I’m Just a Counselor

Jeremiah’s dislike of the crown prince was not simply a matter of the crown prince disliking Jeremiah; if it were, Jeremiah would not dislike the crown prince.

 

The problem was that the crown prince was the crown prince.

 

The crown prince had used his power to maximize the budget for the trip to the north, delaying it, or… even canceling it altogether, which was apparently why Jeremiah had once traveled to the islands and fought with the crown prince himself.

 

Of course, Jeremiah and the Dukes of Oppenheim managed to keep the north under control and weathered the storm well, but that didn’t take away from the crown prince’s underhanded behavior.

 

‘Though in the end, the crown prince’s foxing caused the north to slip far from imperial control.’

 

For Jeremiah, the crown prince would remain a nuisance. The reason Jeremiah rarely travels to the islands now and keeps his seat in the nobility vacant is because he doesn’t want to see him.

 “Isn’t this beyond the level of childishness for a crown prince?” 

No, but is it possible for romance to sprout from this level of dislike?

 

Even with a regret stack, if the crown prince’s karma is that bad, he and Estella would fight with a snarl, not a grin.

 

The crown prince is the one who did more wrong. Is this just a rivalry ritual?

 

Her arms curl inward. I’m suddenly taking Jeremiah’s side.

 “Crown Prince, I take back what I thought was cute about you.” 

I decided to let my curiosity about him go; I’d rather not see him for the rest of my life.

 

And Kianton, who had come all the way here on his orders… was still pitiful, but not nearly as pretty.

 

Kianton has been in the duke’s castle for three days now.

 

In the meantime, Kianton had been avoiding Jeremiah and holding his own.

 “Miss Vanessa.” 

I walked down the hallway and stopped dead in my tracks at the sound of him calling out to me.

 

Kianton was walking toward me. I cocked my head, looking at him warily.

 “Hello, Lord Kianton.” “It is good to see you. I have a question for Miss Vanessa.” 

Kianton rattled his sword and gave me a stern look.

 

He was probably trying to take the initiative in our conversation, but I could only snort when I saw him doze off in front of Jeremiah. After all, Jeremiah had done this to me before.

 

‘Ugh…’

 

I looked sympathetically at Kianton for his strange grasp of the concept and shrugged slightly.

 “Yeah. What is it?” “You said that Hazel was where you lived before you came to the Duke’s Castle?” “Ah, you must have heard.” 

I shouldn’t have been surprised that Kianton knew this, as it was common knowledge among the castle’s staff.

 

When I nodded my head in acknowledgment, Kianton continued.

 “Have you by any chance seen Her Majesty the Empress in town?” “Her Majesty the Empress?” 

The reason Kianton had come all the way north was for the Empress, not the Crown Prince?

 

I looked at Kianton in surprise, then shook my head.

 “I don’t even know Her Majesty the Empress’ face, which is a shame as a citizen of this country…” “Oh, is that so? Her Majesty the Empress has red hair.” “I’ve seen quite a few redheads…” “Her eyes, umm, her eyes are blue.” “…….” 

I glanced at Kianton. Kianton scratched his head and asked me if I wanted to go to the parlor for a moment.

 

When I agreed, he accompanied me to the parlor and retrieved a pen and paper from the room’s supply. He was going to draw a portrait of the Empress himself.

 “Miss Vanessa, a moment.” 

Kianton said confidently, his hand gesturing wildly with the pen.

 

‘Oh, I see you’re confident in your drawing.’

 

I thought to myself as I watched him scribble away.

 

‘No, but considering that Kianton didn’t say exactly what his purpose was at the beginning, shouldn’t it be easy to say that he was looking for Hazel because of the Empress? It’s an imperial thing, whether it’s for the Crown Prince or the Empress.’

 

‘He said it was a hoax…’

 

Inside the castle, things seemed relatively normal, so I forgot about it for a moment. I clicked my tongue slightly.

 

Just then, Kianton put down his pen and proudly held out the finished drawing.

 “It’s Her Majesty the Empress!” “…….” 

Is this… Her Majesty the Empress?

 “Lord Kianton.” “What?” “Isn’t this an offense against the royal family?” “Miss Vanessa, you are unexpectedly relentless…” 

Kianton mumbled something under his breath at my assessment, but it wasn’t something that could be packaged.

 

I stared intently at the mysterious figure Kianton had drawn. I could almost see the red hair and blue eyes more concretely.

 “His Highness the Crown Prince has always criticized my paintings, but I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear that…” “Fortunately, His Royal Highness has good taste.” “Miss Vanessa, you seem to enjoy hurting others…” 

I set the painting down, ignoring Kianton, who was sobbing into his chest. There’s no way I can do this, so I’ll take a guess.

 

‘He’s from the islands, so he’s probably a bit of a dick, right?’

 

But with so many different people visiting the Secret Garden, it was hard to tell.

 

‘Hmmm, was there a lady with red hair and blue eyes among them? Besides, if it was the Empress, there would have been an escort or an attendant, and the whole place would have been noisy.’

 

Alas, I had never encountered such an occasion.

 “I don’t know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen the Empress in Hazel, either.” “I see.” 

Kianton replied aesthetically, having failed to get any information out of me, and glanced wistfully at my painting.

 

I resolutely crumpled it up and threw it into the fireplace. I hoped the Duke would order Kianton to paint no more.

 “I’ll speak to His Excellency the Duke, and I’ll be there tomorrow.” “Sure. You’ve got a name to live up to, and if you just go back, you’ll probably get cussed out by the Crown Prince again.” “Big breath…” 

Swallowing back tears at the crown prince’s story, he said something else before leaving the parlor.

 “Miss Vanessa is Princess Estella’s physician, isn’t she? The Princess seems to follow her quite well.” “Ah.” 

At the mention of Estella, I couldn’t help but smile.

 

I responded to Kianton’s comment in a softer voice.

 “You’re being treated well, by the Princess, and by the Duke.” “Does the, uh… Princess have any particular favorites, like flowers?” “Well, she does like flowers. Why?” 

I answered nonchalantly, and suddenly shot Kianton a questioning glance.

 

Kianton scratched his head, avoiding my gaze. I also noticed that his auricles were a little red.

 “…No?” “It’s just that… I’ve been doing so well at the Duke’s manor, I thought I’d give you a gift… She saved my life in the first place…” “…….” “That’s all, that’s all, really!” 

Kianton threw up his hands and pleaded for innocence, but my glare only grew more fierce. 

 

His ears were now red, and so was the nape of his neck. And it wasn’t just because Kianton was panicking.

 

‘Gotcha, asshole.’

 

Somehow, the way he’d been looking at Estella from the start, he’d known it was wrong.

 “If you have a gift for the princess, I’ll take it and deliver it for you.” “No, Miss Vanessa. Unless you need to…” “The Princess is not well, and the air outside is dangerous, especially nowadays, when it’s so easy to catch a cold.” 

I blocked Kianton’s approach to Estella, citing nonsensical reasons.

 

Kianton to Estella, no way.

 

‘He’s not worthy of a crown prince.’

 

Of course, I admit that my Estella is pretty, cute, and adorable enough for anyone to love, but do you think I’d give up my place by her side so easily?!

 “Huh?” 

… or did I just think I am being very Jeremiah?

 

* * *

 “Miss Vanessa.” 

I turned my head, thinking that this was the first of many people calling me today.

 

This time it was Jeremiah who had called me.

 

I had just returned to my room to prepare for bed, but I put that plan on hold.

 “What is it, Duke?” “I need to sleep.” 

Jeremiah replied bluntly.

 

I let out a rueful groan as I snuggled closer to him. My heart still ached at the memory of Jeremiah’s nightmare.

 “…in the meantime.” “I haven’t slept.” 

I noticed that Jeremiah’s face was shadowed again.

 

I trotted after him as he walked ahead. If I could be of any help to Jeremiah, I would be happy to grant his request.

 “Are you going to ask me to do the same thing today?” 

But Jeremiah’s office wasn’t where he was headed. I passed through a familiar-looking door and stood in front of another.

 

Jeremiah turned the doorknob, and the sweet, bittersweet scent of his usual cologne wafted in through the crack.

 

I knew where Jeremiah had brought me before I stepped inside the room.

 

‘Jeremiah’s bedroom.’

 

His most private room. The kind of personal space he doesn’t allow unless it’s intimate.

 

I skidded to a halt in front of it.

 

Jeremiah, leaning against the doorway, looked back at me questioningly. One eyebrow raised, his head tilted slightly.

 “…….” 

Hmm. Sleeping was supposed to be in the bedroom. Jeremiah doesn’t want to keep sleeping on the couch in the office.

 

I knew this was his choice, but somehow I couldn’t stop my heart from thumping in my chest. Even though Jeremiah was just staring at me.