Timid and Shy - Chapter 50

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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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50.

Cressida opened the matter to Kaiffer, making no effort to conceal his dissatisfaction.
“At this rate, His Majesty will place the bourgeoisie above our heads. We must persuade the Emperor before that happens. I myself dare not speak of it, for the Empress is present and I risk misunderstanding, but it must be done.”
Kaiffer merely smiled thinly and offered nothing further. Voyager spoke instead.
“It should be Prince Frederick who steps forward. Prince Robert is fracturing our hardline faction. Are we to leave Prince Robert unchecked like this? Now is precisely the moment for Prince Frederick to pacify the elders and persuade the Emperor. The Emperor will not push Prince Frederick aside.”
Cressida sighed with regret.
“Prince Frederick is devoted to his studies at present. The Emperor has even sent him a tutor, so it seems he cannot easily emerge from seclusion.”
The Empress echoed Cressida’s words, repeating only that Prince Frederick was in seclusion and received no visitors.
Naturally, the hardline faction also took note and disapproved of Cressida’s reluctance to act directly. For that very reason, they had no wish to move themselves.
Prince Robert invited the Imperial elders and nobles to gatherings with the Emperor, and arranged matters so that he could attend whenever the bourgeoisie held their assemblies.
The Emperor understood what Prince Robert feared. Unwilling to drive the nobles too harshly himself, the Emperor agreed to follow Prince Robert’s proposal.

***

Accordingly, the Imperial family and several hardline nobles found themselves seated alongside the Emperor. Among them was Cressida, the Emperor’s father-in-law.
Cressida spoke with a gentle smile.
“I hear Prince Robert’s Engagement Celebration Ball concluded most splendidly. His Majesty also enjoyed himself, I’m told.”
The Emperor laughed as he spoke.
“I have never had so much conversation at a ball before.”
Meline, an elderly member of the Imperial family and one of the traditionalist faction, spoke with sharp displeasure.
“Of course—they know nothing of propriety and decorum. None present could have understood that an Imperial ball is not such a place.”
The Emperor smiled and replied.
“On the contrary, it was precisely those unfamiliar with formal custom who made it so enjoyable. The conversation flowed endlessly. The other nobles soon adapted and joined in. I do hope you will all attend next time. I heard many refreshing perspectives.”
“Refreshing, is it? How very raw those opinions must have been.”
The Emperor said,
“That too is fair.”
The Emperor smiled continually, indulging the elders’ complaints. He spoke again.
“Next time, I should like to arrange a gathering with legal scholars. What do you think?”
Cressida replied.
“Is it truly necessary for us to insert ourselves? Such practical matters should interest only the Administrative Bureau and its people.”
The Emperor looked not at Cressida but at the others as he spoke.
“Then I will spend all this week with only the bourgeoisie, which is hardly fair, is it? You must make the sacrifice. Imperial Uncle, you will join us as well. Attend for the honor of the Imperial House. If any unruly bourgeois speak out of turn, rebuke them sharply.”
Meline, addressed as Imperial Uncle for the first time in ages, answered with a pleased expression, his anger having dissipated.
“If His Majesty commands me to rebuke them, then rebuke them I shall. Very well—I will attend.”
The Emperor’s face remained wreathed in smiles throughout, so the assembled nobles matched his mood, offering agreement rather than airing complaint in his presence.
Cressida added a word or two, but he thought to himself:
‘Ha! Flattering the old fools. As if that will move them…….’
Yet contrary to Cressida’s expectations, the nobles present did not reject the Emperor’s attentiveness and appeasement. Neither did they harbor any lingering desire to lodge strong objections.
Frederick was still merely one prince among them. The Emperor, naturally, was paramount. None of them wished to earn the Emperor’s displeasure in Cressida’s stead.
Cressida watched with bitter eyes as those around him, contrary to what they had said before, now fawned for another word from the Emperor.
The Emperor’s handling of the Imperial family had been rather successful. While he could not change the elders’ fundamental thinking, they would acquiesce to the Imperial House’s progress in step with the times.
Thereafter, formal exchanges between scholars of various disciplines and officials of the Administrative Bureau commenced. The interactions were to proceed gradually, expanding in scope and rank as the elders’ sensibilities were considered.
Though the pace was adjusted now and then to address the elders’ complaints, the Imperial House moved steadily forward.

***

Public opinion of Prince Robert grew more favorable by the day. In the vacuum left by Prince Frederick’s absence, Prince Robert received ever more attention.
Many nobles were satisfied with Prince Robert’s character and the way he conducted himself. Through the Engagement Celebration Ball, he had both mollified discontent and gained considerable affection along with the connections of the traditionalist nobility.
Naturally, the Empress was displeased with this turn of affairs. She pressed Cressida ceaselessly to find means of checking Prince Robert’s rise during Frederick’s absence.
Both Wiscom and Cressida were frustrated. Prince Robert’s ascendancy due to Frederick’s absence was a problem that would resolve itself the moment Prince Frederick emerged.
Yet Prince Frederick, for reasons of his own, insisted that the time was not yet right and continued his seclusion.

***

Even as Prince Robert distinguished himself through the ball, the discord between House Wiscom and Prince Robert remained unabated. Now articles on the matter were pouring forth openly.
Most began with the story of Sophia and Prince Robert—stemming from the humiliation Sophia suffered at Isabel’s debutante ball.
It was nearly at the level of educating the readership. And now, at last, the prepared issue had emerged.
It was an article about Philip’s homosexuality.
The piece described how Philip would hold some young man’s hand every night and visit a certain house in the 4th District, and it also included an interview with an unnamed former male lover.
Since the article contained quite specific incidents and people, it gave the impression that someone who knew Philip Wiscom well had exposed him.
The moment Philip’s article broke, suspicion fell on Prince Robert. The discord between House Wiscom and the prince was something everyone now knew about. Moreover, it was well-known that Prince Robert and Philip Wiscom had been close friends for a long time before falling out recently.
As the articles poured out, Prince Robert spoke to Vian.
“Cressida’s fingerprints are obvious enough, but I should still have this investigated. Look into it. I have a feeling this won’t end here.”
“Yes, sir.”
After the Philip article, pieces about Prince Robert began to appear.
They claimed that Prince Robert was pursuing ambitious moves and positioning himself against House Wiscom for some ulterior motive.
That ulterior motive, needless to say, was to check Prince Frederick’s advancement.
Another article obliquely described Prince Robert’s ambitions and his recent accomplishments, then wove them together with Prince Frederick’s seclusion and the delay of his betrothal.
The recently risen ambitious prince, the exposé of Philip Wiscom’s homosexuality, and Prince Frederick’s seclusion all intertwined to form a plausible conspiracy theory.
They claimed Prince Robert had basely targeted Philip in order to threaten both Prince Frederick and House Wiscom.
Prince Robert shook his head when he saw that the articles had expanded into negative propaganda against him.
“Those Cressida fools probably don’t even realize what they’ve done.”
Asher entered carrying another armload of newspapers and, hearing Prince Robert’s words, replied.
“Sir?”
Prince Robert glanced at Asher and spoke.
“Now that the newspapers are publishing political articles, they’ve opened the door for the nobility’s private lives and political matters to be discussed freely. Cressida herself did that.”
Watching Prince Robert’s composed expression, Asher thought that perhaps Prince Robert didn’t actually understand what was unfolding.
‘Is it Prince Frederick after all, not Prince Robert?’
Prince Robert decided to make no response to the articles.
And so, since freedom of the press had been guaranteed, the most political and sensational articles began to pour forth.

***

Philip stood confidently before the Duke of Wiscom. The duke spoke in a voice trembling with rage.
“I told you to be careful—what is all this?”
Newspapers and magazines lay spread across the duke’s desk. Philip looked at him and spoke.
“I was careful, sir.”
“Then why did the article break? And what are all these interviews? If you couldn’t properly control such people, you shouldn’t have met them at all. Did you forget your promise not to cause any more problems with your private life?”
“I did attempt to suppress it, but… I apologize.”
“There’s an article saying Prince Robert deliberately exposed this—is there any basis for that? Does Prince Robert actually know about your preferences?”
“He’s known for a very long time.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me from the beginning that Prince Robert knew?”
“I believed Prince Robert would absolutely never reveal it.”
The duke stared hard at Philip. Philip spoke calmly.
“Cressida and the Empress couldn’t contain themselves and exposed it. While checking Prince Robert, they happened to strike at House Wiscom as well.”
Philip continued speaking with persistence despite the duke’s wrathful gaze.
“If Prince Robert had intended to expose my homosexuality, he would have done so long ago. We’ve provoked Prince Robert more than once or twice. Isn’t the discord between Robert and us already covered extensively in the press? How is orchestrating conflict between other people while staying out of it themselves anything but Cressida’s work?”
At Philip’s words, the duke stopped glaring and soon nodded his head.
“That’s obvious. No one but Cressida could conceive of such filthy business. The articles are plastered with princes and us. Would any bourgeois manage such madness without some powerful backing? Ha! They stab us in the back again? Now, when we need to stop Prince Robert, they move against us too?”
Philip continued.
“Since the hardline faction and we have been pressuring Prince Frederick’s seclusion, it appears Cressida has seized on Prince Robert. Why not simply let Prince Robert be the culprit as Cressida intended?”
“You want to actually play along with Cressida’s intention? Very well that Prince Robert be branded the culprit, but what about you? Your reputation?”
“Cressida will have to bear that responsibility. Certainly someone I know went to Cressida and disclosed my matter. I will find that person. They will pay the price.”
Only after seeing the duke’s anger subside did Philip leave the library. His palms were damp with perspiration.
The moment Philip left the office, he headed for Isabel’s reception room. Upon entering, Isabel spoke as she watched Philip sprawled wearily across the sofa.
“There are still many Cressida people around Frederick, it seems. He’s convinced that the disappearance of the maid is definitely Cressida’s doing, and he’s so worried. He’s taken fright and withdrawn completely again, saying now is not the time to come forward. No matter how much I push him to go out, he refuses.”
“There are still Cressida people around? Frederick said that?”
“Yes. When I said I was still worried she might intercept notes from the Empress or Cressida’s people, he discovered another spy. At least he’s not completely foolish.”
“That’s fortunate. He listens to you and isn’t a fool. It seems Cressida has filled everyone around the Empress and the prince with her own people. Who else could be a spy?”
Isabel spoke coldly.
“Even in this situation, Cressida is still trying to eliminate both us and Robert at once. We need to find some way to counter this. Every time Prince Frederick doesn’t bend to their will, they’ll use us as a target.”
“No matter how clever Cressida is, she doesn’t understand what’s important right now. That’s why grandmother calls her a provincial fool. These days, whenever Prince Robert makes a proposal, the Emperor doesn’t refuse. Since coming from his domain to the Capital, there’s been no talk of him returning.”
Philip’s mind drifted back to the many things he had lost when he went to Ariel.
‘I never thought Prince Robert’s ascent to the Capital would deal such a blow.’
Philip continued speaking with a troubled heart.
“He’s helping the Emperor soothe the nobles’ discontent—it’s essentially the Crown Prince’s role. And the discord between us and him is real. They say he even threatened using Mother’s reputation. Mother is suffering again. She’ll bear the weight of this affair too.”
Isabel, listening, spoke.
“So that’s why you’re so angry? You’re afraid that once your brother’s sexuality is exposed, Grandmother will blame Mother all over again.”
Philip spoke with evident weariness.
“You need to talk to Grandmother too. Tell her to stop tormenting Mother. It’s not as if she’s planning to find a replacement duchess anyway. Don’t you disrespect Mother either.”
“I understand. But it’s still true that you needlessly provoked Sophia and created this mess.”
Philip sighed. Mother’s position within House Wiscom remained precarious. More than anything else, it was Mother who would suffer most from this article about Philip—not Philip himself.
Philip resolved that he and Cressida would root out every rat in their midst.
‘I’ll handle it with my own hands.’

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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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