Ileon glanced sideways at the knights. Jeremy’s knights would absorb this scene in their minds and go out to spread rumors.

Therefore, he could not simply let the knights who would become loyal supporting actors in this play die quietly.

“It was a conversation for confirmation.”

Ileon replied with a friendly smile.

“Why that woman, famous for her beauty, agreed to become His Highness the Crown Prince’s mistress. I approached her directly to find out if there might be some other ulterior motive.”

Someone’s gulp was heard. Whether it was from a knight or Jeremy was of no importance to Ileon.

Ileon continued, stroking his chin.

“But, to my suspicions, that woman told me this. That she didn’t want to become His Highness’s mistress.”

At those words, the knights’ eyes blazed with anger. Just one sentence was enough to turn their rebelliousness into resentment and hatred.

“She said it was unfair enough to be imprisoned on charges of assassinating the Emperor, but to suddenly become His Highness the Crown Prince’s mistress so soon after being released was too frustrating.”

“…”

“She asked me for help. I thought how desperate she must have been to say that to me, a stranger, but since I’m on His Highness’s side, I refused.”

Jeremy’s expression changed moment by moment.

First came anger, then resentment and betrayal.

“Did my mistress really say that to the Duke? That she didn’t want to be my mistress?”

“Do I have any reason to lie to Your Highness?”

Jeremy gritted his teeth. His purple eyes flashed.

There were no suitable objects left to throw, as he had already thrown everything in the room indiscriminately.

Unable to contain his anger, Jeremy tore at his own hair.

Clumps of golden hair fell to the floor.

“Do you know where my mistress is now, Duke!”

“I encountered her before coming to Your Highness’s palace, and it seemed she was heading towards the mansion where Duke Calypso is staying.”

Jeremy’s patience crumbled. Clutching his face, he shouted at the knights.

“I’ll say this only once. Go to Dietrich’s mansion right now and drag Celiya here. If you want to keep your worthless lives even a little longer.”

The knights felt their blood boiling with rebelliousness against Jeremy.

Seeing this, Ileon signaled to the knights, shaking his head not to provoke the Crown Prince.

“We obey your command.”

The knight who had been cleaning the room, along with the knights in the hallway, all left.

“Duke, we must move up my imperial coronation ceremony as much as possible.”

“…How soon shall we hurry it?”

“Set it for one week from now. And within that time, treat my face.”

Jeremy said with a face full of madness.

“If you do the job well, I’ll grant you a great reward.”

“Your Highness. May I offer one opinion before that?”

“Speak.”

“If Your Highness goes around openly showing that face now, there will be fierce backlash among the people. How about wearing a mask until Your Highness’s face returns to normal?”

Mask. Jeremy softly repeated the word.

The glimpse he had seen of himself in the mirror was like something out of a nightmare. But if he wore a mask that covered his entire face, wouldn’t it be alright?

At least until his face fully recovered.

“Then can you prepare a mask for me, Duke?”

Ileon bowed his head and replied.

“I will do so.”

“You may leave now.”

At Jeremy’s dismissal, Ileon withdrew without a word.

“Your Highness, don’t worry too much. You have not only me, but also Her Majesty the Empress.”

Jeremy said nothing.

The bait was thrown, now all that was left was to wait.

Ileon left Jeremy’s palace with light steps.

This… was so easy.

Was it because his ancestors made a vow not to claim the throne, that he, their descendant, had to suffer so much?

Ileon felt like grabbing his ancestors by the collar.

What use was it to be called more imperial than the Emperor?

In the end, it was one with imperial blood who would claim the throne.

‘Celiya Brillyon.’

Thanks to that woman killing the Emperor, things had progressed very smoothly.

A deep darkness hidden beneath a beauty so captivating it could suck you in.

How did that woman come to harbor such deep darkness?

Ileon left the Crown Prince’s palace and strolled through the garden where he first conversed with Celiya.

His fluttering sleeves swayed with his movements.

The garden, filled with roses and gladioli, was beautiful, likely due to the imperial gardener’s careful tending.

Celiya’s face, smiling brightly under the fireworks adorning the night, was vivid.

– I am no one’s person.

Such a bright smile, when she wasn’t in a position to be picky.

If only she had taken the hand he extended, she would be receiving cozy care in his palace by now.

Ileon could not understand Celiya’s determination to take the difficult path.

So he mixed lies with the truth. In reality, Celiya had not asked him for help, but he made the Crown Prince misunderstand her.

In a space without any crossroads, he decided to leisurely observe how Celiya would act.

As Ileon entered deep into the garden, someone appeared as if they had been waiting.

“How did it go.”

Ileon asked without turning around.

“When we reached the port, she noticed she was being followed and changed course midway, but we completely cut off her escape and finished her.”

“She may have been a first-class knight once, but age catches up with everyone.”

Ileon smiled, narrowing his eyes coolly.

“The ruby I gave you?”

“She clutched it tightly in her hand until her dying moment, not letting go.”

“Good.”

Ileon’s subordinate tilted his head, not understanding the meaning.

Instead of answering, Ileon plucked a red rose blooming in the garden and held it in his hand.

The crushed rose petals fluttered in the wind from his hand.

However, when the wind died down, the petals immediately fell to the ground. Ileon, looking down at the rose petals, gave an order to his subordinate.

“Celiya Brillyon. Find out about that woman.”

“…”

“All records up until she entered the imperial palace. Also where she was and what she did before being adopted into the Brillyon family.”

“I obey my master’s command.”

“In the end, I didn’t get to see Duke Calypso at the banquet.”

Gabriel looked up at the towering imperial palace with a face full of lingering regret. Hariel patted Gabriel’s shoulder and said,

“If he had seen you, even the wooden Duke Calypso would have fallen head over heels.”

“Oh Mother.”

Gabriel laughed and wrapped her arms around Hariel’s arm.

“By the way, that Celiya has gained a lot of weight, probably from eating and sleeping well. How fortunate that His Highness the Crown Prince took her in.”

“It’s truly a pity. Given that His Highness kept her as a mistress and not a consort, I suppose he sees her as just a temporary plaything.”

Gabriel’s cheek twitched.

Although the banquet had ended the previous night, the mother and daughter did not return to their viscounty.

Instead, they slept at the most expensive inn near the imperial palace and woke up late to sightsee the capital streets.

Unlike the remote viscounty, the capital where the imperial palace was located had many sights to see.

In the lively street, Gabriel excitedly shouted upon discovering a boutique with a pink sign that read Éclatant.

“Mother, this is the boutique I told you about! Even the ducal princess of the Gredrik family has custom clothes made here.”

“Oh my. Let’s have an outfit made for us too.”

The two chatted as they entered the boutique.

Ding-

“Welcome…”

Hearing the bell sound attached to the door, the female owner of Éclatant, thinking an expected customer had arrived, started to greet them but frowned upon seeing Gabriel and Hariel.

“I’m sorry, but our Éclatant doesn’t accept any customers except for predetermined ones. Even for predetermined customers, it’s a rule that entry is not allowed at all without a prior reservation.”

Gabriel pulled out a pouch full of gold coins from her bosom.

“Even with this? Madam?”

Perhaps because it was money earned from auctioning off Celiya to men, Gabriel showed no hesitation in spending it.

“If it’s not enough, I can give you more.”

“…”

“Will you show us the dresses?”

The female owner, with traces of age around her eyes, began to struggle between the rule she had set and the gold coins equivalent to several years’ worth of profits.

Éclatant was a boutique favored by the nobility among the nobility, very high-class customers.

They custom-made one-of-a-kind clothes to suit the customers’ picky tastes with great care, but because the owner herself directly handled everything from taking measurements to processing, it took at least a month, and up to half a year at most, to make a single dress.

Although its reputation was high, because they used materials generously to create dresses befitting that reputation, the amount that actually fell into her hands wasn’t that much.

No matter how tempting those gold coins were, she couldn’t break the rules and accept just anyone as a customer when she had built up such a reputation.

Having organized her thoughts, the owner said firmly,

“I’m sorry, but it would be better for you to look for another boutique.”

The owner, befitting the owner of a renowned boutique, knew several boutiques that made quite decent dresses.

“If you go straight down the big street on the right, there’s a white brick house covered in ivy vines, and the owner there is very skilled.”

The owner’s words did not reach Gabriel.

“I don’t want another place, I want to have a dress made here at Éclatant.”

Hariel, standing next to her, arrogantly lifted her chin and said,

“Madam, do you know who my daughter is to refuse to make a dress?”

“…I don’t know.”

“My daughter is the famous Angel of Brillyon.”

The owner’s expression hardened.

The Angel of Brillyon. Everyone’s first love.

She had heard of her famous beauty, but everything from the face she had seen in portraits to the color of her eyes and hair was so different.

“Really, is the lady here truly the Angel of Brillyon?”

“That’s what I’m saying. Wouldn’t it be much more profitable for you to make a custom dress?”

Hariel shamelessly impersonated Gabriel as Celiya.

However, Gabriel was more perceptive than Hariel and quickly corrected her words.

“Mother was just joking. The Angel of Brillyon is actually not me, but my one and only younger sister.”

“…I see.”

The owner’s face showed understanding at last.

Gabriel didn’t show it outwardly, but inwardly she was furious.

She felt like she had become Celiya’s shadow wherever she went.

To soothe this indignation, she had to have a dress made here no matter what.

At that moment, something caught Gabriel’s eye.