“Would you like to see this fabric? Isn’t it exquisite? It will undoubtedly suit the Duchess perfectly.”

“Yes, it’s beautiful.”

Leia, determined to focus on wedding preparations from then on, immersed herself in the details.

In the narrow alley next to the dressing room, there were eyes secretly observing Leia reflected in the window.

Dark black hair and brown eyes.

The man, as if trying to hide his face, had pulled his hat down, and his gaze didn’t waver from the dressing room window.

“Leia…”

He quietly whispered the name he had never dared to utter. Then, his trembling eyes closed slowly and opened repeatedly.

How long had he been like this?

The man, thinking that he couldn’t stay here any longer, turned around.

And at that moment.

“Who are you?”

With a low, threatening voice, the stranger’s ears were filled. As he turned, a man with radiant blonde hair and piercing blue eyes came into view.

It was Akia.

“Can’t speak? Or…”

Akia, with a threatening tone, took a step closer to the unfamiliar man.

“Refusing to speak?”

“…….”.

Despite Akia’s intimidating tone, the unfamiliar man seemed to have no intention of speaking, only keeping his lips tightly sealed.

“It’s better to speak when you have something good to say…”

Just then, with a jingling sound, the dressing room door opened.

“Duke? Why aren’t you coming in? What are you doing here?”

Leia, who happened to see Akia through the window but not entering the dressing room, came out to meet him.

At the pure voice overlaid with a heavy silence, the man’s shoulders twitched.

“Who is that…”
At that moment when Leia, who had just noticed the man in front of Akia, was about to ask about him, the man seized the opportunity and quickly left the place.

“Hey…!”

Leia, who intended to chase after that man, was stopped by Akia.

“Who on earth was that?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Although the man had been staring at Leia through the window for a long time, he turned away, pretending that nothing was wrong to avoid causing Leia any concern.

“Then come inside quickly. There are many beautiful things.”

“Alright. You go in first.”

“Yes. Hurry in!”

Leia, who had already thought so, entered the dressing room. Akia, who was left alone in front of the shop, looked in the direction where the man had disappeared.

‘Who on earth is he?’

The man’s expression bothered Akia more than calling him a mere watcher of Leia.

Having vaguely sensed the man’s presence from his clothing and physique, Akia, thinking it would be enough to investigate separately, turned away.

A conspicuous white fabric blocked his path.

As Akia moved forward, he suddenly bent down, picked up a fallen white handkerchief in front of him.

“This is…”

A white handkerchief that didn’t match the man.

At the end of the handkerchief, familiar wildflower embroidery was stitched.

The man, who had been catching his breath, confirmed that there was no one around and relaxed.

Then he recalled Leia’s figure, which he had observed for quite some time just now.

Leia, with a face resembling the woman he loved the most, shone more brightly than any jewel in the world.

No, she was so beautiful as if she were enveloped in all the light of the world.

As a father with nothing to boast about except his only daughter, he felt embarrassed. The child had matured.

‘My daughter. My beloved child.’

Except for his own existence, there would be no flaw in that child. His eyes, which had never shown any hint of emotion, now shimmered deeply.

As he gazed at Leia’s radiant face, the image of the deceased Ariel overlaid above it.

It was at that moment, as he stared into the empty space with a gaze mixed with regret and longing.

A familiar man stood in front of him.

“You are…”

It was Button, who served the Belarus Duke.

A tiny crack appeared in the man’s eyes as he looked at Button. A momentary sense of confusion.

“His Excellency, the Duke of Belarus, is summoning you.”

Button, with neatly combed hair, bowed his head toward the man.

“Lord Jackal.”