Klaus was walking down the hallway of the corridor crossing the garden to head to the Crown Prince’s palace.

At that moment. The wind blowing from the garden side swept past Klaus.

His gaze that unconsciously turned to the garden where the wind came from was filled with the sight of fully blooming roses in full bloom.

Was he drawn by that fragrance? Klaus, unlike himself, moved his steps towards the garden instead of the well-polished corridor.

The white roses carefully cultivated by the imperial family were spread out on both sides as if guiding the way.

As Klaus was walking along that path, he suddenly felt a familiar scent in the blowing wind and turned his head.

There was a blonde woman in a white dress walking towards somewhere.

Unlike the Lugbelzet-style dress with an excessively voluminous skirt below the waist, it was a dress with a flowing silhouette that clearly revealed the woman’s curves.

The airy dress that clung to her legs and fluttered with the blowing wind exuded a mysterious atmosphere.

Klaus suddenly became curious about the woman’s identity.

A blonde woman who could freely stroll in the imperial garden…

Thinking she might be the Crown Princess, he unconsciously followed the woman, when suddenly with the blowing wind, she turned her head.

Along with the thick scent of roses wafting over, Klaus froze in place.

Although he couldn’t see properly as she was backlit by the sun, he felt his heart sink the moment the woman turned to look at him.

“Duke?”

A familiar woman’s voice was heard.

After staring blankly for a while, Klaus was finally able to realize that she was Roselia.

“Roselia…?”

Unlike Roselia who had always worn stiff dresses since the masked ball, Klaus was taken aback by her surprisingly changed appearance.

Her atmosphere had changed so drastically with just a slight change in attire that it was disconcerting.

It seemed to be a Rapelios-style dress, but… were the dresses there this revealing?

In fact, although it wasn’t particularly revealing except for the slightly different silhouette, he was embarrassed, strangely unable to find a place to rest his eyes.

“What are you doing here?”

Unlike his flustered heart, his voice came out very gruffly.

At Klaus’s question, Roselia looked around awkwardly and then smiled brightly.

“I think… I might have gotten lost.”

As he watched her laugh sheepishly, Klaus stiffened his body with a start.

Her smile seemed especially dazzling today.

Klaus tried to brush it off, thinking it must be because the sun was shining too brightly today, and maintained a calm expression.

“Didn’t you say you were having tea time with Her Highness the Crown Princess?”

At Klaus’s gruff question, Roselia awkwardly tucked her hair behind her ear.

“Yes… Somehow I ended up coming here. Haha…”

Seeing Roselia laugh awkwardly as if embarrassed, Klaus’s inner thoughts only became more confused.

Klaus deliberately cleared his throat and spoke calmly.

“The Crown Prince’s palace is this way. The Crown Princess’s palace is in the opposite direction.”

“Oh my… I almost got into big trouble.”

Roselia, who had been making a very serious expression as if she had learned an important fact, smiled brightly with sincere gratitude.

“Thank you, Duke.”

Roselia lifted her thin skirt slightly, bowed politely with a radiant smile.

And as she turned to walk in the direction Klaus had indicated, Klaus slowly raised one hand to cover his face.

The wind carrying the scent of roses brushed past Klaus’s bangs.

His face visible between his long fingers covering it as if hiding was flushed red.

Klaus, seemingly confused by his own reaction, roughly ran his hand down his face and let out a complicated sigh.

Unlike his flustered expression, his gaze was still fixed in the direction where Roselia had disappeared.

“Lady Roselia, where have you been until now?”

The Crown Princess, Closet, and Ivellionne, who had already changed into Rapelios-style dresses, greeted her warmly.

Roselia scratched her head with an awkward smile.

“Ah… I went out to the garden for a moment and ended up getting lost…”

“Oh my… The imperial garden is quite complex. Especially the garden in front of the Crown Princess’s palace is connected to the Crown Prince’s palace, so you must have been more confused.”

At Ivellionne’s kind explanation, Roselia, who had almost gone to the Crown Prince’s palace, laughed sheepishly.

Closet, who approached her side, showed off her feminine figure by twirling around once.

“How do I look, Roselia?”

While Roselia exuded an extremely feminine and mysterious atmosphere, Closet gave off a fresh and lively vibe like a mermaid who had just emerged from underwater.

Instead of the childlike, voluminous and exaggerated dress, the airy dress that naturally fell along her body line made her look more mature.

Roselia smiled contentedly, lifting the corners of her mouth as if proud of Closet’s appearance becoming closer to that of a woman.

“You look ready for marriage.”

At Roselia’s words, Closet made a sulky expression and put her hands on her hips.

“What kind of curse is that?”

At Closet’s retort, the Crown Princess, Ivellionne, and Roselia all burst into laughter at the same time.

Thanks to Closet, after having a good laugh, they sat at an outdoor table set up in the garden of the Crown Princess’s palace and leisurely enjoyed their tea time.

“By the way, I heard that among the bloodline of Rapelios, there are people who have a fragrance. Is that true?”

At Ivellionne’s sudden words, Roselia, who almost spat out her tea, coughed roughly.

Surprised by Roselia’s sudden reaction, the Crown Princess handed her a handkerchief.

“Roselia, are you alright?”

“Cough cough! Ah, yes… I’m… fine.”

Wiping her mouth with the handkerchief in her flustered state, Roselia glanced at the Crown Princess.

She was also curious about the question Ivellionne had asked.

As everyone’s gazes turned towards the Crown Princess as if waiting for an answer, the Crown Princess smiled gently and spoke casually.

“I’ve only read about it in records, so I don’t know much. The records clearly state that such beings existed, but I’ve heard that currently, the bloodline has become so diluted that they’re almost impossible to find.”

At the Crown Princess’s words, Ivellionne drooped her shoulders as if disappointed.

“I see. That’s a bit disappointing.”

Seeing Ivellionne’s dejected appearance like a child who had dreamed of a fairy tale story but faced reality, the Crown Princess smiled gently and added:

“Even if such beings still exist among the Rapelios bloodline, it would be difficult to recognize them.”

“Why is that?”

This time it was Closet who spoke.

The Crown Princess opened her mouth leisurely, maintaining a relaxed smile despite the pressing looks from Closet and Ivellionne.

“I’ve heard that as it’s an ability passed down through generations of the bloodline, they learn how to control their fragrance through generations of the family. Even if they possess a fragrance, once they learn to control it themselves, they would be no different from ordinary people.”

At the Crown Princess’s words, Ivellionne and Closet pursed their lips in amazement.

On the other hand, Roselia, who had been quietly listening to the Crown Princess’s story, looked increasingly serious.

She had thought it was just nonsense the Crown Prince had spouted… but was it a true story?

Then… could his words about her having a fragrance also be true?

Gulp, Roselia swallowed and cautiously opened her mouth with a tense expression.

“Um… perhaps…”

At Roselia’s words, everyone’s gazes turned towards her.

Roselia, who had been nervously fiddling with her hands, smiled awkwardly and continued speaking.

“Do I… have any kind of fragrance?”

“Fragrance? The maids would have sprayed perfume on you, so of course you do?”

At Closet’s blunt answer, Roselia smiled awkwardly.

“No. I mean like a special scent… a different kind of fragrance.”

“I can’t tell anything different.”

At Closet’s words, Ivellionne also tilted her head and opened her mouth.

“Do you not like the perfume the maid sprayed on you?”

“No, it’s not that… Haha! It’s nothing. Never mind.”

Seeing no particular reaction from them, Roselia laughed it off with relief.

Unbeknownst to her, Crown Princess Ivellionne was observing Roselia intently.

With Closet’s help, Roselia changed her clothes in the returning carriage and entered the mansion on foot, as if she had just returned from repairing her younger sister’s house.

Roselia, who had deliberately moved in view of the servants and maids to reach her room, flopped down on the bed right away out of exhaustion.

But she had to get up immediately at the sound of knocking that soon followed.

“Who is it?”

At Roselia’s voice, which sounded annoyed, a familiar voice was heard from behind the door.

“See me in my study for a moment.”

It was Klaus’s voice.

Roselia, who had made a startled expression at his sudden summons, immediately began to check her appearance.

The shirt was well buttoned up to the neck, and the chest bandage was tightly fastened without being loose.

The pants were neat and the vest was tidy too.

Roselia soon left the room confidently, as if she had finished preparing.

She didn’t know why he had called her, but she could only guess it was related to the debt.

Arriving in front of Klaus’s office, Roselia cleared her throat a few times and then knocked carefully.

Knock knock−

“It’s Antonio.”

At her voice, Klaus’s dry voice immediately came from inside the room.

“Come in.”

Klaus’s dark blue eyes followed Roselia as she entered with neat steps.

With his elbows resting on the desk in the study and his chin resting on his interlocked hands, his sharp eyes looked even fiercer.

While Roselia stood nervously, Klaus was thinking of something completely different.

In fact, when he had saved Antonio at the lake, he had been confused by an incomprehensible strange feeling.

He really didn’t want to think about it.

He didn’t even dare to think about it.

To the point where he worried if he might be that kind of person.

But after meeting Antonio’s younger sister Roselia in the imperial garden today, another confusion arose.

He felt a strangely complicated feeling just like with Antonio, but in a corner of his heart, he thought it was fortunate.

At least it seemed he was attracted to a woman.

So he called Antonio to make sure about his reaction that he himself couldn’t guess.

“Duke…?”

Roselia made a startled expression at the Duke’s reaction of just glaring silently after calling her.

Only then did Klaus lower his interlocked hands covering his mouth and slowly parted his lips.

“Antonio.”

“Yes?”

“Does your younger sister perhaps have a promised future spouse or a lover?”