[What?]

A voice full of bewilderment came from Jaenuite.

[If you woke me up, you must be the Chosen One… Don’t you know how to unseal me?]

More than not knowing how to unseal him, something else caught my attention.

“The Chosen One?”

[Yes, only the Chosen One can awaken me. If touching Elena’s Tear would wake me up, I would have left this suffocating place a long time ago.]

Suddenly, I recalled what Layton had said.

‘Only the Chosen One can activate Elena’s Tear.’

So, it was true…

[It seems fate has been twisted. Nonetheless, you woke me up, which means you are qualified.]

I couldn’t understand what Jaenuite was saying.

[Since you don’t seem to know, let me tell you how to unseal me.]

Just then, footsteps sounded in the corridor. A maid was coming back.

Nelia hurriedly put Elena’s Tear back where it had been.

[To undo the seal, you need the sacred dew…]

Thump[DASH]!

Ignoring Jaenuite’s words, Nelia closed the drawer just as the maid appeared with a knock.

In her hand was a light yellow dress similar to the one I was wearing.

Nelia quickly composed her expression.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

Shaking her head at the maid’s words, Nelia responded.

“No, not at all.”

Actually, she had come back too soon…

Jaenuite seemed about to say something important, but was cut off at the perfect moment.

Nelia briefly jogged her memory.

‘Jaenuite was saying something about sacred dew.’

“It’s hard to put on this dress alone since it has a tie in the back. I’ll help you change.”

Though I wanted to speak more with Jaenuite, the maid was right; the dress looked complicated.

Accepting the dress from the maid, Nelia gave up on her thought.

I’ll get another chance to get close to Elena’s Tear.

I must.

Because only Jaenuite knows the way to Siegfried’s heart.

(This is a time separator.)

It was a very unexpected harvest.

Stumbling upon Elena’s Tear in such a place, and meeting Siegfried’s subordinate Jaenuite.

What bothered me was that I couldn’t fully understand what he was saying.

After changing into the dress, Nelia wondered how she could meet Jaenuite again as she headed to the dining room.

When she opened the door, she was shocked by the scene that unfolded, accompanied by the smell of gunpowder.

“What… what is this?”

When Nelia arrived, the dining room was a mess. The table had toppled over, the walls were damaged, and a large chandelier that had been hanging from the ceiling lay shattered on the floor.

As if a fierce battle had taken place.

Nelia’s eyes fell on Carlos and Duke Hart.

The Duke seemed as peaceful as if nothing had happened, but Carlos was sitting on the floor, panting. His face was bruised.

Nelia noticed the sword in Carlos’ hand and realized something had happened.

But what was strange was that the Duke held nothing in his hands.

They must have fought, but…

‘What did this man fight with?’

Though curious, that was not the immediate concern.

Nelia quickly went over to them.

“What on Earth happened…?”

Only now did the two seem to realize Nelia had arrived.

Spotting Nelia, the Duke smiled inappropriately for the situation.

“We were just sparring for fun.”

Nelia quickly wiped the concern from her eyes.

“Do you think I’m a fool?”

Who would start a sparring session during a formal meal? Yet, Duke Hart answered calmly.

“It’s true.”

Carlos silently sheathed his sword. The Duke draped his arm over Nelia’s shoulder as if telling her not to worry.

“The meal is over; shall we go?”

“What? But…”

“There’s nothing left to eat here, right?”
He was right. It seemed impossible to resume the tea ceremony in this mess.

I didn’t know what had happened, but it didn’t look like Duke Hart and Carlos were in a situation to amicably share tea anymore.

However, Duke Hart seemed to have contributed to the chaos. I wondered if it was okay to just leave.

Sensing Nelia’s discomfort, Duke Hart urged her in a gentle voice.

“The owner of this place will take care of it.”

As the Duke led Nelia out, he spoke lightly to Carlos.

“Your Highness, I enjoyed our duel today. Don’t forget the promise we made earlier.”

Carlos remained silent to the end.

I was relieved to see that Duke Hart seemed unharmed after facing the Swordmaster, but I was also worried he might be arrested for attacking the Crown Prince. No matter how influential Duke Hart was, he wouldn’t get away with it if he had harmed the Crown Prince.

Nelia’s worried gaze was fixed on Duke Hart.

What on earth had happened…

(Time separator.)

“Oh my, what is this…!”

The maid entered the reception room to clean up after the guests had left and was shocked.

One couldn’t help but be surprised by the sight of a bruised Carlos and the disheveled reception room.

Even though the circumstances were unclear, considering how uncomfortable the departing guests had looked, it didn’t seem like a fight had occurred…

The maid cautiously approached Carlos.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Sigh. Carlos exhaled a rough breath and clutched his right arm.

His eyes, seen through his lowered eyelids, were fierce.