Two years ago, around the time when the now-deceased Emperor Maximilian’s ascension to the throne was being discussed. Despite concerns about his young age, Maximilian ascended to the throne at 12, due to being the eldest son of the previous Emperor.

Although there were opinions that his mother, Princess Consort Monica, should have acted as regent, she instead immediately passed the throne to her son. However, reaching this decision involved many complications.

At that time, one of the candidates considered for the throne in place of Maximilian was Karl. To avoid causing harm to his young cousin, Karl retreated from the capital to his grand duchy, intending only to appear at the ascension ceremony once Maximilian’s enthronement was confirmed.

However, Celeste unexpectedly visited him there. His hideaway, known only to him and a few close knights, was suddenly found by Celeste, a relatively unknown Countess of the Luise family.

“How did you find this place?”

Karl was shocked to see Countess Luise appear before him. Until then, to Karl, Celeste Luise was merely the Countess of Kelerber, a cold woman of society, and Franz’s lover. He had only seen her from a distance and had never spoken to her.

But what was their relationship now? Karl looked down at the woman sitting in front of him. Celeste’s face turned red, then darkened, and soon became pale.

Meeting her again after two years, she seemed to be a different person. Although she was difficult to understand, her emotions were easily readable.

Was this really the same cold Countess Luise? Yet, she reminded him of the Celeste who had suddenly sought him out.

Perhaps that’s why Karl provided a bed for Celeste when she visited his secluded mansion alone. He couldn’t coldly turn her away after she had traveled that difficult journey by herself.

“Please answer me, Celeste. Is Valery…”

That night then became a completely erased memory for him.

On a night when Karl, who couldn’t even drink a sip of alcohol, accidentally consumed a glass of distilled liquor, he lost all memories from the evening until the next morning. His question was directed towards that forgotten night.

“Is she… my child?”

Today, he was determined to get an answer. He had countless questions about that night.

“Is she my child?”

And whether Valery was the result of some unknown time he and Celeste might have shared during that memory-less night.

Behind the closed doors of the study where Karl and Celeste were having a private conversation, the employees of the Luise family began their own serious discussions.

Initially, it was Cecile bombarding Hanna with questions.

Who is this child, what do you mean she’s the Countess’s child, what happened while she was away from the manor, how could you bring a child out of nowhere? These inquiries were more like interrogations than simple questions.

“But I already told you. Someone suddenly brought the child to us.”

“How does that make sense? Considering the child’s age, the Countess would have had to be pregnant about two years ago and given birth a year ago. But that never happened! And now you say the child is hers!”
“I thought the same as Cecile. But remember about a year and a half ago, the Countess suddenly went abroad to study? I think she returned after about six months. She went for studies and didn’t want to make a fuss, so she didn’t take anyone from the mansion with her. If she had become pregnant then… it’s possible she gave birth without us knowing.”

“That’s nonsense. Our Countess wouldn’t… No, and if such an unbelievable thing had happened, the person who brought the child should’ve been questioned. Someone must have brought the child. We should’ve asked them.”

“I wanted to do that too. But during my short visit to the capital, someone left the child and disappeared without a trace. What could I have said to the Countess? Could I have asked her why she didn’t chase after someone who ran away after leaving a child at the door?”

“Even so…”

Cecile sighed deeply. A child for an unmarried noblewoman was a fatal scandal. An unexpected childbirth during a foreign study trip? That was absurd.

If Celeste really had been pregnant, she would’ve needed help at the time of the birth. And if she needed help, she would have surely sought out Cecile.

“And why did Grand Duke Albrecht come here? And the Imperial Investigation Team?”

Even without adding this scandal, Celeste already had many enemies.

Those who were dissatisfied with the Luise family’s mining rights monopoly, and many noblewomen who envied her beauty but disliked her unsociable nature, already held grudges against her.

People who couldn’t have what they wanted would ruin it – that was human nature. Many men who had sent love letters to Celeste, only to be rejected, quickly became her adversaries.

The existence of Valery was perfect bait for these individuals. Tomorrow’s gossip columns in the Maledico newspaper might already feature Celeste and Valery’s faces.