RAMHM Chapter 28

Dark clouds hung over the capital today. An ominous sky looking ready to strike lightning any moment. The precarious sky—neither clearly morning nor afternoon—resembled Rhodness's own heart.

'Why do you like Adrienne?'

Remembering Bliea speaking with Adrienne's identical eyes yet a completely different voice brought a headache. The headache had many causes. Since coming to the capital, Rhodness hadn't spent a single day without drinking, and if he didn't fall asleep as if collapsing, he spent most days awake in a mad state. Rhodness swept trembling hands over the letters—the only neat things on his cluttered office desk.

「Thanks to you, I passed my Ellaconian exam for the first time, An.」

「I tried that medicine you mentioned before, and breathing was much easier. Thank you, An.」

「Bianca said Father wants to match me with His Highness the Crown Prince. Since you attend the Royal Academy, you must have seen him? Though everyone wears masks, so maybe you don't know. The assassination risk means you can't even make proper friends at the Royal Academy. Attending classes and socializing with people whose faces you don't know... Ah, but we're different, of course. I truly consider you a good friend.」

「Today I felt like I'd collapse during class, so I spent hours in the recovery room. My health seems worse lately. Sophia said no one would take a weakling like me. Is that really true?」

「Sorry for saying such foolish things. I hate hearing that I can't do anything alone. I worked really hard on this assignment, so I want to show you that I got an A+. Wouldn't that make academy life more enjoyable for you too? You said you had no dreams, An. I think you'd make a good teacher. What do you think?」

'Adrienne couldn't do anything. She barely entered the academy but didn't even graduate. Using poor health as an excuse, she just lay at home wasting medicine...'

That woman is not Adrienne. Rhodness forced himself to ignore Bliea Acacia's handwriting and thought so. Adrienne didn't belittle others—especially herself. She was someone who acknowledged her shortcomings and tried to learn.

It made no sense anyway. Whenever he glimpsed Adrienne in Novian's mistress, he sank into deep self-loathing. If Adrienne truly died... if she really wasn't in this world anymore, he absolutely must not be mistaken. It wouldn't be courtesy toward Adrienne—or toward that mistress either.

'Courtesy toward Novian's mistress.'

Rhodness laughed self-deprecatingly at the word "courtesy" he'd conjured himself. Then he pulled a navy quill pen from his breast. Worn slightly from constant handling but still looking new. The quill pen Adrienne had left behind when he'd first met her in the library between the Royal Academy and the Academy. A trivial yet precious thing he couldn't return or discard, keeping it close. Wasn't it just like his heart? Something Adrienne had discarded and never sought again.

Knock knock.

"Your Highness!"

"......"

Neil, accustomed to Rhodness not answering, entered the office reeking of alcohol and cigar smoke, carrying a stack of documents. Rhodness smoothed away his crumpling expression. Neil pretended not to notice as he approached and carefully set down the documents.

"His Imperial Majesty sent another message for you to come to the main palace."

"...I said I don't want to take on any assignments for the time being."

"You can just toss those words at me and be done with it, but on this end, I have to submit written reasons to His Imperial Majesty following the five Ws and one H."

"...Neil, since when did your tongue grow so long?"

Red eyes flashed like warning lights in the dark office on this overcast day, blinking slowly. As if he might leap up any moment to kick shins or order headbutting. Neil avoided that gaze and sent his eyes somewhere into empty air.

"My tongue was always long, but you kept telling me to shut up, so I just pretended it was short."

"You've grown lax now that you're not on the battlefield."

Hah. Neil bit his lips together and forced a smile. But they couldn't keep ignoring the Emperor's orders forever. Without all those past military accomplishments, even Rhodness defying the Emperor this much would be a miracle.

"It's an imperial command."

Neil then placed a single sheet of paper from atop the document stack onto Adrienne's letters. Rhodness picked it up, his eyes slowly scanning the paper. His skimming gaze was utterly impassive.

"I think he's summoning you about that incident this time."

"Speak clearly."

"The disappearance of Baroness Kuroseida."

"Who's that?"

Neil lost words for a moment. Then he approached the indifferent Rhodness and lowered his body.

"...Don't get so close."

"The Emperor's mistress."

"!"

Neil's expression remained calm as he whispered low and stepped back, but Rhodness's face showed slight shock. Then the suppressed twisted expression surfaced, and his handsome brow crumpled.

"...A disgrace to the imperial family."

"Your Highness!"

"Mother passed away, and he established a new Empress—so why covet another's wife? This country is wrong, deeply wrong."

Righteous words flowing from the sensual lips of the prince called a rake. Neil stared strangely at Rhodness's pale face before quickly collecting himself and opening his mouth.

"That's not the important thing—that lady has disappeared in the middle of the capital right now!"

"......"

Rhodness picked up the paper as if handling filthy refuse and tossed it before Neil. As the paper fluttered through heavy air and fell at his feet, Neil spoke heavily.

"This is very old business. You have no interest in such matters and closed your ears on the frontier, which is why you're learning so late."

"I don't know what the people around him were doing instead of stopping him."

"Who does His Imperial Majesty have around him? Don't say His Highness the Crown Prince."

That man was the very one who'd recommended the new Empress, and if the Emperor wished, would present even a just-married bride as a mistress, like it or not. Neil muttered while recalling the Crown Prince—called Ronteaux's saint—with his kind face obedient to the Emperor. He couldn't imagine the Crown Prince arguing with the Emperor with that docile face.

"His Majesty said he doesn't want to be embarrassed at this Crown Prince's birthday celebration, so don't show your displeasure either."

Rhodness's face darkened.

"Anyway, you're the only one His Imperial Majesty trusts and can assign to this sort of thing, so even if you hate it, you'll be summoned somehow."

"......"

"...Ahem, ahem! Isn't that quill pen the one you'd take out whenever you were alone? Did a woman give it to you? If a man gave it and you stared at it like that even on the battlefield, that'd be rather creepy."

Neil clowned around tactfully as Rhodness's expression grew even darker.

"...Stop babbling and get out."

"I was leaving anyway."

Neil muttered boldly but quickly fled his office like an arrow. He didn't want his shins kicked. As soon as the office door closed, Rhodness irritably shoved away the document stack Neil had brought. Glaring at the papers tumbling with a whoosh as if they were his enemy, Rhodness ground his teeth.

"Mistress?"

'I'm Novian Trovika's mistress.'

Again. Again that woman's words surfaced. If that woman were Adrienne, she wouldn't have declared it so brazenly. Wouldn't have said so shamelessly that she was the one who hurt Adrienne's heart, not knowing any shame. Wouldn't have calmly mentioned attending a ball with Novian Trovika.

Their faces resembled each other that much—why couldn't their handwriting resemble each other too? If one wanted to mimic it, one could deliberately do so.

Rhodness looked down at Adrienne's quill pen still gripped in his hand, with eyes of suddenly surging fury. Bliea Acacia. Did Adrienne know about that mistress's existence?

If that woman had any involvement whatsoever in Adrienne's death, he'd behead her without a moment's hesitation. Strength entered Rhodness's long, well-shaped throat, and thick veins protruded. Father's mistress. Novian's mistress. Mistress. Mistress. Damned mistress.

He couldn't understand—didn't want to understand—both his father who kept a mistress and Novian Trovika.

'...Then will Your Highness go to the celebration with me?'

Audacious thing. A suspicious and audacious woman he wouldn't have associated with if not to confirm Adrienne's body. He'd keep her close and monitor her so she could never insult Adrienne again.

Crown Prince Bardenaldo's birthday celebration opened grandly. Doris scanned the vast Atilchard Hall searching for Rhodness. Her first love. She'd begged her father, Duke Castagna, to let her marry the beautiful Rhodness, but he hadn't budged.

'The ominous prince.'

Unlike Crown Prince Bardenaldo—called a saint despite coming from the same womb—Rhodness was called that. He was a somewhat 'special' case. Rather than the 'sapphire blue' eyes all royals possessed, he had red eyes like beast's blood.

Of course, young Doris had loved even that helplessly. The color resembling savage blood looked to Doris like the most beautiful and sensual light in the world when in Rhodness's eyes. Beauty so dangerous it made her want him more.

"Uncle, I heard Father assigned Roan a major responsibility this time."

Bardenaldo—serving as Doris's faithful arm rest—asked Novian, who'd arrived early and stood watching from behind.

"Yes."

"I thought after wandering battlefields, he'd finally come to the capital and visit nice places with this elder brother, but he's taking on another troublesome task... I should speak to Father."

"About what?"

"To remove him from that headache. Roan has accumulated countless achievements already—does he need to be drafted for minor matters too?"

Bardenaldo smiled while responding to nobles bowing respectfully from a distance, not forgetting to look worried. This was the third women's disappearance in the capital.

First a nameless, lowly woman from the back alleys, then a commoner who'd lived virtuously, now a noblewoman from an aristocratic family. The entire noble society had risen up demanding the Emperor resolve the situation after the noblewoman's disappearance, and finally the Emperor ordered Second Prince Rhodness—just returned—to investigate. It showed renewed trust in Rhodness over the actively functioning capital guard.

"Whether it's minor or not, we'll have to see, but His Imperial Majesty wishes it."

"Father needs to use Roan for more important matters."

After briefly observing Bardenaldo's worried face, Novian felt his neck stiffen at the bell announcing entry and the herald's voice ringing out.

"His Highness Second Prince Rhodness and... Ah, Countess Acacia entering!"

Novian's eyes—quietly watching whoever entered—widened, and the Crown Prince's and Doris's gazes following his attention also turned toward the entrance. Though brief, small commotion arose in the area.

At the beautiful imperial problem child's appearance alongside the dazzling beauty, everyone gaped up at them.