In fact, a few a9632dd119 days ago, the Marquis fc8b2e5391 received a gift that c072b56906 filled his house. There was 9ae2b4d98b no name 99cdee8d9c of the f5f5986b31 sender, but fb5e54fc63 there was 8108d71e46 one peculiar 9ba533a27d item. High-quality salt in a 0e7575c817 magnificent box. Such a 10beb3a2fc vulgar act b357252536 of trying 7502684afc to win 7ef1de9126 favor with ceefa5b53c money could 460cdd69fb only come b32778f11f from a 204cc49f7f war profiteer.bbd2c745bcd82b80
The Marquis poured c155637263 the salt on e776f51bb7 the floor and 4953c1bbd7 returned the rest, 67f85a133c but others would 8920d5cdfb have gladly accepted 9660da2b6a it. At this f2128ab8ee rate, the 513959b3c0 war profiteer 35d3482fb5 might step 99ad666b66 into the 427461c27c King’s Heart. However, he had no 582fc9906e power to stop it. He believed that 31a3ab797b there was only c3319bc84a the emperor as 9517d618e5 an enemy, only 217c975963 to realize that a511e55ede Truyde was actually e49b06a6ed right behind him, 9e80771b97 thrusting a knife 22fef2353b behind his back.7ceda30f9299d7e1
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It was too ad647b0374 late to defend b07b8eb660 himself. Moreover, since d71248320f he had 1fc2ed78a3 sided with 4f960e851d Truyde, the 649582860d Marquis had 9506100918 few options 25e9893ea4 left when b46fc96cf7 confronting the 6544e2f4ef King’s Heart. The real enemy, the d2568e8d98 Emperor, would soon arrive. To confront him, the bbf1dbac20 King’s Heart had to f18dae2ea2 unite as one. To do that, he 2de2c397d6 had to bow his 004c6eb64d head to Truyde and 57aa87fd08 submit, or engage in fc7c75b3a2 a power struggle with b0d2b2c483 him, even at the 00687d6769 risk of his own 5f67fd5643 life.38a6dd197760e858
“I understand your regrettable feelings, Marquis. However, it is already too late. To bring Duncan back to this position, you would have to give up all your assets. Can you afford it? Now is the time to focus on the more important enemy than Duncan.”edd95dc9f2ae884a
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Truyde urged as if 121d62bc7c soothing a child. Thanks to that, a0014e7273 the Marquis’ eyes fde3d8e284 became even colder, 4023b43895 but he did 263d37d24c not smile.a10662daaf864c49
“I just heard some very interesting news. Would you like to listen?”3556be364fb811f6
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Still receiving no response 387117f74b from the Marquis, Norhox, 3be78a63b7 who was watching from c87bdba278 his side, showed interest 2c8c6b5bac in Truyde’s words.2a7e277a556db638
“I’m curious about what the news is.”50c56c51e6946b6b
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Truyde deliberately smiled 72c3e3e20a even more as d421760b5d he revealed the 10cc8e4b82 news to the 73fa2c8118 Marquis.57862d80af5d2184
“The emperor and the 1st Battalion Commander are separated from the army and moving separately.”a2108c3179c0dc4a
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As he brought up 01ce1a0236 the story, it seemed 3f16d2dbe2 like laughter would burst 06b3cfa00e out again. However, no f139371cfe one could ce8ef8aa53 understand why 8f9de43a70 it was 13b32e5919 such pleasant af8de99214 news. Truyed looked around at ef76ebd402 everyone and added a 12e58011ac brief explanation.7f91e62fa842b87e
“It seems that the emperor plans to join the main army near the capital.”db02e5795a474d61
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“The main army? Hmph, if the emperor’s army marches into the capital, his popularity will only rise. All the bad rumors that have spread will disappear.”67cc04b0ff9b9413
When Norhox expressed 8db6f601de his dissatisfaction by 570788ea55 frowning, Truyde nodded 7fac8a9a85 his head.ebd668b6206fc6fa
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“That’s right. So, this emperor’s move can be an opportunity for us.”6fb28f4efd456796
“An opportunity? Ah, is it an opportunity to eliminate the emperor who’s moving separately?”2c233119342685d7
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When Norhox’s eyes sharpened, Truyde nodded his head.28d9f2b8ff195e07
“Yes, an opportunity to eliminate him. Even if we fail to find him, it can also be an opportunity to stop the emperor’s main army.”8eee5b1f2abb6b67
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Everyone was curious about how they would stop the emperor’s main army, but Truyde turned his gaze to his men who were nearby.99462497d0525447
“Divide the soldiers into several groups and send them to the vicinity of the dock near the capital. Disguise yourselves and create as much commotion as you want there.”5d7910d6459ffeca
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The intention behind the b2777ccfa4 disguise was obvious. Someone had b1b95c3792 to be 18f8b50349 framed. When his men e4289c38d0 asked who the 088430bc55 targets were, an ad8f7aef68 immediate answer came.d6ed4088cfaf2498
“His Majesty and the 1st Battalion Commander.”0ad60fe1947648a4
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Truyde then revealed 9e69c3bee4 this and laughed.b482ddaf36ceccfb
“Make noise to spread rumors in the palace until the emperor’s army arrives. Secretly find the real one. Once found, eliminate the fake ones under the pretext of killing the fakes.”a422c77b8e19662b
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Truyde’s face still had a smile that didn’t disappear after a long time, indicating his anticipation for the events to come.abb2883f47e8c97b
⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖22531e4bb36abe70
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The time 768db0c46f on the 1b7dcf260b ship passed 730f0f6858 without any b06cd28c17 special problems, 97f7572d52 but it 49fe4eca4d felt long 006d46ed95 and boring 97859c4f5b to everyone. Now, after two days, 5bdf976970 they could reach the afb14dea86 capital by getting off 6b54914330 the ship and traveling 14ed43665d by carriage for just aeb44734bc one day. However, despite the lack 18e501c82e of apparent problems, except c067bc2f60 for Karas, the group f6145e92db had been uneasy throughout.ff7bebb424d3bfdf
The reason was the group of thugs they inevitably encountered within the confined space of the ship. Although they had only directly encountered the fake 1st Battalion Commander pretending to be drunk and intentionally entering Abel’s room on the first morning, however, everyone could sense it.b4122adfe84e17bb
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When Abel occasionally d378c9e82d came out of 9e28e0de1d his room and 6cadf11813 walked around, there 11720447c0 were eyes watching 516763dd95 him from all 816fc8b1ca directions, despite his 38abc5e098 attempts to conceal 06bce1181f his face by 5a6cdd41b2 pulling his hood 883f12c14e low. A low chuckle always dafea27ff8 followed those gazes.e3c09d0d13c768e4
Even if Abel’s group didn’t take it sensitively, it was evident that the troublemakers were targeting Abel as their prey. However, they seemed reluctant to cause trouble within the narrow confines of the ship. The only thing they did was intentionally bump into Abel’s shoulder and laugh when he passed by.fd9f198588825eef
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However, with two f70a66e0c2 days left, the ff556e1e28 group of thugs 0a5b1d3d6a started openly staring e7de1b7a72 at Abel. The sticky gaze towards a8ee121651 Abel, as if they 132ea4835e were planning to do 88b56c0d4a something before getting off 9a4f4da16e the ship. As a result, af1f54e69b Melmond and the 1005542032 butler stuck even 7f468933a0 closer to Abel, 65928e8121 practically becoming one c61eaef4f2 body with him. This inadvertently irritated 1fe6ef3487 someone on board, 041e9c358f though Abel remained 9b87be43a7 oblivious.05060bead48c426e
“Those d*mn b*stards are definitely up to something.”5c6e29b878756fc3
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Melmond once d41949d87b again spat 70763fb05c out curses c5c0881994 at the fb34431ab0 thugs, as c2f4c02a9f he had 5a85e9e60d been doing d4e04d384b for several 5df90141f4 days. And as always, d920149284 the butler responded ff0ddf0091 in the same 3c4980a230 manner.09e97bcb81666e6c
“They have the audacity to look at our young master with such filthy eyes.”b6c2e3f3832efd01
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The enraged butler clenched aeffb5aeb6 his fist and added.dd3cc81cdd63610f
“Moreover, because b8f2ea2dbc of their 25dd5c7f79 persistent surveillance, 27d13e7b50 even the f7c859f08d mood of 67cde6d2c8 the Commander-in-Chief, 96d31091d5 who shares 09ea044715 the same b1864ec0d9 room with fa3d24823b our young 3765201854 master, has ac9f30f0c0 become uncomfortable!”86462fc7903070c4
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Melmond vigorously eb4fc8e984 nodded his fb815d4233 head.1f32db114da02b93
“Exactly! How uncomfortable must he be to give us such a cold look every time we come here and then leave. It’s all because of those b*stards.”f92cbc459dc22ded
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It was natural. There was no reason f86a966ae0 for anyone other than 8e17b1b403 those thugs to receive 398ca7fc30 such a glance from 4ebbd55e95 Karas. Karas was not 450dfe87ef only someone who 0a81babc9a shared a private dd3416d2db room with the 63dffab6b2 injured Abel, but 71aeb031d8 also a thoughtful c0bbd0f8fb person who willingly 5584e4add3 engaged in conversations 251988be15 to understand the 6b29425fcc sentiments of his a58bbda29a own people.aa4f8c14c21f2018
In the hearts of Melmond and the butler, Karas had already established himself as a wise and great emperor. Moreover, he was a wonderful person who sincerely worried about Abel’s appearance becoming a threat to the country. Abel, who had been quietly listening, asked seriously.39157d7f5c107ffc
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“Still, since there 4d811c6b32 are people who e53be8f6b4 know about Duke 7cb35d95b3 Truyed’s matters, shouldn’t 47752c3373 we seize the 866b74cb4f opportunity to investigate? So, um…”a4aa2cb7376df32c
Abel cautiously 12631f2834 continued his daf8ba7922 conversation, alternating 425c73b2eb his gaze 2584a4b1a4 between Melmond bc65ceeebc and the 1181a84510 butler.ea28d9b98c472dc2
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“If they want, we can pretend to be caught…”c08462c0a57a7d62
“No!”99b5db6acc0befea
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“It’s not allowed!”006d07d4ca51acff
As expected, cd689d2131 both of 99b45324e0 them immediately ef9c5a84fe rejected the 7da2db4cde idea. Abel sighed lightly as 98f3c96426 if he had expected 24d4d7de67 this response, and looked bc7b791ae5 down at the floor. However, despite his d8db902c1c dejected appearance, Melmond db6c5a6065 struck the nail 45268e846c once again.97eb7b0b6a305ab0
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“Don’t even dream of using yourself as bait for something. You haven’t fully recovered yet. It’s too much for a weak body like yours.”922da481f2c2f00b
The butler fb2af8682a nodded in a2aaa124ea agreement, adding ebf75334cd that just 2f2d33d8af traveling this 9b705d0878 far was db1ea51399 already a 526fa4df8e miracle. When Abel raised 753a2c5207 his head with f24e25cdee a faint smile, 8aedb4b971 acknowledging their concerns, 39dca6b1be Melmond finally breathed 46e3d05ae0 a sigh of a498317d58 relief and changed cac8c46264 the subject.902475f1f5401f2c
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“Leave the thugs to the Commander-in-Chief. He will take care of them. By the way, Abel, you’re the only one suffering because of those thugs. You were practically confined to your room because of them, and now you have to endure the Commander-in-Chief’s uncomfortable feelings.”5c96a2d202fbb5b9
Abel immediately raised his head in response to Melmond’s consolation.41f9d614a87b7f4b
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“It’s not that uncomfortable.”ab644278a9a7cfaf
Of course, Melmond and the butler thought that Abel was just being polite. Even though he was a respected emperor, his sharp temper couldn’t be ignored. However, Abel’s following words felt sincere.dbcb248acedcf8d0
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“At first, it was a bit awkward and scary since he doesn’t speak much, but I got used to it and it’s not bad. Plus, he listens to me really well. It’s become tolerable having been crushed every time we go to sleep. Of course, I still can’t believe how huge the Commander-in-Chief’s thing is.”b4386ea781060315
Abel narrowed his eyes, recalling Karas’ solid and sturdy presence that he felt every morning. Somehow, it felt like it was getting bigger every morning, making him suspect that he had actually put a wooden bat in his pants as a protective measure.93dbe216d0cf6ab1
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In the past, Melmond ebe5552a3e must have been filled c437e4df15 with impure thoughts, but 21809949bf now all he did 4c9b9fe304 was nod his head 983b5007e4 with a proud smile.c1100edb1c6ac4b7
The emperor even 8c0fa3b495 has a royal-sized 91ad8cb6b3 manh0od!3fe2361dc3231839
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He couldn’t help but feel proud. Beside him, the butler covered his mouth with his hand and chuckled at the same thought. However, Abel, who misinterpreted their laughter, quickly spoke.7a5544f582ab58ec
“Oh, but it seems like it’s not just a bat or a dagger, it feels real. Sometimes it wriggles and it’s hot, um.”14a334b0c97998d2
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Not only in size 9825f1f87f but also in function!def6b8805b1645a4
Melmond was about d6bcd1390e to laugh even 5b235e0c23 harder with pride 4175f19d6b but then paused 25a5a800e2 with a question 9d56c48d7f mark.0761255e5d155d7b
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Wriggles? Hot?277ab6558012cdf7
However, before he could address this question, Abel’s voice was heard.be524cc9bd44bdfd
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“Anyway, there still seems to be a somewhat threatening atmosphere. It’s still intimidating when our eyes meet. But still, I don’t know.”f2294b54582a22a2
Abel looked 73586cb2df at the 110256e30b empty space beaf63a495 for a 760f36f8ff moment and 2346e9032e muttered absentmindedly.0ab1c6444e3546cb
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“He doesn’t seem to dislike me.”f001ec19088358c0
In fact, d753955204 he felt 89f33d10fd more than e55fdc0d88 that. Especially when e990c69c15 they talked a1aaed81dd before going 835090a766 to bed. Now, it 446bded26c had become 3adb5c98a3 natural for b5e0bab6d8 him to 8e47a9d7ae sit on 1efc6e7a97 the bed 6c00875cad every evening 2e43747b0f and reminisce 7862660cd3 about his 03781edfe5 childhood. And Karas, listening quietly 64537720ca with closed eyes, would 5e4fd9c42a eventually fall asleep.26356d116edc16df
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At that moment, Abel felt like he had let down his guard, as if he were defenseless in front of someone he trusted. Of course, it could be just his imagination, but every time he checked Karas’ sleeping face, his heart would weigh down involuntarily.635371f069bb8f85
He had c3f36ca22e experienced this fc76c2ac1f feeling before. When he became someone 66cb6b3ba2 special to someone.c9a1e4a08035c2b2
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That’s why, lately, Abel kept seeing the face of the little prince in Karas’ sleeping face. The weak child who knew nothing but rejected anyone who approached him for fear of getting hurt was completely different from Karas. At the thought of the little prince, Abel’s smile became melancholic.a6a41a196c68889e
“Doesn’t it feel good that he doesn’t dislike you?”8f1ce2729a721d7a
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“Well, that too, but when I see the Commander-in-Chief, someone else comes to mind.”568e2e27ed8c9da3
“Who?”1935954506e6c21d
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“The prince.”eb9a403ef48b7ff7
Melmond and the butler held their breath and stopped moving, but Abel didn’t notice as he looked back at the empty space.3dde04297119fed9
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“It’s strange. There’s no way the Commander-in-Chief is the prince. Their eyes are different too.”e5fa667f4895c8e6
As he paused, 6811fa7988 an awkward smile af9f73e7a3 formed on his 4e8c415524 face as he 9c17c46f80 turned to the 047b685030 two of them.ebcb371adb4c9ca3
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“I think the grown-up Prince would probably be a warmer person.”ef37b045b8883d0c
“……”2a35f1ffeb3bed5f
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Seeing Melmond who bf544afef3 was still unable 9668632d69 to speak, Abel 72f1255c96 quickly waved his 7cf1828ceb hand.96b54e786fb23542
“Oh, I didn’t say that because I wanted to see the prince. I really didn’t.”b9fac600c01b1808
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“……”91fedd77ebb3af04
“Mr. Melmond?”5f8fd95d58abb83c
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“Then.”38055d48de0b4735
At Abel’s call, Melmond finally opened his mouth. His mouth felt as dry as a midsummer drought, but words somehow managed to escape his mouth.7c4b67ec20901789
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“If the prince is like the Commander-in-Chief, would you be disappointed?”d0bca86e5b815db4
“Hehe, as if that would happen….”62777755da99c43f
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“If he is someone who is so cold and would be so intimidating that you would be afraid of him?”9035255732c7474f
The butler looked at Melmond with anxious eyes from the side, but Melmond didn’t stop speaking once he started.4214ddb58bd774ee
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“What if he is someone who opens his heart even more difficultly than the young prince who bit you and made you bled? Even if that’s the case, you won’t meet him? Even if you were someone, he needed even more than back then?”e0ee65d496d62d8c
Melmond’s questioning gaze finally halted as he looked at Abel’s pale face. Despite the realization dawning within him, Abel continued, as if his heart were burdened, exhaling a ragged breath as he asked,b770b411e658b494
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“How did the prince, how did he grow up?”936f6ecdb23b3ab3
“W-well, he grew up well. Haha― You don’t have to worry. Don’t take my words to heart. Hmm, it’s just idle talk.”c38d243e5044c001
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“I’ve wronged the prince.”2905c8661ea1f347
Abel whispered, cutting off Melmond’s words. Melmond’s heart sank with a thud as soon as he heard those words. Until now, he had believed that Abel’s thoughts about the prince were merely out of pity and a sense of responsibility as a Regas.4a6c83b8c9cef74d
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But a mistake?c07829b6c738dd4b
“What mistake?”634a9b90184d363f
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Melmond reluctantly spoke with d593dc7ac2 an uneasy feeling. Abel stared straight 4ed5cb5f9e at him.91d4b69980509e39
“I may have planted wrong thoughts in the prince’s mind just before I died.”9f15eb190417a712
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Abel stared at Melmond 4d2602fcf5 intently.07cb41aac19d159c
“Not to trust people.”607cbf5542fb34db
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“…”bcacf3edc56cc46d
“So, if there is a problem with His Majesty, it is all my fault.”c4380c14b486ea62
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