The Prince’s Nanny, Her Specialty Is Assassination - Chapter 224

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 224. An Unexpected Two-Sided Operation (2)

Silence flowed through the splendid and spacious reception room.

Only Princess Emilia chattered away cheerfully.

“Ria was curious. The Emperor is the only daddy in the Empire, right? But in the book Ria read, it said there was a Night Emperor.”

What on earth did she read?

No, what did those caretakers and maids read to the Princess!

The Maid Captain froze like a statue with his smiling face intact, and the maids couldn’t even straighten their backs as they rolled their eyes around.

“…Princess.”

The Emperor opened his mouth with an expressionless face.

Fortunately or unfortunately, he seemed relatively less flustered than the Maid Captain and maids waiting behind him.

“Which book did you see those words in?”

“I don’t remember the title. It was just a really pretty and fancy book. Rachel took it away so I couldn’t read it…”

“Rachel? Are you talking about your caretaker?”

“Yes! Rachel is Brother and Ria’s caretaker!”

Emilia’s complexion when saying the name Rachel was much brighter than before.

“The Princess seems to like her current caretaker.”

“Yes, Ria loves Rachel!”

The Emperor’s eyes widened slightly at Emilia’s answer.

“You love your caretaker?”

“Yes! Ria loves Brother, and Rachel, and Catherine, and Grandfather too!”

Who could grandfather be?

The person Emilia would call grandfather had passed away long ago.

The Emperor glanced at the Maid Captain.

“She’s probably referring to the gardener working at the Prince’s Palace. According to the Maid Captain there, they hired someone with solid experience befitting his age.”

So it was a complete stranger after all.

Calling an old man with no blood relation grandfather?

The Emperor looked at Emilia with a somehow dubious expression.

“Hey, Daddy. If there’s chocolate left, can Ria take some to our palace too?”

“Do you want to eat more?”

“Um, there’s that, but…”

“Then you can just come here whenever you want to eat some, can’t you?”

“Whenever I want to eat? Then Ria might come every day, you know?”

“…Then come every day.”

At the Emperor’s suggestion, the Maid Captain and the Imperial Palace maids flinched.

He was someone who trusted no one but himself, and even with family, he would never summon them to the Imperial Palace first unless there was business.

‘But he’s telling Princess to come every day.’

Moreover, it wasn’t even for something important, but he was allowing access to the Imperial Palace just to eat chocolate sweets.

‘Did His Majesty eat something wrong?’

It was natural for a parent to care for their child, but for the Emperor, this was a kind of anomaly. And there were few people in the Imperial Capital who would welcome such an anomaly.

“Mmm, but it’s too far here, and Ria’s legs hurt so I don’t think I can come every day. I want to share the chocolate sweets with everyone, but I can’t bring everyone here…”

Long-winded talk was exactly what he hated.

The Emperor looked at Emilia with an indifferent gaze.

‘Who did she take after?’

The child greatly resembled someone he knew.

Her innocently bright and talkative personality, even useless aspects like caring for people unrelated to her.

“…The Princess resembles Ophelia more than Idis.”

Instantly, the Maid Captain’s shoulders trembled.

The maids were equally shocked.

It was rare for the Emperor himself to speak aloud that name he had made taboo.

‘First Imperial Consort, Ophelia Moonlit.’

A woman who was merely a chamber maid but rose to the position of First Imperial Consort through the Emperor’s favor.

The Emperor’s act of demoting the original First Imperial Consort Helena to Second Imperial Consort and granting her the First Imperial Consort position was known to every citizen of the Empire.

“Huh? Ophelia? Who’s Ophelia?”

Meanwhile, Emilia tilted her head as if she understood nothing.

“…A woman who used to live here.”

The Emperor answered briefly as if it were nothing.

“She doesn’t live here now.”

The Princess saw the dark shadow cast over her father’s face.

But she was too young to notice what that shadow meant.

“Maid Captain.”

The Emperor rose from his seat.

He was looking down at Emilia with eyes that seemed somehow more deeply sunken than before.

“Escort the Princess safely to the 3rd Prince’s Palace.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“…And.”

The Emperor briefly added as he left the reception room, leaving Emilia behind.

“Send a box of cacao fruits to the 3rd Prince’s Palace as well.”

Cacao fruits were a specialty from the Southern Continent that was only presented to the Emperor, and being extremely rare, they were occasionally bestowed upon retainers who had achieved great merit.

‘He’s never even ordered them given to the 1st Prince or 2nd Prince.’

The Maid Captain’s eyes widened slightly, then narrowed to half their size.

He bowed with a face full of smiles.

“I shall obey your command, Your Majesty.”

Thus Emilia returned to the 3rd Prince’s Palace, surrounded by the Maid Captain and three knights guarding the Imperial Palace.

“Bye, Daddy! I’ll come again next time!”

Not forgetting to wave at the Emperor’s face visible through the Imperial Palace windows throughout her return.

* * *

“To invite me directly to your mansion, what an honor this is. Thank you so much, Countess Katarina.”

“An honor? I’m the one who should be sorry for suddenly changing our meeting place.”

“Oh no, not at all! Thanks to this, I learned what a beautiful place the Katarina estate is. The landscaping and interior design are so elegant! Countess’s taste is truly remarkable.”

“…You’re too kind.”

Countess Pailin Katarina.

The pinnacle of the Empire’s social circles and the 2nd Empress’s closest confidant, she paused while sipping her tea and raised her gaze.

‘Catherine Bale, Maid Captain of the 3rd Prince’s Palace, a humble baron’s daughter who rose to the position of annex maid by the Empress’s command.’

Pailin’s eyes narrowed.

‘To think such a plain woman is the Head of the Golden Goose Caravan’s lover. No matter how I think about it, it’s fascinating.’

Catherine could become a baron’s daughter only after her father bought the baron’s position with money.

Since she became nobility at an advanced age, it was natural that she couldn’t even have a debutante ball.

‘But how could a commoner woman who never even showed her face in social circles become the Head of the Golden Goose Caravan’s lover?’

Pailin recalled the day she first met Catherine.

It was just a few days ago, so the memory was still vivid.

‘Well, from the first time I saw her, I thought she was a woman with unexpectedly interesting aspects despite her appearance.’

Catherine had thoroughly scolded a jewelry shop owner who dared try to overcharge Pailin, a countess, and the two became close instantly through that incident.

‘At first I thought she was some nouveau riche’s daughter, but I was so surprised to learn she was not only the Maid Captain of the 3rd Prince’s Palace but also in a relationship with the Head of the Golden Goose Caravan.’

At first, she wondered why Catherine would tell such an obvious lie.

But when Catherine proudly showed off earrings as a gift from her lover, her doubts melted away like snow.

‘Those earrings were definitely authentic. If someone possessed enough wealth and information to obtain the one and only pair of earrings made by a dwarven craftsman a thousand years ago, the Head of the Golden Goose Caravan would be the only one in the Empire.’

Pailin gazed at Catherine thoughtfully.

‘…I’m not sure about her looks, but she’s not without charm.’

The way she casually chattered about herself despite having known each other for such a short time, and how she giggled at everything she said.

It was fascinating how she seemed somewhat frivolous and shallow yet not entirely unlikeable.

“Your new hairstyle suits you so well, Countess Katarina.”

Catherine had rattled off about thirty compliments regarding the beautiful aspects of Countess Katarina’s estate, and now she began praising Pailin’s new hairstyle.

“Did you insert pearl-studded pins one by one between the braided hair? It looks so elegant and sophisticated! How did you come up with such an innovative idea? At the banquets held in the coming season, that hairstyle will become the trend…”

“Baroness Veil has truly excellent taste. If only you could master the art of keeping appropriately silent, that discernment would shine even brighter.”

That was enough, so shut up now—that’s what she meant.

Catherine’s fingertips twitched before she smiled innocently.

“Oh my, I’m sorry. I talked too much, didn’t I?”

“It’s fine. They say it’s better for women to be chatty rather than taciturn.”

Then what am I supposed to do?

Should I chatter or keep my mouth shut?

‘Sob sob, I feel like my heart’s going to jump out.’

Catherine shed tears inwardly.

She was so nervous that she had blurted out random words, and getting reprimanded made her face burn with embarrassment.

“Actually, there’s a separate reason I invited Catherine to the manor today.”

“Yes, yes?”

“About that rumor you mentioned last time. The rumor you heard when you went to that secret gathering.”

For a moment, it felt like her mind snapped back to attention.

Catherine quickly composed herself and made a fuss while covering her mouth with her hand.

“Oh my, that rumor? Actually, I’ve been feeling a bit regretful about it. It wasn’t even an accurate rumor, so I wondered if I had only caused the Countess unnecessary worry…”

“No, it didn’t particularly worry me.”

“Is, is that so? I heard that you, Countess, are closest to The Second Imperial Consort…”

“Ahaha, well.”

Pailin let out a short laugh.

Her lips were neatly curved upward, but her eyes weren’t smiling at all.

“I certainly thought we were close in the past, but these days I’m not so sure.”

“What?”

“Relationships naturally grow closer and then distant, don’t they?”

Only after making eye contact with Catherine, who had widened her eyes in surprise, did Pailin smile with her eyes.

“Just as yesterday’s enemy can become today’s ally.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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