Chapter 22:
Chapter 22:
***
"Say it again."
Ethan's face sank colder than frost in the middle of winter. Jade rushed to the Duke's office and wondered countless times whether to tell him the news or not. Recalling that he had heard somewhere that it was better to be sold first, he eventually said it, but when he saw the Duke's reaction, he realized that something was wrong.
"Jade."
There was a great sense of pressure in the heavy, low-pitched voice. He could also see that his anger was overflowing even though it was invisible.
The Duke doesn't call me Sir Jade!
Jade said once more, trying to give strength to the corners of his eyes as tears were about to come out.
"Young Master Claude visited the Imperial Palace with Countess Millen..."
"......"
"On the way from the Rose Garden to Sernia Road"
"......"
"They happened to run into the First Prince who had come back after giving an audience to His Majesty..."
As soon as Jade finished speaking, there was a loud bang and the sound of a heavy chair falling backward. Ethan stood up from his seat and looked at Jade with a cool look.
"Urgh."
Jade grabbed his chest as if he were stabbed.
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"Even after seeing that, is Sir calmly coming to my office and posting a report?"
"Not, not calmly but I ran here in haste. However"
Ethan's eyes shone sharply in Jade's excuse, which was not an excuse at all.
"Sir, don't let even a single ant pass through the Sernia Road."
"......What? There are so many courtiers and nobles in the Imperial Palace, how can I do it!"
"Do it. If Sir wants to make up for the mistakes just now."
Ethan, who looked coldly, passed by Jade's side. Just by looking at his footsteps as he strode forward with a longer stride than usual, you could tell that Ethan had put down his composure for a while.
'Uarghh!'
Jade eventually screamed inside and pulled out a signal ball that he couldn't use several times a year. This was the moment when he had to use all the seeds that had been sowed in the Imperial Palace before his angry Master lost his temper and ran rampant.
"What a headache."
Ethan pressed his fingers against his throbbing head.
Today, the First Prince, who was told that he was temporarily deprived of his position as a prince, was insane. Even so, he had been receiving reports that his madness was getting worse.
'It's too early to deal with the First Prince now. The Second Prince and Third Prince will join forces to hold Ambrosia's leash.'
He agonized for a moment. The First Prince, who constantly tried to dig into Ambrosia's power, was annoying, but it was true that his existence alone was helpful by balancing the power of the princes. If the First Prince was completely overthrown here, Ambrosia would have no choice but to actively intervene in the issue of succession to the throne in the future. And it was something Ethan was constantly wary of.
If the eyes of the nobles were focused on Ethan instead of scratching each other, no matter how hard they try to keep it secret, Ambrosia's ugly power would be revealed to the world. And Ethan and Claude will become real monsters.
"......"
He inadvertently touched the ring that Sarah had given him as a habit. He remembered Sarah's mischievous smile, saying that it had temporarily allowed him to control his powers again. He remembered Claude, who was happy as if he had everything in the world just because he barely received a greeting.
"Haa."
Even though he knew it would be a headache, he wanted to get rid of the First Prince who was going crazy in front of Claude and Sarah. It was a choice that he would never make if he was the previous Duke.
He would wait for the right time by taking care of himself as much as possible and watching everything from behind. Even if someone was sacrificed and suffered in the process, it would have lost its meaning in front of Ambrosia's glory.
"......How dare you."
From far away, he could see the First Prince with his hair undone like a crazy person. And in front of him, Sarah was hugging Claude.
"My son..."
There was no warmth in the quiet voice. He was seeing red. In a moment when he had been suppressing himself, he let his anger overflow. Along with the breaking sound, the ring in Ethan's palm was shattered into pieces. As he unfolded his hand, pieces of broken ring fell down. Then, in Ethan's hands, dark red energy fluttered and disappeared as if it had been absorbed.
"Fu."
Ethan took a deep breath as he felt Sarah's mana breathe into his body.
***
Seeing Sarah's brightly blooming smile, the First Prince frowned greatly. The age of the First Prince was now over fifty. Even if he had normally succeeded to the throne, he was at the age where he should have watched the battle for succession, not the age to fight for succession. His appearance, once in the spotlight for being gorgeous, was also rusted by his continued despair. In the end, he even got an order from the Emperor to refrain from participating in foreign activities because he didn't want to see him.
"How dare you look at me and smile like that."
His blade reached the tip of Sarah's chin.
"How does it feel to be Countess? I haven't heard your thoughts yet."
"It is an indescribable joy to own a family. I hope that Your Highness will one day fully enjoy this joy as well."
"How dare you discuss the throne in front of me?"
The furious First Prince's blade pierced slowly into Sarah's pale, soft neck. With the sound of the skin ripping, red blood began to trickle down the neckline little by little.
"I can kill you right now. Do you think I can't do it?"
"Yes. Because the First Prince is weak."
To Sarah, the seizure of the First Prince was ridiculous. According to the Flower of Darkness, this was the time when the First Prince had completely lost the Emperor's trust.
From the mouth of the old Emperor who loved him the most, he must have been ordered to temporarily step down from his position as a prince, rest a little, and learn the world again. That was why he was going crazy like that. The unlucky prince, who was thirsty for the throne and went crazy by the side of the Emperor who did not pass him the throne. In Flower of Darkness, the First Prince, Kajzer de Crombell, was defined as such.
'There is no way that the Emperor's trust can be restored, so what could he do?'
While Sarah was struggling, blood flowing down her neck fell on Claude's cheek, who was trembling in her arms.
"Nan, Nanny Heuk!"
Claude's frightened eyes burst into tears. Sarah's palms, which were covering the child's eyes, quickly became damp.
'It's because of me. Nanny is in danger because of me'
It was because he ran around without looking ahead. Claude shook his body loudly and tried to escape Sarah's arms, but the more he did, the more she squeezed him into a tighter hug. The child knew that Sarah could not run away and ask for help because she was protecting himself. Still young and weak, he could not do anything for the nanny who was threatened with a sword.
'It's because she's next to me. That's why both my mother and my nanny became like this. I shouldn't have been born.'
In such a helpless situation, Claude's thoughts gradually turned for the worse. It was then that Claude could hear Sarah's voice in his head.
[Shh, calm down. Young Master Claude.]
"Nan, Nanny?"
[This is a magic that only Young Master Claude can hear my voice. Did you forget? I'm a magician. I'm a great one at that too.]
"Heuk, Nanny"
[So don't worry too much, Young Master Claude. I'm going to win anyway.]
So calm.
Claude shed tears again at Sarah's pleasant voice. Even in this situation, he was annoyed and angry that Sarah's voice contained laughter. He was so scared to think that there was nothing he could do, but the nanny didn't seem to mind. Nevertheless, he was relieved.
That's a relief. That's a relief. Because my nanny is a magician. I'm glad she's a very strong magician.
[Besides, look over there.]