Philomel the Fake
Chapter 9

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“I did well to choose this place!”

Philomel smiled in satisfaction as she looked around the garden, which was lush with flowers in full bloom. She found herself in the garden behind the emperor’s palace, whose flowers were tended to by the best gardeners in the empire.

Such beautiful scenery is bound to improve anybody’s mood. Though it was a bit of a stretch, even sworn enemies might forget their hatred for a moment if they took a walk together in such a beautiful garden.

“Could you take a walk with me?”

That had been Philomel’s wish. She’d never taken a stroll with the emperor before. While we walk, I’ll show him just how deserving I am of being his heir.

However, it wasn’t Eustis who appeared before her, but a boy who seemed to be two or three years younger than her, wearing a vicious, cross look on his face.

“You!” he shouted. “This place is off-limits to everyone but members of the imperial family!”

Philomel calmly went about trying to guess who this boy might be. This particular garden was closed to anyone who wasn’t a member of the family, which meant he had to be related to her in some way. Based on his dirty blond hair and similarly colored eyes, I’d say he’s...

“How dare you ignore me? What house are you from? Don’t you know that trespassing here is a crime?” the boy shouted, assuming Philomel was choosing to ignore him.

Ugh, he’s so noisy, I can’t think. Is he an idiot? Didn’t it occur to him that I might also be a member of the imperial family? She did her best to be patient. “Excuse me. Lower your voice, please. And I suggest you be more polite—”

“Shut your mouth!”

She lost her patience. Many a person had subtly snubbed her, but no one had ever been this openly insulting. A cold, dry voice came from her lips. “No, you shut up.”

“Wh-what? What did you just—”

“Didn’t you hear me the first time? I told you to shut up, Liam Elos.”

“So you know who I am, you impudent—”

“What about you? Do you know who I am?”

“How the hell would I know that? And why would I care?” Liam yelled. Two more people appeared behind him then.

“Liam! What’s the matter? Are you hurt?”

“Quiet down. What’s going on?”

The first person Philomel saw was a woman holding a parasol, with bright blond hair and ash-colored eyes. She was accompanied by another boy who looked to be at least three or four years older than Philomel. Just like Liam Elos, his hair was a murky blond.

She recognized them as Marchioness Elos and her eldest son, Logan Elos. Sylvia Elos, the marchioness, had been a Belerov before her marriage—in other words, she was the daughter of the previous emperor and half-sister to the current one.

All of the previous emperor’s children were either dead or in exile overseas, with the exception of Eustis and the marchioness, who’d been quick to side with him. This meant the three of them were the only remaining relatives that Philomel had besides her father.

I do remember hearing that Marchioness Elos had two sons... She’d seen the eldest before, but not the second.

The House of Belerov was hardly an affectionate family, and there was seldom any opportunity for the members to meet one another, with the exception of official events. Liam Elos, the second son, was too young to attend such events, anyway.

Marchioness Elos greeted Philomel. “Oh my, Philomel. It’s been a long time. How have you been?”

While this woman was Philomel’s aunt, she should still have addressed Philomel formally. Even if they were from the same imperial family, Philomel was a direct descendant and should be accorded more respect. Informal address was only allowed when those involved were very close, and no one else was around.

Liam looked aghast as he turned to his mother. “What? Philomel? You mean the princess? But you said the princess was an ugly little— Mmf!”

The marchioness quickly clamped a hand over her son’s mouth. “What are you saying, child? Why would I say such a thing?”

So that’s what she’s been saying about me, then. Philomel’s gaze turned cold.

Logan Elos stepped forward to distract her. “Nice to meet you, Your Highness. Please forgive my brother’s discourtesy.”

Logan was politer than his mother or brother, but even he was only pretending to show respect, nothing more. Logan Elos was the one that many people expected would be the next emperor, since Philomel had no divine power of her own and was lacking in many other aspects besides. Busybodies liked to predict that the emperor would soon adopt this smart young boy and make him his heir.

They’ll all be proved wrong when Ellensia appears. Scoffing internally, Philomel bowed back.

“If you’ll excuse us, we’ll be on our way. We were taking a family walk, you see,” Logan said.

At that moment Liam, escaping his mother’s hand, clung to his brother and said, “Logan! Logan! When you become emperor, please raze this garden to the ground and turn it into a playground! I want to play war games with my friends.”

“Shh! You shouldn’t be saying such things out in the open.”

She’d heard it all. They already believed that Logan would become emperor. Philomel lapsed into thought, staring at the brazen family. It was dangerous to oppose them if she wanted to secure a safe future for herself. Even if she could force them into submission now, they would only bare their fangs at her when it came out that Philomel wasn’t really the emperor’s daughter. The wiser thing to do would be to laugh it off for the time being.

But… What kind of heir to the throne just let people insult them like this? She needed to issue a stern warning, at the very least. If the emperor hears of this, he might grow disappointed in me again.

Above all, Philomel couldn’t live with herself if she just let them get away with disrespecting her. Until the day she relinquished her position, she was still a princess. Coming to a decision, Philomel said, “One moment. You must greet me properly, all three of you, before you leave.”

The family looked askance as they stared at her.

“I greeted you earlier, Philomel,” the marchioness insisted.

“Marchioness Elos, was this how your family educated you when you were a princess?”

“I— That’s not—”

“And what is this impudent tone you’re taking with me? Address me with proper respect.”

The marchioness huffed with indignation, but she had nothing to say in her defense. Philomel was right.

“Fine. As you wish… Greetings, Your Highness Philomel. There. Happy?” she snapped, bowing lazily.

Philomel replied slowly, emphasizing each syllable, “Get down on your knees.”

“Wh-what?”

“I said get down on your knees. That is the proper way to greet the emperor’s rightful heir.”

To be honest, it was rare for such formalities to be observed in a private setting unless it was by commoners or low-ranking nobles. The marchioness’s face flushed bright red in humiliation.

You seem upset, Philomel thought. Though Sylvia’d become a marchioness after her marriage, she’d been a princess before that. No doubt she’d always been accorded the highest respect by her fellow noblewomen. Because there was no empress at the moment, the marchioness held an immense amount of sway over high society, as far as Philomel knew. But she wasn’t the one who exploded angrily.

“My brother is going to be emperor! You’re no heir!” Liam screamed, speaking in his mother’s stead.

This was what the emperor heard as he arrived on the scene.

“What is going on here?” he said.

Marchioness Elos and Logan blanched, but the young Liam didn’t seem to realize how dangerous his words were. Claiming that a relative of the emperor, not his daughter, would take the throne could be seen as treason.

He might not have heard Liam! Philomel hurried to the emperor and said, “Your Majesty! Liam Elos says that his brother will be the next emperor. Is this true? Is it possible that Logan Elos will become emperor even though I’m the princess?”

The marchioness appealed to the empire, summoning tears to her eyes, “Your Majesty, that isn’t true! My son never said any such thing!”

The emperor said nothing. No doubt thinking he would take their side, Logan joined in. “That’s right. Her Highness seems to have misheard.”

The emperor said, “So you’re saying... the princess is lying?”

The marchioness flinched, but then her lips twisted into a wicked smile. “I’m sorry to say it, but yes. Children are wont to lie for attention, after all. Please don’t be too harsh on her. She’s only a child.”

“My mother is right. It was just a harmless fib.”

Logan and his mother were openly accusing Philomel of being a liar. Any good heir to the throne should have had a comeback, but Philomel hadn’t been expecting this from them at all. She didn’t know what to say. At moments like this, she felt intensely frustrated that she was still only a little girl.

“B-but I’m not lying... I really heard him say it, Your Majesty.”

Tears came to her eyes.