By Zephyria 
The elegant melody of the stringed instruments gently calmed the sharp atmosphere. Over the past few months, the faces of those who had been anxiously awaiting news from the outer regions finally regained their composure.
Even those who had lived their entire lives pretending to be high-ranking nobles with their chins held high could not escape this commotion. Everyone had been like that since the Crown Prince, who was running the country and standing at the pinnacle of power in place of the Emperor, who was barely breathing and unable to regain consciousness, voluntarily led his subordinates to subjugate the monsters.
How could they just stand by and watch when the Crown Prince himself was going to war? It was not enough to simply provide financial support. If they wanted to occupy even a small position in the new political situation that would soon be rewritten in the name of Adrian Pearson, they had to send out their precious descendants, who were like the pillars of their families, to follow the Crown Prince. There was no use in hastily adopting a child from a collateral line who would not be greatly missed even if he died immediately.
This was because the Crown Prince, Adrian Pearson, was not foolish enough to not realize such shallow tricks, nor was he a lord generous enough to easily overlook such deceptive tactics. Among the prominent families in the capital, only two families were able to completely ignore the unspoken cues for direct conscription.
The Grand Duchy of Graham, where the eldest son had died in an unexpected accident a few years ago, and the only remaining second son was to inherit the title of the next generation. And the Count Hamilton, who was able to ignore the unspoken cues as a matter of course, even though he was not as high in status as Graham, nor did he have only one child to inherit the family.
Compared to other great families, the Count Hamilton, whose only special feature was its unusually wealthy fortune, had a reason for being so bold. Although it was not official, everyone knew that it was because of Noah Hamilton, whom the Crown Prince had designated as his fiancé, me.
In fact, a few days after Andrew left the capital to take care of his territory, Frederick, who was also registered in the Royal Knights, joined the rear party and went to war where the Crown Prince was. However, as soon as the Crown Prince saw Frederick bowing his head in front of him, he asked.
‘Sir. If you are here, who is protecting the Count Hamilton in the capital now? Sir Kyle?’
‘Sir Kyle has left for the territory with the Little Count. Currently, the head of security for the mansion is Sir Gilbert, the former commander of the Hamilton Knights…’
‘What? You left the safety of the mansion to that old man who has no ability? That won’t do. Go back immediately. Go back immediately and protect what you need to protect.’
The ‘things to protect’ that the Crown Prince asserted would not be limited to the Hamilton mansion alone. To narrow down the target more accurately, it would be me.
The reason why I, who was quietly holed up in the mansion in the capital without chasing after Frederick, knew the details of the conversation so vividly was not for any other reason.
‘That’s good, Noah. You are being loved very passionately.’
‘…….’
‘Ah. That idiot Frederick seems to be secretly happy too. Does he have no pride? He seems very happy to be coming back right away. You can tell by the way he’s been grinning while packing his bags.’
It was thanks to a certain leisurely and pathetic absolute being who, for some reason, came to me and told me about what was happening as if it were a live broadcast, and who no longer seemed to want to hide his identity.
‘Now, is there anything else you’re curious about?’
He was very kind and gave me excessive consideration.
‘Even if you know they are characters who won’t die, you’re still anxious. You’re worried that they might get hurt somewhere, or that they might be in some unknown hardship right now.’
It was a truly absurd consideration, considering that he was holding hostage the safety of those who were busy trying to clean up the disaster he had created with his own hands.
‘Tell me. I’ll tell you everything.’
The whispering pink lips were like the tongue of a snake seducing Eve.
‘The price is a kiss. At this point, I’m losing money, too?’
Still, I couldn’t refuse.
‘Is Carlisle safe? And what about Andrew…’
‘Oh dear. Not just one, but two? At this rate, a kiss won’t be enough.’
‘…….’
‘Go lock the door, Noah.’
Come to me on your own two feet, and wrap your arms around my neck.
The breath of the heartless god with the tongue of a snake and the wisdom of a goat was unbelievably warm. I had melted in his arms countless times.
“Now that His Highness has returned, he will be crowned soon, right?”
“I suppose so. Rumor has it that His Majesty has already passed away, and His Highness the Crown Prince is only adjusting the appropriate time for the announcement…”
“Shh! What if someone hears you…!”
He said ‘someone’, but it was a hurried voice and gesture that clearly showed that he was too conscious of me. With a very generous heart, I pretended not to hear the murmuring stories of the two nobles.
Today was a joyous day, as the Crown Prince, who had been away from the capital for several months, was making a successful return after resolving the chaotic state of affairs. It was reported that he had crossed the city gates in the morning, so the Crown Prince would probably appear in this Banquet Hall in a couple of hours at the latest.
Originally, instead of holding a banquet in the Imperial Palace like this, they should have filled the main street leading from the city gates to the Imperial Palace with crowds and held a grand homecoming ceremony… Due to the large number of people who had been sacrificed in the unexpected situation, the Crown Prince ordered that the cumbersome homecoming ceremony be replaced with a simple Imperial Palace banquet.
Even this might seem too extravagant for the general public, but it was still less noisy than a homecoming ceremony.
“But… why did this happen?”
“Well… everyone has different opinions, and no one is giving a definite answer. Anyway, it seems that the situation has been resolved because the Crown Prince himself has stepped forward, so we can only consider it a blessing in disguise.”
“Ah. He is truly a fit for a wise ruler.”
“You said it.”
Was it an attempt to dilute the subversive remarks he had made just before? The two nobles exchanged whispers, pretending not to be aware of it at all. The content was very blatant praise for the Crown Prince’s achievements. In a moderate voice that was just loud enough for me to hear, who was standing at a moderate distance.
The Crown Prince would return, and the throne was inevitably destined for him. Perhaps the day when I would enter the Imperial Palace as his legitimate spouse would not be far off. I clenched my fists tightly. The goal was near. Allen’s destined fate, that is, the ‘True Ending’, was to have a dazzling and brilliant wedding with the Crown Prince after winning the hearts of all the other Love interest.
I couldn’t check the quantified favorability anymore, but Carlisle, Lennox, and Kyle’s hearts were definitely in my hands. Now, all I had to do was walk steadily towards the ending scene. If that happened… I would win the bet with the damn god and finally gain freedom.
I had already decided on my life after that. As I promised Carlisle, I was going to somehow return to him. It wouldn’t be easy to get out once I was formally married to the Emperor, but what in the world could be more difficult than winning the stakes in a bet with a god? The only important thing was to achieve complete victory over Allen. That was all.
“His Highness the Crown Prince has returned! All nobles, pay your respects!”
The Chamberlain’s solemn voice, full of emotion, cut through the orchestra’s performance. Everyone who had been gathering in groups of three or five to chat, or those who had been sitting in the seats prepared in the back and sipping alcohol as if they were bored, all hurriedly straightened their clothes and stood facing the huge door at the entrance of the Banquet Hall. Slowly, the door opened. Everyone in the hall paid their respects in unison and praised the glory of the Pearson Dynasty. I was the only one who was audaciously keeping my head held high and taking in the appearance of the person entering.
“Y, Young Master Hamilton…!”
A servant nearby called me several times, as if he was very troubled. The other nobles around me were also wondering if the Crown Prince would accept such an arrogant attitude, even though I was receiving so much favor. They were right. Adrian Pearson was not the kind of person who would simply overlook someone being rude to him in the first place. But I was not being arrogant without anything to rely on either.
Hoo…. I took a short deep breath, pitifully lowered the ends of my eyebrows, reddened my eyes, and ran out into the middle of the empty Banquet Hall.
“Your Highness, Adrian!”
It was a pathetic sight that seemed to be the actions of someone who had been anxiously waiting for their lover to return safely for months.