The sudden commotion reached the place where Lady Deverill was sitting. Curiosity piqued, she slowly walked to the center of the commotion. Upon seeing the pitifully crouching imperial beast, the emperor with his hands on his hips and a look of anger, and the mother and son of the Miness family hugging each other, she immediately understood the situation.
'That rascal must have finally laid hands on the imperial beast.'
Lady Deverill was well aware of the boy's reputation for tormenting animals. Though she disapproved, she had never shown it. After all, these were haughty nobles who believed no one was more precious than themselves, and they often thought the lives of mere animals were worthless. At that moment,
"Animals may not be able to speak, but that doesn't mean they can't feel pain. And they're certainly not your toys. If you continue to torment animals so casually, you'll regret it."
The emperor's warning left a particularly strong impression on Lady Deverill.
'I thought he was just a puppet emperor who knew nothing.'
Perhaps the young emperor had more thoughts than she had given him credit for. Having assessed the situation, Lady Deverill returned to her seat. Soon, the emperor, looking tired, shuffled over. Beside him was the equally listless imperial beast.
"There was a bit of a commotion. I apologize if it was noisy, Lady."
"It's fine."
"Does the tea suit your taste?"
"Yes, the aroma is wonderful."
Lady Deverill looked at the imperial beast curled up at Mabel's feet.
"The imperial beast seems to be in poor condition."
Unaware that it was being talked about, the imperial beast leaped onto Lady Deverill's lap and began to roll around, putting on all sorts of displays of affection.
"…It seems to be doing well."
"Haha…"
Despite her expressionless face, Lady Deverill's hand gently stroked the sheep's head with affection.
"…Even our Devi used to be this healthy."
Mabel, who overheard her muttered words, tilted her head and asked,
"Devi is the pet dog you keep, isn't it? I've heard of it before."
"Yes. He's been listless lately and can't even go for walks."
"He must be quite ill. It would be good if I could examine Devi…"
"He couldn't be healed even by a priest who visited."
Though she said this, she was somewhat moved. There were vivid testimonies from those who had witnessed the miracles performed by the young emperor a few years ago and at the recent swordsmanship tournament. She had heard the story of how he had healed a dying emperor with a deep impression.
'Maybe he's not just a priest, but a seed of the divine, and there might be something different about him.'
As if reading her thoughts, Mabel exclaimed with a wide smile,
"If there's anything I can help with, Lady, just let me know!"
The emperor's pure smile showed no ulterior motives. It was clear that she genuinely wanted to help. Unlike others who had something to gain from her, the emperor had nothing to gain.
'I can let my guard down a bit.'
Though she felt uncomfortable about the matters related to Duke Havier, she had no regrets. She thought the young emperor was being used as a political pawn to check the duke's power, as she was just an ignorant child.
'In that case, isn't she a pitiful child?'
Lady Deverill slightly lowered her guard towards Mabel.
"Hehe."
Unaware of the 'pitiful child's' hidden intentions. *** The Countess Miness was trying hard to calm her furious son.
"Calm down, my baby. In the end, nothing happened, right?"
"Because of that woman, I became a laughingstock!"
"I understand how you feel, but the emperor is just a powerless puppet. So, okay? I'll get you a new pet."
"I want a cat with horns too!"
"Alright, I'll find a way. I can do anything."
She could easily get a modified animal from an alchemist. The chimera's lifespan was short, but it wouldn't matter since Steven wouldn't last a week under his torment.
'I need to get back soon.'
The palace had too many eyes, making it difficult to control her son. As she waited for the carriage, she tried to calm her angry son. But the carriage didn't come. Sensing something was wrong, she turned her head.
"It's you. The one who destroyed the precious statue of baby Mabel."
"…?!"
At the sudden, sinister voice, she turned to see a man with a menacing aura. The Countess Miness immediately recognized him. Emperor Esteban! His demonic expression made her step back in fear. She hurriedly hid her precious son behind her, but it was futile.
"Your Majesty, Emperor."
"Baby Mabel statue."
"Yes?"
"It's a bygone era that can't be brought back."
"…"
"…Did you destroy it?"
Esteban spat out the words. He was in a state where he couldn't hear anything, enraged that this monkey-like brat had dared to destroy his precious statue. The Miness family trembled in fear at the sight of the angry emperor. At that moment, a savior appeared.
"Your Majesty! No killing!"
It was the advisor Gustav. He rushed over and stood in front of the Miness family.
"If you must kill, do it through proper legal procedures!"
"…"
The advisor's words, meant to ensure the process was legal, naturally made the family's faces pale. *** Having narrowly escaped the emperor's clutches, the Miness family slumped into the carriage.
"Never again! Never again will I attend a tea party hosted by the emperor!"
"Right, my dear. It's best to avoid getting involved…"
She knew the emperor was obsessed with the young emperor, but she didn't expect it to this extent. Vowing never to go near the emperor again, she was interrupted by a loud bang.
"Ah!"
The carriage shook violently. The driver's shout echoed as the carriage came to a stop.
"What's happening!"
Steven pounded on the carriage wall, but there was no answer. The boy opened the carriage door irritably.
"Oh, it was just a joke."
He faced a devilishly smiling angel-like figure.
"Prince…?"
"A joke. You know? I accidentally attacked the carriage while practicing swordsmanship."
"Even so, this is too much…!"
Just as the Countess Miness, her face red with anger, was about to protest, there was another loud bang. One side of the carriage was completely dented. The driver and the Miness family were shocked as the culprit appeared. Black hair, red eyes. It was Eidan.
"He's even more extreme with his jokes…"
Oscar let out a hollow laugh and shook his head. He felt a bit embarrassed.
***
Having successfully concluded the tea party, I watched all the guests leave and then returned to my bedroom.
"Alright, let's clean up now."
[Destroy it!]
The angry sheep wagged its tail, urging me on.
"Alright, alright."
Just then, Eidan climbed in through the balcony.
"Eidan, I have a favor to ask."
"What is it?"
"It's about the Miness family. I'm not feeling good about them. You saw earlier, right? The heir of that family was tormenting the sheep. He seems to mistreat other animals too. I want to teach him a lesson."
"There's no need."
"Huh?"
"He'll have a tough time ahead."
"Hmm?"
The meaning of Eidan's cryptic words became clear soon after. A few days later, a notable article appeared in the *Lycavelli Weekly*. 'Miness Family Attacked by Mysterious Thugs?!' 'Countess Miness Claims "Imperial Knights Attacked Us." ' 'Palace Advisor Dismisses Claims as Nonsense. What's the Truth?' Seeing the sensational article, I opened my mouth wide.
"Mysterious thugs? …Imperial knights?!"
I quietly closed the newspaper.
'Pretend I didn't see it.'
***
As usual, Chikchik arrived. Extending my hand out the window, Chikchik gently landed.
[Feed me, Chik!]
"Here, have some seeds."
[Excited, Chik.]
I unfolded the note tied to Chikchik's leg. The sender was, as expected, Casey. After teaching Eidan to read Korean, we no longer needed to use codes, making communication easier. [Lady Deverill is still in her position. I heard her pet dog's condition has worsened. I'll keep an eye on her. P.S. Thank you so much for the personal lab, Your Majesty. You know what I'm ■■, right?]
"…What are you doing?"
Some of the words were intentionally blacked out, but from the context, I guessed it might be 'love' or 'like'. I was glad Casey, a magician, was happy with the personal lab I had set up for her.
'I need to exploit her more in the future!'
I had commissioned her to develop magical items, and with luck, I might get my hands on them.
"Then, it'll be easier to go out more often, right?"
"What will be easier?"
"…Huh!"
At the sudden voice, I turned to see Oscar leaning against the door, having just finished training. Before I could hide it, Oscar came over and glanced at the note in my hand.
"…What's this?"
"T-this is a code!"
"A code?"
"Yep!"
Oscar, with a serious expression, stared at Casey's note. But he couldn't read the Korean text.