Chapter 299, As Though Without Reason (3)

Translator: Hedge

Editor: Lizzz

 

Kalian pressed his hands over his head once more.

 

It had not been long since he returned to his newly arranged room in the main palace.

 

“I drank it.”

 

“What do you mean, you drank it?”

 

He had told him not to drink the tea, and now he was hearing that Plants had gone right ahead and drained the whole cup.

 

The Royal Palace continued to maintain its silence regarding why Louise had collapsed. Word from Chase’s birds indicated that whispers were beginning to circulate among the Nobles, though the noise had yet to grow loud. In Cyries, they would have already come rushing to Senu Hall, or the voices of Nobles gathered on Astrisha Street would have been rattling the walls. However, Secritia was not like that.

 

The Nobles who had known how to deduce, how to raise their voices, and who had harboured resentment towards Debeullan were all already dead. Only those who had lost the ability to reason, or had forgotten how to raise their voices, had survived. That was the era they were living in now. So, it was hardly surprising that the thoughts and actions of the Nobles were as short and fragile as the last inch of a burned-down candle wick.

 

It occurred to Kalian that Plants, having sought out Debeullan in these circumstances, might appear to the Nobles as quite a tempting target. If the plan to kill Plants had not yet changed, would what happen to Louise not be repeated?

 

If the Nobles’ opinions had already tilted, as Louise had intended, towards allying with Chase, would they not try to do something that benefited Chase, by any means necessary?

 

At the time of the private audience with Debeullan, the fact that Plants had ascended to the Crown Prince position had not yet spread. And besides, if Plants were to collapse from poison, the matter of Louise would become known alongside it, and even if Plants wished to retaliate against the Nobles, he would not be able to join hands with Debeullan.

 

That was why Kalian had told him to be careful.

 

Plants had replied that he already knew.

 

“Why did you go ahead and… why did you drink it.”

 

“Because I thought about it again and figured they probably wouldn’t have put anything in.”

 

“You thought they probably wouldn’t have poisoned it, so you drank it? Then what would you have done if it had turned out there actually was something in it?”

 

“There wasn’t.”

 

Kalian, wearing the face of a man who would die of old age before his time, because of this person, this oh so noble and venerable older brother of his, who had apparently gone and learnt that he would not die from most poisons, and now went about recklessly trusting in Syspanian’s Blessing, quietly lowered his eyes.

 

If someone wished to test the limits of their patience, he thought, they might simply try being the Third Prince of Cyries. He felt like asking someone, anyone, to take his place for not a day but even just an hour. In the meantime, he would quite contentedly be the Second Prince of Secritia.

 

A little while later, whether it was because Plants had recovered, or because his blood pressure had risen, either way, from those smooth, beautifully-coloured red lips now flush with colour, a thin and youthful voice flowed out.

 

“…Hina.”

 

Kyrie had apparently gone and told Hina everything, how Kalian had warned him, ears drumming with it, not to drink the tea no matter what, to lift it as though about to drink and then set it back down, never to let it touch his lips. And Plants, the new-maple-leaf-coloured Crown Prince, had gone ahead and drained it clean.

 

Before long, Kalian watched with satisfaction as the word ‘understood’ tumbled endlessly from Plants’ lips under the watchful gaze of Hina’s eyes, and finished the last of his oatmeal and banana soup.

 

He could have eaten ten thick steaks without trouble, but Hina had said not to. Unlike the person currently being scolded over there, he was going to listen to Hina. So he endured, diligently and well.

 

After that, he watched with a satisfied expression as Hina ate her well-deserved meal, and when the green Crown Prince began polishing off a steak grilled in olive oil and seasoned with black salt, he drank an entire glass of water to compensate.

 

“Kyrie.”

 

“Yes, Your Highness.”

 

After dinner, after Hina had eaten the strawberry cake and strawberry ice cream as well, Kalian sent her off with instructions to go rest and then spoke.

 

“I feel as though Master has been away for quite long.”

 

“The Arcane Enclave and the blue-haired mad Mage are late.”

 

Plants answered on Kyrie’s behalf, still conspicuously eating strawberry cake.

 

There was no bracelet, no ring on Kalian’s wrists or hands now. Plants, who had listened very obediently to Hina’s instruction that Kalian rest and not use Mana for a while, had confiscated them all before dinner.

 

“Was there nothing else Lord Hertz said, besides that he was going to find the Arcane Enclave?”

 

“There wasn’t.”

 

“You’re lying.”

 

“I am not.”

 

“Please do not lie, Your Highness.”

 

Plants’ brow furrowed.

 

Kalian, who had decided to filter about half of what Plants said, spoke again.

 

“How does the Crown Prince of a nation produce lies to tell before a younger brother he claims is so frail?”

 

Plants took a long, cool drink of sparkling water filled with mint leaves. Naturally, it was a drink Kalian could not touch at all right now.

 

“I believe I heard that my very frail younger brother ought to be resting right now.”

 

Kalian’s brow furrowed at the sight of that pale, vague expression, one that seemed to be trying to recall exactly which room Hina was staying in. He was tempted to ask whether Plants had perhaps mentioned exactly who was responsible for the state he was currently in, but thought better of it.

 

“I am simply worried.”

 

“About whom.”

 

“About Master.”

 

“Quite the bark.”

 

[Ah. Syspanian!]

 

“…Then, could you meet those two Knights we saw at the coast, in my stead.”

 

“Understood.”

 

“Not now. When Master returns, together with Master.”

 

“Understood.”

 

“Please also look at the materials Lord Hertz has with him. I didn’t get to examine them properly in my haste, and I think I need to consider how they ought to be used.”

 

“Understood.”

 

“Kyrie says no one has been in or out of where Marquis Lyn is, but we can’t be certain, so keep checking that side as well, and—”

 

“Kalian.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Go.”

 

The world would not end for one or two days without Kalian.

 

With not only Allan but also Chase and Plants present, Kalian did not need to throw himself directly into the immediate matters. He knew, too, that having him walking around looking like this would be more of a hindrance to the others than anything else.

 

Delaying things a little would not cause a disaster. And there was no longer any fear of something going wrong and someone dying in the gaps between conversations. Because Allan was here.

 

“…Fine.”

 

In the end, Kalian nodded and rose from his seat.

 

“Kyrie.”

 

“Yes, Your Highness.”

 

Allan, having concluded his private meeting with Debeullan, had said it was all right to pass along that he intended to visit the Arcane Enclave, but had asked that Kyrie not go out of his way to tell Kalian about the poison in the tea.

 

The opposite of what Kalian had anticipated.

 

If Kalian were to learn that someone had slipped poison to Allan rather than Plants, it was clear that whatever last thin thread of reason remained in that pretty head of his would vanish entirely. He would immediately set out to catch and kill the brazen fools who had poisoned the tea.

 

“I’ll rest. Stay close for a bit.”

 

“Understood.”

 

“If anything comes up, wake me. Without fail.”

 

“Yes.”

 

And so, unable to imagine that someone might tamper with Plants’ teacup but never in the world dream of doing such a thing to Allan, Kalian walked into the bedroom with no further thoughts. And with Kyrie beside him, he fell again into deep sleep.

 

Plants watched Kalian stumble into the bedroom and fall asleep almost immediately, then rose from his seat.

 

*Click.*

 

He opened the door to Kalian’s room and stepped outside.

 

Thanks to the power of Syspanian’s Blessing and Hina’s healing, Plants’ wounds had nearly all recovered. It was roughly the condition of a day he and Kalian had sparred for rather too long, or perhaps the morning after staying up through the night sorting documents with the blue-haired mad Mage.

 

So now he was going to find out.

 

Who in the world had the audacity, the audacity that even Kalian had not foreseen, to put poison in a cup meant for Allan Manasil.

 

* * *

 

The little duckling pecking at the feed in her hand was quite endearing.

 

“Poison in a cup meant for Baron Manasil to drink. Mother and His Highness are both not that thoughtless. If either of them had been that dim, this country would have turned upside down long ago. Yet, to all appearances, it seems fine.”

 

“I am not suspecting Marquis Lyn. I am monitoring Marquis Lyn’s situation.”

 

“Yes. I understand. I know that in this country, if there’s anyone who could move the Nobles or secretly join hands with a force like Zeon, my mother is the most likely candidate. So, whether it’s to use her as a hostage or to protect her, I won’t concern myself with that for now… but.”

 

Arianneu had been handing over the feed piece by piece from the table, then held out a palmful towards the duck.

 

“What’s this one’s name? It’s so cute.”

 

She had been told to stay for a while at Louise’s villa with Eila, but had followed along stubbornly regardless. Then, the moment she entered the Arcane Enclave, she had started stroking Coco and offering feed, speaking as though seeing something marvellous.

 

Arsene had not been there, and a long journey lay ahead, and there had been no one in the Royal Palace to look after Coco. And so Euria, who had tucked the entire small house into a Mage’s pocket and set off for the forest, had fought her battle and returned. She now let out a long sigh.

 

Rachel and Eila, who were also present, said nothing, only watching Arianneu in silence. And Arsene, who had been responding in brief, opened and closed his mouth a few times before speaking.

 

“We are very late. Can you stop stalling and give me the documents.”

 

“Oh. Have I been found out?”

 

“It seemed as though the Young Lady does not trust me, so I accompanied her to the Enclave without a word. I have heard that the Mages of the Enclave belong to Crown Prince Chase’s faction. If this place is safe enough, please stop stalling and give me the documents. I will deliver them to Crown Prince Chase without any schemes.”

 

The documents Royal Consort Louise had handed over.

 

Arianneu had briefly shown them to Kalian at the villa, then had them returned to her. After that, she had been remarkably reluctant to hand them over again.

 

“The Nobles here must see what is written within in order to take Crown Prince Chase’s hand. Therefore…”

 

“It isn’t your side I don’t trust.”

 

Marquis Lyn was confined in the Royal Palace, and Chase, her betrothed, was unreachable. A Marquis’s daughter who could neither fight well nor use much Magic. And yet Arianneu, standing here in a place full of Kalian’s people, held Arsene’s gaze without shrinking.

 

“To Kalian—”

 

The moment Arianneu uttered those words, a wave of cold killing intent flowed from the blue-haired Mage standing before her, then subsided.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I misspoke.”

 

“Yes. I also misspoke.”

 

Rather than explain that she and Kalian had agreed to address each other by name, Arianneu offered a light apology and continued.

 

“I asked Prince Kalian not to come here. And yet he arrived with ‘that’ Crown Prince Plants, and the people who command Cyries’s army, and the head of Cyries’s Arcane Enclave. Then, he brought that supposedly remarkable Archmage of yours as well. The moment they arrived, they were swept into great incidents, and the Nobles who had been slowly coming around were unsettled again. In the end, I was told that even the Royal Consort nearly died. And you want me to trust Prince Kalian and hand over the Royal Consort’s documents to you? In my right mind?”

 

Arsene, who was considerably unhinged but by no means without reason, was briefly silent. What Arianneu had said did not strike him as excessive, nor did her suspicion.

 

“I understand what the Young Lady is saying. Had Debeullan not reached out to His Highness and Lord Bern, we would not have come here either. But—”

 

“I’ll go back to the Royal Palace. I’ll deliver them directly to His Highness myself. Or else just let me leave. I’ll manage on my own.”

 

“Lady Lyn. We…”

 

Arsene, his face full of difficulty, opened his mouth again. And then, at that moment, it felt as though a dark shadow swept past from somewhere. And then…

 

*Thwack!*

 

Something came down hard. And Arianneu lost consciousness and crumpled to the floor.

 

*Thud!*

 

While everyone present reeled in confusion at the sight of the Marquis’s daughter collapsing, Eila moved swiftly, catching Arianneu before her head struck the floor, propping her against the sofa, and then took Arianneu’s bag and tossed it to Arsene.

 

“Take it.”

 

Kalian had said the documents were needed. Arianneu was not to die. No one had said anything about knocking her unconscious and retrieving the documents from her. So this was fine, was it not? Eila, thinking along these lines, wore a thoroughly serene expression.

 

She paid no mind whatsoever to how startled Arsene was, having just witnessed Kalian’s new subordinate lay out a foreign Marquis’s daughter before his very eyes.

 

“…Right. I… Thank you.”

 

[They say Secritia people are dreadful. It seems like they are right.]

 

* * *

 

One face she knew.

 

One face she did not.

 

The middle-aged woman, withdrawing the curious eyes she had fixed on the unfamiliar face, turned towards Chase and asked.

 

“Is Arianneu quite safe?”

 

“She is with Prince Kalian’s people.”

 

“She’s a child who doesn’t listen well. I worry greatly.”

 

“They are not dangerous people. I expect they will get along well.”

 

Too well, in fact. One had refused to hand over the documents and the other had struck her across the neck for it. But of course, no one here would know that.

 

Chase went on to relay the events of the present situation. Setting aside his private thoughts, he conveyed what had occurred, in order. The woman listened with occasional nods, then turned her gaze to Plants and inclined her head.

 

“Then you must be Prince Plants, Second Prince of Cyries. Is that correct?”

 

Plants responded in a low voice to the middle-aged woman offering an easy, unpretentious greeting.

 

“Crown Prince.”

 

“Ah. The title has changed in the meantime.”

 

Plants said nothing further, only nodding once.

 

Chase had deliberately refrained from mentioning Plants’ position as Crown Prince. Plants had asked him not to.

 

Marquis Regiane Lyn.

 

A woman with no white in her hair yet, the faintest lines upon her face, and eyes the same colour as Arianneu’s smiled, spoke.

 

“Congratulations. It is not a position you will be able to enjoy congratulations upon for long but please enjoy it for now.”

 

The remark carried a knowing quality, as though she were aware that he had taken the title without any real intention of going to Camilon. The corner of Plants’ mouth lifted slightly.

 

“You know well.”

 

“Does being confined mean one’s eyes, which watch the world, are also blinded?”

 

Kyrie had said that no one had come or gone from Marquis Lyn since last night until now. And so, the Marquis had clearly determined, from the single word ‘Crown Prince’ she had just learned, why Plants had ascended to that position. Which was to say she was someone who knew how to think.

 

“It was not I who gave poison to Baron Manasil. I have no such desire to leave this place. Well, it is not to the degree that I would do something like that. I think Your Highness did not come here with that as a concern, either.”

 

Plants closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again.

 

And Chase let out a deep sigh.

 

—Do you believe what she says?

 

—Rather than trusting Marquis Lyn completely, it is more that there is another detail that troubles me.

 

Having observed Chase and Marquis Lyn in silence for a while, Plants turned to Chase.

 

—Your fine Knight, I don’t see him here.

 

Taillan Kastrin.

 

Only now did he realise that the man who had always followed Chase was absent.