“You seem to be wondering how I know that.”

Cabelased spoke first, before Jieselgrante could pour out her questions.

She stared at him intently, and he immediately continued.

“The young lady seems to have been close with Count Frederick recently.”

Jieselgrante slowly blinked, restraining her expression from hardening.

‘So you knew that too.’

She had many questions, but Jieselgrante waited silently for now.

Hoping he would freely share the information he knew.

“You must have been investigating Princess Trinity’s death.”

For a moment, Jieselgrante’s gaze towards Cabelased turned cold.

“It was just a guess, but judging by your expression, it seems to be true.”

She felt as if her innermost thoughts had been completely exposed.

An inexplicable unpleasantness rose within her. Jieselgrante distorted her expression, forgetting even the fact that she shouldn’t reveal her inner feelings.

“Actually, I don’t know why the young lady is investigating matters related to Princess Trinity even at the risk of danger, but it became clear that she has made an enemy of the Empress.”

Jieselgrante felt dizzy from Cabelased’s series of sharp remarks.

“Wait, wait a moment!”

Jieselgrante’s voice raised slightly.

She looked at the young man beside her with a sharp gaze.

“…It seems I shouldn’t be intruding here. Shall I leave?”

Reading the atmosphere, the slave youth looked to Jieselgrante for cues instead of turning her stomach by calling her ‘master’.

His large build was no less than Cabelased’s, but seeing him lowering his gaze meekly, the emotion that had momentarily risen cooled down.

“Would you, please?”

Jieselgrante forced a smile.

The slave youth gave Jieselgrante an eye greeting and left the reception room.

Cabelased, who had been quietly staring at the young man’s retreating figure, soon turned his head towards her.

“It seems you’re not close enough to discuss such important matters.”

Cabelased sneered as if he was determined to turn her stomach inside out.

But instead of falling for his provocation, she brought up what needed to be said now.

“Since you know, I won’t hide it anymore. That young man was held captive at Baron Cypress’s villa. I brought him to the duke’s residence yesterday. He seems to be a citizen of the Solzakai Kingdom.”

“You saw correctly.”

Cabelased nodded.

“I intend to take action after observing further, but now that I know slave trading is taking place, I don’t plan to leave it alone.”

Cabelased snorted softly and spoke.

“But you did buy him. A young man with top-tier looks, at that.”

Jieselgrante’s cheeks flushed red at his remark treating her like a lustful person who enjoyed toying with young men.

Jieselgrante, who was about to flare up and retort, quickly calmed herself down.

If she got riled up and snapped at his provocation, she would be the one looking foolish.

“Think what you will.”

So she also snorted softly and replied.

“Was he to the young lady’s taste?”

“…Pardon?”

Jieselgrante frowned at the incomprehensible question.

‘What does he mean by taste?’

Then Cabelased gestured towards the door and said,

“That fellow’s appearance, I mean.”

Only then did Jieselgrante realize he was asking about her taste in men.

So she thought about it. What her preferences might be.

‘I don’t seem to have any particular preferences.’

Come to think of it, she wasn’t very interested in men’s looks.

For a spouse, she planned to accept a suitable man from a family that would benefit her faction when she became Empress.

Of course, being an ordinary person, she did prefer tall and handsome men.

Like Cabelased in front of her.

‘……’

Jieselgrante observed Cabelased’s appearance for a moment.

The average height of Phaeisys Empire citizens was taller compared to neighboring countries. And Cabelased was much taller than the average male height in the Phaeisys Empire.

Moreover, he had looks handsome enough to catch even her eye, who wasn’t particularly interested in men’s appearances.

Just then, Lindsey’s past remark came to mind.

‘Miss, did you know? They say looks handsome beyond preference refers to Duke Cardia.’

Starting with a remark by some eloquent young lady, Duke Cabelased Cardia was followed by the evaluation of having looks handsome beyond preference.

Looking at Cabelased before her, she understood as well.

This is what it means to be handsome beyond preference…

But soon she realized that wasn’t what was important right now.

“Now that you also know Baron Cypress is engaged in slave trading, you’ll have to decide what position to take.”

Jieselgrante decided to draw Cabelased into this matter.

Whether he wanted to or not wasn’t important.

Cabelased had found out about the slave trade, and she was certain he wouldn’t stand by such inhumane practices of buying and selling people.

So she was confident he would delve into this case.

Just as he had helped her when she was in trouble on the terrace at the Imperial Palace ball.

In the end, Jieselgrante was able to secure a promise of cooperation from Cabelased to report and take action against Baron Cypress’s business.

And Cabelased said he would have the slave youth stay at his mansion until he could be sent back to his home country.

Watching Cabelased and the slave youth board the carriage, Jieselgrante reflected on their conversation just now.

‘Let me ask one more thing, did you act knowing?’

When Jieselgrante tilted her head, not understanding what the question was about, Cabelased added:

‘The fact that the 3rd prince of Solzakai recently went missing.’

She did know.

At least the fact that the princes with rights to succession in the Solzakai Kingdom were recently waging war against each other.

And for the slave youth to be simply a commoner who had drifted into the Phaeisys Empire and was unfortunately captured by slave traders, he had an air of nobility about him.

Of course, she expected he might be of noble birth, but thought the guess of 3rd prince was too much.

So she thought he might be a fallen noble.

Just as the Minster Count family had secretly fled after going bankrupt over the Semper Alburi incident, she thought he might have drifted into the Phaeisys Empire while fleeing after his family’s downfall.

‘To think he was really the 3rd prince…’

Jieselgrante’s eyes widened as she pondered about the slave youth for a moment.

Only then did a part of Jieselgrante’s past diary come to mind.

‘So it was true that the 18th king of Solzakai was once a slave in the Phaeisys Empire!’

That meant even if she hadn’t saved him this time, he would have escaped from Baron Cypress’s clutches and returned to his country on his own.

It was written that the 3rd prince had massacred the siblings who sold him to slave traders and ascended to the throne.

‘Impressive.’

Jieselgrante admired and at the same time cheered for his future.

His future of surviving to the end even in extreme situations, succeeding in revenge, and becoming king.

At the same time, she felt a sense of kinship. In having family who could abandon even blood ties for power, and being abandoned by them.

Of course, his circumstances were different from hers, who could no longer become Empress.

“Sigh…”

Jieselgrante let out a faint sigh along with her painful feelings.

And she forced the corners of her mouth to lift.

The betrayal of those she trusted still hurt, but she was determined not to let painful memories of the past ruin her current mood.

“…?”

Before boarding the carriage, Cabelased’s red eyes widened slightly as he turned his head towards Jieselgrante, who was looking this way.

Seeing her smiling, he became a bit curious.

What she was thinking now, to force such a lonely smile, things like that…

Cabelased glanced with narrowed eyes at the 3rd prince of Solzakai standing beside him, looking at Jieselgrante with drooping eyes like an abandoned puppy.

It was then.

Mikhail, who had been standing next to Jieselgrante, suddenly ran over.

“Cabel, you need to explain something?”

Mikhail complained, pointing at the 3rd prince.

Cabelased looked at Mikhail with indifferent eyes.

And asked with his eyes. What explanation was needed.

“Why is this guy wearing my clothes!”

“Ah…”

Only then did Cabelased look the 3rd prince up and down.

He certainly thought the clothes looked strangely familiar. But he didn’t think they were Mikhail’s.

The 3rd prince, who had been looking down at himself for a moment at Mikhail’s fierce protest, soon spoke.

“These clothes I’m wearing, shall I take them off and return them?”

As if not feeling an ounce of shame, the 3rd prince took off the jacket he was wearing. Not stopping there, he began to quickly unbutton his shirt.

His hands were so fast that his tightly muscled chest was soon revealed.

Seeing the 3rd prince subtly conscious of Jieselgrante, Cabelased hurriedly took off the jacket he was wearing.

And carelessly draped it over the 3rd prince’s shoulders.

“I’ll have a new shirt and pants made exactly the same and sent to Duke Amaterasu’s residence.”

Meaning don’t strip the 3rd prince naked right now.

“…Is that so? Then do that.”

Mikhail, who had been growling as if about to snatch back the clothes from the 3rd prince, soon easily accepted.

Cabelased highly valued this simplicity of Mikhail’s.

It was also one of the connections that kept their relationship unbroken even after graduating from the academy.

Even up to the moment of boarding the carriage, the 3rd prince couldn’t take his eyes off Jieselgrante.

Cabelased pushed the 3rd prince into the carriage.

Even after the carriage departed, his gaze remained the same.

Cabelased looked at the 3rd prince with displeased eyes.

‘How annoying.’