Chapter 58: Ciel Midford
"Have you said all you wanted to say?"
"……Yes."
Ferzen's intentions for attending piqued his curiosity, but it was obvious that asking would yield no answer anyway. For the Alfred family, the most threatening scenario was just one—Brutein borrowing the castle of Ruerg to intervene. If that were the case, digging further would reveal no clues, as was Brutein's way. All they could do was watch Ferzen's movements.
"It's surprising that you came all this way just to say that. I wonder why you're so interested in my chastity."
Almost makes me think he was a unicorn in a past life.
"Don't flatter yourself. I'm not interested. Anyone would have said something if they'd seen you acting like that in public, not just me."
"……"
Honestly, it wasn't wrong, so Ferzen responded with silence. Seeing Uriel turn her head, he left the terrace with Euphemia.
Yes, it was the moment they stepped out onto the terrace.
"Ah……"
Someone standing right in front of the terrace door collided with Euphemia.
The terrace's glass doors were curtained to prevent peeking in or out, so Euphemia bore some fault for not being careful, but the other party was standing far too close.
Splash!
The man who bumped into Euphemia was holding a wine glass, and the impact sent the red wine spilling over his clothes, filling the air with its rich aroma.
And that man was the Second Prince of the Robelium Kingdom.
The First Prince had the Alfred family's support, so it wasn't strange for him to be near Uriel. But Ferzen knew of their secret meeting, and he could see the contrived setup everywhere—especially the wine glass.
Despite spilling all over his clothes, about half the wine remained in the glass. It had clearly been filled to the brim on purpose, anticipating this exact moment when Ferzen and Euphemia emerged.
"I……"
Euphemia started to speak but closed her mouth.
She had meant to apologize first and offer to have his clothes cleaned, but Ferzen's words echoed in her mind—never bow her head to anyone but His Majesty the Emperor. She wasn't sure how to begin.
She had noticed he was standing too close to the door, so apologizing first might seem like yielding…… Internal conflict surged within her.
Normally, she would have apologized immediately, but as Euphemia, tamed by Ferzen, his words took priority.
But the moment she spotted Ciel beside him, she realized the man before her was the lord served by Ciel—the Second Prince of Robelium.
With that, like a collared beast stepping forward.
Straining against the leash's pull, defying his command.
Desperate to apologize and resolve the situation……
Drip.
Drip……
In the prolonged silence, the Second Prince of Robelium's pristine white clothes were already stained a vivid purple. The wine not absorbed by the fabric dripped to the floor.
And before Euphemia could speak, the Second Prince opened his mouth first.
"Can't even the empire's knight offer a proper apology in a situation like this?"
Though his original plan was different, seeing Euphemia remain silent for so long, the Second Prince of Robelium judged it more natural to seize this pretext instead.
Ferzen pulled back the advancing Euphemia and……
"My wife was indeed careless, but wasn't Your Highness standing too close to the door as well? Since it was a mutual mistake, let's end it here. I'll commission Azelia separately to compensate with something even finer."
He gladly took up the cue, raising the curtain on the play.
Watching Ferzen deliver his line seamlessly, the Second Prince of Robelium couldn't help but admire the refined sarcasm.
It left no room for maneuver, and even if it did, it could easily be dismissed as a mere mistake. The choice of words felt profoundly shrewd.
"Even calling you a knight, you don't hold honor so cheap as to be bought off with money. And this garment! It's unmistakably an Azelia original. Why…… does it look like mere rags to you because a prince of a small kingdom wears it?"
"My mistake."
"You admit the mistake yet offer no simple apology. Well, it's as if I've hung a pearl necklace on a pig's neck, so this can stand as mutual fault too, can't it?"
"……"
"Is it so hard to admit fault and apologize? Does it feel like submission? Is the honor of the Ernes Empire some superior privilege that lets you arbitrarily judge good and evil at your discretion? You've appointed yourself quite the judge."
As the commotion grew, other nobles in the banquet hall, unaware of the situation, began turning their heads.
Uriel, who had been taking in the night air outside the terrace, heard the excessively raised voices and opened the door to step inside.
"Don't you think you're crossing a line?"
"A line…… Yes, generalization might be excessive. But aren't you of the Brutein bloodline that the Ernes Empire prides itself on? With Brutein's heir acting like this, how can I not generalize?"
"……"
"I may be a prince of a small kingdom, but I know what honor is. It's bowing not to others' injustices, but to your own. At least in my eyes, the honor you claim is nothing but arrogant lust for power."
Though she didn't know the full story, hearing the Second Prince of Robelium's words, Uriel paled.
Was he in his right mind? But piecing together the flow, a vague picture formed in her sharp mind.
She grasped what the Second Prince was aiming for by provoking Ferzen.
He couldn't possibly not know what I know.
So as long as he didn't play along, it would suffice.
Even if they tried to forcibly sever ties, if this side retained a pretext to hold on, the Elmark Empire wouldn't reach out easily.
But……
"For the likes of you to carry Brutein's bloodline dirties the empire's ministers. A poisoned chalice, truly. If my words bring you no shame but only anger, that itself is proof enough."
Like driving in a shackle, the Second Prince of Robelium spat his final words.
Uriel could no longer stand still; she approached Ferzen and gripped his left arm.
If Brutein's unwavering loyalty to the imperial family, proven by history, flowed in Ferzen's veins……
Wouldn't he endure?
If Brutein borrowed Ruerg's castle to intervene in the imperial succession, it would stain Brutein's history.
If Ferzen acted alone, he would earn the imperial family's enmity.
Setting all that aside, Uriel was afraid.
Afraid of what the Alfred elders would do to her for failing to prevent the empire's knight—backed by the First Prince they supported—from falling to Elmark, despite being present.
If her brother, now family head, were here, perhaps, but he wasn't—so Uriel desperately clutched Ferzen's left arm.
And Euphemia beside her, too.
With a pallid face, gripped Ferzen's right arm.
As the instigator, she felt a wave of dizziness.
But Ferzen gently shook off their hands, removed the pristine white glove from his left hand, and……
Slap!
……hurled it across the Second Prince's left cheek.
Of course, it didn't end there.
Ferzen removed the white glove from his right hand as well and……
Slap!
……hurled it across the Second Prince's right cheek.
Thud.
Gazing at the gloves falling limply to the floor and the Second Prince's flushed cheeks, Ferzen spoke.
"Inas den Proissen Robelium."
"……"
"Take responsibility for your words."
The Second Prince, Inas, laughed inwardly.
Later, if his brother remained the Ernes Empire's knight and ascended the throne, he would surely die without a trace.
But it was fine.
This raised the stakes, bringing even greater prosperity to Robelium.
Truthfully, he wasn't without fear.
Fear that this desperation might mean nothing.
But Inas believed.
In the blood already spilled, and the blood yet to come.
That it would one day free Robelium from vassalage.
And the weight of that blood-soaked crown would serve as a proper guidepost, ensuring future descendants never strayed into arrogance.
Even if he was recorded as the sole blemish in the kingdom's soon-to-glisten history—a wastrel playboy—it was acceptable.
But remember this!
"Of course. Allow me to teach you……"
Inas den Proissen Robelium!
"……what honor is."
That he had rolled the dice of history!
"Ho……"
From afar, standing with Princess Elizabeth, Gremory took deep interest in the unfolding drama.
And on that stage where her gaze lingered……
The original actor, Inas den Proissen Robelium, exited.
A new actor, Ciel Midford, took the stage.
And the final act of the play was about to begin.