CPSMBD Chapter 16

Chapter 16

The Prince’s Admirers

A buzz of murmurs filled the banquet hall. I stole a glance at the Crown Prince's face.

His expression had subtly hardened at the Empress's unexpected declaration. While the change was too slight for others to notice, having observed him for six years, I instantly detected his discomfort.

"It breaks my heart that Friedrich still has no partner," the Empress dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief.

As this delicate beauty shed jewel-like tears, sighs of sympathy rippled through the crowd. Even I, another woman, felt moved to protect her with my life - such was her vulnerable appearance.

"I will grant grand rewards and arrange a magnificent royal wedding for anyone who can capture my son's heart. Race, age, gender - none of those matters. I will approve of anyone who can stay by Friedrich's side for life."

The hall erupted at these extraordinary terms.

"Mother!" the Crown Prince protested.

"This is my only wish, Friedrich. Your happiness with a life partner is all this mother desires."

Realizing he couldn't sway his mother, the Crown Prince changed tactics and turned to the Emperor.

"Father, this is unacceptable. How can such an important decision exclude the wishes of the person concerned?"

The Empress countered by turning to the Emperor with tearful eyes. "You'll support my decision, won't you, Your Majesty?"

"Please dry your tears, my dear. It pains me to see you cry. Of course we shall follow your wishes. Your will is my command."

"Thank you for granting my wish, Your Majesty."

"It's only natural."

The Emperor gently patted the Empress's back. Famous throughout the empire for his devotion, he was naturally on her side.

In fact, the current law prohibiting married officials from working overtime was established by the Emperor in his younger days. After his royal marriage, when state affairs began cutting into his time with the Empress, he boldly reformed the law.

The depth of his love for the Empress was unfathomable - he had even changed laws for her sake.

Against such forces, the Crown Prince stood no chance.

Having failed to assert his position, he clutched his forehead in distress.

This round was an overwhelming victory for the Empress.

And so began the war.

At that time, I had no way of foreseeing what was to come.

***

Three days after the Empress's announcement.

Every morning, I had to wage a desperate battle just to get to work.

The area in front of the aide's office was packed with people hoping to catch a glimpse of the Crown Prince.

The moment they spotted me, they swarmed.

"What time does His Highness Prince Friedrich arrive today?"

"I wrote this letter myself! Please, you must deliver it to His Highness!"

"Just let me meet him once! I'm sure His Highness will fall for me at first sight!"

Poor souls. Everyone gathered here seeking the Crown Prince was truly pitiful.

They could act this way only because they didn't know his true nature. Deep down, I couldn't help but feel sympathy.

'If they knew what Prince Friedrich was really like, they'd regret every second wasted trying to capture his attention.'

I pushed forward, ignoring their pleas - entertaining them all would surely make me late for work.

"Excuse me, coming through. Please let me pass."

Finally breaking through the crowd, I reached the aide's office and caught my breath. My pockets were stuffed with gifts and letters people had secretly slipped in.

I carefully gathered them on one corner of my desk to deliver to the Crown Prince later.

Brahe, who had arrived before me, voiced his complaints.

"Senior, doesn't getting to work seem to get harder with each passing day?"

"Tell me about it, Brahe. I feel like I might die from being crushed on my way in."

"Me too. It's the first time I've feared for my life just trying to get to work."

Brahe sighed deeply before continuing.

"Don't you think there are more people than on the first day?"

"That's because word has spread. More people will probably gather in the coming days."

"You mean it's going to get even harder to come to work?"

"That's right."

"This is terrible. How long do we have to endure this commuting hell? I can't take it anymore."

Brahe clutched at his hair in agony.

"Well, I suppose this hell might end when Prince Friedrich finally gets married?"

"What? Then let's get Prince Friedrich married right away!"

"If even the Empress failed, what chance do we have?"

From my long observation of the Crown Prince, his gynophobia was far more serious and deeply rooted than most realized.

Sometimes I wondered if His Highness had ever felt even a moment's attraction toward women in his entire life.

He claimed all women appeared as monsters to him - perhaps it would be faster to hope he preferred men instead...

Wait! Could it be that the Empress already knew this and that's why she placed no restrictions on potential partners?

'Yes, that could be it. Come to think of it, I did notice some men among the women waiting for His Highness...'

Just then, Brahe jumped up as if struck by inspiration.

"The Fairy's Tears! Wouldn't the Fairy's Tears make it possible for His Highness to fall in love?"

My enthusiasm deflated immediately.

Legend had it that fairies cry only once in their lifetime, and collecting tears from a hundred fairies could create a love potion.

But fairies were so rare that most people went their entire lives without seeing one.

Of course, I had never seen a fairy either - I only knew them from illustrations in books.

"Where would we even get that? It's hard enough just to meet a fairy."

"This is top secret, but listen - apparently, someone presented Fairy's Tears as a gift for His Majesty's 20th anniversary celebration. I heard someone received it as a gift after saving a fairy they happened to meet."

"Really? But how do you know about such classified information?"

"Lily told me, of course."

"Ah."

'Come to think of it, Brahe's fiancée Lily works in His Majesty's aide office, doesn't she? But is this really classified information?'

If even someone like me who pays little attention to palace politics had heard about it, it was safe to assume most people in the palace already knew.

"The method is quite simple too. Whoever drinks the Fairy's Tears falls in love with the first person they see. So if we secretly give it to His Highness and then - ta-da! - place a woman in front of him..."

Brahe snapped his fingers before continuing.

"Even His Highness won't be able to help falling in love!"

"That's actually not a bad idea?"

I nodded in agreement with Brahe's suggestion.

Though I dreaded the aftermath if His Highness discovered we had secretly given him the Fairy's Tears, I was willing to sacrifice myself for such an important cause as the Crown Prince's marriage.

"Right? Prince Friedrich might even thank us. How else could His Highness ever manage to marry a woman without something like the Fairy's Tears?"

"True, true."

'Should we really steal the Fairy's Tears and make His Highness drink it?'

When it came to the Crown Prince, my moral compass seemed to point straight to the ground.

Wouldn't this be good for His Highness too? We could cure his gynophobia and get him married at the same time.

Plus, the Empress would be overjoyed.

Just then, the bell in the corner of the aide's office chimed. It was a summons from the Crown Prince.

I rose from my seat to head to His Highness's office but hesitated. The hellish scene outside the aide's office flashed through my mind.

"...Good morning? Do I look like someone having a good morning right now?"

The Crown Prince's icy voice greeted me as soon as I stepped into the office.

Indeed, he didn't look like someone having a good morning at all. His hair was a disheveled mess, and his sleeves were torn and tattered.

"No, you don't."

The Crown Prince pointed at the door and shouted in an outraged voice, "Did you see them? Did you see those evil hordes out there?!"

Goodness, I nearly jumped out of my skin. My ears were ringing.

"Evil hordes? They're all lovely ladies. That's rather harsh..."

When I didn't sympathize with him, His Highness stared into my eyes and enunciated each word clearly: "Listen well. Women are devils, and marriage is hell!"

It seemed the Queen's wish to find a match for the Crown Prince wouldn't be easily fulfilled.

'Nothing to be done. I'll have to help.'

"Then how about a man?"

"What?"

"Since you dislike women. The Queen hasn't placed any restrictions on potential matches, so perhaps a male partner..."

The Crown Prince's expression turned glacial. I promptly shut my mouth.

" Chief Aide Violetta, rather than provoking my anger, why don't you just keep quiet?"

"Yes, understood."

"Don't even open your mouth until I give permission."

"Yes."

"Don't even answer me."

"......"

What choice did I have when he said not to speak? I quietly went about my duties.

I retrieved spare clothes from the wardrobe in the corner of the office and presented them to the Crown Prince.

After this same situation repeating for several days, Dominic the Head Chamberlain had taken to keeping spare clothes in the office.

The Crown Prince removed his ruined top and changed into the clothes I'd brought.

As he fastened the buttons on his new shirt, he glared at me.

"You knew about this, didn't you?"

"......"

I kept my lips firmly sealed. Though his subject was missing, I instantly understood what he meant. But fear of consequences - and perhaps a small desire for revenge over his earlier command for silence - kept me quiet.

How dare he ask me questions after ordering me not to speak until permitted!

"Answer me."

I shook my head while playing the role of an obedient servant. After all, one must follow their superior's orders.

"Speak."

I silently pointed to my mouth. The Crown Prince's brow furrowed visibly.

"It's fine, so speak."

What a shame. I would have gladly stayed silent forever if he'd ordered it. With no choice, I opened my mouth.

"...Yes. I knew."

"Why didn't you report it?"

"Her Majesty the Queen asked me to keep it secret."

"You're my person. You should prioritize my orders over the Queen's."

"I'm not anyone's person... I serve only the Empire."

"What does finding me a marriage partner have to do with serving the Empire?"

"Your Highness finding a good match and producing heirs is also for the Empire's benefit. So why not just close your eyes and meet one of these women who admire you?"

"Am I a breeding horse? To meet just anyone and produce an heir?"

"Well, if that's how you feel about it..."

The Crown Prince's eyebrows creased roughly.

Yikes, I might have pushed too far. Can't be helped. I tried to soothe him like a three-year-old child.

"Instead of that, why not consider marriage this time? Then you won't have to be chased by women anymore, and there won't be crowds gathering outside your office..."

"You heard how I view women, yet you still say such things?"

The Crown Prince looked at me with eyes full of betrayal.

"If you're going to talk like that, get out right now!"

Oh dear. I tried to comfort him but only provoked him further.

What power did I have? When told to leave, I had to leave.

This was one order I was confident in following.

I had finished my tasks anyway, so there was no reason to stay longer. I gave a quick bow and swiftly left the Crown Prince's office.

Through the closing door, I caught a glimpse of the Crown Prince holding his forehead as if nursing a headache, but what could I do?

This was Prince Friedrich's problem to solve.

The journey back to the aide's office was treacherous. Once again, I had to navigate through the crowd of people trying to stop me.

When I finally made it back to the aide's office, Brahe welcomed me.

"Senior, you made it back safely again today."

"Yes, but it's too exhausting. If I have to go to His Highness's office again, I might as well say goodbye to this world."

"What should we do? If this continues, it's going to interfere with our work. We don't just visit His Highness's office once or twice a day - we're constantly going back and forth."

"I know."

Brahe had a point.

But we couldn't stop the people who had gathered to meet the Crown Prince.

Since the Queen herself had ordered this and the Emperor tacitly approved, preventing it would be tantamount to defying imperial orders.

'Is there no way to resolve this situation without going against His Majesty's will?'

Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck me. And with it, a way to get revenge on the Crown Prince for interfering with my matchmaking.

A cunning smile spread across my face.

"There's no choice. We'll have to sacrifice His Highness."

***

I dropped a fresh stack of newly prepared documents onto the Crown Prince's desk while he was deeply focused on his work.

The Crown Prince gave me a disapproving look before flipping through the papers. With each page turned, his expression grew increasingly rigid.

"What is this, Chief Aide Violetta?"

"It's a list of people waiting outside to meet Your Highness."

"And? Why are you giving this to me?"

"You need to meet with all of them individually."

"What? Meet with all these people? Who decided this?"

The Crown Prince's face instantly contorted.

"Then what should we do? We can't let this situation continue. It's becoming difficult to access your office, and it's affecting our work."

"Just mobilize the knights to drive all the women away."

"Your Highness, you want to use force against ladies?"

"...Then what do you suggest I do?"

Just as I expected.

While the Crown Prince was harsh toward women, he wasn't the type to completely abandon a gentleman's principles.

"You struggle every time you enter and leave your office too, Your Highness. So just meet with each of them for ten minutes. They've promised they won't wait outside your office anymore after that."

The Crown Prince's face grew serious. Then, as if giving up, he slumped in his chair.

"Fine. But three minutes. Make it three minutes. I won't compromise more than that."

"Yes, understood."

Noticing how gaunt the Crown Prince's face had become over the past few days, I offered some words of comfort.

"Who knows? Among all those people, you might find a woman who appears human to you rather than a monster."

"In my entire life, there's only been one person of the opposite sex who felt human..."

The Crown Prince stopped mid-sentence and let out a long sigh.

'Why did you stop? You're killing me with curiosity.'

"Never mind, forget it. There's no point in telling you anyway."

The Crown Prince rubbed between his brows as if fighting a headache and waved his hand dismissively.

It was clearly a signal to get out of his sight.

Having achieved my goal, there was no reason to linger.

I quietly slipped out of the Crown Prince's office.