What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 563

#563

This Original is a Jackpot (3)

To make a long story short?

Thus, the three young ladies of the prestigious Diem Marquis family had a temporary coachman.

-Clatter, clatter, clatter······!

“Sir Matt, are you really a knight stationed in the Imperial City? Really?”

“Yes.”

“But how did you end up wandering around our backyard? I’ve heard of such things happening, but this is the first time I’ve actually seen it!”

The second daughter, Maria Diem, was not one to suppress her curiosity.

If she was curious, she had to resolve it on the spot, and once she set her mind on something, she would see it through to the end.

Needless to say, she inherited that trait from her eldest brother.

On the other hand, she had good resilience, strong strength, and knew how to patiently wait until she got what she wanted.

That she took after her second brother.

Her flower-pink eyes, different from her siblings, sparkled brightly.

The carelessly worn straw hat smelled pleasantly of barley fields, and her summer pants and boots with many pockets were splattered with mud.

She didn’t look like a noble lady at first glance.

“Of course, I’m not doubting your identity, sir. My eldest brother told me not to judge people by their appearance, but your torn clothes look expensive, and you’re handsome!”

Then Antoinette, sitting on the opposite side, was shocked.

Gugu, perched on her shoulder, also stuck out its tongue.

“Good heavens, Maria. Apologize at once!”

-Neigh!

“I’m sorry!”

Maria, who had not yet celebrated her twentieth birthday, had a particularly youthful air about her.

John, in the coachman’s seat, skillfully handled the reins and cleared his throat.

It was a time when everything about the Diem family felt new.

Even though it was a world that mirrored his own, the people here didn’t recognize him at all.

The season was different, and the air flowing by was also unique.

The second daughter insisted on joining him out of immense curiosity, so the eldest daughter, acting as her guardian, had no choice but to occupy one side of the seat.

The precious youngest daughter, Therese, remained in the carriage with the servants and coachman.

Antoinette folded John’s coat on her lap and spoke calmly.

“Please understand, sir. My sister still lacks refinement. Her social debut is just around the corner, and I don’t know what to do······.”

“It’s alright. I am honored to escort you ladies to the Imperial City.”

“Oh, my.”

Antoinette smiled sweetly at the more polite reply than she had expected.

Maria stopped dangling her legs and turned to look at her.

A large snack basket was placed on the girl’s lap.

“How’s Jocelyn doing, Sister?”

“······She’s getting old, so I think she overdid it in the hot weather to take us here. She’s regained consciousness. We’ll call a doctor as soon as we arrive at the Mute Count’s residence.”

“Shouldn’t we ask Sir Michel?”

“I’d be grateful if you would, but he’s busy, so I don’t know what will happen.”

“Ah! I guess he might have gone out to gather herbs. It’s summer, after all.”

“Yes. After seeing that Jocelyn is okay, let’s go try on your dress too. We’ll have dinner with the two Mute Counts.”

“Okay! But, Sister, can’t I just not wear the ruby hair ornament······.”

“······.”

Listening to the conversation between the two sisters, John silently pondered.

As he had vaguely guessed, this place was not far from the Imperial City.

To be precise, it was an area he had visited several times.

The historic Diem Marquis residence, located in the suburbs of the Imperial City, and the vast fiefdom of the prestigious family.

A place where servants eat their fill and commoners freely hunt.

-Clatter, clatter, clatter······!

“Seriously. My eldest brother has been working on getting that jewel for months. Don’t you know how rare a star ruby from a principality is?”

“It’s pretty, but it makes the top of my head itchy.”

“Oh, you have no shame in front of a gentleman.”

“······.”

Suddenly, a memory of a summer polo match came to mind.

The holy knight’s eyes darkened in an instant.

The sensation of his lips, trembling as if cursed, was vivid.

Even now.

‘It’s okay. I won’t hurt you.’

‘Sir Haynes. Why on earth,’

‘-Whizz!’

‘-Clang!’

······It wasn’t around here. But if he went a little further, ‘that place’ would appear.

Veins bulged on John’s hand.

His neck stiffened, and a cold shadow fell on his forehead.

Suddenly, he felt nauseous and his insides seemed to turn upside down.

“Sir Matt, are you going too?”

“······Pardon?”

It was Maria who pulled him out of the shadows again.

John turned to look at her with slightly widened eyes.

The feeling of suddenly returning to reality was not as bad as he had thought.

The days when he felt he didn’t even deserve it felt so distant.

The child in front of him simply had an innocent face.

“The shipboard ball! If you live in the Imperial City, you know about it, right? These days, even the palace servants are scrambling to get invitations!”

“······I’ve never heard of it. Is it a big event?”

Shipboard ball?

The cardinal quickly rummaged through his mind, but he had no memory of hearing such information in the summer when Maria was not yet twenty.

Antoinette took out a drink from the basket and smiled.

“It’s the first event being held this year, so it’s natural that you don’t know about it. The owner of the Imperial City Opera House is throwing a party to celebrate His Highness the Crown Prince’s birthday.”

“The Andre Viscount family. They say they have a lot of money!”

The man elegantly moved his gaze from side to side, listening to the two people.

This was a name he had heard of.

Judith Andre, the owner of the opera house, was someone he had actually met.

It was around the time when was being performed to great success.

Rumors spread that the Atal Opera Company actors were possessed by a ghost and collapsed, and his master and disciples were caught up in the incident as if by agreement.

John harmed himself by using the lower-level monster, Esprit······.

-Clang

At that moment, the front window of the quiet carriage opened. The man woke up from his thoughts again.

Therese, who had been looking after the coachman Jocelyn, was looking out at them.

Soon, a gentle voice flowed out.

“······Aren’t they going to announce their engagement this time? The young master of that family had good news.”

“Ah! That’s right. They made the excuse of celebrating His Highness’s birthday, but in fact, the viscount’s goal is that side. Anyone who knows the Imperial City’s social circles to some extent would think so.”

Antoinette pointed out sharply, shaking her rose quartz earrings.

Meanwhile, Maria took a handful of ripe blueberries from the basket and placed them in John’s palm.

The man tilted his head, awkwardly holding them.

He wondered if he needed to know the flow of society so thoroughly, but on the other hand, he needed information to find his master and disciples.

Right now, the more the better.

So he opened his mouth calmly.

“······Engagement, you say.”

“Yes! The engagement between the millionaire Andre Viscount family and the honorable Bacari Viscount family!”

Um······?

“Thanks to Andre’s son winning second place in this monster subjugation, the family’s name has greatly increased. His Highness the Crown Prince is said to be coming to the shipboard ball, so there is no better stage for the viscount. He must have prepared for a long time.”

“······Ah.”

Antoinette explained in a professional voice, and John simply nodded without any expression.

But now a storm was raging in his head.

The mercenary’s instincts stirred intensely at the unexpected intelligence.

“Then perhaps······.”

-Clatter, clatter, clatter······

And thanks to that, the man was able to pass ‘that place’ safely.

Gugu tapped its tail, feeling the holy knight’s energy subside.

*

-Step, step, step······

-Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle······

-Pat, pat, pat······!

I walked diligently, only looking at Ganael’s back, and before I knew it, I was near the first-floor dining room.

The servants and maids walking around the hallway all looked busy.

The soldiers guarding the palace also had more strength in their shoulders than usual—more than I remember.

The Romero Palace, visible through the window, felt even larger and more threatening today.

I smiled faintly, only tracing the familiar shape of the door with my eyes.

Now even a candlestick or a frame felt welcome and familiar.

Of course, ‘this’ Juliette Palace didn’t have a carpet for Tete, and there were rows of dangerous porcelain and plates for the little ones······.

-Creak

Oh, Leah! If you drop that, we’ll get kicked out!

“Be careful!”

-Tap

“······A few days ago, Prince Yeseo went out of the Imperial Palace.”

“Yes?”

Ganael, who had suddenly stopped in front of the door, turned to me and spoke.

Hurriedly hugging the precious object, I swallowed hard.

I couldn’t predict the next sentence, so my heart was pounding.

If the prince had recently left the palace, what is it? Was it a late-night date with Christel after all?

“He said he was greatly indebted to you.”

“Yes? Ah······.”

Was that it? I was wondering what excuse he used to bring me into the palace, but it seems he made it up like that.

Instead of answering, I just smiled ambiguously. Then the boy drooped his eyebrows.

“······I’m also grateful, Serenete.”

“No, it’s nothing······.”

“The prince values connections outside the Imperial Palace.”

“······.”

“Very much.”

Ganael, whispering like that, looked somehow sad, so I couldn’t say anything more.

Because it was affection that wasn’t mine, I couldn’t even dare to delve into it.

Even more so because I roughly knew what context the sentence came from.

-Knock knock

“Come in.”

Soon, a servant knocked on the dining room door, and a kind answer flowed out from inside.

The boy opened the entrance so I could enter.

Then he whispered in a voice small enough for only me to hear.

“Eat as much as you can, no matter what. It’s the prince’s sincerity.”

······Huh?

*

For a prince and a servant to dine together alone, does that make any sense?

“······Wow, it’s really delicious!”

But it’s happening!

-Squeak!

“Hahaha.”

I emptied the fifth plate of steak tartare cleanly and scraped off the remaining egg yolk on the bottom.

The savory and tender flavor of the raw meat spread like a blessing throughout my mouth.

Meanwhile, Demi was destroying her second bunch of plump seasonal grapes on one side of the table.

Of course, I swear on Jung Hyun-seo, we didn’t eat like this from the beginning.

At first, I was naturally conscious, so I slowly inhaled only one plate at a time (one grape for Demi).

Then that handsome prince, well······.

‘Amazing, Miss Yeseo. Do you usually eat this well?’

‘······Yes? I only ate one bowl each.’

‘Oh my. So you’re saying you can eat more?’

He admired me, watching me as if I were a rare spectacle, marveling again and again.

I often hear compliments that I eat heartily, but my mukbang [eating broadcast] must have been very impressive content for him.

The prince called Benjamin several times to refill the fruits and food, and from some point on, he didn’t even touch his own dishes and only focused on me.

As things turned out this way, there were many things that bothered me.

Benjamin, who was looking at me with deep eyes, was burdensome (feeling like I was targeted by my boss), and I was also conscious of the onlookers who increased one by one each time he returned with a new dessert (still, applause is a bit too much), and the prince who only ate half a bowl of artichoke gratin and put down his spoon······.

Excuse me, but what energy are you using to breathe and speak?

“It’s amazing and nice to see you eating so well. Would you like to taste this too?”

Did he just say I was amazing?

“······Thank you.”

Without even having time to think, he pushed the wide anchovy canapé plate towards me.

It was the size that would be placed with tongs at a buffet.

Perry and Leah, sitting next to me, urged me to try it.

I wondered if this was really okay, but the Laurence anchovies sandwiched between fragrant butter and fresh tomatoes were a temptation hard to resist.

The baguette was also golden brown because it hadn’t been baked long ago. The dizzying and complex flavor made my eyes spin.

I can’t help it. Just one of these······.

-Crunch!

“Wow······.”

I was mesmerized and exclaimed as soon as I took a bite.

The prince, who was watching the scene, finally laughed out loud. It wasn’t a teasing tone.

“Miss Yeseo, there’s already a big difference between you and me.”

“Umm······.”

While I was diligently savoring the canapé, he was only drinking a cup of iced Americano for dessert.

It was definitely ‘Cafe Chris’ that Christel had spread here.

“I was curious about how you and I are the same and how we are different. So I invited you to a meal to talk······.”

Huh, such a calculation? Should I have brought a calculator too······?

“······It was fun. Thank you for not being uncomfortable with me and eating deliciously.”

“No. I’m the one who······. Thank you for treating me to such precious food. I really enjoyed it.”

As I hurriedly wiped my mouth with a napkin, the prince waved his hand and told me to eat more slowly.

But I politely declined his offer.

Now that I knew he wanted to talk, I didn’t want to take up more of his time.

Besides, I was a servant.

If we were alone together like this for a long time, there would be gossip in some way.

“Um······. Do you have any questions separately? If it’s something I can answer, I’ll tell you without adding or subtracting.”

“······Well. Actually, concerns about identity have never been the most important thing to me······.”

‘My life was always first.’ The prince smiled as if he would scatter at any moment.

I momentarily lost my words and looked at him.

“For the time being, I want to help and watch like this. Only if Miss Yeseo is okay with it.”

“Ah······.”

-Whine······

It felt like I was possessed by something. It was then.

-Knock knock, click!

“Your Highness.”

“Yes, Benjamin.”

The head of Juliette’s servants reappeared, and I quickly bowed my head.

It didn’t mean that the plates I had emptied would disappear with a poof.

“······His Highness the Crown Prince is urgently looking for you. It’s a message to come to the training grounds.”

“······.”

“······.”

What? I was so surprised that I raised my head.

Why the training grounds? Unlike me, this person doesn’t have ether, so what’s the matter······.

Wait. Could it be!

“Your Highness, you mustn’t go—”

“Tell him I’ll be right there. I need to wear comfortable clothes. Tell Ganael.”

“······Yes.”

Benjamin nodded politely and disappeared out the door.

I stared blankly at the place he had left for a long time.

If my memory wasn’t wrong, this was an incident that had been mentioned several times in the Toegye Gong [Korean historical drama].

‘Seregi,’ blinded by jealousy of the prince, calls him to the training grounds and demands a duel, and

Always mercilessly······.

“I hope Miss Yeseo will fulfill her duties here.”

“Your Highness, you don’t have to go······.”

I sincerely tried to dissuade him, but the prince only smiled like baby’s breath and didn’t budge.

“No. There is something I need to receive from His Highness the Crown Prince.”

Then he slowly got up from his seat.

······Receive something?