Roselia sank into deep contemplation with a serious expression.

After yesterday’s awkward dinner, she felt that Klaus was avoiding her.

Thinking about it carefully, she had wolfed down her food ravenously due to hunger, but Klaus seemed to have barely eaten.

No matter how hungry she was, even she thought she had been quite inconsiderate.

How could Klaus be in a good mood when his younger sister Roselia had rudely broken their promise…

And on top of that, her supposed elder brother had insensitively devoured the food so greedily…

Suddenly, a wave of embarrassment washed over her.

I should properly apologize about the Roselia matter after all.

Just then, she saw Klaus walking down the end of the hallway.

Roselia, who was cleaning the corridor, stiffened in surprise.

As Klaus suddenly approached, Roselia quickly addressed the duke.

“Um, Your Grace. About yesterday…”

Roselia was stunned as Klaus passed by without a word.

Did he not hear me? There’s no way he didn’t hear…

Flustered, Roselia could only helplessly watch Klaus’s retreating back.

He must be angry after all.

[This is the timeline separator]

After being ignored three more times after that, Roselia was now on the verge of irritation.

Seriously, men! If you’re angry about something, you should say it! Not just sulk!

As Roselia glared and fumed to herself, Nadia, who was sitting across from her counting money, asked quizzically.

“What’s the matter now?”

Roselia finally came to her senses and smoothed her expression.

She had visited Nadia’s house to give her payment for playing the role of Roselia for a day yesterday.

“It’s nothing.”

Hearing Roselia’s sulky voice, Nadia pocketed the counted money and spoke bluntly.

“Did you get caught?”

She was asking if Roselia’s disguise had been discovered.

Roselia sighed deeply and shook her head.

“No, it’s not that…”

“Then what is it?”

Seeing Nadia’s puzzled expression, Roselia hesitated for a moment before furrowing her brow and muttering.

“The duke keeps avoiding me.”

Nadia stared blankly at Roselia, who spoke with a somewhat serious expression, her eyes wide open.

Then she let out a deflating chuckle and leisurely rested her chin on her hand.

“Isn’t that a good thing? You didn’t want to get involved with the duke, right?”

At Nadia’s amused retort, Roselia’s eyes widened.

Oh? Come to think of it, that’s right. Why am I worrying about this?

She had wanted to avoid getting entangled with Klaus as much as possible, yet here she was fretting over him avoiding her…

The self-contradictory situation made her feel self-deprecating.

Perhaps she had felt unsettled by Klaus suddenly putting up a wall after acting so casually around her all this time.

Just as she was having such nonsensical thoughts, Nadia suddenly started coughing violently.

“Cough! Cough!”

Seeing her hunched over and coughing roughly, Roselia furrowed her brow and asked worriedly.

“Nadia, are you alright?”

As Roselia stood up to approach her, Nadia held up one hand to stop her while covering her mouth with the other, shaking her head.

“I’m fine, don’t worry about it. Cough! Cough!”

“Are you sure you’re really okay? You’re still going to the hospital regularly, right?”

As the coughing finally subsided, Nadia grinned and pointed to a corner of the table.

“Look at all the medicine piled up here. I’m going regularly, I tell you. More importantly, aren’t you busy being a servant at the duke’s mansion and taking care of the count?”

She had been planning to stop by the count’s mansion on her way.

Although he insisted he was fine, she felt uneasy leaving the senile old man unattended, so she had been visiting the count’s mansion almost daily.

Moreover, after learning about the young count’s issue… her mind was even more preoccupied.

Lost in heavy thoughts, Roselia furrowed her brow again before looking at Nadia and standing up.

“Well then, I’ll be going now. Nadia, make sure to take your medicine!”

As Roselia spoke sternly, Nadia smiled faintly and waved her hand as if to say she was hopeless.

“Alright, alright. Now hurry up and go.”

At Nadia’s words, Roselia glanced at her face once more before heading towards the door.

Nadia followed behind to see her off.

“I’ll come again soon to deliver the donation.”

As Roselia said this and stepped outside, Nadia leaned against the doorframe and smiled smoothly.

“Okay, and keep your expression relaxed. You’re prettiest when you smile.”

At Nadia’s compliment, Roselia, with her short black hair and servant attire, scratched her head sheepishly.

It was an embarrassing compliment to hear while dressed as a man.

Despite Roselia’s awkward reaction, Nadia looked at her with a sincere smile, as if she truly meant it.

[This is the timeline separator]

A man sat at a desk in the back of a dimly lit study, as if the lighting had been deliberately set to a low brightness.

Duke Rubellio, his well-groomed silver hair carelessly pushed back, was gazing at the moonlit window.

“Your Grace, for tonight’s bedchamber…”

A graceful woman standing beside the duke with perfect posture carefully asked.

It was Duchess Hermia, Duke Rubellio’s consort.

Without even turning his gaze towards the duchess, the duke indifferently continued speaking.

“There’s no need to bring in a courtesan tonight.”

At the duke’s words, the duchess bowed her head respectfully.

It might have seemed strange that the duke’s consort would be unbothered by arranging courtesans for her husband’s bed, but for them, it was not an issue at all.

After all, their marriage had been for that purpose from the beginning…

Just then, there was a knock at the study door.

At the duke’s gesture, the duchess immediately understood and quietly headed towards the door, bowing her head.

As the duchess opened the door and left the study, a man wrapped in a pitch-black robe entered as if he had been waiting.

The duke, seated in the study chair, languidly swirled a glass of amber liquid and spoke.

“Have you looked into Antonio?”

At the duke’s question, the man quietly bowed his head and spoke in a gloomy voice.

“On paper, there’s nothing to find fault with.”

The duke frowned slightly, seemingly displeased with the man’s answer, and took a sip of the liquid in his glass.

“However, there is something strange… Rumors say that just a few months ago, Antonio was a good-for-nothing scoundrel.”

At the man’s words, the duke raised one eyebrow as he lowered his glass.

“…Go on.”

“The rumors in the back alleys weren’t good. He was known as a frivolous noble wastrel who loved to party.”

The duke raised the glass to his mouth. After draining the amber liquid, he set down the glass, and the sound of ice clinking echoed through the study.

“So you’re saying that someone who was like that has changed as if he’s become a different person…”

The duke curled his lips as he said this.

“People don’t change easily. Not unless the heavens turn upside down.”

“…”

At the duke’s meaningful words, the man bowed his head and maintained silence.

The duke glanced over him and continued speaking impassively.

“Anything else to report?”

At the duke’s words, the man hesitated for a moment before carefully opening his mouth.

“While investigating the back alleys, we discovered a suspicious individual.”

“A suspicious individual?”

At the man’s words, an interesting light flickered in the duke’s golden eyes.

Seeing the duke’s interested reaction, the man bowed his head and calmly continued.

“I thought it would be better for Your Grace to see and judge for yourself, so I’ve brought him along.”

At the man’s words, the duke gestured with his chin, as if to say he would see for himself without further words.

Then the man looked towards the study door and spoke in a low voice.

“Come in.”

As soon as the man’s words fell, a shabby-looking man entered through the study door.

The man, who looked like a back-alley drunkard or a slave, seemed to be missing one hand, as one sleeve of his arm hung loosely as he entered hesitantly.

[This is the timeline separator]

Klaus, who had been looking over the documents about the Grand Duke’s family that Alejandro had investigated, suddenly recalled Antonio’s dejected figure that he had passed by in the morning, and irritably put down the papers.

He had deliberately avoided Antonio, thinking it would be fine if he didn’t see him, but strangely, the more he avoided him, the more Antonio’s image kept circling in his mind.

Rationally, he was trying not to think about it, but unconsciously, Antonio’s face kept appearing, to the point where his head felt like it would explode.

Klaus sighed deeply as he pressed his throbbing forehead, as if a headache was coming on.

At this rate, it seemed he wouldn’t be able to focus on any documents or anything else.

Finally, thinking he should at least get some fresh air, Klaus left his office.

Klaus, who had been considering strolling through the garden, changed his mind and headed towards the lake instead.

Although it was located within the duke’s estate, the lake was so large that it extended beyond the mansion grounds. It was so vast that it would take about an hour to walk around the entire lake at a normal pace.

As Klaus walked along the edge of such a lake, he suddenly recalled rescuing Antonio from the lake just over a month ago.

The image of Antonio, soaked and crying, saying he was scared.

Was that when it started?

Perhaps that was the beginning.

When these indescribable, subtle feelings began to sprout…

As he was thinking this, a cool breeze blew in from the lakeside.

At the end of the blowing wind, a familiar scent seemed to brush past.

Klaus turned his head instinctively and stopped in his tracks.

Antonio was lying asleep on the grass near the lakeshore.

Klaus was about to turn around and avoid him, but then carefully turned his head back.

He caught sight of Antonio sleeping peacefully in the warm sunlight.

How could he sleep so insensibly after dropping such a huge bomb about the Grand Duke’s family?

What if the Grand Duke’s family had ill intentions and sent assassins?

Klaus’s brow furrowed unconsciously.

Thinking it would be better to wake him up, he turned his steps towards where Antonio was lying.

However, contrary to his thoughts, his approaching footsteps were careful, as if afraid of waking him.

Finally stopping in front of Antonio, Klaus looked down at him for a long time before sighing deeply and sitting down beside him.

It should be fine to let him sleep a little longer.

Thinking this, he gazed at the lakeside and saw the sunlight glimmering on the water’s surface like fish scales.

Uncharacteristically, he thought the lake looked beautiful.

And before he knew it, his gaze was naturally drawn to Antonio.

His long eyelashes resting on his closed eyelids, his plump lips, all caught Klaus’s eye.

Just then, a pleasant breeze blew by, brushing past Klaus and Antonio.

The wind tousled Antonio’s bangs across his forehead. Before Klaus even realized it, he had reached out his hand towards Antonio’s forehead.

As a result, Antonio’s face, which kept catching his eye, drew even closer.

The faintly spreading pleasant scent and the gently blowing breeze seemed to encourage him.

And before he knew it, Klaus found himself drawn like a magnet towards Antonio’s peacefully sleeping face.

Do you know?

What feelings I harbor?

What thoughts I’m having as I look at you right now?