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Join the Server“Old man! What are you watching so sneakily like that?”
At the whisper by his ear, the chamberlain nearly fainted, letting out a silent scream.
“Good heavens! Lord Byron! You nearly stopped my heart!”
“What are you looking at? Something interesting?”
As Byron tried to peek through the crack in the door, the chamberlain grabbed him by the collar and whispered urgently.
“His Majesty is having dinner with Lord Fria. You must not disturb them.”
“So that’s the owner of the Swallow Palace? I’ll go take a closer look.”
“You absolutely cannot! Don’t you dare barge in without a hint of tact!”
The elderly chamberlain strained with all his might to hold Byron back. Byron already shared the palace maids’ attention with the Emperor.
Though the chamberlain firmly believed that in looks, physique, character, and bloodline, their Emperor far surpassed Byron, he had to admit, based on long experience, that Byron had an undeniable advantage when it came to charming women.
His Majesty had known only one woman closely, his sister-in-law, while Byron was a notorious rake who, once drunk, would flirt with anyone in sight. In terms of experience, they weren’t even in the same league.
With that in mind, the chamberlain pulled Byron back with all his strength.
“What’s all that food? Old man, you’re playing favorites. You never set a table like that for me! I’m joining them. Just add one more fork, right? It’s rude to leave food untouched. Look at that, it’ll all go to waste.”
The chamberlain, exhausted from holding Byron back from bursting into the room, panted and wiped the sweat from his brow.
“Oh, Lord Byron, when have I ever shown favoritism? If you wished, you could dine even more lavishly every meal.”
“How disappointing. He won’t even introduce me to his concubine? Even if I’m his cousin?”
‘You’re not just a cousin, you’re a beast’, the chamberlain thought, clutching his chest. He had no idea Byron had already met Fria the night before.
“But why are they eating together all of a sudden?”
“Doesn’t it look nice?”
‘Heh heh. My doing.’
The chamberlain stroked his mustache proudly, pleased with himself for arranging this intimate moment.
“They’re already that close?”
“They’ll grow even closer.”
“Seeing that temper of his, the fact he hasn’t flipped the table means he must like him to some degree.”
Byron nodded, aware that contrary to rumors, his cousin and the male concubine were not exactly affectionate.
“What do you mean? Our Emperor would never behave so violently! He is kind and soft-hearted, he wouldn’t even harm an ant.”
“You tend to glorify him a bit too much, old man.”
“Glorify? Not at all! I’ve watched him since infancy. I know his character well. He cherishes his family and takes great care of his people. And once he considers someone his own, he will protect them to the very end.”
That was true, his sense of responsibility, his devotion to family. But that devotion had turned into rigidity.
The grief for his late brother had become excessive protectiveness toward his sister-in-law and nephew, and guilt over taking his brother’s place had driven him into a life of restraint, isolating himself from joy.
“So does that Swallow Palace owner count as ‘his own’ or not?”
The chamberlain paused in thought.
“Given that Lord Fria cared for His Majesty all night, I believe… he already does. His Majesty is attentive even to the other ladies. But among them, I’d say Lord Fria holds a special place, he was the first to be elevated as a concubine of the new palace.”
“They’ve at least shared a bed.”
The blunt remark made the chamberlain frown.
“That may be so, but I believe there’s something… special between them.”
“Special?”
“Hard to explain. Just a feeling from experience.”
“Well, if you say so.”
Byron peeked through the door again. Though he couldn’t see clearly, the silhouette was unmistakable.
‘So he’s wearing a dress.’
He smirked mischievously. ‘A man in a woman’s attire… undressing him piece by piece? An intriguing thought.’
****
“Permission to enter the imperial library?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Fria nodded.
Owen looked at him, puzzled.
“Why?”
‘Why? Because I want to read books, obviously.’
“You said you would grant any wish,” Fria thought irritably. “Can’t you just agree without questioning everything?”
“I wish to read the books in the library, Your Majesty. Until now, I’ve relied on maids, but if permitted, I’d like to choose and read them myself.”
“…No other requests?”
“None.”
Owen had prepared himself to grant any extravagant wish. But this?
“Is that truly what you wanted to ask of me?”
Fria met his gaze, calm and clear.
“Yes, Your Majesty…”
‘Is that not allowed?’
His uncertainty showed. He had wanted to ask for something else, to be left alone, but knew it would be refused. So he chose this, thinking it reasonable.
Yet Owen’s expression darkened.
Had Fria asked for land or wealth, Owen might have granted it readily. But to ask for something so trivial when offered everything, it felt like a rejection of his goodwill. A strange irritation twisted in his chest.
****
“Can’t hear a thing. Too far. Aren’t you worried, old man? My father’s convinced at this rate, that guy will never produce an heir.”
“He is still young and strong. It will happen in time.”
“Not if he only plays with a man.”
The chamberlain sighed dreamily.
‘His Majesty’s child… how adorable that would be.’
“Old man!” Byron shook him. “I had something to ask you.”
“What is it, Lord Byron?”
“A man named Gir. Ring any bells?”
“What did you say?”
“Gir. A court physician. You know everyone in the palace, don’t you?”
“Did you just say… Gir?”
The chamberlain’s eyes widened.
“See? You do know him! He’s from the Swallow Palace. Met him last night.”
“Where?! Are you hurt anywhere?!”
“On the roof. Fell a couple of times, but I protected him.”
“Oh heavens! At your age, you shouldn’t be doing such things!”
“At my age? How old is he?”
“He’s two years older than me, sixty-five this year.”
“…What? I meant my Gir.”
“I’ve aged running this palace! Do you know who raised the late Crown Prince and his children?!”
“Yeah, yeah. So how old is my Gir?”
“I told you, sixty-five! And mind your manners, he’s royalty, His Majesty’s granduncle…”
“Wait. How is an Alphenian my relative?”
“Alphenian? What are you talking about? Lord Gir is of imperial blood.”
They stared at each other.
“…We’re talking about different people.”
“My Gir is a stunningly beautiful physician from Alphenia. I thought he wasn’t even human.”
“The one I speak of is the late Emperor’s brother…”
The chamberlain smiled faintly.
“It’s been thirty years. He blew the roof off a palace during an experiment and ran away. Never returned.”
“…Yeah, definitely different people.”
“Good. I was worried you’d started chasing men even in their old age.”
“What nonsense! I have plenty of respect for elders!”
Still grumbling, Byron smirked.
Meanwhile, the chamberlain busied himself again.
“I should greet this physician properly someday.”
“Old man! Call me when you do. You must. Got it? Must!”
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