Chapter 511 – The Great Commotion in the Royal Palace

Tauro and Aeris went to the royal castle.

At the castle gate, Tauro showed the Honorary Viscount insignia attached to the collar of his cloak. The guards checked it and let them through.

Aeris, who was accompanying him, was similarly recognized by the insignia identifying her as an Honorary Mage of the Kingdom.

Until recently, Tauro had needed to present his shortsword bearing the royal crest for verification every time he entered the castle, but that inconvenience was now gone.

“It really is convenient now, isn’t it?”

Aeris looped her arm through Tauro’s as they began walking.

Tauro was startled by Aeris’s sudden closeness, but he kept it from showing on his face.

“Yeah, it is. Though once we reach the royal palace, I’ll still need to show the royal crest and formally request an audience with Prince Fleue—hmm?”

He suddenly became conscious of Aeris’s chest pressing lightly against his arm, but after taking a deep breath, he managed to compose himself.

As they made their way farther into the castle grounds, they noticed people hurrying along the road toward the royal palace and sensed that something unusual was happening.

“There’s a very tense atmosphere around the royal palace…”

Aeris noticed it too and released Tauro’s arm.

Apparently, she also realized that acting affectionate was inappropriate given the mood around them.

When they reached the entrance to the royal palace, Tauro showed the guards his shortsword bearing the royal crest as usual and requested an audience with Prince Fleue.

Even if the prince was busy, they were normally allowed to wait in a reception room, so Tauro intended to ask an attendant about the commotion in the meantime.

“Lord Tauro, are you here to see His Highness today? I believe the prince is in his chambers, so an audience should be possible. However, given the current turmoil, please allow me to confirm first.”

The guard, who recognized them, spoke politely.

“Did something happen? The whole place feels unusually tense.”

“I’m afraid I can’t discuss it. Something serious has happened, and there’s even talk of issuing a gag order. It would be best to ask His Highness directly.”

The guard handed his post to another man and hurried away to check.

A short while later, permission was granted, and Tauro and Aeris were escorted inside.

When they entered the room, Prince Fleue was pacing restlessly back and forth.

“Your Highness, Honorary Viscount Giro Sugar and Lady Aeris have arrived,”

Sebas, Prince Fleue’s trusted attendant, announced.

“Ah, I’m glad the two of you came! We’re in a serious situation right now. The whole palace is in an uproar.”

The prince seemed to calm somewhat upon seeing them and finally stopped pacing.

“What happened, Your Highness? Everyone seems tense. The guards even said there might be a gag order…”

“…The truth is, it looks as though my elder brother may be removed as Crown Prince.”

“What!?”

Tauro and Aeris gasped and looked at each other in shock.

“My brother was suddenly relieved of his duty accompanying the Saint and her party and recalled to the Royal Capital. Apparently, this came up after he met with His Majesty.”

Prince Fleue continued his explanation.

According to what he had heard, the King asked the Crown Prince during the audience:

“There are suspicions that you’ve been in contact with the Northern Empire. What do you have to say for yourself?”

The Crown Prince’s response only deepened those suspicions.

Rather than deny them, he argued that the military presence along the border was creating needless tension and that reducing the troops there would demonstrate goodwill toward the Empire and ease relations.

He further insisted that, if matters went well, the Empire would respond favorably and that he could personally meet its senior leaders and establish friendly relations.

He even argued that, should Imperial troops cross the border at first, the kingdom ought to welcome them into the Royal Capital and share drinks with them; if he personally mediated, he claimed, everything could be resolved peacefully.

Both the King and the Prime Minister were reportedly left speechless.

That was hardly surprising. The Crown Prince’s proposal amounted to lowering the kingdom’s defenses and allowing an Imperial army to march freely toward the capital.

He was effectively volunteering to act as an intermediary once they arrived.

If the kingdom actually did that, the Empire could simply seize the capital by force before any negotiation ever began.

The officials present, as well as the Crown Prince’s brothers, immediately realized that something was seriously wrong with his behavior.

The royal court mages examined him and concluded that he might have been brainwashed.

The King and Prime Minister treated the matter as extremely serious and decided, for the time being, to announce that the Crown Prince had fallen ill.

But as Prince Fleue explained, that was only a public cover for the present uproar and would probably be temporary.

“He didn’t deny having ties to the enemy nation, and he even defended the Empire. If there’s a real possibility that he’s been brainwashed, there’s no way he can remain Crown Prince. Most likely, after a few days of ‘illness,’ an official announcement will say that he’s stepping down because he’s no longer fit to carry out his duties.”

Tauro and Aeris were speechless.

The Crown Prince’s recent behavior during the Saint’s journey had indeed seemed strange at times, even erratic.

His jealousy of the increasingly popular Prince Fleue had been excessive, and he had seemed far removed from the kind, rational Crown Prince Fleue had always described.

Now that brainwashing was a possibility, those inconsistencies began to make sense.

Prince Fleue sighed softly.

“He used to be such a gentle man… someone who truly loved peace.”

Tauro squeezed Prince Fleue’s hand in encouragement while his thoughts raced through possible explanations.

If the Crown Prince had originally been kind, intelligent, and peace-loving, perhaps those very qualities had made him vulnerable.

The growing popularity of his younger brother Fleue might have shaken him emotionally, creating an opening for someone to exploit.

Someone could have stirred up the darkness in his heart, destabilized him, then ‘saved’ him by imposing an entirely different ideology—perhaps with the aid of magic—until he was thoroughly brainwashed.

But accomplishing something like that would have required someone very close to the Crown Prince, someone he trusted deeply.

The Crown Prince’s principal supporter was Marquis Halagoura, which made the marquis an obvious suspect.

Still, Tauro couldn’t understand what reason Marquis Halagoura would have to do such a thing.

“Your Highness, what happened to the Crown Prince’s closest attendants?”

Tauro asked seriously.

“They’ve already been taken into custody. Three of them have… taken their own lives. We’ve also received reports that they may have been spies for the Empire. This absolutely can’t become public knowledge, so please—both of you—keep it secret.”

Prince Fleue’s expression was heavy with grief. The thought that the elder brother he had once loved might have been lost to him weighed painfully on his heart.