The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away - Chapter 48.2
***
Count Robert Camilo seized a passing attendant.
“Deliver this to His Highness the Crown Prince.”
He offered the wine. A servant received it respectfully with both hands and stepped back. Then he addressed the chief attendant nearby.
Anything intended for the imperial family must first be approved by the chief attendant. It was a matter of strict inspection, since poison could be present.
The chief attendant looked at the wine bottle, then at Count Robert Camilo, his eyes filled with suspicion, was something mixed in?
Count Camilo calmly bowed his head, as if to say it was fine to check. He had no objection if they tested it for poison. That wine contained nothing.
The one he had received from Brian, the young Count of the Byweiner family, was meant to be concealed in a wineglass.
After watching the chief attendant personally taste the wine, Count Camilo turned away. He did not doubt for a moment that his plan would succeed.
He did not yet know it would be thwarted by a most unexpected person.
Just after offering his greetings to Crown Prince Kailos Delroi, a young man broke away from the crowd.
Cal Byweiner, Brian Byweiner’s younger brother.
“Parading around as if the world were yours.”
When offering congratulations to Kailos he had feigned friendliness, but once at a distance, his expression shifted. Cal’s displeasure toward the Crown Prince was not because his elder brother supported the Empress.
He simply could not stand men who, by birth, were greater than himself. Yet he was well-practiced in concealing such dark feelings.
Then, quite by chance, Cal noticed a man.
At a glance, he bore an ordinary face, with a neat impression that drew little attention. Yet what made it impossible to look away was the subtle air hidden beneath that simplicity.
“Who is that?”
At Cal’s question, the man beside him checked who he was asking about and then nodded.
“He’s the Crown Prince’s aide. I heard he once served Count Camilo, but now he’s attached to the Crown Prince. Looks like he’s skilled. Or perhaps talented in other ways.”
When the man sneered, Cal’s face darkened with disappointment. If he was the Crown Prince’s lover, that would be troublesome.
Anything belonging to the Crown Prince was not easily touched.
“Is that true?”
“How should I know?”
Just as Cal was about to be disappointed, his eyes lit up. If this was the Crown Prince’s secret lover, then even if he laid hands on him, he could claim ignorance.
“But really, what does it matter what’s true?”
Whether he grasped Cal’s intention or not, the man muttered irritably.
“One thing’s certain: he has the Crown Prince’s trust. I hear he’ll be entering the Academy this time.”
“The aide?”
“With the Crown Prince’s recommendation, securing him a position is no trouble at all. The Academy is practically his own.”
As the man explained, a slow smile spread across Cal’s face.
If it was someone like that, could he not torment him without guilt? On the contrary, other students might even thank him for the deed.
Cal turned his head and glanced at Count Camilo. The Count, as always, was calmly surveying the banquet hall, but Cal knew perfectly well that he had smeared poison on a wineglass beforehand.
As if it weren’t obvious what he’s scheming.
Cal was aware of the danger of the poison his elder brother had handed over—he had been hanging around since it was being brewed.
But already, Cal was constructing a new plan in his mind.
Looking around, he moved swiftly. Taking care not to leave any trace, he deliberately approached the wine table, and in an instant, knocked the poisoned wineglass aside with the back of his hand.
The glass fell to the floor and shattered. At that moment, all eyes turned toward the sound.
“My apologies, my hand slipped.”
Speaking as if nothing were wrong, Cal quickly summoned a servant. Then, while pretending to support the flustered Count Camilo, he deftly stole the vial of poison from the Count’s breast.
Amid the chaos as everyone rushed to settle the sudden disturbance, Cal slipped away as if nothing had happened.
***
At the bustling completion ceremony, Empress Tera had, at some point, quietly departed.
By the time she entered the inner antechamber, where no people lingered, not a trace of a smile remained on her face.
A group seated in the corner rose and offered her their respects. Their appearance was elegant, but unlike ordinary nobles, their attire was plain, and even the air around them seemed somehow alien.
They were the key figures of the Shadow Corps, which maintained only a faint existence within the Empire.
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