The Broken Prince's Love

Cedar could already see that Leonard was annoyed, and he would make it even worse with his next comment. “This paragraph here directly contradicts our law number one-hundred-twenty-seven. You know, the most important one from that whole chapter? We will have to limit the capacities of that shipment, or they will pay so much tax that they will go bankrupt in two years.”

Leon froze at that. He took the paper and ripped it away from the other man. He skimmed through the text again before looking up at the prince with anger painted onto his face. “This is ridiculous. How come you can take one look at it and immediately point out five more mistakes? You already made me rewrite seven contracts today. I should be the one who knows our constitution best. Or Theodore here. Did you learn that whole damn thing by heart?”

Cedar tapped his fingers onto his table. He would have liked to say that this was exaggerated, but unfortunately, his wonderful mother had insisted on him memorizing their laws as soon as he had been able to read. “Maybe. I haven't reread it in a few years. So, I might have forgotten some parts again.” He was pretty sure that he knew everything though. He had internalized the old version so often that he could enumerate the topic of every law in the middle of the night. And he had learned all of the new additions too. Maybe he would mess up the order at some point, but he knew everything. To him, that was completely normal.

Leonard didn't seem to find that funny though. He dug his fingers into the paper. “Are you serious? Then why aren't you the one dealing with this garbage here? I have better things to do too. From now on, you will read through my notes before I force myself to write it into a long contract.” It seemed like the prince would get even more work. Great.

Cedar immediately opened his mouth to refuse. “You are supposed to be the genius royal advisor. I already stole work from our emperor. I can't take over your position too.” He had barely finished saying that when another piece of paper landed in front of him.

Theodore seemed satisfied upon making his brother go through more work than a traitor should touch and especially seemed happy about this document. “I fear that it's a little too late for that. Besides, no one will complain if you take work away from us. But I agree that we did too much today already.” They had been here for one and a half hours, which wasn't that much. “So, let's take a look at the last contract today. This is the final one I will make you sign now.”

Cedar sighed at that. He had been rather clear about refusing to put his name under anything he did. He wouldn't make it seem like the emperor was stupid enough to give power to the people that had tried to kill him. “I said I won't sign-” He looked down and froze when he saw that layout. He rarely touched such documents. After all, he didn't plan on having a wedding any time soon. “A marriage contract? Really, Theodore? Are you going to push a marriage onto me?”

The emperor just let out a small laugh at that. “I do know whom I could make you marry, and neither of you would complain. But I obviously won't do that. I need you as a witness. This is for-”

Cedar waved his hand around to signal that he didn't need an explanation. “I know. Althea and Father, right?”

Theodore nodded. It had been obvious that he would try to make his mother an official member of the royal family, even if Althea was already dead. “I don't want any problems, especially not because of the dowager empress. So, I'd like you to sign this claiming that you were present. Just so that it's not too obvious that I made the high priest lie about him doing the ceremony.” He was awfully honest while saying something like this out loud.

Cedar would advise him to be more careful, but this wasn't his business. Instead, put on a surprised expression. “What do you mean?”

Theodore should know that his brother only stopped smiling when he was acting by now, but he still fell into the trap. “What?”

Cedar almost sighed at that naivete and just continued while speaking as if he was completely serious. He made eye contact with his brother and just added some unnecessary detail. “Obviously, you would never force a man of the gods to tell something else aside from the truth. And why would the priest lie? The ceremony was beautiful. Only five people were there. The couple, us two and the high priest. We had red roses that were decorating the small temple, and the wedding rings were golden with small sapphires on top. It was breathtaking, so I'd never forget how wonderful each second was. Althea cried a lot, and even Father appeared to be a bit emotional.” The lie was painfully obvious. No one who knew the former emperor would believe that he would have taken his second unwanted son to a wedding that would have been a happy occasion.

Theodore almost seemed relieved that there wasn't an issue here. “I already thought you didn't get why I wanted you to sign. But it's good if we come up with a believable story like that. If you told others this, they would probably trust you. You're too good at lying. Did you notice that?”

Cedar had to hold back a sarcastic comment. He could claim to never lie, but that would probably be the biggest lie he had ever told. “I know. But does that matter when it will help you? You probably want me to say that I witnessed Althea adopting you too, right?”

Theodore was quiet for a moment and glanced at one of the drawers, where the prepared contract was most likely waiting. “To be honest, yes. And...” This time, he stayed silent and looked at his brother again. “Regarding the adoption contract, there is something else I wanted to tell you.” He kept his eyes on his brother's face to take in every small reaction as he resumed in a hesitant tone. “We could also... Only if you want to, of course. There is the option of writing one for you as well.”

Cedar had expected a lot but not this. “What?” He was dumbfounded by that, but he still forced himself to speak. “I probably misunderstood that. That just now sounded like you want to act like Althea adopted me. But everyone would know that that's obviously a lie. For you, it would be believable since she raised you. Everyone knows I stuck to mother.” Which had more or less been rather unhealthy and unpleasant.

Theodore didn't let his brother wait for a response for long. “I know that this sounds a bit odd. And it probably came too suddenly. I won't force you, of course. I just wanted to tell you that we have that option. We have our ways to sign those contracts, so the legal matters aren't the limiting factor here. If you want to, we will do it.”

That didn't make sense. Cedar had never been close to Althea. Of course, that woman had been like a saint and had been kind to him whenever she had seen him. She had helped him when she had thought that he felt unwell, and she had offered him to come to her whenever he was in trouble. Even after it had become clear that the dowager empress was raising her second son to harm Theodore. Even after Cedar had had violent fits and got into fights with his brother. It had almost been ridiculous how kind Althea had been.

But that didn't mean that she would like to adopt the person who had sworn to kill her beloved son. The person who had stood by while she had been killed. No matter how nice she had been, she would not agree.

And once again, images of Althea lying in her own blood on the floor in that carriage flooded Cedar's mind. He showed his brother a bright smile as he replied. “I doubt that it would be a good idea to do this. We can't just assume that Althea would agree. I would rather not decide something like this for...” A dead person. “For someone else. I wasn't the most likable child. I caused a lot of trouble for you, and I doubt that she liked me threatening you very much. You do remember the countless unpleasant interactions we had.”

Theodore almost seemed a bit annoyed at that comment. Maybe because he noticed that his brother always brought up past problems when they ended up talking about sensitive matters. But he still replied with sincerity in his voice. “I remember. And more than that, I remember my mother. You remember Althea too. She liked you. She would have taken you in too if she had had the chance. You know that. The only reason she didn't do it was that she felt guilty for taking away another woman's child, even when that clearly was the better option. But if we had known the full extent of what that monster did to you, we would have intervened. And now, Mother might not be here anymore, but she wouldn't hesitate to reach out for you if she was with us.”

The only reason Althea wasn't here anymore was because of Camille's unjust hatred. And because of Cedar's indifference. His inactivity while he watched how his mother hired assassins to kill Theodore.

Althea had died protecting her son. Of course, she would blame Cedar. There was no way that she would forgive him for targeting Theodore. Even the emperor should know.

But Theodore just seemed like he was sure that it would be fine. He met his brother's gaze and spoke in a calm voice. “If your concern is what she would say, I can guarantee you that she would agree. The only question is whether you want to do this. But, of course, we won't deal with this contract now. That can wait too. Just think about whether you want to have Althea as your adoptive mother.”

Cedar was skeptical, to say the least. Althea's opinion was one thing. The fact that Theodore would allow his hated brother to be acknowledged as Althea's son too was strange as well. But of all this, the legal issues had to be the most confusing part. Althea was dead. She couldn't sign any contract that would allow her to adopt children. And neither the former emperor nor the dowager empress would agree either.

Cedar scanned his brother for a moment and voiced his question, even if he could guess the answer. “Don't you normally need the signature of the biological parents too? You should be well aware that Mother will never sign.”

Theodore let out a snort. “Do I look like I care about that? If she hates it, it's only even better for me. And you can believe me when I say that I will get permission one way or another. I can declare her insane or just fake her signature. Leon is good at imitating other's writing. He can do that for us if we just hand him two of the dowager empress' letters. That is what he will do with Mother's writing too. Or I can put the royal seal on it and make it a decree. Then no one can complain because the emperor ordered it.” That probably wasn't very legal. It wasn't like this would be a big issue for the nation, but it was still problematic.

Cedar wouldn't insert himself into that discussion. “I see. Just remember that Mother is going to drag you in front of a trial for this. But I doubt that this will do her any good. I don't care. For now, I just have to sign the contract here, right? And the official story is that Father married Althea secretly because he knew how Mother would react?”

Theodore was silent for a short moment before he replied. “Yes. You only need to write your name down there. I already signed, so I am named as a witness along with the high priest. Of course, no one would believe me and a person from the temple that would do anything to gain the emperor's favor. But if you say it too, they might be inclined to trust me.”

Cedar picked up the pen and skimmed through the text while replying. “You know how good my reputation is. I think no one believes what I say anymore. I don't know whether this helps you a lot, but I can sign.” He quickly put his name below the other two and set down the pen. His mother would kill him for this as soon as she found out. Which might be good because pushing her away when she was hysteric was much easier than it was when she was calm.

Theodore was visibly content with that and proudly took the contract into his hand. “Thank you very much. Then Althea is now officially called Althea Estien and is a member of the royal family. I will need to put her name in our family register. But I think I'll wait until I can give her the more important title too.” So, he really wanted to make his mother dowager empress too.

Camille would lose her mind. More so than she already had.

Cedar could only hope that he wouldn't be present when his mother found out about that. He glanced at the clock and then stood up. “You said that was the last contract. I can leave now, right? You are surely aching to go back to your lovely family as well.”

Theodore beamed at that. “Of course. But it seems like you will have to deal with your family too.” He couldn't hide the trace of playfulness when he added the next comment. “You need to go eat dinner with your father-in-law now.” It seemed like Theodore already saw Lucille as his brother's wife.

Cedar held back a sigh and replied in a fake dejected tone. “Indeed. I'm a bit nervous.” Not really. Lucille was the one being nervous. “I'm planning on asking for his blessing.”

Leon lowered his documents at that and scanned the prince with something like concern. “So, do I have to write another marriage contract soon? Great. Doing it the first time was bad enough.”

Theodore chimed in. “You don't need to do that. You can use the one you wrote for me and Blanche after taking out the parts about emperors and empresses. The rest can stay the same. And...” He turned to his brother. “You don't necessarily need Lord Valerian's approval, you know. You have mine already. In the worst case, you can wait until Lady Valerian is twenty, or I will just give you a royal decree.” Why were those two acting like this was a real problem and not a joke?

Cedar watched the other two while already mentally wishing for Lucille's presence. He had planned on staying quiet, but the last comment had worried him a bit, so he needed to speak. “Surely, you can do that. But it would be nice if the emperor isn't accused of trapping a young, innocent woman in a marriage with a criminal.”

Theodore made a rejecting gesture with his hand. “You don't have to worry about that. Lucille won't complain. No one else will either. Especially not when you can just pull out the ace in your sleeve. True love reforms everyone. Something like that. It seems to happen often in our family.”

Seemingly, Camille hadn't had that luck.

Cedar didn't bother pointing out how ridiculous that sounded and walked to the door. “So, I should justify a marriage by talking about fairy tales? We will see. I wish the both of you a wonderful evening.”

Leon muttered his response while already being absorbed in his work.

Theodore replied in a more polite tone but had to ruin it immediately. “Good evening. Have fun with your future wife and her father. He is rather moody, so you should prepare to explain why you kissed his daughter in the middle of a ball. We'll see each other tomorrow. You need to deal with the contract you explained to me after all.” Great.

Cedar put his hand on the door handle but couldn't bring herself to stay quiet. “You know, when I talk to you, I finally understand why people find it annoying that our family is so stubborn. Our definitions of ‘a convicted criminal shouldn't mess with politics’ differ a bit. But, well. Good evening.” He stepped outside and closed the door behind him.

It only took a moment for all of the tension to fall off him. After all, he knew that he would be able to meet Lucille now. So, he quickly prepared for the dinner.

As always, Cedar picked up Lucille by her door so that they could meet her father in the entrance hall. And as always, she was breathtaking. Today, Lucille wore a simple light pink dress with loose sleeves and no jewelry, and that was already enough to make her appear divine. It would be odd for anyone to overlook her beauty when she just seemed to glow.

Cedar had thought that she couldn't be more beautiful, but she proved him wrong each time. So, he couldn't hold back his first comment upon seeing her. “You are beautiful. It's an honor to be able to accompany you today.”

Lucille's embarrassment immediately came back. She averted her eyes and began playing with a strand of her hair. She seemed like she wanted to stay quiet for a moment to calm down, but in the end, she didn't have the patience to do so. “Thank...you very much. You look wonderful too. I wish you a nice evening.”

Cedar couldn't help but grin at that. “I'm sure that the evening will be overwhelmingly wonderful as long as I am able to escort a charming woman like you.” He offered her his arm while speaking.

As expected, Lucille only nodded. She was too bashful to say anything else and just let him lead her downstairs.

For a while, they were silent until they reached the first floor of the entrance hall. Viscount Valerian hadn't appeared yet, which probably meant that he would come a bit later.

Lucille looked around for a moment. When she didn't spot her father, she only got more nervous. She began shifting her weight from one foot to the other. She barely dared to make eye contact with Cedar but glanced at him over and over again. It was painfully obvious that she wanted to say something and just didn't dare put it into words.

So, Cedar took over for her. He turned to her and showed her a blinding smile. “Are you worried about what he will say?”

Lucille froze for a few seconds before she nodded. She cast her gaze downward and stared at the floor while speaking in a weak voice. “Before, he was already unhappy because you escorted me. Now that people know that we...kissed.” She said that last word in an even lower volume. “Don't we have to talk about this more seriously? If he found out...” Which he definitely had thanks to the rumors. “He will be furious. After all, this is almost...”

If a man and a woman kissed in public, the chances of them being able to marry another person were significantly lowered. Especially for the woman, as unfair as that was. This meant that exchanging affection in front of others was almost an indication that those two concerned people would marry or get engaged for now. A kiss on a balcony during a ball in the royal palace was about the least inconspicuous thing one could do when it came to such displays of affection.

And in the end, that had been Cedar's fault. He had kissed Lucille without holding back, and then he had decided that offering her marriage was a good idea. Even though he knew that he would only make her life much harder with his presence. Not just because of Camille's meddling. Also because he doubted that he could give the love Lucille deserved.

But to be honest, he would still give in if Lucille just told him that she wanted to go through with this. At least if she still said the same thing in a few years.

Cedar gave her a little smile before he scanned the area around them. They were alone, so he could address this topic again. “You remember what I told you, right? I said that you won't end up being troubled because of my actions. I will take responsibility in whatever way may be necessary. So, you can rest assured that you will not lose any chances because of this.” Even if she decided to cut all ties with him, he would find a way to make sure that she had enough money to sustain herself if she would be unable to marry because of this.

Lucille barely dared to make eye contact, but she forced herself to do it. “So... This is still about us...marrying?” She only breathed out that last word.

Cedar nodded at her. The last rational part of his brain reminded him that this was stupid. After all, he wouldn't be a good husband. But the chance of Lucille being his wife was enough to make him reconsider. He might not be a good person, but he could make her happy. At least he hoped that.

He could spend time with her and be kind to her. He could take care of her and give her almost everything she wanted. In the end, the both of them liked each other, so they could be satisfied being together. That was better than what many arranged marriages had to offer. So, it shouldn't be too bad as long as Camille got taken care of, right?

Cedar had to admit that he was moving a bit fast here. But he wanted to calm down Lucille, and that was surely the only reason he said this. “If you look at it objectively, marriage wouldn't be too bad. We get along well, right? And we don't need to worry about how we are going to sustain ourselves either. I can easily take care of the both of us, even if we had to run away into another nation. I haven't touched my personal funds in years, so they should have an impressive size by now.” After all, having supported businesses years ago and now earning money with everything they sold was profitable. “And since I assume that marriage can't get much more pleasant than the spouses liking each other, I don't think that we need to worry so much. Of course, that still isn't binding. It's an option though.”

An option that Cedar would like a lot. He had to marry at some point, unless he managed to avoid it entirely and his brother didn't insist. And of all the women he knew, Lucille was the only one he could imagine being with. Spending time with her felt wonderful. It would be nice if he could feel like this for a while longer.

He hadn't said that much, but Lucille was already embarrassed again. She had avoided his gaze before, but now she stared into the distance with some strange emotion on her face. She wanted to say something, that much was clear. The prince already considered asking her when she spoke in a barely audible voice. “Can you...hold my...” So, she wanted to confirm whether he was serious like this? That was too cute.

Cedar didn't even tease her by acting like he didn't know what she wanted. “Your hand?” He finished her sentence before waiting for her to hesitantly nod. Then he ignored all rational thought of them being seen by servants once again. “If that is what you desire, I will gladly comply.” He offered her his hand.

Lucille moved quicker than normal now and put her hand on his. Then she squeezed him and stared at the floor again. The gears in her head were obviously turning, but she took a bit before she dared to speak. “If we do...consider marrying...you can't...” She didn't finish, even though it was obvious that this was important to her.

Cedar watched her for a moment before he replied. “What?”

Lucille pressed her lips into a thin line. Her cheeks got a bit redder and proved that she was serious about this while also being extremely embarrassed. But then, she changed her mind. “It's nothing.” Who would believe that? She should know that no one here could lie to him.

Cedar turned to her, only for her to avoid his gaze. Then it seemed like he would need to play dirty. He couldn't help but grin when he put his free hand under her chin. He gently tilted her head up and relished in seeing how she struggled to deal with so much skin contact. “Come on. Tell me. I want to know what I need to avoid. I want to make sure that you are happy with me.” Wasn't that a bit too direct now? He had almost admitted that he already saw marrying her as the only valid option.

Lucille swallowed. She stared right at him so that he could see a faint trace of his reflection in her gray eyes. It took a few seconds before she replied as if he had pulled out the most important secrets of her soul just by making eye contact. “You can't have a mistress.” Lucille was still embarrassed, but she said that with so much conviction that it was actually even more cute.

That was what she worried about? She should rather worry about the prince being too clingy instead of the opposite.

Cedar replied without hesitation. “Naturally.” Cedar wasn't the type that felt a strong bond with multiple people. He suspected that him favoring one person would lead to him being by that person's side and doing everything he could for them. He was also rather sure that he wouldn't ever enter a relationship unless he trusted that person. Currently, it seemed like only one person in this entire world had earned enough of his trust to make him consider this.

Lucille's eyes widened as she scanned his expression in shock. “What?” Was that so odd?

Cedar smiled at her and quickly gave his explanation. “If we do end up marrying, I would hate seeing anyone this close to you. So, I obviously wouldn't approach any other person either.” He knew from experience that he could get rather possessive with things he liked. Maybe it would be different with people. He wouldn't be like his mother, who acted like her son belonged to her. But he could still have some tendencies he had as a child. And just now, he had unwillingly admitted that he would be prone to getting jealous.

Lucille didn't seem to care about that though. Instead, her eyes almost shined when she looked at him. “Really?” She seemed so surprised when she heard that. She didn't even seem like they were just discussing an option anymore.

Cedar let out a small chuckle and was once again glad that he didn't need to try hard to hide the small, strange feeling that rose inside him when she looked at him like this. “You can believe me when I say that. Do you think that I am the type of person who would fool around with multiple people while leading them astray?”

Lucille shook her head. “No... It's just...that you are rather popular. Many women admire you.” So, she worried about him just accepting anyone that came close? She wouldn't have to fear that.

Cedar decided to be more direct to reassure her this time. “And? Lady Peril claims to admire me too, and that didn't make me like her. It's the opposite. I'm not looking for any meaningless affair because someone hopes to gain power by using me. And aside from my personal disinterest in an affair, it's simply not necessary for me to have a mistress. Do you know why my father and brother had a lover? Because they married a woman they don't care about for political reasons. They then took in the person they really cared about as a concubine. If I just marry the person I like, why would I need to have a mistress?” He had just meant to be honest. Apparently, he had overdone it though.

Lucille's head was so red that it wouldn't have been surprising if her skin was as hot as if she had a fever. That was adorable.