Amy thought while sipping her tea, ‘The Crown Prince still doesn’t know that the money from the guild’s vault is gone.’ If he knew, he would have questioned her first. Amy found him pitiable.

‘How long will he consider me his ally…?’ She had once considered him like family, but now he was essentially her enemy. It was frustrating to see how naive he still was. But he was no longer someone relevant to her.

Amy dismissed unnecessary worries and focused on something else. ‘Did he go to the guild’s vault to find the money?’ It was about the 1st Prince, who would soon become the new Crown Prince. She had left ample funds in the vault along with a few weaknesses of the Empress and the Crown Prince. If the 1st Prince had seen it, it would undoubtedly give him a significant advantage. However, Amy couldn’t be sure if he had seen it yet.

‘Perhaps the country’s situation is too complicated for him to control.’ A lot had changed after her return. She had avoided meddling in matters related to the Empire and the capital, but Noah’s arrival alone had caused significant disruptions.

Nevertheless, she considered looking into it again, taking into account the 1st Prince’s possible benefits. “Amy is here to speak too,” the Crown Prince said seriously as he lowered his teacup.

“Do you know about the recent unsettling rumors?”

“…”

Noah and Amy both stared at the Crown Prince with identical expressions, their mouths shut. They had discussed this matter before, and the most recent information had been obtained through the mercenary leader.

However, it seemed that the Crown Prince was angry, thinking they were silent because they didn’t know. He began to speak indignantly, “The rebel in the South claims to have royal blood. So, it’s inevitable that both of us, who are genuinely of royal lineage, would be unable to stay quiet.”

Noah naturally assumed that he would follow the Crown Prince’s words and nodded confidently. Amy stared at the Crown Prince without a word. They had previously discussed this issue, and he was so confident that Amy felt the need to question his judgement. She couldn’t help but wonder if this was part of the Empress’s plan, but she soon decided that it wasn’t.

‘In my past life, the 1st Prince advanced toward the capital with almost no troops and achieved remarkable victories.’ Even though the capital’s defense and the palace’s security were entrusted to loyalists like Martin Kyeong, it was still an unbelievable feat.

‘He devised brilliant strategies with the meager forces of commoners.’ It was an extraordinary accomplishment considering they had almost no knights.

‘But even if the defense of the capital and the palace was breached, the situation would be different this time.’ Amy considered it impossible for the 1st Prince to march on the capital with such limited forces.
That momentum couldn’t have disappeared completely. Even though the Crown Prince remained unaware and calm, the Empress wouldn’t be as serene. In truth, there might still be a fire beneath his feet even now. However, the Crown Prince couldn’t understand what he was trusting and why he was behaving so arrogantly.

At that moment, Noah spoke calmly, “Managing a fiefdom alone is already taxing… I trust you, Your Highness, to handle the position of the next Emperor.”

“!”

Both the Crown Prince and Amy had astonished expressions. The Crown Prince was shocked because Noah had dared to contradict his words, and Amy was taken aback by Noah’s boldness.

“…Isn’t the Duke’s fiefdom part of the Empire? Are you saying that just to make me feel better?”

The Crown Prince asked, trying to suppress his anger, and Amy and Noah exchanged meaningful glances.

‘Wasn’t it for situations like this that we declared independence as a sovereign state?’

Amy nodded her head in support of Noah’s stance. Noah continued calmly, “The Duchy is a friendly and trading partner of the Empire. Your Highness’s recent statement could be interpreted as allowing our Duchy to tolerate interference from the Empire.”

“!”

The Crown Prince’s face turned noticeably pale. He blinked in confusion, and Amy couldn’t help but look at him with satisfaction.

‘The Empire can’t just cut off the Duchy.’

If Noah remained a subject of the Empire and the 2nd Crown Prince, he might become a rival to the future 1st Crown Prince. Amy had made Noah the leader of the independent Duchy, considering this possibility.

Noah drove the final nail in the coffin, “Such important matters should be conveyed through official documents. Affairs between nations should be documented for evidence.”

“…It hasn’t been that long since you left the palace, and your neck has already stiffened.”

Realizing that Noah wouldn’t do as he wished, the Crown Prince revealed his hostility. They stared each other down, and the atmosphere grew tense. At that moment, a knocking sound was heard, and a man with a well-groomed beard entered.

“Your Highness, I have something important to discuss. May I have a moment?”

He was Viscount Pearson of the Empire. He was one of the Crown Prince’s aides, and when Amy was in the palace, she had never seen him before.