DSB 16

“By Iol’s order, I’m Mahan, assigned to attend to you from now on.”

The man’s attitude was polite, but his gaze and sarcastic sniping remained fierce. Saying he’d attend was no different from surveillance.

But Lebel was used to such gazes, having been monitored by Hans before.

Lebel nodded saying understood.

“Why did young master Yutis take such a guy……”

Mahan’s muttering didn’t end, his dissatisfaction immense.

He examined the kitchen and offered a basket containing bread left after dinner today.

“Eat this and return to your room. I’ll say it once more, but refrain from wandering alone at night. If you don’t want to be mistaken for a spy unnecessarily.”

“Hm.”

Lebel reached for the basket. The bread was slightly hardened from time passed, but Lebel didn’t mind and quietly chewed the bread right there.

Rather, the surprised one was the man. The man had given bread without preparing proper meal, intending for Lebel to reflect on his position.

He thought he’d make a fuss, but didn’t expect him to take it calmly.

He was eating the bread expressionlessly, without burning anger or resigned anger.

“…The bread is to your taste.”

“As long as it fills the stomach moderately.”

Mahan’s brow furrowed. Lebel calmly chewed the bread thoroughly.

He didn’t know, but Lebel had eaten bread in worse condition than this many times.

In the imperial capital, what he ate was only leftover bread or soup, or wilted salad.

The environment around Lebel, called the Foolish Prince, wasn’t good

The next day, Mahan, whom he had met in the middle of the night, stood in front of Lebel.

He briefly tried to wake Lebel, but when he stubbornly didn’t move, he clicked his tongue and went out of the room.

Lebel had actually only closed his eyes, but he sensed the presence.

The malice was annoying, but since he didn’t bother him, he decided to overlook it generously.

Lebel only stayed in the room. To be precise, he only slept.

The maid who came in to clean didn’t notice Lebel’s presence and was startled, or the fact that meals were prepared on time but not a single spoonful was touched, those words reached Mahan’s ears.

“…I heard from the maid. You didn’t get out of bed all day yesterday.”

“…….”

“Are you listening?!”

Ah, cancel that. He doesn’t leave me alone. Why did his attitude suddenly change? I don’t need to worry about it.

“I also heard you didn’t eat. It’s true that I’m in charge of attending to Your Highness, but I’m also in charge of this castle. I don’t have the capacity to worry about Your Highness one by one. Don’t make me come for things like this.”

“You don’t have to come.”

Lebel said with sincerity, but Mahan only snorted.

After that, Mahan frequently came in and out of Lebel’s room. It was something Mahan didn’t want either.

But since Lebel didn’t come out of the room, he had no choice but to check directly. To the point where even the maids forgot Lebel’s existence because he didn’t show any presence.

Mahan, as always today, faced Lebel lying down and pressed his forehead. Before he knew it, the feeling of exasperation rather than malice dominated his mind.

“I heard you still haven’t eaten. Are you planning to wander the castle at night again using hunger as an excuse?”

“Ah, my stomach is starting to get hungry.”

Lebel muttered while buried in the bed. He still had no intention of getting up, but his stomach seemed hungry.

Waking up from sleep because of hunger is declined. Lebel raised his body.

“That thing I ate last time, what was it called, bread?”

The maid who took care of him said that.

“A few pieces of bread are enough.”

“….Just bread?”

Lebel nodded.

Because of that, Mahan’s expression twisted strangely. Mahan didn’t like Lebel who suddenly stayed in the annex.

He wouldn’t know, but no one viewed positively the fact that the one called the Foolish Prince suddenly started speaking. If the foolish prince from the rumors had come, he wouldn’t have been this guarded.

In a way, he was a victim too. However, from the day he decided to marry into the north, he started speaking. Moreover, the one he happened to meet was completely different from the prince in the rumors.

Even if he could speak, it was a completely different matter for the person to change entirely.

That meant his attitude shown in front of the northern castle was unusual.

To the point where there was even a hypothesis that the emperor had planted a substitute.

He agreed to chasing out the imperial knights, but that could be to lower their guard.

“Do you need anything else?”

Mahan was secretly receiving reports on his movements from the maids.

The one who didn’t move strangely in the room.He never left the bed and only slept all day.

His expressionless face whose thoughts couldn’t be known was also a factor that aroused his vigilance.

“Something needed?”

Mahan waited for Lebel’s mouth, who seemed to be pondering, to open.

“Hm. The bread was hard, so it would be good if you give me soup so it’s easier to chew and swallow.”

“….”

Mahan stared blankly at Lebel while silent.

***

“Your Highness, is bread and soup enough for today too?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll bring it soon.”

Lebel watched Mahan leave after politely greeting.

“Humans are really complicated.”

Mahan’s attitude had changed from the beginning. He said he was busy, but coming into the room every day was different.

Moreover, now he looked at him with pitiful eyes. Sometimes, with a worried look, he forcibly woke him up when he didn’t get up.

“Humans unnecessarily show sympathy.

The ones around Yutis are similar to him.”
After some time, Mahan came in with bread and warm soup.

Lebel silently started eating.

Mahan’s expression was still strangely twisted, but he was satisfied with this life.

The bed was fluffy, and although there was someone who woke him up occasionally, he didn’t wake him up just because the sun rose.

The quality of the pajamas was good, and he didn’t complain no matter how much he lounged around.

Meals were provided on time.

The quality was much better than before, so there was no dissatisfaction.

“Are you here to wake me up again?”

“Yes.”

“You said you were busy? Don’t come even after work.”

Lebel lay down on the bed as soon as he ate his fill.

Mahan laughed in disbelief. “Don’t come?” Lebel shows so obviously that he’s annoyed.

If it weren’t for him, he wouldn’t even eat properly.

Mahan furrowed his brow. He was on edge not knowing when he would reveal his true nature and do something strange, but Lebel did nothing.

At first, he thought he slept all day because of the fatigue. But that wasn’t it. He slept too much. When he woke him up, he even heard a click of the tongue.

He got up when he made a fuss that his stomach was hungry.

Of course his stomach would be hungry since he didn’t eat anything all day. But what he demanded was just a few pieces of bread. Occasionally he asked for soup.

That meal amount was seriously small, to the point where even Mahan worried.

Mahan looked at Lebel. A slender body unlike northern people. Is the meal amount remarkably small because his body is small?

He had heard that empire people eat as much as bird feed to maintain their figure, but it’s too little.

“Your Highness, if you have nothing to do, how about a walk?”

“You told me to stay in the room?”

“…Did you stay in the room because of my words?”

“No. Because I wanted to.”

Mahan’s expression cooled coldly. It’s ridiculous that he worried for a moment. He let out a small sigh.

“Was it like this in the imperial capital too?”

“Well, it was similar.”

Mahan knew Lebel’s words were strange but didn’t ask again.

In the imperial capital, they left Lebel alone when he was a fool.

After the demon Lebel took over this body, he was busy with bride classes, and he learned codes to secretly transmit information about the north.

There, he was controlled with threats like don’t even think of running away. Of course, Lebel ignored all of that.

Because he knew all the situation, Lebel could overlook the northern people’s vigilance.

It’s natural to be vigilant toward him. Moreover, it’s less than a year since the war ended. It would be on a different level from the war between the Demon and Celestial realms once.

Humans don’t revive when they die. If there’s a precious one who died in the war, the anger toward the empire would be immense.

“How many days has it been since Yutis left?”

“…It’s been five days.”

How much is five days to humans? It’s hard because the time concept is different from demons who calculate in years.

From the distance and the fact that he hasn’t moved for a while, it seems he’s just arrived and is dealing with the demonic beast.

Lebel closed his eyes.

At that sight, Mahan got angry and said.

“Your Highness, aren’t you worried about Young Master Yutis at all?”

If it weren’t for Yutis’s order, he couldn’t enter the castle, and Mahan wouldn’t pretend to serve him politely.

Lebel, who slightly opened his eyes, looked at Mahan.

“Am I in a position to worry about him?”

Mahan flinched at Lebel’s words. He left his original place and came to the north, and there are almost no people welcoming him in this castle. It seemed like he said it knowing that.