Working For The Prince (BxB)✔

Chapter 38 - Gathering Evidence

Playing the waiting game was not easy for someone like Asher. Luckily he managed to eventually find ways to entertain himself. Now that everyone but Trevor and Leon thought he was gone, it was easy for him to listen in on conversations, though it would probably have been just as easy beforehand with his access to the hidden hallways... 

The first thing he listened in on was when the beast confiscated the royal seal from Elise. Still trying to play the innocent woman, she didn't put up any sort of fight and behaved modestly, claiming to respect Leon's decision as part of her repentance. Afterwards, she remained confined in her room, as per the usual treatment for nobles awaiting punishment.

The knights were often overheard talking during their shifts, mostly about home and how boring their guard duty was at the castle. They didn't talk too harshly about Elise and seemed to still have some respect for her while remaining ignorant of her crimes, though Asher overheard Gustav mention her family's financial situation.

He heard how her father squandered his money on a startup business that never managed to take off. It had something to do with wool, which was imported from a neighboring nation. But with the sudden tension at the border, importing had become difficult and the product tax had been raised.

Elise's father borrowed a hefty amount of money to start the business, but without the stock, he was unable to turn a profit and was running out of money fast.

It was interesting, but not what Asher was after.

When he wasn't snooping on people, he was sneaking books from the library and reading in the secret room where he had been camping out. His first pick was of course the book he had been reading with Leon.

It was a good story, but he finished it much too fast with his extra free time, and now he wasn't even able to spend his boredom testing out new cooking recipes.

He often wondered if his horse was fine. It had been three days since sneaking back in, so he knew she'd have started to starve by now if he left her tied to a tree.

"What are you thinking about?" Leon asked, noticing that Asher was not paying attention and staring out the window.

The servant blinked, remembering what he was doing in the Prince's room today.

"You need to get Elise out of her room somehow." Asher explained. "Ever since she locked herself up in there, I haven't been able to figure out who she's been sending letters to."

"She insisted she should be confined while awaiting her punishment." Leon replied. "If I ordered her to leave the room, anything we're looking for would be destroyed or moved with her. Haven't you overheard anything from behind the walls?"

"She doesn't exactly talk to herself. And Laurent isn't much of a conversationalist. Not to mention how little she interacts with her guards aside from telling them when to fetch something."

It had been frustrating how he would glue his ear to the wall, only to receive silence in return for hours on end. Though he did occasionally hear the sound of the birdcage getting opened and closed, so he had a feeling she was still sending letters.

"I know she's still using the bird, so there has to be something still going on." Asher mentioned.

"I'm thinking of taking the bird away." Leon huffed. "She may no longer be able to use the seal to do as she pleases, but there's no telling who she's contacting or if we'll have unexpected visitors someday."

"How about this? You tell her to pick out a smaller room. Since she's okay with being punished, let her think that's the reason. While she's picking one out, I'll take the chance to sneak in and see if there's anything worth finding. She wouldn't have any reason to hide or destroy anything until she picks one."