Operation: Avoid the Crown Prince

6 | A Step to the Right Path

Following that accidental (and very much unwanted) meeting with my would-be murderer at the Royal Palace, I spent the next few days in the safety of my room, listing every single piece of information I could remember from the novel and Anastasia's memories. Around this time, I clearly couldn't rely on the novel since its official beginning would be years later so I had no choice but to use Anastasia's memories which are mostly bullshit, by the way. She had placed very little importance to the issues around her during her childhood; instead, all her memories mostly had been of chasing after Sylvan. She knew every little thing about him-from his favorite color to his daily schedule-Anastasia's basically the ultimate fangirl, too devoted to Sylvan to notice anything else.

I looked down at the journal laid out in front of me. Names, locations, tiny details about certain characters, snippets of important events-I listed everything I could. My purple irises settled on the two names at the top part of the page, both written in a larger font than the rest. Kail Olsen Kyanos and Zedrif Lucian Kyanos. My older half-brothers. Now, now... What should I do about these two?

I should make an effort to win their trust. I'll most likely need their help in the future and I'd really like for them to at least have a somewhat decent relationship with the duke. Currently, Kail is 15 and Zedrif is 13. Kail just started his first year at Solecium Academy, placing 1st on the entrance exam and what do you know? He's actually the only freshman to ever get a position in the student council. Meanwhile, Zedrif's on his second year at Celes Institute of Magic-an associate school of Solecium Academy but only for younger students. Kinda like a middle school then? Ugh, this is gonna be difficult, teenage boys are very hard to deal with. They obviously hate Anastasia so how do I proceed with this plan of mine?

"Lilia, what day is it today?"

I turned to Lilia who's currently standing somewhere near the door. My eyebrows unconsciously furrowed over when I saw her so far away. When I told her to give me some privacy I didn't expect for her to stand by my bedroom door like a silent bouncer.

"Today is the 3rd day of April, Miss."

April 3 huh... Kail's birthday is on the 9th, he and Zedrif will be arriving from Neria later today because of their semestral academic break or whatever. They'll leave after a week so this'll be my window of opportunity. This is the best time for me to slowly weasel my way into their hearts and tap into those buried affection they've always had for their younger sister. Well... I'm not 100% certain but surely they still have some sort of love for their little sister, right? I mean, sure, Anastasia's quite rude and a spoiled brat but she's still their younger sister, yeah? They must have at least a little bit of affection left for her.

Okay, so it's decided! My first task to remedy my future would be to build a better familial connection with my older brothers. Kail's birthday is the perfect opportunity to start and coincidentally, it's on the day of the Spring Festival too! This is obviously a sign that things are finally looking up for me. Now, the only thing I need is to prepare the perfect gift and I know just the right place where to obtain it.

"Please prepare a carriage for me."

Lilia looked uncertain but still acquiesced. She must be thinking that Anastasia's off again to cause some sort of trouble.

"Where do you plan on going, Miss? The duke..."

Oh right, I can't just leave without the duke's permission. I'm a Young Lady of House Kyanos, I have to always notify my parents when I leave, especially now that I'm still a little child. And I'd rather not worry the duke lest I get grounded.

"Well then, let's go to Father's study to ask for permission."

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