Chapter 6
Everyone’s eyes turned toward me.
Leonhart’s did too.
“……What did you say?”
“I said I object. I absolutely cannot agree to this proposal.”
“Please explain your reasons.”
“For starters, the budget is far too high. I can hardly believe this is the cost of making a statue.”
“Look at the documents. This is not an ordinary statue.”
“Exactly. Why on earth would you make a statue out of jewels? It’s an extremely inefficient choice.”
“Inefficient. Is that your only reason for objecting?”
His tone was cold.
He really must have been in a bad mood.
“Of course not. There’s more.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t think the choice of subject is appropriate. If you really want to build a statue, I think you should find another subject that would contribute more aesthetically and artistically.”
“……!”
The nobles swallowed hard, their faces filled with shock.
‘Why are they so surprised? I’m right.’
Leonhart narrowed his eyes slightly.
“I would like to hear what you consider an appropriate subject, Duke.”
“A place like the Grand Plaza has a lot of foot traffic. I think it would be much more effective to install ordinary-sized sculptures here and there that inspire artistic appreciation or curiosity. Ah, we could also place some benches with clever and amusing designs.”
“……Are you saying Adella Helsington is unsuitable as the subject of a statue?”
“Isn’t that obvious? Who would like something that would look hideous even after it was built? It would only get in people’s way.”
Leonhart took his eyes off me and swept his gaze across the room.
“Does anyone else object?”
The nobles shook their heads in unison.
‘What is wrong with these people? Do they seriously support this?’
“So only Duke Ivrante objects. Is that correct?”
“……”
Even the sound of breathing disappeared from the conference room.
The nobles couldn’t even bring themselves to meet Leonhart’s eyes.
‘They look like mice in front of a cat…….’
I think I understood why the nobles were so afraid of Leonhart.
His presence was simply too intimidating.
It was enough to overwhelm people before they could even appreciate his beauty.
‘Ah, what a shame. If you just smiled once, everyone would love you.’
“Then we will pass the proposal by majority vote.”
“Huh?”
I hurriedly raised my hand.
“Wait a moment!”
“……What is it this time?”
“The documents clearly state that the proposal can only pass with unanimous approval. Is it really acceptable to disregard the rules like this…….”
The nobles all turned toward me at once.
Earlier, they had looked shocked.
Now, however, their eyes seemed to be begging me to please stop.
“……I was wondering whether that was really acceptable.”
I fell silent under the nobles’ desperate gazes.
The more I spoke, the more it felt as though I was tormenting them, which left me feeling rather uncomfortable.
Tap!
Leonhart dropped the documents onto the table.
“Duke Ivrante.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Come with me for a moment.”
“……Pardon?”
“Follow me.”
Leonhart left the conference room without even saying goodbye.
I stared at the conference room door as it swung violently behind him before turning my gaze away.
The nobles were looking at me with pity.
……Did I make a mistake?
Leaving the nobles’ gazes behind, I stepped outside the conference room.
An attendant guided me to a secluded garden.
It was a secret little space surrounded by garden trees, with a white tea table placed in the middle.
Leonhart was standing there, smoking.
Looking into the distance with a cigarette between his lips, he radiated deep exhaustion and boredom.
Does he have too much work?
I felt sorry for him, but at the same time, anger surged through me.
‘Has he lost his mind? What if his asthma comes back from this!’
Leonhart had suffered from asthma when he was young, leaving his airways weak.
I had worried about him so much because of that.
Undine had practically been his personal humidifier, while Sylph had served as his air purifier.
I was also the one who had made the entire expedition party quit smoking.
‘And now he’s smoking with his own hands?’
I wanted nothing more than to snatch the cigarette away from him.
‘But that would be completely inconsistent with Adrian’s personality…….’
I stood a reasonable distance away from Leonhart and covered my nose.
“Your Highness, would you put out that cigarette? The smell is disgusting.”
“That’s not something I would expect to hear from a smoker.”
So Adrian was a chain smoker.
“I-I heard that smoking for a long time can cause asthma. So I quit. Asthma is a very painful disease, isn’t it?”
So you should quit smoking too, you idiot.
Leonhart slowly approached me with one hand in his suit pocket.
He still had the cigarette between his lips.
Perhaps it was because my body had become smaller while Leonhart had grown larger.
Or perhaps it was because Leonhart’s aura had become so much more powerful.
Either way, it felt as though a gigantic beast was slowly stalking toward me.
The pressure was so intense that my shoulders began to ache.
“Hoo—”
“……Cough.”
Leonhart stood directly in front of me and deliberately blew smoke in my face.
The acrid smoke scattered across my face.
I was genuinely startled.
I had expected Leonhart to put out his cigarette.
I hadn’t expected him to act so blatantly rude.
“I’m surprised you would say that, considering you would probably be the happiest person in the world if I developed asthma.”
Had the two of them really had such a terrible relationship?
But the nobles had said Adrian hadn’t attended meetings for five years.
If so, she shouldn’t have had much contact with Leonhart, who had returned around that time after defeating the Demon King.
So why did he hate her this much?
“Your Highness, did something happen between us in the past……?”
“Enough with the pointless talk. Let’s get to the point.”
“Yes……”
“Why did you attend the meeting?”
[Stage 3: (Staring arrogantly at Leonhart) How rude. Are you daring to disregard a duke’s authority?]
“I asked why you suddenly crawled out of your mansion and decided to become a nuisance, Duke Ivrante.”
I stared at Leonhart’s lips and fell into thought.
What on earth happened during the five years I was gone to turn that kind boy into someone as prickly as a hedgehog?
‘Don’t tell me those princes are still bullying him?’
It seemed plausible.
His appearance had changed, but perhaps he was still soft-hearted on the inside.
Those bastards must have realized that and exploited it as a weakness.
And that must be why Leonhart had become so sharp and hostile.
I recalled the vaguely remembered faces of those princes and read the next instruction.
“You’re being rude. Are you daring to disregard a duke’s authority?”
“Just stay holed up in your mansion like you have been until now. You’re getting in the way.”
[Stage 1: (As though amused) You should be careful with your words and actions. His Highness cannot become Crown Prince without my help.]
The support of the nobles was important if Leonhart wanted to become Crown Prince.
Therefore, it would be advantageous for Leonhart in many ways to bring a duke who represented the nobility over to his side.
Of course, now that I had possessed Adrian, I intended to support Leonhart unconditionally……
But that was separate from the fact that I was becoming increasingly annoyed.
‘But why is he taking his anger out on me?’
‘Did I do something to make him angry? You may be a prince, but I’m a duke, you know? A duke is someone even the Emperor can’t simply disregard.’
But if I argued with him here, it would basically amount to picking a fight.
I summoned all my patience and softened the instruction as much as possible.
“You should be careful with your words and actions. That way, I’ll be able to help Your Highness become Crown Prince.”
“Stop saying things you don’t mean. I’ll accomplish what I want with my own hands. I don’t need a duke’s help.”
That’s right. If you want something, you should achieve it yourself.
But wouldn’t it be much easier if I helped you?
Choosing the difficult path when an easy one was available was foolish.
Naturally, I intended to persuade Leonhart.
At least, I did.
Until the next instruction appeared.
[Stage 3: (Clicking your tongue as though he were pathetic) Did Adella Helsington leave you some kind of dying wish before she died? To stand on your own two feet? How utterly insignificant a commoner’s way of thinking can be.]
Nobles generally looked down on commoners, but Adrian took it to an extreme.
An arrogant noble completely consumed by a sense of privilege.
It was exactly the kind of character I hated most.
Unfortunately, Adrian was a perfect match.
Despite what I was thinking inside, my lips repeated the instruction exactly as written.
Stage 3 only gave me 5% freedom, after all.
“Did Adella Helsington leave you some kind of dying wish before she died? To stand on your own two feet? How utterly insignificant a commoner’s way of thinking can be.”
Even though I was saying it with my own mouth, it made me disgusted with myself.
My voice was ice-cold, filled with a sense of privilege and contempt for commoners.
“Hah……”
Leonhart smiled softly and brushed his hair back.
He looked so sensual that it was difficult to look away.
‘Oh, he smiled! See? You look so pretty when you smile…… Urk!’
My breath caught in my throat.
Leonhart had grabbed me by the neck with one hand.
