What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 572

#572

Is Breaking Off the Engagement Even Plausible, You Guys! (2)

“So…”

-Kkiheung.

“So, I ended up going to the dress shop two hours later. With Prince Yeser.”

Clatter! I whispered as I set the dessert plate down on the table.

Since the guest asked for anything suitable, I chose only what I wanted to eat and what the Crown Prince might tolerate.

A handful of sweet choux from the croquembouche [a tower of cream puffs held together with caramel] piled like trees throughout the palace, and a tartelette au café filled with rich coffee buttercream. Also, a tartelette fines aux pommes for the other guest.

For reference, this one boasts a refreshing green apple fragrance, adorable mint leaves, and a bright yellow custard color.

And a piping hot poison espresso.

And a cup of Café Crème, the most popular drink in the Imperial Capital.

“Enjoy your meal, guest. Welcome to the Juliette Palace.”

“……”

The Crown Prince with glasses wore a very displeased expression at my picture-perfect Imperial greeting.

However, unlike the night he stormed the Imperial Palace, he was dressed plainly (if a dress shirt that looked like it was about to burst because it didn’t fit could be called plain).

A white top, black pants, neatly folded sleeves, and tall summer boots created a neat and clean impression.

Passing maids and servants would crane their necks for a long time whenever they spotted him.

Since they couldn’t stop working to gawk at the guest, they desperately moved only their heads instead.

I glanced down at Cedric and asked.

“Those glasses. Didn’t you say they were a magical artifact that concealed your appearance?”

“……”

“Never mind. It’s okay.”

Even if his face isn’t visible… are they all liking something else and looking like that?

Well, a romance fantasy male lead’s specs are something else.

According to the person himself, people don’t recognize him even without wearing glasses.

However, he wears them because he doesn’t know when he might encounter the Imperial Family (himself).

Indeed, a cautious approach befitting royalty.

-Nyao, nyaooo.

“Oh, the building is very tall and pretty, right? That’s Romero. The house where your boss lives.”

As a bonus, Lopi, who was visiting the Imperial Palace in broad daylight for the first time, was sitting on the Crown Prince’s shoulder, observing everything.

I gently stroked the divine beast’s chin and smiled softly.

The servant Pierre tried to swallow his fist every time he saw a cat in the distance.

He really, really likes them, but he can’t get close because he’s allergic.

This guy is a divine beast, so it shouldn’t matter. It’s a shame I can’t tell him the truth.

“Hehehehe.”

Then the old man next to me looked at me and smiled kindly, even for his companion.

I quickly straightened my posture and placed a fork in front of the two of them. Excuse me.

“I’ll enjoy the meal, young man. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Oh! It’s been a while since I’ve had Imperial Palace food. The smell is still amazing!”

She had all sorts of books spread out on the narrow outdoor table, all of them old magic-related books.

Even at a glance, the content was incredibly difficult and complex.

Magical formulas that looked like mathematical formulas filled the yellowed paper, and the margins of the book were densely packed with the old man’s handwriting like a jungle.

A large magnifying glass covered nearly half of her face, and her wrinkled lips held two long quill pens.

The old woman smelled of comfortable books, drawers, and well-made leather bags.

In addition, her old summer coat, worn-down shoes, and mismatched knee-patched pants were definitely a rare sight in the Imperial Palace.

I had ‘read’ about this person in the original work.

“Enjoy your meal.”

“Umm, yes. This tartelette tastes amazing. You guys have some too… Hold on. I definitely applied the same formula before. Where was it…?”

-Flap, flap flap!

Barbara Scheu.

The late Alexandre Liester’s childhood teacher and an eccentric old magician who lived in seclusion.

If I remember correctly, Class 4.

Her role in Toegye Hall was a ‘supporting’ character close to a ‘minor role,’ appearing once or twice as the bell ringer of the Evelyn Bell Tower.

She was someone I didn’t even have a chance to properly meet in the world line I was in.

-Tap, tap tap!

She chewed and swallowed a thin slice of apple, then suddenly tapped her glasses frame with her fingernail.

It seems that it is also a magical artifact.

-Zzzzt, zzzzt…

“This damn crooked magnifying glass. I told it to zoom in on the left, the left.”

“Hahaha.”

I heard that when this person appeared in front of the Imperial Palace main gate, Sir Ervé Dhiem himself came out to guide her.

The young guards were so surprised that they just followed her around.

Scheu introduced the Crown Prince as her ‘grandnephew,’ which immediately guaranteed his identity.

In short, as long as he was with his grandmother, this guy had a free pass to the Imperial Palace.

“It’s a stroke of luck that you met this person as soon as you arrived.”

“……”

As I whispered quietly, the Crown Prince put down his espresso cup and crossed his arms.

It seemed to be a topic he didn’t want to answer. This time, he changed the subject.

“Benjamin Girardin is living a second life.”

“Ah, yes. Have you read The God Gave Me ?”

As I spoke softly, watching Scheu’s reaction, the man nodded almost imperceptibly.

Normally, he would never say such things with an outsider present.

But either he completely trusted Scheu, or he thought she wouldn’t hear our conversation— “Aha! I was stuck on hyperspace again. It’s an easy concept if you think of it as anti-space! Barbara! You’re just stubborn as you get older!” —Hmm. It seems like the latter.

-Squeak.

-Kkiwoo.

Sensing our atmosphere, the lesser pandas quickly approached Scheu and wagged their tails.

That’s right, minimal interference was essential.

“Certainly. There seemed to be some strange expressions.”

“That’s right. For example, ‘I always feel the presence of God clearly. I am certain that He is watching me from above and managing my life in a much clearer way than I can fathom. For example, I sometimes….’”

“‘Sometimes I feel déjà vu in a completely new space.’”

A low voice took my words.

I quickly refilled the old woman’s empty glass with iced coffee.

Then, after looking around at the passersby, I continued in a serious voice.

“Looking at the contents of the book, Benjamin sometimes had dreams of his past life and once thought it was a revelation from God. But he would forget all about it in the morning. Like everyone else.”

“……”

“But Prince Yeser is different. He knows clearly. That he was made by someone….”

I looked at Scheu’s face again. She was now writing with both hands at the same time.

Wow, in that state, you wouldn’t even notice if I spoke to you directly….

“Deliberately created, that his existence has a purpose, and that this world is the same. It’s a doubt that goes beyond the level that Benjamin can handle with faith.”

“……In the original work.”

“‘The Garden.’ We decided to call it our garden.”

I whispered like crazy. The Crown Prince narrowed his brows but obediently followed my words.

“Was such awareness revealed in the garden as well?”

“No, not at all. The content of the garden is mostly developed from the protagonist, Ms. Gain’s, point of view. So honestly… the prince feels very unfamiliar. I feel like I didn’t know him at all.”

“……”

“Of course, the same goes for the Crown Prince. Usually, you get to know a lot as you spend time together….”

“……”

The man remained silent, and I stood awkwardly, hesitatingly tucking in my napkin.

A wave of self-loathing washed over me, and I didn’t want to be here anymore.

Why did I say those last words? Why did I add such useless nonsense?

This guy is still having a hard time connecting his father’s death to our brother, and he’ll probably think about it every time he sees me.

Even if it’s not my fault, there are definitely points to be careful about when talking.

I was so ashamed of my immature self that my cheeks flushed.

“Then I’ll be on my way. I have to clean the fireplace and serve food and drinks to other guests. I hope you two have a good time. I’ll see you at the dress shop.”

“‘Blessing of the Azure Sea.’”

“Pardon?”

-Kking?

Demi and I turned our heads at the same time.

The man who had stopped me with a single word slowly turned his gaze.

The orange eyes held a hot light even under the late summer trees.

“Didn’t you say you would explain?”

“Oh, that’s right!”

I quickly stood next to him again.

The magician old woman was still flipping through her books, unaware that I was coming and going.

I started explaining quickly and calmly. Soksak soksak [whisper whisper].

“The Blessing of the Azure Sea that the Crown Prince knows is, in fact, a non-existent entity. Because Isabel used it to awaken Ms. Gain and it was absorbed into her body.”

Just a nod.

“So you might think that the same situation would occur here. It’s a natural idea in some ways. Assuming that the sacred object disappeared before the engagement was concluded, and assuming that the engagement with the Sarnese family was broken off….”

“He would have been engaged to a daughter from another family.”

“……Um.”

I looked up at the sky for a moment, then blinked and met his gaze.

The Crown Prince was making his unique sullen expression. To put it into words….

‘I’m right. Hurry up and say I’m right.’ That kind of face.

“Well, you might think so. Yes. By any chance, did you not hear any other names on your way here? If you listen to the chatter of the Imperial Capital merchants and citizens for a moment….”

“Why would I?”

Haaaa…. This Liester bloodline.

“You didn’t ask Ms. Scheu separately, did you?”

“Why would I care when it’s not my wedding?”

“……”

That’s right, that’s right. But why am I so nervous when I’m the one talking?

I rubbed my palms on my apron for no reason. The man scanned my appearance up and down.

Something must be terribly displeasing to him.

“Shall we go with the long story or the short story? The conclusion is the same.”

“Briefly.”

He replied as if there was nothing more to hear and drank his coffee.

I made a T with both hands for a moment and bit into a piece of tartelette left by Scheu to cheer myself up. Crunch!

The fantastic cinnamon that surprised my sense of smell, the flavor of butter that pleased my tongue.

The fluffy yet crunchy texture of the apple pie made me feel like I was being led above the clouds.

It was so delicious that I felt energized and courageous.

-……Gulp!

Suddenly, my eyes widened. I have a feeling that everything will be okay if I say it now!

“It’s Ms. Gain.”

“What?”

Oh? The reaction isn’t bad?

“……The Crown Prince’s fiancée here.”

“What?”

He half-unfolded his arms. I instinctively took half a step back.

But it was still good.

“Here, Princess Cristel de Sarnese was awakened with a different sacred object. Not the Blessing of the Azure Sea.”

“……”

“So there was no reason to break off the engagement, and so now the two of you….”

No. It’s too scary.

That expression is definitely not a romance fantasy to anyone who sees it.

“Say it to the end.”

“Y-yes. The two of you got engaged, and eventually fell in love—”

-Kwaaaang!

“Euhaaaak!”

-Crash, clang!

‘Oh oh oh!’ The table, which was full of all sorts of ancient books and desserts, flew away like an explosion, and the Cold Palace garden instantly turned into a scene of chaos.

An excited Perry and Leah began running around busily.

It seemed they thought of this as a new kind of game.

“Goodness, guest! What on earth have you done!”

“Oh my, I taught this kid wrong!”

-Kkiaaa!

“Bring Benjamin here! Quickly!”

“Good heavens…!”

As for me, I just closed my eyes tightly.

*

-Crash, clang!

“……Hmm?”

A middle-aged man reading a book in the Romero Palace living room raised his head slightly.

It seemed like something was making a commotion outside.

As she tilted her head gracefully, the maid Natalie, who was standing behind her, quickly checked outside the window.

“It seems that a noble guest is causing a disturbance. It seems to be Ms. Scheu’s companion.”

“……The child who was said to be Barbara-sensei’s grandnephew?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“I see. It’s hot, but he’s full of energy.”

Orelly Boutier smiled softly and looked at the sofa opposite her.

The man who had been silently reviewing documents felt her gaze and looked up.

“Cedric, isn’t Juliette your responsibility?”

“……”

“I think you should give him a proper warning.”

At the Grand Duchess’s advice, the red eyes in the shadows flashed.

The man slowly looked down beyond the window.