The Father and Daughter Who Joyfully Received Assignments
The Emperor simply couldn't wrap his head around it. His parents had been paragons of the empire, he himself was brilliant, and even his half-brothers were sharper and more competent than the last. So how had his own brother, Damian, turned out to be such a complete and utter fool?
He figured he'd cleaned up more of Damian's messes over the years than the number of philosophy books he'd ever read.
Watching the father-daughter duo in front of him drag their family name through the mud, a hot spike of fury shot through him. He snatched the heavy inkwell from his desk and hurled it.
"Enough!"
The pair expertly dodged as it flew past. Then, in one fluid, practiced motion, they both dropped to their knees, heads bowed to the floor.
The moment the inkwell left his hand, the Emperor regretted it. But seeing those two troublemakers duck out of the way completely unharmed, he couldn't suppress a flicker of relief. The feeling vanished the instant he saw the shameless looks on their faces, and the anger came rushing back.
"I see the two of you have no idea what you did wrong," he said, his voice dangerously low. "From the time you were children until now, I've punished you for every stunt imaginable. But the second it's over, you forget all about it. It hasn't slowed you down one bit."
He paused, his eyes landing on Prince Ashworth, who was trying to shrink into the floor.
"At your age, you are still completely useless! You couldn't care less about official business, and you can't even raise your own daughter properly. Every single day, you're out there making trouble for me. I think you just have too much time on your hands. Starting today, you have a job.
You will report to the government office, and you will do your duties."
Then, he turned to Cassidy, his expression hardening with disappointment. "And you. A young lady of your station, acting so ridiculously. If word of this gets out, who in the world is going to want to marry you?
"Since you're so determined to have Heir Vance, I'll grant your wish. I'm arranging a marriage between you and him. The Vance family is respectable and well-educated. Maybe once you're married into it, you'll finally learn some self-control.
And you can stop following your father's lead and doing these ridiculous things."
The news hit the father and daughter like a physical blow.
Cassidy reacted first, scrambling forward on her knees. "Uncle, I was wrong! I don't want to get married! I'll stay at Ashworth Manor from now on, I won't go anywhere!"
Prince Ashworth was right behind her, sliding across the floor until he was close enough to grab the Emperor's robes. He looked ready to burst into tears. "I was wrong, too! I don't want a job! I'll just stay at the Imperial Clan Court, I won't go anywhere!"
One didn't want to get married, the other didn't want to work. They were now in a fierce competition to see who could sound more miserable.
The Emperor ignored his brother's dramatic wailing and frowned at Cassidy. "Weren't you the one screaming all day that you would *only* marry Heir Vance? Now that I'm granting your wish, why the sudden opposition?"
Cassidy looked genuinely baffled. "Uncle, when did I ever say I'd only marry Heir Vance?"
From the side, Prince Ashworth muttered, "Sweetheart, before you hurt your head, you were chasing after that boy every single day. You put him before your own father."
Cassidy pointed at herself. "Me?"
Her father nodded firmly.
She was floored for a second, then quickly turned back to the Emperor. "Uncle, my tastes have changed. I don't like Heir Vance anymore. I don't want to marry him."
The Emperor didn't push it. He hadn't really wanted the only child from Ashworth Manor marrying into the stuffy Vance family anyway. Besides, Heir Vance seemed to have zero interest in Cassidy, and if he approved the marriage today, he knew Verity would throw a fit later.
Those two girls were the same age, with similar titles, and they had been at each other's throats since childhood.
They competed over everything and fought whenever they crossed paths.
Their rivalry over Heir Vance in the last few years had practically turned the palace upside down.
They were, simply put, the two black sheep of the imperial family.
He'd just gotten carried away by his anger at this father-daughter disaster, which is what led to the marriage idea. He'd figured if Cassidy got married and spent less time with her father, her wild personality might finally be tamed.
He thought for a moment, and it dawned on him. The real reason these two were always causing trouble was because they had nothing better to do.
"Since you don't want to marry Heir Vance, I won't force you."
Cassidy immediately thanked him, showering him with compliments as if they were free.
But in the next second...
"I've made my decision," the Emperor announced. "The source of your troublemaking is boredom. So, I'm creating a new department: the Capital Inspection Bureau. From now on, the two of you will serve as Chief Inspectors, responsible for maintaining security in Argent."
It sounded important, but it was basically just a glorified neighborhood watch, handling petty squabbles on the streets of the capital.
Cassidy immediately refused. "Uncle, I'm a woman. If I take an official post, the Censors will have my head. Just make my father do it. He's the one with nothing to do anyway."
A job? No way. Not a chance in hell.
The Emperor was unfazed. "There have been women in the past who held important court positions and accomplished great things. It's just become rare. Rare doesn't mean impossible." Besides, it was just a symbolic title. The court officials wouldn't dare make a fuss over it.
Prince Ashworth tried one last time. "Brother, I'm not doing it. I'm busy. Give the job to, "
"Shut up!" The Emperor had finally reached his breaking point. "I don't care what you think. You will both report to your new posts tomorrow, or I will arrange marriages for both of you!"
Cassidy's eyes went wide. "I'll go, Uncle! I'll go right now! I love keeping the peace. It's my calling! I'm a messenger of justice, born and raised!"
Prince Ashworth froze, then quickly followed suit. "I... I'll go too, brother! I promise I'll do a great job!"
With that, the father and daughter scurried out of the room, terrified the Emperor might have another bright idea and issue a marriage decree for each of them on the spot.
Back at Ashworth Manor, Cassidy barely had a moment to catch her breath before the manor's steward, Uncle Clifford, rushed over.
"Princess, there are people from the Vance family here to collect someone."
Cassidy was confused. "Collect who?"
"The man you brought back yesterday," Clifford reminded her. "The Vance family says he's a runaway slave from their estate."
Jed? Yesterday, after she'd grabbed him, a mission prompt had declared itself complete, and she'd promptly forgotten all about the guy.
"Bring him here," she ordered.
"And the people from the Vance family?" Clifford asked, a little hesitant.
In the past, the mere mention of the Vances would have had the princess tripping over herself to invite them in and wait on them hand and foot.
But ever since she'd hit her head and lost her memory, she hadn't mentioned Heir Vance once.
Cassidy shot him a look. "Of course I mean the person I brought back." What was with Clifford? Was he on the Vance family's payroll or something?
Seeing that the princess seemed completely indifferent at the mention of the Vances, Clifford let out a quiet sigh of relief and quickly had someone carry the man in.
He was brought in on a wooden board, and let out a pained grunt.
"What happened to him?" Cassidy asked, shocked. She knew the guy was hurt when she'd slung him over her shoulder, but she had no idea the injuries were this bad.
Jed saw the woman who had saved him and struggled to sit up, but Cassidy gently pushed him back down.
"Are you a runaway slave from the Vance family?"
He nodded.
"Did you sign a deed of sale?"
He nodded again.
"What about the official registry? Are you listed?"
Jed looked confused for a moment, then shook his head. A domestic slave's legal status was tied to their master's family; they wouldn't have their own entry in the city's records.
"So, Princess," Clifford asked, "should we return him to the Vance family?"
"I brought him here myself. Why should I give him back? Do I look like someone who backs down?"
Clifford started, "But, "
Cassidy ignored him and looked at Jed. "Do you want to go back to the Vance family?"
Jed shook his head frantically.
"Then do you want to stay here, at my manor?"
He nodded eagerly.
Cassidy frowned. She noticed all he ever did was nod or shake his head. Was he mute?