“And then the tree… h-huh!”

At that moment, while gesticulating and explaining the scene he witnessed, Mikhail suddenly turned pale as if he had seen a ghost.

“Wha-what, mother, grandmother…?”

He stammered upon seeing the Empress and the Dowager Empress emerging from one side.

“Why are you two over there…”

Then the boy’s breathing became erratic. His mouth twisted oddly as if he was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Annette realized why she had intervened. If the shaking tree had fallen, the Empress and the Dowager Empress would have been undoubtedly in danger…

Mikhail’s face turned ashen at the thought.

At that moment, the Emperor’s words echoed in his mind, warning him to be careful with his power until he could control it properly, and to keep his distance from others, including Audrey, for the time being.

“It’s all my, my fault…”

Mikhail was about to apologize with a pitiful, pale face when he suddenly covered his mouth with his small hand.

He recalled that the first strange noise had come from the exact spot where the Empress and the Dowager Empress were hiding.

It was clear they had been there all along.

“Uh-huh…”

The realization that they had heard everything he said, and the fact that he had almost put them in danger, overwhelmed him with a sorrowful cry.

For 8-year-old Mikhail, who had always been coddled and loved by his family, the situation was too much to bear.

Then, suddenly.

“What’s all this about?”

A voice came from behind, without any warning.

Annette, her heart sinking at the familiar voice, turned around in surprise.

“Uncle!”

Mikhail, spotting Carldin, cried out tearfully.

Why Carldin, who should have been in the Grand Duchy, was in the capital didn’t matter.

He was relieved to see a reliable figure who would always be on his side in any situation.

Mikhail didn’t hesitate to run and embrace him.

Or, he would have if not for…

“Mikhail.”

“Father…”

The Emperor, who had appeared unnoticed, stood blocking his path.

Emperor Lucius said nothing about the mess in the garden. He just looked at his son, trying to hold back tears, with a heavy heart.

“We should send the young lady home first.”

The Dowager Empress, the first to recover her composure, began to address the situation.

At the mention of Audrey, Mikhail’s ears perked up, and he rushed to the Dowager Empress.

“Grandmother, Audrey did nothing wrong. It was my insistence that brought her here.”

Knowing it was a place only the royal family could enter, he had still insisted.

He had wanted to be alone without servants, maids, or guards, and away from his father’s watchful eyes.

But now, fearing Audrey might get in trouble because of him, Mikhail’s tears flowed anew.

Seeing her grandson like this, the Dowager Empress clicked her tongue softly.

“I know the young lady is not at fault. But we can’t leave her standing here.”

As if about to collapse.

Mikhail quickly turned to Audrey, who looked exceptionally pale.

The whole scene, from the tree shaking to the arrival of the Empress and the Dowager Empress, must have been a shock to the frail Audrey.

“Oh, what to do. Audrey…”

“I will take her with me, so don’t worry.”

As Mikhail began to fret, the Dowager Empress calmed her grandson.

“The Duke should be waiting at the garden entrance.”

At Emperor Lucius’s words, the Dowager Empress nodded and turned to Audrey.
Despite her evident tension, Audrey managed to take steps forward in a well-behaved manner. Just as she seemed to be following the Dowager Empress towards the exit, Audrey suddenly changed direction and ran towards Annette.

“I’m sorry for showing such an embarrassing side earlier, Princess.”

“……!”

Annette was frozen in place as she watched Audrey bow quickly and run away as if escaping.

Even though Audrey had just been under a complete misunderstanding, Annette couldn’t guess how she figured out her identity.

‘Red hair? Red eyes? Or did she deduce it from the way I handled the sword?’

…Surely, it wasn’t because of this person.

Annette glanced fleetingly at Cardin standing beside her.

Since revealing himself, Cardin had approached Annette and was just silently looking down at her.

“Count Melrin always boasted about his daughter’s intelligence,” Charlotte remarked, watching Audrey’s retreating back.

Charlotte clicked her tongue, seeing Mikhail’s puzzled expression even after hearing Audrey’s form of address to Annette.

“Should we let her go like this?”

Annette was unsure how Audrey figured out her identity but worried whether she should ask her to keep it a secret.

“It’s alright. She’s a discerning child; she won’t speak of it anywhere.”

Perhaps not even to her father. Not just Annette’s identity, but everything that had happened in the garden.

Thinking she would have to call Audrey again tomorrow to explain everything thoroughly, Charlotte turned away. There were more pressing matters at hand.

“Thank you. If it hadn’t been for Annette, a major accident could have happened.”