The Broken Prince's Love

No matter how comfortable Lucille was with Cedar, the second prince of Artias, talking to the empress of the same family without any formalities felt wrong. She always reverted to her old way of addressing the other woman, which often earned her a pout. Lucille didn't know why Blanche was so insistent on making her talk more informally, but she didn't have the strength to refuse. So, she went along with everything. Still, she couldn't help but feel a bit nervous when she sat in the empress' room while Blanche and her three maids happily chatted.

Darlene, the smallest maid out of all three of them, kept stealing cookies and devoured them whenever the empress looked away. This earned her a judgmental look from Angelica, who seemed to be her close friend and maybe even lover judging by the way they kept cuddling.

And Stella was busy asking Blanche whether she needed something to be comfortable, which the empress always refused.

Lucille sat next to them while awkwardly drinking her tea and feeling like she didn't belong. This wasn't the others' fault though. They did their best to include her, but she was still a bit reluctant to join. So, she drank another sip of her tea and listened to the conversation in front of her.

Darlene had just gulped down half of the plate of sweets by herself before her hand was pushed away by Angelica. She narrowed her eyes at that and spoke up a moment later. “Anyway... What about trying out chocolate banana cake again? I haven't eaten that in months.”

Blanche seemed to think about that for a moment before she replied in a melancholic tone. “It's been a while since I baked cake. I would like to have some freedom again.” She glanced toward Stella.

The maid quickly raised her hands to defend herself. “There is no way that you can do that right now. You can't get so close to extreme heat, and I also don't want you to handle knives at the moment. Please endure it for four more months. Then you will have recovered after the birth and can begin baking like usual again.”

Blanche narrowed her eyes at that too. “And then what? At that point, I have to take care of our baby. I won't leave our angel's side for longer than necessary. So, I will have to go without baking for at least a few weeks after that too. Shouldn't I use my time now to make some fine creations? I want blueberry-citrus pie. And not just a random one but the one that was made with my mother's recipe. No one here can do it perfectly aside from me. I will need to make it myself.”

Angelica chimed in here to calm her mistress. “We understand how you feel, but it's better to be safe than sorry. We don't want you to take any risks. His Majesty also told you to be very careful.”

The empress crossed her arms but quickly uncrossed them when the maid offered her the plate with cookies. She took two before replying. “Well, he's my husband. That doesn't count. Besides, he is overprotective because of reasons you don't understand.”

Darlene barely swallowed what she had already put in her mouth before responding. “You mean because he loves you and your baby?”

Blanche stopped her movements to reply. “That too.” Then she ate her cookie. When she finished, she looked at Lucille and offered her a smile. “I hope that we do not bore you with our conversations. We can talk about something more interesting if you want to.”

Lucille quickly shook her head. “It is alright, Your Majesty. It's just that I do not know what you usually talk about. I don't want to address topics that you have already discussed often.”

Stella made a rejecting gesture before she spoke up. “To us, it's normal to talk about the same things a hundred times. It's fun one way or another. Besides, Her Majesty told you not to use her title, didn't she?”

Blanche turned to her maid. “You are the one to talk. I told you not to use it when we are alone too. Just say ‘My Lady’ again. I don't want to hear such a distant title all the time.” She didn't wait for a response and just addressed Lucille again. “In any case, we would like to include you more in our discussion. Is there something you are curious about? Please ask me anything you would like to know.”

Lucille was quiet for a moment before she set her teacup on the table. She didn't know what to ask since she didn't want to be disrespectful. So, she barely dared to speak up. “How did you and His Majesty fall in love?” She was a fan of romance, so she couldn't help wanting to learn more about the couple that was known as one of the most adorable ones in the whole capital. She already regretted saying that a moment later though. Lucille lifted her hands and hurried to make a rejecting gesture. “You do not have to tell me if you feel bothered being asked about it again and again. And I didn't mean to offend you or intrude in matters that I should have no-”

Blanche smiled at her. “It's fine. I love talking about it. If you are alright with me gushing about this, I will gladly tell you.” She waited for a small nod and began talking while she looked into the distance as if she was reminiscing. “Theodore found me during a ball. I was crying in the pavilion, with the silver moonlight shining on the garden around us.”

She had barely finished that part when Stella already chimed in. “That day was His Majesty's birthday too. You could say that she was his birthday present. The best one he has ever had, of course.”

Lucille had heard about that part, but listening to the concerned person made it even more interesting. She was completely focused on the empress, who continued her story.

“Theo came inside, and we made eye contact. And from one second to the other, everything was different. We both fell in love at that very moment. Theodore came over to me and consoled me by wiping away my tears. And then he allowed me to move in. The first two weeks were nerve-wracking. We had so many moments in which we both were about to kiss but didn't dare to. I didn't know whether he liked me or whether I was just imagining it because he was so kind to me. But the both of us became more and more open with each day. We got closer and touched more often. We hugged each other, and it felt like there only were the two of us in this whole world. When we held hands, it was like I was melting. I thought that my heart would explode.” Blanche happily explained how their relationship had progressed after that without seeming to care much about telling this to a stranger.

Lucille listened the whole time but could barely focus. She found the royal couple cute, but she couldn't help but think about Cedar. She had held his hand too. That had been while they had been running away from murderous assassins, so it might not count though. But she had hugged him quite a few times by now. Did that mean that they were interested in one another romantically? No way.

There was no way that Cedar would ever consider being with such a boring woman like Lucille was. Besides, she was only a viscount's daughter. The only reason he had ever hugged her had been because she had asked him to do it. He had probably felt uncomfortable doing that and had just endured it for her sake.

Lucille felt bad while thinking about that, but she also had to admit that she had liked hugging Cedar very much. The first time he had touched her had been while they had been hiding in a small storage room. Back then, it had felt like her brain was exploding. She would truly need to reconsider whether her reaction had been normal. Was it really fine for her to be so sensitive when it came to him? Definitely not. She couldn't dare to develop such foolish feelings when she had just managed to make a friend. She didn't want to gamble away her relationship with Cedar by acting weird all of a sudden.

“Lady Valerian?”

Lucille snapped out of it and whipped her head up to see the other women staring at her. They had no way of knowing what she was thinking about, right? Immediately, her heart began hammering in her chest. “I sincerely apologize for being distracted. It will not happen again.”

Blanche gave her a bright smile. “There is no need to apologize. It's fine. We were just worried about you being mentally absent. Do you wish to share what you were thinking about?”

Lucille quickly shook her head before she could help herself. At first, she thought that she might have offended the others now, but she was met with four wide grins in response.

Darlene was the one who spoke up. “I think the reason you asked about this is very clear. Why you are so interested in love? Will you tell us that?”

Lucille immediately thought about Cedar and got embarrassed because of that. She quickly lowered her gaze and brought her hands to her cheeks to hide her blush. “It's not... I'm just...” She stuttered around without saying anything useful despite knowing that it only made her seem more suspicious. She took a moment before she managed to reject that idea much too loudly. “It's not what you think it is.” She was far too emotional while saying that. There was no way anyone believed her.

The other women just smiled at her as if they knew exactly what was going on inside her head. Stella commented on it first. “Ah. If you say that. But I have to give myself the right to comment on your choice.” She crossed her arms and looked up. “I personally can't understand his appeal at all. I've hated him ever since I saw him first. I think we never had a conversation, but I heard him talking to others, and that was enough to erase any desire to speak to him. He is a very unpleasant person. I don't get how you like him.” She gazed at Lucille after that and maintained eye contact despite the empress narrowing her eyes at her.

Lucille grabbed her teacup again and drank a bit while trying to hold back. She wanted to defend Cedar so badly, but that would seem odd, right? The people here probably didn't like him very much, and she would immediately ruin her chances of getting along with them if she was honest about her affection for him. So, she forced herself to stay quiet for a moment. But as she drank her tea, she quickly realized that she didn't want to let the other woman say something like this.

She lifted her head and replied in a weak voice. “If you don't know him well, please don't judge him. Cedar is a good person. It's just that he doesn't open up to others. He hides what he is thinking, but that doesn't make him a bad person in the slightest. He is really, really nice, and if you talk to him for a bit, you will quickly notice that. Until now, he's always listened to me and consoled me when I was feeling anxious. He is very considerate of others, even if you don't notice that without paying close attention.”

When she finished, it was quiet for a while. Great. Now everyone here would dislike Lucille for defending a traitor. She stared at her tea and only dared to raise her head after a few seconds. She wasn't met with anger but smiles though.

Stella hummed in approval. “There you go. You admitted to liking him. I knew that you were thinking about him. You got closer because he consoled you, huh? That sounds awfully like what happened to His and Her Majesty. What a coincidence.”

Lucille froze at that. She had been the only one to voice a specific name, hadn't she? Stella hadn't said whom she was referring to at all. Lucille had just immediately thought about Cedar. Blood rushed to her cheeks, and she lowered her gaze. This was even more embarrassing than just revealing that she liked someone. If Cedar heard this, he would surely laugh at her. She kept her eyes on her cup and drank something in an attempt to calm down, but it didn't get better. A few seconds passed, and she seriously considered excusing herself to put cold water onto her face.

But then Blanche spoke up again without the amused undertone Lucille had expected. “I apologize if we made you uncomfortable. It wasn't our intention to embarrass you. Of course, no one here will utter a single word. But I can guarantee you that even him hearing this wouldn't be an issue. After all, I know a bit about Cedar too, and I can promise you that he wouldn't just hug anyone in public.”

Lucille's heart skipped a beat. Why did the empress know about that already? That had happened two days ago. Did the whole palace know by now? She slowly lifted her gaze and made eye contact with the smiling woman. “But you misunderstood that. I was just a bit too emotional, and he calmed me down. It was my fault for asking him for a hug. He just didn't want to make me feel bad, so he agreed.”

The empress grinned at that. “Cedar definitely wouldn't care about that if you were a stranger. He hates touching people in general, and if he allows you to come close, he likes you a lot. You are only proving how close the two of you are with everything that you tell us. I'm happy to see that he is finally getting along with someone. Please take care of him.” Wasn't this similar to getting the blessing of Cedar's family?

Lucille looked down again and sipped on her tea without being certain what to say. She wasn't that close to him. She needed to explain that but had no idea how to phrase it.

Thankfully, everyone's eyes were torn away from her when someone knocked on the door. Lucille lifted her head to look at the entrance as well.

Blanche raised her voice to reply. “You may enter.”

The door opened, and Theodore came inside with a little smile on his face. “Good afternoon to all of you. I hope I'm not disturbing you.” Saying that while they all were sitting in his palace was a bit strange, but he managed to make it seem friendly just by how casually he seemed to view this. He approached the seating area and sat down on the sofa next to his wife.

It only took a single second, and Blanche had forgotten about the cookies in favor of cuddling against him.

Theodore pressed a small kiss onto her forehead before greeting her too. “Hello, my angel.”

The empress didn't let him go without a real kiss, so she lifted her head to put her lips onto his before pulling back and beaming at him. “There you are, Theo. I was already getting worried. Did something interesting happen?”

The emperor put his arms around her as he responded. “Not really. Just the usual preparations for the ball in two weeks. We have to think about how to explain that Cedar showed up here, but aside from that, everything is taken care of.” He turned to look at the other women and seemed to notice Lucille's uncertainty immediately. “There is no need to stand up, Lady Valerian. I usually chime in when my wife is sitting here. The others are already used to it, but it may feel a little strange to you at first. I can assure you that there is no reason for you to feel uncomfortable though.”

Lucille quickly nodded but still tensed. Sitting in front of the two most powerful people in the nation was nerve-wracking, but she would have to do her best to seem calm. “I understand, Your Majesty.” Her answer probably wasn't convincing, but no one insisted.

Blanche already mentioned another topic. “Did you prepare for your birthday as well? There's only a little over a month left. You will need to start planning soon.” She kept her eyes on her husband's face while waiting for a response.

Theodore smiled at her and stroked over her head before replying. “I did a little. But since my beloved wife said that she wanted to take care of most things, I haven't done too much. As promised, you will have the right to do whatever you want to.”

Blanche seemed happy with that, but Lucille didn't listen to them anymore. She had known that the emperor's birthday party would come soon. But still, she couldn't help but ponder it now.

Usually, great festivities were held for the birthday of every member of the royal family. Lucille remembered visiting the emperor's, the empress', and the dowager empress' respective parties. But she didn't remember even a single celebration for the prince's birthday. Had she truly never visited a party for Cedar? Of course, there wouldn't have been a party during the six years he had spent in confinement. But last year, there hadn't been a ball for him either. Had that been because of Theodore's strained relationship with his brother? But even so, wasn't that unfair when the dowager empress had also received a ball? Lucille would have liked to congratulate Cedar.

“It seems like she didn't hear us. Lady Valerian?”

Lucille was once again pulled out of her thoughts by the empress. Her gaze shot up, and she tightened her hold on her teacup. “I apologize. Yes, Your Majesty?”

Blanche scanned her for a moment before replying. “Is there something that's bothering you? If so, please feel free to speak up. You seemed like you were thinking about something.”

Lucille opened her mouth and closed it again. She couldn't just ask this, right? Wouldn't she offend the royal family if she questioned their decisions? But she was curious about Cedar's birthday. She didn't even have a clue when it was. Didn't she need to ask to be sure that she wouldn't miss congratulating him next time? “I...” She wasn't sure how to phrase her question and took a short moment before she dared to speak. “I would like to ask something, if you don't mind it. When...is Cedar's birthday?”

To her surprise, no one got angry. Theodore just replied without hesitation. “That was one and a half months ago. It's the forty-third of summer.”

Lucille froze. Cedar had been with her during that day already. But she hadn't known about it at all. She had completely forgotten to congratulate him nor had she given him a gift. “Ah. He didn't tell me. I didn't prepare anything.” She dug her fingers into the cup and lowered her gaze in shame.

Theodore scanned her expression before he replied. “That might have been better. He doesn't like his birthday very much. That's why we never have a grand party for him. He has disliked his birthday ever since he was a child, but back then, he still allowed a celebration. Since last year, he forbade it completely. So, you probably wouldn't have done him a favor by giving him a gift.”

Lucille pressed her lips into a line. She could imagine why Cedar didn't like his birthday. But such a reason was ridiculous. She forced herself to make eye contact with the emperor. “But he only dislikes it because no one made his birthday a wonderful day yet. That's even more of a reason to give him something great, right? There doesn't have to be a grand party, but a small acknowledgment would be nice. I mean, even a little gift would make him understand that someone thought about him.” She didn't want to admit it, but her mind was already racing to find something that she could give him.

What was she supposed to hand over to Cedar? There was nothing she could truly buy for him. Cedar was more wealthy than she was. What would a prince even need? Nothing much. And buying a gift wouldn't feel very special either. She couldn't imagine pleasing Cedar with materialistic presents, not when he just had to snap his fingers before whatever he wanted was his.

But there had to be something Lucille could get for him. Then she could give it to him and apologize for missing his birthday. Or would he dislike the reminder?

It seemed like Lucille's thoughts had been rather obvious.

Blanche beamed at her and spoke up in a soft voice. “I'm sure he will like it if you give him a gift. But it may be hard to find something to buy. How about you make a gift yourself? You could bake a small cake and bring it over to eat with him.”

Lucille had understood that the other woman loved baking by now, but she had never considered doing it herself. She had never cooked or baked, so the result would be a disaster anyway. She wasn't confident in skills that required her to use her hands. Lucille was skilled at embroidery, but that was it. “Baking? I don't...think that this is a good idea. I never...tried that.” She had always eaten what others had brought her. She had never considered anything else since she had been raised as the young daughter of a noble family.

But hearing this only made Blanche's face light up even more. “Then I can teach you! I needed an excuse to visit the kitchen again again anyway. It's not that hard, so there won't be any issues. I promise that it will turn out deliciously. Will you give me a chance?” She folded her hands and gave the other woman a pleading look, even though that wasn't necessary since she was the empress.

Lucille would never refuse such an innocent request. She could just go along with it and then decide whether she would actually give a prince some of the catastrophic cake she had made by then. She didn't know whether her baking would be eatable, but for now, she had no reason not to try it. If she was unskilled enough, they would probably let her go. So, she agreed in a weak voice, which evoked a content grin from Blanche.

Lucille swallowed and hoped that she would be able to create something that tasted similar to cake. She really wanted to give Cedar a present after all.