Those who wished to purchase Serinel were, as a rule, royal families or high nobility from foreign nations.
And what interested them above all else was the question of how much benefit they could extract from Serinel.
If House Arachrene begins supplying Serinel to the market, the Willias family’s standing will narrow considerably.
But the greatest problem lay elsewhere.
The reason Empress Karla was considering the daughter of Duke Willias as the next Crown Princess was precisely because of the Willias family’s Serinel — lower in grade, perhaps, but abundant in supply.
And yet…
House Arachrene had just announced that they had a daughter.
That single fact alone was enough to press down on Duke Willias’s mind like a stone.
And now, as if that weren’t enough, they had decided to release their Serinel onto the open market?
No. It hasn’t reached the worst possible outcome yet.
Duke Willias lifted his cold, untouched tea and drained it in a single swallow.
Clang.
He set the cup down hard against the saucer and drew a steadying breath. It was only then that he noticed his steward still standing nearby, shuffling in place, clearly reluctant to leave.
“Well?” he asked.
“Er… Your Grace…”
“What else is there?”
The increasingly irritable Duke Willias snapped the question.
“…It seems the high-grade Serinel will not be released onto the market at all. House Arachrene intends to keep it entirely under their own monopoly.”
“…What did you say?”
Duke Willias went still, the words coming out of him slowly, as though pulled from somewhere deep.
His complexion had turned to stone.
It was the very news he had feared most.
It is entirely possible that the Empress will begin considering the Arachrene daughter as a candidate for the next Crown Princess.
Up until now, the imperial family had kept House Arachrene at arm’s length — treated them as something to be wary of. But they would already know about the daughter. There was no telling how their stance might shift.
“…Does the imperial family know of this?”
“Seeing as they keep a close eye on anything concerning House Arachrene, I would imagine they do, Your Grace.”
⁂
Meanwhile, Karla was meeting with Ustace, the Grand Sage and the Crown Prince’s tutor.
Ustace Mondrio.
The man who had inherited the title of Mondrio — an honorific bestowed only upon the Grand Sage.
He had tutored not only the current Emperor of the Declair Empire but the Pope of the Grand Temple as well, and his influence over both the imperial family and the church was immense.
When Karla caught sight of Ustace arriving in his threadbare, unremarkable clothes, she nearly let her displeasure show on her face.
Coming before me dressed like this.
No matter who he was, Karla was the Empress of this empire.
…No. For Adrian to become Emperor, she needed Ustace’s cooperation.
Karla smoothed her expression and offered him a gracious smile.
Ustace took a sip of his tea and smiled back, warm and unhurried.
“The tea is excellent.”
“These leaves were brought in specially from the western continent. I’m glad they suit your palate.”
“Every time I come, my mouth is spoiled with luxury, thanks to you, Your Majesty.”
After savoring a few more sips, Ustace set his cup down and turned to look at Karla. His eyes were keen and bright as they settled on her.
“But I must ask — what was it you wished to see me about, Your Majesty?”
“…I simply wanted to know whether Adrian has been applying himself lately.” Karla paused for a brief moment before continuing smoothly. “Even a Crown Prince must not neglect his studies.”
“Wise words, indeed.”
Ustace chuckled, a gentle, unhurried sound.
He seemed genuinely pleased that Karla continued to take an active interest in monitoring Adrian’s academic progress rather than leaving it to chance.
“His Highness the Crown Prince has been attending his lessons with remarkable dedication of late.”
“…Adrian has?”
“Yes. It is welcome news, is it not?”
Karla hesitated, then smiled — a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“…I see. It seems Adrian has finally pulled himself together.”
For a moment she turned the teacup idly between her fingers, then dropped her gaze.
She bit softly at her lower lip, the gesture faint but unmistakable — the look of a woman carrying some quiet unease.
Ustace noticed. The lines around his eyes sharpened almost imperceptibly. But Karla, her gaze cast downward, did not see it.
“Is something troubling you, Your Majesty?”
“What could possibly be troubling me?”
Karla smiled brightly.
Ustace nodded, as though in full agreement.
“With His Highness devoting himself so earnestly, I imagine Your Majesty has very little to worry about.”
“…Yes, indeed. And yet hearing it confirmed directly from the Grand Sage himself puts my mind at ease.”
“Is that all you wished to ask of me?”
The corner of Karla’s mouth gave the faintest tremor.
She had confirmed everything she needed to confirm.
The slender fingers wrapped around her teacup shook, barely — barely enough to notice.
“Yes. That is all.”
So it seemed Adrian had heard every word of that conversation. Every last word of it.
…Perhaps it is for the best.
Karla’s eyes flickered cold.
It had been an unexpected variable. But if Adrian would use this as an occasion to finally apply himself in earnest…
“I do hope this happy news reaches His Majesty as well.”
“Ha — but of course. His Majesty’s joy is the empire’s joy.”
“Thank you, Grand Sage.”
The process never mattered. Only the outcome.
When enough time had passed and Adrian looked back on today, he too would come to understand the choices Karla had made.
“Then I shall take my leave, Your Majesty.”
“Yes, please do.”
Karla rose from her seat to see Ustace to the door.
At that moment, a handmaiden came hurrying into the Empress’s chambers with quick, purposeful steps.
Ustace glanced at her, mildly curious.
The letter in the handmaiden’s hands bore no seal, no crest — nothing to identify which noble house had sent it.
“Your Majesty, a letter has arrived.”
“…Yes. Leave it there.”
Karla gave the handmaiden a light, meaningful look. Ustace, who had been watching the exchange, shook his head with an easy wave of his hand.
“No need to see me out, Your Majesty. Please, don’t trouble yourself.”
“…Thank you for your understanding, Grand Sage.”
“Then, until next time.”
As Ustace left the Empress’s chambers, Karla turned and hurried back into her private rooms, pulling out the letter and reading it without delay.
Moments later, the letter crumpled in her grasp.
“Ha.”
The letter contained two pieces of news: the release of Oberon, and the announcement that House Arachrene intended to hold a complete monopoly on high-grade Serinel going forward.
Then, quietly, the letter dissolved into dust between her fingers.
It had been made from a special paper — designed to disintegrate a set amount of time after the recipient read its contents.
Karla brushed the powder from her hands and bit down on her lip.
“…Pernoa.”
He had begun to tighten his grip around her throat.
⁂
For days now, Adrian had not slept.
A handmaiden watched him pace in front of the mirror, his complexion growing worse by the hour, and her face crumpled with worry.
“Your Highness, you must sleep — even just a few hours.”
“How many times do I have to tell you I can manage myself?!”
“I fear for your health at this rate, Your Highness.”
Adrian pretended not to hear and ignored her entirely.
At his indifference, the handmaiden let out a sigh before she could stop herself. She caught it almost immediately, clapping a hand over her mouth — but Adrian didn’t seem to have heard it.
Ordinarily, he would have scolded me for daring to sigh in his presence.
That, more than anything, was proof of how thoroughly his mind was somewhere else entirely.
What on earth could have happened to him?
The handmaiden thought back to the day Adrian had suddenly changed.
The day he had come tearing into the Crown Prince’s chambers and driven everyone out with a shout.
Whatever had happened, Adrian had seemed deeply, viscerally frightened.
He had refused to eat and spent the entire time buried under his blankets, trembling.
When she had reported his condition to the Empress, the Empress had said only this:
“Watch and wait for now.”
But for how long?
Adrian’s state had only grown worse. He had now reached the point where he could not even sleep properly.
