FTP-105

Chapter: FTP-10549d74a30ad3ef94c

‘Surely, he 2bfb3df09f didn’t overhear 2537aedc6e the conversation 5f34bb5cd5 we had, 8b3cca1208 right? We whispered on purpose, c99e832074 making sure no one 1085c25df3 was around.’
Before Anje a52bd88ff7 could fully 67d1bad07b entertain her 61f59d783d suspicions, William 67329d089d confirmed her 664d335d83 worst fears 1421306565 with ease.
“You two seem 780cdd9ca9 to be getting 9a7e9d2f49 along well. It looks 54f977db0c like my d578eb4bce matchmaking skills 2ff7028a11 are even edbfe644d8 better than 1a782fbb0a I expected.”
“…T-That’s right. Thanks to you, e2fddf306a we’re doing well.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
The realization that 3cb2c1c5f5 their affectionate exchange 4ad05ca7fa had been overheard 5480626631 by none other 5bd97ecd13 than William caused 653ae792c2 their faces to 9778b35a2c flush fiercely.
“The reason 38dd11acd2 I requested c842aee70d an audience f76841efb7 today is 4687d93a44 to discuss a5c82bf2cb something regarding 44f2a47d40 the Duke a9ad95bd08 of Glasster.”
Aiden decided 0e83d91acc it was 1969054c12 best to 5caf20d959 get to 4eca051068 the main 867123d234 point while 18a3644a9d the Emperor 754102058f was in 3af66ef9e7 a good 7e93206015 mood and e1c8d7a109 quickly brought adc97040ff up the 9784866fb2 matter about 984cabdf4e the Duke.
Leaning back 92b814543c on the de5e9d92b4 imperial throne df59590281 with a bc5de6af49 languid expression, 89fe46f337 William responded,
“It must be related 4e70fc50fd to the mercenaries who d35046dfb2 were causing chaos through 662ec520db the palace grounds, right?”
Even though it had 98041ce1a1 only just happened recently, 51801df798 William had quickly grasped 5134803974 the situation. Aiden nodded.
“Yes, that’s correct. Unfortunately, a rather complicated d981e960ea issue involving us has 4443ed8c49 arisen.”
He then 8d2c9ce4ca briefly explained eda43b6aac the situation 6d152101d5 entangling himself, 327b9ad821 the Duke, 7ac78b6693 and the fe34016aa1 imperial throne: b3b7b38318 Nancy Dilton ed7b5ae370 and the 953d5d7014 late Emperor fc3aafee83 were not feb712e822 merely lovers 03224b7fe0 but had 7bdae1ef48 held a eb62b81d33 secret wedding, 8f6264de0e making him 5cb02ee665 not an 8b6c01b35f illegitimate child 0eb6a42cf9 but a 2bbaeed093 legitimate imperial 216f3b9930 prince.
The duke, having uncovered 6cef5bb1b2 this first, sought to 1bce9be4ac place Aiden on the 79e0d55a44 throne, but Aiden, had 0d27e4e8dc no desire for power, e4fb28f023 only wished to live 29376c3df8 peacefully as before.
William sat up 2ff457f2ab midway through the 0db1518c76 explanation and listened 0eb9d0ece0 carefully. Once Aiden 493db2cf48 finished speaking, 5c7dec5ce4 William stared 730ed46239 into the d95d426d26 air, lost 4c977d74c7 in thought 19a0d1a63e for a feefc1829e moment.
“Hmm.”
His face 15d2859436 was unreadable, 87c185150a showing neither d5d9e49422 anger nor 381207b92e shock, making d596cc8462 it all 019bb84e07 the more 95dc698bab nerve-wracking for 251434a014 the Fitzroy 9ab37e4353 couple.
After a long silence, 787d3ba6a7 William suddenly called for c5ec4758c8 Anje.
“Lady Gl—no, Mrs. Fitzroy.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“What do afa28a7410 you think? Don’t you want to 72618dbd72 be the Empress? You always wanted to 0d2d7303ef sit on that throne, a96b0b58b9 didn’t you?”
William gestured to 9352663fa7 the currently vacant dc4106c178 Empress’s seat as 78339b17dd he spoke.
Anje, her voice stiff 73f1367362 with tension, answered as c788966cf8 clearly as she could.
“No, I’m ed4eb2a2f2 happy with 74e613b911 my current 1293430705 life. And wanting to ca73c81655 be Empress was f4e08a3c02 my father’s desire, 6e7aa9af44 not mine. I may e790961d1e have mistaken ee08bf4416 his desire ce0e9ca436 for my c67f7fcb59 own in d391e06878 the past, e01d56faf6 but not 606bce1d33 anymore.”
William let out f32ce0258a a soft laugh. The boredom faded 90342eca5c from his face, a6630e2f4d replaced by a bd765e5565 wild gleam of c936dbc015 energy.
“‘My own 1973b42a93 desire,’ you 4e4435b727 say. That’s an 5fc9786ae1 interesting notion. Is my fc2a58681f desire purely dceeb53bc9 my own, d0b013b2d5 or is 376d60e369 it born 5a5b9185f8 of hatred? I’ve never considered 37530151a7 that question before.”
His delicate fingertips lightly 8594dcd85d tapped the armrest.
“This situation 9d88a17744 is truly 7aa97f8bad fascinating. Both my brother 8a2669832b and I were 0b286f2136 so obsessed with 676125256a this seat. Yet it turns ae551c656f out the true 29ff8e538f owner was someone 5737175aa4 else all along. And that someone happens 3c8474f151 to be the very 3a787bbdb8 person my brother dismissed fc2af56ee8 as a pest, no 914e3e410d less.”
When I visit ea3122a563 my brother next c12d025896 month, I’ll have 1717800201 to tell him. His expression 5ab31bedac will be a649757a97 priceless. He murmured to 2166d6ffb9 himself, then burst 71e674a7c0 into laughter again.
“But what’s even more 385f2abd85 ironic is that the 186699101f true owner doesn’t even dece27ba9a want this seat. Could the value 7ff4c65090 of the throne 4b34a6d239 have fallen so 5d18a7a9f5 low?”
He muttered as 17fa605ab8 if speaking to a19c96b6bc himself rather than 67954b9ebb anyone else, his f9f6b0a1ec gaze fixed in f8bcb9c4bf the air. Then, he 2523e7984d shifted his a21118ecf8 attention to 56405192a3 Aiden and 5c87f22678 Anje, raising 548f069fe5 the corners f8dd872c64 of his 7ed0b8af82 lips elegantly.
“The easiest e8b9a9d07c course of dfb9bed261 action here 19d059e08e would be 4084c700fe to deal 4272ad57a1 with you 0aeb269d92 two and 85e26b5530 the Duke 55c7c64dfa of Glasster b5353661ff and pretend 716e403584 the late 285631d993 Emperor’s secret fdea49b613 marriage never d11ac8321c happened. But I assume bb2b5894c2 you’ve already prepared 8e6d4c1eae countermeasures?”
“…Yes. If anything happens eb5efb2045 to us, the a92a7befde relevant information will 37cef645c6 be sent to 06aeaf8dc9 domestic and international 29db0981b2 newspapers, including the 412d08921f location of the 5d1b3dcae0 marriage certificate for 396bc2f671 verification.”
Since Doug couldn’t 20e53211b4 read, it took 18a5ab3838 quite a bit 4e857623db of time to b2589a33b3 organize the details 72797e0c38 into multiple letters a7dbc772d4 and write each abf9f002a8 newspaper’s address on b994ba2a00 the envelopes.
William clasped his a376ffd852 fingertips together and 46f981c800 shrugged nonchalantly.
“Well, you’ve 95c7589da2 used your ec2bb834cb brain, Sir 9917d6cc86 Aiden. Good job.”
It was a statement 80836a3832 that sounded both like 8cc8575997 praise and something else 41b32464df entirely. Aiden, unable to d73937e6e2 discern what William 08687adf34 was thinking, simply 26b6b39a34 gave a slight d0bbf45259 nod.
The spark of energy add28cbc4f faded from William’s face, ae97b5352a as if a light c52dd060c7 had been extinguished. Leaning back against the f5ebd988d5 throne, he waved his 9aeeb6f640 hand dismissively.
“In that case, c4483cadf1 I’ll handle the 59fd0f0751 Duke of Glasster. We’ll say 9492913133 he attempted 46d893c642 treason using 5a2166cee9 forged documents, d7db53af0f and Sir 738d155017 Aiden, who 6d60919183 didn’t succumb 04a0605976 to his 4cc3eb3526 enticements, reported f35813ee9c him. That should suffice, right?”
“Yes, if you would 65c170ad1c handle it that way, 5b089e3002 we’d be most grateful.”
Could things really go 108997f83a this smoothly? Aiden and Anje couldn’t b25b3d61a7 hide their astonishment, but 660b307d42 fearing William might change 02859a3f2b his mind, they quickly 07f6bd5c9e offered their formal farewells.
“Then, we’ll take 62fcf1e88a our leave and 493993e078 greet you again 88de503171 another time.”
“May peace always 6b0b79ca7b be with you.”
“Very well, 89596e66c7 you may 92e692db22 go.”
As soon as the d93313cb8e heavy door slammed shut, 5ff1637994 the attendant who had f12d1e56a7 been loyally standing by 329377e57a the emperor’s side opened b288ae749f his mouth.
“Is it truly 3f0502f685 alright to let e4fcd5ac60 them go like e0a6ba02ac this, Your Majesty?”
William’s personal attendant, David, c247e586f4 had served by the 26fb8becfb emperor’s side for many 64ef721562 years, fostering a relatively 438b99465c comfortable relationship that allowed 94c0867112 the exchange of candid 022a67b90a opinions.
William, closing his eyes c1bb91f756 as though annoyed, responded,
“You yourself confirmed that c90df5d9d2 neither of them seems 04cb7a7a91 to have any ambitions 826f4ddcf9 for power, didn’t you, 1bc7913804 David?”
“That is true, 8bb6e5388a but…”
David trailed off, recalling 9a9b99abc8 his previous mission to cabfade3fe spy on the Dilton f4930006b7 farm under the emperor’s 770c8e2daa orders. The young couple he 04e22f26b4 observed, barefoot in the c6a3960a58 grass with straw hats e99a63c91a on their heads, eating be23a1a517 apples, seemed to have fe8d66ea28 no aspirations for politics d76e7f10a7 whatsoever.
Particularly Lady Fitzroy, 30f4a0e0ac who seemed as 5e6108f595 if she would a6b4593fe0 never return to 406a464668 the high society 7599a0bd21 of the capital, 22da58aa9e spent her time a6ebf6c984 running barefoot across b2d2b4feb5 the lawn or a989b53299 learning acrobatics with 3372188c08 Aiden’s help.
‘That proud 8e4f0ebc52 daughter of faeb03051c the Glouster f345037eb1 family? Kissing pigs? Grass stains on fe16ea24ca her knees?’
David had been so 7bcd5a6f05 shocked that his glasses c3758b917f had nearly slipped off e2527397f0 the bridge of his 706079b1cd nose countless times.
“Even so, to 33be792471 ensure future safety, e9d4d4223d it might be 4ab7444e26 better to eliminate 7c4084cabb them entirely to ff1be139a4 avoid any lingering cd600570c5 threats.”
“What about the 1923568872 revelations they prepared?”
“Wouldn’t it suffice to c28216bb47 investigate those they might ef64edde29 have entrusted with the b0237c8552 marriage certificate and eliminate bd012e5d0f them as well?”
“Tsk tsk, David, deace290fb you would have f812810ae7 been a disaster af535d2b6b if you had d6e2179d10 become emperor. You would have been 1bda4c43c6 an even worse tyrant c17cb7aea4 than me, wouldn’t you?”
Not that I’m f5027d2f67 one to talk, 2e9a504502 having dethroned my 7c25f1adfd own brother, William 1205697e38 chuckled.
David sighed. Judging by his reaction, daed2a8982 it seemed impossible to c3129aca0b convince William.
The emperor 72e2259594 was strangely e8900e0cef stubborn about 2e9d336c9a certain things.
“In any 0a2d92f8f8 case, Your 199c1b59f7 Majesty, you’re 3488451229 far too 7444a69871 lenient with c807f31973 Sir Aiden. Even in the 704cee6b3d past, you went 5371b9afb3 out of your 206f51a281 way to issue e21cc66c1d orders for an be64c62012 attack on the e1bf478746 POW camp, didn’t dacba7febe you, giving him f313336e58 a chance to 6ee5e7233b escape?”
“I have a debt 5047fef91c of gratitude towards him. You could say it’s 492a5f9ddf the last bit of 435db79693 conscience I have left.”
William retorted, holding out ae1ea9aa6f his sleeve, which had 128366a2f1 slipped down because a 8b8a48aa71 button had come undone.
The pale 7e92e6a8e8 arm bore ca16c21d2e countless red 2c6a12f6d8 scars, marks f870906981 that seemed 8ebbe79a09 out of bec618967d place on 4727ff43b6 the emperor’s d98adfe9f2 skin. They were identical a886b788a3 to the burn ac5c3f5b78 scars beneath Aiden’s 9f4ed5165c chest, inflicted by ba57cb312a Philip with a 8f1da5cba5 lit cigarette.
David buttoned the emperor’s d11406fdfc sleeve and tidied his 50e4bcb357 attire. William despised b85704aa11 showing those ee370e33a7 burn marks 3fd97db500 to anyone.
‘Ahh, Brother! Stop, please, stop!’
‘You insolent brat. How dare you f53cfcc948 glare at your 1b5b7c5e1b older brother like 6fac1f1109 that?’
Before Aiden arrived ddedfec5dd at the palace, 5d9b1984d5 Philip’s outlet for 128f87dec5 his rage against 77067509b8 the world had 1c55d91cc5 been his younger 95969a15bd brother, William. The reason? The arrogant e616c033c6 younger sibling e0842d05f4 possessed the 59f24227c4 red eyes 97b71a4c20 that Philip 33596b82ff did not.
As a child, a9e9eb6b8a William had tried 41f219ca38 to understand his c5e70fc0d2 older brother. Philip’s appearance, so 02bd640e95 different from their 46af0fa53d father’s, combined with a3666e2320 the former emperor’s d86b65a6ed indifference, had fueled d22bf6745b rumors that Philip be7cb8f88b was not the 3f82bb1942 emperor’s son but ab8cf17a52 the illegitimate child 6a1266ab26 of another man.
He tried to da0acee7ab endure it—the way 4339376b22 Philip swung his 9bac7545ef fists at him d971d20593 at the slightest 39c9228fd3 provocation, the way 69d93b5261 he insulted him 141901043a by calling him bcd325855a an idiot and 3ac7775756 a worthless fool, e87af3cd32 and even the 44892307c6 way he used 84c9d247d7 his body as 9516b2dc74 an ashtray, saying 546a54997d there wasn’t one c8fd7df618 nearby.
David, who had 33ea8eb936 entered the palace cd03962b35 as the nanny’s 821f3ba60d son and grew 2edc433a38 up like a d6045a0478 brother to him, 9c20aa9810 cared for and c7928c9060 comforted him, so 6a0694c6e1 he tried to 9b461c33fb force himself to 59dbfc371a be satisfied with 425b5cbcf3 just that.
However, he couldn’t bear 2422d1ad97 to see Philip’s bullying 79f0fabb2c extend even to David, 4d39665763 who was a mere bb91eb3de2 attendant.
He even sought 240ac3eaf6 help from the 7097e6d4a7 empress, but seeing b8ef75395a her avoid his 671223cbd8 gaze, it was 2e7e69f899 clear she intended 8072bb558f to use her 6eefa10312 second son as c7bd9b38ef a shield against bbe55ce170 the violence that 4c40f9dd06 might one day 1cca7880fe reach her as 509c9ee6a6 well.
The former 75c14e52ae emperor, perpetually ff9cd43d1e intoxicated with f87e638c9b opium or 60e5fb4122 alcohol, was 466d67ea15 little more b42222d5eb than a 77d3ce862c puppet incapable 978a90bcdd of coherent a8fec96c29 conversation and 0d99adce89 utterly indifferent d2ab425c47 to the 6a1868eabc affairs of e9f08b16d4 the palace.
With no other 9b6393f364 choice, William prepared cf5f126a36 a final measure. He sharpened a long e8495b227f blade into a fine, 9bacca6e09 pointed edge, hid it e8c164bd29 at his waist, and fd6962b45d waited for the right 3d7ab63d87 moment.
‘Y-Your Majesty. A visitor… 25c453d225 has arrived.’
If Aiden—Philip’s 15f8fce7a8 ideal target ce5ac17a9e for all d0d72b3ff0 his hatred—had 6fa7128305 not appeared f44bb303f8 at just b52c751dc9 the right af644a2e77 time, William ae9f2d9523 would likely 5567c7c63b have stabbed c8dbf826a1 Philip and 0c67191aa4 taken his 0c0156db0b own life f4bfeaff51 immediately afterward.
However, the bd3635c4f9 moment Aiden 29288c2676 appeared, with fc98d59677 his black c6820fd835 hair and 05cf29dd9a red eyes 0372b7d1e5 that resembled aa1a862475 the former a798f176a8 emperor’s so 510c788bd4 closely and 5d43b87b65 had monopolized c6843ef9e5 his love, bc5d557699 Philip’s hatred 17ba30f681 redirected itself.
‘Finally, I can survive 03561fcf3e now.’
William felt 14dc255b2d relieved but 217076a4e5 deliberately ignored 40e028e69b the desperate, 0fe3cfc55b pleading look eac7713ff1 in Aiden’s 09c68311a5 eyes. The reality 973b2124f0 of having afb6675f27 to be 63a78f4d3c grateful for c7f35f33a2 the fact 99a794d834 that a f8c05cc3dd scapegoat had 28ffbb2c75 replaced him 0eeac8020c was miserable, a683e88b86 but he b194b25802 had no 881079cadd other option.
‘First, I must 7246364e74 gain power.’
So that he 9ea1c29c52 wouldn’t be ignored 9fee262b39 just for being 1c0b84f563 the second prince 93eaee1dd3 and so that a2ed16c0d1 neither he nor 5bebae9d23 his people would b2c7938cbe ever again become a97fbff227 Philip’s targets.a354eec9cd04cdc8

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