This Heroine's Friend Has the Power of Botany

Chapter 253

Vida’s Proposal

“I want to know who is plotting to rebel against the Ares Kingdom and join the Rhea Kingdom. That’s what we need to investigate immediately!” Jason said earnestly, ignoring his older brother and looking straight at their father, who still had a furrowed brows. The highest-ranking person in the room let out a long sigh.

“Joseph, you will be responsible for interrogating all the soldiers and enemy personnel.”

“But Father!” Jason was unwilling to accept, even if this was the Emperor’s order. He was the one who had been attacked, the one targeted. If he could handle everything himself, wouldn’t that be the best solution?

However, the Emperor waved his hand to stop Jason from speaking further. Even though his son didn’t understand, he didn’t explain more, letting him learn on his own. Jason was straightforward and believed problems had to be exactly as he thought. Although he was good-natured and more responsible toward the kingdom than his eldest son, his overly simplistic mind needed much development.

For the Emperor, careful consideration was crucial in this situation. If Jason were to investigate the enemy and soldiers involved, and discover noble treason, it wouldn’t be a minor issue. If this leaked, the Emperor would face criticism and scorn. Perhaps...it could even be a turning point in the war.

If other kingdoms knew that Ares had a weak Emperor and the nobles who wanted to destroy the kingdom, they might change their mind and lose confidence in Ares’ ability to win. Should this consensus form, it could lead to united opposition. A single dissenting kingdom wouldn’t matter much, but if more than 3 allied against Ares, it would be catastrophic.

Thus, if Jason conducted the investigation, he would immediately act on the findings. Joseph, on the other hand, would consider the bigger picture. Even though he wasn’t very smart, his cautious nature often gave him an advantage.

“No more arguments. From now on, the noble families will not allow their children to undertake missions in the tower. They are already preparing to recall their children from assisting in the institute’s name. Therefore, I have a new assignment for you.”

“Instead of training alone with the students as before, I will assign you 200 soldiers. You will take over all the missions the institute students were doing. Since you were the victim in this incident, having you in charge will prevent others from accusing me of endangering their children with you.”

When the Emperor spoke, if it had been the former Prince Jason, he would have hated the nobles even more. However, his mindset had changed. He looked at his father with complete incomprehension.

Suddenly assigning the task that should be his to his brother and then punishing him with an extremely tough mission—perhaps he would have to work day and night to gather the resources equivalent to what the students had to do.

If Ellie hadn’t opened his eyes, he would have thought the nobles were selfish, cowardly, and opportunistic. If someone had said it was because of “him" that their children were in danger, he would have retorted...And wasn’t I in danger too!? Also, wasn’t it everyone’s duty to protect the royal family? The nobles’ children were part of that duty as well!

But...unfortunately, his thoughts had changed. So, after hearing his father’s words, Jason felt that it was his father who was fostering hatred towards him!

Why couldn’t the nobles demand responsibility this time? This was a failure of the kingdom’s soldiers, the subordinates of the royal family! If the kingdom’s soldiers took orders from nobles, that would be one thing. But these were the Emperor’s soldiers. When they made mistakes, they should be held responsible. That was only fair.

They were supposed to protect their own city but let enemies infiltrate. When the Hunter’s Association immediately detected the enemy’s unusual movements, compared to the regularly paid soldiers who were funded by taxes from both commoners and nobles, wasn’t this an absurd situation?

So how could he be held responsible? He was the victim. If...anyone were to be held accountable, it should be those with full military authority!!

Jason quietly accepted his father’s orders and left. He had always been obedient to his father, never doubting him. But today, he felt that his father was just like those nobles, thinking of him as an emperor rather than a father, using people based on their personalities and abilities, not even cared about his son’s thoughts.

“How was it, Your Highness?” After Jason walked out, Ryker, who had been waiting outside the meeting room, rushed to him. It was nearly dawn, so he could clearly see the prince’s expression.

Ryker could immediately tell how badly his prince felt.

“Mmm, let’s rest. Tomorrow, I need to enter the tower with 200 soldiers. My father assigned me the task. The work previously given to the institute’s students will now be handled by me and 200 soldiers.”

“What!? How is this possible!? Only 200 soldiers to do the work of all the institute students? Why would the Emperor...”

“This is my punishment for putting the nobles’ children in danger.”

“Uh, is that...true, Your Highness?” Ryker couldn’t believe it. This order—it made no sense. Punishing the prince who had just gone through such a terrible ordeal—was that really justified?

Instead of keeping the prince safe within the kingdom, the Emperor suddenly ordered him to risk his life again. If they weren’t father and son, Ryker might have asked if the Emperor hated Prince Jason!

“Let’s go. If you want to return to your family, it’s fine. This is my mission alone.”

“How can that be, Your Highness? I am your knight, after all,” Ryker said earnestly. Jason couldn’t help but chuckle. In the entire kingdom...ah, no, it should be said that in the entire palace, Ryker was probably the only one truly sincere to him. Outside the palace...it seemed there were people in the Setter family who had never lied to him, even if their words were not always pleasant...The sincerity he received from them was far more valuable.

Jason walked past Ryker, intending to sleep for 2-3 hours before summoning the 200 soldiers as his father had ordered. However, before he could leave, the sound of “thud, thud,” footsteps approached from the front, followed by the hurried footsteps of others.

The young man looked up in surprise. Initially, his vision was blurred from stress, confusion, and exhaustion. However, when he saw the scene before him, Jason felt ashamed, and his vision cleared instantly.

“Your Highness! Are you safe? Huff, huff.”

A familiar yet unfamiliar voice called out. The familiarity came from his haughty little fiancée. The unfamiliarity was...because she usually spoke and acted as if she were performing in a play. He had seen many such women in his father’s court, which annoyed him.

But now, what he saw before him was the girl in a cute nightgown, not the usual luxurious attire. Her hair was unkempt, indicating she had rushed out as soon as she heard he was in danger. Her voice was trembling and hoarse. The servants who followed her were panting heavily, but Vida tried to speak to him, scanning his body for any sign of injury.

“Aren’t you...supposed to be on a mission in the 2nd floor?” Jason was slightly confused. Vida blushed deeply at his question, feeling embarrassed to be caught. In fact, she had been grouped with the students of the Jarlon family. Because of that, the head of the family sent their soldiers to do the mission instead. The children only had to deliver the missions, while the rest of the time they trained in the Jarlon family.

“A-Actually...”

“You don’t need to explain. It’s fine.”

“No, Your Highness...I mean, I know I was wrong. From now on, I will do the missions myself. I won’t...”

“I’m not going to scold you.”

“Yes, Your Highness. You can scold me if you want, but after this, I will... huh?...” Vida was slightly surprised. She had almost cried when her lover caught her cheating. But after replaying his words, she realized he just said he wouldn’t scold her.

“R-really? You won’t hate me just because I...”

“Mmm, I don’t blame you.”

“...T-Thank you, Your Highness.” Vida had never seen Prince Jason smile at her like this before. She was blushing with embarrassment. Yes...Jason did smile a little at her. After Ellie’s stern lessons and he also gained a new perspective, he realized that Vida wasn’t as bad as he had thought. She had tried harder for him than anyone else. It was him who was biased from the start.

Since they were already in an engagement that couldn’t be canceled, he vowed to change his mindset and start treating her better. However, if one day she betrayed him like everyone else, he would treat her as an enemy like he used to be. This new decision wouldn’t harm him anyway. If opening his heart brought benefits, then it was a change for the better.

“Now, I must go. As you know...Ryker and I haven’t rested at all, and I still have missions to complete.” Jason greeted her briefly. He had limited time and if he still wasted it like this, he would definitely not have time to rest.

“Missions?” Vida was greatly surprised. The prince had just returned from danger, and now he had more missions? Shouldn’t he be resting and staying safe in the palace?

The Rhea Kingdom’s target was Prince Jason, so protecting him should be the priority. Then, why...

“Duchess...” Jason didn’t want to explain further, sensing that she was worried about him. At that moment, Ryker interjected.

“His Highness is being punished, my lady. He’s being held responsible for putting the nobles’ children in danger. So, the Emperor has assigned all the institute students’ missions to the prince. His Majesty believes that after this, the nobles won’t send their children into danger again. That’s the mission the prince must now undertake.”

“Ryker...” Jason frowned slightly. He hadn’t intended to tell Vida this, but Ryker ignored his wish.

“You know His Highness’s current situation, my lady. If he’s given 200 soldiers to complete these missions, there’s no way he can succeed. If the prince’s actions result in the soldiers not getting enough supplies, there will be even harsher punishments.”

“R-really, Your Highness?” Vida placed a hand on her chest, shocked and terrified.

“Mmm, but I believe it will be successful. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“How can you say that!! Don’t you know the position you’re in? Earlier...my father received news from the Setter family. Although he couldn’t say for sure what it was about, but you...you are being targeted! My father is using all his connections to verify the Setter family’s information and find evidence to catch the culprits. But...sob, during this time...could you please come to the Jarlon family!”

“What...are you talking about? What information? What culprits?” Jason’s brows furrowed deeply.

Did the Setter family pass some news to the Jarlon family? What were they planning? If it was indeed about him, why hadn’t they told him directly?

Seeing her fiancé’s expression, Vida reconsidered. She knew his temperament well. To ensure his safety, she might need to deceive him.

“If you want to know, could you promise me something? Then I will have my father tell you everything... =The only condition is that you come to the Jarlon family. As for the missions, let the Jarlon family handle them all. With our force and the mercenaries we’ve hired, we can complete a week’s worth of missions in just one day. It’s not difficult. We don’t need 200 soldiers for that.”

Vida spoke earnestly, leaving Jason standing there, stunned.

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