The Prince's Ultimatum
The Imperial Palace was thrown into complete chaos. The Prime Minister, the Chief Knight of the Empire, and the commander of the Imperial Guard all rushed to the palace in emergency summons.
“We require His Majesty the Emperor’s approval.”
Among them, Chief Chamberlain Luden spoke with firm resolve.
“His Majesty’s condition was so poor today that he even vomited his medicine. We cannot wake him after he has only just fallen asleep.”
The safety of Emperor Esteban took absolute priority over the princess. Yet they could not simply let the situation stand as it was.
“Then what about His Highness the Prince?”
Prime Minister Debussy looked troubled.
“But he is currently under house arrest by His Majesty’s command… What if he faces repercussions for disobeying orders?”
He was a man who had accepted bribes from the Evans family and was in league with them. Since the princess constantly threatened the Evans family’s influence, he secretly thought it was for the best that she had disappeared.
“Then what do you suggest we do? We must find Her Highness the Princess!”
In contrast, Chief Knight Jed was one of the rare individuals in the imperial court who had not aligned himself with either the Regef or Evans families. In fact, he viewed them with clear distaste.
“No one is saying we shouldn’t look for her. Besides, the Kedrey ducal house is already searching for Her Highness, aren’t they?”
Prime Minister Debussy snapped at Jed in frustration, as if the man’s words grated on him. While the two engaged in their tense standoff, news that the princess had been kidnapped spread rapidly throughout the palace. Yet no progress was made.
Olivia and Vera independently concluded that they could not afford to waste any more time.
Kidnappings are a race against time. Once the golden hour is lost, it’s over.
They gathered every available courtier and stormed the prince’s palace. The knights guarding the entrance to the prince’s bedchamber stared in bewilderment at the crowd of courtiers rushing toward them. They never imagined the group had come prepared for a physical confrontation.
Vera shouted from the front.
“Push through!”
At her command, the courtiers shoved aside the knights blocking the door.
“What the hell are you doing!”
The knights finally came to their senses and shouted threateningly.
“We are carrying out His Majesty the Emperor’s orders!”
“Keep pushing!”
However, the large group of courtiers moved with one heart and one mind. The knights could not bring themselves to draw their swords and simply tried to hold their ground stubbornly. But they were outnumbered and gradually gave way.
A gap soon opened. Olivia slipped through the momentarily pushed-back knights, opened the door, and entered.
“Wh-what?”
The servants, who had been flustered by the commotion outside, gaped at the unfamiliar intruder.
Only one door remained between her and the bedroom. Before the doorman or any servant inside could stop her, Olivia dashed forward and flung the bedroom door open.
“S-stop her!”
Bang!
The bedroom door flew wide open. The first thing she saw was a large window. Olivia shifted her gaze, searching for the owner of the room.
And there he was—finally, she found the man sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed. Though he did not resemble Cayena much, there was only one blond, blue-eyed beauty who could possibly be in this room.
Prince Regef.
Despite his gentle appearance, there was something chilling about his features. He lifted his head. Their eyes met.
Regef furrowed his brow deeply. He asked in a puzzled tone.
“Who are you?”
The servants, not knowing what to do, tried to drag Olivia away. She shook off their restraining hands and immediately dropped to her knees.
“Your Highness the Prince!”
Regef examined her appearance, trying to guess who she might be. She was a beautiful woman, but he had no memory of her face. Or rather, it wasn’t entirely unfamiliar. Where had he seen her before?
Wheat-colored hair and green eyes…
While he briefly tried to identify her, Olivia spoke. Her expression was resolute as she fired off her words like a machine gun.
“We have just discovered evidence that Her Highness the Princess was kidnapped at the Imperial Academy. Please, I beg you to rescue her.”
“…What?”
Olivia pressed her forehead flat against the floor.
“I implore you with all my heart!”
The room froze over in icy silence.
“…My sister has been kidnapped?”
“Yes, Your Highness. It has already been an hour since it happened. Yet no one is taking action. As Her Highness’s personal maid, I could not stand by any longer.”
Only then did Regef realize the woman before him was Olivia Grace. He rose from his seat and approached her. A large hand lifted her face.
Their eyes met at an extremely close distance. Olivia read the madness lurking in his blue irises.
This man is dangerous…
A chill ran down her spine.
“Kidnapped, you say?”
“Based on the circumstances, yes. Lord Kedrey immediately searched the scene and concluded that a kidnapping was the most likely scenario.”
At the mention of Kedrey, Regef’s expression changed completely. The name had always strangely irritated him.
He released Olivia and took a step out of the bedroom. The servants turned pale with shock and tried to stop him.
“Your Highness! This is disobedience of His Majesty the Emperor’s command!”
Regef ignored them completely and kicked the door open. Outside, the knights and courtiers were locked in a chaotic standoff. When the door burst open, they all froze and stared at Regef. His aura was anything but ordinary.
“Immediately assemble the troops and surround the capital.”
Regef closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again. His gaze was that of a man who had completely lost his mind.
“If my sister is not found before sunset, I will have every one of your heads.”
The kidnappers were dumbfounded. They had never heard that the princess was insane.
“Is she really the princess?”
They began to doubt whether the woman they had taken was actually the princess. Her beauty was too extraordinary to deny it. They had never seen such pale, pristine golden hair in their lives. Her statue-like face and expensive dress only added to their uncertainty.
Yet her attitude made things confusing.
“I can give you information that might interest your employer. You’d better think carefully.”
Cayena behaved as if she were the one who had done the kidnapping, completely at ease.
Was this how a typical hostage acted? They found it difficult to tell whether this was bravado or something else entirely.
“Excuse me, Your Highness. It seems you haven’t grasped the situation and think we’re nothing more than servants. You’ve been kidnapped.”
Cayena gave the man who had spoken to her a bright smile. Her appearance was so breathtakingly beautiful that the man’s face flushed red.
“You’re the one who’s slow on the uptake. I’m currently sowing discord among you, but it seems you still don’t understand?”
The man stepped back with a speechless expression. It was clear now—the princess must be mad.
“Damn it, hey. When is that guy supposed to get here?”
“Yeah, why is he so late?”
They ignored Cayena and began talking among themselves. However, just as she had said, division was already spreading through their ranks. One man, who had been sitting with a slightly hardened expression and lost in thought, suddenly broke into a wide smile.
“Just in case, I’ll go take a look outside.”
“Oh, you will?”
Another man who had also flinched at Cayena’s earlier words quickly stepped forward as well.
“I’ll go with you.”
Before leaving the room, they glanced at Cayena. She remained perfectly calm, gazing only toward the curtains.
The light was visibly fading. Once night fell, she would be loaded into a carriage and taken to meet the mastermind behind the kidnapping.
Is it the Evans marquisate? In any case, there’s always at least one of Grand Duke Heinrich’s men among hired thugs. It’s practically a law of this world.
In truth, two men had reacted to her words and left. That meant the rest were working for someone else.
Still, the atmosphere is rather strange.
The men who had come in to watch her each settled into their positions, subtly observing one another.
There are more traitors.
Her suspicion that this kidnapping was not the work of a single unified group grew stronger.
While analyzing the situation, Cayena suddenly winced at a sharp headache. It was the aftereffect of the food she had eaten earlier that day.
Olivia must have escaped safely. Once she realizes I’ve disappeared, she’ll immediately recognize it as a kidnapping.
The person she was truly counting on was Grand Duke Heinrich. She truly did not want to involve him, but she had no choice.
As for whether Raphael might help…
Cayena stopped that line of thought. After the way they had parted, what was she even hoping for?
Even if that weren’t the case, Raphael had nothing to gain from helping her. He was a good person, so he might lend a hand out of a sense of duty. But she could not place any great expectations on him.
I can’t meet my end like this.
There were still so many things left undone. Matters concerning Olivia, Vera, Regef, and even Idel, with whom she had only just formed a new connection today.
Bang!
At that moment, the door opened and a man entered, followed by a large retinue. Cayena recognized him immediately. Her breath caught in her throat.
“I greet Her Highness the Princess.”
It was Henverton Gillian.