novelNo matter what you call a flower, its color never changes (1)
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Chapter 96: Chapter 96 No matter what you call a flower, its color never changes (1)
"... I saw a tree growing where your finger touched. If it was you who grew the tree, then it would be you who saved everybody's life, unless everything I saw with my eyes was not an illusion, " the prince said.
As if to observe her reaction, he did not turn his eyes away from her. He frowned a bit, feeling pain from the wounds in his shoulder.
"Of course, what you have seen is not an illusion. Your analysis is also right, " she said clearly.
"You owe me your life. The same is true of the knights here."
She turned to the knights with a serious expression. They looked confused. She deliberately looked at each of their faces to remind them what they saw was real.
Dylan was seen among them. He looked at her with great concern. She turned her head away from him.
"Yeah, if the mysterious phenomenon was caused by you, I owe you my life." Prince Isaac laughed as if it was fun.
"Your Excellency is a precious man who will lead the next generation of the Benyahan Empire. The knights here are also very valuable people to the empire. Anybody would ask for a reward if he or she saved the lives of those people, but I want something different. I only want one thing." Making eye contact with the crown prince, she spoke resolutely.
"Tell me what you want, " said the prince, with his eyes sparkling, as if he found her proposal interesting.
She took a deep breath and glanced at Lard. He nodded at her.
She said, "Will you give me an imperial order? Please order everybody here to keep silent about what they saw here today. I don't want my power to be known to the outside. Your Majesty, can you please swear it for the honor of the Benyahan Empire? Knights, please swear it for the honor of the knight."
The prince seemed agonized over her daring proposal for a moment then opened his mouth, "Okay, that's a small reward for my life. I promise on the honor of Benyahan that I will keep silent about your power. I order the imperial knights who serve Benyahan and protect the royal family to keep everything you have seen today to yourselves. You haven't seen or heard today anything related to Wendy Waltz. Can you swear?"
The prince looked around and spoke in a strict tone.
Beginning with Sir Owen, everyone bowed to the prince and said they would swear on the honor of the knight.
She made eye contact with each of them as if to confirm their sincerity.
She did not fully trust the oath of the prince or the knights. She didn't even naively believe that they would keep the secret forever. But if any of them broke their oath, she would surely make them pay the price thoroughly enough to regret having survived the explosion at the palace.
"I am grateful that you repay me in good faith, " she said, smiling gently.
But not all the knights were childish enough to take her smile at face value.
They clearly read her warning behind the smile.
"Wendy, I want to ask you one thing, " the prince said suddenly, coming close to her.
She tilted her head, suggesting that he could ask any question.
"Can you make any plant grow like that?"
"...Why are you asking?" Wendy asked the prince angrily because he promised to keep silent and then tried to satisfy his curiosity.
"Well, I feel severe pain here. I wonder if you can grow a plant that eases pain, " he said, moving his shoulder up and down. She instinctively hid the Bahazman fruit that she was holding in her hand. She felt that nothing good would come of it if she showed it to him.
"... I do not know. I think my answer depends on what you can give me in return."
The prince showed a displeased expression at her reply, "Are you now asking for a reward?"
"The clearer the goal, the better it works out. Isn't that what you told me before?
She grinned at him, repeating what he told her the banquet hall.
"Oh, yes. You're no different from Sir Schroder. You're not loyal to me."
The prince frowned and laughed like a habit.
"Your Majesty! Are you okay?"
Right at the moment the imperial knights were seen approaching from afar. At the forefront of them were Badge Enos, the best of the 2nd Imperial Knights, and Captain Hoikin.
Given their dirty uniforms, they, too, seemed to have had a fierce battle with enemies.
"Captain Schroder! What happened?" Hoikin asked Lard.
More knights were coming over. Wendy stood far away from the incoming knights, looking at the debris of the collapsed building blankly. The fog that rose from the shore of the lake beyond the prince's palace was spreading over the land. The collapsed building looked even more bleak.
Anticipating a bloodbath in the coming days because of the prince's new legislation, Wendy tightened her hold on the jacket around her.
"Sir Dowain, could you bring me more dirt there?"
Wendy, who was changing the pots, told a man with brown hair.
He quickly moved at her request. He was Pascal Dowain of the 1st Imperial Knights and had straight eyebrows.
Right after the prince's palace collapsed, Sir Dowain began to serve as her personal bodyguard, always staying close to her. He was assigned to that duty by the order of Lard and the crown prince.
At first, she resolutely rejected their offer of escort but changed her mind when she was reassured that the bodyguard would protect her after disguising himself as her employee and that she could use him freely
Come to think of it, she thought it was really good to have Dowain with her.
"Lady Wendy, where should I put this?"
"Oh, put it by the door over there."
Sir Dowain was the type of man who always volunteered to do work. He was the perfect helper in that respect.
"You can take a break. You've been carrying fertilizer all morning. I'm afraid you're going to get sick."
"It's my pleasure, madame, " said Pascal with a smile.
Whenever he looked at her, his eyes sparkled. His eyes glowed more especially when she was working in the flower garden. Obviously, he was expecting to find her working wonder with her mysterious power that he had experienced at the prince's palace recently. But she had not yet shown her ability around him.
"Has there been any updates on the investigation of the recent explosion?" She asked, gently stroking the soil in a pot.
"... I don't know the details, but I don't think there's any update yet because all the intruders died at the scene. Even those captured alive chose to take their lives instead of confessing."
The insurgents, who invaded the prince's palace, hid their identities and affiliations and left no evidence. As a result, the investigation hadn't made any progress. Although there were some usual suspects, there was no material evidence, which suggested that the suspects prepared their treason very thoroughly.
The intruders carried out their mission throughout the palace. After the first explosion, they burned the large and small boats on Lake Oduto. They also raided the knights who were heading for the palace by land, stopping their movement. Even though the first explosion was beyond their control, they were not embarrassed at all, and they stopped the imperial support unit from entering the prince's palace. Although their plan to assassinate Prince Isaac failed, it was clear that there was someone behind the plot, who controlled them, and foresaw such variables.
There was a background Investigation into Duke Auguste Engre and his supporters, but they kept a low profile and refrained from going outside since the incident. Not only them but also all the nobles in the empire confined themselves at home, closely watching how the situation would unfold. They knew clearly that if convicted as the culprit who attempted to kill the prince, they would have to face execution, let alone the downfall of their families and the punishment of their offspring. They were afraid they would be entangled in charges of treason if they looked suspicious.
Wendy recalled the conversation between the two that she accidentally overheard before the collapse of the prince's palace.
It was a suspicious conversation between Duke Auguste's knight and another man. Their conversation was suspicious, but she was not sure how their conversation was related to the explosion.
She agonized over whether to share what she heard on that day with Lard. She wasn't sure if it would help, but she was afraid that she could be further entangled in the assassination attempt case.
"...Aren't you going to respond to the prince's call today?" Pascal asked carefully as Wendy watered the repotted flowers.
For the first several days following the incident, the prince asked to meet Wendy. Obviously, he wanted to satisfy his curiosity and doubt about her power. It was clear that he would ask her questions that she could not answer easily. Lard politely conveyed her refusal to the prince on her behalf. Nonetheless, the prince persistently asked to see her despite her initial refusal.
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