Yes, my father found out about my misfortunes.
And so begins the bullet tour of my residential quarters.
"............There's nothing here."
"Why, why are there no personal belongings?"
"Well, if you're referring to items received from Your Majesty, there are plenty in the closet."
We are currently in the bedroom of the Golden Room. When you open a small door, it reveals an entire walk-in closet.
It's filled with clothes I've received up until now, but.............
"Those were given as birthday celebration gifts............ Wait, why do you even have clothes that no longer fit?"
"Since they were gifts, it felt wasteful to discard them. I have the space, and there was no urgent need to dispose of them."
Honestly, I just don't know how to dispose of clothes here, but even so, they were too luxurious to simply throw away.
Is it that strange to keep so many clothes?
Father holds the outgrown clothes with a face that looks ready to cry.
"Your Highness, let us move to the next room quickly. The wound will be shallower if we fold this up now."
"We cannot hide anything anyway, and stopping at each one will only take more time."
Prompted by Helkov and Wearrel, I move to the Blue Room.
Ikt decided to wait with the others in the salon of the Golden Room.
The only one remaining with us is Okappa.
Then we move from the Blue Room to the Red Room, where Father and the Consort are once again thrown into confusion.
"There's nothing............"
"Not even a carpet............"
For some reason, the more we progress, the more His Majesty and the Consort say "nothing, nothing."
"W-well, this room has more things than the others. It's where I use the alchemy tools that Wearrel brought back from the Lukiusaria Academy."
I really wanted to avoid this, but since they kept saying it so much, I head toward the Emerald Room.
Here, the built-in shelves are filled with items, and the floor space is generously used to arrange tools.
Surely they won't say "nothing" here!
"The disparity............"
In the end, Father became dejected.
However, the Consort furrowed her brows, comparing the Emerald Room with the other rooms.
"What exactly are you using your annual stipend for? As a prince, you should maintain a less embarrassing standard of living............ Did you receive them?"
She seemed about to complain, but midway she noticed something and turned back to look at me.
"No, but earlier with the coffee. If you can obtain such luxury items, then surely............"
"Ah, that was a gift from my acquaintance," Helkov interjected.
At his words, the Consort's eyes, which had been glaring at me for some reason, wavered.
Since I had only ever seen her with a composed expression, this was the first time I had seen her so emotionally expressive.
Father sways slightly and looks at me.
"That's right, the stipend. Asha, do you not have any reports of how you used the stipend?"
Even if you ask me that, it's troublesome, and it's another unanswerable question.
I think if I answer this honestly, Father will be hurt again, so it's difficult to say.
Looking down at my silence, Okappa let out a sigh.
"Your Majesty, if I may be so bold as to answer. There are none. The annual stipend has not been granted to the First Prince, so there are no reports."
"That's absurd! I certainly gave Asha............ Moreover, it is an imperial house rule that princes receive a stipend, and even I had one?"
Father was the Emperor's biological son but was not publicly acknowledged as such.
Nevertheless, he had a stipend that was given to Count Nistaf.
It served as proof of being the Emperor's son.
And why does Okappa know this?
Could it be something one would find out if they investigated?
"............Your Majesty, the generation is not the issue, but the stipend given to princes is only for children born to the Consort, legitimate children only."
"Asha is my legitimate child."
Father argues back to the Consort who seems reluctant to speak, but I also raise an objection.
"Your Majesty, certainly I am the child of the Empress and Your Majesty, and thus a legitimate child. However, am I recognized as the Emperor's legitimate child?"
"Since you have the right of succession, you are obviously recognized."
"Then is that a requirement for the disbursement of the stipend?"
At my pointing this out, Father falls silent.
It seems Father thought he had been providing me with a stipend.
And before we knew it, the Consort was shedding tears in streams, and even Okappa's shoulders were jumping up and down.
Furthermore, in front of me who was startled, the Consort fell to her knees as if collapsing.
"What have I............ to such a pitiful child, all this time............ What have I been............ Fearful that Your Majesty would be taken away by you, I was blinded by such foolish jealousy............ To think I had driven such a wedge between father and child that he couldn't even speak of his destitution............"
Uh oh, she seems to be driven by guilt and misunderstanding something.
And there's absolutely no way I can tell them that I'm actually making money by secretly brewing alcohol.
I definitely can't say that I've already built a factory and am operating on a large scale.
"What did............ Count Nistaf do?"
"............Nothing?"
I tell Father clearly there.
Sorry to shock you, but I must say this.
"Actually, before Hati left my service, he went alone to the Nistaf Count's household to question them about their disloyalty."
I inform him about the embezzlement of congratulatory gifts from the viscount's family, and the matter of them saying they didn't need me.
"Therefore, since moving to the palace, I have neither met him nor even exchanged letters."
"F-foolish............ I told him to look after Asha, to leave it to me, and I............"
When Father receives the shock and steps back, he covers his face with his hand.
I'm shocked too.
I thought he was a cold, calculating worker, but he engages in such deception?
Without mentioning that he was neglecting me, saying "leave it to me" means "don't interfere."
As I was thinking that, before I knew it, Father had removed his hand from his face, and his face was dyed with anger.
"So that's the kind of people they were, that's what they were. And yet, told that I would become Emperor, I mistakenly thought there was affection, and I shouldn't have entrusted Asha to them."
It seems they were a dry family even toward Father.
Told to entrust them for the first time, he must have dreamed.
Yes, I somehow understand.
I understand, and ultimately having his expectations betrayed must be painful.
Somehow, my mood also sinks.
"............I'm sorry, Asha. It is my fault."
"It is not something Your Majesty needs to apologize for. I know you were concerned for me."
When I try to comfort him, Father furrows his brows with a troubled face.
"Because you are so capable............"
Does he want to say I was deceived?
Yes, I deceived him.
But through this incident, I learned that I have enough standing to talk back to Duke Lukaios, so a mere count is nothing, right?
"Your Majesty, there are areas where I am lacking as a prince. This recent disturbance is also due to my lack of virtue, and I deeply reflect on this."
"That is not true. You certainly saved Fer, did you not?"
Unexpected support came from the Consort.
Huh? Wait, could it be?
"Did you find out what was poisoning Fer and Warnel?"
"Yes, you told Warnel when you made him vomit. That if Warnel could eat it, it was safe. That child desperately tried to protect that, tasting the food himself before giving it to Fer."
Moreover, Fer's condition recovered faster than usual, and while he would normally relapse even when resting, he recovered without any relapse.
The clincher was my documentation.
Understanding what Warnel had been doing, I examined the meals from when Fer had collapsed in the past, narrowed down the allergen candidates to three, and removed them.
"That's good."
"You were truly worried about him."
"I was told by Your Majesty to set an example for my younger brother."
"That was, um, not meant to make you endure this much............"
Father is dejected, but that's not my main point.
"Nevertheless, it is true that I was lacking. As punishment, please remove Count Nistaf's guardianship over me."
When I report this with a smile, having lost my worries, Father and the Consort look dumbfounded.
At my declaration of cutting ties disguised as reflection, Okappa now seems troubled, but I decide to leave that be.
Regular update
Next time: Changes in Environment 1