Chapter 114 - A Secret Letter to Jubelian

"The imperial palace has been rowdy about upping security lately. I heard an assassin attacked during my absence."

It was obvious why the prince was mentioning the assassination attempt that he had planned and carried out. 'He's wondering if the emperor found out who the mastermind was behind the whole thing.' Regis knew the answer his disciple wanted, but had no intention of giving it to him.

"I don't think it's a matter you should be concerned about, Your Highness. All I can let you know is that the mastermind has not been revealed yet."

In other words, Regis was saying that he would overlook what Max had done to avoid him causing a dispute about it in the future. Max stared at his master for a moment, then smirked.

"How can I be useful to my father if I'm not informed about the matters he's involved in?" he challenged.

"His Majesty has ordered me to remain silent on this matter. If things go wrong, both you and I will be charged with disobedience to the emperor's words."

Even though Max tried to use his status as the crown prince to his advantage, his master used the emperor's status in retaliation to intimidate him.

'Ah, how annoying.' When they were working together, he didn't think much about his master, but now that there was a conflict between them, he was quite a nuisance.

'He's aggravating.' It was vexing how his master was acting polite to him and getting on his nerves about everything. Even so, Max didn't have the capability or justification to use force on him. Most importantly, Max was worried about sending a letter to Jubelian since it was clear as day that his master was going to be an obstacle.

'If I attempt to send a letter, he'll definitely do something to interfere.' Under these circumstances, it would be risky to send an official letter. Anger surged inside him, but Max couldn't openly express his distaste to his master. Max glared at his master, then hissed through clenched teeth.

"Then I guess we have nothing else to discuss. You can leave for now."

His master gave a cynical smile at Max's dismissal. "Then rest comfortably, Your Highness."

Facial expressions played a large part in psychological warfare. Perhaps that was why the term 'poker face' existed. Max was aware that he lacked experience and every other aspect when compared to his master, but he was uncannily furious. It felt as if he had given his master a reason to oppose him, allowing him to say, 'I can't give my daughter to a man like you.' Anger flashed through his eyes as Max watched Regis leave the room. As soon as the door closed, he hurled his teacup. However, the teacup didn't break.

"I have safely protected this expensive teacup that is worth the value of gold," a man with black hair sang while he twirled the teacup around in his hand. But it was impossible for Max, who was distressed, to hear his trivial joke. Max disregarded his subordinate and picked up the letter that he had left on his desk.

'As long as I manage to deliver this letter…' Max rose to his feet, then took off his armor and changed into something comfortable.

"Where are you going?" the man asked.

"I'm going to ask Fresia for advice."

When Max mentioned Fresia, the man opened his mouth with a grin on his playful face. "If it's giving advice, I'm confident that I'll do a good job."

Max stared at the man with a serious expression, then opened his mouth. "Victor."

When the crown prince called his name, the man put on a stern expression. "Yes, Your Highness," he answered.

Max tossed the helmet to the man and stated coldly, "If you get caught, I'll kill you."

The man had readied himself to give the crown prince some advice, but was tasked again with wearing the armor. He sighed softly. 'Of course.' However, he didn't know what his murderous lord would do to him if he complained, so Victor bowed politely in return.

"I'll keep that in mind. Have a safe trip."

When the crown prince disappeared from his sight, he glowered at the helmet and cursed. "This d*mn armor. I want to throw it in the furnace."

"Victor," a frigid voice suddenly spoke. Victor inhaled sharply when he noticed that the brutal prince had returned to the room and was now staring at him with red eyes.

"O-oh, no, Your Highness. That's not what I meant… I was just saying how the armor looks so majestic!" he quickly switched up his words, but the prince's expression showed no sign of easing up. Thinking that he was as good as dead, Victor prayed for his soul to have a peaceful rest.

"What are… some ways that I can send a letter to someone without getting caught by the master of the house?" Max questioned at that moment.

At the unexpected question, Victor wore a dumbfounded expression as he watched the crown prince. "Huh? Why are you asking me something like that…?"

Max scowled at him. "Now that I think about it, I've heard that you're renowned as a womanizer amongst the people in the army," he commented bitterly.

Victor frowned. It was true that his lover often changed, but he could swear that he never cheated on anyone. 'A womanizer? That's too harsh.' The only thing he had a lot of experience in was dating. Victor grumbled under his breath for suddenly having been labeled a womanizer, then flinched when the crown prince spoke again.

"So, stop acting like you don't know and tell me how to send a secret letter to your hidden lovers."

Victor lowered his head at the sharp gaze coming from the prince's fierce eyes.

* * *

With a white pigeon in his arms, Max stood absent-mindedly near the huge tree next to Duke Floyen's mansion.

"I usually send a carrier pigeon. After all, people don't go as far as to monitor the sky these days."

Max gazed at the carrier pigeon he trained as he recalled Victor's words. His letter was firmly tied to the pigeon's thin leg.

'Alright. When she reads this, she should be relieved. When that happens…' He speculated about what was going to happen for a moment, then stared at the carrier pigeon with a determined look. As if it was feeling threatened, the pigeon cooed pitifully.

"If you end up flying to the wrong place, I'll kill you. So, make sure you do a good job," Max grunted as he released the carrier pigeon. For its survival, the pigeon headed straight to the balcony of Jubelian's room.

<To Be Continued>

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Hope you enjoyed it,

Love,

Biji ^^,

April.28.2023