En Travesti - I Became a Fake Prince - Chapter 19

***

Leticia decided that while she wasn’t sure if she could trust Aina, she needed to send Emma back to the Empire.

It seemed Emma had acted this way because she wanted to return to the capital quickly, since Leticia wasn’t dying fast enough…

‘My life isn’t mine anymore anyway.’

It would have been disastrous if she had died from Emma’s clumsy attempt.

‘But if we just chase her away, she’ll definitely refuse to leave since it would mean disobeying the Imperial Family’s order to confirm the fake prince’s death.’

Aina, who had been thinking of simply driving Emma away, argued when she heard Leticia’s concerns.

“The one who’ll suffer from disobeying the Imperial Family’s orders is the nanny anyway, so why worry about that when you’re not even really the prince? Besides, none of this would have happened if she hadn’t tried to kill Your Highness in the first place.”

Nevertheless, Leticia was currently a hostage.

She was clearly Basilinte’s property, so if Emma had really harmed Leticia, it would have given Basilinte grounds to formally protest to the Herta Empire.

That’s why Aina had wanted to remove Emma from Leticia’s side.

Because from Aina’s perspective – that is, from the Herta Empire’s standpoint – it didn’t matter whether Leticia died quickly or not. Their contract with Basilinte only required sending a prince as hostage.

If Leticia died late, it would only be a problem for Emma, who had to confirm the death and return.

“So just tell her nicely that you want to send her back home first, or just act like you’re scared of her.”

“Won’t the result be the same either way since both disobey the Imperial order?”

“That’s for the nanny to deal with.”

Honestly, considering what Emma had done, it didn’t matter what happened to her.

“Besides, the nanny is a noble. She won’t be killed or hurt.”

That seemed right. Leticia nodded.

Having made her decision, she put it into action immediately.

Of course, being a well-mannered child, Leticia didn’t go straight to the Grand Duke of Basilinte.

She didn’t think it was important enough to discuss directly with the Grand Duke anyway.

So instead, she went to find Yen, the Grand Duke’s aide.

“…You want to send your nanny back to the Empire?”

Yen’s tanned face, now familiar after several meetings, furrowed. He seemed to contemplate something before nodding.

“I understand. I will inform His Grace.”

“Thank you.”

Leticia bowed her head slightly.

Yen’s expression softened.

Seeing his generous demeanor that seemed willing to listen to anything, Leticia hesitated before asking.

“Would it be possible for me to eat in the dining hall from now on?”

Obviously, it would be better not to consume anything at all, even if the poison was weak.

“Of course. His Grace would be pleased. He’s been wanting to check on Your Highness’s safety frequently.”

Yen quickly called a servant and instructed them to prepare an extra place setting in the hall starting from dinner.

Of course, the dining hall Leticia had meant was the one used by the employees, not the hall where the Basilinte Grand Duke’s family dined.

“…”

“I’ll inform His Grace about this as well.”

“Yes…”

Leticia returned to her room, unable to say anything more about the suddenly decided matter.

She didn’t dislike it. Not at all.

Rather, she felt a bit excited.

***

“…”

“…”

“…”

The dinner that began this way was quiet.

Ferik was expressionless as always and even more silent, and Chamuka was similar.

Leticia glanced at both of them while quietly eating her meal, careful to read the atmosphere.

The grandfather was in prison, his wife was divorced, and the Grand Duchess was in the tower.

So only the Grand Duke and Prince Chamuka were present, and with Leticia added, they were just three.

“…”

The meal ended in silence, without even the sound of utensils clinking.

Leticia carefully put down her utensils.

“Why did you stop eating? Are you feeling unwell?”

At Ferik’s question, Leticia wondered internally.

Hadn’t she eaten enough?

Originally, due to her memories of wandering the streets, Leticia tended to eat her fill whenever food was available.

That habit had made the starvation at the Prince’s Palace even harder to bear.

“No. I ate plenty and it was delicious. Thank you for allowing me to join you.”

As Ferik’s questioning gaze continued, Chamuka, who had been quiet, spoke up.

In fact, Leticia doubted whether this father and son exchanged more than three sentences per day. She had rarely seen them speaking even when they were in the same space.

“Father. Small bodies have small stomachs.”

“I see.”

Ferik nodded in understanding as he gauged Leticia’s size.

‘Should I thank him for being concerned?’

It seemed the Grand Duke found her portion size small by his standards, but Leticia couldn’t tell from his expression whether he was worried about the small portion or just curious.

“…”

Leticia opened her mouth to speak but then closed it.

Though she didn’t think she had moved much, two pairs of golden eyes immediately turned to her.

‘I really can’t tell if they’re annoyed, curious, or have something to say.’

Not only were their expressions unchanging, but there was also no excess in their gestures.

Leticia had learned in the theater troupe that one could express many things not just through facial expressions but also through body language.

The first lesson was identifying how many small habits one had, and the next was observing the habits of others around them.

With such trained observation skills, Leticia had never seen people so devoid of bad habits.

‘At least Prince Chamuka seemed to have some habits from taking care of Tan…’

The Grand Duke didn’t even have those.

She wasn’t sure if this should be called dignified or inhuman.

“…Have I made some mistake?”

Leticia carefully asked, faced with the silent stares of father and son.

Chamuka immediately replied.

“You looked like you had something to say.”

They had been staring just for that reason. Moreover, Chamuka didn’t even ask what she wanted to say after that.

Leticia found this family’s behavior patterns truly difficult to understand. The only certainty was that they were far from ordinary.

‘But somehow, they don’t seem like typical high nobles.’

It was hard to believe that the Grand Duke was called the White Demon across the continent.

‘Quiet, calm, passive, honest. Compared to them, the Imperial people seem more barbaric.’

Just as Leticia was thinking this, the Grand Duke asked.

“You asked to send your nanny back to the Empire?”

“Yes. I thought she might be homesick.”

“Is that the truth?”

Though his dry tone might have seemed cold, Leticia knew this was just how they spoke.

And that question was simply asked out of genuine curiosity about Leticia’s intentions, nothing more.

They had no way of hiding things. The Grand Duke.

Leticia liked that about them and nodded with a small smile.

“Yes.”

“Then we’ll do that.”

At this straightforward response, Leticia left the dining room feeling relieved. Her small steps down the corridor were light.

Ferik watched her departing figure expressionlessly, and once Leticia’s presence had finally disappeared, he ordered one of the servants.

“Now go catch her.”