PLQYM | Chapter 45

「The Emperor’s Engagement! A Love That Transcends the Continent」

「Who Is Princess Eloine, His Majesty’s Fiancée?」

「Is It Strategy or Love?」

「Romance of the Century! The Culmination of Their Love!」

「The Truth Behind the Royal Union! Unveiling the Secrets!」

The capital of the Great Empire of Pranas was in an uproar.

Every newspaper sensationalized the Emperor’s engagement. The scale of the buzz was incomparable to when mere tabloid scandals made headlines.

The visit of Princess Eloine had turned into a tale of a grand romance that spread like wildfire among the citizens of the Empire.

The newspapers carrying the story sold out in an instant, leaving no publication untouched by the engagement story. Except for one.

“Why? Why are we the only ones left out of this?”

Tobias Cohen, the president of the tabloid, slammed his desk in frustration.

No matter how he thought about it, this was a deliberate exclusion. There was no other explanation for why every newspaper but his had gotten their hands on the scoop.

When Tobias learned the exclusive had come directly from the Imperial Palace, his blood boiled.

“Damn it!”

He paced back and forth in his office, his movements quick and anxious. As if struck by a sudden thought, he froze mid-step.

“The aide! Yes, the Emperor’s aide!”

Throwing open his office door, Tobias shouted to his staff outside.

“Make a connection with the palace! Use every possible means to arrange a meeting with the Emperor’s personal aide!”

His employees, startled by his outburst, quickly scattered into action.

Tobias stood rigidly, watching his staff scramble.

‘That damn Franz. Helping him has turned into my worst mistake!’ he muttered, grinding his teeth.

Survival was paramount. If his newspaper went under, his father might actually kill him. Tobias Cohen was the heir of the Cohen Count family, a rare noble house that operated a newspaper.

Success comes to those who hold the information.

Count Cohen was a man of firm beliefs. That conviction led him to run the newspaper and secure valuable information, achieving great success.

But Tobias had his own ideas.

Father, I am not like you. Sticking to those boring stories won’t save this paper. We need more sensational content to survive! Stories without excitement are doomed!

Tobias had gone against his father’s traditional approach, creating and running his own tabloid.
His strategy of sensationalism worked, leading to considerable success.

The pinnacle of that success was the scandalous interview Franz had brought to him—a controversy surrounding the flawless Emperor.
What could be more provocative?

He had thought the risk would pay off.

“Ah, wait, the president is…”

The commotion outside reached a peak, followed by the loud bang of a door swinging open.

The intruder was none other than Count Cohen himself.

“F-Father!”

“…….”

Tobias stammered, awkwardly rising from his seat. Count Cohen strode into the room, glaring at him. Before Tobias could utter another word—

Slap!

The sharp sound of a slap cut through the air.

“…Father.”

Count Cohen’s face was flushed with anger as he glared at his son. Resisting the urge to strike him again, he clenched his fists tightly, forcing himself to calm down.
After a long silence, he spoke.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”

“Father, I was just trying to run the paper…”

“Even so, how could you not know there are people you must never cross? Because of you, the Cohen press has now been blacklisted by the Imperial Palace.”

“……!”

Tobias stared at his father in shock.

The Cohen newspaper was among the top three in influence within the Empire. Its reputation for pro-Imperial articles made it a target of envy from other papers.

Following Count Cohen’s philosophy of maintaining a favorable relationship with the palace, the paper had thrived.

“No more excuses! Find a way to apologize to His Majesty immediately!”

“Father!”

Tobias bit his lip in frustration.

“I’m already trying to reach out to the aides.”

“Whose aide?”

“…….”

“It better not be that idiot from the Clan Marquisate.”

“I’ve instructed them to contact someone from the Astro Count family instead.”

“Good. While it’s fine for you to maintain ties with the Clan family, that particular fool is a no-go.”

Count Cohen looked at his son with dissatisfaction.

“That Franz has always been a selfish, greedy fool. Did you really think he would help you?”

“……You knew?”

“You’re not the sharpest tool in the shed, but you’ve never been outright foolish. If you acted this stupidly, it must have been under that idiot’s influence.”

“…….”

“I warned you before—he’s the dumbest one in the Clan family. Stay away from him. With this mess, the Clan family might even lose favor with His Majesty. Cut ties with them as soon as possible.”

His father made a valid point, and Tobias couldn’t argue. But severing ties with the Clan Marquisate—a household renowned in Pranas—would not be easy.

Tobias asked hesitantly, “But… the Clan family is a prominent house in Pranas…”

“What of it? Or have you forgotten that Pranas is an Empire that serves His Majesty?”

“But the press should have freedom of speech…”

“You idiot. Even freedom of speech exists within the boundaries allowed by His Majesty.”

Count Cohen clicked his tongue, his disdain for his son evident.

“You will resolve this matter entirely on your own. Apologize, grovel—do whatever it takes. If this damages our family, I won’t forgive you. Our family didn’t survive all these years for you to ruin it in a moment of recklessness.”

After glaring at his son one last time, the Count turned to leave.

“Until this is resolved, don’t set foot in the mansion again!”

And with that, he stormed out of the office.

The room fell silent, as if a storm had passed.

Tobias was left at a loss for what to do.

“Damn it, Franz Clan. You threw me under the bus?”

He had once considered Franz a friend. No, the real mistake was his own blindness, his greed blinding him to the risks.

“I really screwed up.”

With a long sigh, Tobias called for his secretary.

The office was still in disarray after his father’s outburst.

Who should he turn to? Who could help him escape this mess?

“President?”

“The outreach to the Imperial aide office—has anyone gone yet?”

“Count Cohen’s sudden visit stopped everyone in their tracks.”

Tobias could guess why.

‘They probably wanted to watch me squirm.’

He sighed again.

There was only one aide who could possibly calm the Emperor’s wrath.

“Contact Lucian Astro. No… I’ll go myself.”

Grabbing his coat, Tobias left his office.
As he rushed out, he paused, turning to his bewildered secretary.

‘Is this how my father felt watching me?’

Exasperated, frustrated, and ready to lash out.

Tobias sighed and instructed his secretary.

“Block all contact from Franz Clan. I don’t want to hear that name again.”

Then he left the office without looking back, ignoring whatever his secretary was trying to say.

His mind was filled with a single name.

Lucian Astro.

The Emperor’s personal aide was his only hope.

Meanwhile, if there was anyone worse off than Tobias Cohen in the capital, it was Franz Clan.

Technically, Franz was the root of the problem.

Today, he had once again called in sick, using a stomach ache and a cold as excuses to stay home.

His father, the Marquis Clan, was still beaming with pride, thinking the engagement talks arose from his son’s diplomatic efforts. But Franz knew better than anyone that wasn’t the case.

His real goal had been to undermine Lucian and curry favor with the Emperor. He had concocted a scandal to shift blame onto Lucian while reaping the benefits for himself.

But instead of a scandal, the entire narrative had shifted to the Emperor’s engagement. His plan had been completely buried.

“When I took this on, there wasn’t even a hint of this development…”

He anxiously bit his nails, deep in thought.

“If Father finds out, I’m dead.”

His shrewd father would figure it out soon enough. Then all the blame would fall squarely on him. He might even be disowned.

Just then, there was a knock on his door.

“Young Master, you have a visitor,” the Clan household butler announced as he entered.

“A visitor?”

Franz was bewildered.

“Who would come to see me?”