I blinked and looked at Serdis.

‘Did he really ask to withdraw from the war?’

Even the emperor seemed not to have expected it, as he looked at Serdis with the same eyes as me.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Is it strange that I want to help my younger brother?”

Yes. Very much so.

It’s no wonder. Even calling him a younger brother felt awkward. Knowing full well that their relationship was worse than strangers, let alone family, who wouldn’t doubt his offer of help?

“Are you serious?”

So I couldn’t help but blurt out the question.

Of course, there was no way he would help me.

But to even deal with the aftermath?

“A man must keep his word once spoken. I don’t know what you think of me, but I’m not that petty.”

“When did I ever say you were petty……”

Though I had cursed him as trash, I’d never called him petty. Seeing me feeling a bit guilty, Serdis spoke majestically to the emperor.

“It’s just a matter of persuading Mother. I’ll handle that on my end. So please withdraw the order to participate in the war.”

The emperor seemed to doubt his son, but soon accepted. After all, he’d been relieved of a troublesome matter.

“If you change your tune later, know that you’ll go to war in her place.”

“I promise.”

I just blinked at the sudden turn of events.

‘It’s like killing two birds with one stone.’

I didn’t expect it to be resolved so simply, but the purpose of coming to the imperial palace was achieved at once. And with just a word from Serdis. I smiled self-deprecatingly and looked towards Serdis. Then my eyes met with Michael standing next to him.

I heard he got a new aide, so they might have planned this together.

‘Using this as leverage to demand something. Something like that.’

I’m grateful he resolved it simply, but I couldn’t help being suspicious.

It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been fooled by Serdis.

“Come to think of it, I seem to have made an unreasonable request to Your Majesty as well. You must surely be angry too. So I’ll resolve this matter between myself and the Grand Duke.”

I stepped forward to block him and said.

“Anette. Don’t refuse when he’s trying to help.”

“Help usually comes with a price, doesn’t it? Your Majesty is quick to calculate. We have nothing to offer Your Majesty for this. As you can see, our territory isn’t exactly wealthy.”

“You think I’m helping because I want something in return?”

“Then are you helping with pure intentions?”

When I asked subtly, he nodded. His face said it was obvious.

“Can you swear before the Emperor?”

I deliberately brought up the emperor.

Though not entirely trustworthy, it was safer to secure it this way.

“Of course. I’ll swear before His Majesty the Emperor.”

“If you’re willing to help that much……”

Though my suspicions weren’t completely gone, I wasn’t in a position to refuse Serdis going this far.

“Thank you for your help.”

I wasn’t grateful in the least, but I politely expressed my gratitude. It was a fact that things were resolved simply thanks to him.

Serdis gave a satisfied smile.

[This is the timeline separator]

‘Is it really just a simple favor?’

No matter how much I racked my brain, I couldn’t find an answer.

If Hertian were here, I could have discussed it with him, but he didn’t show up until the audience was over.

The palace was still empty.

However, there was a letter on the bed. Familiar handwriting with a familiar seal on the letterhead.

It wasn’t a letter from Hertian.

“Cassian.”

The letter K written on one side of the paper was clearly Cassian’s.

I immediately rushed out into the palace corridor. I looked around but couldn’t sense anyone’s presence. There was no trace of anyone having been there.

“But why did this come to the imperial palace?”

I had told Cassian that I married Hertian, but I never said I was in the imperial palace now.

Before that, communication was cut off after saying we should meet.

So how did Cassian’s letter arrive now?

‘Could he be in the imperial palace……’

I stopped the idle speculation there and opened Cassian’s letter.

[Let’s meet tomorrow evening. Stay where you are. I’ll come to you.]

“He sent this letter knowing I’m here?”

The content clearly suggested he knew.

Cassian is very close by.

Somewhere he knows where I am and what I’m doing.

“Finding Hertian is the urgent matter right now.”

I was glad to get a reply from Cassian, but I didn’t want to meet in this situation.

But there was no one to send a letter to Cassian.

I couldn’t go to the count’s house alone either.

As I was putting the letter away in my luggage,

The door creaked open. It was the maid I saw earlier.

“Y-Your Highness.”

Unlike this morning, one of her cheeks was swollen.

It seems the empress had already been informed that I met the emperor.

‘Did she deliberately hit her and send her?’

I handed her a cloth thickly spread with herbs I had crushed in advance.

“Hold this to your cheek. It’ll go down overnight.”

“W-Why are you giving me this?”

The maid looked alternately at the herbs and me with a bewildered expression. I didn’t give it to try to get along now. Just that I’d feel bad thinking she was hit because of me if I kept looking at it.

“Are you going to refuse?”

“Ah, no. I’m just curious. Why are you showing me such kindness?”

“Then answer one question and take it. So I won’t feel guilty.”

She bit her lips nervously, afraid of my question. I didn’t intend to keep scaring her, but I needed to maintain this image with this maid at least. Because I still had information to extract.

“You gave me poisoned water to wash with, what were you going to give the Grand Duke?”

I ended up not being able to find Eleanor.

It was because I couldn’t stop Serdis, who insisted on escorting me to this abandoned palace.

Seeing the state of the palace, he asked if I wanted to move to another palace.

Seeing right through his intention, I hurriedly got off the carriage and entered the palace. My hope that Hertian might have returned was instantly shattered. There was no trace of Hertian or the knights of Blanditia anywhere.

Something must have happened.

I was about to look for an opportunity to leave, but changed my mind when I saw the maid.

Even if I went to Eleanor now and reported what happened, it would take time to figure out what occurred.

But this girl might know.

“I asked what you did to the Grand Duke and the knights.”

She might know what happened.

When the maid hesitated to speak, I explained again in detail. So she would answer properly.

“I-I don’t know anything. All Her Majesty the Empress ordered me to do was to brew the herbs I received into the Grand Duchess’ wash water. Really.”

“I’ll believe that’s all she ordered you to do. But while I believe you, His Majesty the Emperor might not.”

“What? W-What do you mean?”

I looked at her with eyes that said I knew everything.

“The Grand Duke collapsed after drinking poisoned water. Won’t you, who handed me the poisoned water, be the most suspicious?”

It was a made-up story.

Anyway, only the maid and I are in this palace.

Her trust had fallen enough to be hit by the empress. Such a person wouldn’t have brought information about Hertian’s whereabouts.

In other words, my words would sound like truth to her.

The effect seemed quite strong as the maid who had sunk to the floor trembled visibly.

“P-Poisoned water? That’s impossible.”

I knelt down beside her. And gently placed the herbs on her cheek.

“I don’t want to suspect you either. But how else can we explain the poison spreading through his body?”

“He wasn’t poisoned by drinking water, but hit by a sword coated with poison!”

“Hit by a sword?”

The maid seemed to regret her words as soon as she said them and covered her mouth. I removed her hand and asked. I thought I was managing my expression well, but once it crumbled, her inner thoughts showed through transparently.

“Are you saying the empress tried to kill the Grand Duke?”

“That’s not it… I heard they were preparing an, an ambush.”

“Tell me in detail. What do you mean by ambush?”

“I really only know this much. For the past few days, knights have been frequently coming and going from Her Majesty the Empress’ palace at night. I don’t know when or where. Really.”

An unexpected answer came back.

The empress ambushed Hertian?

Hertian had been in the imperial palace the whole time. But if he and all the knights were ambushed, there surely would have been a big commotion. Yet the imperial palace was quiet as if nothing had happened, and there were no signs of disturbance.

“There better not be a shred of lie in those words.”

I glared at her fiercely with wide eyes. She didn’t seem to have blurted out just anything out of fear.

“What safety would I have in lying! If the Grand Duke was poisoned, it must really be because of that, not me. Please believe me, Your Highness.”

“Alright, you can go now.”

She hurriedly left the room.

And I followed her out of the palace.

[This is the timeline separator]

Meeting Eleanor wasn’t that difficult.

Only one maid came and went from the empty palace, and there was no reason to put me under surveillance.

Now that Hertian had disappeared. There wasn’t much I could do.

They probably thought I would reveal Hertian’s absence on my own soon.

“An ambush… So that happened. But Hertian wouldn’t go down easily. He never even got hit by an arrow in war. To fall so easily……”

Eleanor fell into deep thought after hearing my story. Like me, she seemed to have endless questions of ‘why, where, how’.

“Finding Hertian is the priority now. I’ll keep looking into the circumstances.”

“You’re right, Your Highness. I’ll look into Hertian’s whereabouts first.”

“Thank you. I’ll compensate you sufficiently.”

“Please don’t mention compensation. I don’t want my friend to be labeled as having fled the imperial palace again.”

I could see why Hertian kept Eleanor by his side.

Though it might be troublesome as an imperial knight who only moves for the royal family, she went all out for Hertian. Unlike my calculating self.

“After the captain leaves, I’ll slip out and look into it as well.”

Just as I was about to thank her, a huge shadow loomed over my head.

Eleanor’s gaze slowly moved upward. Soon her complexion turned pale.

“Where were you planning to go after I left?”

“Captain, ah that’s not it.”

“Were you planning to slack off? As the vice-captain no less. Eleanor Crea, you haven’t been properly trained, have you? Want to roll around until dawn?”

I followed her gaze and turned my head.

“Please don’t.”

And I pleaded. Eleanor was only trying to help me.

“Just pretend you didn’t hear it this once.”

As I added, the purple-haired man slowly shifted his gaze. He gave off a somewhat familiar aura.

‘Where have I seen him before?’

Only when my eyes properly met with the man called captain did I realize who he was.

And it seems it wasn’t just me.

His languid eyes widened as big as fire bowls.

“Lady Anette Leanberia?”

“Do you know me?”

I’ve been meeting a lot of people who know me today.

“Captain, what’s wrong?”

He blinked several times and rubbed his eyes.

“Is it really you, my lady?”

“She’s no longer ‘my lady’ but Her Highness the Grand Duchess.”

At Eleanor’s words, he let out a bitter sigh and corrected his form of address.

“I apologize for my rudeness, Your Highness.”

“It’s alright. But it seems you knew me, though I think this is our first meeting. Sir Scharfenen Havel.”

I recognized the familiar purple hair and black gloves on both hands.

‘Violet’s older brother.’