“Your Highness!”

Gregory, who had been called away to speak with the attendants after receiving a command to check the time from the Duchess, rushed back to Duke Caeron. Usually calm and composed, Gregory’s expression and voice were now noticeably frantic.

“What the hell happened?”

Upon seeing Gregory’s state, Caeron’s face immediately hardened. His sharp intuition told him that something was seriously amiss.

“It’s, it’s Her Highness…”

“Spit it out.”

It was indeed news about Idel. Caeron, trying to make the stuttering Gregory focus, urged him on.

“She, she’s gone…!”

“What?”

“She went to the industrial area in the east of the capital and has disappeared…!”

Upon hearing the news, Caeron’s mind went blank for a moment. With a disbelieving look on his face, he slowly opened his mouth.

“Disappeared?”

“Yes…! She left the Rainian Emperor and a maid behind and vanished on her own.”

Without another word, Caeron kicked off from his office and stormed out. His pace was entirely different from his usual leisurely gait.

‘Your Highness!’ Gregory hurriedly followed behind the Duke.

“Head to the eastern region of the capital immediately. As fast as you can!”

The Duke’s urgent voice echoed through the hallway.

The coachman, who had been resting in front of the carriage, jumped up in alarm and clambered onto the carriage. Gregory followed him onto the carriage.

“Your Highness…!”

“Report everything you know about the current situation.”

Inside the moving carriage, Caeron tried to remain as composed as possible. But his hands slightly trembled, so he tightly clenched them together. His knuckles turned white, mirroring his strained face.

Gregory also took deep breaths to calm his startled mind before explaining the information he had received from the attendants.

“…So when they came back after cleaning up the spilled dye, Her Highness and a child named Ena had disappeared. Her Highness told the waiter that she would meet the dye factory manager and return.”

“What happened next?”

“Concerned that Her Highness didn’t return even after nearly thirty minutes, the Rainian Emperor and a maid named Bien went to the dye factory. But neither Her Highness nor the child Ena had been there.”

“How was the Duchess’s disappearance confirmed?”

“While checking the surroundings on the basis that the agreed meeting place might not have been the factory, they found a cloche that Her Highness had been wearing in an alley.”

The mention of the dropped cloche reminded Caeron of his first meeting with her. How she had run away from him in fright.

For a moment, Caeron exhaled a rough breath and gritted his teeth.

‘Who dares…?’

Usually graceful, the Duchess had never been in such an urgent situation that she would drop her cloche. From this, Caeron deduced the gravity of the situation.

Anger toward an unknown threat and worry for Idel shook Caeron to his core.

“Have they located this dye factory manager?”

“The attendants are currently looking for him.”

“What about the child, Ena?”

“Just like Her Highness, they are searching for traces of the child.”

“Ha…!”

No other clues had been found, except for the cloche that the Duchess had dropped.

“Estimated time of the Duchess’s disappearance?”

“They met the child at five o’clock, considering the time it would take to move, it’s estimated to be between fivethirty and six.”

Caeron glanced at the pocket watch he had taken out. It was already past seven o’clock while they were on the move. The longer the search took, the riskier it became. If they missed the golden twelvehour window…

He gripped the pocket watch tightly and stared out of the darkening window.

“If we don’t find the Duchess before dawn breaks, head straight to the palace.”

“To the palace…?”
“Report Duchess’s disappearance to Pascal and order an immediate blockade of the capital.”

“……Understood.”

Though Gregory was visibly startled by the mention of a blockade, he soon nodded, accepting the Duke’s command.

A blockade of the capital was a measure activated only in cases of war, civil strife, disaster, or epidemic. Even for an emperor, it was a difficult decision to make, as it halted all human and material traffic into and out of the capital.

However, the will of Caeron, who gave the command, was resolute. This only proved how serious the disappearance of the Duchess was for him.

‘Your Grace… please be safe.’

Gregory too cherished the Duchess. He truly wished for her wellbeing. Yet, for him, the Duke was even more important.

‘Your Grace…’

He had never seen the Duke so disturbed, not even during the civil war in Ratland several years ago. The usually confident and composed man now seemed on the verge of crumbling due to the Duchess’s disappearance.

‘Although you claimed it was merely a contractual relationship…’

Just as he had feared, and perhaps also hoped, the existence of the Duchess had become a significant emotional anchor for the Duke.