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nIt was my father who went out in the morning saying he had work to do.

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n“Dad, didn’t you say you’ll be late?” Erita said, leaning my head on the doorway.

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n‘Father said he’d be back at night when he went out with Aaron.’

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n“It’s because work finished earlier than I expected…”

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nMy father, who answered smoothly, put the back of his hand and touched my cheek. I frowned at the slightly cold temperature of his hand.

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n“Oh, I guess I stood outside for long.”

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nHe smiled bashfully and rubbed my cheek a couple of times. It wasn’t cold, but there was some chill in it.

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nAs I moved my arms, the bouquet in my arms rustled.

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nNaturally, my father’s gaze also turned to the flower.

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n“Did Seian give you that bouquet?”

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n“Oh, this? He gave it to me in the carriage earlier in the morning, isn’t it pretty? I’m going to decorate this in my room later.”

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nI wink and waved the bouquet of flowers.

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nThey say that if I put the flowers in clean water, it would live for about a week, so it was suitable for decoration in my room.

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n“I heard there’s something he’s working hard on to give you. He must have picked the flowers well.”

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n“Did the Marquis say that?”

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n“Yes, I heard he’s growing flowers instead of gifts. He’s very sincere, too”

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nThere was a faint smile on my father’s lips as he said that.

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nAs I walked towards my room with my father, I laughed out loud for nothing.

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nIt was because I remembered Seian, who was handing out a bouquet of flowers shyly.

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n“Even when I think about it again, I think Seian is kind in many ways.”

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nOf course, my father and Aaron are kind, but Seian has basically a more delicate personality.

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n‘Although they are my family, it’s hard to say that they are delicate.’

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nSuddenly, on such a day, I remembered Fern complaining that my father was too indifferent, and I laughed for a moment.

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nBut come to think of it, Aaron’s still not here who went out with my father.

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nI called out to my father who was walking next to me.

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n“Father.”

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n“Yes.”

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n“Brother hasn’t returned home yet, Are you coming with me?”

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nMy father nodded at my words.

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n“I think Aaron will be late because he has some work to do.”

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n“I see…”

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nI nodded my head in response and thought about the past for a moment.

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nCome to think of it, I felt like Aaron was away more often these days.

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n‘…When I ask him if he’s busy these days, he just smiles.’

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nBreakfast and lunch are different every time, but we usually have dinner together.

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nHowever, these days, I often can’t meet Aaron even at dinner. We used to see each other everyday.

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nOf course, I know that Aaron was busy, but it was quite disappointing not to see my brother who had been away for two years.

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n“Hey, it seems that Aaron is busy and also sad.”

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nPerhaps such disappointment was evident on my face, my father comforted me with a soft voice.

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n“Don’t worry too much, He’ll be free again in a little while.”

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nMy father said so and patted my hand gently on his arm.

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n“It’s not necessarily…”

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nFor some reason, I shook my head saying no to the feeling of being a grouchy child, but my father did not believe that at all.

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n“Oh, come to think of it, I got a piece of jewelry from Lily a few days ago. I want to send a reward, but she’d like the artifact I made, right?”

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nLily sent me some jewelry she made herself. So I chose to change the topic.

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nFortunately, my father laughed for a moment and then agreed to my intentions.

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n“Lily is the only daughter of Count Lemian.”

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n“That’s right. I was given a pair of gorgeous earrings and a bracelet.”

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nAfter talking for a while, We arrived in front of my room.

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n“Let’s have dinner together later, father instead of Aaron.”

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n“Ahaha. That’s nice”

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nAfter greeting at the door, my father quickly turned around. I entered the room only after watching my father’s hardback disappear.

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n“Lady! How have you been?”

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n“Yeah. Is there a vase more suitable for these flowers?”

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n“Oh, it’s a pretty flower. I’ll look for it after you change!”

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n“Yes, thank you.”

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nFirst, I put the flowers on the table and changed clothes with Mary’s help.

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nWhen I changed into a simple indoor dress, I felt drowsy in an instant.

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n“Today, you’ll have to soak in water with a bath salt…”

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nThe touch of the hair that gently sticks to my body has the power to make my whole body feel like a slime.

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nMary opened her mouth with a small smile as I limped on the sofa and said so.

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n“Why don’t you work out with Fern? If the master hears it, he will like it.”

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nMy expression, which had been so relaxed at those words, was frowned upon in an instant.

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nOnce a week, Fern’s physical training, directed by my father himself, was very vicious.

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nAs long as I could feel my legs trembling, just watching from the side, it says everything.

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n“Mary, wizards prefer magic to physical training. And you say that when you see Fern dying once a week?”

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nMary laughed and shook her head as if she couldn’t stop me when I chatted negative words.

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n“But wouldn’t it be better to do it a little bit? It’s hard to practice magic and make artifacts, but you like them so much.”

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n“That’s different from that. I’d rather practice magic a hundred more times.”

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nMary, who recommended more physical training, gave up after seeing me constantly shouting, “I don’t like it.”

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n‘I mean, no matter how good my father is, I never want to do that kind of physical training.’

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n✿

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nA glass greenhouse in the Imperial Palace.

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nThere was a woman with colorful red hair and a young man with blond hair that shone as brilliantly as the midday sun.

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nThere was a quiet silence between the two sitting opposite each other with the tea table in the middle.

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nThey were the Empress and the First Prince.

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n“Thesis.” The Empress’ red lips opened.

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n“Yes, mother.”

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nThesis’ expression in replying to her seemed to be tense.

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nHowever, despite the son’s attitude, the Empress did not say anything for a while as she touched the teacup with her slender fingers.

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nA strange light flashed in her eyes.

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n“I think His Majesty will be presenting about the next crown prince at this debut dance.”

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n“But according to the history of the Empire, on the anniversary of the foundation of the country…”

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n“Prince.”

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nThe Empress was gentle and calm, but she cut Thesis’ words resolutely.

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nHer strange, cold gaze turned to Thesis.

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n“…I’m sorry. I’m a little flustered.”

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nIn such his mother’s gaze, Thesis was immediately rebuked for his impatience.

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nIts appearance was not seen through the harmonious hats as it was known to the public.

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nThe Empress’ attitude toward her son was somewhat cold and unstable, and Thesis showed a docile attitude towards his mother.

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nIt was a distinctly different appearance from the usual self-confident first prince.

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n“Thesis, my dear son. The Emperor will not give you the throne easily.”

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nThe Empress, who had been stern until a while ago, quickly became respectful to her son with a glimmering eyes.

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nThen he had a horrifyingly bizarre expression, as if he had been stricken by something.

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n“Yes, I know.”

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nHowever, as if he were familiar with the appearance of the Empress, Thesis replied in a subdued voice without any agitation.

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n“But in the end, you will become the crown prince. I, your mother, will make it for you. So don’t worry about the second prince. Did you get it?”

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nThen the Queen’s focus, which was heading for Thesis, began to drift away from him.

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n“…Mother.”

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n“Oh, Thesis. My one and only son. Don’t worry about anything. The son of Asila will never take your place.”

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nThesis called out to the Empress in a low voice, but she didn’t even give her a single glance to Thesis, as she spoke alone into her void.

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nThesis, who looked at the scene with a painful face, eventually got up quietly.

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nBecause he knew he couldn’t hear anything from his mother in this state and she couldn’t see anything.

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nWhat could only be called madness, which started at some point, corroded his mother as time went on.

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n“Mother, I’ll go back first.”

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nThe Empress did not stop muttering into the air until Thesis eventually turned his back and left the glasshouse.

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nIn her eyes, there was a peculiar black light that Thesis had never seen.

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nClick—

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nAfter closing the door to the garden, Thesis asked the knights and the maids of the Empress Palace who were guarding it.

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n“My mother said she’lll stay a little longer, so make sure no one else enters.”

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n“Yes, sir.”

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n“Then work hard today.”

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nThesis, who left a greeting with a smile that seemed to have been drawn, turned around and moved away from the garden.

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n“…Callian.”

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nHe took the name of his half-brother who had just returned.

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nAnother child of his father who has been compared to him since childhood.

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n‘No matter what happens, I can’t hand over the Crown Prince seat to you… Never.’

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nWhether the reason was a feeling of inferiority that I had brought from a long time ago, or for my mother, who was risking her life for the throne.

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nI couldn’t be deprived of the throne alone for any reason.

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nThe half-moon marks of his well-cut fingernails clearly remained in the palm of Thesis.

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