What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 86

#086 The Phantom of Padotrua (1)

“So, that kid is the Young Duke, not his brother,”

Emperor Frederica said with a nonchalant tone.

I gaped. I had a hunch, but really?

“You’re saying Eva Blanquer is the Young Duchess?”

“Yes. When the Divine Bow of Arbor shines, it means it has chosen someone to serve. It bestowed the blessing of longevity upon the child at that time.”

The Emperor explained casually, sipping her coffee.

Her face, wrinkling her brow as she said, ‘Hot,’ vaguely resembled her son.

I took the tongs and placed a small piece from my share of the ice bowl into her cup.

Cardinal Boutier smiled at me.

My mind was busy piecing together the information I had gathered.

‘The Blanquer Young Dukes have traditionally received the grace of the sacred artifact. Longevity is a characteristic of that family.’

The voice of Marquis Francois Duhem seemed to echo right beside me.

The sacred artifact guarded by the Blanquer Ducal Family, the ‘Divine Bow of Arbor,’ was said to grant longevity to the person who would become the future head of the family.

I had naturally assumed that the eldest child would become the head of the family, and then the sacred artifact would give its grace as an after-service.

But it seemed the order could be reversed.

Eva had been chosen in one go at the place where she accidentally came into contact with the sacred artifact.

If so, Eva should be the one responsible for the Blanquer family.

“Young Duke Robert Blanquer concealed the fact that he was not chosen and silenced his sister. He continued to harass her, fearing she might gain confidence and step forward.”

“Judging from the circumstances, it seems so. He wouldn’t want to lose his position. He was also born with great magical power, so he must have thought he could inherit the title if the Duchess remained quiet.”

“Considering his reputation, it’s not surprising.”

The Cardinal and the Emperor replied in turn.

Thinking of the child who had been suffering alone all this time, I became angry, and my hands grew hot.

I firmly held the cold glass.

The dark orange osmanthus flowers decorated the surface of the water along with the ice.

The thought of Eva’s red curly hair made my heart sink.

“Why? Are you planning to set up Eva Blanquer as the Duchess and play power games behind the scenes?”

At that moment, the Emperor asked a terrifying question. I was startled and looked up.

Her cherry-colored eyes were darkly sunken.

“I wonder if I was too careless, having the prince of an enemy country right in front of me.”

“No, that’s not it. I just wanted to help Eva, so I asked.”

“Frederica, enough. You were supposed to finish teasing the Prince at the detached palace.”

The Cardinal lightly grabbed and released her arm.

The Emperor scoffed and put her lips to the coffee.

Only then did I realize it was her unique joke.

The goosebumps that had risen on my spine slowly subsided.

One more joke like that, and someone will get hurt…

“Thank you for your answer. I didn’t intend to ask Your Majesty, who is so busy, directly. I apologize for the inconvenience.”

I greeted her in the calmest tone possible.

The Emperor, sitting on the opposite sofa, simply nodded once.

The Cardinal smiled kindly on her behalf.

When I think about it, she was the one who created the current situation.

It had already been two days since I met Eva, who was about 98% short of being a villain.

The Young Duchess had been invited by Lady Elisabeth to the temple that day and had been staying at Count Mute’s mansion in the Imperial Capital ever since.

She was under the protection of the Young Count until the Young Duke left the Imperial Capital.

From yesterday, she started cleaning the temple for an hour each day, but she couldn’t distinguish between a rag and a towel, so she needed the help of a servant.

Today, Agnes, the Imperial Palace caretaker, came to show off her fringe tree flowers to me but ended up becoming Eva’s teacher.

I, on the other hand, had a complicated mind.

After hearing the girl’s story, I repeatedly went through written by Grand Duke Alexandre, but the book was strangely unhelpful.

The Grand Duke referred to his territory, Yvelines, as ‘our backyard’ and did not write anything about his family’s story while explaining the Divine Bow of Arbor.

Since it was a fairy tale written for his young son, it had more fantasy elements than facts.

The episode featuring the ‘Comet Sword of Mars’ had a ridiculous explanation that ‘you must have a fiery temper to draw the Comet Sword.’

…Seeing Prince Cedric, it doesn’t seem like a completely wrong explanation.

Anyway, it was difficult to find clear answers no matter how much I studied books about mysterious beings like sacred artifacts or divine beasts.

If there had been such a thing, all the sacred artifacts on the continent would have found their owners.

The divine beasts wouldn’t be so hard to see now.

‘Your Highness. I have a question to ask before we start.’

‘Your eyes are serious. It sounds interesting.’

So, as soon as the Cardinal’s lesson time arrived, I asked her for help.

She, who was making time every time despite being busy preparing for the annual prayer meeting, looked very interested after hearing Eva’s story.

Then,

‘I haven’t seen the Divine Bow myself. The Blanquer family is very closed off. But there is someone who knows a little about that family,’

she said mysteriously. Then she called the maid, Natalie,

‘Could you ask Frederica to come for a moment? Tell her it’s very urgent.’

…That was how I ended up using the Emperor of the Empire like Naver’s knowledge search [a popular Korean search engine].

Grand Duke Alexandre ran away from home and was kicked out of the family one day before becoming the Young Duke of Blanquer.

According to the Emperor, the Grand Duke was able to make such a decision because he had never been in contact with the Divine Bow until then.

“Alexandre was the most responsible of the three of us. If he had received the blessing of longevity, he probably would have given up the state marriage, right?”

The Cardinal asked, sipping her warm coffee. The Emperor nodded vaguely.

Even though she was suddenly called to the Cardinal’s office, and even though it wasn’t urgent, she didn’t seem unpleasant at all.

“Whether the Blanquer kid becomes the Young Duchess depends on her will.”

She said, looking straight at me.

I nodded and quenched my thirst with the cool osmanthus tea.

The strong floral scent seemed to prick my brain.

The succession of titles and property on the continent was ‘priority’ to the eldest child.

In other words, if there was a problem with the eldest child, or if the eldest child did not want to inherit, the turn went to the next child born.

The parents usually judged whether the heir was disqualified, but other siblings sometimes raised objections.

In other words, Eva could inform the Blanquer Duke and Duchess of her legitimacy at any time.

I should go and talk to her as soon as class is over.

“Since she insulted my son, it will be easier to bring him down.”

“That’s right. If the Young Duchess becomes the Duchess in the future, will Cedric benefit a little?”

The Prince’s mother and godmother were already claiming shares.

I smiled ambiguously and turned my gaze away. Politicians are scary.

“May I ask what you are holding in your hand?”

So, I said anything.

It was good because the Emperor didn’t have to answer, and if I heard the answer, I could solve a minor curiosity.

“Come to think of it, I had this.”

The Emperor muttered and handed a golden card to the Cardinal.

The eyes under the monocle widened.

“What is this?”

“Opera opening performance invitation. Are you free the day after tomorrow?”

“Of course not.”

I wondered what it was, but it was a performance ticket. The two began to chat.

I felt it at the summer palace, but at times like this, the two were not great people like the Emperor or the Cardinal, but just sisters.

I smiled slightly and looked at the desserts on the table that Natalie had left.

Since I would be having a harsh lesson again once the Emperor left, I planned to fill my snack belly beforehand.

“It would be good to show your face. The Imperial Family is sponsoring it.”

“You should have told Laura earlier.”

“I was going to tell you in person, but I forgot because I was busy. June is always hectic.”

Purple soufflé plumped with grape puree.

Tarte Tatin [an upside-down apple tart] with large apple slices stacked under golden caramel.

Île flottante [floating island dessert] topped with strawberries and mango slices…

“If you forget that much, it’s not an important schedule.”

“Yes. But it’s quite large to ignore.”

Large? The biggest thing here is the tart. I choose you.

I nodded and started cutting the dessert with a knife.

The sweet and sour scent was already stimulating the tip of my nose.

“There’s no choice. Let’s send Cedric.”

“I guess so. He won’t have any schedules this month other than the prayer meeting.”

“Wait a minute, Frederica. There are two tickets.”

I stuffed my mouth full of apple pie cut into bite-sized pieces.

The chewy and dense apple melted on my tongue first.

It wasn’t just baked, but there was still a crunchy texture, which was very satisfying.

The pastry on the bottom crumbled crisply, filling both cheeks.

The rich and savory flavor of butter was mixed with a subtle scent, and then the slightly bitter caramel taste neatly decorated the finish.

It was so delicious that the corners of my mouth went up. I wonder if this can be packaged.

“Your Highness.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Do you want it? Shall I give it to you?”

“Then I’d be happy to. Thank you.”

I answered with a bright smile. The Cardinal said, ‘That’s a relief.’

Then the Emperor raised one eyebrow as if surprised.

“Good. I made the Emperor come and go, so earn your keep.”

…Wait a minute. What are you talking about?

*

I got hooked up with the main male lead because I was distracted by food. I’m so embarrassed that I can’t tell anyone.

“The Phantom of Padotrua is so popular these days!”

Ganael said with a very excited face.

The round golden eyes sparkled like chandeliers.

I smiled bitterly and received the dressmaking service from the costume room staff.

I told them that I didn’t need makeup and just wanted the most plain clothes, but they brought seven ‘plain’ dresses and tried them on, which was embarrassing.

“Your Highness, you eat well, but you don’t gain weight. It’s too big!”

“I’m sorry.”

I don’t know if I should be sorry for this, but I apologized anyway.

The manager clicked his tongue and pinned the clothes like a sewing machine.

While I was standing awkwardly, Benjamin came next to me with a booklet and started reading it to me.

Three lesser pandas were crawling around the floor like robot vacuum cleaners, appealing for attention.

Ttuksim was sprawled on the chair instead of me.

“The Phantom of Padotrua is the representative repertoire of the Atal Opera Company, which is sponsored by the Imperial Family. It opens around this time every year. It is about Daphne, a corps de ballet [a group of ballet dancers who are part of the company and not soloists] at the Padotrua Theater, who grows into a famous ballerino under the guidance of Chloe, a ghost composer living in the basement. The story ends with Giselle, her old friend, rescuing Chloe, who has become Daphne’s prisoner.”

“……”

I shut my mouth.

I don’t know what ‘corps de ballet’ is, but just listening to the general flow made me feel uneasy.

This is that. No, the title itself is really that.

“Does the ghost composer… wear a white half mask?”

“Yes, Your Highness knows it too.”

How could I not know?

My house has a 25th-anniversary live performance Blu-ray of that Eunseo bought.

“Every performance is sold out every year, so getting a seat on the 4th floor is like picking a star in the sky. But a big deal has happened in the last few days, making it even more of a hot topic.”

Ganael, who said that, carefully lifted Demi to clear the way.

The servants who were struggling to come and go bowed to the divine beast.

I was inwardly amazed by the uninhibited parody of the writer ‘Toegye Gong’ [a famous Korean Confucian scholar].

I thought there would be a reason why Eunseo enjoyed reading it, but this is a bit…

Isn’t it lacking sincerity? Is it okay?

“What’s the big deal?”

“Every time there was a rehearsal, a real ghost appeared and sucked the souls out of the actors.”

“Ganael.”

“But, Benjamin. They almost canceled the performance!”

Benjamin stopped the boy, and I turned to Benjamin.

I wondered if they would take such a risk and open the show at a place where the Emperor and the Cardinal were supposed to be.

No, are they forcing the performance because the Imperial Family is coming?

“It’s a rumor. The Imperial Capital Defense Force went out to search, but they couldn’t find any signs of monsters. I think it’s probably part of the performance promotion.”

The middle-aged man answered calmly. That’s right.

I nodded and fiddled with the paper in my sleeve.

It was a letter that Eva wrote to the Blanquer Duke and Duchess after hearing my story the day before yesterday.

She poked it at me to read it first, and it felt strange, like I was annotating a memorial to the throne [a formal document submitted to a monarch].

There will be an intermission, so I should take the time to read it then.

Do I sit alone in the box seat? Then I don’t have to see the Prince’s face.