Chapter 97
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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Chapter 97
I too was in poor spirits and had no interest in the banquet's offerings.
Then, the musical melody began to shift.
The High Priest, who had been conversing with Crown Prince Kiaros, widened his eyes slightly.
"Ah... It appears the dance music will begin soon."
He was right. This melody signaled that idle conversation should cease and preparations for dancing should commence.
"Haha, I shall take my leave now. Nothing matters more between men and women than the opening dance of a banquet."
The High Priest smiled warmly and disappeared.
He seemed to have understood the meaning behind Crown Prince Kiaros's earlier dismissal.
I watched the High Priest's retreating figure and swallowed hard.
'But since I've come this far... wouldn't they try to eliminate me as well?'
I saved the Crown Prince, seized control of the Scroll Department that had planted a spy, devastated the Ministry of Education that I'd been eyeing for so long....
How much of a thorn in the Gaejo Faction's side must I be?
'Especially today—I set a trap using me, only to fall into it myself. How vigilant they must be toward me now.'
Even if the Gaejo Faction was my target, they would likely try to eliminate me as well.
Because I was an irritant despite being the weakest.
'How terrifying. Just thinking about it makes my body tremble unbearably....'
I had to act first.
The ten days the High Priest would remain in the Imperial Palace.
During those ten days while he plotted to ensnare Crown Prince Kiaros and me, I had to strike preemptively.
"Ahem."
As I was lost in thought, Crown Prince Kiaros cleared his throat.
"Namia."
Until just before the banquet, I had assumed I would dance the opening dance with Kibon.
"Haven't you completed everything you needed to do at the banquet?"
When Crown Prince Kiaros asked, I nodded. The banquet had yielded unexpected results—I'd even obtained hints about the mastermind.
"Of course, the spy business must weigh on your mind, but there's nothing you need to do about it tonight."
Crown Prince Kiaros spoke with a slight smile.
Though he merely lifted the corners of his mouth, his beauty was so captivating it could bewitch the soul.
"For tonight, forget about the spy and enjoy yourself as you wish. You deserve it."
"Ah... Yes."
Golden hair that seemed to gather all the light in the banquet hall, warm yet cool crimson eyes.
Facing that sculpted visage, it felt as though only Crown Prince Kiaros and I existed in this banquet hall.
"Well... Um. According to the High Priest, the opening dance music will begin soon."
The opening dance... It was customary to dance with a partner.
That's why Victor had previously reserved, "I'll be second."
In truth, this was my first time attending a banquet. Wearing such a beautiful dress, having such a magnificent partner beside me.
'Ah, it seems His Highness the Crown Prince intends to ask me to dance.'
Since we were partners, it was only natural.
If I danced the opening dance with the Crown Prince, everyone would surely focus on us and shower us with praise. After all, Crown Prince Kiaros had never danced with any woman before.
But....
[Until tonight, forget about the spy and enjoy yourself however Namia Loapi wishes.]
I took a moment to breathe deeply.
What I wanted right now wasn't the first dance. It wasn't to show off my dress or jewelry at the banquet.
"Your Highness."
I stepped back slightly.
"As you said, it seems I've completed everything I needed to do at tonight's banquet. And it does seem fair that I have the right to do as I please for tonight."
"...Hmm?"
"Would it be alright if I left now?"
"What?"
"It's just...."
I spoke while gazing at Crown Prince Kiaros's flawlessly beautiful face.
"Just before the banquet, I received word that my secretary had fallen gravely ill."
Crown Prince Kiaros's expression stiffened slightly. His eyes wavered with profound bewilderment.
'No... did he really think I'd accept the first dance after rejecting his proposal? We're not even close, so what's with this self-consciousness?'
I found it somewhat absurd internally, but I continued respectfully.
"However, my secretary isn't the sort of person to break a promise so carelessly. Either he's a spy and has already gone into hiding, or he's truly so ill that he can't move at all... it must be one of the two."
"Well, um... that is...."
"If it's the former, I'd like to confirm it quickly. If it's the latter, I'm concerned and feel I should check on him. As an orphan and foreigner with no one else, I know better than anyone what it's like to suffer alone while ill."
"That, but... hmm."
"Yes. I understand perfectly well that it's quite dreadful for a superior to visit an employee's home on a day off."
I spoke calmly.
"However... today is also my secretary's birthday."
"Birthday?"
"Yes. It's listed on the personnel record card. To be ill on one's birthday and lie there groaning alone... it seems far too pitiful. I thought I'd stop by briefly with some warm stew."
Crown Prince Kiaros stammered for a moment, then asked haltingly.
"Do... do you know where that secretary lives?"
"Yes. The address is also on the personnel record card. He lives in a small house nearby."
"Ah, right. Yes, of course."
"Just in case, please assign one of the Ravens to accompany me. If I haven't returned after a certain amount of time, please raid the place immediately."
At my words, Crown Prince Kiaros nodded blankly.
Then he blinked and spoke.
"Right, yes. I'll go command the Ravens right now."
And he strode across the Banquet Hall faster than I did, heading out.
By the end, it almost looked like he was running.
* * *
Crown Prince Kiaros hurriedly rummaged through documents in the Crown Prince's Office.
Kibon Altes's personnel record card... a document he had hastily scribbled himself and manipulated to approve.
'Damn it.'
Birthday: November 2nd....
The date was scrawled as carelessly as the name and age, and of all days, it had to be today.
He hurriedly checked the address.
It seemed he'd designated one of the safe houses scattered throughout the Capital—the kind that intelligence agencies like the Ravens used to maintain secrecy—but he couldn't quite remember which one.
'Damn....'
Of all the options, it was the most dilapidated and ancient safe house, so decrepit that even the Ravens no longer used it.
But there was no time for further deliberation. He quickly changed his clothes and transformed into the appearance of Kibon.
Then he simply began to run. He had to move as fast as possible if he wanted to arrive before Namia Loapi.
'Is this right? Is this actually right?'
Crown Prince Kiaros remained confused even as he ran. But there was no helping it.
[Either she's a spy and has already gone into hiding, or she's genuinely so ill that she can't move at all... It has to be one or the other.]
If he wasn't lying in that safe house, he would inevitably be suspected of being a spy.
Of course, a fundamental question had arisen.
Wasn't Namia Loapi a spy? Did she truly have no connection to the Gaejo Faction?
'Catching the Minister of Education alone... there does seem to be a connection, but when I think about it carefully, it feels somewhat out of place.'
Catching Riedan was one thing. The inventory scrolls really were strange, after all.
But suddenly implicating the Minister of Education was rather surprising.
'But... is this really right?'
Crown Prince Kiaros arrived at the desolate safe house, which looked as though it might collapse at any moment, and barely managed to catch his breath.
Fortunately, since there were people who took turns maintaining the house, the interior was clean.
'How did things come to this?'
Namia Loapi... There was certainly something suspicious about her.
That's why he'd wanted to monitor her even by changing his appearance.
And she had readily agreed. She said it was fine no matter what method he used to watch her.
But before he knew it, he'd grown fond of her....
[Being sick on her birthday and lying around groaning alone... it just seemed too pitiful. I thought I'd stop by briefly with some warm stew.]
Now, all of this felt like a betrayal of her, and guilt gnawed at him....
The beginning had seemed justified, but when he came to his senses, everything was in ruins.
"Damn...."
It was just as he squeezed his eyes shut. From outside the door came Namia Loapi's voice, tinged with a sigh.
"For heaven's sake, there's not even a doorbell here."
Knock, knock—a careful rapping sound echoed.
"Kibon? Are you in there?"
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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