What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 36

#036 The Playboy of Shinguk (2)

The interview location provided by the Emperor was larger than my room in the Juliette Palace.

I was guided by an Imperial Palace attendant to a sofa that seemed to be the seat of honor and sat down.

My body sank deeply into it, and I immediately felt comfortable. It was indeed top-notch.

Lady Sarah Beliard sat across from me.

“It seems you are close to Princess Christel de Sarnese.”

“No, not at all.”

She suddenly said something that could cause big trouble. I immediately denied it.

A little while ago.

Christel, the Prince, Lady Beliard, and I, who had run into each other in front of the Emperor’s office, exchanged awkward greetings.

Soon, Christel told me, ‘Thank you for playing with me,’ and left. The Prince, as if it were natural, ignored us and entered the room where the Emperor was.

I was a little nervous about how that guy would get involved again, but I wondered if it was just a chance encounter.

So, as planned, only Lady Beliard, I, and three attendants entered the room.

However, Lady Beliard seemed to have interpreted Christel’s words as she pleased.

“So, you don’t even know the Princess’s middle name yet.”

“And I won’t know it in the future either.”

I retorted sharply. I could never admit that I already knew it, that I had heard it at our first meeting.

Lady Beliard smiled leisurely and brought up something else.

“By the way… I never thought I would see the most beautiful woman on the continent, the most beautiful woman in the Empire, and the most beautiful woman in Shinguk all in one place. I’m very lucky.”

What is this, a rapid-fire compliment?

It didn’t seem like there were any difficult words mixed in, but it was hard to understand the sentence right away.

Perhaps reading my expression, she added an explanation.

“When His Majesty Alexander was alive, he was called the most beautiful man on the continent. And His Highness Prince Cedrick is, without a doubt, considered the most beautiful man in the Empire.”

She was referring to seeing Prince Cedrick, me, and the portrait of Alexander in the hallway earlier.

It’s not like we’re the F4 [a popular term referring to a group of handsome and influential young men]… It made me cringe a little, but I let it go.

The Prince looked almost exactly like the deceased King Consort, so it wasn’t strange that the two of them were said to be beautiful.

Eunseo, who used to sing ‘Se-trash, Se-trash,’ would be mesmerized whenever she saw an illustration of the Prince.

“I see.”

“Your Highness, do you know why His Majesty the Emperor specifically chose the Imperial Palace as the interview location?”

Lady Beliard’s tone changed slightly, becoming sharper.

I reflexively straightened my posture.

The interview was taking place in a reception room quite close to where the Emperor worked.

Could this be the first question?

“Perhaps he wanted to intimidate me. This place is a space where you can constantly be reminded that His Majesty is nearby.”

When I answered, Lady Beliard raised the corners of her lips.

She seemed pleased with the answer.

I thought that she looked just like the picky editor in the movie my brother liked.

Was it ?

“You have excellent analytical skills. But there’s one more thing. I heard that the Juliette Palace went into renovation last month.”

“……”

“He probably didn’t want to show me the site.”

The old woman said, her keen green eyes shining.

Of course, she looked much more energetic than when she had peeked out through the crack in the confessional door.

With her softly waving white bob and red satin dress, each wrinkle on her face exuded a charisma that overwhelmed the other person.

“The construction is all finished. Your information is slower than I thought, Lady Beliard.”

I replied. I deliberately left out the fact that it had only finished two days ago.

Then, Lady Beliard smiled with a surprised expression.

The reason why the Juliette Palace was partially remodeled was because I had blown away the interior of the bedroom and the windows while dealing with the twin assassins last month.

The Emperor didn’t seem to want to show Lady Beliard even those traces.

He must have been wary of eyewitness accounts leaking out.

That’s why he invited Lady Beliard to the Imperial Palace instead of the Juliette Palace where I was staying.

“I thought you were just a kind person, but you know how to raise your thorns quite well.”

She openly evaluated me.

To be honest, I was annoyed, but perhaps because I had lived for 29 years steeped in Confucianism [a system of thought and behavior emphasizing morality and social harmony], it wasn’t easy to talk back to an adult right away.

I had no intention of falling for her provocation, so I smiled and changed the subject.

“I’m just telling the truth. I heard there’s a time limit, so you’d better hurry.”

The Emperor had given Lady Beliard 30 minutes. It was a time that was long if it was long, and short if it was short.

“Then, let’s start with the question that our readers are most curious about.”

The editor-in-chief of opened the notebook she was holding and placed small glasses on her nose.

I reviewed today’s policy once again. Pretend not to know anything difficult, and answer even what you know with short answers.

“What do you think of the nickname ‘The Playboy of Shinguk’?”

“Lady Beliard, you are being rude to a noble person.”

Benjamin, who was standing behind me, retorted politely at her blunt question.

I turned my head and mouthed to him that it was okay.

After all, she was the one who edited the best-selling publication in the Empire, so it wasn’t like I hadn’t expected this kind of jab.

“Well, a playboy.”

I dragged out the end of the word a little. I was actually more curious about this.

In fact, it had bothered me since the first day of possession.

What kind of life did the real ‘Prince Yesuh’ live that he was publicly called a playboy?

I had often seen articles about him having affairs in Shinguk and stealing the hearts of countless noble women, but I couldn’t tell if it was true.

Eunseo didn’t talk about Prince Yesuh’s past, and mainly talked about how kind and devoted he was to Christel.

“I don’t think anything of it.”

So, this was the answer I gave. It’s not my story anyway.

“Huhu, this would be an opportunity for you to make excuses.”

Lady Beliard said with a low laugh. Excuses? I need to know something to make excuses.

“What exactly do you want an excuse for?”

“You’re asking me a question. Hmm, the first thing that comes to mind is the rumor that you were two-timing between two married women. I heard that one was pregnant at the time, and the other was a newlywed priest. They say there is no one in Shinguk who doesn’t know about it.”

My mouth dropped open. Ganael, who was behind me, made a gasping sound.

What should I be more surprised about right now? That Prince Yesuh had committed a crazy affair?

Even that it was a two-timing affair? Or that Jung Eunseo liked this kind of guy?

Wait, is this even a setting mentioned in the story?

“Your Highness.”

Benjamin called out calmly and put his hand on my shoulder before taking it off.

Only then did I shake my head wildly inside.

It was a situation where it was difficult to even confirm whether this was true or not.

Stay calm, Jung Yesuh. Act according to the guidelines.

“…I don’t know anything about it.”

“You don’t know anything about it.”

I unconditionally denied any difficult questions. Even my saying that I didn’t know was sincere.

Then, she wrote something briefly in her notebook with a quill.

“Do you think it’s slander?”

Lady Beliard tilted her head slightly and looked at me over her glasses.

I was still in a state of shock from the tremendous attack of the ‘married woman affair triangle.’

“It is well known even in the Empire that King Consort Berner of Shinguk has been working hard in every way to discredit Your Highness. Do you perhaps see these scandals as a plot by the King Consort as well?”

In an instant, my eyes widened. My head felt as cool as if I had poured mint chocolate into it.

There was a point to her words.

Berner Venetian. The King Consort of Venetian Shinguk, the husband of King Christana.

In order to protect the position of his daughter, Princess Elysee, whom he had with the King, he not only sent Yesuh Venetian, the King’s illegitimate child, to the Empire as a hostage, but even tried to assassinate him.

Even though Elysee had sufficient legitimacy as the firstborn and legitimate daughter, he was wary of Prince Yesuh’s unusual popularity.

If that human was spreading dirty rumors to tarnish the Prince’s name, then things roughly added up.

It was understandable that Eunseo felt sorry and pitiful for Prince Yesuh.

A man who was subjected to all kinds of contempt and rumors without doing anything wrong, and then fell in love with Christel, but couldn’t win her heart, and eventually died for her.

“…His Majesty the King Consort cares terribly about the future of Shinguk. How would I know what’s in his heart?”

I opened my mouth after a long time.

My voice naturally lowered due to the troubled setting, but Lady Beliard seemed to have taken it as my sincerity.

“The future of Shinguk… It sounds like you’re saying that the King Consort brought down the Prince for Princess Elysee.”

“Your Highness has already answered. Please ask the next question.”

It was Ganael who opened his mouth instead of me. I smiled slightly and looked up at the boy.

Ganael had a slightly resentful look on his face, but he started to manage his expression when he felt my gaze.

The kid was really nice.

“Then, may I ask you about a slightly sensitive part?”

Lady Beliard asked, taking off her glasses and placing them on the table.

The notebook that was briefly visible was already filled with writing.

“The questions that have come out so far have been sensitive enough.”

She laughed at my words. I didn’t back down and raised the corners of my lips.

This was ultimately a fight I would win.

It was clearly an uncomfortable conversation for anyone to hear, but I gained new information from the Q&A session earlier.

In the beginning, I was so nervous that I forgot that she was called a ‘Shinguk expert.’

If I used today’s interview well, I would be able to extract a lot of diverse knowledge from Sarah Beliard.

Armed with ignorance of the world, I had nothing to lose.

“This time it’s a political question.”

“Interesting.”

“The reason why Your Highness came as a hostage is because Shinguk violated the treaty of severance and invaded the northern border.”

“That’s right.”

“There are rumors that the physical conflict stemmed from Princess Elysee’s solo actions.”

…Huh?

*

Cedrick Liester, who had left the Emperor’s office, stopped walking for a moment.

He turned his head and gazed beyond the hallway.

The flow of ether, as wide as the southern fields and as soft as the flower breeze, was clearly felt.

He had felt the ether of countless priests, including Cardinal Aureli Boutier, but there was only one person who gave him this feeling.

“…It seems the Prince’s schedule hasn’t finished yet.”

“That’s right.”

His attendant, David, affirmed his words.

The Prince quietly looked down at his left hand and clenched and unclenched his fist.

His physical condition was not bad today.

No, ever since the Prince entered the palace, his condition had always been fine.

He only became a child when he released too much power.

However, if there was a well nearby, it was wise to fill the canteen to the brim.

Even if there was a small crack in the container.

“Let’s take a break for a while.”

“The room next to the reception room is empty. It’s the place that Prince Yesuh used as a preparation room in the morning.”

David, who was quick to notice, offered the best conditions.

The Prince nodded once and moved his steps.

It didn’t reach the level of directly receiving the Prince’s ether, but just staying near him made the fire in his body clearly calm down.

It was a power that couldn’t even be compared to the ether of the temple confessional.

The Prince and the attendant soon reached the room next to the reception room.

David thought that he should prepare coffee for the Prince and gently opened the door.

However, there was a guest in the room.

“……”

“…Princess Sarnese was here.”

“I meet Your Highness the Prince again.”

Christel de Sarnese, who had her luscious pink hair piled high, rose from her seat and greeted him gracefully.

The Prince felt a rush of frustration in an instant.

He had heard that she had visited the Imperial Palace as a guest today, but he didn’t know that she hadn’t left yet.

He was swept away by the childish impulse to leave the place.

“David, coffee.”

“Yes. What would you like, Princess?”

“Ah, I would like a light coffee with ice, please. Thank you.”

Her water-attribute ether always bothered the Prince.

Being in the same space, especially indoors, made his nerves stand on end and a instinctive unpleasantness covered him.

Even if he didn’t know, she would be feeling a similar emotion towards his fire-attribute ether.

“This room has a nice view.”

Christel said affably, watching David leave the two of them behind.

Two pairs of eyes met.

Her eyes were as cold as ice.

As expected, their compatibility was not good.