IRTP 2

The Dry Garden.

That was another name for the western annex, far from the center of the royal castle, and the space where the Prons who had not been chosen as crown princess resided.

Prons who were not selected as crown princess mostly left the royal castle and returned to their family homes. And they would become the center of that year’s social circles, receiving the admiration of young noble ladies and the affectionate advances of countless suitors, before finding a good match and marrying.

However, there were occasionally Prons who wished to remain in the royal castle rather than leave—these were cases where lingering feelings for the prince remained, or where they could not let go of their attachment to royal power.

These individuals could stay in the western annex and spend the rest of their lives there instead of leaving the castle. If the chosen crown princess failed to produce an heir, one of these women might be taken as a concubine or appointed as a new crown princess or queen.

And for that reason, those who stayed in the western annex could not marry.

At first glance, it seemed like a measure respecting the Prons’ wishes, but in reality, it was nothing more than the royal family using them as was convenient.

At least, that was Blair’s opinion.

In fact, there had been several cases in the past of Prons staying in the western annex, and most of them did not end well. Worn down by endless waiting at the prime of their bloom, their unrequited feelings dried up and withered, and in the end, they fell ill.

That was also why the western annex came to be called the “Dry Garden.”

But Blair’s goal was precisely that western annex.

A refuge where she could escape from her dreadful parents who treated marriage like a business transaction—a place where she would never have to marry for the rest of her life.

‘Call it a dry garden or whatever, it’s the best choice for me.’

Six months ago, her parents had, through dogged lobbying, finally made her a Pron and pushed her into the royal castle.

‘Even if you don’t become crown princess, once you become a Pron, you can at least connect with a marquis family. Blair.’

That damn social climbing.

They had killed someone else’s child and even lost their own because of that greed, yet her parents still hadn’t come to their senses. She simply could not understand parents like that.

So from the moment she first entered the royal castle, Blair had scrambled to secretly plot her escape. It was then that she learned of the western annex’s existence, and from that day on, her goal was solely that place.

Rather than being appraised this way and that like goods on the market and entering a political marriage with a man she didn’t even like, staying in the royal castle and writing to her heart’s content seemed far happier.

To that end, she absolutely must not be chosen as crown princess.

Fortunately, there was a very strong candidate for crown princess among the Prons, so it wasn’t such a difficult task. That was, until yesterday.

‘Anais Brienne, poisoned. What on earth happened?’

The Brienne ducal house was the most powerful family in the kingdom. Having held key positions for generations and accumulated power and wealth, they were, in a word, a family that held the royal family in the palm of their hand.

When a daughter of such a family became a Pron and entered the royal castle, the outcome was as good as decided.

And yet she had been poisoned in the royal castle. On the very day before the crown princess selection, no less. This clearly pointed to some conspiracy surrounding power.

Was it as Selina said—had Olivia’s side pulled strings to seize the crown princess position?

“Sigh… I don’t know either.”

Blair muttered with a long sigh, frustrated. She was truly sorry about what happened to Anais, but what worried her most was that the crown princess selection would be held again.

‘Should I just stay holed up in this room without drawing any attention?’

Blair began to calmly sort out the situation. Until now, she was the one who had never particularly stood out even without trying. Anais Brienne’s presence had been so overwhelming that, as Selina said, the other Prons were practically extras.

But with that Anais gone, the other Prons would now have their presence revealed.

‘Probably Olivia Lorenz will be the strongest among them. The only reason she was pushed aside by Anais was the difference in family power.’

Of course, that difference in family power was quite significant.

Regardless, her own family was not one with the formidable prestige of Anais or Olivia.

Selina, too, had a somewhat unpleasant personality, but her family was a count household that owned gold mines. Tilda was indecisive and naive, but her father had a tight grip on maritime trade.

Compared to them, Blair’s family was at best a viscount house with a bit of money. That money had been enough to push her into this royal castle, but family status was not the kind of thing that could be solved with money.

‘Well, that’s why they were so desperate to connect with a family of even slightly higher rank. Both my sister and me.’

Blair let out a cynical sneer.

After comparing herself with the other Prons for a while, Blair eventually shook her head. No matter how she thought about it, there was nothing about her that the royal family would take notice of over the others.

Just as she had done for the past six months, she simply needed to do nothing and stay out of everyone’s sight.

Once she thought that, her anxious heart felt somewhat more at ease. And soon, her eyelids grew heavy as if on cue.

‘Did I overdo it yesterday… If it weren’t for that strange man, I wouldn’t have been so late.’

Blair recalled the man she had encountered outside the castle yesterday.

‘Well, even if he wasn’t the security captain, shouldn’t anyone pay attention if they witness something suspicious near the royal castle?’

“Ridiculous, really. If I’d paid attention two more times, he would have dragged me to the underground prison.”

Even thinking about it again, it was absurd. What business did he have loitering there, anyway?

‘But who was he really? His voice sounded somehow familiar.’

Blair tried to recall the owner of that familiar voice, but she could not overcome the drowsiness that swept over her like a wave, and she fell into a deep sleep.

The aftermath of the Anais poisoning incident was truly tremendous.

The Duke of Brienne, beside himself with rage at the fact that his daughter had been poisoned in the royal castle, had been ransacking the entire castle as if combing it for lice.

Thanks to that, even though Blair had been holed up in her room for days, no one came looking for her.

She spent her days writing—something she loved—enjoying a leisurely time she hadn’t had in a long while. It was a stifling royal castle, but she was glad she could at least write freely.

Because of her mother’s nagging that writing was useless for finding a good match, Blair had always written in secret since she was young.

‘And if I got caught, she’d tear it all up.’

When she would cling to the shreds of paper torn so finely they couldn’t be pieced back together and cry, Allen would always comfort her.

With a smile as bright as sunlight, matching the scraps of paper one by one with his small, fern-like hands.

At the sudden surge of old memories, Blair rubbed the tip of her tingling nose and smiled bitterly. Today of all days, she missed that face even more. She set down her pen, opened the drawer, and carefully took out a small jewelry box from deep inside, opening the lid with care.

Then Blair’s previously calm face turned deathly pale in an instant.

“What—what is this?! Where did it go?”

Blair’s green eyes filled with bewilderment as she stared at the empty jewelry box. The brooch Allen had given her—which she had always treasured—was nowhere to be seen. She turned the box upside down and shook out the drawer, but the brooch was not there.

Rolling her eyes and thinking hard for a while, Blair soon let out a small sigh.

“Ah, that time… Did I leave it there? Surely not?”

During her last outing, Blair’s route had gotten tangled because she ran into that strange man. Because of that, she had been late returning to the royal castle and had rushed frantically—she remembered that now.

She must have come back without grabbing the brooch then.

“What do I do… How could I leave that behind? I must be crazy.”

With the Anais incident making security tight, she wouldn’t be able to use that gap in the wall for a while.

Blair clutched her head and paced anxiously. Just as she was letting out a deep sigh with no solution in sight, a maid knocked on the door and announced a visitor.

“Miss, Miss Lorenz has come to see you.”

Olivia Lorenz. At her unexpected visit, Blair felt wary but replied without showing it.

“Ah, yes. Let her in.”

As the maid opened the door, Olivia Lorenz entered the room, her face visibly gaunt.

“Olivia. It’s been a while.”

“Ah… Did I interrupt you, Blair?”

Olivia asked cautiously, looking at Blair’s desk, which was thoroughly cluttered.

“No, not at all. I was just looking for something. But what brings you here at this hour?”

Blair glanced out the window as she spoke. It was well past dusk, and darkness had already begun to fall.

“W-well… I was so anxious being alone.”

“What? What do you mean, Olivia?”

She looked visibly uneasy, her voice even trembling. The always composed and elegant Olivia, who had never shown a hint of wavering, was nowhere to be seen.

“A little while ago, I came back from a walk in the garden, and the bird I was keeping… it…”

She couldn’t finish her sentence and choked up, then soon tears streamed down like chicken droppings. Olivia cried like that for a while, then rubbed her reddened nose and spoke.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Blair. I was so frightened, and this has never happened to me before. I simply couldn’t stay in that room, so I came here without thinking.”

“Tell me slowly. What happened?”

“When I returned to my room, Blanche was quiet. She’s the canary I keep. So I looked, and… she was dead in her cage, having eaten rovetain.”

Olivia pressed her trembling hand to her lips and shuddered as if in horror.

“…Rovetain, you said?”

Blair asked.

“Yes, the same poison that did that to Miss Anais. It’s so frightening and terrible. Who on earth is targeting us?”