Cedar should have known that having an audience with Duke Lamont while his mother was present was a bad idea. He needed strong allies badly, and this man was the only available duke. Camille could only ruin this, but she had asked Cedar to let her come along so often. He hadn't been able to refuse anymore. Though, he should have. Now she sat next to her son and didn't contribute anything to the conversation. She only made it worse. In fact, she ruined a perfectly fine attempt at gaining allies.
Duke Lamont had barely tried to bring up the point he had subtly mentioned before, and he couldn't even explain it properly. “As much as I understand that you need more time to make this decision, it might be best to bring up a few reasons just to calm the nobles. After all, you currently do not have an heir. I do not wish to rush you, and we all will respect whatever you wish to do. Though, you will have to marry at some point so that the-” He couldn't finish.
Camille's expression darkened as she leaned forward just enough to reveal that she was seconds away from offending their most important duke. Her voice didn't hide any of her dismay as she cut off the man in front of her. “Oh, we can tell why you what you wish to suggest. You will not bring your daughter into the palace, Your Grace. If you ever suggest something that disrespectful again, we will not-” Now she wanted to insult him. Great.
Cedar really didn't want to lose his greatest possible ally, so he hurried to stand up and rest his hands on Camille's shoulders. “Mother, please calm down. His Grace did not plan to suggest his daughter.”
Camille whirled around, her eyes narrowed as she snapped back. “Of course, he did. That is why that wench smiled at you so much during the last ball.” She really could have spared the insult here.
Fiona Lamont was a noble lady that would like to take over her family name. Of course, she smiled at the emperor in hopes of possibly becoming his ally so that he could make her stronger. Fiona was an intelligent choice too, and Cedar was quite willing to give her some power to let her help Artias. Though, his mother would make something completely different out of this if he said it.
Cedar opened his mouth to say something else, but he was simply too slow. “This-”
Camille already continued her quite harsh words as she acted like everyone else was their enemy. “They all think they can use you just because you are young and inexperienced. Do you think I would let those people do that to you? That will never happen.” She was getting quite upset again.
Clearly, Duke Lamont wanted to speak up and remind Camille that he hadn't meant to talk about his daughter at all, but at this point, it wasn't possible to reason with her when she got like this.
Only one person could help the dowager empress when she became too enraged, and that happened to be her son. Cedar already prepared to calm her down as she began protesting, and as soon as he got the chance, he spoke again. “Of course not, Mother. We would never fall for anyone that tries to manipulate us. You won't have to worry about this. I always take care of matters like this quickly without any problems. How about you already retreat to your room and wait for me while I remind His Grace that I asked my ministers not to address this topic?” He phrased it like he would scold Duke Lamont, which wasn't truly his plan.
Though, this much was enough to calm his mother a bit.
Camille was still furious and gritted her teeth, but she forced herself to at least pretend to be fine with this. “Of course, you will deal with this on your own. I know that you can shut down all insolent people that wish to control you.” She stepped closer to her son and cupped his cheeks to pull him down to her. As Cedar complied, she kissed his forehead before whispering to him. “Keep your guard up around that slimy man. And make sure to crush his dreams of controlling us. His wretched daughter will not be empress.”
Cedar would say that those insults were quite harsh for no reason, but Camille wouldn't like to hear that. So, he just said what she would agree with. “Naturally. You can rely on me, Mother. How about you have someone prepare tea for us? I shall be with you in a moment.”
That was enough to make Camille feel like she had won. As she pulled back, she turned to Duke Lamont once more and gave him an icy glare before reaching the door. As she left, the office suddenly seemed much calmer.
Cedar let out a low sigh. His smile stayed as bright as ever as he sat down on his chair again and waited for a moment before speaking, which he only did after glancing at the other man. “I will not marry your daughter, so do not worry.”
Duke Lamont had clearly been worried about being threatened for even speaking about this matter and only calmed down now. “I see. This is not what I wished to address, but when my daughter was mentioned... I almost expected you to ask for her hand in marriage.” Of course. Duke Lamont wasn't stupid either.
Cedar wasn't a person that shared much with those around him. He would usually never speak about this more. But Duke Lamont could become his closest ally, so he had to share a bit of himself. Acting like he fully trusted a person was always a good way to win them over. So, Cedar put on the softest version of his smile while making sure to act a bit dejected despite that. “It is true that her family name is currently the most desirable one for me. But I fear that Lady Lamont is simply too intelligent. She wouldn't stay out of politics nor would she accept my mother's meddling. Those are admirable traits, but when it comes to Mother, this would make your daughter her greatest target. I do not intend to endanger Lady Lamont like that. You are correct to not wish for her to enter the royal family.” And now he had to add the important bit. Cedar forced himself to become serious for a moment to say something that would scare the other man. “But...that does not mean that I am ready to give up on the power your family can bring.”
Duke Lamont went rigid. Of course, he guessed that this was about marriage still. Due to the complicated situation around the royal family and his love for his daughter, he truly didn't wish to hand her over to Cedar. He couldn't reject such an offer directly, but he still tried it. “Your Majesty, that... I...”
And now Cedar would snap the trap shut by swiftly changing Duke Lamont's mood again. It was too easy. “I know that this step will seem surprising to many. But I truly feel like it is the right thing for me to do. I would like to make your daughter a minister at some point, Your Grace. I believe that she is perfect for this position and that it would help when it comes to letting her succeed your family. I heard that her cousin troubled you a bit, and I could assist you here. In return, I merely expect your help with my work, which should not cause many problems.”
As expected, Duke Lamont was pleasantly surprised by that. He stayed quiet before fully understanding what was going on and then hurriedly replying as his eyes widened. “That would be more than kind of you, Your Grace. Of course, we will be completely loyal to Artias' ruler. It would be a great honor to have you acknowledge Fiona's abilities.”
Cedar smiled at him as he just spun the story even further. This was his chance to gain that man's trust, so he had to do it well. Naming common enemies would be good. “There is no need to be so surprised. Your daughter proved some great skill over the past few months, and I am sure that she can only grow more powerful. Though, I fear that I cannot name her a minister quite yet. You can imagine how my mother and Duke Vasquez would react to this.”
That was a quite dangerous topic, and Duke Lamont understood that too. He didn't seem like he even wished to ask, but after a few seconds, he forced himself. “Your Majesty, if you name him so openly... Your relationship with His Grace is not too good anymore, is it? I do not wish to offend you by asking this, but...it did seem difficult during the past minister meetings.”
Normally, Cedar would never tell anyone so much about this. Though, he did need Duke Lamont to become his ally, so he gave away just as much as he could reveal. “I do not mind. His Grace made it his task to challenge me each time we appear in public. Naturally, I cannot let him treat me like this. Though, my uncle does not seem to accept anyone talking back. He will not stay a minister for long.” He sighed and leaned his head against his palm for a moment, putting on a perfect act of exhaustion.
It worked like a charm.
Duke Lamont was quick to affirm his loyalty. “Of course. I fully support you in that regard, Your Majesty. You need to remind him that you are the one ruling Artias.” He paused for a moment as he seemed to rethink this matter. He quickly pointed out the problem this conversation had originally started with. “Though, it could be difficult for you when you are being pressured into connecting with more and more noble families. Since one of the ducal houses is currently breaking apart while the other one seems to trouble you, many might worry about the future of your reign. Having an heir would relieve them all a bit. I truly do not wish to rush you, but...”
It was a bit funny. Cedar wasn't even two and a half decades old, and people already wondered when he would die. The position of the emperor usually wasn't that dangerous, so it seemed like the many assassination attempts on Theodore had skewed the nobles' judgment a bit. Anyway, Cedar had no choice but to comply. “I am aware. It would be time for me to marry soon.”
Duke Lamont seemed quite worried about that topic. After a short moment of hesitation, he addressed it too. “Do you already have a lady in mind?”
“Yes.” Again, Cedar revealed more than he should, just to gain some trust. His smile widened as he admitted something that might upset him a bit too. He truly didn't wish to get married at this point since it would bring so many problems, but he had no choice. Though, Duke Lamont's expression made it look like he wanted Cedar to delay it too. That concerned him a bit as he softened his smile to seem less calculating. “You do not need to seem so concerned. I will treat her well and will ensure that she can live comfortably with minimal contact with all the issues I am facing.”
Duke Lamont's expression was fully serious as he responded quietly. “Oh, I do not question that you would treat her well, Your Majesty. You have never shown any signs of being cruel or overly harsh with people that are not your enemies. But...” He paused for a moment before adding the rest. “If I may mention this, Your Majesty, your mother...does not seem comfortable with the thought of you taking in a wife. I...do not wish to offend you, but I believe that this is a quite unnatural thing you should keep an eye on.”
Cedar let out a quiet chuckle as he faced the other man directly. “I am aware. My mother has always been jealous of people even when I just spoke to them. I know how to deal with her by now.” He had lived with Camille for over twenty years now, so he should be able to control her little.
----------------------------------------
He didn't know how to deal with his mother. Cedar noticed that quickly.
The economic situation had worsened drastically, so Cedar had needed to act. He had swiftly accused Lady Peril of cartelization, which had forced her to sell half of her stores to him. Cedar could now hand those back to different merchants, who would ensure that the products in the capital wouldn't become too expensive.
At the same time, Cedar had needed more capable ministers that dealt with all the things he had to focus on. So, he had removed the one person that disturbed his work constantly, which happened to be Claude Vasquez. He had invited four younger people to join him instead, including some women. Technically, this should not have been an issue. Even the old ministers of his council respected Fiona Lamont and Madeleine Bellfaux, and no one had protested.
No one aside from Camille Estien. Apparently, she saw the presence of the two women here as an indirect threat. She had insulted both quite openly in private and only held back in front of the ministers. At least she had done that up until a few days ago. At some point, she had suddenly started to criticize both women quite harshly for no reason. The true conflict only arose a few days after that though.
“Could we discuss that issue in private a bit more, Your Majesty?” It started with an innocent request from Fiona Lamont, who seemed really eager to propose some new trading routes. A few weeks as a minister had already shown that she was quite skilled, so everyone would be willing to listen to her.
Cedar didn't even pretend to consider letting her wait. “Naturally.” He let all other ministers leave the room and bid them farewell while he stayed at his seat at the big table. In the meantime, Leonard disappeared into the neighboring room. Though, waiting didn't solve all issues. Even as Cedar left many seconds for her to react, Camille didn't move. It seemed like she wanted to stay here. Judging by her expression when she scanned Fiona through narrowed eyes, she didn't think much of the other woman. That wasn't a good sign. Cedar had a bad premonition. He still beamed at Camille while trying to solve the issue before it became apparent. “Mother? Would you leave us alone for a moment? The matters we will discuss might not demand your attention, so you would do best to spare yourself the trouble.”
As expected, Camille didn't listen. She outright rejected the emperor's request. “No. It might be best for me to stay here. We do not know what that woman is planning.” What a way to insult the daughter of her son's safest ally.
Fiona seemed stunned upon facing such disrespect, but she quickly recovered and made sure to face Camille with all of her sincerity. “Your Majesty, I am a loyal subject of this nation. How could I plan to hurt His Majesty?” She seemed quite convincing with how she furrowed her brows and rested her hand on her heart.
Either way, it didn't impress Camille, who just threw even worse words at the other woman while crossing her arms. “You know well that I didn't mean that. A woman of your standing usually has different goals. Believe me. I saw enough of your kind.”
It was obvious that this would be an insult. Naturally, Fiona wasn't eager to receive it. Still, she faced Camille directly and asked for confirmation. “What are you referring to?”
Camille had gained another chance to save this, but as usual, she ruined it. “To women that try to use their bodies to impress men like common street whores.” It was never good to interrupt Camille, but it was necessary here.
Cedar immediately stood up. “Mother.” His tone should warn her to stay quiet as he tried to make up for her blunder. Cedar hurriedly addressed Fiona in hopes of her not being too mad about this. “I sincerely apologize for this, Lady Lamont. It seems like my mother is not well at the moment.”
But unfortunately, Fiona was a confident woman. She said what she was thinking quite directly. “There is no need to apologize, Your Majesty. You weren't the one that insulted me.” Her anger was quite easy to read off her expression as she faced Camille again, her brows furrowing and her voice becoming a bit louder. “Accusing me of that is quite audacious, even for the dowager empress. Will you be ready to repeat this in front of a trial when I accuse you of slandering me?”
Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
Camille fully ignored how Cedar put a hand on her shoulder, which was her signal to stop talking since she was much too emotional at the moment. She merely gazed at Fiona with nothing but disdain and slowly growing rage. “How can I slander you when it is the truth? Truly. You are utterly shameless. Now you try to look pitiful to get my son onto your side because you are upset about the truth? That is pathetic.” More insults wouldn't help her case.
Cedar knew that it was useless, but he still tried to stop what was going on before it escalated. “Mother, please stop this. Lady Lamont did nothing wrong. She-”
Camille whirled around to him and cut him off. “Not yet. But as soon as you are alone, she will try to put her dirty hands on you. We met women like her often enough, didn't we? You know that I am right.” She faced Fiona again, her eyes narrowed as she met her with nothing but fury. “Listen to me, you harlot. I do not know what you are planning, but it would be better for you to-”
By the gods.
This couldn't get any worse, but Camille just found a way each time.
Cedar got a bit louder as he squeezed Camille's shoulder tightly. “There is no need to insult Lady Lamont. Please do hold back with such harsh words. You are acting inappropriately, so I would ask you to calm down.”
That didn't help much when his mother took that as an insult. She brushed his hand off and hurriedly stood up while balling her one fist and pointing at Fiona with the other hand. “Why are you defending her? That woman obviously plotted to be alone with you!”
Fiona slowly grew more furious too, but she still tried to keep herself from exploding. “Your Majesty, I can assure you that I only wished to-” Her patience was strained even more.
Camille looked at her with obvious disgust as she added another insult. “Nonsense. Shut your mouth.”
This was dangerous. Very dangerous.
Cedar knew that this couldn't go on, so he hurriedly spoke again, grabbing both of Camille's shoulders now. “Mother, please calm down. This-”
Again, Camille cut him off. More rage laced her voice now. “What? Why do I have to calm down?” Her voice became shriller and louder. That usually announced a hysteric fit. They truly didn't need that right now, but Cedar might not be able to prevent it. He still tried that, but he wasn't quick enough.
Fiona, who had risen as well, already spoke without hiding her disdain anymore. “Because you are currently acting like a hysteric mess, Your Majesty.”
It was over.
As soon as the words reached Camille, she whirled around to yell at Fiona. “How dare you? You are nothing but a dirty illegitimate child of some unknown whore, and you think you can criticize me?” She turned to Cedar again. He could hear the order before she even said it. “Did you hear what she just said? Punish her. Right now.”
In the past, Cedar would have listened without thinking about it. But he wasn't just the second prince anymore. As the emperor, he needed to keep his political relationships in mind. In this case, it was connected to keeping Fiona at least somewhat calm. And since that poor woman hadn't done anything, Cedar wouldn't blame her. He only needed to find a way to tell his mother now. That would be hard. Still, Cedar tried it while showing Camille a calming smile. “What for, Mother? Lady Lamont did not do anything harmful. You are currently treating her unfairly. Please remove yourself from this room and rethink this-” He saw what would happen as soon as Camille lifted her hand. He stopped talking and just held still while fully focusing on not letting his fighting instincts take over to let him move away.
The slap sounded through the room quite loudly.
Cedar wasn't truly surprised when his cheek stung a moment later either. He slowly turned his head back to the original position and met his mother's gaze as he kept smiling at her. She really shouldn't act like this in front of guests, and it seemed like this was worthy of a discussion. “Mother-”
Camille didn't let him speak this time either. Instead, she raised her voice to basically shriek at him. “A few days as the emperor, and you think that you are better than me? How can you abandon your mother for some random whore that crawls toward you? If I had known that, I would never have given birth to you, you ungrateful brat!”
A brat. That was what she saw him as after he had spent over two decades of his life serving her. For the first time in Cedar's life, he focused on something other than her, and she criticized him immediately. When it came to Blanche, she had called him foolish while claiming that he only wanted what his brother had due to his inherent jealousy. When it was about protecting Artias, she called him a brat for not letting her pester their allies. It was ridiculous. Did she not want him to do his job as the emperor despite having plotted so much to place him here?
It wasn't surprising to Cedar at all. In fact, he had fully expected this. He was just lucky that his mother wasn't trying to use his triggers, all the small things that had made him explode in his childhood, against him. His mood was already ruined. His smile just widened as he fully ignored the aching of his cheek.
But others weren't as calm.
Before the emperor even realized what was going on, a person rushed toward him. That happened to be Fiona, who stormed around the table to face Camille. She had lost all traces of politeness and yelled at the other woman immediately. “Are you insane? What are you doing?”
This would obviously make Camille explode too, but she didn't have enough time to react.
Another person had entered the room. Leonard had returned from the side room with a grim expression that revealed all of his hatred for the mother Theodore had despised so much. He looked like he wanted to kill someone in this very room. That wasn't surprising, but Cedar was actually taken aback when Leonard grabbed something from one of his drawers and strode over without a single sign of hesitation, only to reveal a dagger as he pointed it at Camille. “Leave this room now.”
Camille backed away a small step, only to rush over to Cedar in an instant. She stood behind him while raising her voice again. “How can-”
Leonard's face lacked all traces of kindness as he interrupted her. “You just hit His Majesty, the emperor of Artias. Are you aware of what this means? You committed treason of the highest level. I could cut off your hand for this right now.” He seemed like he would do it if Camille came closer to him. That was quite dangerous.
Camille understood that too. She grasped her son's arm and raised her voice again. “Cedar, they are threatening me! You-”
Cedar could tell that Leonard's stance wasn't one that would reveal that he was preparing an attack. Still, he decided to be careful just in case and rested his hand on the handle of his sword. “Mother, everything is fine. No one will hurt you.” He doubted that this was a serious threat, but even so, he was prepared.
His words didn't elicit any joy in the two other people around here. Fiona even grew angrier upon hearing this and scolded Camille again. “You just hit him, and now you hide behind him? What is wrong with you? How could you treat His Majesty like that?”
As expected, Camille quickly regained her confidence upon standing behind Cedar and almost crushing his arm in her hold. “He's my son! I can discipline him whenever he talks back to me!” She yelled that so loudly that the whole palace had to hear it. Why was she doing that? Everyone knew that she influenced the emperor a lot, but she shouldn't announce it like that.
Cedar doubted that talking back now would help them much, but he knew that he needed to intervene. So, he looked at Camille and spoke in the soft voice he always used to calm her. “Mother. I might have been a dumb prince before, but now I am the emperor. Please do not try to educate me in such ways.” Especially not in public when Cedar hadn't even done anything wrong.
But Camille didn't like criticism, even if it was justified. She tightened her hold on him. “What are you saying? I'm still your mother!”
Cedar beamed at her in return. “I know. That is why I am doing this. I truly worry about your health after such an exhausting meeting. Please retreat to your room. We will speak later.” It would be best to remove her from this situation before it got worse.
As expected, his mother didn't cooperate though. “I won't leave, I-”
Leonard was at the end of his patience. He took a step forward and addressed Camille again, his voice too cold and his grip on the dagger too professional. “If you do not leave this room within the next ten seconds, I will personally throw you out.” He meant it.
Camille couldn't deal with that at all. “You-” Even as her eyes widened and she raised her voice like that, which took away all the elegance she usually had, it seemed like she wouldn't give up.
Cedar knew that her presence would just make it worse though. He spoke to her again, turning his whole body toward her. “Mother, please. This is for the best. I will make sure that no one here disrespects you again. Allow me to deal with this.” He used his soft voice again, reaching for his mother's arms to calm her at least a little.
This time, Camille looked at his face for a bit longer. As expected, that was already enough to make her listen to him at least a little. As she processed his words, she seemed to believe that he would blame the others instead of her. And this thought finally made her settle down. She stayed quiet for a moment before she gave in. “Fine. Come see me quickly, Cedar. I can't stand watching those bugs all around you.” She stepped closer and pushed herself up on her tiptoes. That was enough to signal Cedar to lower his head, as always when she did this. She kissed his forehead. Camille made sure to show that to the others and then cupped her son's cheek for a moment while just looking at him. She was only content when she realized that he was still in her hands like always. Then she retreated and left the room, not without glaring at Fiona and Leonard once more. “Punish them properly.” She slammed the door shut behind her.
The dowager empress' disappearance was enough to free more emotions inside. Fiona could barely keep quiet for a second before her fury flowed out. “Punish us? She committed treason! You could imprison her for something like this! You do not have to let her treat you like that.” She sounded surprisingly exasperated upon facing Cedar like this. It wasn't clear why. This was not an issue she would have to deal with.
Cedar didn't mind if that led to her being willing to ignore the insult she had faced before though. He just hoped to calm down Fiona quickly as he showed her a little smile. “There is no need to worry, Lady Lamont. Naturally, I will not punish either of you. I am aware that Mother just made a mistake, and I shall communicate it to her like that when she is feeling better again. She was quite sick this morning, so I fear that her current behavior does not reflect what she strives to appear as. I sincerely apologize for this and promise that it shall not happen again.”
Instead of being calmed, Fiona just furrowed her brows. “There is no need for you to defend her even when she hurts you. You should punish her for this.” She was quite insistent. It made sense. She had been insulted quite harshly, so it was understandable. But a trial would just make this worse.
“Please allow me to handle this on my own. I am aware that she did things she should not have, but I promise that she did not have any ill intent. I will speak to her and ask her to refrain from repeating such scenes.”
Fiona still didn't give up though. Her frown deepened. “How could that be enough? That woman hit you, the emperor. She cannot do that.”
Cedar found it hard to deny that, but he couldn't just admit it either. “I am aware, Lady Lamont. But please trust me when I say that I can deal with this. It will not happen again, and we can forget this. I do not wish for you to hold any ill feelings toward Mother because of this, much like I will not blame her myself. How could I be upset with her for such a small thing? After all, she is still my mother.” That was the sentence that had always been the logical justification for him.
But Fiona demolished that without even needing to think about it. “And you are still her son. If she cannot treat you with respect, she does not deserve yours. You being family does not allow her to mistreat you.” She was certainly a person that voiced her beliefs outright, even if she knew that they might trouble her. Criticizing the dowager empress like this was dangerous.
Luckily, Cedar wouldn't blame her for that. His mother had insulted her quite harshly, so it was her right to complain about this now. Of course, he didn't say that so openly. Instead, he chose to mediate like he always did it for his mother. “You have gotten the wrong impression of my mother due to this scene. She is not as cruel as you may believe her to be. You just met her at the wrong moment. Please allow her to prove that she would never do something like this under normal circumstances.” He knew that this was quite useless when he tried to press a bandage onto the bleeding flesh wound in hopes of it being forgotten. But he still gave his best. “I truly regret that our conversation ended like this, Lady Lamont. I hope that you will not rethink your position as a minister because of this. Please give it another chance and share your ideas with me next time we meet.”
Fiona still furrowed her brows a bit without even thinking about trying to hide her current mood. “Your Majesty, I would not give up this position because of your mother. You act like you wronged me, which is not accurate in the slightest. I do trust that you do well while managing Artias. But this... You are the most powerful person in this nation now. You cannot let anyone mistreat you. Even if your mother did this before, she cannot do it anymore now. No, she should not even have done it before. Please keep that in mind, Your Majesty. If you need any support, my family is ready to help you with everything. But for today, I believe that it would be best for me to retreat so that you can calm down.”
Oh? She promised her family's support suddenly? That was interesting.
Cedar didn't dare show that he was very curious though and just did his best to appear calm with a faint smile on his lips. That should have made him look like everything was fine. He didn't like the thought of it not being the case, especially when Fiona had needed to point out that she wished for him to calm down. “There is not much that would have enraged me, but I thank you for your consideration. Naturally, it is an honor to receive your family's trust. Have a nice afternoon, Lady Lamont. We shall meet again during the next meeting.” That was all he told Fiona. Then he focused on the documents that were still lying on his table while going through the words this lady had just said in her mind.
Her family wanted to support him now? If so, that would be wonderful. It would have been bad if this situation had worsened their relationship, but if the heir of House Lamont was ready to stand on Cedar's side because she viewed him as someone that needed her help, that wasn't so awful. Cedar would take all the support he could get now. If his mother's temper helped somehow, this scene might even have been worth it.
Fiona didn't take back her promise. She hesitated a bit, but when he didn't look up anymore, she eventually left. The door was closed behind her.
Finally, Cedar had some time for himself again. He already thought about how to tell his mother that he wouldn't punish Lady Lamont in any way, but a part of him was already considering what he could do with the power of that dukedom. He didn't get the chance to even think about it much.
Usually, Leonard stayed away from the other man's matters, but today, he seemed a bit too interested in what was going on. He walked over to the desk and stopped right next to it. His expression revealed his anger as he spoke up. “As the emperor, you don't have to let anyone hurt you. You know that, don't you?”
Cedar was aware. He wasn't sure why this mattered to the other man though. “Where does the sudden sympathy come from? Has your icy heart thawed?”
Leonard huffed out some air, still while looking at the other man with all of his disdain. “No. I still despise you. But I'm finally seeing all the abuse Theodore told me about.”
Those words made Cedar, who had already lifted his pen, stop abruptly. He raised an eyebrow at Leonard and almost laughed at him. Theodore had talked about this? What nonsense. “Abuse? It seems like my brother exaggerated. This is nothing I cannot handle.” And nothing that would concern them.
Surely, Leonard was also aware of that. He also didn't understand that this might be something he shouldn't concern himself with. Instead of just backing off, he slammed a hand onto the desk and leaned forward to bring his face in front of Cedar's. “Which is precisely what is alarming. You are far too used to being slapped by your own mother. You didn't even flinch. Is pain that natural to you?”
This wasn't anything Cedar wanted to discuss. He just tilted his head back to grin at Leonard while using the one argument that would force this man to stay out of this. “My training was probably just as harsh as yours. There is no need to pity me, the murderer of your closest confidant, because of something so small.”
This should have enraged Leonard enough to make him snap, but instead of that, he narrowed his eyes and insisted. “Do you always bring things like that up when people say that they worry about you? At this point, I feel like you aren't just upsetting people randomly. You only provoke them when they dare to be nice to you or sympathize. Do you dislike the thought of someone caring about your health, even a little, that much?” Now he was overstepping.
Cedar had enough, so he stood up and dropped his documents. He looked at Leonard with a bright smile while allowing his voice to get much colder. “Lord Astame, I thought you worked as an assassin. You should know not to read too much into others' actions when you have no idea what your target is truly thinking. Do not worry about me. I will continue to take care of Artias no matter what, and you will not obstruct me or my mother. That is all you need to know. Do your work as my secretary and not as my doctor. You are dismissed.”
This upset Leonard a lot, but he didn't argue. He wordlessly whirled around and then left, showing not a single trace of him being content with this ending.
Cedar lowered his gaze again without saying a further word. His mood was ruined for the day already, so he didn't even want to think about it. Maybe he should distract himself. Cedar grabbed the first paper he found and read it. Somehow, he wasn't surprised that he had grabbed a wedding invitation. This reminded him of another growing issue he couldn't neglect for much longer. He did need a wife soon at this point, if just to keep Duke Vasquez from troubling him while ensuring that his mother stopped seeing all women around him as a threat. It might be time to use his ace in the sleeve.