Chapter 61: The things I couldn’t confess.

“Now I will turn off the polisher, which has been making noise loud enough to swallow all surrounding sounds.”

A silence like a vacuum descended instantly.

My effort not to be conscious of the King’s Brother’s gaze rather resulted in recognizing his presence more greatly. Yet my hands and eyes moved in the set order. The thought of not making a mistake was almost obsessive.

After confirming that the duplicate had not an inch of deviation from the original, I sighed. As if shaking off the awkwardness trying to return, I handed the key, my finished share of work, to the King’s Brother.

“You need to register your mana in the gem.”

It was too flashy to be a key to a hidden door leading to a back alley. Even though melee size, real diamonds are embedded, and a whopping 3-carat ruby is decorated in the center of the key head. It looked much more fitting to be called a key to a cabinet full of magic items.

Actually, it was made mimicking the key to a cabinet in the King’s Brother’s mansion. There were several display cases in this shop too, full of expensive gems and equipped with magical devices, so hiding it among those keys wouldn’t be noticeable or easy to distinguish.

The King’s Brother, who already knew a similar-looking key, however, looked closely at the key I handed him as if seeing it for the first time.

“Excellent. You must have studied hard.”

It was praise from the King’s Brother who realized the meaning of the magic circle drawn by the melee diamonds. It was a magic circle reversely breaking the cognitive interference magic circle on the necklace the King’s spy brought. I attached a cognitive interference magic circle to the lock of the door paired with the key. Without the key, one wouldn’t even know there was a door there.

“The teacher was excellent.”

My magic teacher shook his head with a troubled expression.

“I didn’t teach you about magic circles.”

“I still don’t know well about the basic principles of magic circles.”

“It seems the teacher’s teaching wasn’t that good after all.”

“Didn’t you tell me that modification of magic circles is possible? Even if I don’t know the principles well, modifying the patterns of existing magic circles is possible. To me, a magic circle looks like a picture.”

The Duke’s brow furrowed.

At his serious demeanor, I knew it was time to confess one more secret.

“And I don’t know why, but I can see the flow of magical power exactly. Even for magic I don’t know.”

Seeing the exact flow, not just feeling magical power, certainly seemed uncommon.

“I think it’s a very useful talent for a jeweler, but still, nothing good will come from it being widely known, right?”

“Who else knows?”

“No one. Until now, I was the only one allowed to enter this workshop, and I did setting work only here.”

For a moment, the Duke’s expression became subtle.

“Oh my.”

He covered his mouth with his hand.

“…Are you happy?”

“It might be absurd, but yes.”

The mouth revealed as the covering hand lowered was clearly drawing an arc. Even with dimples slightly showing.

“You told me a secret no one else should know.”

At the words saying he couldn’t help but be happy, my heart felt ticklish.

“Anyway, for that reason, I think I should also avoid revealing my talent to anyone’s eyes.”

Though no one would know unless I say it with my own mouth like now. At my words to relieve the ticklishness, the King’s Brother nodded without erasing his smile.

“No one but you and I will know, absolutely.”

It was an obvious statement, but for some reason, my ears felt like they were turning red. Probably because of his eyes not leaving me for a moment.

“Victory ceremony.”

Unable to avoid his eyes, I opened my mouth hurriedly.

“I heard a victory ceremony will be held. The cravat to be made with the yellow diamond is for that time. Of course, whether to attend the victory ceremony or wear the cravat depends on the Duke’s decision.”

The longer I spoke, the calmer his gaze became. Like soothing a stubborn child. At the unspoken monologue ‘I shouldn’t wish for that yet,’ my ears eventually heated up.

“What do you wish from me?”

“Something that seems easy but you would absolutely say no to?”

“…What is that?”

“Nothing.”

The brightly smiling face was sly. The thing that seemed easy but I would absolutely say no to, honestly, there were too many guesses that I couldn’t gauge at all.

“Rather than that, about the victory ceremony.”

I suspect the most likely one was telling me to be more honest, but that was something I truly lacked confidence in. I still couldn’t confess the unbelievable story that I have memories of a past life.

Or the vague story that I might be an illegitimate child of a noble.

Or that I peeked into his past through the fantasy shown by the contaminated gem.

I couldn’t say that I saw a scene where his pheromones were manifested in my dream either.

So I didn’t bother to pursue further that the King’s Brother was trying to change the subject.

“Please speak.”

“The victory ceremony will be postponed.”

“Is it the King’s will?”

My brow furrowed naturally. Seeing my disapproving face, the King’s Brother shook his head with an eye-smile as if to soothe me.

“It can’t be helped. The King would rather finish it quickly while there are still many people unaware of the war news and spread distorted information, but the generals to attend the victory ceremony cannot return by the scheduled date. No matter how much it is a formality with everything decided, it can’t be done with empty seats, so it has to be postponed.”

“…Can’t the generals depart from the New Continent until summer?”

There was still about a month left until full-fledged summer arrived. If they departed hurriedly, navigation avoiding typhoons in the distant sea would be possible. Even now, they could still meet the deadline.

No, not now. Just as the King’s Brother is in Noberten now, they should have already returned. Since not all of them could be of one mind, they needed time to coordinate their stories.

“They still have a lot to do in the New Continent. The number of noble prisoners to receive ransom for isn’t small, and they also have to examine in detail how to recognize each other’s territories. The King’s order is certainly strict, so they tried to handle things hurriedly, but due to their lack of ability, they absolutely couldn’t meet the time. So as a representative, the Commander-in-Chief returned to apologize directly to the King. Though this time the King refused the audience. He was ordered to stay in seclusion for the sin of failing to lead the army properly as Commander-in-Chief.”

A mischievous aura like a brat plotting a prank emanated from his curving eyes. It was an explanation closer to a conspiracy than a simple prank. And honestly, I liked that conspiracy.

So far, the people who returned home were only mercenaries, low-ranking officers who led them, and a few field-grade officers.

It was clearly the King’s Brother himself who made it so that the generals, who should have sided with the King to minimize the King’s Brother’s merits and inflate their own, couldn’t even depart. If it went according to the King’s thought, he and the generals should have been in exactly opposite situations.

Believing that the generals would follow his words even after the King’s Brother vacated his seat meant there was a definite shackle on them.

It means the King’s Brother subdued them, whether by pheromones or something else.

Although the generals who went to the New Continent weren’t all the nobles of Henia, and there were some who weren’t family heads yet like Spes Umbra, and above all, the media was all on the King’s side, it was clear that one axis of the power the King held was broken.

“Buying time… you intend to reach an agreement with the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister.”

The power of this country didn’t belong to the King alone. Although they once held hands wanting the same thing, now that the war ended and the ownership of the mines completely passed to Henia, the King and the Prime Minister inevitably had to split again.

The superiority in mine shares would soon determine the superiority in state administration between the two.

To be precise, the shares given to the Prime Minister were owned by the state-run company. Not his personal share.

However, the Prime Minister, the head of the parliament with budget voting rights, could use the profits from the state-run company against the King’s will.

The money the King’s Brother invested in the war was massive. Although he reaped several times that profit using the fluctuations in gem prices derived from the war, the fact that he poured in an absolutely large amount doesn’t change. Since the King’s Brother’s performance must have been decisive in the victory or defeat of the war, it was self-evident that excluding the King and the Prime Minister, the King’s Brother’s share would be the largest.

Of course, the King would never try to acknowledge the King’s Brother’s share, but if the Prime Minister joins in, the story changes.

Especially.

“I intend to hand over the exercise rights of my shares to the Prime Minister.”

Right, if the Prime Minister can exercise voting rights even for the King’s Brother’s shares, he will be able to manage the entire New Continent mines and distribute profits according to his will, not just the state-run company’s portion. The Prime Minister will surely accept the King’s Brother’s proposal.

“Is it wasteful?”

It was a very rational decision. However, I ended up frowning, and had no choice but to nod at the King’s Brother’s question.

“Yes, honestly.”

It’s not my money, and from the King’s Brother’s perspective, it was the most appropriate use for the mine shares. Whatever the future value of those mines becomes.

However, the situation of having to hand over profits gained literally by fighting a war intact to someone else wasn’t pleasing.

“…Besides your hand, were there really no other places hurt?”

The King’s Brother, who answered ‘none’ without any delay when I asked the same thing first, only made a vague expression without answering this time.

He seemed to know I wouldn’t be fooled by the same answer again.

“You were hurt.”

“Correct.”

“Does that wound, also remain?”

“…No.”

I inhaled. Those words meant the King’s Brother was hurt when alone, and had to treat himself.

“Why…”

“I went to explore the battlefield, but there was an ambush.”

Several names of commanders famous for inspecting the battlefield personally came to mind. They were all renowned generals, but each had absurd anecdotes arising from that. The Commander-in-Chief exploring the front line personally could give great trust to soldiers, but it was that dangerous.

“It was a time when I couldn’t be in the camp, because the Rut, came.”

The King’s Brother’s words continued like an excuse.

There couldn’t be no facilities prepared for Ruts in an army where Alphas gathered, but it was also true that the King’s Brother couldn’t use that place. Since externally, the King’s Brother’s Rut is known to be greatly weakened. Going to a place avoiding other people’s eyes and still being able to return, maybe I should say it was rather fortunate.

That the situation of getting hurt alone and having to heal alone was fortunate.

“What to do.”

“What, do you mean?”

“I’m happy after all.”

Talking about getting hurt, the King’s Brother laughed as if helpless.

“You worried about me. I’m happy.”

“…I always worried about the Duke.”

It was words brought out wanting to scold him a little.

“I know.”

Still, I couldn’t cloud his gaze. Rather, it seemed deeper.

He couldn’t not know it was an emotion caused by me. My appearance worrying about him made him smile.

My heart felt stiff again.

As if fleeing from a difficult topic, I turned my body.

“…Showing another customer’s item isn’t very desirable, but in this case, it seems that customer intended it.”

I found and took out a jewelry box from the safe buried in one wall of the workshop.

Even realizing that what tied my steps was my emotion, I still couldn’t take a step forward. Courage to handle the results greed would bring was still lacking in me.

Maybe it will never arise forever.

He and I, we tried to change many things and actually changed them, but there clearly existed things that couldn’t change at all.

The fact that he is a dominant Alpha King’s Brother and Duke, and the fact that I am a Beta with no connections will never change.

Just as I couldn’t abandon my identity as gay even though my father disowned me.

But why. Why do I keep realizing cowardly greed?

That night, I didn’t hear the phone ringing repeatedly. The phone that eventually turned off and could no longer receive signals, and my appearance just enjoying myself without knowing anything came to mind.

The afterimage of the past caught the steps trying to run away pretending not to know. I stopped my steps one step away from the King’s Brother.

“This is something Duchess Mare commissioned me.”

The blue eyes were still clear. Like the deep lake reflecting the bottom seen in the dream. As if knowing everything, even the sin I’m hiding.

When his eyes turned to the red diamond, I was relieved.

“It seems our cousin has big greed.”

So I realized the meaning his words held a beat late.

What Duchess Mare wanted wasn’t just a solid position for her daughter who manifested as an Alpha early.

The ringing sound lingering in my head stopped.

My hand twitched. The yellow diamond left in a corner of the workbench seemed to sparkle.