“… Huh?”

Dwayne, who had been blinking in confusion at Noah’s words, suddenly shouted irritably.

“Ah, anyway, let’s do it again, Your Grace!”

Noah narrowed his eyes as he watched Dwayne’s persistent pleading.

“Then will you help me in return?”

“Pardon? Me?”

Dwayne’s eyes widened. It was the first time in his life that he had heard such words from someone.

‘He’s asking me for help? He, Noah, needs my help?’

He stared at Noah with a dumbfounded expression. Is our Grand Duke in his right mind…?

“Yes. I need your help.”

Noah spoke firmly and then glanced around. The maids and young ladies from the nearby village were watching them with flushed cheeks. Noah thought they had come to see Dwayne.

‘He seemed to understand women’s hearts well, even when we came to the North.’

He was so friendly that in every village or territory they visited, there were women who were reluctant to part with him. If that was all, Noah would have just thought him a playboy, but it was quite impressive to Noah that no one seemed to dislike or resent Dwayne.

‘Though he’s not entirely trustworthy, there must be something to learn from him.’

Noah had someone he wanted to impress. So, he wanted to learn from Dwayne the secret of capturing women’s hearts.

Bradley, who was watching from the side, asked with an incredulous expression.

“Wait, Your Highness. You want help from that fellow? Really?”

Noah calmly nodded.

“When Dwayne comes, Jack and you will follow. It’s beneficial for me.”

“I see…”

Dwayne nodded at the plausible explanation. Bradley looked at him with disdain before turning to stare at Noah with a meaningful gaze.

‘Look at him.’

There was something people overlooked, mesmerized by his angelic appearance. The Grand Duke was not as gentle or docile as he appeared.

Just then, a cold voice came from behind.

“What is all this about?”

“Eek!”

Dwayne jumped like a rabbit and quickly retreated behind Noah to hide. Amy looked disapprovingly at Dwayne, who was using Noah, who was only half his size, as a shield.

“Amy. Did you finish looking around?”

As if he had never had a blank expression, Noah smiled brightly at Amy. At that moment, a collective sigh escaped from the onlookers.

“Yes. But what were you doing in this cold weather?”

Amy hurriedly took off her cloak and draped it over Noah’s shoulders. Noah looked at the thick cloak covering him and pouted.

“I’m not cold.”

“That can’t be. But just now, Lord Dwayne was lying down…”

Amy looked Noah up and down with a surprised expression.

“Did Your Highness knock him down?”

Hearing Amy’s words, Dwayne grumbled.

“Am I a bear to be knocked down?”

Noah ignored his words and smiled again.

“Yes. I knocked him down. With my bare hands.”

“Oh my…”

Joy spread across Amy’s face. Seeing that, Noah felt a tickling sensation in one corner of his heart. Amy whispered to Noah in a hushed voice.

“Well done. We might be able to reduce Lord Dwayne’s salary.”

“No, that’s not right!”

Dwayne, who had been listening intently, screamed, but Amy ignored him and urged Noah to leave the training ground together.

As Noah followed Amy, he turned slightly and mouthed ‘later’ to them. Dwayne and Bradley, pouting, nodded their heads.

Noah looked at Amy walking beside him and asked.

“You’re not really going to reduce it, are you?”

Amy raised one eyebrow and smirked.

“Lord Vernon will decide the guards’ salaries along with Joseph. I was just scaring him.”

“He’s quite helpful, despite how he looks.”

Noah took off the cloak and draped it back over Amy’s shoulders. Amy frowned at his action. Then Ethan, who was following behind, quickly covered Noah’s shoulders with the cloak he was holding. He was already earnest in his role as an attendant. Noah, adjusting the cloak, said,

“We were just sparring with Southern martial arts earlier.”

“…”

Amy’s expression became enigmatic. The words of the Crown Prince, who had been spying on and criticizing the Second Prince, came to her mind.

‘As expected of someone with barbarian Southern blood, I hear the young brat is learning techniques of rolling on the ground and hitting with hands. For a prince, it’s truly unsightly…’

That’s right. Second Prince Noah had learned Southern martial arts when he was young. And that was quite a while ago, so if he had continued practicing, he would surely be proficient by now. Amy blinked.

‘Could it be on purpose…?’

Noah slightly raised the corner of his mouth and muttered with satisfaction.

“Now they won’t be able to call it a morning star.”

“Morning star?”

Isn’t that a weapon with spikes like a hedgehog? She tilted her head, thinking it must be related to the technique, and dismissed it as unimportant. Then she glanced at the setting sun.

“It’s almost time for the banquet. Let’s hurry, Your Highness.”

“Alright.”

The two quickened their pace.

In the hall of the Grand Duchy, Noah sat at the head seat with a blank expression in front of the wall adorned with tapestries embroidered with the Grand Duchy’s emblem. He didn’t even look at the various dishes laid out before him, instead constantly moving his gaze as if searching for someone.

The employees seated at the long table perpendicular to the head seat below whispered while pretending not to follow the Grand Duke’s gaze.

“He’s looking for the Head Maid, right? She said she’d stop by somewhere.”

“Could it be the Advisor?”

“You don’t know anything. His Highness hasn’t looked for the Advisor all day.”

“That’s why the Advisor is always wandering around looking for His Highness with a sad face.”

At another table where the guards were gathered, Dwayne was complaining about how unfair it was. Soon, the sound of a fist slamming on the table was heard.

“How is this possible?”

Bradley, sitting next to him, immediately replied.

“It is.”

“…I wasn’t finished talking.”

“Is that important? What’s important is that you lost to His Highness.”

“That’s why I’m asking how this could happen.”

Bradley ignored Dwayne’s grumbling and ate his food quickly. Meanwhile, like the others, he glanced at Noah. He too was surprised by Noah’s unexpected skill.

At that moment, Advisor Joseph arrived at the head seat and carefully sat down next to Noah, leaving one seat between them. Noah didn’t even glance at Joseph and continued to stare at the door of the hall. Bradley narrowed his eyes.

‘Even if Dwayne let his guard down, it would have been difficult to guarantee victory even if he hadn’t.’

He too had practiced martial arts for many years and could discern that Noah was quite skilled.

‘I’ve never heard that the Second Prince was well-versed in martial arts.’

In fact, very little was known about the Grand Duke in general. But anyway…

Bradley fixed his gaze on the Head Maid who was just entering the hall.

‘The ghost maid who was famous in the Imperial Palace certainly belonged to the Crown Prince’s household, but when did she switch allegiance to the Second Prince?’

Moreover, the Grand Duke seemed to trust her immensely, despite her being essentially from enemy territory. Well, when they came to the North, he saw how attentively she served the Grand Duke, so it seemed impossible not to trust her.

‘Were they close originally?’

But even so, the Crown Prince’s favor towards the Head Maid was extraordinary. It was rumored to be a headache for the Empress. At least that was the case before he left the Imperial Palace, but perhaps the Crown Prince’s heart had changed in the meantime.

He clicked his tongue.

‘Well, we’ll find out soon enough.’

“You told the chef about His Highness’s food preferences that I mentioned earlier, right?”

Amy, who had returned from touring the castle with Melvin, immediately checked the dishes upon entering the hall. Melvin puffed out his chest and answered.

“Of course.”

“Then why isn’t he eating?”

Amy’s steps quickened as she grew anxious. Just then, Noah, seeing her approaching, stood up with a delighted expression. Amy was startled and hurried to stop him.

“You should sit and eat, Your Highness.”

Noah reluctantly sat back down and looked up at her with gentle eyes.

“But Amy hasn’t sat down yet.”

“I’ll eat later on my own, so please start eating. The chef has prepared dishes that Your Highness particularly likes.”

Amy smiled nonchalantly.

‘I guess he got used to eating together while we were traveling.’

But things were different now. Noah was now the official Grand Duke and the master of this place. Where in the world would you find a Head Maid sitting at the head table with the master? However, Noah was adamant.

“Amy, you’re a noble lady. There’s no reason you can’t dine with me.”

“…”

Amy was at a loss for words, as it wasn’t incorrect. Noah stared intently at her eyes, as if he absolutely wouldn’t take back his words.

Joseph, sitting next to them, also looked at her with pleading eyes. A silent appeal not to leave him alone with the Grand Duke.

“…Then, I shall do as you wish.”

In the end, Amy had no choice but to sit between them.

Noah, in a good mood, picked up his glass and took a sip of watered-down wine, smiling brightly. Once again, exclamations of admiration rose from below. Amy fixed her gaze on the table after seeing his bright face.

‘The Crown Prince never asked me to dine together…’

Regardless of the Empress’s disapproval, the Crown Prince had taken it for granted that Amy would stand behind him. Having become accustomed to the Crown Prince, who only verbally expressed his fondness while treating her no differently from a maid, Amy felt her heart flutter strangely when she looked at Noah.