Following Ruben, I entered the reception room right next to the lobby and rubbed my eyes in disbelief.

The spacious reception room was completely filled with an enormous amount of flowers and gift boxes.

They were all different in shape. Some were wrapped in luxurious fabric, others nestled inside simple, high-quality wooden boxes.

Not to mention the dozens of dresses hanging on the garment rack.

“What… what is all this?”

“These are gifts sent by Sir Hillstain Mathias and Duke Dante Ian. Ah, and also from Viscount Noah Ian. Those have been set aside separately over there.”

Ruben, clearly unenthusiastic, pointed toward the windowsill after finishing his explanation.

“Are these for me? Why?”

“Word has spread that Lady Latieana is unwell.”

“Oh.”

Sir Hillstain would know, since he was there that day. As for Dante…

He must have heard while helping Eden and me deal with the Unbreakable Wall incident?

Even if I’m unwell, is it really necessary to send this many gifts?

I opened one of the wooden boxes placed nearest to me. It was about the size of a standard wardrobe.

“…….”

Speechless. Inside lay a dazzling array of jewels so extravagant, a gemologist might faint at the sight.

Pearls, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and more—every type imaginable, all top-tier, as if someone had swept every luxury accessory off the shelves without discrimination.

Click. I carefully closed the lid and walked toward the windowsill.

Thankfully, Noah’s gift box contained only a small bird-shaped ornament—though studded with absurdly lavish gemstones.

“I’d believe you if you told me this entire bird was carved from gemstones.”

“Oh, it’s probably not entirely gemstone.”

Ruben, who had followed me, replied to my muttered comment.

“I thought so.”

Still, it’s surprisingly heavy.

“The interior is likely made of pure gold. And for reference, the gems are top-grade royal diamonds.”

Clack clack clack. No wonder it felt heavy. How much is this tiny bird worth? I examined it briefly, then carefully set it down.

“But how do you know all this, Sir Ruben?”

“I happened to study it once before.”

“…?”

You “happened” to study gemology? As a knight?

I tilted my head in confusion, but Ruben continued nonchalantly.

“I had to provide His Grace with detailed information whenever purchasing accessories for Lady Latieana back at the fortress.”

Impressive, Ruben. You’re smart too? More than qualified as a right-hand man.

“What should we do?”

I nodded respectfully, and Ruben gestured toward the pile of gifts.

“His Grace ordered that, since these are messy, useless, and unpleasant to look at, we dispose of all except Viscount Noah’s gifts. Still, we showed them to you first since they were addressed to Lady Latieana.”

Calling top-grade jewels “useless and unpleasant” feels a bit harsh…

Though admittedly, I don’t particularly care for the givers.

“In any case, His Grace said you may dispose of them as you wish. However.”

“However?”

“I cannot guarantee how His Grace will feel if you wear any of those dresses or accessories.”

Right. Of course. He explodes with jealousy just from holding hands—imagine if I wore gifts from other men? That’d be impossible to handle.

Without hesitation, I turned my back on the gifts.

“But, Sir Ruben.”

“Yes?”

“Just hypothetically—if I wore them, Eden wouldn’t notice, right? How could he possibly remember all this?”

“…His Grace has an extraordinary memory. I should have mentioned this earlier. For reference, he remembers every single gift he gave Lady Latieana back at the fortress—including the color and design of each.”

“…….”

Ruben’s gaze briefly lingered on the gemstones glittering on my shoulders before he continued.

“Also, for your information, His Grace prepared an entire wardrobe room in the ducal palace specifically for Lady Latieana. The dress you’re wearing now was taken from that room. He remembers all of them too. He’ll be pleased you wore it today.”

Nothing to say to that. It’s fine—I wasn’t planning to wear anything except what Eden gives me anyway.

“Then… shall we store these in the warehouse for now?”

“Understood.”

“Ah! I’ll keep Noah’s gift in my room. It’s cute.”

“Very well.”

Accompanied by Maximus, who had been waiting outside the reception room, I headed toward the lobby.

Stepping out through the grand doors, I was greeted by a brilliant, high autumn sky.

The ducal palace garden wasn’t particularly colorful or ornate, but its vast size and subdued, monochromatic palette created a calm, tranquil atmosphere.

Since I’d never examined it this closely before, I glanced around curiously as I walked. A crisp breeze swept across the garden.

The dress’s insulation was surprisingly good—I didn’t feel as cold as expected—but I instinctively hunched my shoulders. Ruben promptly draped a robe over them.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

As I followed Ruben, after only a few steps, he asked,

“But are you truly certain it’s safe for you to go to the temple? You’ve resisted going until now.”

“Ah…”

I hesitated briefly, then smiled gently.

“Circumstances have changed. Back then, I wanted to hide myself as much as possible—but that’s no longer the case.”

Now, it’s Eden who might be in danger.

That’s why Maximus came to see me today.

While I was bedridden, the High Priest bombarded me with frantic messages nearly every day.

Even after I replied saying I was unwell, he kept pressing me—and eventually even mentioned the Emperor and Empress.

“If you don’t come soon, I’ll inform the Imperial Court that a new Grand Holy Maiden has appeared!”

For some reason, Killian seems to have kept my existence hidden from the Imperial Court. The High Priest exploited that weakness to pressure me—and so, as soon as I felt slightly better yesterday afternoon, I sent him a message:

“I’ll come tomorrow—wait exactly for me!”

I can vividly imagine him trembling in rage at my blunt tone.

That damn old man. I clearly replied I was ill, yet he kept pestering me shamelessly.

I knew he’d threaten to involve the Imperial Court—and sure enough, he did exactly that. I was going to go anyway, even without his threats!

Scowling, I imagined yanking out the High Priest’s corn-colored beard—when Ruben, walking ahead of me, suddenly stopped.

“That way.”

I spotted people gathered at the foot of the stairs.

Dozens of knights stood at regular intervals across the wide, polished marble courtyard.

And at the very center, standing before them—Eden.

Eden stood with one leg slightly bent, hands tucked into the pockets of his black trousers, a harness belt slung diagonally across his white shirt.

His black cloak fluttered in the wind, and his well-groomed hair danced lightly.

Sometimes, when he stands like that, he looks like a total delinquent. Yet… why is he so ridiculously handsome? His face glows as if he owns the entire world.

I stared at him for a long while as he focused intently on a subordinate who was earnestly explaining something, holding a quill and parchment.

It felt slightly awkward to interrupt while he was working—but suddenly, Eden turned his head toward me.

Our eyes clearly met, yet he simply blinked slowly once, his expression utterly blank.

Without speaking, he glanced past me as if brushing me off, then turned his attention back to his subordinate’s report.

The subordinate shot me a quick, nervous glance, checked Eden’s reaction, but seeing no response, continued his explanation.

Must be an important discussion. I’ll just wait quietly. I’d just thought that—

when Eden pulled one hand from his pocket and extended his arm toward me.

What’s this?

Since he wasn’t looking directly at me, I assumed he was reaching for someone else. But as I stared fixedly at his hand, Eden twitched his fingertips.

A clear signal: Come here.

I glanced at Ruben, but he stood serenely aside, clearly unwilling to interfere.

Since his hand remained extended toward me, I slowly approached Eden and looked down at it. Tap. I placed my hand in his palm. Immediately, as if he’d been waiting, he clasped it tightly.

“Uh… um…”

The subordinate’s eyes darted nervously between our clasped hands.

“Continue.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

I stared blankly up at Eden as he refocused on the conversation. The breeze occasionally tousled his hair, making him slightly squint—but overall, he maintained his cool, expressionless demeanor.

He really doesn’t smile much when working. Still, he seems to smile quite often when he’s with me.

I had to put tremendous effort into suppressing the corners of my mouth from curling upward.

Shortly afterward, escorted by Eden, I headed toward the carriage bound for the temple.

“If anything strange happens at the temple, don’t think twice—just run and hide among my men. Ruben will be there, so you’ll be safer, but no matter what happens, I’ll handle the aftermath.”

I nodded firmly.

“Yes. I will.”

Eden looked at my calm face, clicked his tongue disapprovingly.

“You could just break that promise, you know.”

Despite assigning so many guards, Eden clearly wasn’t happy about sending me to the temple. But Eden, if I don’t go, you’ll be the one in trouble. And I’ve decided—I won’t hide anymore for your sake. It won’t be easy, but I’ll do anything for you.

“I’m a good person who values promises.”

At that, Eden tilted his head slightly to the left.

“Didn’t I tell you before?”

“Tell me what?”

“That I’m sharper than you think.”

He meant he fully understood that I was using “keeping a promise” as an excuse to go to the temple—for his sake.

I didn’t want to make it so obvious.

“I’m glad you do things for me. But your first priority must always be yourself. Understand? Don’t put me above you.”

But for me, Eden is my first priority. He means more to me than I do to myself.

Seeing I didn’t respond, Eden continued.

“You must never, ever believe I’m more important than you. Got it?”