“My lady went to the guild.”

These were the first words Luth conveyed to Herdin, who had returned late at night and was reviewing documents in his office.

Herdin, who had been smoking a cigar and keeping his eyes on the documents regardless of who entered, looked at Luth upon hearing this unexpected news.

“What do you mean by that all of a sudden?”

“Sir Jerome, who was patrolling the mansion, saw my lady and a maid sneaking out about an hour ago. So he followed them, and they entered the guild district.”

Herdin asked, putting down the cigar he had been holding.

“Now, at this hour?”

“Yes. She just returned to the mansion.”

A chuckle escaped Herdin’s lips.

Who would have thought his seemingly docile wife had a taste for such adorable mischief? The unexpected blow to the back of his head was quite stinging.

“Shall we investigate the content of her request?”

“Why would we do that?”

“She might be plotting something with the imperial family. She might even be planning to absorb Delmark.”

“If that were her goal, she wouldn’t risk moving the imperial princess. The emperor has plenty of people he can move.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“And while she might have such plans for the distant future, it’s not now. The emperor will need my power.”

A powerful piece that would bring victory in the war of conquest.

He could vaguely guess the purpose behind Ivan promoting this marriage from their conversation at the luncheon held at the imperial palace last time.

“Then why did she go to the guild?”

At Luth’s question, Herdin irritably ran his hand through his still-damp black hair, pressing his throbbing temples.

That was precisely what he wanted to know.

What on earth was she thinking with that small head of hers, and what was she plotting?

But the guild wouldn’t easily divulge a client’s purpose, and forcing them to do so would escalate matters. If Blair found out about that, she would completely conceal her purpose.

After silently smoking his cigar for a while, lost in thought, Herdin ordered in a low voice.

“Just guard her for now. Without being noticed.”

* * *

The New Year’s Festival was now just a day away.

It was also the last day of the year.

Blair came down to the dining room for breakfast as usual. Herdin’s seat was empty again today.

“His Excellency left the mansion early this morning due to some business.”

Mason explained apologetically as he pulled out her chair.

It was understandable, as she hadn’t had a meal with Herdin since that day of the incident with the maids.

But for Blair, this was already a familiar occurrence.

‘Still, I wanted to thank him for Lina’s matter.’

She didn’t want to be indebted to him any further.

Blair finished her meal, thinking that she should thank him the next time she had a chance to meet him, before it was too late.

Afterward, she tried on the New Year’s Festival dress made by Baroness Sionel, then took a short rest.

“My lady, Lady Lorelaine has arrived.”

Blair woke up from a brief nap upon hearing Lina’s voice, realizing it was time for her tea appointment with Agnes.

When she went to the greenhouse where Agnes was waiting, Agnes greeted her warmly.

“Hello, madam. It’s been quite cold lately, I hope you’ve been well this past week?”

“Yes, I have. And you, Lady Lorelaine?”

“Of course, thanks to you.”

Having made the appointment during last week’s first tea time, today was their second tea time, making it the first proper consultation.

Blair fidgeted with the rim of her teacup, somewhat nervous.

Originally, she didn’t particularly enjoy meeting strangers, but she wasn’t usually nervous. Being born an imperial princess, she had to meet many unfamiliar people out of duty, even when she didn’t want to.

Exceptionally, before her regression, dealing with the people of Delmark was difficult and nerve-wracking.

Their constant gazes seemed to judge whether she was suitable as a duchess and whether she was a good match for Herdin.

After returning to the past, those gazes were no longer frightening, but strangely, facing Agnes made her nervous.

It felt as if Agnes could see right through her.

Talking about herself to someone was unfamiliar. She hadn’t shared her story with anyone since Esmeralda’s death.

Agnes passed her some warm tea to thaw her cold body and began the conversation.

“By the way, it feels like we just welcomed the new year yesterday, but in the blink of an eye, it’s already the last day of the year. Time really flies, doesn’t it?”

“Indeed.”

Blair didn’t want to respond with just a short answer, but she couldn’t think of anything else to say.

Having lived a life where someone always led the conversation for her, it was even more difficult.

Fortunately, Agnes didn’t seem to mind.

“We agreed to talk about old stories starting today, didn’t we?”

“Yes. Where should we begin?”

“Well, it might be difficult to recall things out of the blue… How about we talk about memories related to the New Year’s Festival?”

“The New Year’s Festival?”

“Yes, about what happened at the New Year’s Festival the year the incident occurred. Do you remember any anecdotes? Even something trivial would be fine.”

Blair easily recalled the memories of that day.

After all, it was the day she first met Herdin.

* * *

The day before Blair’s eleventh birthday.

Today, the last day of the year, was when they usually met with relatives they didn’t see often to exchange New Year’s greetings in advance.

Blair put more effort than usual into her appearance and visited the Empress’s Palace. For some reason, Esmeralda had been busy lately and hard to meet.

‘I should ask Her Majesty the Empress to play a card game. Today, I’ll definitely win.’

With high spirits, she entered the Empress’s Palace.

However, there was already a guest.

“Oh my. You’ve come at just the right time, Blair.”

Next to Esmeralda, who welcomed her with her usual kind face, sat an unfamiliar boy.

A neat and handsome boy with fine black hair like Esmeralda’s, a pale face, and piercingly blue eyes.

Blair recognized him at a glance.

The young head of the current Delmark duchy and Esmeralda’s only nephew, Herdin Delmark.

Esmeralda had occasionally spoken about Herdin.

‘He’s a very lonely child. I wish he could have a good friend like our Blair.’

Wanting to reassure Esmeralda’s worried words, Blair had promised, ‘If I meet him, I’ll be his friend.’

But face-to-face with Herdin, Blair looked at him with eyes full of wariness. She didn’t like this uninvited guest interrupting her cozy time with Esmeralda.

“Greet her, Herdin. This is Her Highness the Imperial Princess.”

Esmeralda gently embraced Herdin’s shoulders as she introduced Blair.

The cold-looking boy stood up and paid his respects.

“Herdin of Delmark greets the shining star of the empire, Her Highness the Imperial Princess.”

The boy’s manner of greeting was impeccably polite, but his eyes couldn’t hide an unmistakable boredom.

Seeing that look, Blair flinched.

For Blair, who had always been surrounded by friendly people, the indifference of a boy three or four years older than her was unfamiliar and frightening.

However, unable to run away after receiving the greeting or to disappoint Esmeralda’s expectations, she awkwardly accepted the greeting.

“N-nice to meet you, Duke Delmark.”

“I thought it would be nice for you two to meet sometime, and I’m glad you’ve met like this.”

Esmeralda was delighted at the meeting of the two children, but Blair only felt uncomfortable with Herdin’s presence. Fortunately or unfortunately, the boy seemed uninterested in Blair.

Observing the two children who wouldn’t even make eye contact, Esmeralda suggested first.

“Shall we play a card game today too?”

“Yes, I’d love to!”

Blair was excited at the thought of playing a card game, and while Herdin maintained an indifferent expression, he joined in their game.

But as the games continued, Blair’s expression gradually became more sullen. This was already the fourth round, and Herdin kept winning.

Even Herdin, who kept winning, was becoming disinterested due to the lack of tension.

Blair desperately wanted to win, while Herdin had no intention of letting her win.

Yet they wouldn’t even exchange a word, let alone make eye contact. At this rate, it seemed unlikely the two children would grow closer even if they played many more games.

Feeling at a loss, Esmeralda thought of another approach.

“It seems a bit boring to keep playing the same game. Shall we try playing ‘Catch the Thief’ this time?”

And so, the game of ‘Catch the Thief’ began.

At first, matching pairs of cards came out in succession, progressing quickly, and soon enough cards were discarded to start the psychological warfare.

“Oh my.”

Esmeralda let out a small exclamation as Herdin drew a card from her. It meant Herdin had drawn the thief card.

Now it was Blair’s turn to draw a card from Herdin. Herdin held out his cards to Blair with his usual indifferent expression.

However, Blair hesitated to draw Herdin’s card.

‘This person is scary…’

To engage in psychological warfare, one needs to look at the opponent’s face to read their cards, but Blair was afraid to look directly into Herdin’s eyes.

It was partly due to his chilling impression, but also because she remembered the rumors about the ‘power’ passed down in the Delmark duchy.