“If you’re trying to ask me again about what you heard from the Emperor—”

“Yes, that’s right. But that’s why I want to ask. I don’t want to judge based only on the Emperor’s words, but to give you a chance too.”

“……”

Was this permission to ask questions? The mouth that had been moving busily suddenly stopped.

“…The Emperor said strange things. That I’m a filthy being to you… That we’ve been living while turning a blind eye to each other’s sins…”

That’s what the Emperor said.

As if Natasha had committed some sin against him.

“…Could you tell me exactly what that means?”

Whether it was the Emperor’s slander or a dark truth Natasha didn’t know, she had to uncover it.

“There’s no need to heed the words of a mad Emperor.”

“You’re not lying, are you?”

“……”

“Are you… remaining silent?”

The man who used to substitute answers with nods when it was difficult to speak now refused to answer at all.

Afterwards, he frowned as if he had a headache and left his seat.

It was the first time in this life that Sieghart tried to leave her side first. However, something else struck Natasha’s mind more than the shock.

“Sieghart…!”

Natasha hurriedly blocked the other’s departure.

As if he hadn’t intended to leave abruptly, the man unexpectedly allowed himself to be held back. However, still not turning his face, he quietly whispered.

“Sometimes not knowing the truth can be medicine.”

“……”

“You know that too.”

It felt like the second Blue Beard was shouting at her. It felt like the box held in her hands was warning her.

“Natasha, just as you can’t explain everything to me, I too can’t confess everything to you.”

“……”

“So just this once, pretend you didn’t hear anything.”

Don’t open that room, that box.

This time, an even more evil calamity is hidden inside.

Natasha, who had already opened the door once and faced Cayena’s ugly truth, became frightened in advance.

She finally let go of the man’s collar.

The warning about turning away from the imperial family seemed not to have been idle talk.

A few days later, the Daily Beacon announced the confrontation between the imperial family and the duke’s family.

It wasn’t fake news mixed with fiction from a third-rate newspaper, nor a scandal circulating secretly in high society, but an official statement.

At the end of the article was even the seal of the duke’s family. It was proof that the duke’s family acknowledged the content as fact and allowed it to be published as an article.

It was truly shocking news.

The duke’s family’s declaration of independence, and the worries that had been spreading quietly since Duke Asthart’s appointment as an honorary knight, were now surfacing.

News followed that an emergency meeting of the imperial family and pro-imperial nobles was held in the imperial palace.

The Asthart duchy itself was peaceful. Days of pretending to be peaceful continued steadily.

Having started a fight with the imperial family, it was a time when they couldn’t show any weak sides.

Although the duke’s family seemed to be having peaceful and beautiful days at a glance, in reality, they were spending urgent days.

Perhaps because the two pillars of the duke’s family seemed so precarious, as if about to collapse at any moment.

The duchess, betrayed by her maid, was doing better than expected. Though she became a bit listless, she seemed to be continuing a normal life for someone who had been betrayed by a ten-year friendship.

That was until she returned from the imperial palace.

After that, she lived in seclusion, shut up in her room like a recluse.

Honestly, the servants wished the duke would drag his wife out forcefully if necessary.

As someone who cared for his wife’s physical and mental health, they thought he would lead the woman back to reality even if he had to be coercive.

However, contrary to expectations, the duke took a defensive stance. He looked as if he was afraid of something.

As the days grew longer, the servants’ worries only grew. They gossiped about reasonable suspicions that problems had arisen between the two.

Meanwhile, time passed quickly, and soon ‘that day’ approached.

The time when summer fades and autumn approaches. The time when heat and cold vary significantly depending on the presence of the sun.

‘That day’ that all imperial citizens are excited about, even though the duke’s family is ignoring it.

Now in the midst of hot summer, the northern regions were chosen as the best festival areas, so the regions preparing for the event were already promoting their festivals and gathering tourists.

When that day came, it would be the end. The atmosphere in the duke’s residence would worsen even more. The servants didn’t have the confidence to handle that atmosphere.

Time passed, and it was now two days before the festival, when the servants’ worries were boiling over.

The door that showed no signs of opening suddenly opened, and the room’s owner appeared.

The maids who came to deliver meals were so surprised that they forgot to greet her. As they stood frozen in place, the duchess approached first and asked.

“The weather is nice today, I thought I’d have tea time with His Grace.”

“M-My Lady!”

“Could you prepare it?”

She said she wanted to go out to the garden because the weather was nice.

“R-Really?”

“Yes, I’d like various desserts prepared as I’m craving something sweet. Oh, and I’d like His Grace to attend the outing too.”

“Of course! I’ll prepare everything as you wish. Shall we come to escort you when preparations are complete?”

“No, I’ll go out and walk in the garden. Could you just help me with my appearance before that?”

“Yes!”

The servants’ faces brightened. The maids announced the tea time preparation plan and said they would help with her appearance, then took back the trays they had brought.

Their hurried footsteps, rushing away so urgently, were overlaid with excitement and joy.

At the duchess’s request for fresh clothes, the maids prepared a dress in a warm color like spring sunshine. It felt more glamorous and cumbersome than Natasha’s usual casual wear.

The accessories were heavier and more sparkly than usual. Her hair was styled in thicker and heavier waves than usual. Natasha dressed up elegantly, just like when receiving guests.

Sieghart, who had been holed up in his office focusing only on work day and night, readily attended at his wife’s request.

Natasha took a deep breath of the fresh summer air. No matter how precious and expensive the tea brewed, it couldn’t have such a fragrant aroma.

It had been a long time since she savored tea that still retained its temperature. She had always checked the tray in front of the door only after the servants had gone home, so she could only drink cold tea.

And it had been quite a while since she faced the man before her.

“It’s good to see you, Sieghart. Have you been well?”

At some point, her way of addressing the man had become firmly fixed as ‘Sieghart’. Since their relationship had noticeably grown closer, formal titles were no longer necessary between them.

At Natasha’s question, Sieghart’s eyes narrowed for a moment. Feeling his lingering gaze, the woman added as if making an excuse.

“Is that an awkward question for a married couple? I thought I should open the conversation with a greeting.”

“…I’ve been doing alright, more or less. How have you been, my lady?”

“I’ve been alright too.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

He drank his tea with a bitter smile.

The man’s face, encountered after a long time, had changed quite a bit from before.

The lines forming his face had become thinner. His pale skin and seemingly drooping expression seemed to indicate Sieghart’s unstable state.

In the servants’ conversations heard through the door, Sieghart’s name was occasionally mentioned. Were they concerned about his uncharacteristically haggard state?

Natasha glanced at him pretending not to, and bit into a biscuit. It crumbled softly in her mouth.

“Will you sleep in my room tomorrow?”

When all the crumbs in her mouth had left her throat, a small courage arose. She carefully asked the question.

His straight posture cracked for a moment. It was a subtle reaction, but it was clearly a disturbance.

“I sleep better when you’re beside me.”

“It seems my door visits have unintentionally disturbed your sleep.”

“I wasn’t really sleeping properly anyway. Rather, I could sleep more comfortably when Sieghart was next to me.”

Sieghart returned to the bedroom only in the early dawn to watch over Natasha. He approached quietly like a stray cat, stayed silently like air wandering in empty space, and left when day broke.

In fact, it was ridiculous. The attitude of the man who didn’t have the confidence to appear before her and only came anxiously in the dawn when she would be asleep was utterly laughable.

Still, Natasha couldn’t stop the man’s comings and goings.

Because every time Sieghart watched over her side, the afterimages of her family vanished suddenly.

You ungrateful child! In the end, you stay by that man’s side!

Stupid woman! You still haven’t come to your senses even after dying!

Ah, innocent princess. To still believe that man won’t change…

Every time the subtle touch of fingers occurred, the roaring voices faded away.

Yes, just like now.

Natasha welcomed the silence she encountered after contact with Sieghart.

“Please, it’s not difficult, is it? It’s only natural for a married couple to sleep in the same bed.”

After finishing her words, she gently caressed the other’s hand. With each soft stroke of her fingers on the surface, the man’s body shrank slightly.

Natasha didn’t stop until even the fragments of broken voices completely disappeared, until an answer fell from the man across from her.

Soon after, the man across from her sighed. At the end of a deep sigh, finally came the answer she had been longing for.

“I’ll do so.”

She had to hold onto the man hiding the truth, it was that precarious.