“I feel like I should tell you separately……”

Reus froze in place. It wasn’t an unexpected reaction. He probably thought I still had a long way to recover, so he must have been quite taken aback by the sudden announcement that I would be leaving the Grand Duke’s castle.

Although he didn’t show any signs of it, which made it feel even more so, I no longer wanted to stay in the Empire.

‘I know that Feria and Verodica’s matter has nothing to do with Reus, but……’

Even if I leave the Empire this hastily, the day of my death might not change. But I thought I would feel a little more at ease if I could stay as far away as possible from the original story.

“Can’t you…… reconsider?”

Reus was still looking at the table instead of me as he spoke.

“Even if there’s no problem with daily life, isn’t it true that it’s still too much to be properly active right now?”

“It’s a decision I’ve thought deeply about, so I probably won’t change my mind…… I know it’s sudden, but I hope you can understand.”

Looking at Reus, who seemed quite dejected, I felt unnecessarily sorry. Even though I knew it was an agreed-upon condition that I could leave whenever I wanted.

After a long silence, Reus soon turned his head and tried to smile.

“I understand, Roel. I fully comprehend your intention.”

I felt a bit relieved at his usual gentle smile, but then…… I felt slightly hurt that he seemed to accept it faster than I had expected.

‘I thought he wouldn’t add more words about me leaving, but……’

At that moment, Reus suddenly asked me.

“Do you still plan to leave for Beliata?”

“It’s not like I have anywhere else to go. I was going to check when there’s a ship to Beliata departing from Filare Port…… ah, it’s Rocheter Port now, isn’t it?”

“Ah. Rocheter Port.”

For a moment, I had the illusion that a look of satisfaction crossed Reus’s face. There’s no way he would react like that to me leaving.

Did I see it wrong…?

“I’ll look into the ship schedule.”

“No……! You haven’t been able to do any work because of me since we returned from Leveren until now.”

Reus, who had been going out more often than I thought, gradually reduced his outings at some point, and after returning to the Grand Duke’s castle from the Flona Marquis’s residence, he didn’t leave the castle at all.

“Well, there is one urgent matter that needs to be dealt with, but I think I can handle it roughly until you leave.”

“Still……”

“I’ll instruct Dwin to look into the ship schedule, so I hope you won’t worry about that.”

“Ah…… That’s right. There’s Dwin.”

I let out a small sigh. Why did I think Reus would look into it himself? My face flushed for a moment at the thought of making such an unreasonable assumption.

“Roel.”

“Yes?”

“So, are you leaving everything about departing for Beliata to me?”

Although Reus’s words seemed a bit grand considering it was just about looking into the ship schedule and getting tickets, I nodded anyway.

“Is that really okay? It must be an important matter for you.”

“If Reus takes care of an important matter, I’d be grateful instead.”

Reus let out a small laugh. Not knowing what meaning was behind that laugh, I tilted my head for a moment.

“You trust me. More than I thought.”

“Of course.”

My answer made Reus’s smile deepen a bit.

“Roel. I’m a bit worried about you.”

“Huh? About what?”

“I think you might trust people too easily.”

I couldn’t quite understand how his train of thought suddenly jumped to such a place. Besides, who else could I trust if not someone who worries about me to a degree that might seem a bit excessive?

“You’re really worrying about unnecessary things. As I always say, I’m not a child, Reus.”

“Yes, thankfully.”

What’s thankful about that……. Anyway, he sometimes says incomprehensible things and shows incomprehensible reactions.

“I’m worried too. It seems like Reus is more sentimental than he looks, and tends to worry about unnecessary things.”

“Haha, are you worrying about me now?”

Reus laughed a bit playfully and slowly played with the ends of my hair.

“I’m really worried because you’re so consistent, Roel.”

I’m not sure exactly what he meant by that, but when Reus smiled, I smiled back and brushed it off casually.

From that day on, it became difficult to see Reus. Because of that, I’ve been eating alone and sleeping alone these days.

The sudden disappearance of someone who had been by my side every day except for set times made me feel more empty than I had thought.

If I feel like this even while still in the Grand Duke’s castle, I wonder if I’ll miss him more when I go to Beliata. But unlike me, Reus didn’t seem to feel that way at all.

‘Did he cut off all interest because I’m leaving soon?’

I know he’s a busy person to begin with. I clearly know that he’s been postponing almost all his work because of me, but Reus, who had been showing his face well until now, suddenly cut off all contact as if he had been waiting for this…… A wave of disappointment washed over me.

‘But it’s the last time.’

In fact, I wonder if what he said last time about not wanting me to leave was a lie?

Due to the extremely limited conversations we could have, it was inevitable that the topic of Beliata would come up once in a while. Every time that happened, unlike before, Reus would act completely disinterested or react very indifferently.

Maybe he couldn’t honestly tell a sick person that he wanted them to leave, so he had been pretending not to care against his will.

‘And here I was, happy thinking we had gotten closer…..’

Was that just something he said too?

Thinking about Reus, who hasn’t returned to the Grand Duke’s castle for days now, made me doubt everything.

“Milly.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Is there still no news from the Grand Duke today?”

I asked with the expectation that maybe he would return today, that he would show his face at least once. But Milly shook her head with a troubled expression.

Feeling a bit depressed, I put on a shawl and left the room. Even if I couldn’t say goodbye to Reus, I wanted to at least say my final farewells to the people of the Grand Duke’s castle by myself.

But there’s one thing I’ve realized while walking around the Grand Duke’s castle these days.

‘Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Eni.’

Thanks to the fact that the servants of the Grand Duke’s castle don’t change often, I roughly knew who worked where.

But Eni, who often cleaned the path from the lobby to the dining room, and the servants who were diligently working all over the place, had been replaced by new people while I wasn’t looking.

“Did the people I can’t see go on vacation?”

“If you’re talking about Eni…… Eni quit her job recently.”

“She left so suddenly without even saying goodbye?”

“It seems she told the butler and the assistant, but she quit without saying a word to us. Everyone left without saying anything, so we’re all feeling a bit hurt.”

Milly grumbled about how they could disappear in an instant without saying goodbye, ignoring all the years they had spent together. Watching her, I felt like grumbling along with her.

‘He doesn’t even bother to check on me when I said I’m leaving…..’

It felt like I had gone back to when I had just married Reus.

‘And here he was, following me around all day before.’

Isn’t it too much to leave me practically abandoned like this as soon as I say I’m leaving?

As I was sighing deeply out of frustration, I saw Dwin approaching from afar. Seeing his face that seemed to have something important to say, I quickly dismissed Milly.

Dwin, who soon reached me, handed something over.

“Here’s the ticket to Beliata…… Your Highness.”

“Ah, thank you.”

It was a ticket for departure in three days. It was fortunate that I had already packed my luggage and seen the faces of the people in the Grand Duke’s castle, as it was much more rushed than I had expected.

‘But the departure time is quite late.’

Compared to boarding the cruise to Leveren at midday, the Beliata-bound ship departing in the evening was extremely late. I couldn’t tell if it was always like this or if it was just this particular sailing.

‘But well…… There’s no way Dwin would give me the wrong ticket.’

While I was thinking this, a solemn voice was heard.

“Your Highness.”

I quickly looked up at Dwin at his voice, which was almost grave.

“About that ticket……”

But for some reason, Dwin hesitated for a long time after starting to speak.

“So, that……”

“Dwin. If there’s a problem, you can tell me honestly. I can take the next ship……”

“Ah, no. I was going to say that I’ll have a carriage ready to match your departure time. You should be ready two hours before the sailing time.”

I don’t understand why he’s having such a hard time saying something that’s not even that significant. Worried about his slightly anxious appearance, I asked concernedly.

“Dwin, are you sure you’re okay?”

“O-Of course! There’s really no problem with the carriage, Your Highness! Ah, probably……”

But I don’t know what this irrelevant answer is about.

“No. I mean you, Dwin.”

“Y-Yes?”

“I asked if you’re okay because you don’t look well.”

“Ah…… M-Me? I’m really fine! I’m…… Yes. There’s no need to worry. I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

Although Dwin said he was fine, seeing him muttering something with a dark expression even in front of me, he didn’t look fine at all. Moreover, he kept apologizing for no reason since earlier, making all of Dwin’s actions questionable.

I should have realized then that the words of apology uttered without context were sincere.

By the time I realized this fact, it was too late.