midnight.
Fabrice's feelings were rising little by little.
It's time for Gaspard to come soon.
Fabrice brought out all the liquor he liked and started celebrating alone.
And at that moment…
A light breeze blew, then a shadow swayed on the window for a moment before disappearing into the darkness.
As if it was just an illusion.
It was a fleeting moment, and he even thought he was hallucinating.
Fabrice flapped his fingers as he hummed a song.
Suddenly, right in front of him, a person wearing a black mask bowed and said hello.
“It has been a long time since I saw your highness.”
“Enough of the compliments, I have an assignment for you.”
Verbal greetings were not important to Fabrice.
“Kill Marquis Engelger.”
"present."
“I will send the reward to your organization.
Send me his eyes.”
“As you command.”
Gaspard answered without the slightest hesitation, then disappeared again into the darkness.
Fabrice laughed evilly.
Finally, he will take his revenge on Marquis Engelger, who has been a thorn in his eye for some time.
Just thinking about it made Fabrice extremely happy.
Duke Priem did not like the turbulent atmosphere prevailing in Loyburn.
Loyburn was undulating as if something was about to explode.
If his mind had been as clear as before, he would have understood the matter, but with his now dulled mind, he could not understand the reason.
Instead, he summoned to his house young nobles from within the Old Nobles faction.
Young people, but they are all middle-aged.
“It seems that the atmosphere in the capital these days is not good at all.”
Duke Priem said as he turned to look at those present.
Some of them turned their heads and avoided looking, as if they had nothing to say.
“It is said that the temple has recently been preaching a strange cult, which may be the reason.”
One of the nobles, who is relatively young, said.
“What doctrine?”
“The story of the saint and her son.”
Matthew Priem couldn't help but clench his wand tightly upon hearing those words.
Wasn't that referring to the deceased Queen Charles and her son Denis?
“How dare that story…”
One of the nobles hesitated to complete his words, as if he were confused.
Those who had participated in the deposition of Queen Charles twenty years before were still sitting in their places.
Indeed, there were quite a few of those present at Duke Priem’s palace today.
Their faces turned black as soon as the name of the deceased queen was mentioned.
“I don’t know why, but it is said that the temple preaches a doctrine that supports the First Prince.”
“A lot of the public agrees with them, so the current is unusual.”
Matthew Priem remembers Queen Charles, who was a saint.
The temple and the saint were inseparable things.
He thought he had completely extinguished the sparks.
Will they flare up again now?
Matthew thought fiercely.
He wanted to place a dazzling white crown on Fabrice's head, but obstacles appeared one after another.
Which should be struck: the temple or the first prince, the source of all these problems?
Matthew immediately abandoned the idea of attacking the temple.
The temple was a difficult opponent for Duke Priem, whose prestige was second only to the king himself, to confront.
If you think about how Pope Felix Clare came to office, it would have been better to keep as little exposure to him as possible.
The solution was simple.
Remove source.
Matthew decided that he should use the paper he had saved as a last resort.
“What should we do with a tree whose branches extend as they please?”
Matteo said with a friendly smile covering his face.
As if he was talking about how to take care of his garden as a hobby.
But Duke Priem wasn't just talking about a tree.
Because his question was not clear to someone, that person asked him:
“Shouldn't its branches be pruned?”
Matthew looked at him and asked:
“Exactly, but what if it's a tree that doesn't fit in my garden?”
Then some of the nobles looked at him and realized that there was something strange.
“In that case, shouldn’t it be uprooted?
So that it doesn’t grow again.”
Those who understood Duke Priem's words nodded their heads in agreement.
At the same time…
Duke Priem did not know that it was dark under the lamp.
He does not know that there are suspicious signs in his palace itself, and he is busy thinking about how to attack the First Prince.
Fantine had already attracted nearly half of the palace servants.
Her latest target was the Duchess of Priem.
“Sarah, aren’t you coming tonight too?”
“Of course, everyone, come to my room.”
Fantine said with an indulgent smile.
“You, don’t gather around to gossip and go to work.”
“Yes, head maid.”
The maids who were gathered dispersed.
The head maid approached Fantine and caught her as she turned to leave.
“Sarah, the lady is wondering about you.”
I've been discovered.
“About what…?”
Fantine put on an innocent but frightened face.
“Wondering about this ritual you are performing, go to the lady’s room immediately.”
"present."
Fantine walked quickly towards the Duchess's room, the best room in the palace and located in the middle of the second floor.
“Good evening, ma’am, this is Sarah.”
“Yes, come.”
The Duchess received her with a tolerant smile.
“Sit here.”
The Duchess invited Anne Fantin to sit on the bench opposite her.
Fantine refused to shake her hand.
“Ma’am, how is it permissible for a maid like me to sit opposite my mistress?
Please excuse me from this matter.”
“If you keep standing, I'll have to look up at you.
It's uncomfortable, so sit down.”
“If you insist, I will sit down and thank you, ma’am.”
Fantine sat up cautiously.
“Well, I heard you have a supernatural talent.”
The Duchess inquired directly from her without any lengths.
It seemed that she had been wondering a lot since the rumors had spread within the palace.
“It's nothing, ma'am, it's just...”
“Just what?”
Anne looked at Fantine.
“My eyes are a little better than others.”
“Your eyes?”
“Yes.
When I serve the mother, my mind becomes clear and my eyes are clear, so I can see the near future.”
“How far do you see then?”
“My faith is still weak, so I can't see for more than half a day.”
“Oh!”
The Duchess looked at Fantine in astonishment.
“Who is this mother you are talking about?”
“She is the ruler of the earth, the mother.
She is a ruler who loves nature, so she intervenes in the order of all creatures.”
"This is amazing."
Anne was surprised by Fantine's words, but she also seemed to wonder how it was possible to see the future.
Fantine did not miss the opportunity, and said to the Duchess:
“If you please, ma’am, I would like to introduce you to a ritual.
Do you have something that is worrying you these days?”
“Okay...”
Anne whispered as if she was going to say something, then closed her mouth.
It seems she doesn't trust me completely yet.
“Then I will pray for the peace of your heart, ma’am.
Tell me later if you have anything to say.”
“Okay, thank you.
Take this and eat it.”
Anne handed her the cookies placed in front of her.
“I can't, ma'am.
How can your food get dirty with my hands?
Ma'am...”
“It is a thank you gift for coming today.
Take it and eat it alone or share it.”
“Thank you very much indeed, ma'am.”
Fantine bowed her head several times as she thanked her.
When Anne motioned for her to leave, Fantine was able to exit the Duchess's room.
When she came out, Carol was wandering past the Duchess's room.
“Sarah, why did the lady summon you?”
“What do you care?”
Fantine answered her indifferently.
After Carol realized that Fantine had been gaining popularity among others in the palace for a while, she quarreled with her a lot.
"What, what!
It's funny that you come in and out of the lady's room!
And you're a scullery maid."
“Aren't you?
You're also a scullery maid.”
"You…!"
“If you're jealous, admit it!
Then I'll teach you how to pray!”
Fantine turned her back to her, laughing sarcastically.
She left Carol trembling with rage as she looked at Fantine's back.
On the way out of the King's office...
Dennis met Marquis Engelger.
“Ah, Your Highness!
To meet in a place like this!”
Marquis Engelger laughed exaggeratedly, as if he was very happy to meet him.
“How are you, Your Highness?
I hope you are well.”
“Yes, Marquis, it has been a long time.”
Denis nodded in response to the Marquis's greeting.
“I haven't seen you since the last title award ceremony.
How long has it been?
Months?”
The Marquis slapped Denis' shoulder, treating him like an inferior.
Denis wiped the shoulder that the Marquis had touched with a slight movement of his hand.
Then he said as if he was annoyed:
“Do you have anything to say?”
“Ah, really... you're someone who is busy with matters of state...”
Marquis Engelger feigned false embarrassment.
Denis looked at the Marquis expressionlessly.
"If you're not busy, would you please stop by my office for a moment?
I have some good tea that I got during the recent armistice negotiations, and I also have something to tell you...”
“Say it now.”
“Ah.
I think it will take a long time.
I wanted to tell you something about His Highness Fabrice...”
Dennis frowned.
He didn't want to hear it, but he felt like he had to.
“Come to my palace in the afternoon.”
“Ahaha, well take care, Your Highness.”
Dennis nodded and quickly left the place.
Dennis went back to his desk and washed his ears.
“Your Highness, why do you wash your ears...?”
“Because I heard something dirty, so I need to wash them and can you bring me my new coat?”
“Why is this...?”
“He got dirty.”
Silbang asked in confusion as he took Dennis's coat.
He checked it carefully for any dirt, but found nothing.