Chapter 346: Crazy Person
He put down the file and picked up his teacup. Even a prince who’s busy to death should get a bit of time to relax.
Second Prince Eric was sitting in his office. Maybe because it was a more private place, he looked much more relaxed here than he did in the royal council room.
Although the word “prince” sounds noble and mighty, to him, it was more like a restriction.
Even though there were still documents on his desk, for Eric, this was one of the rare times he could actually rest. In his own home, he could show his tired self without worrying about being criticized by those old men in the court.
The black tea was slightly bitter. After all these years, he had gotten used to that bitterness, since his mother once told him.
‘As a prince, you shouldn’t touch sweets, those are for girls.’
Even though Eric actually liked desserts quite a bit.
But because he was someone meant to become the emperor in the future, he still chose to follow his mother’s instructions, cutting off most of his own preferences from a young age.
Or maybe he never had many personal likes to begin with. After all, his mother had always suppressed him deliberately.
As a future king, the fewer desires one has, the better. That way, one wouldn’t be swayed by unnecessary emotions in the days to come.
—That was probably the idea.
Eric didn’t really understand it. But he didn’t need to. After all, he had lived under that kind of pressure for so many years that his way of life wasn’t going to change now.
“Your Highness?”
Just when he was finally taking a short break and didn’t want to be bothered, a girl’s voice came from the door, right as he was about to sneak in a little nap. Along with the voice came her head poking through the crack in the doorway.
“......”
Eric raised an eyebrow when he saw who it was.
“Grey Dove? What are you doing here again?”
When dealing with his real subordinates, Eric didn’t bother putting on a friendly, down-to-earth prince act. Seeing the red-haired girl in gray clothes squeeze into his room, his voice clearly showed some annoyance and impatience.
“Of course I came to check on His Highness.”
Seeing that Eric didn’t immediately throw her out with harsh words, Grey Dove stepped right in. Her movements weren’t as exaggerated as usual, but to someone like Eric, who had a rather serious personality, she still acted way too casually.
“Just say what you came for.”
Grey Dove clearly didn’t come here just to “check in.” They weren’t exactly the type of people who could chat casually either, one was a strict master, and the other, an annoying servant. It was obvious these two didn’t get along.
Even if she used some silly excuse, Eric already knew what she wanted to ask.
“Alright, fine—Your Highness, I just want to ask about ‘Lord Red Crow.’”
—Ha, I knew it.
Eric even rolled his eyes in frustration.
If Grey Dove came to him, it could only be about one thing. You didn’t need to be a genius to figure it out.
Grey Dove never questioned the tasks he gave her. She never asked for extra money or special materials. She just quietly did whatever he told her to do. In the Second Prince’s eyes, her efficiency was second only to Red Crow, who had always stayed by his side.
But Eric really didn’t like her. Literally, he hated her.
People say a woman’s voice is like fifty chirping sparrows. Grey Dove was more like a hundred and fifty.
She was one of the younger assassins, so her voice still had a girlish tone, and it was loud.
On top of that, her unique personality made her stand out even more. Most assassins working under the Second Prince were very quiet. Take Evelia, for example, she barely spoke at all and had always stayed close to Red Crow, which helped Eric get used to a peaceful, quiet environment.
But Grey Dove was the total opposite. She was like a noisy, sharp speaker that never shut up. Her crazy energy alone made her look noisy.
So Eric really didn’t like keeping her around. Unless she was on standby or out on assignment, he preferred to send her away.
When she was away, it was fine. Even if she contacted him using a “leaf” communicator, he could choose when to end the call himself. He didn’t have to listen to her annoying voice in the middle of the night.
But when she was on standby... it led to problems like this one.
Grey Dove was the type who would run around everywhere. She was like a grasshopper that would never stop moving.
That guy Grey Dove was the type who would run around everywhere. She was like a grasshopper that would never stop moving.
It was as if, if she wasn’t doing something, she wasn’t alive at all.
“Your Highness, Your Highness, when are you planning to bring Lord Red Crow back?”
When Grey Dove asked this, her eyes sparkled with excitement. She looked like she wanted Eric to write the order immediately so Evelia could return to the House of Nightingales.
“Why are you asking this?” Eric frowned as he leaned back, watching her walk closer.
“Because I miss Lord Red Crow! She’s my goddess… huu huu… I really want her to come home soon~~”
Just talking about her idol made Grey Dove go into her usual obsessed mode again. Her face turned red, she was breathing heavily, and looked like some creepy stalker.
“She has things to do. That’s not something you need to know.”
“But, Your Highness, I really miss Lord Red Crow. Don’t you want her to come home too? She’s the only one worthy to live with us, right? Such a pure and noble Lord Red Crow… how can you let a goddess like her stay outside alone? What if she gets corrupted by the dirty outside world? Ahh… I’m really worried about her...”
Whenever it was about Red Crow, Grey Dove would go on and on.
She had truly been worried about Evelia’s condition, especially after seeing her angry.
She hated emotions. She believed that someone who wasn’t controlled by feelings was the only kind of truly perfect person. That’s why she always believed Evelia was the divine figure she had been searching for.
But at that time, her beloved Lord Red Crow showed emotions, an expression she believed no god should ever show.
What if Red Crow, who came down to the mortal world, got corrupted by the filth of humans… That angry look, she must’ve already been tainted. Red Crow was supposed to be flawless—
“……”
Unlike Grey Dove’s madness, Eric went quiet. His face also turned darker.
To others, Grey Dove’s words might have sounded like the ramblings of a lunatic, but to Eric, they seemed to wake something up inside him.
These past few days, he had been too focused on the emperor and hadn’t paid attention to Red Crow, who he had sent out long ago. Even though Red Crow was the most trusted subordinate he had, Eric had to admit he was starting to get concerned.
Maybe… it was time to ask for a report from her.
“Oh right, Your Highness! This too, I almost forgot~”
After finishing her crazy speech, Grey Dove finally remembered why she came. She took out a folder from her personal seal. Judging by the special markings on it, it was something White Dove had asked her to pass on.
White Dove was the kind of person who didn’t like running around, so it wasn’t strange for her to ask others to deliver things for her. But usually, she would use regular guards to deliver small stuff. This time, however, she sent Grey Dove herself, which made Eric a bit curious.
If Grey Dove hadn’t already planned to come and ramble about Red Crow, then that meant this document was something that couldn’t be shown to outsiders, a “private item.”
And as for how White Dove convinced Grey Dove to deliver it, it was probably because Grey Dove also wanted an excuse to come and ask about Red Crow.
Eric took the thin folder. Since Grey Dove was a weirdo who didn’t really care about secrecy, he just opened it directly.
Inside were a few ordinary-looking photos and some identity records.
“—!”
But when he looked closely, he gasped.
This wasn’t just some “ordinary” stuff. He had even seen some of these photos before.
They were from the fireworks festival. Back then, he had intercepted some intelligence photos from a trader. One of the images clearly showed the scene where his mother’s carriage was attacked.
And that person in the black cloak…
Eric paused for a few seconds before his eyes moved to one of the identity records.
That file was very old, using the document format from when his mother was still alive.
And the name written on it, Eric still remembered it.
Aegmed Scassia. Of course he knew that name. After all, this man had a connection with both him and Red Crow.
But the second record made his eyes go wide.
It belonged to none other than the current captain of the Royal Knights, Armand.