Chapter 206
“My lady, His Highness the Crown Prince has sent you a gift.”
A small but luxurious room tucked into a corner of the Crown Prince’s palace.
Gifts arrived every morning and evening without fail, and every space Megara had now glittered with them. At this rate, Abelus would soon have the basin she used for washing turned into gold.
“Understood. Leave it and go.”
The problem, however, was the ‘people’.
The lady-in-waiting who brought the gift gave a fleeting, scornful look and left without a bow.
It was an arrogant attitude, but Megara didn’t bother responding to such people. There was no need. She knew far more effective ways to ‘shut them up’.
‘We’ll see about that.’
Megara knew her weapons well. Her beauty was striking, but if that were all, she would be no different from Natasha Grünehals or Valentin Elandria.
She was clever. And she knew how to say exactly what people wanted to hear. Even if her status disappeared, as long as she remained in society, that talent alone would let her accomplish anything.
Knock knock. A frivolous knock rang out.
Megara brought a radiant smile to her perfectly sculpted features. And at just the right moment—when Abelus burst in through the door unannounced—she leapt into his arms.
“Your Highness!”
“Oh my, oh my, Meggie. You’re not a child, and yet you’re still running around? How adorable.”
Abelus caressed Megara’s cheek, completely smitten.
Smiling as if overjoyed, Megara looked every bit the part. It hadn’t been long since she became his mistress, but the two acted as if they’d been engaged for years.
The vacant place of a long-time lover. A gentle woman who suddenly appeared and seemed to understand him completely.
‘And the presence of an obvious villain.’
For Megara, it was the perfect setup. She didn’t miss the chance to take advantage of this harmonious trifecta. She quickly secured her position.
She rubbed her soft cheek against Abelus’s hand, putting on a sorrowful expression.
“Even a moment apart from you is so lonely. You’re all I have now, Your Highness.”
“Why only me? You’ve got the marquis and the young marquis too. Should I have them visit the Crown Prince’s palace?”
“Oh, people would talk so much if that happened.”
“Why would they? It’s just meeting family.”
Abelus, speaking without much thought, suddenly paused. His expression turned sharp as he realized something.
“Have the servants been speaking carelessly in front of you?”
“…There’s nothing I can do. They outrank me…”
Abelus was outraged.
“Outrank you? Those lowly things? Being the Crown Prince’s woman is the only status that matters! Sweet Meggie, if something like that happens again, tell the palace steward their names. I’ll make sure they’re banned from the palace forever!”
Megara pretended to dissuade him with a weak voice.
“Please, don’t do that, Your Highness. The maids are just… just acting out of loyalty to someone they respect.”
“Someone they respect? If they respected me, they wouldn’t let the woman I chose wear such a face… Wait. Are you talking about my sister?”
Of course she was.
The maids who now delivered errands to Megara were the kind who wouldn’t have dared speak to her first when she was still a marquis’s daughter. But now, they had the royal family behind them—especially Princess Camille.
As Megara recalled the stiff, dissatisfied expression of the princess, her eyes grew cold. Embracing her, Abelus didn’t notice this change and continued fuming.
“Damn it, why is my sister so obsessed with controlling my relationships? Even my mistress needs to be approved by her?”
Mistress ‘too’.
That phrasing already implied that Megara was not particularly valuable, but she didn’t show any hint of displeasure. Abelus was used to being worshipped and expected to be treated that way.
She simply whispered softly.
“How could someone like me dare comment on royal affairs… I apologize for bringing it up.”
As she finished speaking and gently lifted her gaze, she saw the serious look on Abelus’s face.
Until now, he might have followed Camille’s advice, thinking it helped the Empire, but how long would that continue? Megara was skillfully playing on the resentment that had festered since the incident with Natasha.
Once again, Abelus’s long-suppressed emotions were stirred, and he forced a smile.
“Thank you, Meggie. For saying that. You’re perfect. I feel like you’re the only one who truly believes in me.”
Naturally.
Megara had no intention of stopping at just provoking Abelus’s anger. She needed more—more power. To become the victor of this court.
She thought to herself with a smile: Nellusion Elandria has arrived, hasn’t he? Perhaps it’s time for a little chat.
❖ ❖ ❖
At his son’s request, the Emperor raised an eyebrow.
“You want your sister banned from the state council? Why all of a sudden?”
Camille rarely appeared at such meetings where she had to show herself before nobles. She did this to avoid opposing the Emperor and Empress, who had made Abelus the Crown Prince.
Still, she wielded considerable influence in state affairs. The meetings she did attend were carefully chosen, only those concerning critical matters of the realm.
The Emperor thought that while his daughter tried to control too much, she had not crossed any real lines. Abelus, knowing he couldn’t match her intellect, usually followed her lead without protest.
So why was he now insisting she be barred with such determination?
Abelus said confidently to his father:
“This is not sudden, Father. It should’ve happened long ago. I know my sister is capable, but every time I try to act, she’s already decided how things should go. It’s as if she’s the Crown Prince, not me.”
That was true.
The Emperor deliberated briefly, then made his decision. After all, it was Abelus whom he had appointed as Crown Prince, and that decision should be respected by his daughter.
Especially considering ‘that incident’ from long ago.
“Very well. I’ll make sure your sister can no longer meddle in state affairs.”
A triumphant smile spread across Abelus’s face.
“Thank you, Father.”
“But more importantly, shouldn’t you pay attention to your personal matters? Your most pressing task now is to find a bride.”
Having achieved his main goal, Abelus’s attitude turned half-hearted. He frowned.
“There’s no suitable candidate right now, is there?”
“Why not? What about Valentin?”
“The Elandria dukedom is rather shifty. Isn’t it a bit early to form a betrothal?”
Valentin was quite beautiful and had an excellent bloodline. She wouldn’t be a bad match. But politically, the Elandria family’s situation was far from clean.
That gave Abelus pause, and the Emperor nodded.
“I’m not saying you must marry her right away. Nor that it has to be her. But you already have a mistress. Neither your sister nor I will accept the Crown Prince’s first child coming from a lowborn woman.”
Since the royal family valued lineage above all, Abelus didn’t even appear embarrassed by his father’s blunt words.
“I understand.”
“Good. You’re a smart boy—I trust you’ll handle it well, Abel… *cough*…”
At that moment, the Emperor abruptly covered his mouth and began coughing heavily. Abelus narrowed his brow and waited for the fit to pass.
“Are you unwell?”
“It happens sometimes at my age.”
Among the robust Bistor royalty, illness was rare but not unheard of. The Emperor brushed it off casually and didn’t look particularly unwell, so Abelus decided not to worry over a minor cough.
“Understood. Please take care, Father. I’ll excuse myself now.”
As Abelus exited the audience chamber with a bow, his mind was quickly occupied with other matters.
Though the Elandria family had caused political trouble, they remained the Empire’s most important vassals. Nellusion’s return would significantly impact the scheming nobles.
Though he hadn’t spoken with Camille, he knew her well enough to guess the situation. Nellusion wouldn’t have come without a reason, especially not when he was busy repaying so many debts.
‘As if the position of Crown Princess is something one can simply choose for themselves.’
As people predicted, Nellusion would become a duke. Even if his father barred Camille from council, she couldn’t be stripped of power all at once—and she was the type to relentlessly pursue a decision once made.
‘And that bastard Nellusion will probably push to become duke even if it means ousting his own father. Didn’t the grand duchess say she wanted to hand over that girl to my sister?’
Nellusion and Abelus had been friends almost since birth. Based on that long familiarity, Abelus was certain.
Even if everyone treated him like a Crown Prince, Abelus hadn’t inherited the throne yet. He still faced restrictions. And now, by chance, Nellusion seemed to have gotten a head start at living freely.
❖ ❖ ❖
When the Emperor’s knights barred her from entering a routine council meeting, Camille turned back with outward calm. But once she was out of sight, her eyes flared with a cold, deadly light.
“That wretched thing is pulling my brother’s strings.”
The young man disguised as her aide asked cautiously:
“By ‘wretched thing,’ do you mean…”
“Who else? That failure from House Lykeandros.”
Only Camille would dare refer to Megara as a ‘failure’ by any standard. Her loyal subordinate didn’t correct her.
Grinding her teeth, Camille marched toward her palace. But as she turned a corner, her expression shifted into its usual stern and unreadable mask.
“Lord Nellusion Elandria.”
Heir to a ducal house and admired by all, Nellusion had always lived a perfect life. That kind of path naturally gave him a calm confidence.
But perhaps due to recent turmoil, that usual composure had vanished. If not for the faint smile on his face, one might have thought his expression was twisted in pain.
“Your Highness, Princess.”
“I heard you returned, but we’ve yet to speak.”
The unspoken meaning: ‘You came to seek my help and still haven’t had the courtesy to visit? How arrogant.’
Nellusion curved his delicate blue eyes and pretended not to catch her tone.
“My apologies. As you know, there’s much going on in the family.”
“I understand your situation. But are you struggling? If you truly mean to take on responsibility, you must learn to prioritize.”
It sounded like concern, but the message was clear: ‘Unless you put the royal family first, you won’t get your father’s seat.’
Nellusion offered an apologetic look and bowed.
“Yes, Your Highness. That was poor judgment on my part.”
Satisfied with his submissive attitude, Camille ended the conversation with a haughty nod and returned to her palace.
Watching her leave, Nellusion fell into thought.
The condition Camille had set when she summoned him was clear. Bow before the royal family and act like a loyal dog. In return, all the problems your family caused will be blamed on your father, and you’ll be restored to glory.
She must have thought him a fool. To present something like that as a deal.
Fine by him.
‘If she underestimates me, it only makes it easier to act.’
He already knew Camille had proposed to buy Nerys from his father. Before and after that, she’d continued to pursue the girl obsessively.
Nellusion could never hand Nerys over to anyone. So any alliance with Camille would inevitably break.
‘But I need that temporary alliance for now.’
Whether it was the dukedom or anything else—it didn’t matter. As long as he could steal Nerys away from that repulsive grand duke.
Nellusion’s eyes gleamed with a dark light.