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n“Younger brother?”

nTheor raised his head and blinked at the unexpected word.

nRed eyes filled with curiosity.

nThe duke smiled softly and began to convince Theor.

n“Our prince, aren’t you lonely because you’re alone every day?”

n“I am not alone. I have Levin and Blynn.”

n“……Blini? What’s that? Pancakes?”

nT

/N: There is a pancake from Russia called Blini

n“Puppy.”

nTheor pointed to the golden hound lying quietly on his stomach next to the table.

n“But isn’t it boring because dolls and dogs can’t talk? When you have a younger brother, you will play with him every day, talk about interesting things, study together, and have a lot of fun.”

nTheor listened intently to that sweet voice.

n“Don’t talk nonsense.”

nBut the duke’s words were cut off.

nThe Marquis of Carlenberg, who was holding Theor, warned the duke threateningly.

n“You’re talking nonsense in front of the little prince. If that’s all you have to say, just go back.”

nThe marquis looked at him with contempt.

nHe looked like he was looking at garbage.

nBut since there was a young Theor, he held back his anger.

nTheor suddenly spoke up.

n“I don’t like a younger brother.”

n“What?”

n“I don’t like a younger brother. I don’t need a younger brother.”

nTheor recalled what had happened several months ago.

nBefore he met His Majesty the Emperor, he lived in a small mansion in the countryside.

nThere was also a village where other people lived near the mansion. It was a small town, but there were children the age of Theor nearby.

nTheor would occasionally hang out with the children who came to play near the mansion.

nAmong them, there were many children who played with their younger brothers.

nTheor, who has no brother, learned the concept of a younger brother for the first time as he watched the siblings holding hands and hanging out.

nHe begged his mother that day that he wanted a younger brother.

nAunt Gretel was also at the mansion at the time.

nGretel grabbed Theor and explained step by step.

n“Brothers don’t just appear out of nowhere. To make a younger brother, your mom could be very sick and be in danger.”

nHis grandfather, who later heard the situation, also agreed with her.

nNeither of them explained why his mother could be sick.

nBut Theor was afraid to hear that and gave up immediately.

nI don’t like it when my mom is sick. I don’t need a younger brother.

nI don’t want my mom to be sick and be in danger.

nBecause I like my mom the most.

nThe duke muttered in disbelief as he listened to the story.

n“……why did adults say useless things to a child.”

n“What you’re saying is worse.”

nThe marquis patted Theor in his arms and put him down on the floor.

n“Theor, go to Hannah.”

n“Yes, Grandpa.”

nTheor went out without saying goodbye to the duke.

nThe hound, who had been sitting quietly, followed Theor and went out.

n“It’s not nonsense.”

nAs soon as Theor left, the Duke of Reston changed his expression in an instant and spoke in a serious tone.

nHe didn’t initially think he would get much help from the little prince.

nIt was not the little prince who could help now, but the old marquis.

nThe duke continued his explanation in a polite tone.

n“As you know, father, the emperor is losing interest in Astelle now.”

n“I am not your father.”

n“Unfortunately, it is true that not only Astelle’s status but also the safety of our family and the little prince, depend on the emperor’s favor to Astelle. Don’t you think so?”

nThe Marquis of Carlenberg kept his mouth shut with a slightly displeased expression.

nRecently, the emperor stopped by here for a while, and then returned to his palace.

nAll he did was meet Theor and chat with Astelle for a while.

nIt was the situation after their quarrel over the Croychen family affairs.

n‘From the perspective of others, their relationship is in jeopardy.’

nBut the marquis knew that there was no such thing in the first place.

nAstelle did not accept Kaizen from the beginning.

nHe thought it was a good thing at first.

nLife as the wife of a man you don’t like will be even more miserable.

nHowever, the marquis was a little disturbed by the sudden change of Kaizen.

nThe Duke of Reston wasn’t wrong either.

nThe contract between Astelle and Kaizen, and the situation of Astelle and Theor, depend entirely on Kaizen’s heart.

nIf Kaizen loses his affection for the two of them, he will probably throw them away without keeping the contract or anything.

n‘What a ridiculous situation.’

nIt’s sad to be forced to get married, but now Astelle has to work hard to win Kaizen’s heart.

nJust thinking about it made him angry.

n“The emperor’s servants have already brought another woman. We can’t just sit back and watch,” the duke broke the silence.

nThe marquis asked in surprise, “A woman?”

nThe former emperor, whom he served, was infatuated with women.

nIn those days, there was not a single day of peace in the imperial palace because of the emperor’s concubines.

nThe duke looked at the marquis’ surprised face and clicked his tongue.

n“Well, one day the emperor will lose interest in Astelle….., I expected this day to come, but it happened so sooner than I thought.”

nThe duke himself needed a little more time to regain his influence.

nUntil then, Astelle must win the emperor’s heart.

n“I’m happy though. Even if the emperor has lost interest in Astelle a little, he is very affectionate to the prince.”

nSo did the duke himself.

nHis wife and Astelle’s mother, Jacqueline, was a beautiful and elegant lady.

nHowever, their marital relationship did not go smoothly.

nHer wife was a good lady, but she had the same stupidity as Astelle.

nThe two often quarreled because their personalities and values did not match.

nHowever, the reason the marriage was maintained was because of Fritz.

nWhenever the duke was angry with his wife, he endured it, thinking that they had a son who would become the heir of the family.

nOf course, he also had a more majestic goal of having a daughter who would become the Empress.

n“Do you know what you are saying in front of me now?”

nHearing his words, the Marquis of Carlenberg was furious.

nThe duke said with a stern expression on his face, “Fritz is in the West now, so the only person who can help is me, father.”

nThe duke was not at all trustworthy, but the marquis agreed with the idea that they (Astelle and Kaizen) should be reconciled anyway.

nIf they keep going like this, things will only get more complicated.

nThe Marquis of Carlenberg managed to calm himself down and asked, “So what are you going to do?”

n“I’ll take care of it, you just need to lend me your name.”

nThe duke cast his gaze over the window.

nAs the sun was setting, the garden was covered with orange light.

n“The weather is nice today.”

n***

nAstelle took a bath after dinner and changed into pajamas.

n“Theor?”

n“The Prince went to the garden pavilion.”

n“In the garden? At this time?”

n“The marquis went with him.”

nDid you go out to play for a while before going to sleep?

nWhen Kaizen slept here, he played with Theor until late at night.

nBut now, after dinner, Kaizen returned to his palace.

nTheor was sad every night.

nThese days, the marquis comforted Theor and read him fairy tales until he fell asleep.

nHe arranged soldier dolls and even played with them.

n“I should go too.”

nAs Astelle rose from her seat, Hannah skillfully took a shawl and draped it over her shoulder.

nAstelle draped the shawl over the thin muslin pajamas and went out into the hallway.

nRaindrops were falling quietly in the dark garden.

nThe pavilion in the garden of the empress’ palace is connected by a long corridor from the glass door of the restroom.

nThanks to this, she was able to go without an umbrella and get caught in the rain.

nTheor in pajamas ran to Astelle.

n“Mom!”

n“Theor, what are you doing here?”

nInside the pavilion were Theor and the marquis.

nThere are also some cotton dolls and teacups.

nThe marquis said with a smile, “Theor said he couldn’t sleep, so I took him out for a while. I also have a headache, so I need to get some fresh air.”

nThere was a look of exhaustion in the corners of his wrinkled eyes.

nHe must be tired of taking care of Theor all the time.

nAstelle felt sorry.

n“Grandpa, you must be tired, go to bed first. I’ll take care of Theor now.”

n“Would you mind?”

nThe marquis said goodbye to Theor and returned first.

n“Theor, what were you playing?”

n“I was playing with the doll.”

nTheor pointed to the little teddy bear on the chair in the pavilion.

n“He’s Levin’s younger brother.”

n“Yes?”

n“He is Levin’s younger brother. Levin is the older brother.”

nLooks like the fluffy teddy bear was just bought.

nIt was a little smaller than Levin. But why did it suddenly become Levin’s younger brother?

n“Theor, do you want to have another younger brother?”

nShe had asked something like that before.

n“No. I don’t want a younger brother. I hate mom being sick.”

nAstelle smiled and stroked Theor’s head.

n“Once you get used to life here, I’ll find you a friend to hang out with.”

nThe rain-drenched garden could be seen through the window.

nThe white moon added a silver glow to the moist grass.

n“Theor, you should go to bed now.”

n“Yes.”

nAstelle organized Theor’s dolls.

nAt that time, the light shone in the corridor leading to the empress’ palace.

nSomeone was coming here. After a while, a familiar person arrived.

n“Your Majesty?”

nKaizen came in with his servant.

n“Your Majesty!”

nTheor was delighted and ran to him.

nKaizen approached Astelle with a slightly bewildered look, hugging Theor.

n“Your Majesty? What brings you here?”

nKaizen looked straight at her and said, “Astelle, we need to talk.”

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