“Who prepared this?”

Cale responded brightly to Alberu who asked with a stiff expression on his face.

“I did, your highness!”

It was so bright it almost seemed radiant.

Cale continued speaking to Alberu who was unable to understand this situation at all.

“The Chief of Staff left me in charge of this palace, so I plan on working hard to meet his expectations. Your highness.”

He then smiled with a clueless look on his face as if he didn’t know anything.

The attendants from the king’s kitchen seemed to be at a loss for words while looking at that face.

‘I like this face too.’

It was a strong weapon that Cale had never considered. This kind of look was useful too.

“Ha!”

Alberu scoffed as if he finally understood before laughing as he sat down at the table. He then picked up his fork.

Peek.

He peeked toward Cale before he started eating and mumbled to himself.

“This is going to make the Chief of Staff go crazy.”

He considered a few things in his mind before nonchalantly commenting to Cale while keeping his gaze on the food.

“Do whatever you want.”

Alberu didn’t specify what this attendant was to do as he pleased. However, he couldn’t help but look at the attendant after hearing this response.

“Yes, your highness! I will do my job.”

Alberu couldn’t tell for a moment whether this punk knew something as he responded or was responding without knowing anything.

He stared at Cale with an odd expression on his face for a while before turning away and quietly mumbling.

“It’s been so long since I saw someone doing their job.”

“Excuse me?”

Alberu shook his head toward Cale who had not heard what he just mumbled. He had not said it for Cale to hear.

“It’s nothing.”

Cale started speaking again at that moment. He spoke quickly, as if something suddenly came to his mind.

“Ah, your royal highness.” (TL: So, Korean has different ways you can address royalty and it hasn’t made a difference in the novel until now, but it does right here, so that’s why it is royal highness here versus highness for Alberu everywhere else)

The atmosphere sank at that moment.

It was the middle of spring. However, an extremely scary silence descended upon this warm room and made it feel quite cold.

Your royal highness.

That was a title only for the crown prince.

Although it might be different externally, there was nobody internally in the palace who called Alberu his royal highness.

The silence was broken.

“Ah, your highness.”

The attendant called Alberu properly, as if he had done nothing weird.

Alberu’s eyes clouded over at that moment.

‘It wasn’t a mistake.’

The attendant in front of Alberu was currently looking directly at him.

The kitchen attendants and royal servants who were behind the attendant could not see the look on the attendant’s face. That was why they looked astonished and were holding their breaths.

However, this attendant didn’t seem flustered at all.

Your royal highness.

He had not said that by accident.

He was simply making it sound as if it was an accident.

Alberu finally realized that the sharpness he had felt from this attendant for a moment earlier was his true self.

‘He’s hiding his true nature underneath this clueless face.’

He could not tell the true nature of this attendant.

‘Would you look at this? The Chief of Staff took a wrong step, no, he is going to walk right into a swamp.’

Alberu quietly observed the attendant who had called him. He made it look as if he never heard Cale call him ‘your royal highness’ in the first place. Cale added another comment after looking at Alberu’s calm face.

“There is no poison.”

“Gasp.”

One of the kitchen attendants who had his head slightly bowed urgently gasped.

“Pffft.”

Alberu chuckled once more.

He knew that as well.

He knew that there was no poison in this food.

It was because this food was not supposed to come to the First Prince Palace.

That was the reason Alberu had immediately picked up the fork.

He calmly responded to the attendant.

“Get out.”

It was another order to get out.

However, the tone wasn’t as sharp as last time. In fact, it was just stoic without any emotion.

“Please summon me whenever you need me, your highness.”

Cale headed out the door after making that comment. The kitchen attendants and royal servants from the king’s palace hurriedly followed behind him.

Click.

The door closed and the most senior of the kitchen attendants quickly caught up to the leisurely walking Cale.

“What is the meaning of this?!”

He would normally talk down to a newbie like Cale, but was paying attention to his tone because he heard that this attendant was in charge of the First Prince Palace.

Cale answered brightly to the kitchen attendant who could not hide his shock, anger, and anxiety.

“I just did my job?”

“What?! You might not know the situation in the palace-”

“Enough.”

Cale raised his hand.

The attendant subconsciously flinched at Cale’s cold gaze.

“Please ask any questions to the Chief of Staff-nim. I was given the order to take care of the basic necessities of the First Prince Palace and have acted accordingly. You should be aware of it, sir. The basic necessities of a palace.”

The kitchen attendant naturally knew about the basic necessities of a palace as he had been working for a long time.

‘The Chief of Staff left such a thing to a newbie like this, and this guy is trying to get it all done without any issues?’

He couldn’t decide whether he could understand the situation or not.

“I must make my leave, as I am busy.”

The newbie in front of him walked away from him and the other attendants following behind him.

“Ah.”

Cale stopped for a moment and added on with the clueless smile on his face.

“Please take good care of the meal again for dinner. The meal should be balanced nutritionally as his highness is currently growing.”

He then hurried out of the palace as if he was late for something.

“Ho.”

The senior kitchen attendant was full of disbelief but could not say anything.

The first prince was also a prince and he was not in a position to be able to say no to this.

However…

‘…He’s not just a clueless punk.’

He instantly realized that the newbie who walked away was no joke.

‘How the heck are things proceeding?’

He got a headache.

“What should we do?”

He brusquely responded to his junior’s question.

“What else? Inform the kitchen that we need to get dinner ready as well and that it is for the First Prince Palace.”

“Won’t they get angry at us?”

“Why would they get angry at us?”

The kitchen attendant had a crooked smile on his face.

“We did nothing wrong. I’m sure either the Chief of Staff-nim who left everything to this newbie or the Sous chef-nim who did not confirm the details will take care of it. It is not our issue.”

“Ah.”

He peeked at the attendants looking relieved and quickly started moving.

‘I need to look into it.’

He needed to figure out the lay of things within the royal palace right now.

He decided to look into this intangible flow of things as he had this unknown sense of dread.

Cale, who had no idea about this and would definitely not care about it even if he did know, walked out of the palace.

“Excuse me, attendant-nim!”

Cale heard someone stop him.

He turned his head to see the royal servant who had given him all sorts of information earlier in the day.

Once again, this was a Dark Elf mage who was using dye magic.

“Umm. Attendant-nim.”

He barely caught up to Cale and was catching his breath.

“Ah.”

However, Cale seemed to remember something and started speaking before the Dark Elf could say anything.

“New furniture, materials, and outfits will soon arrive. Please help me as I don’t have enough hands.”

“…Excuse me?”

The royal servant asked with a blank look on his face and Cale slightly tilted his head.

“Excuse me?”

Cale was asking if the royal servant had not heard him and the royal servant quickly shook his head.

“N, nothing sir. I heard what you said. You need help?”

“Yes I do.”

Cale sternly responded and asked the disguised Dark Elf.

“Did you need me for an urgent reason?”

Was it so urgent that he needed to stop Cale?

The implied meaning was easily delivered.

“No, it is not. I just wanted to chat for a bit.”

“Ah. Then let’s chat later. I am busy today.”

“Excuse me?”

“Goodbye.”

Cale walked away with a stern tone that did not fit his clueless face.

Cale needed to hurry right now.

“Should I avoid him for now?”

The Chief of Staff. He needed to avoid the Chief of Staff and the people in charge of the things he had caused.

“It’s going to be chaotic.”

‘There should be at least one place in the palace to hide.’

Cale looked forward to the chaos that would start with this lunch, and hurried to a spot where people would not be able to find him.

“Ho.”

The royal servant who was left alone watched Cale for a long time before lowering his head.

“…This is completely unexpected.”

The royal servant’s eyes sparkled sharply.

He looked down the path that Cale had walked down before slowly moving.

“…I need to report to Tasha-nim.”

The First Prince Palace had been quietly passing time as if it was dead.

However, that place was getting rowdy because of a single attendant.

‘We planned on quietly getting stronger, but…’

The Dark Elf disguised as a royal servant smirked.

“This isn’t bad either.”

* * *

“The sun is setting.”

Chew chew.

Cale was eating a pie he had swiped from the attendant’s cafeteria as he looked up at the sky.

The sky was red as the sun slowly started to hide.

“Today really…”

Cale thought about the day.

“It was the best.”

He had caused issues left and right during the morning and spent the afternoon hiding in a remote garden of the palace.

It was the first time he had rested like this for a long time.

He truly was an irresponsible attendant.

‘That is why the Chief of Staff should have a headache right now.’

He needed to create a major incident for the First Prince Palace at least once.

Shouldn’t the people who ignored the First Prince Palace all this time get anxious at least once?

“Hmm.”

Cale quickly finished the pie.

“Is it time to become Venion’s lackey?”

The moment the sun went down…

Things slowly turned dark for Cale.

It was time to go see Raon instead of Alberu Crossman now.

Cale’s eyes slowly closed.

He listened to his surroundings as he opened his eyes.

Clack clack.

A carriage was moving.

Cale had no questions as to where this carriage was headed.

‘It’s obviously headed toward Viscount Tolz’s territory.’

The secret villa by the cave where Raon was imprisoned… Venion Stan and his subordinates would be headed there right now.

Cale looked out the window. The sun had set, and night was slowly approaching.

“Hoooo.”

Cale’s eyes sparkled after taking a look around the carriage.

“I knew something seemed odd.”

Venion’s back alley subordinate’s right hand man’s right hand man.

Basically, this guy was Venion’s lackey and someone who would not be treated properly by the group from the March.

However, such a person was not riding in a luggage carriage nor a shabby or regular carriage.

The materials used for this carriage seemed quite sturdy and luxurious.

Cale was riding in such a carriage alone.

Well, Venion’s lackey was riding in this carriage alone.

“As I expected.”

Cale immediately realized the reason.

Cale could see the back of some knights’ heads as he looked out the window toward the coachman.

The knights driving the carriage… They were all Venion’s subordinates.

“I mean, they shouldn’t let others see these things.”

Cale’s gaze headed toward the boxes located across from him.

The boxes had no lids and were covered with cloth. The inside of a box was visible as a corner of the cloth had slipped.

“It’s full of all sorts of things.”

Venion Stan had a stealthy relationship with the back alleys of the Stan territory. What would such a bastard take to the Tolz viscounty?

Booze, gambling goods, etc. Items that would complicate things for me if other people saw. The things Venion enjoyed were all in this carriage.

‘That’s why he would leave such a thing to the right hand man of the back alley’s right hand man rather than leaving it to his knights.’ (TL: Saying right hand man repeated like this is so annoying. ENOUGH REPETITION AUTHOR)

He would expect this thug to protect this with his life.

“Pffft.”

Cale chuckled and slowly moved toward some of the boxes.

He made sure to keep his eyes on the knights in the coachman’s seat as well as the window.

“Hmm. It’s not here.”

He frowned.

“Ah.”

He thought about it for a moment before looking around.

“There’s no way a lackey moves around without it.”

It wasn’t as if this punk was working in a just and honest environment. For a bastard like him to this survive as the right hand man of the right hand man in the back alleys, as someone who would take care of all sorts of dirty deeds for Venion, he should have at least some of the things that Cale was looking for.

“Mm!”

Cale picked up a bag that was on the floor. This must belong to this bastard as he remembered seeing it last night.

He rummaged through the bag.

‘Bastards like this cherish their life the most- Found it.’

Cale found two small bottles wrapped tightly in this lackey bastard’s socks.

“Anybody would be able to tell that these are not good things.”

Why?

Cale took a small dagger out of his inner shirt pocket. There were some long needles wrapped in cloth as well.

Two small bottles of liquids…

One dagger and some long needles.

Furthermore, this Venion’s lackey was not very strong.

“It’s obviously poison.”

Bastards like this always had a last resort in order to protect themselves.

“Hmm.”

However, this bastard was still quite low on the totem pole.

There was no way he would have expensive or precious poisons on him. He didn’t have the ability to get such things.

“It must be sleeping poison or paralysis poison.”

It should be one of those two if he was fine just wrapping them in his socks.

Well, it might be a slightly stronger poison as well.

“I need to test it out once.”

He needed to figure out what kind of poison it was.

Cale thoroughly inspected the liquid inside the bottles.

‘I can gather information during the day.’

The Roan Kingdom’s palace. Finding information in there was not difficult if you knew how to go about it.

“Heh.”

Cale let out a chuckle. However, that smile quickly disappeared.

“How amazing.”

Cale was not tired at all despite not sleeping at all since last night.

In addition…

‘I guess the owners of these two bodies take care of things on their own while I’m in the other body.’

He was curious about how they went about getting things done but didn’t really want to find out.

He was simply amazed that he was feeling so refreshed. However, his body’s condition was not the only amazing thing.

‘They’re able to recreate his highness and Raon’s memories so well despite the two of them not participating in the test. How amazing.’

This test was different from the former tests that had shown Cale his past.

“Let’s not think that hard about it for now.’

Cale decided to focus on quickly completing these tests as that was his main goal.

He made sure to avoid the gazes of other people as he quickly got to work inside the carriage and headed for Raon’s cave.

* * *

How did things end up like this?

Cale had been thoroughly preparing things to smack Venion in the back when he greeted the dawn in the attendant’s body.

It had been a decently refreshing day until that point.

“You.”

Cale peeked at the spearhead that was pointed at his neck and then raised his head.

“What are you planning?”

Alberu Crossman. The young boy’s gaze was cold as he pointed the spear at Cale.

However, the tip of the spear was slightly shaking.

“Pffft.”

Cale subconsciously chuckled.

“You’re laughing right now?!”

Cale gently advised Alberu the moment Alberu frowned and shouted.

“Your highness. Your hand must not shake when you are pointing your weapon. You cannot show the enemy your fear.”

One step.

Alberu flinched and subconsciously took a step as Cale took one step forward.

Fifteen years old Alberu Crossman…

He looked intelligent, wise, and mature, but… He was still young, tender-hearted, and a child who could point his spear but could not stab it into a person.

‘I started moving early in the morning to work hard in my attendant job so how did it end up like this?’

Cale thought about the past half an hour or so as he held back a sigh.

—

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