Mathias arrived at Cuiwei Pavilion and saw his younger brother, whom he hadn't seen in years, sitting beside Elara with a blank and dazed expression. Maurice's face looked as if he had been greatly shocked, unable to recover for a while.
Mathias frowned slightly and looked at Elara, who was sitting next to Maurice. Elara was sipping tea. When she saw Mathias looking over, she smiled slightly and patted the seat beside her.
"Mathias, come sit."
Mathias didn't know what she wanted this time. He was more worried that something had already happened to his brother before he arrived.
One person from the Pei Family entering the Princess's residence was already enough. There was no need for anyone else.
"Princess."
Even though he felt anxious and unsettled inside, Mathias didn't show it on his face. He quietly sat where Elara had indicated and didn't spare a glance at Maurice.
But across from him, Maurice finally seemed to realize he was there. He stared directly at Mathias. His eyes, which looked very much like Mathias's, were filled with complicated emotions.
"...Brother... what she said... is it true..."
Maurice's voice was hoarse, as if forced out after being hit hard. His eyes were locked on Mathias, as if trying to force out a truth he didn't know.
Mathias's eyelashes trembled slightly. Since he had willingly entered the Princess's residence, he had basically severed ties with the Pei Family. It had been a very long time since he heard Maurice call him "brother."
He looked up to meet Maurice's gaze, his tone calm and indifferent. "I don't know what the Princess said to Second Young Master Pei just now."
Maurice looked at his elder brother's cold expression and listened to his detached tone. Thinking of what Elara had just said, the emotions in his chest churned violently.
"You!..." But just as he opened his mouth to speak, the words stuck in his throat. Seeing Mathias lower his gaze again, and how his face didn't show a trace of emotion from reuniting with family after so long, it was like he had truly cut all ties with the Pei Family.
It was as if he no longer belonged to the Pei Family, had nothing to do with them, and didn't even acknowledge him as his blood brother anymore.
Maurice's emotions surged. What he had suppressed for years—the betrayal he had seen and heard with his own eyes—rose again in his mind.
He remembered how Mathias had taken the Pei Family's most important secret and handed it to Elara, using the trust of their father and himself to sneak it out as a way to please her. That caused the already crumbling Pei Family to fall into decline.
Even after their father forgave him and tried to save him, Mathias heartlessly drove their father out of the Princess's residence. The Pei Family lost all face and became the laughingstock of the capital for an entire year. Their parents fell ill from grief and lay bedridden for half a year. Maurice's long-suppressed hatred for his brother surged again.
Especially now, watching Mathias calmly pour tea for Elara after sitting down. The hatred in Maurice's heart boiled up once more.
Elara must have been lying to him just now. How could this man be anything else?
Maurice suddenly looked at Elara. She was smiling faintly as she took the teacup from Mathias. Thinking of the rumors lately about the Princess doting on Mathias, Maurice's anger deepened.
To betray the Pei Family and gain favor. These two wicked people were enjoying their reward.
He was the fool. How could he have almost been deceived by a few of Elara's words just now?
Maurice suddenly stood up, his face full of anger, ready to turn and leave.
But as soon as he moved, someone grabbed his sleeve.
"Second Young Master Pei, we haven't even finished talking. Why are you already so upset?"
Maurice tried to pull away, but before he could, a man's hand was already pressing down on his shoulder. With just a bit of pressure, he couldn't move at all.
Uno had appeared behind him at some point. Unless Elara gave permission, he would not let Maurice leave.
Maurice stood stiffly, refusing to look back.
Elara didn't mind. She glanced at Mathias, who had subtly tensed beside her. Then she slowly stood up and walked to Maurice, gently patting his shoulder. But her eyes looked at Mathias.
"Maurice, your patience really needs work. You're far worse than your brother."
Maurice was already furious. Hearing this woman, who had forcefully brought him here, now comparing him to Mathias, made him want to explode.
But Elara continued speaking before he could say anything.
"Your brother didn't really want to please me when he came to the Princess's residence. The Pei Family secrets he handed over were altered, half-true and half-fake. Otherwise, how do you think your family managed to survive until now after all that trouble?"
As soon as she said this, both Mathias and Maurice, who had been looking elsewhere, turned to look at her.
Mathias's calm eyes finally showed a flicker of change. Maurice looked at her in disbelief.
Under their gaze, Elara went on calmly. "Maurice, even if you were young back then, as a direct son of the Pei Family raised by your brother and parents, you should've had some idea of how dangerous things were."
"Even though the Pei Family still held power at the time, after centuries of internal strife and external threats in the Plumera Kingdom, the foundation had already weakened. With the royal family in chaos, loyal officials like the Pei Family were pushed aside. Despite their loyalty, they couldn't avoid being isolated."
"At that time, the Plumera royal bloodline was tangled, and when the regent suddenly led troops north, the court was in chaos. People like Lord Gregory took advantage of this, and corrupt officials swarmed in. The court was filled with treachery. Those ministers were so deeply rooted that they controlled most of the kingdom's power."
"At that point, the Pei Family alone couldn't save Plumera. Worse, compared to Lord Gregory and his filthy followers, the Pei Family stood out as the only loyal family left. They were too upright and isolated, and it was only a matter of time before the others joined forces to destroy them. If things had gone that way, the Pei Family would already be a footnote in Plumera's history. And you..."
Elara paused and looked at Maurice, then turned to Mathias who was still holding the teapot. "You, your brother, and all your relatives in the Pei Family might already have been buried along with it."
Maurice's breathing grew rapid, his chest rising and falling heavily.
Elara didn't pay attention to his emotions. She just sat back down on the stool and looked at Mathias, whose body had almost gone stiff beside her. Suddenly, she reached out and gently held his cold hand. When he flinched and looked at her, Elara smiled at him.
There was open admiration in that smile, along with real heartache for a man who sacrificed himself for his family only to be branded a traitor.
"Mathias, you saw through everything from the beginning. That's why, before the Pei Family completely fell, you used the half-true, half-fake core secrets you had edited. While protecting the key parts of the Pei Family from being used against them, you tried to use your own body to support the entire crumbling family."
"For this, you didn't hesitate to sacrifice yourself. You willingly took on the label of traitor and came to my residence carrying those half-fake secrets. That way, even though the secrets leaked from me would make the Pei Family suffer further and lose more power, it wouldn't destroy them completely. Your beloved father, mother, brother, and all the relatives of the Pei Family would survive. Even Lord Gregory and his group would no longer see the Pei Family as a threat. Only like this could the family keep existing in the swamp that is the Plumera State. But the one who truly saved the Pei Family, you, ended up exiled from the family as a traitor and suffered beatings and torment in my residence. In just a few years, you almost died multiple times."
Maurice's eyes had turned red. He turned his head, clenching his hands so tightly they trembled.
He opened his mouth, wanting to confirm whether Elara's words were true. But when he tried to speak, it felt like something was stuck in his throat, and no words came out.
After all… if what she said was true… then all these years… his older brother, the one who had always been mature beyond his years and raised to be the heir by their father… what he went through was unimaginable…
Mathias didn't look back at Maurice. He just stared fixedly at Elara, a look she hadn't seen since the moment she entered this body.
In the past, he had always lowered his head in her presence, showing no emotion. But now, his eyes were filled with visible waves of feeling.
"Your Highness… why would you…"
Mathias's voice was a little hoarse. The confusion and doubt in his eyes were plain to see, mixed with countless tangled emotions.
Elara suddenly raised her hand and gently wiped the corner of his eye with her pale, cool fingers. Her gaze toward him softened even more.
"When I used to wear you out in bed, I never saw you make this kind of face…"
She lightly pinched the corner of his eye with her fingers, then gently stroked the side of his elegant face while he stared at her in stunned silence. She smiled and said,
"Mathias, you did very well saving the Pei Family. You worked hard."
Mathias's dark green eyes trembled. His gaze was suddenly filled with the image of her smiling face.
From the moment he chose to give himself up for the sake of his family, Mathias had been ready to bear everything. The hate and curses from loved ones, the pain and injustice on his body, he could endure it all. He had long since given up on himself.
Ever since the day he left the Pei Family, he had never dared to hope that someone could look at him with such warmth and understanding. That someone could see through all he did and tell him he did well, that he worked hard.
But now, that person appeared. And it was the woman who had done so many cruel things to him.
In this instant, all those terrible things she did to him seemed to blur within her gentle smile. Mathias's eyelashes trembled nonstop. All he could feel was the soft touch of her fingers on his face.
Elara looked at Mathias. The feelings in her eyes weren't completely sincere, but at least some part of them was real.
This man in front of her, though still young, was already worn down and hollow inside.
He had truly suffered greatly all these years. Her hand on his cheek grew even gentler, full of comfort.
At the same time, she looked up at Maurice, whose eyes were red as he stared at them without blinking.
"Maurice, the Pei Family secrets that Mathias handed over to me are still in the Princess's Residence. If you don't believe me, I can take you to see them right now. But even if you don't go, the fact that the Pei Family has been weak but still standing all these years should be enough proof. With your brain, I'm sure you can tell whether I'm lying."
Maurice's eyes were still locked on her and Mathias.
It was true… the Pei Family had fallen into decline, but they never collapsed completely. Even Lord Gregory and his people hadn't finished them off. Maurice had already noticed something was off.
And though Mathias's betrayal was unforgettable, Maurice had grown up with him. Back when their parents were busy, it was Mathias who took care of him. It wouldn't be wrong to say he had been raised by his older brother.
Because of that, when Mathias personally admitted that he had stolen the family secrets and betrayed them, their parents fell ill from anger. That was something Maurice could never accept.
But back then he was still young. Even if he didn't want to believe Mathias had done it, he couldn't find any flaw in the way his brother played out the betrayal.
Later, as their parents fell ill and the Pei Family declined, their once lively estate became broken and quiet. Maurice watched his family fall into despair and sickness and eventually die in pain. Over time, he couldn't help but start to hate Mathias.
That hate had built up for years, changing the way he saw his once beloved brother. Admiration had turned into disgust and resentment.
But now…
Maurice's mind was spinning with Elara's words. After a long pause, he took a deep breath. He didn't look at Mathias. Instead, he pressed his lips together and said to Elara,
"May I ask why Your Highness called me here today to clear my brother's name?"
As the second son of the Pei Family, Maurice had inherited the intelligence and talents of their direct bloodline. Naturally, he was a very clever man.
So he didn't believe Elara would do this out of pure conscience, without any goal behind it.