“Do you always greet guests at your house like that?”
Would anyone have any friends left doing that?
But then again, Carlos’s friends were generally of a similar sort.
Carlos flashed a brilliant smile.
“It’s because it’s you that I’m greeting specially.”
Ash didn’t refuse the wine the Prince personally poured for him.
He gulped down the red wine in one go.
“Phew.”
How long had it been since he’d had a drink?
Ash’s cheeks flushed red.
No matter how much escape experience Ash had accumulated from things like wall-jumping, that was for quick in-and-out situations.
Long-distance flight was an entirely different realm.
Ash wasn’t one to get drunk on a few glasses of wine, but he couldn’t refute Tyllian’s words, “‘You never know what might happen, so you must always keep your body in peak condition.'” He couldn’t ask Tyllian to carry him too, after carrying his master. So, he had to suffer an untimely prohibition.
Carlos refilled his glass.
“Been a rough time, huh?”
“Don’t even ask.”
“So, what happened?”
“Ha…”
Ash narrowed his brows, savoring the taste of the wine in his mouth.
Where should he start?
Carlos generally knew about the relationship between Ash and Owen, meaning he only knew what others knew.
Just that ‘they didn’t get along’… that was enough.
“Where do you want to hear from? From the beginning? Or summarized?”
“From the beginning, of course. Why is Tyllian Manor your kidnapper?”
Carlos looked like he was dying of amusement.
‘He’s just loving it because it’s someone else’s problem.’
Ash emptied his glass again.
“Is that the beginning? That’s the summary. If you want to hear it from the beginning, I have to start from the day of my father’s funeral.”
“Then start from there.”
Carlos gestured with his chin.
Clearly, his earlier words about genuinely mourning were a lie.
Not that it mattered.
Ash searched his memories.
“First, my father passed away, and I was in the village at the time, you see?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“That bastard Owen held the funeral secretly without even calling me.”
“What?”
Carlos’s hand, which had been propping up his chin, slipped.
It was a reaction that made the story worth telling.
Ash suddenly realized how absurd what had happened to him was.
Yes, this was the reaction he wanted.
He didn’t know how frustrated he’d been when everyone, including Tyllian, just responded with things like, ‘You do cause trouble.’
“Unbelievable, right?”
“That’s outrageous. Who does he think he is?”
“Exactly! Is it right for a bastard to officiate the funeral, or for a legitimate child to?”
“The latter, of course.”
“Right?! If I wasn’t there, they shouldn’t even be able to start the funeral, right? I’m my father’s child, how can they hold a funeral without me there?”
“That’s absurd.”
“So I confronted Owen. If it wasn’t during the funeral, throwing a handkerchief at him wouldn’t have been enough!”
Ash slammed his fist on the table.
With the immediate agreement, the situation came flooding back, and he empathized with himself again.
Carlos said with a serious expression,
“You should have. It would’ve made the front page.”
“Hey! Are you joking?”
“No joke. You held back well. Wow, they reported it as ‘a disturbance at the funeral.’ I’ll fire that reporter for you.”
Ash let out a cheerful laugh.
Carlos had no imperial dignity whatsoever, but instead, he possessed a natural talent for putting people at ease.
He was good at saying things that made you feel good, even if they were empty words.
He also had a good sense of humor, which Ash had been quite fond of at one point.
“It’s fine. It’s not like I did well either… But don’t you think I have a right to be angry?! Owen acted as if he was greatly tolerating me, you know? Tolerating what? He dragged me out and locked me in my room right away… And he didn’t even let my close servants in!”
“He locked you up?”
Carlos was surprised.
“People allowed that? And you willingly let yourself be locked up?”
Ash somehow found himself making excuses.
“Well, the soldiers usually listen to Owen. He’s also the successor my father publicly announced. What else could they do but follow orders? And what do you mean I willingly let myself be locked up? As if!”
“The soldiers dragged you and locked you up?”
Carlos’s voice rose.
Ash couldn’t understand why he was so surprised.
“Then who else would drag me away? Owen? Himself? He wouldn’t do something like that. It’s undignified for him. He’s so utterly refined.”
“Dude. I think you’re screwed.”
“Suddenly?”
Ash was flustered.
“Even my father doesn’t send soldiers to lock me up, you know?”
“…Really?”
The Emperor had been vexed by his prodigal second son, to the point where he had tried everything to cure Carlos’s ‘bad habits.’
Carlos had even been hit with a crown once.
***
“The fiery Emperor never sent soldiers to drag his son away?”
Thinking about it, Ash realized he too had never been seized by soldiers when his father punished him.
It was always the servants who came to fetch him.
“Sending soldiers to seize someone, that’s treating them like a criminal, isn’t it? I might have made Father nearly faint from embarrassment, but that’s not a crime of disrespect. Still, how could he treat his own son like a criminal? He probably… wouldn’t have the heart to…”
“Why aren’t you sure?!”
‘Is this guy really okay?’
Ash was confused about whether he’d come to a reliable source.
But there was something more important to confirm.
He swallowed.
“Am I really screwed?”
“Uh, a little?”
“Did I completely fall out of his favor…?”
“Do you want to hear good news?”
“No…”
“If Owen Mills becomes Duke, who knows what might happen to you, with no one the wiser.”
Ash felt his throat go dry.
He continuously gulped down his drink.
Carlos was speaking nonchalantly, but to Ash, it was like a bolt from the blue.
Surprisingly, he had never once considered that Owen would do something to him.
He had somehow been convinced Owen wouldn’t.
Owen was rational, proud, cared about appearances, and minded what others thought.
No.
Owen simply… wouldn’t harm him.
‘Why do I trust him?’
Ash was startled.
The soft touch of the duvet, the light on his cheek, Owen’s long eyelashes as they slept facing each other—things like that came to mind.
‘That was so long ago.’
Ash shook his head, pushing the thoughts away.
“He wouldn’t do something like that, I tell you? He’s too refined.”
“But he had soldiers treat you like a criminal, didn’t he? So, how long were you locked up?”
“…Until I escaped…”
“What?!”
Carlos, who was pouring another glass of wine, was flabbergasted.
“What’s this about escaping?”
“No, he literally locked me up and wouldn’t let me take a single step outside the room! He had knights block the door! So… I escaped…”
“How?!”
“Knights?”
Carlos let out a breath, as if bewildered.
Ash told him about his promise with his master, being caught in the act of fulfilling it, and blackmailing Tyllian.
Then he paused to think.
‘I don’t need to tell him this much, right?’
He omitted Tyllian’s confession.
Carlos listened to the story with an incredulous expression, then burst out laughing.
“Tyllian Manor’s not much after all.”
Ash was displeased, feeling like Carlos was belittling Tyllian.
Ash’s expression turned serious.
“Honestly, he just followed along because he was worried about me.”
“Of course, he did.”
Carlos smirked, crossing his arms.
“Hearing this, it’s quite an interesting incident. Honestly, it seems like something only Father would benefit from. Just in case, don’t ask Father to mediate. He’s not the kind of person to take your side.”
“I know. Do I look like an idiot? If I was going to ask him for that, I wouldn’t have come to you in the first place.”
Carlos’s status as a prince was extremely useful, but it was utterly useless for gaining the Emperor’s trust.
Even if Ash introduced himself as ‘Carlos’s friend,’ he would probably just get stares that said, ‘That guy’s friend?’
But Carlos had extensive connections in society.
Although there were people who disapproved of his profligacy, even those very people would likely be pleased if Carlos approached them.
He was someone who could get invitations to secret gatherings, and he was welcomed even if he showed up unannounced to an event happening that very day.
He was the center of attention and a walking piece of gossip.
If he said something, it would instantly spread as a rumor.
Because every single one of his actions drew attention.
“But why a kidnapping, of all things? And claiming the culprit is Tyllian Mainor? Anyone who knows you and him would be highly suspicious.”
“What do I care? It’s Owen’s idea. Maybe he’s jealous. That Tyllian took my side.”
“Well, that could be true.”
Surprisingly, Carlos readily agreed.
“Because I’m jealous too. You ultimately came to me to clear his name, didn’t you?”