Irene’s expression was a bit dark as she changed clothes in Kalos’s dressing room. Seeing her expression, Jessie paused while tying the dress ribbon and asked with concern.

“Is something worrying you, miss?”

Irene hesitated whether to tell Jessie, then carefully opened her mouth.

“I think… a misunderstanding has arisen.”

“What kind of misunderstanding?”

“Well…”

Irene told Jessie about what had happened with the priest in the hallway just a moment ago.

Including everything up to when Kalos suddenly appeared and killed the priest.

“…I’m worried that His Grace the Duke might misunderstand that I accepted the priest’s offer.”

She deliberately refrained from saying she was worried he might kill her like the priest.

She also didn’t mention the things she couldn’t tell Kalos.

After hearing the whole story, Jessie’s face stiffened. At a glance, she looked angry, so Irene quickly added:

“I firmly rejected the priest’s offer, so you don’t need to worry.”

“Ah.”

Only then did Jessie come to her senses, letting out a short exclamation before shaking her head with a smile.

“I’m not worried at all. I trust you, miss.”

Irene smiled silently, feeling her conscience prick her sharply.

“More than that, I’m outraged that a mere priest dared to get angry at you. That bastard deserved to die.”

Priests were a profession welcomed everywhere regardless of birth or rank.

But calling him a mere priest, and saying he deserved to die just for getting angry – none of it made sense to Irene’s common sense.

“Next time you meet such a bastard, don’t hold back and throw a fireball at him, miss.”

“Fireball… do you mean magic?”

“That’s right.”

Irene blinked slowly as she looked at Jessie.

“Why are you looking at me like that, miss?”

“…I don’t know how to use magic.”

“What? Oh, um…”

Jessie was flustered by the unexpected answer and stuttered for a moment, then quickly changed the subject as if nothing had happened.

“The master will be waiting, so let’s hurry and get ready to go out, miss.”

*

When Irene came out after changing clothes, Kalos was standing by the window, having a serious conversation with Dewey.

Jerdin was leisurely sitting on the sofa drinking tea like a carefree gentleman.

Soon, Jerdin noticed Irene and whistled.

“Wow, earlier you looked like an angel descending from heaven, but now you look like a spring fairy born from a flower.”

Usually, young ladies would blush shyly and be pleased when told such things, but not Irene.

She just stared at him with an impassive face, seemingly unmoved. She even looked like she didn’t understand why he said such a thing.

Jerdin shrugged at the completely unexpected reaction.

“Well, well. It’s said that those unaware of their own beauty are more dangerous than those who are well aware, and you seem to be the former. Your master must have a lot to worry about.”

“Useless chatter.”

Kalos, having finished his conversation with Dewey, briefly rebuked as he sat down across from Jerdin.

Then he silently patted the seat next to him. Though he didn’t specify who, everyone present knew it was an expression meant for Irene.

Irene also noticed immediately and sat down next to him. Given what had happened earlier, she didn’t want to do anything that might upset Kalos even slightly.

Dewey first filled Kalos’s teacup, then filled Irene’s as well.

“Would Your Highness the Crown Prince like more as well?”

“No, I’m fine.”

Having already had plenty, Jerdin waved his hand.

Your Highness the Crown Prince? Only then realizing Jerdin’s status, Irene looked at him in surprise.

As it happened, Jerdin was also looking at her, so their eyes met.

Jerdin’s golden eyes, slightly darker than Irene’s, sparkled merrily.

“Now that you know who I am, shouldn’t you greet me properly with the appropriate etiquette?”

“I-I’m so sorry…!”

As a flustered Irene hurriedly tried to stand up, Kalos grabbed her arm.

Purple eyes tinged with irritation fixed on the smiling face.

“Didn’t I tell you not to do unnecessary things?”

Despite the fierce aura, Jerdin replied with an unwavering smile.

“Unnecessary things? Everything I said was necessary, master.”

“You call this necessary?”

“Of course. We’re going to be family soon, so I was just trying to get closer since it felt too distant.”

Kalos snorted.

“Only you would think that’s just a joke.”

Hit right on the mark, Jerdin scratched his cheek with an awkward smile.

A joke, he says. Irene looked at Jerdin in a daze. Meeting her eyes again, Jerdin winked.

“Sorry. The joke was a bit much for the little lady.”

Who are you calling little?

“I’m not little.”

“Puhah.”

When Irene protested in a small voice, Jerdin burst out laughing as if he’d heard an amusing story.

“Well, alright. You’re a bit big to be called little. But you’re not an adult either, right?”

As Irene was about to reply that she was an adult, Kalos spoke first.

“She’s 20 years old.”

“What?”

Jerdin pointed at Irene in shock with his index finger.

“20 years old?”

Kalos nodded, kindly bending that finger back.

“Huh.”

Then Jerdin gaped at Irene with his mouth wide open.

“20 years old with that face? You’re saying there’s only a three-year age difference between us? How is that possible? Does this make any sense?”

Is this really such a surprising thing? While Irene was puzzled, she was bothered by what Jerdin had said earlier –

That they would soon be family.

How could I become family with the Crown Prince?

Could it be… they’re trying to arrange a marriage?

“…”

Irene’s eyes shook greatly. Even while thinking it was impossible, she felt uneasy as no other explanation came to mind.

I need to make this clear.

“What do you mean by saying I’ll become family with His Highness the Crown Prince?”

No longer as afraid to ask Kalos as before, Irene was able to ask boldly.

“We’ll have dinner with the pigeons this evening.”

A completely irrelevant answer came back. That was surprising enough, but even more surprising was that they would have dinner with the pigeons – the priests.

There had been an uproar with the witch trial in the morning, and just now a priest had been killed.

Yet they would have dinner together?

Even a clueless three-year-old child would immediately realize this was no ordinary peaceful dinner.

“Surely you’re not planning to kill all the priests?”

Is that how he plans to silence them?

As the horrific scene she had witnessed earlier overlapped, Irene asked urgently in fear. Kalos smirked.

“Even if I were to kill the priests, it has nothing to do with you, so why are you so afraid?”

The purple eyes looking at her were chilling.

Irene immediately realized that Kalos didn’t believe her when she said she had rejected the priest’s offer.

But she had just made a statement that seemed to side with the priests, so it was natural for the misunderstanding to deepen.

“I, I…”

Though Irene knew she needed to explain quickly before the misunderstanding deepened further, she was too scared of Kalos to speak properly.

“I, that is, I…”

Kalos looked down silently at Irene, who kept repeating the same words with a face pale as a sheet.

In fact, Kalos knew that Irene had rejected the priest’s offer to help her escape.

He had heard it on the way to meet Irene with Jerdin.

However, unfortunately, he had also heard Irene say she wanted to escape, so he was very displeased.

After saving her from near death and treating her so well, she still wanted to escape.

This is why I hate humans.

“The reason I’m having dinner with the priests is not to kill them.”

…And I hate my situation even more, having to cling to such a human.

Suppressing the rising irritation and anger, Kalos continued speaking.

“It’s to formally introduce you to the priests.”

Irene, who had been pondering how to make Kalos believe her, belatedly understood his words and asked again.

“Didn’t you… already introduce me as your lover?”

“That was a temporary measure to suppress the rumors of you being a witch. To firmly prevent the temple from pulling such nonsense again, you need a sufficient status.”

“Status?”

“Yes.”

A strange light flickered in the purple eyes that had been tangled with irritation.

“At tonight’s dinner, I will introduce you to the priests as a member of the royal family.”

*

Clang-

The sound of a silver knife falling echoed loudly throughout the dining room.

A waiting maid quickly brought a new knife, but the priest just stared at Kalos with a half-dazed expression.

It was the same for the other priests as well. Trope, who had barely managed to hold onto his reason, asked in a trembling voice.

“Did you just say… a member of the royal family?”

Kalos nodded as he picked up his wine glass.

At that moment, the gazes of Trope and the other priests all turned to Irene at once.

Under their not-so-friendly stares, Irene lowered her head slightly and poked at her salad.

Trope muttered as if talking to himself while looking at Irene.

“How could that woman be a member of the royal family…”

Thwack, clang.

The wine glass that Kalos had set down forcefully shattered, unable to withstand the impact. The red wine trickling down his hand looked eerily like blood.

“You should watch your words.”

The purple eyes looking at them were even more chilling.

“She is not a commoner.”

“As Duke Esper said, Irene is the great-granddaughter of my great-grandaunt, Princess Emel, who left the imperial palace long ago after falling in love with an imperial knight.”

Jerdin joined the conversation.

“About a month ago, when I heard that Irene was in Silas’s territory, I asked Duke Esper to bring her… I didn’t expect they would become lovers.”

Jerdin cupped his chin in his hands and looked at Irene with a mischievous smile.

“Human affairs are truly unpredictable. Isn’t that right, Irene?”

Irene nodded with an awkward smile. Originally, they had agreed to use intimate expressions like “brother,” but that was too embarrassing for her to actually do.

“But I’m still her family, so if you have any questions about her or if any problems arise, come to me. You can even seek an audience with His Majesty the Emperor.”

It was an unspoken rule that the imperial family and the temple did not mention each other unless there was a grave mistake like treason or blasphemy against the gods.

In other words, Jerdin’s words could be interpreted as a warning not to lay hands on Irene again.

“Why is there no answer?”

Trope, who was already struggling to deal with Kalos, found it even more difficult with the Crown Prince joining in. He hesitantly opened his mouth.

“As for that matter, it’s not something I can comment on right away, so I’ll report to my superiors and get back to you.”

“Just answer now.”

Kalos, having wiped all the wine off his hand, said.

“The answer from your superiors will be the same as yours anyway.”

“…”

“Unless you want to make enemies of the Esper family and the imperial family, that is.”