What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 214

Sub-Male Lead Goes On Strike – Episode 214

#214

The 19-Year-Old Head of the Family (1)

Wait, wait, wait!

“Hello! We are currently falling!”

I shouted as I plummeted with two Divine Beasts and a Marquis.

François Diem widened his eyes.

I know he’s handsome as always, and I sincerely appreciate him coming all the way here, but the situation hasn’t improved.

It was still incredibly serious. Whoosh!

“Oh, I see. I need to step up and do something…”

-Squeak!

The Marquis said weakly. Demi opened her mouth in a circle and cried.

She was clearly very happy, showing off her pink tongue.

I resisted the tremendous wind and barely stretched out one arm.

The little guy swam diligently in the air, and then, judging that it wasn’t enough, bloomed a flower stalk and clung to me.

I hugged the Lesser Panda and urged him.

“Why don’t you listen to me, huh?”

-Squeak.

“What was it again?”

The Marquis, who was holding me firmly with one arm, frowned.

It’s a good thing the cliff is deep, or we would have been dead already!

“Specialty! Marquis’s specialty!”

“Ah. Thank you, Madam.”

I wanted to snap at him for calling me Madam, but when I looked again, the Marquis was not in good condition.

His hand was hot, as if he had a fever.

Sweat was repeatedly forming on his forehead, which had cooled down from the cold wind, and his eyes strangely lacked focus.

He seemed to be in too much pain, and I felt guilty. He elegantly swung the mace he was holding in his other hand.

It seemed he had brought it because it was difficult to control his mana.

“Then… let’s go to my house.”

“Yes, please!”

Before I knew it, the ground covered with sharp rocks was right below my nose.

I hid the little ones deep in my arms and tightly closed my eyes. Wow, it would be better to just faint!

“Mom!”

-Faaaaa!

Just before going on a blind date with the Grim Reaper, my eyes were filled with bright, light pink light.

*

Time passed, and it was noon that day.

Cedric was now co-commanding the investigation with his mother.

Frederic had decided to receive reports alone when he was busy, and that was exactly what was happening now.

“The Royal Guard led by Marquis Diem has not yet entered the Imperial Capital.”

Duke Simon de Sarnese calmly reported.

The back of his neck was tinged with dark red.

Due to the terrorist attack at the academy’s founding ceremony, the Duke suffered burns on his right side.

He was receiving help from healing priests, but he was still wearing a mask on the right side of his face.

He seemed to be suffering from body aches on the day of the incident, but he seemed to be fine now.

He still looked tired, but he didn’t seem like he was about to collapse.

As a high-ranking noble participating in state affairs and a victim of terrorism, he took the initiative in this investigation.

The Crown Prince tilted his head.

“That’s strange.”

“Yes. It is widely known that the road in the South is rough, but it is rare for a convoy to be this late.”

“There was no news of rain or snow in the South.”

Elisabeth, who was standing by the Crown Prince, added.

Her orange eyes were heavily sunken.

There was no reason for the journey to be delayed, but Ervé Diem, one of the Empire’s strongest mages, had not yet reached the Imperial Capital.

The reason for dispatching him was that the charges were serious, but in reality, it was to protect the Prince.

But they had been silent all along. Cedric was uncomfortable with the unfamiliar anxiety.

“If Your Highness orders, I will send the Imperial Capital Defense Force to the South to conduct a search.”

“······.”

A search. The Duke continued his explanation.

“There is a high possibility that there was a setback due to encountering a herd of monsters. We have recently replenished the Defense Force, so even if we extract some of them, there will be no problem with the defense of the capital.”

“I heard about that. I heard that the Duke has been raising a lot of elite soldiers and donating a lot of sponsorship money.”

The Sub-Marquis smiled slyly. The man smiled kindly.

“I have only done what I should do as a subject for the peace of the Imperial Family and the Empire.”

“······Do as you see fit. Extract only a small number of elites so that there are no loopholes in the security of the Imperial Capital.”

The Crown Prince said. Since Johann Haynes was there, the possibility of a problem was low.

But the Prince attracted incidents as if he were the center of a typhoon.

The case itself was so sensitive that he had to anticipate unforeseen situations.

However, he could not send more Imperial Guards from here.

The Duke nodded and rose from his seat.

He seemed dizzy, but he quickly regained his composure. The Crown Prince asked cautiously.

“I heard that Lord Sarnese reached the Lord’s Castle before the Prince.”

“······Yes, Your Highness.”

It was about Christel. Elisabeth raised the corners of her lips and glanced at Cedric.

Even though they bickered, she seemed to care about him as a friend.

“Is there something going on in the family?”

“No. Just… my daughter is not feeling well, so she came up early.”

The Duke said readily. The Crown Prince narrowed his brows.

“That’s unexpected.”

Not feeling well, was that possible for that person?

Somehow, she had been quiet even though this was happening. Elisabeth was also very surprised.

“Is she very sick? I thought it was strange that she left the Prince behind, but I should visit her.”

“It’s okay.”

The Duke gently cut her off.

The left side of his face, not covered by the mask, had the same gentle impression as always.

“I told her to refrain from going out in case it was the flu that’s going around in the West. I’m afraid it might spread to you precious people. I will have her greet the Imperial Palace as soon as she gets better.”

“Hmm. Then please give her our regards.”

“Thank you. I will.”

He bowed politely and stepped back. The Deputy Commander of the Royal Guard finally sat down and stretched.

“Ugh, what is all this fuss about? Suddenly a terrorist attack, and the Prince is being falsely accused of something ridiculous… I haven’t finished my report yet, but I want to go home.”

“It’s strange.”

“Huh? What is?”

The Sub-Marquis, leaning on the sofa, turned only his head to look at Cedric. The man was serious.

“It bothers me that they were scattered at this point in time.”

“······.”

“Why are you laughing?”

He frowned. Elisabeth grabbed a nearby cushion with a face that looked like she was about to cry, then,

“I’m not laughing, heuheuheu.”

She quickly buried her head and began to sob.

Leia and Perry, who were playing with fire snakes in the next room, heard their favorite sister crying and rushed over.

The Crown Prince sighed as he watched Perry crawl onto his lap.

He had nothing to say when they asked ‘Squeak, squeak’ what was wrong.

“You found all your friends, and you’ve really become a socialite. Your sister is so touched…”

“I’m seven months faster.”

“Heuheuk.”

-Squeak.

The Sub-Marquis hugged Leia and sobbed.

She was the only one who felt a strange premonition; she was the same as usual even though her reunion with her fiancé was delayed.

She expressed concern, but she seemed to think that nothing major could happen to a group with the Royal Guard Commander, the Cardinal, and the Healing Priest.

It was a more rational attitude than his inexplicable anxiety. So the Crown Prince changed the subject.

The only way to fix the Deputy Commander of the Royal Guard, who had burst into laughter, was ‘work’.

“What about the autopsy results?”

“Oh, that’s right.”

She quickly composed herself and put Leia down.

“Your guess was right. Poison was detected in the body of Lord Andreji.”

“······.”

The Crown Prince gritted his teeth.

At the founding ceremony terrorist attack that killed one person, he witnessed a strange scene.

There was blood and white foam around the mouth of the dead perpetrator.

Although the boy died instantly from the impact of the explosion, Cedric sensed that it was not just a simple bodily fluid.

So, instead of cremating the body immediately, he requested an autopsy.

The coroner was Michel Moutet, the doctor he trusted most.

Elisabeth continued.

“He must have taken poison just before carrying out the terrorist attack. Whether the person who instigated it gave it to him or he brought it himself. That guy had to die there for sure.”

“······.”

“Because if you survived after I put out the fire, it would be a headache. With Prince Orelly there, you can’t make false statements.”

In short, it was a terrorist attack planned to cover up the aftermath. They cut off the tail to completely hide the mastermind.

It was a crime that someone like Yeser Venetian could not even imagine.

Cedric’s gloved hand tightened. Perry hugged his fist as if to calm him down.

“But there are so many different kinds of poisons that kill people, so it will take time to figure out the exact ingredients. It’s easy if it’s poison ivy, but it could be monster poison. I told him I’d give him a week.”

“Three days.”

He said briefly. The Deputy Commander of the Royal Guard’s jaw dropped. He was a tyrant in his own right.

“Finish it within that time.”

“Saydi, my dad is human too.”

-Knock knock.

At that moment, someone knocked on the door of the Imperial Palace reception room.

Then, David appeared with a troubled expression.

“Your Highness, a guest has arrived.”

“Didn’t I say to refuse all visitors for the time being?”

“That is…”

“Lord Moutet!”

Bang! A young voice burst through the crack in the door. Elisabeth immediately stood up.

Eva Blancarte, with tears welling up in her eyes, immediately jumped into her arms.

The Young Duchess was trembling all over for some reason.

The Sub-Marquis tried to check her expression, but the child could only cry without raising her head.

The Crown Prince looked at David. The middle-aged man shook his head silently.

“Eva?”

“My brother is dead, Lord Moutet. My brother…”

‘Oh my god.’ Elisabeth was shocked. Robert Blancarte was dead?

“What happened? Was there an accident?”

He was a young man about Cedric’s age.

Although he had suffered permanent injuries from a duel, he had no underlying diseases and was a very powerful magician.

He was not the type to die because he was not suited to being a thug.

“I don’t know. A message came from the Lord’s Castle a while ago, heuk [sobbing sound]. My mother told me to stay in the Imperial Capital for now, heuk…”

“I see. How surprised you must have been, my goodness.”

-Thud.

An envelope fell from the Young Duchess’s robe. It was an expensive and luxurious outer envelope that anyone could see.

Perry and Leia ran over and sniffed it, tilting their tails.

Then they stared intently at the Crown Prince. He leaned in the same direction.

“What is it?”

-Squeak.

Leia tapped the envelope with her black nose, as if to show him something.

She had a very serious look on her face.

It was as if she still thought the Imperial Palace was a ‘Bakery Detective Agency’.

Cedric glanced at Elisabeth and Eva, then bent down for the Divine Beasts.

Just once.

-Squeak.

Then Perry pressed down on a certain part with his front paw.

The Crown Prince picked up the Divine Beast’s fur ball.

“…Ink splattered.”

Two small drops of ink that were hard to find unless you looked closely.

The two Divine Beasts, having confirmed the man’s reaction, hurried to the next room.

They were beings that were hard to understand.

He slowly straightened up and turned to look at the two.

“Shh… It’s okay. We’ll be with you. How about staying at the Sub-Marquis’s mansion for the time being?”

At the Sub-Marquis’s cautious question, Eva nodded, sobbing.

A shaken soul was emitting unstable ether [a mystical energy]. The Crown Prince took out a handkerchief and handed it to her.

-Squeak.

At that moment, the Divine Beasts returned and called him again. Cedric looked down at the carpet.

Leia spat out what she was holding.

“Are you now touching even confidential information?”

He asked sternly. The two of them opened their mouths wide as if they were wronged.

What they brought was an ‘anonymous letter’ that was on the table.

It was an envelope of news material that Sara Beliard had left behind, accusing the Prince of plotting a rebellion.

Perry pressed down hard on one spot on the envelope as if he was wronged.

Hard enough to leave footprints.

“······.”

The Crown Prince’s eyes sharpened. The voices of his friend and cousin faded into the background.

That was also an ink stain.

*

His eyes snapped open. Unfamiliar wallpaper, unfamiliar bed.

“Huh!”

I was startled and jumped up. Now was not the time to sleep comfortably.

As soon as I woke up, worry and fear flooded in.

I have to save Lord Diem, Lord Johann, and my friends…!

“Ah! You’re awake!”

“The Divine Kingdom, I see the moon of the Divine Kingdom…”

“Did you sleep well, Prince Yeser, the witness of my faith!”

Cough, cough! I coughed in surprise at the pouring greetings.

I had to go help my precious people, but my mind went blank and I couldn’t think of anything.

I quickly covered my mouth with my sleeve, but the coughing didn’t stop.

First, I pulled up the blankets as much as possible and covered my neck. My cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

There are three unknown ladies in the bedroom!

No… I know two of them?

“Princess Antoinette?”

“Yes, my benefactor!”

The Marquis’s eldest sister, who had tied her long hair up in one, stretched out her arms and bowed like a musical actress.

It was a very flashy outfit from broad daylight. I turned to look at the others with a dazed face.

The shy one over there is Princess Therese, whom I met at the masquerade, so maybe the one over there is the second sister…

“My name is Maria! I carried the Prince all the way here!”

The lady, dressed like a stable hand and wearing a soot-stained bread hat, put her hands on her hips and said.

“T, thank you.”

I barely greeted them and swallowed hard.

So these are the three sisters who are the powerhouses of the Marquis family, Antoinette-Maria-Therese…