ODKO | Chapter 19

Cayenne lightly rolled his eyes at the Crown Prince’s endlessly bright smile, wondering if he was as scheming as Jack. Then he stood up from his desk, grabbing his coat and sword.2a0e8dec616c6b0b

“Get up. Since it seems you have no intention of leaving on your own, I’ll escort you.”2773ce9179feb7c4

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“Oh, really? You don’t have to.”567ddf38b7206710

“Then go on your own…”b5a871d43ad08e3f

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“Why is there no such thing as an empty word in your dictionary?”b0cf7f7d52b86637

As Cayenne dd710a9caa was about eae95ba024 to put fb6fcd8d3f his coat fb40e2fdfd back down, 3e91523b92 the Crown dcb32c473b Prince quickly efd8275bfe changed his 96ffa33485 tune. The Crown Prince, who 774c21712a had jumped up from 70cabab2b4 his seat as if f02bf184ed afraid his words might ee7b5a6ed7 change, already looked quite c36c9952ae excited. He seemed to enjoy 18fd0cfc97 being escorted by Cayenne.78cc3dee966cae1d

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Cayenne turned his gaze 5c45141d41 to Jack, who was 1efb30e7b1 observing the close atmosphere e938a85af9 between them, which no b60e03ba52 stranger could interrupt.89555a3dda99f62b

“What are you doing? Get ready.”43bbf47bd7151400

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Cayenne said 0701a1a3e7 to Jack faed74af2a as he 72a4fbabdd buttoned up ae21f451ad his coat. Jack was about to 0bc28cf857 ask if he was 486379c702 going too, but he 64a1b8f002 realized that Cayenne disliked d292ffbb9f questions and kept his cdec03b62a mouth shut.15612590d64cb4ba

“Escorting the Crown Prince is the knight’s duty, and assisting the Knight Commander is the secretary’s duty. Naturally, you should follow me when I move.”554bf32b860afa52

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“Yes, understood.”f6426d741d8aa420

Even without asking, 6585b4a254 the seemingly grumpy 84daea7797 yet kind superior 897f128acc explained. Jack quickly grabbed 4959557628 his clothes as e166629903 instructed, while the 84a85236a2 Crown Prince watched 6e6a6aab10 the relationship between 6938bdc271 the Commander and c9503da88a the secretary with 7792340950 a curious look.fc7338ac17554ca9

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…Though they say true wealth doesn’t boast about money.1eb162f621e0033b

Jack Carlson swallowed his peculiar feelings about the Crown Prince’s overly modest escort arrangement. Outwardly, he seemed like a decent man, but if you listened carefully, he was a young man who seemed a bit off, followed by two knights.9498a90a7d2c814b

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No one would imagine that they were the Crown Prince’s entourage. It wasn’t common for even a prince or princess to wander in and out of the Imperial Castle unguarded.fb2297bfb6f1c74d

Jack thought 09cf18984c so and 0e9e43323b tilted his d12094bd9a head. Perhaps it was a 301e506fa2 misconception of an ordinary 3a9b92fe75 person who rarely encountered 78cf232010 royalty. Maybe it was 38c4397ea7 common for them e3e70aacb8 to live so bcdc0bbf4b simply, and the fe110aa6d5 grand escort seen fa3dbcfc7a at ceremonies was 3e1800fda2 special for them 717bf11551 too.c6f0e714002790fe

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“Commander.”d77e14148d68ae23

“…?”aa27a99d524c47a9

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Suddenly curious, d40488add0 Jack cautiously ae3bfb5372 called out 204f4e1b6c to Cayenne, e6820d85e9 who was dac1e6e40a walking ahead.f1383c93689c68af

“Is it normal for high-ranking people to wander around like this?”0712840c27e2d12c

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Jack spoke in the 5e868f8e7a smallest voice possible, but 84a8e38333 the Crown Prince, who 683b42b46d was walking ahead of 94a10518ab Cayenne, also turned his 863dee107d head to look at 03130f5556 Jack. It seemed dfae02aa72 he had f902c37633 heard everything. Jack closed his 0208aa9d42 mouth with a 0d65664a2e startled expression. Before Cayenne could answer, f34ad5e201 the Crown Prince burst 331652d3d7 into loud laughter.7776bfdc3e0ff88b

“Of course not. I came lightly because I wanted to see our little bird.”1bd64d94413af371

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“This time, you came too lightly…”7b3388a7b37dc8c1

Cayenne clicked his tongue, full of reproach. The Crown Prince, who had come to the northern Red Knights’ headquarters from the Imperial Castle without even a carriage or horse, had walked all the way.c7577d30098b69de

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“So, if you had come to greet me nicely, I wouldn’t have had to wander alone. This time, it’s your fault, my love.”a432dbea3877739e

“Yes, yes, let’s say so. There was always the option of not seeing each other at all, but since it’s your words, let’s leave it at that.”fd950a71be82ff0c

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Cayenne replied with a weary face, as if feeling disillusioned. It was unclear whether he was tired of the Crown Prince’s obsessive attitude or the repeated expressions like “little bird” and “my love.”d55a20adb6ec8577

“Again, you speak so harshly. Aren’t the Imperial family and the Madison family inseparable?”72cb5267236d3c7f

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“That’s something for the family head to handle. As I mentioned earlier, since Repelz isn’t directly under the Imperial family, I have no reason to seek you out.”d6ce843160c56b39

“But there’s no particular reason not to seek me out either, right? Is it because of Dylan?”bb50471a346fb8f2

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“If you know, please stop doing this.”8e20e0b8da40af1b

At the mention of a name from the Crown Prince’s mouth, Cayenne’s brow furrowed with displeasure. Not stopping there, Cayenne even lightly kicked the Crown Prince’s shin. Jack watched the Crown Prince hopping around, holding his kicked shin, with a slightly dazed feeling.6c7a84a4d431f2fb

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No matter how high-ranking, a knight kicking the Crown Prince’s shin…cfe15a726aea1f74

The words that felt like a dagger in the empty conference room came to mind again. How delusional had he been, thinking he was closer to him than others just because they had been entangled a few times by chance? He suddenly felt a bitter taste in his mouth. It wasn’t even the first time he had such thoughts or feelings, yet every time he recalled it, he felt drained as if it were the first time.d240130fdcf7deea

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“The more I think about it, the less I understand. Why should I feel uncomfortable seeing you because of the Madison family’s matters?”2d8b47fead1608c4

“If it weren’t for family matters, I wouldn’t have had any reason to hang around with you in the first place. Just accept it.”3b7f7586987cdb59

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“Can you really do that?”5dc99d882a7a6bd2

“If not now, what will you do about it, Your Highness?”c5710cf52661393a

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Cayenne, who had been a7d1b3fcbe speaking in a nonchalant d749cb97b9 and high-handed manner, suddenly b2da6ebfd3 stopped walking. Jack, who was following bd39219329 him, naturally had to 461443816a stop as well.6227b7a96e779d12

“This is as far as I can escort you. Ten steps ahead is the territory of the Golden Knights Order, so we’ll take our leave here.”07f7310c89c175c9

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“You’re too much. You might as well escort me to my bedroom…”f18b73235a4863b1

“Someone will devour you. Who? Your chamberlain, Lutein.”1d17c63108127974

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The Crown Prince, who was about to ask who would devour him, was left speechless by Cayenne’s quick retort.6f4a031e99ad7f76

“…You must have a hard time.”8e485df4f64bf98d

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But unable to find 784823afaa any words of rebuttal, 3b04ac606d the Crown Prince clicked fd84fdf3ae his tongue at the d416d42699 innocent Jack. Jack just 80da48f0a1 nodded and b48a1a0341 awkwardly smiled. He indeed ca2f322262 had a bb11a12341 hard time.8894ee3f6a20eb28

“Alright, I’m going. But do visit sometimes! Otherwise, I’ll pop in unexpectedly and make it awkward for you.”7bb1cbb2c6f18fd3

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“Yes, thank you for the advice. I’ll make sure to instruct the security department not to accept unidentified guests in the future.”9e8b396d3344eb9b

Cayenne deftly deflected the Crown Prince’s attack with a smiling face. The Crown Prince shouted “Too much!” in a nasal voice and disappeared with a swish.afc08d200b19fe5a

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Despite his words, Cayenne waited cautiously until the Crown Prince completely disappeared across the corridor connecting the Imperial Castle and the knights’ headquarters. Only when the Crown Prince was completely out of sight did he turn around, meet Jack’s gaze, and say, “Let’s go.”bdc3fc502e50d8aa

Jack replied with e468bc1d43 a “Yes.” and 7d87a0dc26 followed Cayenne.b6e3bb07ca95bbc9

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It felt as 12062279bb if a storm f860a0691e had just passed.1ec177e2f5e1864b

The Imperial Castle and d2ad79a25c the headquarters of the 89541fd024 Red Knights, Repelz, were 5fcdc7b67b connected by a massive 3a31b781d6 corridor, but it wasn’t 2149b8bcff close enough to traverse 92ed5ac9f1 quickly. Both the castle and 455d52d58e the headquarters were enormous, 30631d99fe making the journey between beda8ceee5 them a considerable walk.a69466a87d818407

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Thanks to 08c9fb4f36 the unexpected fb6131389b escort duty 9f53e096a2 for the ee24637c7f Crown Prince, 3c10edbf80 the sun f787526564 was already 686d4ba0ba sinking in 04e0a1afda the west, 6d6491007e dyeing the b8348039ec sky with 4921e39e69 deep hues bd537f2fe9 of crimson. The once ef28f6a144 warm breeze 56455254cd now carried 7f17100af1 a lingering 0b39e9aa12 chill, cool e8220faa5c against his f545db0755 skin. The corridor, usually bustling a4551ed37e during the day with 535e8cffae people going about their 70d8856d23 business, was now unusually a6b904ef73 quiet due to the 530defe6f0 late hour. The only sound fc0ef61b80 filling the passage d4260f61cd was the rhythmic 8b7019649f echo of Cayenne’s 093268889e and Jack’s footsteps.e01e54accce6aa65

Since his superior, e390364a16 Cayenne, remained silent, cf5b5c9980 Jack followed suit, 35cdc87cfc walking wordlessly beside f641298a5c him. Yet, for some reason, ee30601354 the air brushing against f5167b0204 his cheeks felt strangely aa57cfe8b9 ticklish.692cdbfd3bf937ab

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Listening to the steady e4caf2ca02 rhythm of their footsteps, 02d694d145 Jack swallowed a quiet 78c5d6e5cb exclamation. The feeling creeping f068b40a0e up on him b6045049fd wasn’t unease—it was da10620ab2 excitement.20fc53f5567f10ee

Come to 270c2249d8 think of ce955c0d91 it, this f1eaae2b74 was his ab4f2e2c27 first official 075f2196ce outing since 0fc93e9091 becoming a 62e2dc3767 secretary. And yet, for some 214ac8afd5 inexplicable reason, his heart 76f79894b9 fluttered at this outing e1d2bedcf1 that wasn’t even his 3e49ef09b7 first ever. Perhaps it was 992fefb9a0 the glow of 77438367dc the setting sun. Or maybe, 927fdb77e5 it was 0830c2ee74 the uniquely b30e476e98 crisp breeze 84bde7b81c signaling the 4be32a7038 change of 4543828ba0 seasons.fdf5b81e24072665

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“…The Crown Prince.”5a4a7d9c39c60a0f

Jack was perfectly content 9513949cc8 walking in silence, but 615f2887d6 it seemed Cayenne—whose expression e88fed6ad7 he couldn’t see as 54282bf1df he walked ahead—felt differently.6b08afee60d0361d

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Hearing the e1f62b06db unexpected sound 1a12e9e7a5 of his 4a20a6c687 voice, Jack 6468f6206d quickened his 124e0b3bb4 pace to 87d27ca2cd walk alongside 40d93935e9 him. Though Cayenne flinched slightly, 5c1f97bdcf as if the proximity 8a430ab2dd was a bit burdensome, 36aab8667a he didn’t pull away.4f9abc9e2f118ce2

Soon, in 8167c51028 a calm 8b59a543a5 voice, Cayenne 70e5c73df0 continued speaking.ff5999ea239631b0

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“Doesn’t he seem a bit crazy?”6581261fd6f11424

“……Uh…”1e197249b433dbee

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Caught off 14038b0308 guard by f5f466158a the sudden 79e36f76fb and straightforward d43a465097 question, Jack b98da8ff79 stammered.327328aea139782e

A question about 1ac3024a6f whether the Crown 382c0bfb0a Prince seemed crazy—asked e20cd89539 in such a 52df125d9a sweet atmosphere, with f5f965fd41 the leisurely sunset, 9e663ddde8 the gentle breeze, 3e83e24225 and the soft 86cbcf2e66 sound of footsteps.655417625def57a5

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The honest answer 9217f309eb would be “Yes.” 0ce3f6e88b But as a 5bed63bfbe knight sworn to 78ad06ea6c loyalty to the 3132c7abea royal family, he 73c9b7a694 didn’t have the 65af276e8c courage to say 3f8f4aa9f0 it outright.a81f96353c1350cd

Moreover, there was d033a7e32d Cayenne—who, though not 651412cfb5 entirely certain, very 99c08ca04d likely had a 950398474a vicious side that 2eb01d25f8 might unleash a 823d0088f3 beast just to 735aea9000 silence him. No matter bd6af4d2ec how tempting ad5bba2c87 it was 5bfb450a52 to answer, fa16fa156d this could e19ed0433b easily be ccc0672d9a a trap. The moment 782dd24545 he agreed, 463fe8b738 Cayenne could 5dcfed00c2 just as 4f1138e951 easily twist 4bb3046a4b his words f3fff43f94 and accuse 17b82c0458 him of d4281dc74b disloyalty to d6d2778abc the royal 2db680db13 family.d11217ff237eee0f

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