Welcome To The Imperial Palace (16)

The royals seemed a little more sincere than the others.

Still, everyone appeared subtly relieved that a princess had been born instead of a prince.

Marquis Lennox and Count Istevna offered louder-than-usual praise to the Emperor.

The Emperor responded with a melting smile at his brothers’ congratulatory remarks.

The expressions of the princesses varied.

Though they were still the Emperor’s direct siblings, from now on they would be seen more as daughters of the former emperor than as siblings of the reigning one.

Their status shifted from being some of the highest-born royal women to something slightly less.

As of today, the most noble female royal was no longer one of them, but Princess Dorothea—the Emperor’s first daughter.

Pop!

As another round of drinks circled from the head table, fireworks burst outside.

It was a display to celebrate the princess’s birth.

Alicia looked up at the colorful bursts and then down at the glass in her hand.

“That’s not allowed.”

Before she could even lift the glass to her lips, a large hand took it away.

Reichardt snatched Alicia’s wine and downed it in one gulp.

“…Um, that was mine.”

Alicia belatedly realized her drink was gone and voiced her protest, but it was already too late.

“The celebration will end soon.”

Almost as if on cue, the Emperor thanked the royal family and signaled the end of the event.

Many urged him to stay and enjoy it longer, but he laughed and dismissed their requests.

Those who missed their chance with the Emperor turned their attention to Reichardt.

The moment the Emperor gave the command to withdraw, Reichardt gently hurried Alicia out of the hall.

Some eager nobles followed, but Reichardt ignored them and opened the carriage door, helping Alicia inside before boarding himself.

“Let’s go.”

Outside, the city was buzzing even in the late night, celebrating the princess’s birth.

“Your Grace. Outside, I believe that’s Princess Louise…”

Alicia, pushed into the carriage by Reichardt, looked out the window.

But the carriage had already departed on Reichardt’s order.

Not only Princess Louise but also Marquis Lennox and Princess Anri were approaching, looking for Reichardt’s carriage.

The curtain over the window suddenly dropped.

The abrupt darkness made Alicia blink and focus her sight.

Thanks to all the magical stones she had consumed in Tessen, Alicia had nearly recovered her abilities from hell.

“I have something to say.”

Reichardt whispered in a low voice.

His already-deep voice became rough when lowered further.

“Go ahead.”

Alicia relaxed the tension in her eyes and responded.

For some reason, she had a bad feeling.

“His Majesty must never learn of Alexi Tocqueville.”

A bad feeling never proved wrong.

“That’s not possible.”

Alicia responded surprisingly calmly in such an unexpected situation.

Her refusal was soft but firm.

Her face was so composed that one wouldn’t realize she had just rejected him.

“Alicia.”

“Your Grace.”

They called each other’s names.

Reichardt tried to meet her gaze, but Alicia shook her head.

They both started to speak at the same time and paused.

“You go first.”

Reichardt spoke with a pleading expression.

“Alexi Tocqueville will die in the end. You want His Majesty never to hear of him? That means you intend to kill him yourself. If Your Grace accuses him before the Emperor, then after hearing the whole situation, His Majesty will order his death. The result will be the same.”

What Alicia was saying was exactly what Reichardt had intended.

Alexi Tocqueville would die either way.

If so, it would be better for him to take care of it without ruining the Emperor’s good mood after meeting his first child.

The fact that the woman who gave birth to the child once had a lover—and that there was a man claiming to have courted one of the Emperor’s concubines—was deeply unpleasant.

“……”

Reichardt silently watched Alicia say everything he had wanted to say.

“I understand too, Your Grace. We can’t perfectly determine the truth behind Alexi Tocqueville’s claims. Even if we report it to His Majesty, the outcome may not differ much from what we already suspect.”

Reichardt fully agreed with Alicia’s words.

She continued, filling the silence.

“Did Maude Manners and Alexi Tocqueville have relations in the past? Maude will deny it. Alexi will insist it’s true. Maybe Maude will admit they briefly dated once. If she’s telling the truth, this will be terribly unfair to her. But whether they dated long ago, or he’s reading meaning into a meaningless gift she gave him, or even making outrageous claims over something stolen—if His Majesty finds out, she’ll be suspected. And Alexi Tocqueville will die.”

Even if they reported it to the Emperor, the situation wouldn’t be clear-cut.

“So,”

“So His Majesty must be the one to have him killed. He must suspect Maude Manners now, and that suspicion must lead to either proof of her innocence or the closing of any possible ambiguity.”

“Even if the outcome is the same?”

“We can’t be sure that we’re the only ones who know of Alexi Tocqueville’s claims. We mustn’t leave anything for others to exploit. We have to let the one person who should never be exploited be the one to learn it. Even if that means upsetting the Emperor, we can’t leave anything usable behind.”

Alicia spoke earnestly. Reichardt agreed and followed her reasoning.

“If the Chancellor’s opposing factions find out, they won’t let it slide. Even within the House of Manners, someone could try to use it.”

Alicia nodded emphatically at his words.

She was determined to eliminate every possible variable.

She couldn’t leave uncertainties hanging.

She intended to use every bit of what she knew.

Except one thing.

When it came to the birth of new life, even the tiniest uncertainty made her uneasy.

One small misstep could ruin everything.

Even as she praised herself for doing well so far, she still felt a lingering fear.

She had taken a risk by approaching the Empress and manipulating the situation around her.

Now she feared her interference might prevent something that was supposed to happen.

“Your Grace.”

Alicia called out to Reichardt with an earnest expression.

“I know.”

Reichardt replied reluctantly.

“When you report to His Majesty, you must look like the most pitiful person in the world.”

Alicia followed his averted gaze, speaking with all her might.

Reichardt’s face soured at her request.

He always seemed irritated whenever the topic of reporting came up.

It was probably because Alicia always insisted he make the request as miserably as possible, like he was confessing the greatest sin on earth.

“Understood.”

Reichardt answered curtly.

Alicia stepped back with a brightened face.

She gently patted his arm and smiled in relief. Reichardt watched her silently.

Their eyes met in the dark, and her faint smile deepened.

“You promised.”

At Alicia’s repeated reminder, Reichardt nodded.

“So you don’t know who that man really is.”

“I don’t.”

Alicia responded lightly to what seemed like a passing remark—then realized she’d walked right into a trap.

Her violet eyes stared at Reichardt in protest.

“How many more imperial nieces or nephews do you think will be born?”

Reichardt asked the question bluntly.

Alicia quickly swatted away his teasing words.

“The seasons haven’t even changed yet, Your Grace.”

She replied sulkily.

Reichardt responded just as lightly.

“So you do know.”

There was certainty in his voice.

This time, she had definitely fallen into his trap.

A long silence followed.

“…That’s not true.”

“You were too slow to answer.”

Reichardt spoke casually.

His tone was steady and low, but it was clear he was teasing her.

Alicia sealed her lips, determined not to get dragged in any further.

A wise choice, but it didn’t change the irritating outcome.

Reichardt’s quiet laughter filled the moving carriage.

To celebrate the birth of Princess Dorothea, the Emperor declared a three-day holiday.

The officials of the Imperial Palace took a brief rest.

The Emperor granted the Room of Glory within the main palace to the princess as her official residence.

The royal court and the concubines stirred uneasily.

Four wet nurses had already been assigned to Princess Dorothea.

However, no one had yet been appointed to supervise them or oversee the princess’s upbringing.

Until now, only the Emperor and Empress had private quarters within the main palace.

But with the granting of the Room of Glory to the Emperor’s first child, a third resident would now live within the main palace.

Whoever was chosen as the princess’s primary caretaker would become the person to remain the longest in the palace after the Emperor and Empress.

The concubines, ministers, and nobles all sharpened their senses.

On the last day of the holiday, Reichardt Tessen entered the Imperial Palace in the early morning.

The Emperor summoned him to the imperial study.

“You’ve come.”

The Emperor’s face, still glowing from Princess Dorothea’s birth, beamed with joy.

“Your Majesty, I have something to report.”

The Emperor’s smile faded at the formal tone.

He swept aside the papers spread out before him.

“Speak.”

His tone grew serious as he addressed Reichardt.

“Do you know of a man named Alexi Tocqueville?”

Alicia had emphasized again and again that Reichardt should look as pitiful as possible.

But as always, Reichardt spoke stiffly.

“I don’t recall.”

At the Emperor’s response, Reichardt pulled a handkerchief from his pocket.

He had prepared it in advance.

Maude Manners.

The handkerchief bore familiar initials.

Both the design and color were familiar to the Emperor—he had one quite like it himself.

“Grand Duke, bring Alexi Tocqueville to me. Keep his face covered.”

No emotion could be read on the Emperor’s face.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Reichardt replied with strict formality and left the study.

Shortly after, a carriage passed through the palace gates.

Roderick, the Grand Duke of Tessen’s aide, personally drove it in.

A cloaked and hooded figure was escorted out.

The unidentified man entered and exited the palace wrapped in his cloak.

Reichardt and Roderick sat together in the front seat as the carriage departed.

There was a slight stir among the concubines.

The Emperor’s attendants searched the residence of Baroness of Goggins, Maude Manners.

The head butler retrieved an unremarkable pendant.

It bore the initial “A.”

On the final day of the holiday, the Emperor appointed Duchess of Pfalz—one of the concubines—as Princess Dorothea’s primary caretaker.