The Prince's Nanny, Her Specialty Is Assassination - Chapter 106

Chapter 106: Protagonist of the Founding Festival (1)

“I couldn’t bring myself to ask that day. You never talk much about yourself, so….”

Catherine hesitated for a moment, then lowered her voice even further.

“I was wondering if, because of me, you might have gone through… something uncomfortable.”

If there were something uncomfortable that could happen to a woman who entered the King’s chamber alone late at night, it was obvious.

“After that day, I sent other maids instead of you, since His Majesty requested someone else, but they all came back saying they’d fallen asleep in their chairs until morning. So I figured nothing must’ve happened to you either, but then I remembered how the King told you to call him by his name and looked at you kind of… romantically, so I started worrying again….”

Catherine seemed genuinely afraid that I’d been humiliated by the King because of her.

No wonder she’d been looking at me with those anxious eyes all this time, like a puppy desperate to pee.

“There’s nothing for you to worry about, Catherine.”

“R-really? Oh, that’s a relief, then….”

“Now, would you please step back a little?”

“Huh?”

“At this rate, Your Highness Emilia will be squished.”

Catherine glanced down and gasped.

Because she’d pressed in too close, Emilia’s cheeks, caught between us, had been flattened like dough.

“Oh dear, I’m sorry, Your Highness!”

“Mmhm, Lia’s fine.”

Catherine began patting Emilia’s head roughly, then turned back toward me.

“Then… is there really something else going on?”

She was looking at me with clear concern in her eyes.

“I’ve been worried. You’ve looked troubled these past few days.”

“…I just have some things on my mind. It’s really nothing serious.”

Yes, it wasn’t exactly ‘serious.’

My lips tightened as I thought of Kayden.

‘I still haven’t figured out why he went to the place where I died.’

Since the night I saw him shedding tears at the reed field where I’d lost my life, I’d been secretly observing him.

‘Nothing particularly suspicious so far.’

Aside from his noticeably reduced attention toward me, there hadn’t been much change.

‘He hasn’t left the Prince’s Palace once since that night.’

The young King of Adamant was still sly, still polite in a way that bordered on insolence, and still looked as composed as ever.

And, as Catherine had mentioned, ever since that night at the reed field, he’d started calling for a different maid each evening.

‘Not that it was exactly by his choice.’

The rotation of maids entering his room each night had become unavoidable.

After spending just one night in the King’s bedchamber, each maid had returned trembling, claiming she couldn’t breathe in his presence.

‘In any case, it’s clear now that he knows who I really am.’

I lowered my gaze slightly, lost in thought.

‘If he went to the place where I died, then he must have some reason connected to me.’

If he’d been someone who owed me a life debt, I might’ve understood. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t recall ever saving someone like Kayden.

“Hey!”

Suddenly, Catherine smacked my arm.

I raised an eyebrow and looked at her.

“Even if you’ve got a lot on your mind, at least for today, focus on His Highness Edwin! Today’s the day he’ll perform the sword dance before His Majesty the Emperor. This is a historic moment!”

Catherine scolded me with a mock-serious expression that didn’t suit her.

“Let’s do our best to cheer for him today! That’s the only task we’ve got!”

“Lia’s gonna cheer for Brother too! Yeah!”

“Oh my, how adorable, our little princess. Your very existence is already the greatest cheer of all.”

The protagonist, huh.

I looked toward Edwin standing on the platform, adjusting his posture. It hit me all over again how far he’d come.

‘When I first met him, he was like a scruffy little colt.’

Now, his frame had filled out just right with healthy muscle, his presence brimming with energy.

Anyone could see he looked every bit the prince—clean, noble, and dignified.

He’d changed so much in just a few months. He truly did look like today’s protagonist.

“…You’re right.”

I finally responded to Catherine.

Just as she said, my role today was to support Edwin.

Right now, I am not Kyla—I am Rachel Brown, the prince’s nanny.

“I apologize for worrying you by neglecting my duties.”

“Oh, there’s no need to, really….”

“It seems we’re ready. Let’s head out.”

“You’re not sorry at all, are you?”

Ignoring her grumbling, I stepped forward.

Edwin, already dressed and prepared, was standing on the platform, looking down at me with wide, eager eyes.

“Shall we go, Your Highness?”

I extended my hand politely. Edwin’s eyes widened, then he broke into a bright smile and nodded.

“Yeah!”

***

The grand banquet hall of the Ventrume Empire, built solely for hosting royal guests.

There, to commemorate the founding festival, royalty, foreign envoys, and prominent nobles from every nation had gathered in one place.

Normally, the hall would’ve been filled with elegantly decorated tables spaced evenly throughout, but today was different.

“A circular stage inside the hall? How unusual.”

“They must’ve prepared quite a performance.”

The envoys, unaware of what was going on, began murmuring as they looked at the large round stage set in the center of the banquet hall.

“Your Majesty, what is that?”

One of the envoys from the Khan Empire, seated closest to the Emperor, asked in an intrigued tone. His curious gaze lingered on the circular stage.

“What does it look like to you?”

“To my eyes, it seems to be a stage, though….”

The envoy replied with a faintly amused smile at the Emperor’s counter-question.

“But the shape makes it look more like an arena.”

“Haha, an arena, you say.”

An arena, in a place meant to celebrate the founding of the Empire?

It could’ve easily been taken as an offensive remark, but the Emperor merely laughed good-naturedly.

He lifted his wine glass filled with red wine. “Well, you’re not entirely wrong.”

“Pardon? Then is it truly an arena?”

“An arena is where warriors cross swords and compete, is it not?”

The Emperor’s thick eyebrows arched upward at an angle. A bright smile spread across his face.

“There’s no spectacle quite as entertaining as a good fight, don’t you agree?”

The envoy tilted his head, unable to interpret the meaning behind those words.

Meanwhile, the Second Consort, Helena, sitting nearby, stiffened slightly. Under the table, her hands clenched tightly together.

“You seem in unusually high spirits today, Your Majesty.”

“Haha, how could I not be?”

In response to a noble’s casual comment, the Emperor turned his head toward Kayden, seated at his right.

“The King of Adamant brought a gift that truly moved me.”

Kayden, who had been quietly wetting his lips with wine, lowered his gaze modestly.

“It’s the first gift I’ve ever presented to His Majesty the Emperor. I only regret that it’s far too humble.”

“Hahaha, you are far too modest.”

Tributes from every nation had already piled up like mountains. Yet none of them could compare to the treasures brought by the Kingdom of Adamant.

‘Ten mastercrafted dwarven swords, ten tamed lycans, and ten thousand trions of adamant ore.’

While the dwarven blades and domesticated beasts were certainly priceless, the true treasure among them was the adamant ore.

‘Ten thousand trions, that’s enough to cover part of the Imperial Fortress’s outer walls entirely in adamant.’

The Emperor smiled faintly as he brought the rim of his glass to his lips.

If the Kingdom of Adamant could offer such a vast amount as a gift, then how much more must be hidden within their lands?

‘Should I call it reckless or arrogant?’

The now-destroyed Kingdom of Lionel had done everything it could to conceal the value of its adamant mines. They’d hidden the estimated reserves and strictly limited exports of the mineral.

‘They were terrified another nation would covet them. The Lionels were nothing but cowards.’

But the new king of Adamant clearly thought differently.

‘These days, when monsters roam unchecked, the value of adamant has only grown.’

Adamant was the perfect material for breaking through the hardened hides and teeth of monsters.

A flicker of indescribable greed shimmered in the Emperor’s eyes.

‘I should’ve attacked the Lionel Kingdom back then.’

When word had reached him that strange unrest had begun within Lionel right after the death of the Third Consort, he should’ve seized the opportunity to occupy the kingdom at once.

‘But I hesitated like a fool.’

If he had acted then, that nameless common-born knight would’ve never had the chance to wear a crown far above his station.

For a brief moment, jealousy and contempt flashed across the Emperor’s face. But just as quickly, he replaced it with a pleasant smile and rose from his seat.

“Then, let us raise our glasses.”

The glint of greed in his eyes vanished without a trace.

“To the peace and prosperity of the continent!”

“Waaah!”

At his toast, everyone in the hall raised their glasses high.

Musicians began to play, and voices filled with excitement and laughter echoed through the grand hall.

By the time the atmosphere had reached its peak—

“Everyone must be growing bored by now. At a time like this, we need some entertainment to liven up the feast.”

Entertainment? Did he prepare dancers or jesters?

The envoys, still drinking and eating, turned their attention toward the Emperor.

“For all the distinguished guests gathered here today, my sons have prepared a little amusement. I hope you’ll enjoy it.”