It was something I would never have said out loud under normal circumstances.

Whether it was due to the fever making me delirious, or because I had died and come back to life, or because I couldn’t tell if this situation was real, in any case, my tongue moved very freely and honestly on its own.

I told Peon, ‘I know you don’t see me as a woman.’

Moreover, I had essentially declared, ‘No one thinks that way, and I know that fact too.’ It was something the great pride of the Ostein duchess would never have allowed me to say, but I said it.

‘It’s no big deal.’

After saying it, I felt indifferent. Above all, it was the truth. I was the only one who knew it, and had just never spoken it aloud.

“I see.”

Peon also seemed to nod calmly.

“It seems I did something unnecessary. I apologize.”

“Why did you save my father?”

Kaella asked bluntly, seizing the opportunity. It was a question she had been too curious about but could never ask in the imperial palace, full of the emperor’s eyes and ears.

“It has nothing to do with Your Highness.”

That was the kind of relationship they had. A relationship of no relevance. They shared no blood, nor were they bound as family.

Although her mind knew it was perhaps for the best, her heart felt empty, and Kaella struggled with how to handle this sense of futility.

“Rather, Your Highness could have been held accountable.”

If the empress hadn’t collapsed, that would certainly have been the case. For forgetting to load the bullet, he would have been scolded by the emperor as an ignorant and unrefined fool. However, Peon answered very simply and nonchalantly.

“I’m already held accountable, so it’s fine.”

How could he say that he did it because he didn’t want to sin against her anymore, because he wanted her to be happy? How could he dare say such things? A sinner has no right to speak. He had to remain silent.

“Support for Lucenford could have been reduced.”

The emperor was more than capable of reducing support for the frontline against the evil dragon over such a trivial matter. It was already widely known both within and outside the empire that he acted particularly irrationally when it came to Peon.

“If that happened, Lucenford wouldn’t have been able to hold out. Why did you do it?”

The Grand Duke of Lucenford was a knight and a soldier. He knew well that his subordinates and troops needed to fight without suffering from cold or hunger.

So he always tried to secure support somehow, even while enduring humiliation before the emperor. Wasn’t his greatest purpose, wish, and dream to eliminate the evil dragon, return home to reunite with his mother, and marry Beatrice?

Kaella thought that if Peon had defeated the evil dragon Gvasalante faster than the emperor could kill him, she would probably have been secretly assassinated in Lucenford.

Lucenford had many loyal subordinates who would eliminate anyone interfering with their lord’s reunion, and he wouldn’t have left his wife alone, suspecting her of being the emperor’s spy. One way or another, Kaella was destined to die.

“We can hold out.”

Peon answered simply. His answer even hinted at confidence. He was not the Grand Duke of Lucenford struggling against the cold and facing the evil dragon.

“Thank you for your concern, but Lucenford can hold out. And before His Majesty the Emperor, aren’t we in a position to help each other?”

With feverish eyes, Kaella looked at Peon anew. He was unfamiliar, speaking words completely different from the Grand Duke she had known.

She deliberately used honorifics as she did when she was the Grand Duchess, and he too was using the same tone as her husband, yet it felt strange. Though the tone was the same, the content was different. Why had it changed?

“Yes, that’s right.”

Why had it changed? Now that Kaella had confronted and gotten angry at Peon, would he regret saving her father? Had she fallen out of Peon’s favor now?

“Kaella? Duchess?”

Her head hurt too much. With each shake of the carriage, her blood vessels constricted, squeezing her head tightly.

“We’re almost there.”

Let whatever happens happen. Having died once, could she not die twice? There was nothing to fear even if her relationship with Peon was ruined.

As Kaella stubbornly persisted, the four-wheeled carriage had already passed through the dark stone path and arrived at the brightly lit townhouse of the Ostein ducal family.

The carriage, escorted by numerous knights, came to a stop in front of the entrance where the butler and servants were waiting, the sound of hooves clattering.

A man with a tall, sturdy build and strong features quickly alighted from the carriage and extended his hand towards the inside.

“You’ve had a trying day. Please rest well and take care of yourself.”

It was the very image of a gentleman treating a lady. It was so proper that one could believe they had just met today, yet there was no hint of any shared memories or friendship between the two.

The hand that settled on his was hot with fever. Peon extended both hands to the unsteady Kaella, supporting her as she alighted from the carriage.

“Thank you for escorting me, Your Grace.”

Even in her dazed state, Kaella did not forget her manners, and also returned his cloak that she had been wearing.

“Have a peaceful night.”

Hiding all the words and actions he wanted to express, Peon left her side. A familiar deprivation was wearing him down.

After leaving the Ostein ducal townhouse, he mounted his horse and returned to the imperial palace. The streets were too dark, with only the brightly shining palace in the distance serving as a landmark.

The Grand Duke rode his horse silently, without a word. Even the knights closest to him could not tell what expression he wore or what he was thinking.

“Your Grace.”

Sir Renard, who had somehow slipped to his side, whether he had been there all along or had just joined, was unknown to anyone. His whispered words were drowned out by the sound of hooves clattering on the stone path.

“Lady Lavalle secretly entered Soleil Palace.”

While Sir Renard spoke trying to exclude as much doubt as possible, the fact that ‘Beatrice’ went ‘secretly’ to ‘Soleil Palace’ where the emperor was staying was all suspicious. And Peiron nodded without blinking an eye.

“She has not come out yet.”

“Keep watching.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The loyal Sir Renard bowed his head without asking a single question, then disappeared back into the darkness.

Peiron secretly moved only those subordinates who had not betrayed him to the end. He could only trust those who had died blocking the front, saying that at least the Grand Duke must live in the face of the oncoming imperial army.

So Kaella, who had been confined to the tower at the northern end of Lucenford by his order, had to be the most important exception.

From the moment he met her again in front of the monster’s garden, Peiron could not help but follow everything she did as if enchanted. He was so powerless before Kaella.

He wanted to tell her to keep the cloak she had taken off as soon as she got out of the carriage. He wanted to give her at least that because he had done so little for her, but he couldn’t even do that because the butler hurriedly offered her a shawl for her exposed shoulders.

When this short spring ends, he will return to Lucenford again, and Kaella will become a stranger to him forever.

Is that enough? If Kaella’s life becomes peaceful, is that the end of it?

‘It can’t be.’

It couldn’t be. Atonement and repentance are not that simple.

The meeting with Keruzhan, the collapsed empress, the insane emperor, Beatrice secretly entering and leaving Soleil Palace, the evil dragon… There were many things to worry about, but they were all already within Peiron’s calculations.

Even his mother’s collapse wasn’t surprising since he knew the cause. Rather, it was unfortunate but beneficial to him. He just needed to move as planned.

But everything Kaella had said and done today was completely unexpected. Kaella, of all people, should have been within his calculations. That was the only way to protect her safely and perfectly.

Who would dare to spread rumors linking someone like me with Your Grace.

It was impossible for a nobly raised duchess with great pride to utter such words and refer to herself as ‘someone like me.’

The eyes that had sparkled towards him had cooled, and she clearly drew a line, even pushing him away by whipping herself if necessary.

What had Kaella been like around this time? Despairingly, Peiron could not recall no matter how much he thought about it.

It was because he was already under a spell to have no interest in her at that time. Had she had no feelings for him since then? Had he not known that she was just being polite and not showing it?

Really, is there not even a sliver of possibility to remain on good terms with Kaella in this lifetime?

The more he thought about it, the more painful assumptions came to mind.

It seems this dark and long night will never end due to the words thrown by the duchess full of shame, fever, and anger, and the secrets hidden behind them.

*

The event that the Ostein duchess had prepared with all her might was successful and was talked about for a long time among the nobles. The Keruzhan diplomatic delegation was greatly satisfied with the grand start.

The emperor briefly met Prince Elkanan in the morning, and in the afternoon, he quietly summoned the Grand Duke of Lucenford, who had attended the military meeting.

Peiron, entering Soleil Palace, was slightly surprised to see that Duke Ostein, who should have been with the diplomats, and the duchess, who should have been resting, had arrived first. What was it this time?

There was no way Kaella could be alright after resting for just one night. She had been particularly weak. But the emperor, whose complexion was worse than Kaella’s, waved his hand dismissively, telling Peiron to skip even trying to pay his respects.

“Enough. Come this way. I have no intention of wasting the time of busy people by calling them here.”

“Why do you speak so regretfully, Your Majesty?”

Despite almost dying by the emperor’s hand a few days ago, Duke Ostein Adeo had to inevitably cater to the emperor’s mood. Here, he was much older than Peiron and Kaella, so he had to take responsibility for many things.

“It is our joy to come gladly when summoned.”

“Words you don’t mean.”

“Your Majesty.”

Today, the emperor was grumbling like a grumpy old man.

Whatever had happened with Beatrice Lavalle last night, he looked as if he had barely slept. The area under his eyes was dark with wrinkles, and he looked extremely tired. It was as if worry had eaten away at him.

“Anyway, Hyperion, you said you’re twenty-eight this year?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“How old is Kaella?”

Kaella answered without knowing why.

“Twenty-one, Your Majesty.”

The emperor rubbed his stiff face.

“As you know, the empress has become like that. There’s no sign of her waking up at all. The doctors are useless, and medicine doesn’t work.”

Kaella remained silent as she watched the emperor in despair. Should she be glad that this emperor feels despair, or should she find it gratifying?

This man who struggles so much with his own affairs had been pouring despair and misery onto others, making the emperor the most selfish person she had ever seen.

“I’ve looked back now and reflected a lot.”

It was a miracle that even those words of reflection came out of that mouth.

“I’ve been neglecting things I should have taken care of long ago. I’m ashamed that I’m only now starting to look after them, Hyperion.”

“Your Majesty has always taken care of me.”

Kaella tried hard not to look at Peiron in shock. She just tried to hide her expression by fixing her gaze on the red carpet.

Is this really the Grand Duke of Lucenford, flattering the emperor’s mood with such a blunt voice and expression, saying words he doesn’t mean?

That man was someone who didn’t know how to make up non-existent words. He was so upright and never thought of fabricating words that sometimes Kaella found it frustrating and regrettable.

But now, without batting an eye, he was flattering the kidnapper of his mother, who couldn’t be satisfied even if he drank him dry, more than Duke Ostein. Even the emperor blinked, as if he didn’t know Peiron could say such things.

“Do you really think so?”

“Isn’t it that by Your Majesty’s grace, this lowly one has received the undeserved title of Grand Duke and enjoys the honor of being in Your Majesty’s presence?”

He muttered as if reciting dry facts. Those were all words the emperor had repeatedly used to brainwash Peiron since he was very young. It was also amusing that the emperor who had done so was now surprised by Peiron’s words.

Kaella realized once again how distrustful a person the emperor was. He would never trust anyone until the end.

“No, the title of Grand Duke is not undeserved for you. Aren’t you the empress’s son?”

“I am grateful that you say so.”

What was the Grand Duke of Lucenford trying to do in response to the emperor’s persistent suspicion?

Kaella suddenly thought that perhaps she hadn’t come to the past, but had fallen into an entirely new world she had never experienced before.

The Peiron she knew was someone who would kneel before the emperor and endure humiliation, but not someone who would flatter him by wagging his tongue.

But he didn’t appear servile. The Grand Duke of Lucenford was very nonchalant. Every word that came out of his mouth sounded like an unbreakable fact, as hard as steel, and so the emperor was even more pleased.

“The empress’s son is of noble birth.”

The emperor emphasized. After calling it dirty and lowly blood for 28 years, Peiron couldn’t even laugh at how the status changed as easily as turning one’s palm.

“So, I must resolve the royal marriage that I’ve been putting off.”

The Ostein duchess looked at the Grand Duke of Lucenford with anxious eyes. He listened silently to what the emperor was saying without a hair out of place.

“Adeo, my brother.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The emperor, who affectionately called him brother only when necessary, beckoned Adeo to come closer.

“You’ve successfully arranged the royal marriage according to my wishes this time. However, your own daughter’s marriage hasn’t been decided yet.”

The royal marriage was arranged? What is this about? Kaella’s mind raced at these unfamiliar words. It seems something must have happened this morning.

Though he didn’t notice his daughter’s fingertips growing cold, Adeo hid his discomfort well. As a father, he had to protect his daughter, and as the Duke of Ostein, he had to keep the Ostein duchy safe.

“Everything has its order, and isn’t Kaella the eldest among the unmarried children in this royal family? Shouldn’t the duchess who will inherit Ostein be joined with a reliable husband?”

The emperor said this while extending his other hand to Peiron.

“I’m not proposing this impulsively, but have thought long about it over the past few days, especially since the empress collapsed. I didn’t not consider Prince Elkanan. But the Ostein duchy is a pillar supporting Crania.”

Peiron moved closer to the emperor.

“Lucenford is also the shield protecting Crania at the forefront, so if these two were to be joined and strengthen the royal family further, I couldn’t ask for more.”

“Your Majesty.”

At this point, Adeo couldn’t help but be flustered.

Isn’t it known throughout the Cranian Empire who the Grand Duke of Lucenford has in his heart? Yet who is he saying to join him with?

Adeo thought the Grand Duke would object, but he was wide-eyed and not saying a word. Or perhaps he wasn’t in a position to speak.

“I believe Kaella and Hyperion would be the most suitable match for each other.”

Before those words were finished, the duchess collapsed onto the red carpet of the audience chamber.