The Crown Prince Who Raises a Side Character-Chapter 53: Servant Cedric (19). Rational Inference

Claudia had almost no experience running with all her strength on her own two feet.

She wasn’t the type to enjoy physical activity to begin with, and as a noble young lady, even walking was expected to fall under the category of “etiquette.”

But at this moment, that past meant nothing—she was running with all her might.

The mansion’s servants looked on with wide, shocked eyes, trying to say something, but she didn’t care. Even the breath caught at her throat didn’t matter now.

“About Mr. Cedric... I think his condition’s gotten a lot worse lately.”

“He’s working far less than he used to, and much more slowly. Of course, he still does the work of a full person and then some, but... how should I put it? Before, it felt like ‘I could never catch up to this man,’ and now it’s more like ‘he’s one of the more competent ones among us.’”

“I figured it was just because the estate and territory have stabilized, so he was taking it a little easier... But the other day, I... I saw him cough up blood.”

“And the way he calmly erased the traces without surprise or panic—it looked like he fully understands the state he’s in.”

“I hesitated to say anything, since it’s someone’s private business... but I felt you should know, my lady.”

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

Claudia replayed the maid’s words over and over in her mind as she ran, clumsily but relentlessly.

Finally, she arrived at the room where Cedric stayed and yanked the door open.

Or tried to.

Clack! Clack!

“Cedric! Open the door! Cedric!!”

She pounded and yanked at the locked door until, after a moment, it opened from the inside—and Cedric appeared.

With his familiar puppy-like expression, eyes wide in surprise, he looked at the breathless Claudia with confusion.

“My lady, what’s the matter?”

“You, you...! Haa... so... haa!”

“Please, calm yourself. Let’s catch your breath first. Slowly now, slowly.”

With Cedric’s help, Claudia finally managed to steady her breathing. Then, glaring at him, she burst out—

“Cedric, are you sick? Huh? Don’t lie—tell me the truth!!”

At her demand, Cedric narrowed his eyes for a moment, then gave a faint, bitter smile as if he’d understood the situation.

“It’s not something worth worrying about, my lady.”

“How can I not worry!? Where is it? What’s hurting? Have you seen a doctor? Should I call one for you? Huh?”

“My lady—”

“Is that why you’re quitting? Are you sick and worried I’ll fire you if you can’t work anymore?”

“My lady.”

“You think I’d throw you away over something like that!? You don’t have to work. The omelette rice, the tea, whatever, it’s all fine—just stay by my side...”

“Lady Claudia.”

The sudden, sharp reprimand—so unlike Cedric’s usual teasing tone—startled Claudia, making her whole body flinch.

“I apologize for cutting you off. But it seemed you were under a misconception, and I needed to correct that.”

He looked down calmly at his mistress, who now stared up at him with trembling eyes full of fear.

“First of all, it’s true I haven’t been feeling well. But it’s not nearly as serious as to warrant this level of concern.”

It was the truth.

“And the reason I’m leaving is because I’ve finished what I came here to do. I’m simply moving on to a new place for a new purpose. It’s not for any of the negative reasons you’re imagining.”

That was also the truth.

“Lastly, someone who does nothing but remain at their master’s side, relying solely on their mercy, cannot be called a ‘servant.’ Becoming such a person would go against my pride.”

Cedric didn’t lie.

He had told Claudia nothing but the truth.

His manner was so calm and firm that even Claudia, who had been sure he was gravely ill, felt shaken in her conviction.

In the end, she could only step back for now.

“O-okay. If you’re really fine... then good. We’ll talk again about re-employment tomorrow.”

“My answer won’t change, but I understand.”

With Cedric bowing in ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) polite farewell behind her, Claudia reluctantly left his room.

She only did so because she knew he wouldn’t be able to rest in peace if she stayed.

Unaware of the strange looks from nearby onlookers, Claudia sank into deep thought.

Is he really not that sick? But he coughed up blood...

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Claudia didn’t possess any special insight that let her assess someone’s physical condition at a glance.

The blood beasts could use their animal instincts to sense others and relay that to her—but that wasn’t entirely reliable, either.

Even when they had been grouped as an elite force, they hadn’t been able to read Cedric properly. Now that they were split and scattered, the chances were even lower.

She considered calling a doctor to examine him... but something told her Cedric could easily deceive even that. Even if the doctor said he was fine, the anxiety wouldn’t disappear.

Then, suddenly, a face came to her mind.

In the past, Claudia would rather have bitten off her tongue than ever considered asking this person for help.

But if it was about Cedric... it was a different matter entirely.

Claudia steeled herself.

***

“Hah... so you’re telling me, you want me to check that servant’s condition?”

A flicker of disbelief crossed the Marquess of Redvell’s face.

It was understandable.

His youngest daughter, currently under the scrutiny of the entire political world, had barged in without notice—that alone was outrageous enough. But then, what she asked was to use the head of House Redvell as a diagnostic tool for a mere servant’s health?

“If this is a joke, I’ll give it decent marks. When something is so absurd it defies belief, even a hollow laugh slips out.”

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

Despite the marquess’s dry remark, Claudia’s eyes were nothing but serious.

Thus, the marquess also replied with a degree of sincerity.

“It had better be a joke. Otherwise, my so-called daughter is losing her composure over a servant’s lodgings.”

It was a warning.

Had any of his other children been present, they would’ve gone pale, lowered their heads, or stepped back while suppressing their thoughts.

But Claudia did neither.

“Cedric’s more important to me than your approval.”

“And you believe everything you have will endure without that approval?”

“Don’t act like you own the whole forest just because you planted one seed. How long do you plan to milk that for?”

In the Birka Kingdom, where the patriarch’s authority was absolute and children were seen as their parents’ property, such words were enough to make most either faint or burst into rage—aside from a rare few exceptions.

And the Marquess of Redvell was not a man detached from authority or power.

But—

“Hmph.”

He was capable. And for the sake of greater power and greater prestige, he could easily suppress momentary anger or offense.

Weighing the benefit of cutting Claudia off versus compromising, he reached a conclusion and spoke.

“I can check his condition for you. But I doubt it will mean much.”

“What do you mean?”

“He told you, didn’t he? That he has work to do elsewhere. If that’s already decided, then nothing you do will change anything. He’ll leave.”

“What?”

Claudia blinked, baffled by his meaning. The marquess continued evenly.

“If it were just about wealth or luxury, that Cedric wouldn’t have any reason to leave. Just staying at your side would grant him a life most commoners couldn’t even dream of—at least, as long as you don’t change your mind.”

Cedric had contributed greatly at Claudia’s side.

Enough that no one could complain, even if she showed him immense favor afterward—his achievements were overwhelming.

And yet he still chose to terminate his contract and leave.

“You’ve suspected it too, haven’t you? That Cedric is no ordinary commoner. Hell, even most nobles can’t perform at the level he does. That man was trained by either a nation or some massive organization on that scale.”

Claudia couldn’t refute him.

Because by her own reasoning, it made perfect sense.

“Whoever raised that Cedric sent him out as a mere servant to another country—and drove him hard enough that he started coughing blood. That means, to whoever is behind him, Cedric is just a piece. Not cheap enough to waste, but not irreplaceable either. That’s probably how they see him.”

It was, in fact, exactly how the Crown Prince treated his clone.

The insight of the marquess—who had pulled his collapsing house back up to the top of the kingdom—was nothing short of extraordinary.

Claudia asked, her voice trembling,

“Then... who? Who are the bastards working Cedric to the bone like he’s nothing?!”

“Well. I’m no prophet, so I can’t say for sure. But if his claim of being from the Empire wasn’t just a cover but a statement made boldly because it didn’t matter if it was discovered... then the one behind him is likely the Imperial family. If it had been another group within the Empire, even with ability, they wouldn’t have hinted at the Empire’s involvement so openly.”

Had the archdemon heard that, she would’ve nodded: “You are a prophet.”

“...No way...”

Claudia covered her mouth with both hands.

The Birka Kingdom, at the southwest tip of the continent, did not share a border with the Empire in the northwest, and to most Birkans, the Empire was a vague and distant place.

At most, they thought of it as “some powerful country far away.”

But Claudia, now working hard to study and acquire the knowledge needed of a lord, understood something else.

There was no country on the continent capable of standing against the Empire on its own. Only the combined forces of the second and third strongest nations might have a fighting chance.

The Birka Kingdom—possibly not even ranked in the top ten—would be utterly powerless even if it threw everything it had into resisting.

“Now do you understand? If you truly want to keep that Cedric in your hands, you’d need enough authority and power to negotiate directly with the Imperial Crown Prince. As you are now, you don’t even have the right to speak of it.”

Even the Marquess of Redvell—so powerful in Birka that not even the king could interfere lightly—was just another backwater noble in the Empire’s eyes.

As for Claudia, who had only just begun to spread her wings... there was no need to even say it.

Looking at his daughter, now overwhelmed by the towering wall before her, the marquess decided to show a sliver of kindness.

He remembered Cedric’s warning about ending up alone in his final years.

“Don’t cling to something you can’t keep. Just treasure the time you have left.”

Claudia trembled, lips parting several times as if to argue—but in the end, she lowered her head in silence.

Before the marquess’s painfully rational deduction, that was all she could do.