A Scandal Etched in Ink

“His Highness… Er—Erkel?”

I nearly called him by his nickname out of habit. I bit my tongue in my haste to correct myself. I glanced at Elliot’s face—a man whose intuition was so sharp you’d believe it if he said he’d studied mind reading—but he didn’t seem to care much.

“Did you let him know you were back?”

“I sent a letter.”

Writing to Erkel had been my first priority upon arriving. It had taken a while because I had to suppress my overwhelming joy and keep the tone as dry and plain as possible. I hadn’t received a reply yet, so I hadn’t expected him to ask me to come in person.

“The fact that he specifically wrote your name means he wants us to come together. I know you’re busy, but make some time.”

True. Erkel probably had a rough idea of my situation by now. The news that the youngest of the Edwill family had returned to become a regular knight of the Imperial Guard—receiving his sword directly from the Emperor—had turned the capital upside down. It was almost embarrassing to call it a secret at this point.

Besides, Erkel’s graduation was just around the corner. If he, who was about to return to the capital anyway, sent an invitation asking me to visit, it meant there was something that had to be done there. Looking at my name written in elegant cursive, I tapped the armrest of my chair with my fingertip. The first person who came to mind was, of course, Cedric Klein.

My stomach churned as I recalled his infamous reputation. Since Klein was in the Magic Department and Erkel was in the General Department, I’d assumed they wouldn’t cross paths often. Perhaps something had happened. Erkel wasn’t as soft as he looked, and I knew he could handle a situation better than I could, but you never know with people.

If only he could have explained the situation in the letter. My heart ached for him, knowing that under surveillance, he probably couldn’t write much more than ‘I hope you will come and grace us with your presence.’

If it’s just something related to Cedric Klein, that’s a relief. It might be something even more serious. According to the original story, the point where Annette drives Erkel to his death isn’t far off. I tucked the invitation back into the envelope and kept it safe.

“Yeah. I should go.”

“Before that, I wanted to ask just in case. It’s better to be sure.”

“What is it?”

Elliot hesitated uncharacteristically. He leaned his chin on his hand and narrowed his eyes. What came out of his mouth was the last thing I expected.

“Are you and the Crown Prince… harboring romantic feelings for each other?”

“Are you insane?”

I nearly blurted out something bordering on imperial blasphemy because of the horrific nonsense Elliot uttered so casually. I jumped up in denial. A sudden surge of heat made the back of my neck throb.

“Stop talking trash. Where is this coming from all of a sudden?”

“They say His Highness is appearing as your partner for the oath at your knighting ceremony.”

“That’s only because His Majesty has difficulty moving, so he’s acting as a proxy!”

It was absurd. Of course, being entangled with the Crown Prince made me uncomfortable, too. But I hadn’t reacted oversensitively just because he was appearing at the ceremony. Elliot watched my indignant reaction in silence before letting out a sigh.

“People love to talk. The more pretentious the noble in the capital, the worse they are. ‘The Countess is sponsoring a young painter, but he’s actually her secret lover.’ ‘A knight with a fiancée ran away with a widow.’ ‘A Baron adopted a son, but it’s actually his young boy-toy.’ They go crazy for that stuff. It doesn’t take four days for a rumor to circle the capital. Do you know what all these scandals have in common?”

“What?”

“Whether they’re true or not doesn’t matter. What matters is that they’re provocative.”

I realized where he was going. A groan escaped my lips along with the realization.

“So… there are rumors about me and His Highness.”

“They haven’t spread wide yet, but they will soon. It doesn’t take much for a story to blow up after a couple of late-night banquets.”

If you spoke carelessly about a member of the Imperial family—especially the Crown Prince—you wouldn’t keep your head for long, even if you had two of them. It probably wasn’t the kind of low-class scandal Elliot had just listed. They likely twisted the rumor into something romantic, slapping on words like ‘devotion,’ ‘pure love,’ and ‘sincerity.’

Stunned, I could only let out a series of hollow laughs before finally stammering out a question.

“Why on earth…?”

I wanted to ask, How the hell did such a shitty rumor start? I was so flabbergasted the words wouldn’t form properly.

“It’s their duty to find meaning in the trivial,” Elliot sneered, mocking the idle nobles who did nothing but gossip.

“As you well know, the Edwill family is in a delicate position right now. It’s been over two years since talk began that His Majesty’s health is failing. Everyone is looking for a way to survive, picking a side to line up behind. There are only a few families left that haven’t made their stance clear.”

In the end, it wasn’t that they actually believed the Crown Prince and I were lovers; it was a matter of politics. My head throbbed at this familiar kind of headache.

They were anxious. What if that side makes a different choice than I did? What if the side I chose fails? While the grass looked greener on the other side, they couldn’t just switch stances on a whim, which made them jittery.

“It’s been ages since the Count retired, yet many still won’t stop talking. They point to the fact that his sons hold every key position as evidence. They’re blinded by jealousy, but at that point, it’s just pathetic. And then, you return. Not only do you have the most spectacular track record among your brothers, but you become a regular knight the moment you arrive. There’s no way they’d look at you kindly. It made it easy for them to attach a narrative to His Highness presiding over your oath.”

“They certainly have a talent for finding excuses.”

The knighting wasn’t the issue. Whether I had served as an apprentice or stayed a shut-in unemployed for years, they would have dragged my name up periodically to manufacture rumors.

What Elliot pointed out was exactly what I had feared. Even in retirement, my father was a Count qualified to attend the advisory council, and my brothers were all prominent figures. Truly, having a family that’s too successful is a problem in itself.

“And His Highness added fuel to the fire. There’s a lot of talk that his reaction three days ago was… special.”

“How do they even extract a romance from that?”

I was appalled by their talent for inflating the trivial; they all should have been novelists. No matter how much I retraced my steps, nothing had happened that I would call ‘special.’

According to Elliot, the day the Crown Prince showed this ‘special reaction’ was three days ago—the day I visited the Imperial Palace with Spellman to greet the Knight Commanders before my induction.

The Imperial Palace, which had remained unchanged for ages through dragon magic, was exactly as I remembered it. I thought I had no good memories of this place, but seeing it unchanged brought back a strange mix of emotions.

The official reason for visiting the palace before my knighting was for Spellman to see the current Commanders and offer advice, but in truth, it was for me. It was a gesture of kindness from the old knight, who worried his young disciple might face jealousy from those around him. If Spellman—a living legend to knights—personally introduced me to the Commanders, I would be treated differently.

I hesitated for a moment, wondering if it was right to use connections like this. But I quickly changed my mind. I’d already accepted everything else; it would be ridiculous to refuse only this. Grateful for my master’s consideration, I followed him without a word of complaint.

Granted, considering that knights usually reach regular status in their mid-twenties, my pace was fast—though not unprecedented. But since I had someone at home who became a Vice-Commander at twenty, I didn’t feel particularly special.

“To think I need to prepare my heart just to go see a disciple,” Spellman tutted. The Count had insisted on taking him to his office for a long talk, and while I didn’t see it, the content was obvious. To the Edwill family, Spellman was treated almost like public enemy number one. No one was exempt, from the family members down to the servants.

It was embarrassing, considering he had only granted my request. I smiled awkwardly and looked off into the distance. I couldn’t bring myself to mention that Abel was currently preparing a restraining order spell. Abel would occasionally walk into my room without a word, smile only after confirming I was still there, and then leave. Seeing the dark circles under his eyes, I couldn’t stop him. They said he gets like that when he’s buried in research, so I figured he’d calm down in a few days.

The Imperial Guard, protectors of the palace and the capital, were technically called the finest knights of the Empire. I say “technically” because, unlike other famous knightly orders, most members of the Imperial Guard came from noble families near the capital.

They had produced many figures who left a mark on history, and considering the man beside me—Edward Spellman—was a living legend, I couldn’t say their quality was low. However, in an order that prioritized lineage over skill, there were bound to be deep-seated grievances.

At any rate, despite the internal noise, the Imperial Guard’s importance couldn’t be ignored. It consisted of four divisions:

Leo’s division, the Silver Hawk Candilhas; the Blue Lion Vision; the Red Horse Lucberon; and the Black Dragon Kahillum. The Commander-in-Chief who oversaw all four didn’t always exist; it was an honorary position bestowed personally by the Emperor. It had been vacant since Edward Spellman’s retirement.

The first of the four Commanders we met was the head of Candilhas, the division my second brother belonged to.

He was short but built so solidly that he didn’t seem small at all. Standing next to him, I looked so slender I felt like I’d break if someone flicked me. Apparently, the Commander of Candilhas felt the same; he scanned my body with a look that wasn’t exactly favorable.

But then, the moment he heard my name properly, he covered his mouth with his hand. His face went pale in an instant, and he spoke without hiding his dismay.

“So… you’re saying you are Leopold’s younger brother.”