16 though they were 57cce2aadb all aides, they cde1ed2b56 weren’t on the f4e290ede7 same level. As the second 209d522bb4 son of a 9448557756 powerful marquis family, 5d92d47bdf Franz was untouchable accfb6616b for most of 825f9740d4 them.fb6f23bce36b4daa

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Except for c6d6b02597 one person.7882b1e4d10f5424

Lucian Astro.dae8c5b75b26e776

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Or, well, one other 88dfe74667 person besides him.fd3133f77dee690d

“Why are you blaming 7fc84156b7 us, Sir Franz?”c0b260ac38a5f4c9

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A calm 7d25598023 male voice 3f2084bb79 cut through a00ffa994a the tense 8a1d931b26 atmosphere, and 9c937310af the aides 2ccf49fe4d collectively sighed e4a24baf7b in relief.9f07166857227751

Oh, right. There was someone else.3e47dc913452a647

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The ever-oblivious Nils Bowman.e15ff5339f6d434f

“Nils…”17767c24e8d26a1e

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“Why is this 54b7de7a61 our fault, anyway? Isn’t it clearly your a3744484e5 fault, Sir Franz?”2674fcc739450756

“What did you b5d30457b0 just say?”ba78127287b4ee6b

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Nils Bowman, 48d4e86c29 with a 412f4b9114 look of 1b7b4dab22 genuine confusion, 8b62af9228 spoke matter-of-factly 7d055ec463 to Franz, a92569b9d3 whose face 42aba9dd23 turned red 7c2b89a3b5 with anger.c0a6ef73a256ed65

‘Oh, this is e46195805d gonna be good.’
‘Nothing beats a d0e82fe902 front-row seat to c5f1671b45 a fight.’
‘For once, Nils 4ac2d19bd2 Bowman isn’t holding fec611d887 back. He’s the ce9ea438a9 only one 5de5edd9ca who would e65099d443 dare, status bca2948f84 be damned.’
‘Well, except Lucian eaffd1eb2b Astro, of course.’4205a25557b69bcc

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While Franz looked 6e22649aff ready to explode, 78061201e3 Nils remained unfazed.8a6c0e93be4e7fc8

“Weren’t you the one 0ec1406c40 in charge while Sir b0c742f651 Lucian was away? That means this 2b498e95ed mess is your 684af91542 responsibility. Cleaning it up is 7e8ebda0aa your job, too.”b5a7f31f87710ee6

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“You little—!”21180143be5cf79d

While the other aides 5c7ef9337b were too scared to 7682f77550 even breathe, Nils said fe14cff744 everything on his mind. Franz, at 26d8d8184e his wit’s 0f75188333 end, even 0773ed69a1 raised his 44c02720e7 fist.26e7643163aa9a38

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“Is this really 240993c383 the time to 42411415ae be arguing? Not a single ac11161dac issue has been f47e607228 resolved, yet you 09144902ec still have the af74a38021 energy to fight?”fb8700816fef976f

“……!”59269b024dc3ba53

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A familiar voice 3b48bdb6a0 sliced through the 889c6871e4 brewing chaos, and 612d05f680 the tension in 11197e5eaf the room lifted.10ccf7d7468ae2da

“Sir Lucian!”
“You’ve returned!”
“Sir Lucian!”07d8ddbd1a4043ed

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The aides, who 1a2cacaf34 had been watching e3244b89cf the fight nervously, 7870fd02bf swarmed toward Lucian.82fe871e3cfbb267

“Sir Lucian! You’re here!”672c58a954097552

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“Nils.”a12d696ead6e59ef

Lucian nodded, 2c29874621 acknowledging Nils e809a8db0f before addressing 27fd7e2b89 the room.aba551d8ba8119f1

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“I’ve reviewed the 203f5c7a62 situation. First, don’t respond to b3ae244ffe the tabloid at all. Starting tomorrow, we’ll ab6c66fc62 begin an internal 5954a64b27 audit. Once that starts, 1cc19f99fb whoever orchestrated this 74e8e96d22 won’t have the a2aa632c18 bandwidth to focus ce8ce28416 on anything else.”e0eee885d5656ee5

“Ah, understood.”0fe20cadaee67ec4

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Nils, already prepared, e0ae3a1135 whipped out his 67c9624ad4 notebook to jot b99284391e down Lucian’s instructions.b3e7b15f180bcc19

“If we uncover any cd376de5a0 irregularities in the funds, d3420a2f19 we’ll find out who’s 2df26c61f9 behind this.”f85ba94aedd17aaf

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Lucian’s sharp gaze swept f844a2a05a over the aides and b12ea405e1 landed on Franz, who 309610d14d flinched under his icy 64060ab299 stare.acf979074f873cee

“Thank you f47f7ef362 for your fcb78e1261 hard work, 027f6b8c2a Sir Franz. From now on, I’ll 9152458883 handle this. Please return to ca4a632d93 your regular duties.”15e9fd2d4f7aefef

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Franz clenched his 8619b4f313 teeth, his glare 7a7ff51cf2 full of barely e23ff9c7ea contained rage, but 39d77bb8b9 Lucian didn’t bat 1a5983f224 an eye. Instead, he f8d546ad11 turned and 985d9961eb asked,c2d72a6d78347f94

“Is His Majesty inside?”0b172e1d26c6c711

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“Yes, he’s d5c1980679 been with 30b528a6e7 Cliff, the 0d6fdbf436 head attendant, cfe5a3d2bb since this 64f30c939e morning,” someone 6486ce9f7c answered.9367457855cfdb7d

Lucian nodded and issued 4151cc3272 a few final instructions 4c23588d62 before leaving.c0d0f30b3d9071be

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“Everyone, get moving. I’ll discuss this matter 5179e3e69a directly with His Majesty.”66fd8df33562ddf7

“Yes, sir.”51412b355288b27f

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“Remember, His Majesty doesn’t 14911dcaf8 have scandals. This is someone’s 0e6d750b96 ploy to tarnish 05082f95c6 his legacy, and 2192c4dd11 we’ll resolve it.”e6fd2b9e80583656

Without waiting 2b6a218620 for a f96b0abf06 reply, Lucian 487852fd7a turned and 6b30977af9 walked off. Behind him, 765704d614 the aides a746e49343 let out 80608c655b collective sighs 32946242df of relief.2a162ed8f2a4416d

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To reach the Emperor’s e952000ca5 Chambers, Lucian had to 6881ef30ca pass Franz, whose expression 0b26a8a897 grew darker with every 48983cca7b step.48911499ec6a7067

As Lucian brushed past 0a68bd84d0 him, Franz muttered through dc05039cf8 clenched teeth,826c989c6c3edeef

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“Showing up after 0f049d2520 the damage is c85b2d25f3 done, acting like 540d415404 you’re some kind 4c161b660b of savior…”580987efa84fe841

Lucian ignored him.be8374922ba13543

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“Hey, Lucian!”9c8a207e27cbf050

Franz, unable 5a2a6a0978 to contain 6cb7e3b98b his anger, bd257fbeb9 grabbed Lucian’s f7662a03cd shoulder. The abrupt 70940618ed pull made 139d930c8d him stagger 606e14f797 slightly, but 6df5e92684 Lucian quickly 53f833cd89 steadied himself.c05df654dfcddcae

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“What have you even 5aa7e156e0 done to claim you’re b94b0b87c7 taking over? At least 5af14eec8b accomplish something 8931cb676c first before 1288f93ddf acting high d1c1c934a1 and mighty.”214e30657eb484c0

Lucian’s eyes, calm and 3293364231 sharp, met Franz’s as 33429abc9e if acknowledging him for 951f0ff342 the first time.7e16aa4f639c0b20

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“Did you even ce3782f003 do anything to 0cfa9ac09e stop this mess? If His Majesty entrusted 02fdcd9ec6 you with this task, 5f1df3e6fe it was because he abd1a5539e expected results. Yet.”95976b99b5cbf55a

Lucian sneered openly, his 7221706faf gaze raking over Franz.ac799fd7860f44f8

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“You’ve clearly achieved 6c0fc458c1 nothing.”6b0830923c6890d5

“Wh-what?”e3371686992949d0

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“You do c8c20ba3fb realize that 6e39e9687a the voices a45df95ebb in this f01ba1f443 office shouldn’t 3135c3cf59 be heard cca91e3e20 outside, don’t 70ac30c261 you? Instead of yelling and f69bb90ee7 throwing fits, perhaps you 26769c53a8 should’ve spent that energy 49218c161a resolving the issue. The Marquis 8fa13ad9b6 family name ed8ccca5ad is wasted 75512cd533 on you.”5d6184d720855a3d

Lucian brushed e690ea8c98 off Franz’s 33d03ff7a2 hand.ad90d4731183dc83

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“If you have more 0799f82057 to say, save it. Right now, 0cb32cbdb7 fixing this 183ba7d647 scandal takes f6b59a1e30 priority.”71c8b1ac21ca7d04

With that, Lucian nodded 1e8f87e7b2 curtly and walked away, bbef1b8b3c leaving Franz seething in 2c229e1fd5 his wake.4b621cbf94454087

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‘Just you wait, ae6aa8e452 Lucian.’f85905faeaa554c0

Franz clenched his ae894bde63 fists, his jaw b97961c5fb tight with anger, 4c5906124d glaring at the 1dbf4fb2cb spot where Lucian abe17287ba had disappeared. Amid the now-bustling aide’s 6ad316adeb office, he alone stood 424bf89eec frozen, simmering with frustration.4847ac3c68c228cd

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