After he completely disappeared from my sight, for a while, I couldn’t move or even breathe.

‘How should I accept this situation?’

Mikael was reporting something about me to someone.

Receiving a fee meant that there was compensation for this matter.

Why?

To whom?

If it were Kassian, it would be an action he wouldn’t take at all.

“No. There might be another meaning.”

I had known and spent five years with Kassian.

During that time, we kept each other’s secrets until the end, supporting and cheering each other from afar.

I didn’t want to doubt the person I relied on the most after my family in this world.

It was as painful as it could be.

If Mikael had made a deal with someone, the horrible thought continued to rush in.

“No. Let’s talk to Mikael first.”

I stood up, straightened my clothes, and left.

It was not right to suspect Mikael recklessly.

I had to meet and confirm it directly.

The clear sky was covered by dark clouds, and raindrops began to fall.

The hidden sun set in orange without a sign of becoming clear again.

I waited for Mikael to finish and followed him.

Mikael entered his mansion as the lord.

After waiting for a while in the carriage, I got off and knocked on the lord’s door.

It was similar in scale to the Count of L’Ambérieux.

The difference was the heavy atmosphere emanating from the mansion and the screams heard from inside.

“As if you can call yourself a human!”

Loud voices went back and forth as if a fight had broken out inside.

This time, my body flinched at the sound of something breaking.

“Should I go back?”

I heard the rough voice hitting my eardrums and, as if in a daze, I turned around.

Then, I shouted in surprise at the towering man standing in front of me.

“W-who are you?”

“I’m the son of this house.”

“Ah.”

Now that I thought about it, he had the same unique silver hair as Mikael.

‘He must be Mikael’s older brother since Mikael is the youngest.’

There was quite an age difference, and unlike Mikael, he had a dignified image.

“Who are you?”

He scrutinized me. It seemed like he didn’t know that I was the Grand Duchess.

“I’m… a friend of Mikael.”

Thinking about what to call myself, I chose to go with a friend.

“Mikael had a friend?”

“We’ve exchanged letters often, but we haven’t seen each other’s faces that often.”

“It seems so.”

The man replied briefly with an indifferent face.
Following that, a loud noise echoed once again from inside the mansion.

“I’ll come next time.”

“Why? Just come in?”

“Now?”

Surprised, I asked, and the man nodded as if in agreement.

“But if I go in now, it might be a bother to the family…”

It could be a sight Mikael doesn’t want to see.

“I’ll go back and come later.”

Considering Mikael’s aversion to family stories, even in the letter, I was almost certain.

“Or whatever.”

The man passed by me, heading straight for the mansion door.

“Mikael. Your friend is here.”

And he called Mikael naturally. Mikael seemed to be there.

“No. You said you would come later?”

Tsk tsk. Though I gestured to quickly close the door, it was already too late.

“Even if you come later, it’ll be a bother, so just come in.”

“Then, please tell him that we’ll contact separately.”

Mikael’s brother, as if it was already too late, opened the door wide.

Mikael, disheveled, appeared as the door swung open. When our eyes met in the air, his gaze shook significantly.

“Annette?”

His cracked voice and messy hair blocked my words.

“You came all the way here?”

I stood still, just nodding my head coolly.

“What brings you here?”
“That’s because I have something to discuss with you.”

I couldn’t say that I followed him.

Moreover, the fact that my story was being conveyed to someone else made it even more complicated.

“I told you to give me a letter. You said you’d be staying at the royal palace today. If I had known, I would have visited after the ceremony.”

“The royal palace has many ears.”

“So you came all the way here? Alone?”

Mikael glanced behind me. Seeing no one, he seemed a little relieved.

It seemed he didn’t want this situation to be revealed.

“Yeah.”

“But what should we do? It seems difficult to talk now.”

Mikael glanced uncomfortably at the mansion.

“I came here on my own accord, so it’s only natural. Let’s talk tomorrow.”

Feeling sorry, I turned away immediately.

However, Mikael’s brother, whom I saw earlier, came down again.

“I informed Mother that a guest had come.”

“Brother!”

“Can we turn away a guest who came all the way to the mansion?”

“Annette is fine.”

Mikael’s brother lightly pushed him aside and gestured to me.

“Aren’t you going in?”

I looked back and forth between Mikael and his brother.

Honestly, it didn’t seem right to go in.

I knew that coming to someone’s house uninvited could be a bother.

However, Mikael’s words from earlier when he was talking to someone continued to linger in my mind.

‘To avoid suspicion, I need to see what Mikael did.’

I corrected my mindset once again.

“Now that I think about it, I didn’t greet your family. I’ll just say hello and leave.”

“You don’t have to say hello.”

Mikael, fearing the conversation’s continuation, cut me off.

“Even so, I have to greet your mother. We’ve been friends for several years, you know.”

If Viscount Casian comes to the Marquisate, our family would prepare a luxurious banquet that could break the legs of the dining table.

Although Mikael’s house didn’t seem to have that atmosphere.

“Your family may not know that we’ve been friends for a long time.”

His gaze seemed strangely complicated.

I gently nudged him and said, “I’ll just say a quick hello.”

If they offer a meal, I can’t help it.