She didn’t want to make the child unhappy with her hasty judgment.

“This way.”

Bain guided Edit and Helen to the Duke’s study. Before announcing their arrival, the door creaked open from the inside.

“Don’t be surprised by the magic. The Duke is waiting for the Fortrion Duchess.”

Helen entered the study with Edit, but an invisible force prevented them from moving forward. Since there was no way to defy the Duke’s will in his mansion’s front yard, Edit took a few more steps forward.
The duke spoke, whether she approached or not, gazing at the half-set sun outside the window.

“The conversations between you and me won’t be heard by the Fortrion Duchess. If you wish, I can even make it so you won’t see her at all.”

His profound voice carried weight, and just listening to it made heads bow slightly.

“I greet Duke Lexion. I am Edit Fortrion. Thank you for inviting me to this splendid gathering.”

“I am Franz Lexion. You must have noticed that my summoning wasn’t an invitation to enjoy a splendid party.”

Already aware of Lady Lea’s identity, Edit first felt that the duke’s tone was similar to Baelter’s.

Following the teachings of Lady Gray and Lady Lea, Edit raised her head slowly.

Then, there was nowhere else to look, and golden eyes that seemed to feel even a sense of decadence appeared.

Although she had never compared him to an emperor as she had not yet met one, Duke Lexion was undoubtedly a person with the majesty and authority to stand as an emperor.

Simultaneously, he was so beautiful that he made her realize, in an instant, the shared bloodline between the two men she had unrequited love for.

“I don’t like wordplay, so I’ll ask you directly.”

“…….”

“My subordinate visited the academy for a scholarship matter and happened to see you. He felt the magic of Lexion, he said.”

The duke chuckled as if he had found something amusing.

“So, I called you to confirm it myself. I wanted to see if I could really sense the power of the family.”

Even after understanding the reason why he sought her out, Edit couldn’t show any reaction.

“He sensed the magic of Lexion in me?”

When she visited the academy, Baelter was with her, so one could think that they sensed his magic. But now, alone and with Helen, who had no magic affinity, it seemed unlikely that the duke lied about sensing magic.

There were three possibilities Edit could think of.

“Maybe it’s because I brought the necklace Lady Lea gave me as a lucky charm, or Baelter’s magic temporarily lingered on me.”

If not, maybe… The child in her womb inherited the Lexion’s bloodline, and the duke and his subordinates detected the fetus’s magic.

“But I can’t say for sure that there are those who have inherited Lexion’s magic power yet.”

In this seemingly quiet courtyard, she couldn’t know how the duke would feel about a grandson whose face he didn’t even recognize. Above all, Lady Lea left the prosperous Duke’s mansion alone with her young son.

“There may have been friction with the duke.”

There was no other reason for the noble lady to leave the noble duke and embark on the journey of pregnancy and childbirth alone. Come to think of it, even when Baelter was Isark, Edit had never heard him talk about his father. Surely, it was not easy for a noble lady to travel alone with a young child.
If that’s the case, to the duke, Baelter was not just the man who made his daughter leave, but also the culprit who made her lose. Can such a presence truly be tolerated? Especially to someone in the position of a duke?

Her mind was complicated, but Edit chose her words carefully, trying to hide her inner thoughts with deep breaths.

The claim that he misunderstood wouldn’t be convincing to the seemingly flawless duke. So, she had to cautiously bring up the story of the lady’s necklace.

“Once, when I spent my youth in the Fortrion territory, there was a lady who used the capital’s accent to take care of me. She introduced herself as Lady Lea.”

“…….”

When the name Lea came up, the duke, who seemed indifferent, showed signs of agitation.

No, it wasn’t so much agitation as a momentary outburst of anger.

“……!”

As soon as something warm and thin touched her neck, Edit stiffened.

Although she was not well-versed in magic, she could tell that this was a blade conjured by the duke’s magic.

“Lady, don’t let the name of my daughter come out of the filthy Fortrion’s mouth.”

“…….”

“Just the facts I can believe. I’m quite busy. You became the wife of that despicable man, the Viscount. I know I have regrets about Fortrion.”

Edit bit her lip, and as she thought about the sharp thing touching her throat, her vision blurred.

Although she chewed her lips, she could feel the sharpness against her throat, and the view of the room became hazy.

Feeling an instinctive fear, her body, regardless of her will, shed tears.

Without any hesitation at her tears, the duke tapped the desk, urging her for a quick response.

Edit struggled to keep her collapsing legs stable, doing her best to keep her head up.

He seemed to be reaching the limits of his patience, and to prevent him from harming herself, and to avoid revealing Baelter or the pregnancy, there was only one way.