The Princess's Double Life

He had a harsh look on his face, but…

Perhaps it was because of their family-like relationship, but his expression didn’t faze them at all.

“Ah… His Highness — who has a handsome face, tall stature, broad shoulders, and the blood of the royal family lacks nothing except for… that. You know what I mean, right? That?”

Marco, unable to speak openly, motioned with his hands and nodded with a pitying look on his face.

I understood and laughed.

“Ah, so what is he? A eunuch?”

“Exactly! That’s what I was thinking!”

Marco snapped his fingers, delighted because I got it right.

So, Rexid has never dated a girl even though he’s already twenty-five?

They mistook me as Rexid’s bride to be, but since it’s not like that…

Perhaps Marco’s doubts are reasonable?

I thought women were avoiding him because of the rumours surrounding him, but if he’s the one rejecting them, then…

“Hmmm, I think I understand.”

Rexid flew into a rage after seeing me nodding in agreement with Marco’s speculation.

“What are you thinking?!”

“Ugh!”

Masha slapped Marco on the shoulder.

“Why are you saying something weird? Can’t you see what’s happening?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I think I misunderstood something. Please don’t listen to what I said before, Lady Rosica.”

Well, it wasn’t something I was worried about anyways.

I could barely hold back my laughter after seeing Rexid put his face in his hands.

“Haa…”

“Anyways, I’ve talked too much. Listen quickly before the food gets cold. Let’s start with the soup. The chicken stock is thickened with eggs and flavored with a southern spice called cumin. It is an appetizer that is enjoyed by the imperial family.”

Marco, who quickly returned to his role as the chef of the Great Palace, introduced the food wonderfully.

I was surprised when I tasted the soup.

“Wow… It’s so delicious. It’s only eggs, so how can it taste like this?”

“Oh, really? I’m glad it suits Lady Rosica’s taste. Some people don’t like it since it has a strong smell.”

Looking at how proud Marco was, I wondered how the other dishes would taste.

When I lived luxuriously in my previous life, I’d tasted many dishes from five-star restaurants.

Although those are memories from a long time ago, I’d never been so impressed by an appetizer…

Marco clearly has talent.

Excited by my praise, Marco pointed to the main dish.

“This is my signature dish — the sauteed chicken that made even Queen Eisenbach’s heart flutter!”

Marco picked up my knife and fork, which I had put down to taste the soup, and sliced one side of the chicken thigh with the touch of an experienced chef.

“The chicken, which is of the highest quality, pairs well with the acidity of the marmalade.”

Yum.

As soon as I took a bite of the chicken, the tangy taste of oranges exploded in my mouth. The chicken thighs were so tender that it felt as if they were melting .

“Wow…”

There was a reason why the queen would send a letter to personally scout Marco.

I would make a fuss about him too.

I looked up at Marco and gave him a thumbs up.

“Are you a genius?”

“Ha ha ha, nope!”

Marco’s smile reached his ears. He was happy to gain my approval.

“May I have that too?”

Excitedly, I pointed to the food that Rexid was eating.

It was a meat dish that looked like it was just grilled without any seasoning.

“Of course. It’s grilled lamb chops. I was only going to make chicken saute for the main dish, but His Highness is a little picky. He loves lamb so much that he tells me to make it for every meal.”

I was wondering what kind of meat it was. I guess it was lamb.

In both my previous life and this world, lamb is a high-quality ingredient.

Let’s see.

On the outside, Rexid may look like a low-class knight who speaks like a minister, but he’s still a member of the royal family.

I picked up a knife and fork along with Rexid, who only ate the lamb chops without touching any of the other foods.

“You’ve been eating that ever since you were young. I thought you would get sick of it, but you still eat it every day.”

Masha, who was standing next to me, mumbled as she looked at Rexid with motherly eyes.

“Young master Raven loved it as well. They used to eat together all the time because he was the same age and had similar tastes to young master Rexid.”

Master Raven?

It’s a name I’ve heard once, but I can’t remember it.

However, it’s possible to infer who it is.

Someone who grew up in the imperial family with Rexid as a child, and if they were around the same age…

It must be the crown prince.

The current successor to the Hessen Empire.

In order for Rexid to become emperor, he is the first person Rexid has to get rid of.

Rexid’s eyes sharpened at the mention of Raven’s name.

“What’s going on….”

Suddenly, it was hard to hear Masha’s voice, even though she was right standing next to me.

I looked back at her in surprise.

Masha’s wrinkled eyes, which were smiling just a moment ago, were filled with tears.

She closed her mouth and sobbed with a painful look on her face.

“Marco. Take her out.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Please call me back when you’re done eating.”

Marco pulled Masha out of the room.

As soon as they went out, I asked immediately.

“Masha and Marco know that Your Highness is preparing to rebel, right? Even if they’re reliable, how can you tell them this in advance? Didn’t the butler stop you?”

“No, he didn’t.”

“What?”

Rexid, who opened his lips to say something, shook his head.

“Let’s talk about it after you finish eating. I’ll tell you what to do from now on.”

***

The emperor had four children.

First, the current crown prince — Raven van Hessen.

Second, Grand Duke Ryde van Hessen.

Third, Duchess Rachel Prania.

And fourth, Grand Duke Rexid van Hessen.

The emperor can easily pass the throne to his first son, Raven van Hessen.

The second and youngest child was given the title of Grand Duke, which was normal for the royal family, and the third was married to the Duke of Prania, the center of aristocratic power.

The second child, Ryde, is the only grand duke in the islands and is helping the current emperor to build up the imperial family.

The third child, Rachel, is married to the Duke of Prania and is leading a peaceful life as a duchess.

“Why are you in such a peaceful painting?!”

Their third brother, Rexid Van Hessen, is much younger than the other siblings in the painting.

“Why?!”

“Are you trying to make me angry?”

“Where are you going?”

“Just follow me.”

As soon as I finished my meal, Rexid took me to a maze-like labyrinth.

“Can I ask you a few questions on the way?”

“Fine.”

“If you’re going to become the emperor, you’ll have to get rid of two people: the crown prince and Grand Duke Ryde.”

“That’s right.”

“I know that Grand Duke Ryde, who is second in the line of succession, can voluntarily give up his position. Is that right?”

“That’s correct. I was going to tell Owen to teach you, but you seem to know a lot more than I expected.”

“I want to avoid as much bloodshed as possible, so I hope that Grand Duke Ryde will voluntarily give up on his position. I’m trying to figure out how to do it.”

“That would be difficult for you.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re someone who’s obsessed with trying to get the emperor’s crown. Unless you’ve already dealt with Prince Ryde?”

“I haven’t, but anyways, have you asked everything you wanted to ask?”

“No, not yet. Prince Ryde is only a part of it. The crown prince is the most problematic. He is the firstborn child of the current emperor and is supported by the people of the empire.”

Crown Prince Raven van Hessen cannot voluntarily give up his position as the successor.

That’s not all. Unlike the rest of the royal family, he is a man who has a good heart and is supported by the people.

Unless he goes crazy, takes off his clothes, and dances on the streets…

No, there’s no way to remove the crown prince from the line of succession, even if he does such a crazy thing.

There’s only one way.

To kill him.

“I’m sorry, but if you don’t want to kill the crown prince, you can fake his death and send him away. Of course, you still have to think about the consequences…”

To be honest, I felt ashamed that I had to make such a plan.

“Maybe I could use a little bit of… poison and mess him up in the head…”

Ugh.

I was disgusted by my own words.

“You don’t have to.”

“What?”

Rexid, who was talking nonsense, arrived at a room and opened the door.

As soon as the door opened, a chill hit me. The temperature of the room seemed to have been intentionally lowered using a magic stone.

In the empty room, there was a rectangular coffin the size of a person, and a thick cloth was covering it.

There was also a faint smell of parsia.

As we went deeper into the room, the smell of parsia grew stronger.

Parsia is a kind of preservative.

When a dead animal is stuffed, the medicine is used to prevent the body from rotting.

This is kind of scary.

A coffin left alone in an empty room.

The cold temperature of the room and the smell of parsia.

I was instinctively nervous when I realized that something seemed to have been handled carefully to prevent its decomposition.

“Hey, Your Majesty. I don’t know if I’m getting ahead of myself…”

“……”

“But you said that there is no need to kill the crown prince…”

“Right.”

When Rexid answered, he removed the cloth covering the coffin.

The coffin was sealed with a transparent glass cover, so you could see what was inside.

There laid a pale-skinned man, dead.

The deep cut across his neck clearly indicated that it was a corpse.

Looking back at me, Rexid mumbled.

“It’s because he’s already dead.”