Chapter 31
“Your family and friends probably think you’re living the high life studying abroad in Deisnoia. No one is looking for you. Letters and gifts sent in your name will perfectly deceive those around you every year.”
One might throw around threats of death or vague promises, but not such specific details.
The points coming out of her mouth were the exact things the Crown Prince had actually promised him.
The young man’s face began to crumple into a mask of confusion.
“Don’t give me that bullshit! You crazy…!”
“The Crown Prince must have promised you. He said that if you stayed in Deisnoia and then returned to Matila, he’d grant you the rank of baronet and a position in a department directly under the King. But for now, he probably told you to hide out at the villa on Hertfund Island until things settle down.”
The man had forgotten how to speak. Lottie’s eyes narrowed as if searching her memory.
“When you worried about being betrayed, the Crown Prince gave you a piece of halved mother-of-pearl as a token of his promise. And that piece…”
“…….”
“It has a large poplar tree engraved in the center, with four small saplings beside it.”
“…!”
Dazed, the young man fumbled through his pockets and pulled out a fragment of mother-of-pearl.
There was no need to mention that it bore the exact same engraving Lottie had just described.
“How… do you know all that… why…?”
Lottie gazed blankly at the man, who likely didn’t even know what he was saying anymore.
How did she know all this?
‘It’s because all of this happened exactly like this in the first life, which you know nothing about.’
After deceiving you like that, Padrick silenced you forever the moment you stepped onto Hertfund Island.
‘And now, the same thing is about to happen to you.’
“Knowing the path to death means I also know the way to live. You want to live, don’t you? You don’t want to be flayed alive before you die, do you?”
“…What kind of question is that? Why do you think I did this…?”
“There’s only one way for you to live. Set everything right. Become a witness for the truth.”
The man’s brows furrowed instantly.
“Are you insane? What if I’m murdered for openly betraying the Crown Prince?!”
“No. That will never happen. From this moment on, the Crown Prince will neither find nor see you.”
If Lottie’s voice had sounded even slightly excited, the man would have spat out a curse and fled immediately.
“If you follow my plan, I’ll guide you to a secret passage no one knows. Follow it out of the capital, then take the fastest train to Dempis. Don’t forget to switch stagecoaches along the way, as you might be tracked.”
But Lottie’s voice was low and calm, gradually instilling conviction in him.
“I’ll write a letter for you. When you arrive in Dempis, find Mr. Walter Hanson. Show him the letter, and he will send you safely to Trie.”
“Wait, wait! You want me to go to Trie? Weren’t you going to let me keep living in Matila?”
“You were determined to go to Deisnoia, yet now you’re afraid of going to Trie? Dempis has frequent exchanges with Trie, so there are ways to move back and forth without inspection records. And think of the person who died by your hand. Surely you didn’t expect to live a normal life in this country after committing murder?”
The man, who was about to snap back at Lottie’s quiet reproach, clamped his mouth shut.
Seeing that he had somewhat conceded, Lottie held her palm out toward him.
“If we’re done talking, give it to me. The piece of mother-of-pearl you have.”
“…? Why that?”
“Because revealing the truth is my responsibility.”
As she spoke, Lottie’s face made it clear she wouldn’t answer even if he pried further.
Since his only goal was to escape safely anyway, the young man handed over the fragment with a sense of relief.
“Wait! But… how can I trust you?”
The man caught Lottie as she was hurriedly turning to leave.
“W-what if you have other intentions and try to harm me?”
Seeing him worry about betrayal even in this situation was truly pitiful and pathetic. Lottie let out a sharp sigh and spoke coldly.
“Charlotte Evanshire.”
“…!”
“If you can’t trust me, give that name to your precious Crown Prince. Playing both sides like a bat is what you do best in the world, isn’t it?”
Leaving the stunned man behind, Lottie disappeared outside.
The man with teal hair, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation from outside, also quietly vanished.
“According to the guard’s report, the prisoner held in Roy-John Prison spent yesterday doing nothing, just like any other day. He didn’t try to meet anyone in particular; he just ate his three meals and slept well with his hands tied.”
Baron Allonford, the Crown Prince’s loyal subordinate, delivered the same report as yesterday, quickly suppressing a yawn.
A loyal subject had to match their emotions to their master’s, regardless of their own thoughts.
The Baron continued with a feigned look of gravity.
“Shall I give the word to reduce his meals to one a day? Perhaps he’ll realize his mistake once he starts starving.”
Padrick, who had been leaning against the armrest with his chin in his hand and a serious expression, glared at the Baron. He didn’t say it, but his eyes seemed to ask if that was really the only thing inside his head.
Giving up on a silent scolding with a sigh, Padrick waved his hand and spoke.
“What about the house search? They’ve been ransacking that guy’s house for three days straight; have they still found nothing?”
“They say they’re interrogating the intruder who broke into the house first… but it doesn’t seem like they’ll find anything unless they search inside his guts.”
“Then tell them to rip his stomach open and find it! He must have gone to that house before the police arrived because there was something suspicious!”
Idiots. Padrick spat the words out savagely and rested his chin in his hand again.
He felt like smashing everything he could get his hands on, but unfortunately, there were quite a few items in Danger Palace that money couldn’t buy.
“Disgusting bastard…”
The high-security prison at the top of Roy-John.
He could picture the man sitting in a solitary cell with only a few pieces of furniture. Hands neatly folded, a composed and orderly appearance.
‘Could the news of Tom Philson’s disappearance have reached his ears?’
That was impossible. Unless he had sent a carrier pigeon, every solitary cell in Roy-John was under strict surveillance.
Then, did the man have some other corner to lean on? Luca Brown said he didn’t have any particular nobles he associated with.
‘Well. What kind of crazy noble would openly side with the disgrace of the Royal Family? Unless they intended to roll in the mud together…’
He wanted to see the man groveling with a face that looked like he was dying of anxiety.
What should he do? Should he really tell them to cut back on the meals as the Baron suggested?
Just as he was being swallowed by his circling thoughts, a servant’s knock luckily pulled Padrick out of his reverie.
“Your Highness. Someone has come from the Royal Castle. It seems you must head to the palace immediately.”
The Royal Castle.
Padrick’s complexion turned pale, like a child caught doing something wrong by his parents. His loyal subordinate’s face followed suit.
Their eyes met, and they read the same thought in each other.
What was meant to happen had come.
“C-C-Calm yourself, Your Highness. Surely Her Majesty is calling for you to check on your well-being. Is this not the first time you will see Her Majesty since that incident?”
“At this late hour?”
“A parent’s heart, worrying for their child, does not distinguish between day and night.”
They were truly warm words, but the person who spoke them had no conviction in his face.
Even a complete stranger knew how poorly those words suited the Queen.
“Ha… Haha.”
Mother will probably scold her only son again for acting on his own.
She’ll bark at me, asking why I couldn’t even manage the simple task of just waiting quietly. However.
— Isn’t that right? Twelve years ago, you had the miraculous talent of turning a prince who was fine just yesterday into a madman overnight.
If she does, I have something to say as well.
— The fake Crown Prince.
How could I stay still after receiving such an insult? If I did, I would have no choice but to become a fake.
“Your Highness. I apologize for interrupting, but…”
“I’m going soon! Do you expect me to see Her Majesty in just my dressing gown?”
At Padrick’s sharp shout, the servant who had hurriedly entered shrank back.
If the intention was to urge him to the palace, the servant would have tucked tail and retreated, but the way he stood there hesitating was strange.
Instead of the emotionally charged Crown Prince, the Baron asked.
“Is there more to say?”
“Yes, well… there is someone requesting an urgent audience with His Highness.”
Before he could even spit out the command to kick them out, the servant held something forward. Something glittering lay upon his palm.
Padrick and the Baron’s eyes widened simultaneously as they looked at it.
It was the poplar tree mother-of-pearl fragment he had given to Tom Philson.
“Lady Charlotte of the Evanshire family is waiting for Your Highness.”
It would have been wonderful if the lady who visited in the middle of the night had only the noble intention of returning lost property.
Recalling that such an idea was futile, Padrick stared at Lottie in silence.
For several minutes now, Lottie had been looking at him, slowly blinking her beautiful lime-green eyes.
Padrick’s throat went dry, not knowing what words would jump out from those plump lips.
“That mother-of-pearl fragment is…”
“I received it from its owner. If I had simply stumbled upon it on the street, I wouldn’t have even thought to return it to Your Highness.”
Lottie spoke calmly, as if she had read Padrick’s inner thoughts.
She was laying out an increasingly unbelievable story, but a strange tremor reached him before any sense of dread did.
“I won’t take up much of Your Highness’s precious time. I will forget everything I know related to that mother-of-pearl fragment. Your Highness only needs to grant me two proposals.”
