How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love – Chapter 243

Author: Chewyy

“I haven’t done anything—what is there to admit?”

Leonhard looked back at Duke Khalid, his eyes still glued to the wall.

He believed that someone as experienced as Duke Khalid wouldn’t fall for such a crude tactic.

“Duke Khalid….”

“Haha, don’t be too hard on him. I used your name to bait him into a confession.”

Leonhard frowned at Julius, who burst into a cheerful laugh.

“How did you even know what I was doing, let alone use my name?”

“How? You were attracting way too much attention—not like you at all.”

“But still…..”

“Yeah, you made a big scene when you proposed to the Marquise too. But this time, something felt off in how the rumors were spreading—like an unnatural twist in the flow.”

Julius smiled broadly at Leonhard.

“While I was digging into why my father would fan the flames of a rumor involving you… well, I happened to discover that Duke Khalid’s men were lurking around the detached palace.”

From beginning to end, it was all Duke Khalid’s fault.

Leonhard glared at him with fiery eyes, and Duke Khalid dropped his gaze as if he had no excuse to offer.

Was it that Julius found the Duke’s timid reaction amusing—or perhaps even pitiable?

With a chuckle in his voice, Julius stepped in between the two men like a mediator.

“Don’t scold the Duke so much. It’s just that my guards were overly sensitive.”

Back when he first manifested his symbol and was officially appointed the Second Prince, Julius faced assassination attempts nearly every night.

Because of that, the guards of the Second Prince’s palace would immediately detain and interrogate anyone who seemed even slightly suspicious.

Naturally, Duke Khalid’s subordinates were no exception and ended up imprisoned beneath the palace after going through the same process.

“I was actually missing a few puzzle pieces, but thanks to the Duke walking right into it, everything fit perfectly.”

Julius brought his thumbs and index fingers together to form a square, as if framing a picture. Then he smiled, “framing” the faces of Leonhard and Duke Khalid within the space.

“The picture is complete.”

He was already certain of it. Denying it now wouldn’t work on someone like him.

‘A snake crawled out from under the fox.’

‘If Raenel had seen this, she’d be slapping my shoulder right about now.’

“Okay. So what exactly do you want, Your Highness?”

“Include me in your investigation. That’s all I ask.”

Leonhard met Duke Khalid’s eyes. Duke Khalid shook his head slightly, as if he knew what he was trying to say. He meant that he didn’t say exactly what he was investigating.

Leonhard thought about it for a moment and then said it outright.

He wasn’t someone who would be able to turn him down anyway.

“Our target isn’t just the would-be Third Prince… Karl.”

“Can you tell me why?”

“Because we’re questioning the authenticity of his symbol.”

“The authenticity…? Are you saying he can fake the symbol?”

Even Julius hadn’t expected that, as his pupils shook slightly.

But that was only for a moment.

Skillfully hiding his emotions, he read Leonhard’s words accurately.

“Then the subjects of your investigation would be all of the royal family, including me and my siblings.”

Leonhard nodded.

“So we cannot involve you in our investigation.”

“I see. Then it can’t be helped. I’ll just have to investigate this mirror on my own.”

Julius stood up from his seat without any hesitation which seemed to indicate that he would just walk out without a second thought.

Duke Khalid let out a voice of agitation.

“Your Highness, wait—!”

“This is just my guess, but the Duke probably didn’t find any significant evidence in that palace.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I barely managed to get this one thing myself.”

Though the Emperor had granted Duke Khalid investigative authority, there was a condition:

He must not be caught investigating Karl—or any other member of the royal family.

But there were simply too many eyes in the palace.

No matter how skilled Duke Khalid’s men were, it was nearly impossible to search the detached palace without being noticed by so many people.

The Second Prince, on the other hand, had far fewer restrictions. The palace was, after all, his domain.

“Tell me why you doubt the authenticity of the symbol, and I will give you this mirror.”

“…..”

“Hm… still not enough, is it? Alright, fine. As a suspect, I’ll also fully cooperate with your investigation.”

“Your Highness!”

“It would be a good thing if my innocence is proven even a little bit sooner. Isn’t that right?”

Rosaline buried her face in her hands as if she couldn’t stand Julius’s sly voice.

Leonhardt and Duke Khalid exchanged a glance, silently gauging each other’s thoughts.

They couldn’t lower their suspicions of the Second Prince just because he was acting so confidently.

But they couldn’t afford to lose that mirror either.

Eventually, Duke Khalid let out a defeated sigh and gave in.

“How did you know that the mirror was a magical tool and secure it?”

With that, Julius grinned and sat back down, ready to begin in earnest.

“No matter how tightly you guard the detached palace, it’s impossible to know everything going on inside. But I, on the other hand… can sneak one of my servants in.”

Because Karl was causing all sorts of trouble in the Palace, a servant was brought out every few days.

With the Second Prince being a strong contender for the throne, slipping one of his people into the vacant spot was as easy as eating cold soup.

“That kid said… was the name Tommy? A bath servant suddenly came out carrying this mirror and took it back in.”

“There’s a mirror in the bathroom, though?”

“Suspicious, right? So my servant tried to check what kind of mirror it was, but it was hidden away so well that he couldn’t find it again”

Convinced something was up, Julius gave strict orders to get that mirror no matter what.

The servant tasked with the job kept an eye on Tommy all day, and thanks to that, they managed to track the mirror down and successfully steal it away.

“They say the entire detached palace was turned upside down after it went missing—so there must be some big secret hidden in it.”

Leonhard knew intuitively.

That the wizard of Onyx would have a mirror that would be a pair with that mirror.

“So, have you tried operating the mirror?”

“No, not yet. If it’s linked, the moment we connect, the other side will realize the mirror’s been stolen and immediately disconnect.… None of my wizards can pinpoint the other side’s location in just a few seconds.”

Rosaline’s cheeks turned faintly red as Julius sighed and explained.

Leonhard realized belatedly that Rosaline was a wizard as she suppressed her shame in response.

“In the end, Your Highness is asking for our cooperation because you can’t properly investigate the mirror alone.”

“No, I am willing to give you the evidence so that your investigation can proceed smoothly.”

They hadn’t spoken much before now, so Leonhard hadn’t realized it—but the Second Prince was a far more sly and smooth-talking man than he’d expected.

From the rumors, he had seemed soft-hearted and endlessly gentle, but this just proved: that you never really know someone until you meet them yourself.

“Marquis, if it’s your Wizards, they might be able to track down the one who holds the other mirror, right?”

“Let me ask him first.”

Leonhard called Robert, who was waiting outside, and explained about the mirror.

With Julius’s permission, Robert took the mirror and rubbed his chin thoughtfully before shaking his head.

“There is only one opportunity, and even then, the time to explore is 10 seconds…. I can’t promise anything.”

Robert took a map of the continent from his magic bag and drew a circle with the capital city as the center.

It was not a small circle, but it barely reached the northern Ajas border.

“This is the range I can scan within ten seconds. If the target is outside of this circle, we’ll waste our only chance.”

His desperate eyes silently begged: Please don’t make me carry this burden.

That look was so burdensome that Leonhard waved his hand.

“Don’t worry. I won’t leave it to you.”

“Then who will you leave it to? Duke Khalid, what about you?”