As soon as I confirmed that Prince Aiden was sleeping I creep out of the room. In front of the door, I find Sir Caleb holding a small box in his hands.
"Were you waiting out here the entire time?" I ask as I look up at him while closing the door behind me.
"Yes, I couldn't find an opportunity to go in." He says then holds the box out to me. "Was his majesty injured?" His voice doesn't change in tone but I can tell he is concerned.
"Thankfully not." I take the box. Noticing my loosely bandaged hand Sir Caleb bows his head.
"I'm sorry." He apologised without hesitation. It felt awkward having a knight bow down to me.
"I-It's fine, sir Caleb. Please lift your head." I say as I notice some maids walking past. however, he ignores my plea and stubbornly continues.
"It's my fault. I'm the Prince's knight yet I can't even protect him from that woman. I'm utterly useless as the Prince's guard. Instead of me, his nanny is protecting him the most." He continued degrading himself. These moments aren't a common occurrence however this isn't a foreign sight either.
Sir Caleb is also an illegitimate child and had to fight to survive. He was always mistreated and looked down upon, so eventually, those insults became a part of his identity. Whenever he feels useless or feels like his existence is a nuisance he insults himself. However, this also helps him become a better version of himself.
Sir Caleb was hired by the Empress consort, so he is not able to go against her. However, the fact that he was raised almost the same way as his majesty gives him a sense of kinship and makes him the most loyal knight to his majesty. I know that if there is any real danger from anyone other than the empress consort, he wouldn't hesitate to eliminate the threat for the young prince's sake.
I put my hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry. it's no one's fault. I know you can't go against the empress consort and so does his highness." he finally lifts his head to look at me. "Remember you were hired to guard his majesty against external threats like assassins and poison. Besides, the empress consort cannot kill the young prince even if she wanted to."
It was said to mention that both the reason Prince Aiden's life is protected from the Empress Consort but also constantly in danger is because of his status as the prince. A true double-edged sword...
"I'll go now, please let me know when his highness wakes up," I say and head to my room.
"I will guard him with my life." I hear him say from behind.
It isn't much of a trip to my room since the Prince's and mine are right beside each other. His highness, Emperor Leopold, made it so because he wants Prince Aiden's nanny to be extremely attentive towards the young prince's.
Emperor Leopold is aware that Prince Aiden is a sensitive child, he just isn't aware of the domestic abuse going around initiated by the Empress.
It seems like his majesty does care a lot about the young prince, however, since he is unaware of the situation nothing is changing for the young prince. Ever since I was employed I haven't had a moment of privacy to inform his majesty so there is no way of reporting the abuse directly to him without the message getting intercepted somehow.
I take out bandages and disinfectant from the box Sir Caleb gave me. There isn't a doctor or physician I can go to whenever I'm ill or injured so Sir Caleb sometimes brought medical supplies in case I or Prince Aiden has an 'accident' like earlier with the empress consort. This was, however, the first time she used a blade so I am lucky that Sir Caleb brought this along.
I disinfect my cut and bandage it up. It was actually shallower than I expected it to be. It was probably the blades that only dug into the cut that hurt, not them actually cutting deeper into my skin. Luckily I didn't lose too much blood from it.
After I made sure Prince Aiden ate his dinner, which now consists of a lot of meat and vegetables in contrast to his bread only diet, I helped him into the bath and got him ready for bed. Fortunately, Empress Liliana didn't look for Prince Aiden so I could help him relax a little before bed. I read to him his favourite fairy tale; Well, it was more of a romanticised version of the founding of the Empire.
It started when the moon goddess separated the tides and lifted the land. The earth began to get populated but there was no order, so she appointed someone to settle the discord. Soon after rising to power as the First Emperor, he became a tyrant who terrorised his citizens. So the moon goddess gave birth to someone who was a demi-god to overthrow the tyrant. they became the new emperor, and their descendants all inherited dazzling blond hair that will appear gold in the moonlight.