Count Scala, who saw Count Shannon leaving his seat, slowly hid among the crowd.

He thought the matter was settled at the launching ceremony…….

A question arose in Count Scala’s flashing eyes.

The count slowly stroked his chin and tilted his head with a frown for a moment.

“Count.”

An assistant joined behind Count Scala.

“It seems there was some kind of deal between Marquis Farnese and Count Shannon. They started moving on the Marquis Farnese’s side after the meeting on the last day.”

Count Scala nodded, listening to the report from his assistant, and glanced at the back of Count Shannon, who was now completely far away.

I thought he was just a fool in love, but he might be more troublesome than I thought.

Stroking his beard, he narrowed his eyes and let out a short groan, “Hmm−.”

“Was there no sign of movement towards the Marquis during the hunting festival?”

“As far as I know, there was none.”

Count Scala flicked his fingers at the tip of his chin and thought of Marquis Farnese, who had been crouching for a long time.

When you’re in the political world for a long time, there are trends you can’t help but know even if you don’t want to.

Like the current trend where the Emperor’s faction is gaining power. Unfortunately, Marquis Farnese was the first among the nobility to recognize that trend.

Perhaps the Marquis…… felt that flow a long time ago, when Damian inherited the dukedom.

Duke Genova was an unparalleled genius whose very existence sowed unease among the nobility.

No, maybe it was when he threw himself into the river to save the current Emperor when he was the Crown Prince.

Anyway, when Damian brought the second victory to the Empire, Marquis Farnese took a step back from the nobility council for the first time.

The Marquis humbly accepted the tilted momentum and maintained his position.

And now that Duke Genova has returned to the Empire, the prestige of the Emperor’s faction still shows no sign of faltering.

The rising prestige of the Emperor’s faction seemed to be soaring as if there was no limit to it.

But…… how did the Marquis judge that now was the right time?

“Just in case, pay attention to the Marquis’s movements throughout the hunting festival. And spread the news of what just happened far and wide. If it draws the attention of the nobility to this extent, it’s a gain for our side.”

I don’t know what card the madman handed to the Marquis, but it won’t be an unexpected one.

It’s hard to find someone as stubborn as Marquis Farnese.

He may judge it as the right time and try to flip the tide, but I have no intention of letting him do so.

“Ah, Count. There’s one more thing you should know. Marquis Farnese had an unofficial audience with His Majesty the Emperor. But it seems he had no intention of hiding it, as he went out boldly.”

Count Scala’s brow furrowed.

“He had an audience with His Majesty?”

This was an unexpected move.

“Shall we proceed with what we were doing for now?”

The assistant asked cautiously. Count Scala swallowed for a moment, frowning, then nodded.

“The other side won’t rashly make a move at the hunting festival either. If they cause trouble on a day like today, there’s a chance their plan might collapse as well. Rather, gather the believers.”

“……Pardon? The believers?”

The assistant made a bewildered expression at Count Scala’s order. But the count looked at the crowd with a serious face, regardless of his assistant’s reaction.

“I have a bad feeling. There may be a traitor, so we need to check.”

*

Charles turned his head slightly towards the Duke Genova’s tent, then lowered his gaze to the side.

“Since Viscount Borghese said he couldn’t attend the hunting festival today, I had to reluctantly play the role of lady’s knight. Is that alright with you?”

When Charles asked, Lucy raised her gaze.

The clear green eyes looked at Charles and nodded.

The following smile was as refreshing as the clear autumn sky.

“Of course. When I talk with uncle, he subtly brings up the topic of studying, which is annoying. I like that Sir Charles doesn’t talk about homework or studying.”

“Haha, it seems Viscount Borghese has high expectations for you, lady. He’s not the type to have such conversations.”

“Really? What kind of person is my uncle in Sir Charles’s eyes? Ah, were you and uncle close?”

Lucy’s eyes widened.

Charles smiled softly, then rolled his eyes and briefly scanned a few past memories in his mind.

How many years ago was it? Blake, the Viscount Borghese, had also participated in the battlefield.

Unlike other nobles, Blake’s condition for going to the front lines was as long as it wasn’t the same unit as Duke Genova.

Thanks to that, when Blake was in charge of the southeastern unit, it was very easy to devise strategies.

“We’re not close, but we often exchanged letters in the war council on the battlefield. After achieving consecutive victories, I met him a few times, and the Viscount was a commander of a different caliber than His Grace the Duke. How should I put it…….”

Charles recalled Viscount Borghese from a few years ago.

“Should I say he was a taciturn eccentric? Haha. He had many amazing strategies, and it was remarkable that they all succeeded.”

“An eccentric?” Lucy asked, with a burst of laughter at the end of her voice.

“In what aspect did you find uncle eccentric?”

“Well, even his letters were not ordinary. They were…… cryptic messages that could only be understood by solving riddles. I had quite a headache because of the constantly changing codes.”

Lucy, who was now completely roaring with laughter, stopped walking altogether and laughed.

“Haha. I knew uncle liked riddles, but I had no idea he used them even when exchanging letters on the battlefield.”

Lucy hugged the teddy bear she was holding in her arms.

“……Won’t the doll be inconvenient when playing?”

Charles pointed to the teddy bear in Lucy’s arms, checking the destination that was only a few steps away.

At the hunting festival, there was a separate playroom for very young noble children like Lucy, and it was common for those under the age of ten to stay in the playroom and return to the mansion.

“Ah, this…….”

Lucy gently stroked the teddy bear in her arms and shook her head.

“This is a ‘symbol’ that uncle gave me as a gift, so I can’t.”

“A symbol?”

“A sign that dad will return safely today. Something like that.”

Charles blinked, but Lucy, who met eyes with him, just smiled brightly.

*

The crowd and Eriel, who couldn’t hear the conversation between Count Shannon and Damian, widened their eyes in puzzlement, but that was it.

In their eyes, Count Shannon bowed to Damian anyway.

They would think of it as a slight provocation.

It wasn’t a very rare sight, as there used to be power struggles at the hunting festival before the Emperor’s faction gained this much power.

Of course, it should have been seen as Count Shannon risking his entire political life by provoking none other than Damian.

……If it weren’t for the sword, it would be even more chaotic than a war declaration.

Damian frowned and looked at Count Shannon’s back, then turned to Eriel.

“Eriel, come here.”

Damian took Eriel and passed through the nobles.

Although the nobles of the Emperor’s faction had not yet fully greeted Damian, that wasn’t important right now.

“……Damian?”

Eriel entered the tent with Damian, held by his hand.

Following Count Shannon’s move, the ducal couple went into the tent, leaving those behind stunned.

“Haha……. His Majesty has not yet arrived, and it seems the two have something to discuss due to Count Shannon’s visit.”

When someone tried to defuse the atmosphere, everyone quickly nodded.

They picked up the champagne glasses around them and burst into laughter as if nothing had happened.

While the outside was bustling with commotion, Damian, who entered the tent, grabbed Eriel’s shoulders.

“……Eriel.”

Eriel blinked and looked up at Damian, tilting her head.

“Did something…… happen?”

Eriel bit her lower lip, seeing the determination in Damian’s blue eyes.

It was a bad omen.

Because whenever Damian spoke to her with determination, it was when he tried to take responsibility for everything.

“Remember I gave you all the Emperor’s gifts, including the Alento estate?”

Eriel’s lips quivered at the sudden mention of the gifts.

“It was permitted by His Majesty the Emperor, so there are official records left. Even if you lose the Genova castle, don’t forget that you have the Alento estate.”

“Lose the castle? Why would I…….”

This time, Eriel grabbed Damian’s arm.

“If something happens, my brother-in-law said he would adopt Lucy as his daughter, so don’t worry about that either.”

“Damian!”

“……I should have prayed a little harder.”

Eriel frowned at Damian, who laughed while mentioning prayers even in the midst of a serious conversation.

“Is this the time…… to say that?”

“I swear it won’t be long. After today passes, I want to tell you something. The explanation I prepared, and the excuses you will hear from me.”

Eriel was curious about what he discussed with Count Shannon in that short time and what he planned while being in the imperial palace for a long time, but she didn’t ask.

Because saying he wanted to explain to her contradicted the previous words he spoke as if he were going to die.

“I’ll wait. It’s not the first or second time I’ve waited for you.”

Just then, a trumpet sounded, “Puu−.”

It was the news that the Emperor had arrived at the hunting festival much earlier than the scheduled time.