“And I didn’t confess to Derick that I like him. I have a conscience too. He noticed and jumped first.”

At Clozé’s shameless words, Belia sighed.

Suddenly, a headache that wasn’t there before began to pound.

‘What on earth happened to Derick…!’

Is he in trouble?

No. Not really.

This is Clozé’s problem…

“Haah.”

Now she couldn’t figure out who to scold.

Then, Clozé asked with a sly smile.

“Isn’t the real concern about the difference in status? I was more worried about that.”

Belia was taken aback.

‘So, was Derick unable to enter the Célon Marquisate because of that?’

If Clozé knows his status, she will undoubtedly come forward more actively.

But considering that Célon Marquis won’t live for another year, Derick needs to appear as the heir soon. Although he was a hidden supporter of the Cáprié Marquis, he needed to expand his influence further.

Especially with recent efforts by Raul and Elin to actively establish themselves in the social circle, there have been many headaches for the family.

“Do you really find Derick interesting these days?”

“That’s right.”

“Stop it.”

Clozé frowned at Belia’s firm words.

“Why?”

“Firstly, you’re too young.”

“It’s okay once I have the coming-of-age ceremony, right?”

“…Clozé. He’s the one who ran away because he didn’t like you.”

“What are you talking about? Derick didn’t run away because he didn’t like me. It’s because I’m young.”

Clozé said with both hands on her chin, looking nonchalant.

Knock, knock.

At that moment, a calm knocking sound was heard.

“Belia, can I come in?”

It was Khalid’s voice.

As if it were a signal, Clozé stood up abruptly.
“First, let me know if there’s any contact from Derick, Unni. I know I’m young, so don’t worry; I won’t blindly chase after him.”

With that, Clozé opened the door, greeted Khalid brightly, and left the room.

Belia, with a puzzled expression, watched the absent-minded Clozé leaving the room.

“What’s going on?”

“…Clozé seems to like Derick. But it seems Derick noticed that and avoided Clozé.”

In Belia’s somewhat dejected voice, Khalid burst into laughter. Belia, surprised, raised her head and scrutinized his face.

However, Khalid approached Belia without hesitation and hugged her.

“Why are you laughing?”

Belia’s gaze became sharp.

With a smile on his face, Khalid casually said, “If he were the master of Lunes, he would be here now, wouldn’t he?”

“What?”

Belia was taken aback and pushed Khalid’s chest. Then, she pulled away from his embrace and stood up.

What on earth is this about?

“Just came to tell you that. And also to greet the little princess. But I heard unexpected stories.”

Khalid made a nonchalant and amused expression.

“Wait… Why is he here?”

Is Derick in the Empire right now? Or does it mean he’s at the palace?

Belia, without understanding the situation, opened her mouth wide, looking at him.

“I asked him a favor as the master.”

“You?”

What could be the reason for the Master of the Information Guild to act directly?

Belia couldn’t make sense of it at all.

“Anyway, rather than pondering over it, wouldn’t it be better to ask the person directly?”

Khalid said so with a smirk and a smile.

Using the excuse that there was a problem with the clinic, Belia quickly looked around and, along with Khalid, left the palace.

When she heard that Derick was in the Empire, it was surprising, but she was even more shocked to hear that he was currently staying in the clinic disguised as a healer.

And when she actually found Derick’s face in the underground of the clinic, instead of getting angry, a dry laugh escaped.

“I want to hear an explanation of what happened.”

Belia’s voice was cold.

However, Derick just greeted her with a smiling face.

“Haha. Princess. It’s been a while.”

“I don’t want to exchange greetings with you so comfortably, Derick.”

Sighing deeply, Belia, who had been breathing out, sat down on the chair. Until a little while ago, he said he didn’t know when he would come to the Empire. But at that time, he was already here.

Moreover, the letter sent to Clozé’s side only mentioned moving the base.

“What on earth is the situation?”

Belia asked Khalid while looking at him.

She had rushed here as soon as she heard that Derick was in the clinic and hadn’t even properly heard an explanation.

“Well, that’s…”

“You have to explain why you hid it from me.”

Angry at being deceived, Belia said coldly.

“First, calm down, Belia.”

“I’ve calmed down enough.”

It wasn’t a lie.

Looking at Derick’s face, it felt like anger would erupt to the tip of her head. However, her emotions, once facing him, were in a surprisingly calm state.

Derick, who had been silently watching Khalid and Belia, opened his mouth.

“Khalid asked me to do something, so I went to the northern part of the Empire.”

The northern part?

Surprised, Belia turned to Khalid.