The King's Chamberlain was this very old man named Wintson.
The old man sitting on a chair that hadn't been in the room before was a medium-height man with a medium build dressed in neat black clothing and a full head of fluffy, gray hair.
His face seemed kind, and his down-turned eyes made him look sleepy and unassuming, but Caellum was on his guard against this widely smiling old man.
From the little information found in the memories, the 13th prince knew that his name was Winston, that he was a mage, and that he had served as an advisor and friend to the king since childhood, before becoming his chamberlain and managing every aspect of his life.
It would be foolish to take him lightly, and Caellum didn't plan on doing so.
Meeting the chamberlain's brown eyes while slapping his cheeks to wake his body that felt heavy with a stinging pain in his joints, Caellum briefly wondered when the man had gotten in here and why he was staring at him so intently.
It felt quite creepy to know that he had been watched while sleeping and that this body was so weak and unalert that it didn't wake up when there were people around.
Even if the other person was a mage.
The two of them stared at each other in silence until Caellum broke the silence after waking up properly.
"Is there something on my face?"
"Not at all. Did you have somebody over last night, 13th prince? A little tête-à-tête, if you will, to celebrate your entry into adulthood?"
"Pardon me?" Caellum glanced at the chamberlain, confused at the sudden change of subject.
What was he talking about so early in the morning?
And where could he get some espresso? And maybe a cigarette.
Apart from the strange pulsing pain in his body, his brain felt foggy and drained in a way only nicotine and caffeine could fix.
Surely there was something like coffee beans in this world, right?
Right?
He wouldn't have to go through life with only…water and tea, right?
As the daunting realization that he might never have another cappuccino dawned on Caellum, sending him into a deep depression, the chamberlain continued his one-sided conversation while observing the prince, who suddenly looked depressed.
"I'm not angry. You're a growing boy, and I'm sure you have some…urges. I know I did when I was your age. I remember my 16th birthday like it was just yesterday. I went for hours and hours, proving my prowess. I'm sure you did the same. Feel free to tell me who you called over. I won't tell the king." The chamberlain whispered conspiratorially while sipping his tea, and Caellum just stared at him blankly.
What the hell was this man talking about?
Mustering up his energy that had fallen due to the realization that there might be no coffee forever, Caellum calmly explained to the chamberlain in hopes that the conversation would stop.
"There's nobody here apart from me and now you. I participated in no activities, sexual or otherwise. I was here by myself. Bathed myself. Then went to sleep."
The place had been empty when Caellum got back, and from the memories, that was always the case.
The servants would come at most twice a day for breakfast and dinner, and that was it.
That was why the place was so dirty and in such disarray, and why everything was so worn out.
The young Caellum had to maintain it all by himself.
"Nobody? Are you sure you didn't have any visitors? Like, say any sexy, young black mages who left through a secret door after showing a young prince the ways of the world, kekeke?"
"I beg your pardon. Ke? Ke?" Caellum cleaned his ears since he couldn't believe what he just heard, but the chamberlain kept smiling knowingly.
Caellum: (≖_≖ )?
Winston: (≖_≖ )
"Was there? Black mages here? Or anyone else last night with you. Don't lie to me, I'll know." The chamberlain asked while leaning forward.
"No, and I'm not lying. What brought on that line of questioning? Is there a black mage problem I need to be aware of? Sexy or otherwise? Or did somebody sneak in here?"
Was someone trying to frame him again?
What kind of life was this prince living?
The old chamberlain stared at him for several moments before laughing in his unsettling way.
"No, no, as the king himself would tell you, I like to joke around to take the stress away. It was a joke kekeke."
"….."
Can you joke around in a way that doesn't accuse me of black magic?
I just got here, and even I know that it's immediate grounds for execution.
It's too early for this.
Especially with no coffee.
Taking a deep breath to hold back the scolding he wanted to give, Caellum began planning his day.
First, breakfast.
Then more breakfast.
Then, even more breakfast.
After that, he would see the king.
Then head to the library.
After that, he needed to sneak out of the palace to visit a doctor to check his body out, find loyal people to employ, and, more importantly, make money.
And to do that, he needed to find the black market and identify all the criminal players in the city.
After all, that was the best way to make money in a quick and, more importantly, untraceable manner.
He briefly wondered what the underworld was like here before groaning.
There was so much to do and too little time.
Ugh.
As Caellum turned away from the chamberlain while groaning, the old man's droopy eyes sharpened as he stared at the tired young man who looked even paler than yesterday.
If the prince was telling the truth, who and what had released that ominous, oppressive, death-like aura he had felt yesterday?
The aura had been so oppressive that he instinctively summoned his greatest attack to destroy the entirety of the Prince's palace, before changing his mind and coming to investigate.
By the time he arrived, the aura faded, and he did a sweep of the prince's palace; there was no evidence that it had ever happened.
Could it have come from the prince?
Thud!
Winston turned to look at the 13th prince, who had somehow fallen out of the thin, ratty mattress and was clutching his actively bruising elbow while staring into the air as if he had given up on life.
No.
It couldn't be him.
He had checked while the prince was sleeping, and there was still no sign of mana on the prince's body or calluses to indicate he secretly trained.
It had to be somebody else.
But who?
He would have to continue investigating as the king asked.
But first, the poison issue.
"13th prince."
"Yes?"
"Why did you request me from the king?"
Stomp!
Stomp!
BANG!
Just as the chamberlain spoke up, the sound of someone stomping through the halls could be heard.
"Ah. Breakfast is here. Please hide yourself and all your things." Caellum commanded as he stood up from the floor.
Then it was like he became a different person.
His figure hunched over, causing him to look even frailer than he was.
His eyes became vacant and fearful, and he began shivering as he sat on the edge of the bed with his hands respectfully on his knees.
BANG!
As the door slammed open, Caellum flinched before keeping his gaze firmly on the ground while his teeth chattered loudly.
As if he was scared.
Winston, who was hiding behind a simple veil spell, couldn't believe that this was the same person who had been casually speaking to him just now and disrespectfully speaking to the king last night.
So the 13th prince had been hiding himself?
His cowardly self was an act?
Or was the confidence an act?
What was true and what was false?
It was too confusing.
As Winston stared at the 13th prince, acting in disbelief, something even more amazing appeared.
Winston, chamberlain to the king for over 3 decades, could only watch in with his eyes wide as a servant swaggered into the room as if he were the king himself.
The servant, an ugly balding man in his 40s, wasn't wearing one of the uniform variants that all servants in the royal palace wore.
No, the servant was decked out in luxurious, expensive fabrics that had been sent to all the princes by the housekeeping department.
To make it worse, he was decked out in jewelry.
Around his wrists and neck were gold jewels with large gems, and if someone didn't know, they would think he was the actual prince of the palace while the 13th prince was his servant.
The man cockily strutted around the room before standing before the prince, and letting the light from the window shine on him.
"Peh, having to come to this dump daily and deal with a useless waste of space like you brings down my dignity, but what can I do? It was assigned to me by the queen. I must bring the prince breakfast daily."
After spitting at the 13th prince's feet, without saying another word, the servant stomped directly to the 13th prince and, with no hesitation, raised his hand and-
SLAP!
Struck the 13th prince across the face, knocking him to the ground.