The Wind Calms the Fire - Chapter 60

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 60
The woman in his dreams was not her.
What he felt toward her, he’d told himself, was debt to his savior, trust in a partner bound by secret dealings, kinship shared with one who knew his secrets—things of that order.
But it was self-deception.
With each recurrence of the dream, he’d come to realize that what he truly wanted was far darker, far more primal—a hunger he could barely name.
“Your Highness.”
Orbin’s voice came from beyond the door.
Carrion lifted his head, settling back against the sofa. “Come in.”

Orbin entered with barely concealed eagerness, his grin spreading as he approached. “Your Highness. Now that the Princess has arrived, might we proceed with organizing His Majesty’s gifts?”

The Emperor’s official gifts in recognition of the Fourth Prince’s recent service had been overwhelmingly material—chests of Gold Coins and costly Precious Items loaded onto several carriages.

By any fair measure of Carrion’s deeds, wealth was the lowest class of reward.
Shouldn’t the Emperor have granted additional authority, or at the very least, parcels of land?
Yet the Emperor had sent only money, miserly as ever.
Was it a political calculation—maintaining balance among five sons?
Those who knew the Emperor’s true nature would shake their heads.
The Emperor despised any one of his children rising to prominence.
He wanted to be the sole figure of greatness in the realm.
Carrion, having never sought acclaim, was indifferent to the slight.
Indeed, had the Emperor bestowed something beyond mere coin, Carrion would have grown suspicious of the hidden intent.
The Gold Coins and Precious Items remained stored in the Residence’s warehouse. He’d deferred organizing them until the Princess could leave the Imperial Palace.
The situation was fluid enough that Carrion had considered hauling the gifts to the Imperial Palace itself if necessary, then digging in for a prolonged standoff.
Which meant Orbin had been under the most strain.
Orbin served as both Information Officer and treasurer for the Northeast Command.
After the first treasurer had been caught embezzling and dismissed, Orbin had assumed financial management.
At first, Carrion had thought Orbin lacked a merchant’s instincts. Later, he’d learned otherwise.
The man had a keen interest in—and genuine talent for—managing discretionary funds.
He delighted in rotating public money through various channels, generating returns that he quietly funneled into the Fourth Prince’s personal coffers.
The fuller the Fourth Prince’s treasury, the easier it became to secure funding for the Information Bureau.
Operating the Information Bureau within the set Northeast budget meant constant restrictions.
After all, the heart of an intelligence service lay in covert operations.
Unaccounted-for operational funds were essential.
The Emperor’s gifts had filled Orbin with quiet elation—the Fourth Prince’s coffers would fatten considerably.
Those vast sums sleeping in the warehouse were an agony to him; the waste was unbearable.
His mind teemed with schemes to multiply the wealth.
He’d practically lived in the warehouse these past days, checking the inventory repeatedly, ensuring no one else came near.
“Handle it as you see fit.”
That was all Orbin had been waiting to hear.
He grinned broadly. “Yes, Your Highness. I shall manage everything properly.”

“One more thing.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“The Princess purchased a residence in District 5, didn’t she?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“I understand she means to use it as a Legation for the Zephyros Kingdom.”
“That is my understanding as well, Your Highness.”
“A building serving as a Legation must maintain a certain dignity at minimum. A private dwelling won’t suffice. Find a suitable structure in District 4.”
When Orbin hesitated to answer, Carrion regarded him steadily. “The Emperor’s gifts are not mine alone. The Zephyros Kingdom has its share.”

Carrion assumed Orbin was reluctant because the expense pained him.
“Your Highness, if I may venture to speak freely…”
Orbin’s expression shifted, his voice dropping.
Carrion let out a short laugh.
Strange—his circle seemed full of men always asking permission for impertinence.
Others likely saw them as loyal servants.
In truth, they were presumptuous fellows who said whatever pleased them.
“Speak.”
“The Princess harbors something questionable. You should step back and observe carefully, Your Highness.”
Orbin regarded the First Prince’s abduction of the princess with a neutral eye.
It was possible the First Prince hadn’t forcibly taken her at all.
He considered it quite plausible that the princess and the First Prince had arranged to meet beforehand, and the clandestine meeting had simply been discovered by the Fourth Prince.
After receiving his house confinement, Carrion heard similar words from Cedric.
Though Cedric had couched them far more carefully than Orbin.
When everyone around him spoke in unison, suspicion was warranted.
‘I’m not thinking straight.’
His loyal retainers offered their counsel in agreement, yet their words barely registered.
What troubled him more was that even as he recognized his own compromised state, he couldn’t bring himself to doubt her.
“I understand what you’re saying. I fully appreciate your position—that you cannot trust the princess.”
…….
“Orbin.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Can you not, for now, simply trust me?”
Orbin held Carrion’s gaze for a moment, then bowed his head slightly.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
* * *
Withdrawing to a private room, Veronica explained the situation as it had unfolded.
“I met with Her Majesty the Empress and advised her to oversee the engagement between the two of you. I’d prepared considerable arguments to persuade her beforehand, but they proved unnecessary—she was already convinced. You appealed to Her Majesty directly for her aid, then?”
“Yes. I believed only the Empress could help me.”
“You act decisively. But this time fortune simply favored you. You must be more cautious.”
“I understand. I’ll be more careful.”
Rhea did not mention that she had calculated the Empress’s circumstances and temperament in her own way.
She could not reveal who had supplied that information.
“Why were you so eager to leave the Imperial Palace? Was it because of the First Prince?”
Rhea hesitated before answering.
“It was for another reason. Perhaps I was being overly cautious.”
“Speak freely.”
“His Majesty the Emperor told me I could visit him whenever I wished.”
Veronica’s brow twitched slightly.
……You judged well.
‘The Fourth Prince’s concern was not without merit, then.’
Veronica thought highly of Rhea’s keen response.
For a young lady to read the Emperor’s hidden intentions so quickly—she possessed the instinct to thrive in the treacherous games of high society.
“What of this business with the First Prince? How did such rumors arise?”
“Baseless gossip, nothing more.”
“Since Her Majesty the Empress presides over this engagement, it cannot possibly be dissolved.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“I should like to hear the princess’s own thoughts. Are you content with this arrangement?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“The Fourth Prince said he made his proposal without your consent.”
“Ah…… That is…….”
She would need Veronica’s assistance many times in the days ahead.
To some degree, she would have to speak truthfully.
Rhea pressed her eyes shut, then opened them.
“In truth, I was the one who broached the subject of marriage to His Highness first.”
Veronica’s eyes widened.
“I proposed it as the price for letting him claim credit. I asked him to give me the position of Imperial Princess Consort. He didn’t readily agree, but he said he would consider it favorably.”
Rhea sighed as she spoke.
“I apologize for disappointing you.”
“You owe me no apology. Among the nobility, marriage is always a matter of exchange. It would be remarkable if it were otherwise.”
Rhea had expected Veronica to be angry at being deceived, so she was caught off guard by her gentleness instead.
“Your meaning, then, is that while the marriage between you is not founded on affection, you both reached an agreement?”
“Yes.”
‘Is it, though?’
Doubt bloomed in Veronica’s mind.
From what she could observe, at least the Fourth Prince appeared to harbor genuine feeling for the princess.
His public proposal before the Emperor and his rescue of the princess from the First Prince’s hands seemed excessive for mere duty.
Moreover, the Fourth Prince had bent his pride before her in order to help the princess.
Yet he had not spoken a single word about such a transactional marriage, accepting only her censure in silence.
A man doesn’t concern himself that way for a woman who feels nothing.
Beronica suppressed the urge to smile and opened her mouth.
“It seems His Highness the Fourth Prince does not meet with your approval, my lady. You spoke of lacking affection so directly.”
“How could I presume to judge him? I cannot speak fully on this matter, but I have troubled him several times. I owe him a debt from this incident as well.”
“I have heard rumors that the Fourth Prince is quite peculiar. They say he chose isolation and suffers from misanthropy.”
“That’s not true at all! He is so thoughtful. People who don’t know him are the ones being careless with their words.”
“I too was surprised. After a long conversation with him this time, I found he was quite different from the rumors.”
“Yes, exactly. Those who truly know His Highness could never believe such gossip.”
Beronica found Rhea’s vigorous defense of the Fourth Prince intriguing.

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