What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 816

Where We Meet Again (3)

April 2nd.

“Hmm, hmm…”

Prince Yesseo wandered around the Juliette Palace, humming to himself.

The Liester Imperial Palace, celebrating the blooming April and the news of the war’s end, was in a festive mood.

In fact, all the people of the empire were immersed in cool relief and fervent joy.

The servants, relieved by the prince’s healthy and beautiful appearance, still felt a strange awkwardness.

Perhaps it was because they hadn’t seen the prince speak and move in so long that their minds hadn’t yet adjusted to him.

Or maybe it was because Benjamin and Ganael had not yet returned, and proper order had not been established.

Of course, most of the staff unconsciously knew that these guesses were not true.

However, to overcome the current unfamiliarity and unnaturalness, they needed an excuse, anything would do.

Thus, they enjoyed both happiness and a sense of unease simultaneously.

“Ah, thank you. Has the child I called for not arrived yet?”

“That child…”

The servant Pierre paused while draping a gown over the prince’s shoulders as he admired the hyacinths on the terrace.

‘That child.’ It was an unfamiliar term.

As he remembered, the prince always called Herrit’s name affectionately.

But that was before the war. What the elders called ‘the distant past’.

The boy smiled awkwardly and nodded.

“If you mean Herrit, I saw him entering the reception room a little while ago, Your Highness. Ttuk-ssim [a respectful title, similar to ‘young master’] is with him as well. Shall I guide you there now?”

“Good.”

The prince smiled softly. It was a new expression.

The two slowly strolled down the palace corridor.

Pierre glanced at his superior’s profile, inwardly marveling at his nonchalant attitude.

On the first day of April, news that everyone had been waiting for arrived in the imperial capital.

It was a miracle that came exactly one year after Emperor Frederick’s departure for the war.

Knights holding crimson flags high rode through Claire Square, shouting ‘Victory! Victory! Victory!’ and chariots carrying large drums and drummers followed behind, deafeningly beating the drums.

So, unless one was a hermit hiding in a cave or a quack alchemist, there was no way not to know the news of the Liester-Corleone allied forces’ victory.

The joyful nobles released entire granaries of expensive cheeses and fine wines so that the people could feast, and the street merchants provided food free of charge all day long.

Everyone rejoiced with tears and lamented their losses.

Old hats, rusty brooches, handmade crutches, and children’s toys soared high into the clear blue sky.

Beauties with free bouquets ran around, spreading the good news.

The cheers of the people could be heard even in the deepest part of the Juliette Palace, so the tremendous heat and joy were indescribable.

Pierre decided to ask.

“Um… Your Highness. I’m very sorry, but…”

“Hmm?”

The boy spoke with difficulty as they approached the entrance to the first-floor reception room.

The prince had been calmly waiting for him for several minutes.

“Are you alright?”

“Alright?”

“Well… this war…”

‘Hmm.’ The young servant looked at the floor, then at the decorations on the wall, at a loss.

Eventually, the prince gave him an answer with a smile.

“You’re wondering how I feel now that I’ve become a hostage of the defeated country.”

“Oh, no, not at all! I would never dare to say such a thing!”

“To be honest, I feel relieved.”

“…”

Mysterious purple eyes looked at the boy.

His gaze held unprecedented calm and solitude.

Pierre opened his mouth without realizing it.

“On one hand, my heart is breaking, and my whole body feels like it’s being torn apart even when I’m still… but still, I feel relieved. I feel bittersweet.”

“…”

“It’s something I was prepared to accept, so it’s not as hard as I thought.”

“…”

“Thank you for asking.”

“Oh!”

Watching the servant jump up in surprise, Prince Yesseo chuckled softly.

The boy briefly considered whether it would be okay to offer the prince some of the cake that the imperial palace kitchen was making to commemorate the victory—but concluded that Benjamin would scold him if he knew.

No matter how much the prince liked delicious things, some things were just not okay.

He quickly nodded to himself and knocked on the reception room door. ‘Knock, knock, knock.’

“Prince Yesseo Fenetian is here to see you.”

-Click!

The door opened, and those who had been waiting for the royalty inside stood up at once.

The prince smiled an unfamiliar smile as he looked at the familiar faces engraved in his vessel [previous body or life].

This was Maria, the fourth of the Dwiem Marquis family, and the child next to her was the youngest, Therese.

That child was the Blancquer Subduke. And the boy next to the subduke was…

“Hello, ladies. Hello, Herrit.”

“…”

While Maria gave an awkward bow, Eva, Herrit, and Therese gave skillful aristocratic greetings, despite their young age.

The prince carefully observed the mercenary’s son among them.

The news that the boy’s father, the Grand Master, had gone missing in the war was already well known in the imperial capital.

A small wren sat on the boy’s shoulder.

The bird’s eyes gleamed black as it looked at the royalty.

-….

Indeed. The sacred creature knew this side’s ‘identity’.

“…Thank you for accepting my invitation. I’m sure you’ve been invited to many events.”

The prince, giving a light nod to the sacred creature, greeted the three young ladies and walked towards Herrit.

The child, sensing a strange disharmony, looked up at him with wide eyes.

He had heard the news of his father, so it wouldn’t be strange if he had collapsed from crying, but the boy looked quite healthy, except for his slightly red eyes.

His height and shoulders had grown much more than his vessel remembered.

“Your Highness. As you may have heard… Since the moon disappeared, the languages of the continent have become mutually unintelligible, so this child’s Liesterian is still poor. Please understand with a generous heart…”

Eva explained, offering respects that she herself could not understand.

The prince smiled as if he knew it well.

“It’s alright. I’m also using Fenetian.”

At that moment, a question pierced and ran through the mind of the Blancquer Subduke. How?

‘…How can I understand everything the prince is saying?’

“…”

-Beep

Yesseo Fenetian, reading the subduke’s question, rolled his eyes and looked down at the sacred creature.

Perhaps this bird had told its master in advance.

The disappearance of his father must have been too much for him to bear at a young age.

The prince, raising one corner of his mouth, recalled the weight of the notebook hidden in his chest.

Then, he thought of the face of a man who had risked too much for him.

Then he slowly bent down…

“Your father went to save the moon, Herrit.”

He whispered.

Mint-colored eyes widened.

“So if we retrieve the continent’s moon, you’ll be able to see your dad again.”

“…”

“Will you help me?”

The man’s voice was as sweet as Herrit’s favorite chocolate.

A gentle touch brushed past the boy’s soft cheek.

The child, who had been blank for a moment, startled and nodded.

The next morning. A handsome horse neighed unhappily.

-Pherr!

“Whoa, Doria. Calm down. It’s okay. That’s just trash, trash. Not a person.”

‘Uh-oh, they hung it there because it can’t be recycled. It doesn’t even burn.’ Gain covered her beloved horse’s eyes and diligently soothed her.

Jibril Diop, who was checking the saddle and stirrups of the Poneu nearby, chuckled as he listened to her words.

To call the corpse of a royal family member trash that can’t even be recycled.

“…Well. It’s not wrong.”

The royal shrugged and looked at the horseshoe.

It had already been almost ten days since the moon had disappeared from the continent.

Quite far from the center of the military camp, a dizzyingly high pole was planted in front of the ruined main gate of the royal castle.

It was made by the Fenetian people, who were enraged and directly pulled out clotheslines, fences, and stakes and pieced them together.

The pole, soaked with their blood and tears, was mottled red, full of splinters, and very dirty with handprints.

‘We have to hang it here. Right here!’

‘That’s right, nowhere else! As a bereaved family member, I can’t allow it!’

‘Yes! Let’s hang the one who killed our family, who brutally murdered our neighbors, right in front of the royal castle!’

‘Waaaaah…!’

And the Liester Emperor pretended not to see their small rebellion.

Soon, Werner Fenetian’s body was hung in front of the Fenetian royal castle.

Dris, the deputy commander of the royal guard, had dragged it out himself and left it outside the castle gate.

“…You’ve risen to a very high position. More precious than the king.”

‘Whew.’ Jibril, whistling briefly, looked at the miserably hanging corpse of the royal consort.

Some commanders advised that even the imperial army should recover his remains, but the emperor firmly rejected their wishes.

Officially, it was Christa Ner Fenetian who killed Werner.

There was no reason for the empire to intervene in the murder between royals and cause trouble, and decisively, with the death of the royal consort, the perpetrator of the attempted assassination of Prince Yesseo Fenetian also disappeared…

‘That man took the lives of as many as nineteen people in the royal castle alone. I heard he only killed blondes. Among them were a fifteen-year-old servant and a ten-year-old errand boy.’

‘…Your Majesty.’

‘There are also rumors that the royal consort killed the princess of the Divine Kingdom.’

‘…’

‘The king refused his funeral. I also have no intention of giving such a cruel murderer any courtesy.’

‘…’

‘Give it to those who are qualified to judge.’

“Qualified to judge…”

That was not wrong either.

The eagles circling in the sky were letting out long cries towards the rotting prey.

The wizard looked around, finishing his preparations to leave.

The participants in this journey were so dazzling that it was breathtaking.

He had said that he absolutely hated being a bodyguard, but then he was asked if he had looked at the place to die in advance, so how could he avoid it?

The only good thing about being born a royal was that it was easy to find a sleeping partner.

“One who sears twisted minds with an iron [referring to a torturer or interrogator], one carp carrying icicles in its belly [a person who is cold and calculating], one madam who is still normal, one water blob kid who is not normal, one eccentric obsessed with magical science, and…”

“Did you hear? The news about Prince Yesseo Fenetian.”

Flustered. Jibril glared at the wizard who had suddenly appeared from behind.

Modest Bakari was riding a mare that looked exactly like him with an indifferent face.

What a fantastic partner.

“What news? Did the noble prince wake up to coincide with the end of the war?”

The wizard stuck his staff into his arms for the last time and retorted.

Then the young commander tilted his head.

“How did you know? It was the first breaking news to enter Fleur de Lis [a city or region].”

“…What?”

“…Huh? What did you say?”

Gain, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation between the two, raised her voice as well.

Soon, everyone’s eyes were focused on one place.