Claude, with his lemon-colored hair and clear, light green eyes, possessed a completely opposite impression to Reus’ cold image.

From his appearance alone, he was overflowing with playfulness.

“Anyone who becomes Reus’ companion is no different from a close friend to us. Feel free to call me Claude.”

“Thank you for your deep consideration.”

After that brief greeting, just as Helen had done earlier, the moment they were about to exchange Levaen-style bows, Claude, who was bowing his upper body, suddenly stopped awkwardly.

Why is he doing that all of a sudden? As I looked at him with slightly puzzled eyes, Claude, who was standing stiffly with a somewhat flustered expression, suddenly cleared his throat and straightened his body again.

Then, he abruptly reached out his hand and asked for a handshake.

“In Levaen, ahem…! I’m grateful that you came here like this. My wife has been eagerly awaiting this day.”

With those words, Claude moved away from me and went straight to Reus.

I thought it might be a bit awkward since they haven’t met in quite a while, but unexpectedly, Claude acted very warmly, as if he didn’t feel the gap in time at all. He even playfully teased Reus in the middle of their conversation.

‘They must be really close.’

This was the first time I’d seen someone treat Reus so familiarly and even tease him. Helen, who immediately noticed my surprised feelings, said,

“It’s a bit excessive, right? Roel, please understand. He’s like that every time because Reus saved his life on the battlefield several times. So don’t worry about those two at all. They’ve always been like that, always.”

A hint of embarrassment for her husband briefly appeared but quickly vanished with a refreshing laugh.

“By the way, this is your first time in the Levaen Kingdom, right?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. This is my first visit to Levaen.”

“If you have any plans to travel, make sure to ask me. I’m confident I can recommend good places for you two to visit since I’ve roamed all over the kingdom.”

Helen had a very sociable personality. Whenever I showed even a slight awkwardness, she would bring up a familiar topic of conversation, and while doing so, she briefly explained the royal palace without losing her smile.

“It’s been a long time, we should have a match, Reus.”

“……”

“We’re doing it, right?”

“If you really want to, have your subordinates do it.”

Reus’ curt voice lacking any enthusiasm.

“There’s no better opponent than you. You’ve come after a long time, just once.”

Claude’s relentless persistence, not giving up despite being continuously rejected.

Helen kept her gaze fixed only on me, as if she couldn’t hear anything at all. With an expression that seemed too familiar, I felt like I had to follow along and didn’t look back.

Thus, we headed to the banquet hall, walking through the somewhat noisy but quite cheerful white corridor.

* * *

The somewhat hectic but quite lively mealtime ended.

Following Helen’s suggestion, Roel decided to move to another place to enjoy tea that could only be obtained in the Levaen Kingdom. However, when Reus seemed to be moving to follow her, she immediately said,

“See you later then, Reus.”

At those words, Reus’ steps abruptly halted.

Although her mind was in a somewhat confused state, she had no intention of rejecting him or making him feel uncomfortable. In the first place, she wasn’t the type to do that. She simply wanted him to spend time with his long-time friend and catch up.

However, Reus, who couldn’t possibly know her detailed intentions, felt as if he had been pushed far away.

He tried to follow Roel’s retreating figure with his eyes as she gradually disappeared from his sight, but he couldn’t prevent the gloominess from filling his heart again, which had been slowly recovering. Although it was just a single sentence, Reus was engulfed in an enormous sense of helplessness and simply stood there for a long time.

Roel, completely unaware of that fact, walked along the corridor with slightly excited steps.

‘Even though it’s just a corridor, the scenery is pretty, so it’s nice to walk.’

As she let out small exclamations at the ever-changing greenery, she soon found herself at the tea party venue.

The square space had full-length windows on all four sides, and wherever she looked, the lush trees and grass beyond the windows gave a refreshing feeling.

The two sat at a white table in a place where the light of life was particularly dense.

“I’m so glad to have the opportunity to make up for the regret of not being able to attend the wedding. The journey must have been long, but thank you for readily accepting the invitation.”

Helen smiled brightly and let out a small sigh before continuing,

“Ah, and feel free to call me Helen. As Claude said, if you’re Reus’ family, you’re no different from a close friend to us.”

“No matter what, how can I……”

“Both Claude and I are really serious. So, could you please treat me comfortably?”

“Yes, then……”

At the request filled with sincerity, Roel finally nodded slightly and showed a smile. It was a bright smile like a bouquet of flowers. Seeing this, Helen couldn’t take her eyes off Roel, who was sitting in front of her.

‘Their images are so different, it’s unbelievable.’

Although she had seen her through photos in the newspaper, actually seeing her in person, there was not a single similarity between Reus and her in terms of appearance, voice, physique, or atmosphere.

‘When the wedding invitation suddenly arrived, I wondered what kind of whim made them hold the wedding so hastily, but……’

Upon meeting Roel in person, she could immediately understand the reason. She could confidently say that Roel was the most beautiful person she had ever seen.

Clear and fair skin with a faint rosy tint on her cheeks. Perfectly shaped eyebrows. Delicate features and eyes more transparent than any lake. Even her lips tinged with a peach color.

Her movements were so careful in everything that even her eyelashes gently descending as she closed her eyes gave a delicate feeling, like snowflakes falling.

‘I didn’t know my friend was such an unscrupulous guy… This is completely a thief.’

Helen soon muttered to herself without realizing it.

“I didn’t know my friend was such a conscienceless fellow.”

Was it not that he didn’t date but that he couldn’t? Where on earth did that cold-blooded man find such an angelic person and held a shotgun wedding?

If he had a daughter like that, he might have lived in his daughter’s room all day, putting aside his official duties.

Although she couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason, her friend had been feeling increasingly annoying since earlier.

Soon, Roel’s thin frame caught Helen’s eyes. Looking at her delicate neckline and wrists that gave a somewhat precarious feeling, she recalled how Reus reacted a bit oversensitively when she hugged Roel tightly earlier, which was unlike him.

‘…I was the one at fault. I was just too happy.’

Helen quietly reflected to herself that she should be a little more careful when treating Roel.

Then, suddenly thinking of Reus, Helen soon asked in an extremely serious tone and an ominous voice,

“This is just out of concern, but you didn’t get deceived by Reus into marrying him, right?”

Roel, who was about to answer no as a matter of course, hesitated.

Thinking about how the wedding preparations were almost finished without her knowledge…

‘It’s roughly similar?’

From the moment he suddenly visited the Count’s estate to putting her in a carriage heading to the Grand Duke’s castle, everything was achieved through lies, so it was not just similar but she was completely deceived.

However, she couldn’t just say, “Yes, actually, I walked into the Grand Duke’s castle without knowing anything and ended up getting married by chance.”

After making a decision, Roel shook her head and denied it, but the serious expression on Helen’s face didn’t easily subside.

“This is also out of concern for Roel, but Reus doesn’t make you feel uncomfortable… or act stiff, or neglect you…?”

Helen, who knew very well how cynical her friend was, waited for the answer with an anxious heart. No matter how many times he saved her husband’s life on the battlefield, it would be unforgivable if he treated such a kind and gentle wife that way.

But Roel immediately denied it with surprise.

“No, not at all. Reus treats me so well that sometimes I don’t know what to do.”

“…Reus does?”

Helen instinctively pulled her neck back slightly and reacted with a dubious expression to the unbelievable words.

That was understandable because on the battlefield, Reus always swung his sword with a dead expression, and even when he returned to daily life, she had never witnessed his indifferent expression softening.

What, treats you so well… for someone who doesn’t even know how to show a slight smile?

It was a hard-to-believe answer even after thinking about it again.

Perhaps because he had such a stiff personality, Roel might be easily moved even if Reus treated her just a little well.

‘Many women in Levaen used to be like that too.’

Although Reus was from the Asilith Empire, there were many women in Levaen who admired the war hero of the great empire.

Reus had brought countless victories to Levaen despite being a foreigner, so his image was much better here than in the empire. In other words, there were more than a few people who would praise him just for being there.

However, Reus, who didn’t care about such things at all, often acted as if he never showed any kindness or consideration. He always appeared polite on the outside, but when someone actually tried to talk to him, he would flatly reject them to the point of making them uncomfortable.

The only thing that could be praised about him was that he showed an equally indifferent attitude to everyone regardless of gender or age, so it was even more difficult to easily believe Roel’s answer.

Soon, Helen spoke in a serious tone and a low voice,

“No matter how much I think about it… Reus is far from having a good personality.”

She even shook her head slightly with coldly chilled eyes.