“Seriously, how dare I provoke you when I know so much about you?”

I grumbled to myself while descending the central staircase alone.

Having revisited the original work several times, I meticulously memorized its content.

Seeing Camilla’s face turn pale, I felt vindicated for having collected evidence of her infidelity at the right time.

With this incident, Camilla will likely keep her claws retracted around me for a while.

‘But being such a cunning person, she’ll bide her time, waiting for a chance to retaliate against me.’

That time will probably come after Camilla divorces Count Dmitri.

Until then, Camilla wouldn’t dare confront me, knowing that I held evidence of her infidelity.

Moreover, since I plan to intercept Henry’s investment windfall, it will take longer than in the original work for Camilla to get divorced.

‘By then, I’d probably have announced my divorce and left the North, right?’

Feeling liberated, I reached the second-floor lobby.

There, I noticed a figure standing on the terrace.

‘Who is that?’

Approaching with uncertainty, I soon recognized him.

A man with a half-full crystal glass of champagne, leaning against the terrace. It was Adrian.

His face, enjoying the night breeze with eyes closed, was bathed in soft moonlight.

The shadows under his tall nose and the occasional sigh from his lips.

His honey-blonde hair fluttering in the pleasant wind.

He looked like a painting against the backdrop of the night sky.

As I quietly observed Adrian, he opened his eyes and greeted me with a soft smile.

“……Adrian.”

I smiled awkwardly.

Adrian then cheerfully opened the glass door between us and welcomed me.

“Your Highness, would you like to join me? The night air is really refreshing.”

Extending his hand, Adrian invited me politely.

Hesitating briefly, I eventually took Adrian’s hand and stepped onto the terrace.

The cool, fresh night air brushed against my cheeks.

As I smiled in the refreshing breeze, I casually turned to Adrian, pushing my hair back.

“Adrian, how is your father doing now?”

Adrian smiled faintly at my question.

“My eldest brother is taking good care of him, but it seems it will be difficult to get through the next critical phase.”

“……I’m really sorry to hear that, Adrian.”

I lightly patted his shoulder, feeling sympathy for his composed expression.

Adrian gazed thoughtfully at my hand on his shoulder.

“……It’s okay. The burden is heavier for my eldest brother and the retainers, considering the succession issue.”

“Speaking of succession, aren’t you a strong candidate now, Adrian?”

I remembered what Mina had told me: in the Demon Realm, the succession was determined not by birth order but by capability.

Most of Montier’s retainers preferred the second son, Adrian, with his superior magical power, as the new head.

The prominent Montier family of the Demon Realm.

The possibility of Adrian becoming its head was indeed a congratulatory matter.

‘Of course, that would mean I can no longer be with Adrian.’

I tried to hide my regretful feelings with a smile.

“It’s hard to imagine you as the head of a family, Adrian.”

“Ha-ha, I feel the same. Originally, I wasn’t very interested in becoming the head.”

“Really?”

“Yes. The world is vast, and there are people like me. I never had much ambition, not only for the head position but also in other aspects of life.”

“…….Until?”

“Until… just a short while ago.”
Adrian, speaking in a murmur, gazed up at the night sky.

I silently watched his profile for a while, then brushed back my wind-tossed hair and initiated conversation again.

“By the way, Adrian, why are you here alone like a loner? It’s personal social time right now.”

Adrian leaned leisurely on the terrace railing and laughed at my question.

“Ha-ha, then why did Your Highness come here alone? It’s personal social time, after all.”

As he joked, beautiful fireworks embroidered the night sky behind him.

“……Probably because there’s no one here who wants to have a long conversation with me.”

“Why? I saw many noble ladies stealing glances at you earlier.”

“The more they do that, the stricter their parents will be.”

Adrian then spoke again, his voice tinged with self-mockery.

“Because it would be troublesome if their precious daughters get involved in unsavory rumors with a half-blood demon like me.”

“…….”

“If I had the power of a Grand Duke, maybe it would be different.”

It was the sixth year since the human realm had resumed interactions with the demon realm.

Discrimination against half-blood demons in the Western Empire was still subtly persistent.

Watching Adrian gaze at the night sky, I thought his expression seemed somewhat sad. At that moment, a soft baritone voice echoed in my ear.

“In my life, I’ve never coveted anything or envied anyone.”

“…….”

“Even the cold treatment I received in the human realm was a novelty, and I found it interesting. I’ve always maintained a distance, never deeply involved in anything.”

Adrian smiled faintly and spoke again slowly.

“But funnily enough, today…….”

“…….”