Regardless of Jonathan’s bewilderment, Sandra let out a shallow sigh and continued her words.

“There have been many karmic debts accumulated over time. Someone, or perhaps several people joining forces, must have hired mercenaries to kill Caspian.”

“Do you really think so?”

Jonathan asked, staring intently into her eyes.

“If not bandits, then it must be mercenaries. The intentions of those who hired the mercenaries are obvious, aren’t they? That’s enough investigation. Uncovering the mastermind won’t bring Caspian back to life anyway.”

Jonathan was surprised once again. Not wanting to find her son’s killer was unlike Sandra’s usual behavior.

“Now that Caspian is dead, they must be celebrating. But there won’t be another attack, so isn’t that enough? I don’t want unnecessary attention focused on Caspian. Please grant my request, Your Majesty.”

“Yes, let’s do that, Your Majesty.”

Jonathan nodded obediently, but his mind was racing. He had thought they would search every corner of the world to find the culprit, but that wasn’t the case. Sandra seemed like someone who just wanted to give up on everything.

“Then rest, Your Majesty.”

As Sandra watched Jonathan’s retreating back as he left the bedroom, tears welled up in her eyes.

‘The investigation must not continue. It would be troublesome if it’s revealed that I hired the mercenaries. I need to divert the imperial family’s attention elsewhere for now. Once things quiet down, then I’ll investigate the real culprit myself.’

But before that, revenge must be taken. Sandra gritted her teeth while wiping away her flowing tears. Her wet eyes flickered dangerously.

“Caspian, my son… Wait just a little longer. After I get rid of all those who pushed you to your limits, Mother will follow you…”

Sandra, who had been muttering to herself while staring into space, got up. And she began to eat the food Jonathan had left behind.

Veronia was in the process of choosing a dress to wear for her wedding, which was a month away.

Like last time, five famous dress shops from the capital were waiting today as well. Each shop had prepared two dresses, so there were a total of ten wedding dresses to try on today.

“Am I supposed to choose one that I like from these? If so, I could have just ordered one from the beginning instead of ten! Wouldn’t that mean the other dress shops did all this work for nothing?”

Veronia said while checking her reflection in the mirror, wearing a wedding dress with a full skirt puffed out by a petticoat underneath.

The madam from the dress shop who was helping with the fitting smiled gently and shook her head at her statement.

“The Drea estate will be purchasing all ten wedding dresses.”

“What? What do you mean? I only have one body to enter the wedding venue, so why do I need ten wedding dresses? And the wedding will only happen once.”

“It’s a tradition of our Drea family.”

As Veronia asked with her eyes wide open in surprise, the Duchess, who had entered the room unnoticed, answered. Veronia’s eyes grew even rounder at her sudden appearance.

“Ah, welcome, Duchess.”

“You look beautiful indeed, Lady Nia.”

The Duchess said with sparkling eyes at the sight of Veronia in her wedding dress. Veronia slightly bowed her head to hide her embarrassment and muttered a small word of thanks.

The Duchess briefly scanned the rack of remaining wedding dresses and began to speak.

“I’m not sure when this tradition started. The Drea family’s bride orders ten wedding dresses and chooses the one that suits her best. Then the remaining nine dresses are gifted to nine other brides getting married around the same time.”

“Ah… I see.”

Veronia’s mouth fell open at the Drea family’s tradition that went beyond common sense.

“My secretaries are currently investigating and making a list of brides who are getting married soon. Lady Nia can choose the ones she likes from the list.”

“But what criteria should I use to choose?”

Veronia tilted her head and asked, completely at a loss.

“This tradition apparently started with giving gifts to the brides of vassal families. After that, the range expanded to include lower-class nobles who couldn’t afford wedding dresses.”

“…I see.”

Veronia was still perplexed. There was only a month left until her wedding. It seemed that choosing nine brides without clear criteria during that time would be no easy task.

The Duchess smiled gently at Veronia, who was trying hard to suppress a sigh.

“There’s no need to worry too much. And no need to feel burdened either. You can decide in whatever way you want, Lady Nia.”

Does she truly not understand how worrying and burdensome it is to continue a tradition that has lasted for several hundred years in the way I want? Veronia tried to smile along with the Duchess, but only an awkward smile formed.

“I heard rumors that you looked absolutely beautiful in your wedding dress.”

That night, Killian, who had returned home late, came to see Veronia. He was pushing a trolley with some light snacks and wine.

It was a hastily arranged intimate time for just the two of them, as Jediel had said he wanted to sleep with the Duchess tonight.

“I’m glad you at least heard through rumors.”

Veronia said with a pouty expression.

“Were you disappointed that I wasn’t there? Are you perhaps angry? I had so many busy schedules today that I simply couldn’t get away.”

“I’m not angry. I know you’re a very busy person.”

“That’s a shame.”

“What is?”

What could be a shame when she said she wasn’t angry? Veronia asked, perplexed. Killian slowly poured wine into her glass as he spoke.

“For a moment, I thought I wanted to see you getting angry at me.”

“What? What do you mean…”

That’s nonsense? Veronia swallowed the words she couldn’t bring herself to say out loud, but her expression couldn’t hide it. Killian scratched his cheek awkwardly and smiled.

“I know. That I’m being strange.”

“It’s probably because you haven’t seen me truly angry. If you had, you wouldn’t casually think such things.”

After finishing her words, Veronia brought the wine glass to her lips and took a sip. A pleasantly sweet aroma spread throughout her mouth.

“So, did you choose a wedding dress you liked?”

“Yes. They were all so pretty that it was hard to choose just one.”

“I can’t wait to see it. Nia, to see you in your wedding dress.”

“…”

Veronia, feeling shy, couldn’t properly meet Killian’s gaze and kept sipping her wine.

“If you drink so hastily, you might get drunk.”

“Isn’t alcohol meant to be drunk to get drunk?”

“That’s true.”

Killian nodded and put down the wine glass he had been holding. Veronia looked up at Killian with an expression that suggested she had many questions. As if understanding her intentions, he answered without being asked.

“I think one of us should keep our senses about us.”

After finishing his words, Killian moistened his throat with water instead of wine. Suddenly, Veronia’s eyes widened. His tone of voice had subtly irritated her.

“What’s that supposed to mean? Are you saying I might lose my senses if I get drunk?”

“…”

“Are you worried I might act out when drunk?”

Killian remained silent at Veronia’s questions. But she didn’t back down. Her persistent gaze waited for his answer. Killian’s face was slightly flushed as he reluctantly opened his mouth.

“If we both get drunk and our senses become hazy… I think we might end up having a second child.”

“What? What do you…”

“I want to save it for the wedding night.”

Ah… Veronia’s face turned as red as a tomato as she belatedly understood Killian’s meaning. Killian’s face was in no better state.

Feeling thirsty, Veronia brought the wine glass she was holding straight to her lips. She gulped it down without thinking, but when she realized it was wine, she hurriedly pulled her mouth away.

“Oops!”

As she hastily tried to place the glass on the table, her hand slipped and the glass fell to the floor.

Startled that the glass might break, Veronia squeezed her eyes shut and hunched her shoulders. But fortunately, thanks to the soft rug, no such misfortune occurred.

“Are you alright, Nia?”

Killian moved quickly. He picked up the glass rolling on the floor, put it back on the table, and wiped her wine-soaked hand with a napkin.

Veronia was a bit surprised to see Killian focusing on the task so naturally while kneeling on one knee.

Feeling awkward about completely entrusting her hand to Killian, Veronia looked at the dark red stain deeply imprinted on the beige rug and said,

“Oh dear. A stain has formed on the rug.”

“I like it. It’s like evidence of the time we spent together tonight.”

“Evidence… It’s not like it’s a crime scene.”

Pff, she laughed slightly, and Killian laughed along. Veronia was grateful to him for seeming to consider her embarrassment.

“Making it a crime scene might not be a bad idea.”

“What? A crime scene?”

“For instance… a crime like this…?”

After finishing wiping her hand, Killian this time brought his lips to the back of her hand. As the sudden soft and squishy sensation touched the back of her hand, Veronia flinched.