How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 266

“What do you mean, Your Highness?”

 

Tommy looked up at Karl with a worried expression.

 

He was worried that after saying those words, Karl would use violence on him again.

 

“Go to the Rose Quartz Palace right now and tell them I’ll be visiting.”

 

But contrary to Tommy’s fears, Karl actually gave him a proper errand.

 

“Pardon? Rose Quartz Palace… You mean the one where the First Princess resides?

 

“Yes. When I become the prince, we will become family. If the nobility and royalty are supposedly wracked with concern, then I should at least pay her a proper visit, don’t you think?”

 

“But… I heard the First Princess refuses even the daily visits from the Second Prince.”

 

If this person had a high status, it might be different, but Karl, who had not yet been crowned prince, was not even on the same level as the princess.

 

If she refused the visit, he would have no choice but to turn back.

 

But—

 

“Did you forget? That woman has a weakness I’m holding over her.”

 

Karl ordered Tommy to bring paper and a pen, then quickly wrote a short letter.

 

“Give this to the First Princess. There’s no way she’ll be able to refuse me once she reads it.”

 

And just as he confidently claimed—

 

About an hour later, the head maid of Rose Quartz Palace, who had firmly turned away even the Second Prince, couldn’t bring herself to block Karl as he cheerfully hummed his way into the palace.

 

* * *

 

“It wasn’t entirely a lie when they said she was seriously ill. She really doesn’t look good.”

 

Without being invited, Karl flopped down into a chair and lazily jerked his chin toward Tommy, who stood behind him.

 

Tommy quietly stepped forward and handed a large box he’d been holding to one of the First Princess’s maids.

 

“It’s a good medicinal herb for your health, so boil it and drink it once a day.”

 

“…….”

 

Inside the bed with the canopy lifted.

Mariette, sitting with her back against a large cushion, remained expressionless and silent.

 

The head maid was biting her lip to keep herself from telling Karl to show some respect in front of the princess.

 

One of the younger maids, glancing nervously between them, gave Karl a hesitant bow.

 

“I-I’ll go brew the medicine right away.”

 

“Do that. Oh, and you—go help her. We plan to have a deep conversation among ourselves as royals.”

 

“Yes, Your Highness.”

 

Tommy, who had received the order from Karl, followed the maid out of the bedroom.

 

Now only Karl, the knights of the Second Prince who had come with him, Mariette and her guards, and the head maid remained in the room.

 

Carl raised his voice slightly at them, who were standing silently, like a music box on a display case or a picture frame hanging on a wall.

 

“Didn’t you hear? We’re going to have a deep conversation among ourselves.”

 

In short, it was like telling them all to get out of there.

 

No one, on either the Second Prince’s or the First Princess’s side, remained unaffected by his words.

 

Among them, it was the knight who showed his discomfort by letting his temper sag, while the First Princess’s side tried to remain calm. It was the head maid who stepped forward, her tone restrained.

 

“The First Princess is seriously ill and needs constant attention. And Your Highness is not yet formally—”

 

“Hah… Hey, do I have to keep listening to your subordinates babbling?”

 

Karl’s blatant disrespect toward the princess left everyone stunned.

 

The tension in the air conveyed just how shocked they all were.

 

Mariette placed a hand on her forehead and let out a heavy sigh, speaking in a low, weak voice.

 

“Leave us.”

 

“But Your Highness—!”

 

“I said, leave us.”

 

Everyone obeyed, not because of the words themselves, but because of the frailty in her voice.

 

Not wanting to stress her any further, the people bowed their heads and left the bedroom.

 

—Click.

 

The door closed.

 

Karl got up from his seat and began to roam around the bedroom as if it were his own.

 

“A lot has changed since I last came here. Is it because the seasons have changed?”

 

Karl picked a pale pink rose from a vase next to the window and casually plucked its petals one by one.

 

Mariette clutched the bed sheets tightly under the blanket at his extremely rude behavior.

 

But even that wasn’t enough to calm her boiling anger. Her glare turned sharp as blades as she stared at him.

 

“What makes you think you can just show up here?”

 

“It’s the Rose Quartz Palace. It’s the palace that the princess who manifested the Symbol last winter received as a gift when she was crowned crown princess.”

 

The flower stem, which had lost all its petals and was bare, burst into flames.

 

It wasn’t magic—Karl’s sleeve glowed with the red light of the Estroa symbol, clearly displaying his power.

 

Mariette gritted her teeth at Karl, who showed off his symbol.

 

“Let me be clear. The only reason I allowed you in here was to issue a warning.”

 

“A warning?”

 

Mariette glared at Karl, who had a look of disagreement on his face, and recalled the contents of the letter he had sent.

 

[I’m going to come see you soon, so you’d better not refuse. Haven’t we become quite close friends through various events? If you turn away my sincere concern and reject my visit, I may be so heartbroken that I end up revealing your secret to everyone.]

 

A commoner, imitating Estroa symbol is not enough—he dares to threaten her?

 

She couldn’t forgive the man standing before her. More than anger, she was shaken from sheer humiliation.

 

“No matter how you threaten me, you will never be crowned. I will sacrifice my life to prevent that from happening.”

 

“Well. Among those who say things like that, there isn’t a single person who would actually risk their own life.”

 

‘No, there was one.’

 

Karl tried to recall Asta’s face but gave up.

 

He stepped toward Mariette’s bed.

 

“Well, it doesn’t matter. Whether you give up your life or not, I will take the throne.”

 

“Don’t come near me!”

 

Thinking Karl was trying to intimidate her, Mariette instinctively pulled the blanket up to her chin.

 

The way she clutched it like it was a steel shield made Karl smirk and let out a chuckle.

 

Face flushed, Mariette’s eyes widened as she saw Karl reach for a framed picture on the wall beside her bed.

 

“Why are you touching that—? Wh-What is that?!”

 

“What do you think? Your secret card.”

 

This bedroom was decorated entirely under Mariette’s instructions—from the color of the curtains to the arrangement of the furniture.

Of course, she had chosen that frame herself. The wall behind it had been completely blank.

 

And when she thought “blank,” she meant truly blank. No compartments. No hidden spaces.

 

But now, Karl was taking out a large iron box from a secret space that had been covered with a picture frame.

 

Mariette was utterly stunned.

 

She hadn’t even known such a space existed behind that frame—let alone that something had been hidden inside.

 

“How… when… why…?”

 

“When? What do you mean by when? Don’t you remember? I used to come here all the time pretending to be your Doctor.”

 

Karl put the box down on the table, whistled, and tapped his head with his index finger.

 

“I hid it in advance in case something like this happened. What do you think? Wasn’t I a bit smart?”

 

“You…!”

 

Mariette, trembling all over, opened her mouth wide to call for someone outside.

 

“No.”

 

But before she could scream, Karl was faster—he pulled a pouch of sleeping powder from the box and blew it toward her.

 

The sleeping powder that entered through her open mouth took effect immediately, and Mariette’s body collapsed.

 

“Oh my, if you sleep like that, your back will hurt.”

 

Acting like he was doing her a favor, Karl gently laid her down properly and even pulled the blanket up over her chest.

 

After making it appear as though she had simply fallen asleep on her own, he turned his attention back to the box.

 

“Good… It’s still the same.”

 

He hadn’t stored too much inside, just in case the box was ever discovered—but what he needed most right now was definitely there.

 

A magic tool for direct contact.

 

Karl picked up a piece of wood in the shape of a bird, closed the curtains on the window, and lit a lamp to set up a soundproof barrier.

 

After confirming that the sealed bedroom was filled with the blue light of the lamp, he activated his magical tool.

 

“Pan, can you hear me?”

 

– Karl…?

 

The bird’s beak moved slightly as the voice came through, and Karl nearly shouted for joy.

 

‘If I hadn’t been able to contact him, I wouldn’t have known, but since I was able to contact Pan, the biggest problem was basically solved.’

 

“Where are you now? Are you okay?”

 

– N-nothing’s wrong… Why, what’s going on?

 

“What about the mirror? Are you being chased by Marquis Ajas or anyone else?”

 

Pan was silent for a moment and then answered in a small voice.

 

– I-I got rid of it… A-anyway, it’s useless now.

 

“You did? Good job! What matters most is your safety.”

 

Karl sighed, feeling truly relieved.

 

He didn’t even think to apologize for making Pan discard the mirror he’d cherished, nor did he offer any words of comfort.

 

“So, where are you now? Did you leave the capital?”

 

– Y-yeah. I-I’m on my way… to the dungeon in Count Gordon’s territory.

 

There was only one reason for Pan to go there. Karl felt a thrill of joy.

 

‘knew it. As if someone like him would betray me…!’

 

“Pan, how much bloodstone did you bring from the tower?”

 

– A-a lot… A-almost all of it…

 

“You took almost all of it?”

 

Karl’s eyes widened in surprise.

 

But that wasn’t even the biggest shock.

 

– I-I got Master’s permission too. I-I also brought the chimeras and higher-ranked monsters from the Tower… They’re in Count Gordon’s territory now.

 

* * *