Chapter 33
Adonis answered only with silence. The Countess of Betrice, not expecting a reply, clicked her tongue and turned her gaze away.
“Who does she take after to be this indifferent?”
“Mother, you’re home?”
At the sound of Adolf’s greeting from the second floor, the Countess’s frown melted into a bright smile.
“Adolf, I was just thinking of you. I have something for you.”
“For me? What is it?”
“It’s an ointment I brought back from the temple, said to be good for bruises. Since you’re always working so hard physically, apply it whenever you get the chance.”
“Oh…”
Adolf’s eyes briefly shifted to Adonis. It was clear he felt that such ointment might be of more use to his sister, who faced far more battles than he, a knight of the Second Division.
Leaving her hesitating brother and the Countess urging him to accept the ointment, Adonis retreated to her room, the sounds of their voices growing faint. She understood why her mother lavished such care only upon her brother.
Like her father, her mother hoped she would lay down the sword and feared she might stifle her younger brother, who was to become the head of the family.
Once inside, Adonis applied the ointment to the torn area inside her cheek.
Yes, April’s words were true.
“The one who should care for me the most is not my family, but myself.”
Neither her family nor she herself had ever gifted her anything as simple as this ointment.
There was no real reason to refuse Rogian’s invitation, so I returned to the palace, though upon arriving, I couldn’t help but feel it was a mistake.
I should have expected it—whenever I entered Rogian’s quarters, I was met with a strange, unpleasant odor and a suffocating atmosphere that clung to me.
Perhaps I shouldn’t have agreed to come, I thought with a pang of regret.
“How are you feeling, my lady? Are you fully recovered?”
I watched him as he handed me a cup of tea, and nodded slightly, taking a sip of the fragrant drink before answering.
“Yes. I am perfectly well, with no lingering pain.”
“That’s truly a relief. Still, it’s wise to monitor your condition a bit longer—I worry you might suffer a relapse.”
Empty words.
If even I could sense the insincerity, there was no telling what Duke Alexis might think.
When I glanced at him, the duke remained silent.
Of course, he would. His only reason for bringing me here was to ensure this engagement remained intact; silence served his purpose best.
After years in the royal court and as head of the ducal household, the duke could not be blind to Rogian’s deception.
Once the increasingly senile emperor passed away, Persephone would waste no time in removing Rogian from the palace. To secure his position, Rogian needed a noble lady from a prominent family.
Naturally, Persephone, the one most opposed to Rogian, would be eager to break the engagement with the ducal household. Was he so blinded by infatuation that he thought he could manage this alone? Or did he believe he no longer needed the duke’s support?
“Seems a streak of bad luck has settled over the duke’s family. Don’t you think?”
Lost in thought, I frowned as Rogian’s question cut through my reverie.
His vague mention of “bad luck” clearly referred to more than the carriage accident.
“What exactly do you mean…?”
“Well, the day before your engagement to the crown prince, the duke—”
“Lord Rogian.”
The interruption came from Duke Alexis.
The day before the engagement…
Clearly, Rogian was about to mention the duke’s collapse and his poor health.
Though I traveled frequently between the capital and the estate, I’d never heard of this. While the engagement announcement with the crown prince had been the empire’s latest news, I’d deliberately chosen to ignore other matters.
“I understand your concern, but let’s leave that matter.”
What, exactly, was wrong with him? Was his unusually pale complexion a sign of illness?
Even as the duke expressed his distaste for the subject, Rogian continued with a casual smile and words he refused to hold back.
“Surely, I’m only worried because he collapsed. I hear he hasn’t seen a cleric?”
Duke Alexis’s gaze hardened.
Rogian wasn’t the sort to stay silent simply because he’d been asked to; his words flowed unchecked.
“I called for a cleric out of concern.”
“…Pardon?”
“Though you say you’re fully recovered, I still worry for you, my lady.”
“Lord Rogian, the cleric has arrived.”
I clenched my teeth at the terrible timing. I had no intention of allowing a cleric to examine me.
Even though I claimed to be fully healed, any injuries from the accident that left no trace might only raise suspicion.
As the well-oiled door swung open soundlessly, Rogian’s lips curved into a smooth smile.
His eyes, however, remained unreadable, and his expression made it clear he intended to find fault by any means necessary.
My flaws could serve as grounds for breaking off the engagement, and discovering the duke’s physical state would be equally valuable.
Rogian’s smile, though undeniably handsome, was chilling, his unnaturally preserved youth evoking only unease.
At the sound of footsteps approaching from behind, I placed my teacup down and sensed the cleric taking position beside me.
“You called for me.”
…Hm?
The voice was strangely familiar. I looked up.
The face of the cleric, with long hair falling gracefully over his shoulders, was someone I knew.
The man who recognized my mother’s face, the sole cleric in the high temple currently bearing spiritual power.
“I summoned you to examine these two, rather than myself.”
“Yes.”
Tamitarte, the cleric.
When his eyes, initially expressionless, shifted towards me, a flicker of surprise crossed his gaze.
He hadn’t expected to see me here; recognizing this wasn’t the temple but the palace, he quickly masked his expression.
Even without spiritual power, I’d be wary of putting myself in a cleric’s hands, let alone one with spiritual power.
If he even slightly detected the spiritual power within me, it would be disastrous. At the very least, I couldn’t risk revealing that I wasn’t April before bringing her here.
“Allow me to examine you briefly.”
As Tamitarte knelt, about to begin his examination, I shook my head.
“There’s no need to call a cleric, Lord Rogian.”
“But my lady…”
Feigning gentleness, he merely lifted the corners of his mouth as he coaxed.
“I assure you, it’s quite unnecessary.”
I knew he wouldn’t retreat easily, so I uttered the words I knew would make him relent.
“I survived a mauling from your pet leopard, Lord Rogian. Do you truly think a carriage accident would bring me down?”
For a moment, the smile froze on Rogian’s face.
The reason, of course, was that I’d saved Persephone from the leopard Rogian had raised, thrusting myself in its path.
If I were right, the “gifted” leopard’s intended target had never been the cherished daughter of the duke’s family, whom they had only recently found, but Persephone, the young heir to the throne.
Who could have anticipated that the duke’s daughter would throw herself in harm’s way to protect the crown prince? The poor leopard was the real victim, merely used and discarded by Rogian.
I recalled Persephone in her youth, during the silent period she’d fallen into after the Empress’s funeral.
Her muteness had been a source of concern in the palace. With the emperor’s mind ensnared by other matters and the seemingly stable crown prince no longer speaking, the situation had indeed been bleak.
“You saw that day as well, Lord Rogian. I am resilient to both wounds and accidents, so please, spare yourself the worry.”
The royal family and Persephone owed me a debt. A debt for saving the empire’s only heir, no less. Perhaps that’s why Persephone had become my natural companion—our age difference only added to that familiarity.
Though she never spoke, she had emotions, and I vividly recalled the look of guilt she wore every time she saw me.
Likely, she, too, felt indebted and was willing to grant April whatever she desired…which made it all the more surprising when she requested to annul the engagement for the sake of someone she loved.
“Besides, while I have faith in the discretion of Lord Rogian’s attendants…”
“…”
“I’m sure even the royal family would agree that it’s inappropriate for a noblewoman to reveal herself publicly in such a setting.”
With a faint smile toward the slightly unsettled Rogian, I cast a sidelong glance at Duke Alexis.
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