Now This Family Belongs to My Mother Chapter 23

“You’ve changed a lot since I last saw you at Gale Blanche’s salon.”

 

His tone was light and relaxed. Even a leisurely smile lingered at the corners, just like a carefree playboy. But I knew the truth. It was all an act.

 

“You look like a proper noble lady now.”

 

His crimson eyes seemed to freeze the skin on my cheek where they landed. My heart trembled, reacting to the memories of my past life. I forced myself to respond as calmly as I could.

 

“Others say I still have the manners of someone from the gutter, but I’m grateful that Your Highness sees me in a favorable light.”

 

“You didn’t look much like a noble lady just a moment ago, when you were fighting,” said Ludwig with a sly grin.

 

I was horrified. He saw me fighting with those nobles earlier? Was that why he was observing me so closely?

 

“Thanks to you, those two noisy pests are gone, so it’s a good thing.” He spoke as he rolled up his sleeve.

 

Only then did I notice that the crown prince’s sleeve was soaked with blood and pus. I had wondered why he was here, but could it be… He came to volunteer? And he actually did volunteer? That was unexpected.

 

The crown prince had lost his mother and the maternal family that could have supported him when he was young. Now, he was under constant scrutiny from Violet, the emperor’s mistress, and her family. Because of that, he pretended to be a lazy person, hiding a well-sharpened blade in his cloak.

 

But to think he actually did proper volunteer work here. That’s surprising.

 

Ludwig must have caught the look on my face because he glanced at me with a mischievous expression. “Actually, this isn’t blood from volunteering. It’s from beating someone up.”

 

“What?”

 

“Just kidding.”

 

I flinched. “Your jokes are rather scary.” As if he wasn’t already a scary person.

 

“There are plenty of people keeping their eyes wide open, watching what I do at the orphanage. If I tried anything funny, it would just cause trouble. The Duchess Violet would run straight to His Majesty to tattle.”

 

Duchess Violet was the emperor’s mistress and the biological mother of Duke Claude Clemence. Violet harbored ambitions of making her son the emperor. That’s why she always sent Claude to official events Ludwig attended, to draw comparisons between them. I knew this because Violet was Diane’s cousin.

 

“But wouldn’t pretending to be an idler even at the orphanage make the act perfect?”

 

Does he have his own limits too?

 

“Besides…”

 

Ludwig’s gaze shifted somewhere. A handsome blond man was kindly helping the sick. It was none other than Claude.

 

“My half-brother decided to tag along to keep an eye on me.”

 

He whispered to me as if sharing some amusing secret.

 

“Aren’t you busy, Your Highness?”

 

I asked indirectly. What I really meant was, shouldn’t you be over there instead?

 

Spending time with Ludwig made me feel uneasy, so I wanted to send him away as quickly as possible.

 

“Thanks to someone, it’s no big deal if I slip away for a bit.” Ludwig leaned in closer to me. “That someone being you, Lady.” He pulled out a small bottle containing green medicine from his pocket. It was Pasa Blanche. “Thanks to this medicine, treating minor illnesses is a breeze. It’s my little helper that lets me take a break.”

 

So, does that mean he’s not going back now? I bit my lip, feeling like I had just shot myself in the foot.

 

Ludwig fiddled with the bottle and asked, “Did you really make this?”

 

“Yes. I came up with the formula myself.”

 

“But even if you sell this, you won’t make much money. How do you plan to gather the funds for the donation?”

 

Ludwig was referring to the promise I made earlier when I clashed with the nobles. The promise to pay the donation on their behalf.

 

“If you want, I can help.”

 

“!”

 

I blurted out in surprise, “Why?” Then, realizing my reaction, I quickly covered my mouth with my hand, embarrassed. Seeing this, Ludwig burst into laughter.

 

“Those people you drove out, I didn’t like them. They’re too noisy. Consider this my way of repaying you.”

 

“No, thank you,” answered me quickly. I had no intention of getting involved with the crown prince.

 

“Then how are you going to handle that much money? Do you think the Grand Duke Blanche will give such a large sum for someone who’s just joined the family and has little standing?” Ludwig asked. His sharp question made me bristle slightly without realizing it.

 

“I can manage it myself.”

 

“How?”

 

“Your Highness will understand if you watch.”

 

At my bold response, Ludwig let out a laugh, almost incredulous. “Are you asking me to watch you right now?” He teased with a playful tone.

 

I flinched. “T-That’s not what I meant!”

 

“Why are you so averse to having the crown prince watch over his subjects? Are you not a loyal subject of the empire?”

 

Ludwig smiled lazily, like a predator toying with its prey, cornering me. Like a cornered rabbit, I shrank back.

 

“Then I’ll enjoy watching you.” Still smiling, Ludwig turned away.

 

Why is this happening to me! I screamed internally.

 

* * *

A luxurious mansion in the heart of the capital. The place, a testament to its owner’s immense power and extravagant taste, was now in an uproar. The reason? It was because the emperor himself had descended upon it.

 

“Your Majesty, why did you come so late? Do you have any idea how long this Violet had been waiting for you?”

 

The servants deliberately avoided looking at their usually arrogant mistress as she abandoned her pride and rushed down the stairs. She was an ageless beauty with golden hair like that of an angel and a voluptuous figure. Violet was the embodiment of the ‘beautiful and alluring imperial concubine.’

 

Emperor Ignasio Leopold smiled contentedly at the sight of his mistress fawning over him. “Didn’t I visit just a week ago?”

 

“But it’s been a whole week! Do you know how much Claude and I have been waiting for you?” Violet’s obsidian-like eyes glistened as if tears were about to fall.

 

The emperor embraced his concubine and gently patted her back.

 

“Your Majesty, I am overwhelmed with gratitude that you have come to see us again.” Meanwhile, his illegitimate son, Claude, bowed his head with a composed demeanor, showing no sign of resentment.

 

“I told you to call him Father,” Violet said, glaring at Claude.

 

“Mother,” Claude replied, frowning. No matter how much he was her son, for an illegitimate child to call him ‘father’ was overstepping the line.

 

The emperor pretended not to notice the tension between the mother and son. Then, the three of them moved to the parlor.

 

“Your Majesty, recently, our Claude went to volunteer at the temple’s free clinic. The priests couldn’t stop singing praises for him.” Violet boasted about her son.

 

“Ah, yes. I heard about that.”

 

“Really? Then perhaps a reward for Claude—”

 

“Ludwig went to the free clinic that day too.”

 

At the mention of Crown Prince Ludwig from the emperor’s lips, Violet bit her lip. It was herself, not the late empress, that the emperor loved. Had it not been for her low birth as a concubine’s daughter, the position of the empress would have been hers.

 

The crown prince should be my Claude!

 

Now that the empress’s seat was vacant, the reason the emperor hadn’t made her empress was due to her status and Ludwig’s presence. He’s trying to solidify Ludwig’s position as crown prince!

 

She wished at least for her son, Claude, to be made a prince, but all the emperor had given him was the title of Duke Clementi. A title always given to imperial illegitimate children for generations. It’s all because of that Ludwig brat! He was truly a thorn in her side.

 

“I heard His Highness didn’t even properly volunteer, but was laughing and chatting with some woman—”

 

“That boy found something interesting at the free clinic.” The emperor cut Violet off and pulled something out. A small bottle containing a green liquid. It was the Pasa Blanche.

 

“I heard they use this at the temple. It heals small wounds quickly. Very interesting. Claude, haven’t you seen this before?” The emperor asked. Since they had gone to the orphanage together, there was no way Claude hadn’t seen the Pasa Blanche. The question implied, why had he seen it but not mentioned it to him?

 

As Claude carefully chose his words, Violet spoke up first. “Oh, I know about that medicine too. It’s famous among the poor, isn’t it?” She was smiling, but her tone was mocking. “Why would anyone bother to inform Your Majesty about something only the poor use? The quality must be low anyway. I feel sorry for the crown prince trying to win your favor with something so trivial.”

 

“Is that what you think?”

 

“Of course, Your Majesty. I pity the crown prince.”

 

The emperor stroked Violet’s head, but his eyes were fixed on Claude. Unlike his gentle tone he used with Violet, his gaze was cold and sharp.

 

Claude realized it instantly. His Majesty is interested in the Pasa Blanche. But it was too late to present Pasa Blanche to the emperor now. The crown prince had already beaten him to it. Then the only move left for me is…

 

The person who created the Pasa Blanche. A girl who entered the Blanche family. She might be useful. Claude found himself intrigued by the girl.

 

* * *

Marquis Gent hurriedly hid himself in the lounge. It’s been so long since I’ve come to a ball, and now this. He was the head of one of the most powerful noble families in the empire, ranking among the top ten. But right now, he was in a troublesome situation.

 

The rash on his face, which had been under control for a while, was flaring up again. There was no medicine for it, so he had no choice but to wait for it to subside.

 

“Damn it!”

 

It was a disaster. He was supposed to meet an important business partner here today.

 

“Marquis, please try using this on your face.”

 

Someone approached Marquis Gent and held out a box.

 

“Who are you?”

 

“My name is Benjamin Paulton, the chief aide to the Blanche Grand Duchy.”

 

“The Blanche Grand Duchy…? Then, is this medicine something like Pasa Blanche?” Marquis Gent asked reluctantly. He was a man with an immense sense of noble pride. No matter how effective it was, he would never use cheap medicine like Pasa Blanche.

 

“It’s not. We’re preparing a new medicine business with a noble acquaintance. I thought it might be of help since Marquis seems to be in a difficult situation.”

 

“Is this that medicine? But…” Marquis Gent looked down at the box absentmindedly, and his eyes widened.