The Prince's Nanny, Her Specialty Is Assassination - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: The One I Couldn’t Protect (2)

Meow! Meoooow—!

The cat struggled desperately, terrified. Whatever had happened in between, the creature was now covered in small scratches.

“Just you wait!”

But the suffering of the cat seemed of no interest to the group of boys.

They were young noble children who had never learned to show compassion to the weak. They were as cruel as they were ignorant, having learned power before morality.

“This time, I’ll hit it, for real.”

The boy with orange hair paused for a moment, then threw a stone with all his might. But once again, it was in vain. The struggling cat caused his stone to miss, and the boy punched the air in frustration.

“Ugh! Seriously!”

Having missed yet again, he seemed furious to the point of boiling over.

The boy walked towards the cat and reached for the rope. But there was no way the angry cat would stay still. The cat clawed at the boy’s approaching face with all its strength.

“Tie it up tighter, argh!”

“What? What’s going on?”

“This damned thing!”

The boy, his face scratched, couldn’t contain his anger and tried to throw the cat to the ground.

“Stop it—!”

Just then, Emilia came running out, shouting. The young princess’s large eyes were brimming with tears.

“Don’t hurt the cat! You villain!”

The princess threw herself at the boy’s legs.

The boy lost his balance, flailing his arms. Luckily, the cat quickly escaped his grasp and fled into the bushes.

“Stop it! Stop it—!”

“Ah, what is this—!”

The boys frowned at Emilia, who had suddenly appeared. By now, the princess was biting the calf of the boy who had tried to catch the cat.

The other boys watching frowned at the sight.

“What’s going on?”

“She’s just a little kid. I didn’t know there was such a young kid in the palace.”

“I don’t know. Judging by her clothes, she doesn’t seem to be a servant.”

“Shouldn’t we help?”

“Leave it. Can’t he handle a mere child?”

Just then, a sharp, cold voice came from behind them.

“What’s going on here?”

“Prince Lloyd!”

The boys bowed their heads to a boy who emerged from behind them.

The boy, with bronze curly hair and blue eyes, was handsome but carried an overly cynical air. His gaze, as if he looked down on the whole world, belonged to ‘Lloyd Cathalonian Ventrume.’ He is the second prince of the Ventrume Empire and the only son of the Second Consort.

Second Prince Lloyd looked around at the boys with an expressionless face, then narrowed his eyes when he saw Emilia.

“What is that?”

“Well, she suddenly came out of the bushes and started interfering with our game. Judging by her attire, she doesn’t seem to be of low birth, so we were debating what to do.”

“Hmph.”

Lloyd turned away indifferently but then turned back, his eyes narrowing as he scrutinized Emilia. His gaze sharpened, and a sinister smile curved at his lips.

“I thought I’d seen that face before. She looks just like that fool.”

Lloyd gestured to the two large boys standing beside him. “Bring her here.”

For some reason, he seemed very amused.

“This might be an even more fun game.”

***

Edwin looked around with a pale face. Fortunately, one of the nearby guards had seen which direction Emilia had gone, or he might have been left standing there helplessly.

“Emilia! Emilia!”

But it was difficult to find Emilia, who had disappeared in the vast central garden.

How long had he searched through the bushes?

“Waaah—!”

He heard Emilia crying from not far away. Edwin’s eyes widened in shock.

“Emilia—!”

The prince ran towards the direction of his sister’s voice. Just as Edwin was about to emerge from the bushes, a familiar voice reached his ears.

“What are you waiting for?”

A cold voice, indifferent yet sharp.

Edwin knew the owner of that voice better than anyone else.

Second Prince Lloyd. His half-brother, who always tormented him. And the one responsible for the death of his first nanny, Emma.

Edwin’s clenched hand began to tremble.

“It’s okay because I’ll protect you.”

Last night, he had told Emilia that he would protect her.

But why?

His sister was crying right in front of him, yet his legs wouldn’t move.

It was then that Edwin realized.

He was terrified. The mere existence of Lloyd was that overwhelming. Enough to shatter his resolve to protect his sister.

“Huff, huff.”

Edwin’s breathing grew rough. He felt pathetic, and anger rose within him.

Perhaps he bit his cheek without realizing it. The metallic taste of blood spread through his mouth.

“Y-Your Highness, no matter what, this seems a bit…”

The boy hesitating was none other than Gale. He was holding a crossbow, hesitating repeatedly.

“Why? What’s the difference between that cat and this worthless thing?”

Meanwhile, Lloyd, sitting on a shaded chair, scolded Gale.

“Well, it’s still a person…”

He scoffed. “A person? A person should act like one if they want to be called a person.”

“Waaah—! Put me down—!”

Lloyd sneered at Emilia, who was suspended in midair.

“All she can do is scream. To me, she looks no different from that animal earlier.”

“Y-Your Highness, this really isn’t…”

“If you can’t do it, give it to me. I’ll do it.”

Lloyd stood up and grabbed the crossbow. His icy blue eyes gleamed fiercely.

“Be quiet.”

Without hesitation, Lloyd let the arrow fly.

Whoosh—

The arrow sliced through the air, heading straight for Emilia.

“No—!”

Edwin threw himself towards Emilia. An eternity seemed to pass in that fleeting moment.

“Waaah—!”

Edwin opened his tightly shut eyes at the sound of his sister’s cries.

Emilia’s face was right in front of him.

Fortunately, his only sister seemed unharmed.

“Waaah—!”

Edwin came to his senses at the sound of his sister’s wailing. He looked at the rope swaying above them.

The rope had snapped under the weight of the two of them when Edwin had thrown himself at Emilia. Thanks to that, Lloyd’s arrow had missed its target.

Just as Edwin was about to let out a sigh of relief—

“Well, well, look who it is.”

A familiar voice came from above.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

Edwin slowly looked up. His second brother, Lloyd, stood there, backlit by the dazzling sunlight, with his usual unpleasant smile.

“…G-Greetings, Brother Lloyd.”

“Well, Edwin. How have you been?”

Behind the second prince, the other boys burst into laughter as they looked at Edwin.

“Nothing’s changed since then.”

“Where would a Shabby Prince go?”

“He looks like a beggar, not a prince. Did he get robbed by someone else again?”

They sneered at Edwin, who was covered in dirt. Edwin’s pale face flushed red with shame.

“But what brings you here?”

“I-I came to find my sister.”

“Sister? Since when did you have a sister?”

Lloyd raised an eyebrow, then clapped his hands as if in realization.

“Ah, that noisy girl is your sister?”

He made an exaggerated expression like an actor, waving his hand.

“I thought she was just the kitten of the cat we missed earlier. The fur color’s the same, after all.”

Edwin clenched his hand, which was resting on the ground. There was no way Lloyd, who was always so excessively interested in his siblings, wouldn’t know about Emilia.

‘But Emilia isn’t just my sister; she’s the only princess of this country.’

Even if it were him, Emilia shouldn’t be treated like this.

“I’m sorry. If she’s your sister, then she’s my sister too. I’ve been rude.”

Meanwhile, Lloyd, with a face showing no hint of remorse, extended his hand.

“Hurry and get up, will you? A prince shouldn’t be sprawled on the ground in front of his inferiors.”

Edwin stared at the hand extended to him. The hand, pale but not entirely delicate, was likely rough from sword training.

The second prince had been called a genius in swordsmanship for a long time.

‘…Unlike useless me.’

With a resigned look, Edwin reached out his hand.

It was rare for Lloyd to let him off so easily. He had to seize the opportunity to quickly take Emilia and leave.

Just as Edwin was about to grab Lloyd’s hand and stand up—

“Brother—! Punish that person! He tied me up with a rope, said he’d kill me, and even tried to hit me!”

The princess’s indignant cry made the atmosphere in the garden turn cold.

The smile had vanished from Lloyd’s face.

Edwin looked at his sister in dismay.

The noble children gathered there all kept their mouths shut, exchanging nervous glances.

‘To dare refer to the second prince as ‘that person.’’

It was something no one would say unless they were utterly out of their minds.

As everyone watched Lloyd anxiously, he finally spoke, “It seems my only sister is very upset with her second brother.”

But Lloyd was surprisingly calm. Unlike his usual self, where he would cut off limbs for even the slightest offense.

He gestured to one of the attendants standing behind him. “Hey, bring some tea here. I should serve my sister tea as an apology.”

The attendant immediately brought the tea.

“Here, take it. I offer it as an apology.”

Lloyd held out the teacup to Emilia.

Wearing a wicked smile.