Men of the Harem (137 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 13

She must have been so shocked that her mind briefly froze. La Til stared blankly at Prince Klein with her mouth agape.

‘No, there’s no way Hyacinth would’ve sent his own brother as my concubine. He’s not that insane.’

La Til barely managed to reach a plausible conclusion. Right, this man probably just came along to escort my concubine—just part of the entourage. Just the entourage.

But the moment the prince, upon seeing La Til, gave a slight chuckle and strode over to pull her tightly into his arms, La Til had no choice but to accept that this man had indeed come as her concubine.

“I’ve finally caught you.”

“Caught…?”

“You must be thrilled to have me now, right?”

“Huh?”

“Don’t get too comfortable. Just because my body is here doesn’t mean my heart will come easily.”

Now it was easy to understand why Hyacinth had gone so far as to send his own brother as a concubine. ‘He’s insane.’ Hyacinth’s brother was a madman.

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While the Chief Attendant led Hyacinth’s brother away to a temporary residence, La Til pressed hard on her temples, struggling to calm her sense of disbelief. Fortunately, the absurd feeling gradually subsided. Yet, she still couldn’t fathom it at all.

‘Hyacinth, you lunatic. I kept demanding you send me a concubine, and you send your own brother?’

Was anyone in their right mind to send their ex-fiancée’s lover—their own younger brother?

“That man… isn’t he Prince Klein?”

Captain Sarnet, who seemed to recall seeing him at the wedding, asked La Til.

Klein. La Til finally remembered the name of Hyacinth’s younger brother. Come to think of it, that was indeed his name—Klein. She nodded quietly to herself and muttered,

“Yes, that’s correct. But… honestly, I never expected him to send his own brother as a concubine. I assumed he’d pick someone suitably noble from a high-ranking aristocratic house.”

It wasn’t uncommon for foreign nations to send illegitimate princes or princesses as concubines abroad. In fact, it was often seen as the utmost gesture of goodwill toward a friendly country.

However, given that the sender was her ex-lover, it felt anything but friendly—only deeply suspicious.

What’s his ulterior motive? Could he have ordered this prince to steal secrets from Tarium?

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Marquis Sable had served as Chief Attendant since the previous emperor’s reign and had watched over La Til since childhood. Of course, La Til wasn’t the only one he’d known since youth—he’d seen all the other princes and princesses from the moment they were born as well.

But unlike the other royals, whom he only occasionally met at parties, La Til had always trailed closely after her father, so their encounters were especially frequent.

Familiarity breeds affection, after all. Naturally, among all the princes and princesses, Marquis Sable felt the fondest of La Til.

It was precisely because of this affection that he’d accepted the burdensome and headache-inducing role of Chief Attendant across two generations.

Thus, while leading Prince Klein to his temporary quarters, the Chief Attendant couldn’t help but scrutinize him sharply with hawk-like eyes—was this prince truly worthy of Her Imperial Majesty?

First, his appearance. In terms of looks, he was undoubtedly perfect. His slightly dark skin, contrasted by mysterious silver hair and eyes like blue diamonds, truly deserved the epithet “peerless beauty.”

He was even comparable to Ranamun Atraxi, whose pride and beauty were said to be unmatched in Tarium—truly breathtaking.

Second, his status. Ten points for being a prince—but minus five for being Emperor Hyacinth’s brother.

Third was his personality…

“You expect me to stay here?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“The room’s far too small. Is Tarium really so short on funds?”

“…”

“You said this was temporary, right? When can I move to my real quarters? Are those just as tiny and plain?”

“The real quarters…”

“Oh, never mind. I’ll find them myself soon enough. If it’s plain, I’ll just decorate it. Forget I asked.”

“Yes. And while you stay here…”

“Where is Her Majesty’s room?”

His personality was a flat zero. With every word the prince spoke, the Chief Attendant found himself thoroughly undermined. He frowned deeply, mentally deducting points. Hyacinth had been impeccably polite during his studies abroad—even if he’d betrayed them at the last moment.

Prince Klein, however, was the exact opposite of his handsome face—his manners were utterly disgraceful.

“I asked you—where is Her Majesty’s room?”

When Prince Klein pressed again, the Chief Attendant frowned and asked in a dissatisfied tone,

“Why do you keep asking where Her Majesty’s room is?”

“Haha. Why do I ask?”

Despite the blunt, rude question, Prince Klein merely chuckled softly and replied,

“Her Majesty will surely come to my room anyway, won’t she? To save trouble, I’ll just go wait for her myself.”

What an insufferable brat. The Chief Attendant’s face twisted in disgust. At that moment, his internal evaluation of Prince Klein plummeted to rock bottom.

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After settling Prince Klein, La Til summoned Count Bretha to the public audience chamber to receive his report on matters in Carissen. But just as they entered the chamber, the count—who had been following obediently—suddenly began glancing around nervously.

“Count Bretha? What’s wrong?”

Wondering what was going on, La Til called out to him. The count cautiously made a request.

“Your Majesty… could you send everyone else away?”

Send everyone away? La Til raised an eyebrow. Aside from Captain Sarnet, there was no one else nearby—the Chief Attendant had already taken Prince Klein elsewhere. So the count wasn’t asking to dismiss “everyone”—he specifically wanted Captain Sarnet gone.

La Til glanced sideways at Captain Sarnet. He didn’t seem particularly offended but showed no sign of leaving either. La Til felt the same.

Whatever Count Bretha was about to say, there was no need to dismiss Captain Sarnet. Instead of sending him away, La Til simply ordered,

“It’s fine. Speak freely.”

Count Bretha hesitated briefly, then pulled a letter from his robes and placed it on La Til’s desk before stepping back.

What’s this? Did he really ask to send Sarnet away just to hand me this? La Til looked at him quizzically, and Count Bretha quickly explained,

“His Majesty of Carissen instructed that this be delivered when absolutely no one else is present.”

‘Hyacinth?’

Suspicious, La Til opened the sealed letter. Since it was from Hyacinth, she expected something outrageous—perhaps something that would make her furious the moment she read it…

Half suspicious, half curious, she pulled out the letter—and immediately let out a thoughtful “Hmm.” The contents weren’t what she’d anticipated at all.

[He claims he sent letters and gifts faithfully every week—what’s he talking about?]

On the surface, it seemed like a simple complaint. But the fact that he specifically added “deliver it only when no one else is present”…

‘I’ve never once received letters or gifts from Hyacinth, yet he insists he sent them weekly? And he told them to deliver the letter only in private?’

La Til’s expression darkened. Was someone intercepting letters meant for her?

Hyacinth might have betrayed her in the end, but in official matters, he was always scrupulously honest. This wasn’t the sort of thing he’d lie about.

Frowning gravely, La Til scratched the armrest of her throne.

Even if Hyacinth’s letters had reached her, she likely would’ve thrown every single one straight into the trash. But separate from that, someone secretly intercepting correspondence between an emperor and crown princess was no ordinary matter—especially now, when the late emperor had been assassinated and his killer still remained at large.

“You’ve traveled a long way. Thank you for your efforts. I’ll properly reward you for this, so rest well for now.”

After thanking Count Bretha for his service, La Til waited until she was alone with Captain Sarnet before confiding the letter’s contents.

“It seems someone has been intercepting letters and gifts Hyacinth sent me.”

“In the Tarium Empire?”

“I don’t know whether it’s someone from Carissen, Tarium, or even a third country. Hyacinth himself doesn’t know—that’s why he insisted the letter be opened only in private.”

Captain Sarnet’s expression grew grim. He too seemed to be thinking of the late emperor’s unsolved assassination.

“The chance that the assassin is connected to the letter thief is low… but caution never hurts. Even if unrelated, stealing imperial correspondence is a grave offense.”

La Til slid the letter back into its envelope and muttered. For roughly three years, none of Hyacinth’s letters or gifts had ever reached her. Yet after La Til’s coronation, every direct message she sent via Count Bretha reached Hyacinth without issue.

That meant if the thief was from Carissen, they were involved in the “sending” process; if from Tarium, they handled the “receiving.”

“Sir Sarnet. This requires discretion. I’m assigning you full responsibility for investigating this matter.”

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“Damn it. I should’ve been furious at Hyacinth for sending his brother.”

She’d missed her chance. Only after finishing her duties and returning to her chambers did La Til remember. She’d completely forgotten in the shock over the missing letters!

Groaning, she pressed her forehead against the wall in regret—but it was too late to call back Count Bretha just to vent. Truthfully, even sending him as an envoy—an uncomfortable position—had been her way of taking out her anger over his support of Prince Tulla.

La Til sighed heavily.

Still, it was strange. Even now, the breakup with Hyacinth still felt painfully bitter and irritating. Yet whenever she got busy with work, she no longer dwelled on that painful, heart-wrenching memory.

“Maybe someday, even when I’m not busy, I won’t think of it at all. Perhaps this is how one overcomes a breakup.”

La Til laughed bitterly, steeped in heavy emotion. When she’d loved him, she’d thought such emotional shifts were something that only happened to others—never to her.

But her heart, deeply immersed in the bitter ache of parting and the sorrow of lost love, snapped wide awake the moment she saw the man standing just outside her chamber door.

“What on earth…?”

Pausing mid-step on the staircase, La Til stared at the scene down the hallway. A chair sat before her door—and someone was seated on it. Around him, knights looked visibly uncomfortable…

La Til hurried over. The man in the chair was Prince Klein—Hyacinth’s brother.

She was utterly speechless. It wasn’t just that he was sitting there—he’d clearly settled in for the long haul, even bringing along a book to read. And not just any book—a particularly thick one at that.

“Your Majesty.”

The very man who’d thrown everyone into confusion beamed brightly upon seeing La Til, stood, and bowed with precision worthy of inclusion in a manual of etiquette. La Til blinked in silence for a moment before finally asking,

“Prince… what are you doing here?”

“Klein.”

“?”

“Please call me Klein.”

La Til studied Prince Klein intently for a moment before speaking.

“What are you doing, Klein?”

Prince Klein set his book aside, took a wine bottle handed to him by a nearby servant, and held it up.

“I wanted my first drink here to be with Your Majesty. You’ll be intoxicated by me, and I’ll be intoxicated by wine.”

La Til groaned and pressed her forehead.

‘That madman. Is he mocking me right now?’

Though his words sounded sweet, the wine he’d brought was the very same one they’d drunk together during their previous… incident.

When La Til crossed her arms and glared, Prince Klein defended himself with perfect confidence.

“To be honest, I wanted to wait inside. But the Chief Attendant insisted he couldn’t let me in without Your Majesty’s explicit permission. He said if I really wanted to wait, I could do it in the hallway—so I’ve been waiting.”

“If you really wanted to wait in the hallway” was clearly just a polite way of saying “get lost.” La Til dropped her arms and pressed her forehead again. Her suspicion deepened—was this exactly why Hyacinth had sent this man to her? Because of his personality?

She sighed—but ultimately relented.

“Fine. Come in.”

Since he’d come as a concubine, she’d have to keep him for at least half a year anyway. Rather than keep avoiding him and stewing over that awkward memory, it was better to have a proper conversation and clear the air once and for all.

Just as La Til turned to enter the room, however, a frantic voice called out from the stairwell down the hall—“Your Majesty!”

She turned to see Duke Atraxi hurrying toward her.

“What brings you here at this hour, Duke?”

What now? La Til frowned as the duke approached.

Duke Atraxi smoothly stepped between La Til and Prince Klein and spoke gravely,

“I have urgent news to deliver—something of utmost importance.”

‘His timing feels suspiciously convenient.’

La Til looked past the duke’s shoulder at Prince Klein with distaste. Prince Klein, apparently sharing the same thought, was also frowning and glaring daggers at the back of the duke’s head.