The Empress watched as Prince Frederick smiled at the cheers of the crowd and thought to herself,

‘Frederick’s selfish nature is just like the Emperor’s.’

Lord Cressida’s face twisted as he witnessed the grand and extravagant procession of the Prince and the Empress.

‘They might as well shower the place with flower petals.’

However, when the Empress and Frederick stepped down from their carriage, Lord Cressida greeted them with a solemn expression.

Prince Frederick, maintaining his composure, merely nodded in response to Lord Cressida’s polite bow. Suppressing his anger, Lord Cressida immediately led them to the Countess of Cressida’s bedroom.

***

Frederick had been inwardly displeased that he had been summoned under what he assumed was a pretense, but when he saw the Countess, he was taken aback.

The illness he had dismissed as an excuse seemed real. The Countess weakly raised her trembling hand and grasped Frederick’s.

Her eyes were sunken, her face was so pale it almost looked translucent, and her entire body seemed devoid of vitality. The wrinkles on her face had deepened even more since he had last seen her.

The Empress, seeing the Countess so clearly unwell, teared up and spoke in a trembling voice.

“I should have come the moment I heard the news… Have you been eating? Sleeping?”

Before she could finish asking her questions, the Countess let a tear fall and spoke.

“I should be the one asking, Empress—no! Have you been eating? Sleeping? I couldn’t enter the palace for a while, so I couldn’t take care of you, and I’ve been worried sick.”

At that, the Empress collapsed onto the Countess’s bed and began sobbing. Frederick, too, was left speechless in shock.

It was the first time he had ever seen his grandmother so frail, so vulnerable.

For the first time, he realized just how old she was. It truly felt as though this might be their last meeting. Stammering in shock, Frederick said,

“No… Grandmother… How did things get this bad…? What about a doctor?”

Lord Cressida was secretly satisfied with Frederick’s reaction but kept his face solemn as he replied,

“The doctor has already been here. He simply told us to keep her comfortable, so I threw him out. A doctor should treat a patient, not spout useless words.”

The Empress rebuked him.

“Then you should call another doctor.”

“He is the best in the capital. What’s the point of calling another? I tried, but they all said the same thing. Since they can’t do anything, they just speak nonsense about offering comfort instead.”

Frederick spoke up.

“Then we’ll summon the imperial physician. I’ll speak to His Majesty about it.”

Lord Cressida remained silent. His stiff demeanor made Frederick feel unexpectedly guilty.

‘She practically raised me…’

The Countess, noticing the guilt in Frederick’s expression, allowed a faint smile to cross her lips. She gently patted the empress and said,

“It makes me happy to see the empress so worried about me, but I am more worried about you. I am old now. It is only natural that the doctors cannot cure me. Aging is a disease no one can heal. So why are you crying like this?”

The Empress could not stop sobbing. In truth, she was scared.

‘If Mother is gone… what will I do?’

Seeing his mother cry so uncontrollably, Frederick’s heart ached. Until he arrived here, he had been certain that there was no going back to the way things were with Cressida.

But now, seeing his grandmother so frail and his mother in tears, he began to wonder if he had been too selfish.

Frederick lowered his head, unable to speak. Watching him, Lord Cressida knew that things were going exactly as the Countess had planned.

‘So there is some gratitude left in him after all.’

Lord Cressida spoke firmly.

“Mother needs rest. Empress, you should compose yourself and return to the palace. If night falls, you won’t be able to return. I will escort you back.”

The Countess, struggling for breath, spoke.

“Make sure the Empress eats and rests before she leaves. Even if she cannot return to the palace after sunset, she can still leave here. Take good care of her.”

Lord Cressida nodded solemnly. The Countess then turned to Frederick, who was still silent, and clasped his hand.

“I know. Cressida has not been able to support you as much as we should have. Your education was lacking. Instead of guiding you with discipline, we only ever thought about indulging whatever our dear grandson wanted. We never scolded you. To us, you were simply our beloved grandchild. It was our short-sightedness. We should have guided you better.”

Once again, she took a ragged breath before continuing with difficulty.

“If we had… perhaps you would not have grown so angry with us. But I am relieved to hear that you are learning well now. You are brilliant, Frederick. His Majesty will surely see that in you once more.”

At those words, tears spilled from Frederick’s eyes.

“Grandmother!”

But the Countess, keeping her distance even in this moment, spoke carefully.

“Prince Frederick… I am old now… I do not know when I will be able to see you again. Please, protect the Empress. As long as she is safe, I will be at peace. Do you understand? I will say no more. Whatever wrongs Cressida has committed, we will bear the burden. Just… Please, just protect the Empress…”

Prince Frederick lifted his tear-filled eyes and looked at the Countess. After a brief hesitation, he nodded.

Having spoken her final words, the Countess closed her eyes, utterly drained. Lord Cressida led the two out of the bedroom.

The empress wiped her tears and spoke.

“How could she just deliver her message and send us away like that? I didn’t even know she was in such a grave condition…”

“I couldn’t leave Mother alone in the manor. I thought if I at least delivered the message, you would come. If anything had happened while I was away…”

The Empress cut off Lord Cressida’s words with a sigh.

“I understand. And what about Father?”

“He is leading the army. How could I send word now? Mother also insisted we not tell him. She feared that if he gathered the troops and headed to the capital, it would be misinterpreted. We are already under enough suspicion—there’s no need to add fuel to the fire.”

“But still…”

“I know. That’s why I’m keeping an eye on her condition. If things take a turn for the worse, then we will have no choice. Right now, she is exhausted, but… I don’t know.”

Prince Frederick spoke up.

“I will make sure Grandmother receives treatment from the imperial physician.”

Lord Cressida inwardly scoffed but responded courteously.

“That would be most appreciated. If Your Highness remembers all that we have done for you…”

He trailed off, but to Prince Frederick, the unspoken words were clear:

“Do not abandon us.”

***

Prince Frederick kept his promise and immediately sought an audience with the Emperor, requesting that the Imperial Physician be sent to the Countess.

The emperor readily agreed, sending not only the physician but also an entire entourage to stay at the manor and tend to her. Lord Cressida couldn’t help but smirk as he watched the arrival of the Imperial Physician and his retinue.

The imperial physician was certainly different from ordinary doctors. Without hesitation, he administered medicine to the Countess the moment he arrived.

Lord Cressida scowled at the physician but remained cautious—after all, he was the Emperor’s personal doctor. Moreover, he had come at Prince Frederick’s special request.

Physician Piccolo stated matter-of-factly, “It is a sleeping aid. Once she has a deep sleep, she will feel hungry upon waking. Give her some light broth then.”

Lord Cressida, doing his best to keep his tone respectful, asked, “Do you always administer medicine before even assessing a patient’s condition?”

“Yes. It’s the same with His Majesty. No matter how much we tell him to rest and eat well, he never listens. So, I just give him a sleeping aid—then he has no choice but to rest. The Countess, too, looks like she hasn’t slept for days. And I doubt she has been eating much. Once she sleeps and eats properly, she will recover significantly.”

Lord Cressida felt a pang of guilt but masked it with an indifferent expression.

“My father is stationed in a conflict zone, and my mother has not been able to see the empress for days. Naturally, she has been deeply worried.”

Piccolo cheerfully replied, “Ah, I see. Then I will continue to administer the sleeping aid as needed. Worrying is best done after proper rest and nourishment—it is far less harmful to the body that way. She will be much better soon. I will write to Prince Frederick immediately. He will be pleased to hear of her improvement.”

Lord Cressida found Piccolo’s ever-smiling face insufferable. Though a commoner, he was not someone to be trifled with. In the medical field, skill was paramount, and his position as the imperial physician spoke volumes of his ability.

He was known for rejecting invitations from nobles, citing his lack of familiarity with aristocratic etiquette. If they wanted his treatment, they had to promise not to question his mannerisms.

Forcing an awkward smile, Lord Cressida nodded. Piccolo hummed a tune as he walked out of the room, his steps light.

Even the infamous Lord Cressida was unsure of how to handle him.

***

The Emperor read Piccolo’s letter and chuckled.

“As expected, they staged an illness to shake Prince Frederick. Skipping meals, applying makeup to appear sickly, even taking laxatives—she certainly went to great lengths. Now that she has taken a sleeping aid, she will likely look much better after some proper rest. The poor, old Countess of Cressida has worked hard indeed.”

Caliban frowned.

“But if something were to happen to her at her advanced age…”

“That wouldn’t be a problem either. It would only serve to tighten the Empress’s restraints. I wonder how Count Cressida is faring. His wife is going through all this trouble.”

“And Prince Frederick?”

“He is certainly affected. He keeps sending people to check on the Countess’s condition.”

“One could call it a soft heart, or one could call it foolishness.”

“Well, it is only natural to be concerned for one’s kin.”

“If only the Countess herself could say the same. She uses her own blood as a tool for Cressida’s sake.”