Well, for now, the Romero Palace Escape Plan was a success!
“Ow.”
– Rustle, rustle!
I let out a weird noise and rolled around the soft hay. I managed to fall on my back so that Demy and Tithé, who were tied to my stomach, were not crushed. Percy, who had been my wing, quickly turned back into a chimney bird and dug into my chest. I could smell the scent of the savory and wonderful Aightz Village from the pile of hay. I petted the little troublemakers and chuckled.
‘You guys worked so hard. Thanks for helping me.’
“Then I’ll be on my way. I’m sure you saw it already, but I have a painting to deliver to the Empress Palace as well! It’s a present for the Grand Celebration, so shouldn’t we deliver it early?”
“Oh yeah, okay.”
I heard Joanne’s odd voice from the coachman’s seat. The Romero guards waved goodbye to her. I had no idea what kind of painting she drew, but everybody who looked under the white cloth dropped their jaws in shock. I covered my mouth to stop myself from laughing.
‘Screeech, boom!’ Laying down on the roof made the sound of the luggage cart closing shake my whole body. The carriage then quickly set out. The black early morning sky slowly started to move to the side.
I then decided to check next to me. Christelle happened to be looking at me as well.
“Hehehe.”
“Haha.”
Her pink hair was messy as she laughed. We had not made it through the main gate of the Imperial Palace yet but it felt nice to know that we made it through one major obstacle.
‘Shh.’ Sir Johann flew over silently and put his index finger against his lips.
He and the red pandas looked amused as well. We just had to safely move on to the next step of the operation. I immediately turned to look at the other side.
– Clack, clack.
“……”
“……”
The Imperial Crown Prince was sleeping there like an ill-fated artwork. I could see his shoulder that was buried into the hay as well as his sculpture-like chinline. I felt sorry that we were doing something like this to him in the cold weather. I slowly rolled my body and rummaged through his bag. The way there was a handkerchief and a towel made it pretty clear that David had been the one to pack this. I pulled out a long jacket and covered him with it before piling up a bunch of hay over his abs in case he was still cold. I knew he had the fire attribute, I still had to do what was right. If I abduct someone else’s precious child and then allow him to catch a cold, I would not be able to face the two adults.
“If he died……”
“Excuse me?” I gasped after hearing some scary mumbling behind me. Christelle smiled brightly when I made eye contact with her.
“I said it would be warmer if he dressed in leather.”
“Ah, yes. That is true.” I nodded my head and looked back at crown prince Cédric.
‘But he sure is sleeping deeply. I guess he was very tired. Wasn’t he usually extremely sensitive? I feel like he would have woken up if I carried him, so I guess he felt more comfortable with Christelle.’
*
– Chirp chirp chirp, chirp chirp!
“Mm.”
It had been a while for this sort of morning. Frédérique Riester woke up feeling the warm sunlight and the cheerful sounds of the birds. The sword master’s body was as light as a feather after getting a good night’s sleep. She could sense the attendants in the next room preparing her coffee and a simple breakfast.
She let out a deep stretch and stood up. The smell of fresh-baked bread and the morning air mixed together to create a relaxing feeling. It was different from her normal schedule of waking up extremely early and receiving reports about the Imperial Affairs before her meal. The bedroom she could see beyond the curtains of her bed was decorated in gold and purple. Her side table had a purple tulip vase and a card basket for the Grand Celebration. She couldn’t help but chuckle. She liked this year’s Grand Celebration of the Advent of the Almighty God very much.
“Laura.”
– Ring ring……
The Empress brushed her silver hair back and rang the bell. She left her messy pajamas alone. It seemed to be past 9am, so she needed to receive a basic report despite it being a holiday. The morning would be gone if she received her morning attending and finished her meal. She needed to meet with the little kids of the family for the Grand Celebration and give them plenty of allowance, but after that, maybe she would take some time to do some reading.
‘And then a nice meal with my son for dinner sounds perfect. Maybe I can even talk to him about finding a soulmate.’
– Knock knock.
“Come in,” he ordered with her husky voice.
A familiar silhouette opened the door and pulled open the curtains. Chhhh! Frédérique scowled out of reflex. She wondered if she was not fully awake yet.
“……I called for the Chief of Staff.”
“You don’t like me?” A neatly-dressed Aurélie Boutier sat on the edge of her bed. She seemed to have come ready to do this as she had the Empress’s casual clothes and a towel in her hands. The cart behind her had a golden basin and all sorts of toiletries.
Frédérique scoffed in disbelief. This year’s Grand Celebration was not the first one, but her Religious Partner had been quite sweet to her both yesterday and today. She had no reason to decline the holiest care in the entire Empire. However, she felt something was off. The Empress grumbled the entire time the Cardinal helped her with getting ready.
“I won’t get angry so tell me the truth.”
“About what?”
“There is something you’ve been hiding since yesterday.”
“I won’t tell you because you will find out soon enough.” Aurélie used the towel to cover the Empress’s whole face and laughed.
The Empress scowled her pretty eyebrows and pushed the towel away. Her wet hair smelled like lilies of the valley. The Cardinal just smiled suspiciously even while changing the Empress and did not say anything useful. Frédérique violently buttoned her clothes and almost barked.
“Are you planning on assassinating me or something?”
“Oh my, so scary.”
“Even I don’t know how I will be if you keep this up. You still have your soul blocked off.”
“Please hold back. There will be children here today.”
Whether it was curiosity or interest, Frédérique was not someone who was very patient. It made sense since she lived almost 50 years without needing to be patient. Anything she was curious about was resolved quickly in front of her eyes, and the late Empress, Céline Riester, had taught her that that was the right thing. The only reason she was being patient right now was because the other person was ‘Adam.’ If she simply followed the impulses of her bloodline, she would have tied her soulmate against the bedroom pillars a long time ago.
– Knock knock, click.
“Laura?”
“Yes, your Majesty. Have you been well all night, your Majesty? Where would you like me to set up your breakfast?” Her loyal Chief of Staff finally appeared. She naturally did not get surprised seeing Aurélie there and bowed. The Empress motioned with her chin.
“Good morning. I’ll eat here today. What about you?”
“I ate before coming here. I’ll just have some coffee,” he Cardinal answered warmly.
“As you command, your Eminence.” As soon as Laura said that, the attendants of the Empress Palace silently walked in and prepared the meal. The smell of warm soup, fresh vegetables, and sweet fruit filled the room one after the other. Some of them opened the long curtains and let some air flow into the room.
Once the two of them sat down at the table, Laura poured some coffee and respectfully started to speak. “Baroness Joanne de Haas, who is currently staying in Juliette Palace, has supposedly offered up a painting to you to celebrate the Grand Celebration, your Majesty. We received news that a carriage came by very early this morning with it.”
“Hoooo.” Frédérique showed her interest as she picked up her utensils. She asked to see it right away and two attendants brought over a canvas covered in white cloth. The staff placing the plates on the table peeked their heads as well.
‘Haade. O. Jansen,’ the genius artist, was now even more famous under her real name. Lately, the Empire’s Beau Monde had been passionately consuming Joanne’s tragic family tale, her peculiar way of dressing, and even her surprising stupidity at all things noble. When someone had the title of artist by their name, everything they did seemed to look marvelous. Even the relationship with the troublemakers was widely exaggerated as it got spread, so nothing else needed to be said. To commission a piece of art from Joanne required someone to wait at least a year even after getting on the waiting list, and the Pair de Riester were no exception. It was because her number 1 was always Prince Jesse Venetiaan. To be more specific, she claimed that drawing in a location designated by him was her ‘true job.’ Joanne’s stubborn nature did not bend even after recovering her identity as a noble and having her family’s past sins pardoned.
That was why this was definitely an unexpected present. She had not restored the House of Haas expecting a present like this, but……
“I guess good things happen in many different ways for righting the wrongs.”
“Hahahaha.” Everybody calmly laughed at the Empress’s joke.
Aurélie just calmly sipped her coffee. Laura motioned and an attendant quickly pulled the cloth off. Chh!
“Wow!” Gasps of admiration filled the room. Clap, clap, clap! There were quiet cheers as well.
“It is magnificent, your Majesty. You’ve received a precious portrait of your son.”
“Congratulations, your Majesty. May the Almighty God be happy with everything you do.”
“My goodness. I really feel like I am in the desert.”
The attendants who wanted to see the painting closer rolled their feet. The Chief of Staff looked delighted as well.
Some people showed up to greet the Empress for the Grand Celebration at this time as well. Frédérique quietly looked at the painting through all of that noise. The miraculous harmony of rough brush work and feather-like delicate details.
“……”
The painting looked so vivid that she felt like she could feel the heat of the desert and smell the sand. The background was a sunset over the desert. Her son Cédric was riding a camel, wearing a colorful gown and turban, as he headed off for an adventure. By his side were similarly dressed Prince Jesse and the little bubble girl. The saddle had the Sword of Wisdom from the Flaming Star, a whip, as well as a bow and a spear. The Prince’s fingertip was pointing at the mirage in the distance but the little bubble seemed to be asking him to go in a different direction. She felt like she could hear their voices.
However, a different voice echoed in her mind at that moment.
‘The trouble we caused, if you think about it, they weren’t all bad.’
Her Adam… A sharp tingle went down her spine.
‘Wouldn’t it be okay for his Royal Highness and all of us to go in your place?’
This enlightenment spread as quickly as dye spilled on a canvas.
“……Aurélie.”
“Yeah.”
The Empress turned her red eyes to look at her soulmate. The Cardinal was smiling sweetly.
Seeing her made her hungry and stiff. It had been a while since she felt this tingling sensation. She knew she should not laugh, but her lips instinctively started curling up. Frédérique’s eyes sparkled like a wild beast right before it charged.
She had seen her soulmate gaze like this for a long time. She slowly released the seal on her soul. She did it extremely slowly so that her one and only partner would drown in longing.
“Where is my son?”
“Where his heart wants to be,” the Cardinal responded, almost in a song.
– Slam!
“Your Majesty.”
“Please show mercy, your Majesty!”
The Empress immediately stood up. Her chair fell back and her utensils dropped. Laura urgently bowed and waited for an Imperial Decree. The confused attendants all fell to the ground and held their breaths.
What was going on all of a sudden?
“Immediately confine the Cardinal to my bedroom and search for the crown prince. Send thirty of our best military horses toward the border along with Hervé Duhem. Capture the prince and the little bubble girl alive as well. It looks like I won’t need any attending to for breakfast.”
“As you command, your Majesty.”
“Also bring over the Chief Attendants of Romero and Juliette. I also want to know the locations of François Duhem and the Imperial Instructor.”
“Y, yes, your Majesty!” Laura calmly answered while the rest of the attendants were pale as they walked out of the room backwards.
The Empress turned her head and looked at the Cardinal before the door even closed. She received a bitter smile back.
“Sorry, Yves. But I’m sure the children have thought……”
“Your mouth.”
It meant that she would not hear anything else. The Empress charged at her as if she was an animal that got off her leash. Aurélie’s body was instantly raised into the air.
*
Inside the dark luggage carriage.
“As such, there will be an inspection!”
“Open up all luggage areas to the Imperial Guard……”
“Your highness.” Someone warmly whispered and shook my shoulder. I could hear a scary voice echoing on the other side of the thin wall.
“Oo.” I quietly groaned and opened my eyes. We worked hard all night escaping the Imperial Palace, and I had been awake the whole time since we safely escaped, so I had no idea when I fell asleep. My heart sank at my own lack of awareness as I sat up in the haystack.
‘Until we meet up with the Rambouillet caravan, no… I shouldn’t fall asleep until we make it into the neutral region.’
“I’m sorry. I must have fallen asleep.”
“That’s okay, Dame Christelle and the divine beasts have rested as well. But the situation is a bit bad.”
– Pipo
It was Sir Johann and Percy who woke me up. I could see the crown prince laying peacefully beyond the Holy Knight’s shoulder. Christelle was sleepily crawling toward us.
Seeing her made the memories of a few hours ago flash clearly in my mind. We successfully infiltrated the Empress Palace after getting away from Romero Palace, put down another load (Joanne’s painting), and mixed with the other carriages as we left through the side gate. There had been many moments of danger, but we successfully got through all of them. It was thanks to our coachman, Joanne’s acting, sometimes gusts of wind created by Sir Johann, and even Tithé pretending to be a dog. We even got on the wrong road and almost ended up at the western regional portal, but……
‘That one was so scary so let’s not think about it.’
“Has the carriage stopped? Have we arrived at the eastern regional portal?” I whispered and asked. We were going to arrive at the portal, steal an empty carriage from the public parking, and arrive at the border. We would let Joanne, who worked hard all nigh,t to get some rest and take turns at the reins. That was the plan, but… Everything had been going smoothly until I fell asleep.
“To be specific, we are near the portal. The Imperial Guard is blocking the way checking all carriages. They seem to be looking for us.”
“Excuse me?” Christelle’s jaw dropped. The sleepiness completely disappeared from her eyes. I was so astonished that my mouth opened and closed like a goldfish. Only the divine beasts who were stuck to the warm crown prince had no idea what was going on.
Sir Johann smiled bitterly and continued to speak. “I think we got too delayed figuring out the direction. Her Majesty must have figured it out.”
“My goodness.”
“Then is Captain Hervé out there?” I urgently asked. That was the only thought that came to mind. But Sir Johann scolded me with a serious look on his face.
“Yes, your highness. But you cannot put such a burden on him as well. Vice Captain Élisabeth already helped us out so much late last night.”
“…You are right. I was too narrow-minded.”
We couldn’t ask someone who came with an official Imperial Decree to go against her Majesty’s orders and to pretend as if he didn’t see us. His loyalty being questioned in that tragedy last December was enough. I petted Percy and clenched and opened my fists.
Christelle couldn’t handle the nervousness and asked, ‘Should we abduct Captain Duhem as well?’ While she asked such a silly question…
– Bang bang bang!
Flinch! The carriage door loudly banged. Our gazes all gathered to one spot. The morning sun was coming in through the gap in the door. The loud voice of the Imperial Guard rammed against my ears.
“Coachman! We are going to inspect the luggage per her Majesty’s orders!”
—
Translator’s Comments
Uh oh!