***
After gossiping about Northern socialites for a while, Leonard finally came to his senses. He coughed briefly, and began to explain.
“The situation is more complicated than I thought. It seems that the vassals want to be seen in a good light by Madame.”
“What do you mean by ‘seen in a good light’?”
“Compared to Carlz, I don’t know much about this, but…”
The blonde knight frowned.
“It is a famous rumor that his highness the Grand Duke loves her highness more than anything. With this execution, no one really knew how to overcome it. A ruler’s affection soon becomes power, so the shrewd vassals will want to catch the eye of the Duchess.”
“…”
“The same goes for the ladies. For a long time, there was no central figure in the Northern social circles. Countess Oxburg or Countess Helvant… whoever gets closer to her highness will have greater power in the social world in the future.”
“What makes it so complicated?”
Raoul spoke as if he had read Amarion’s thoughts. She furrowed her brow and lowered her eyes.
She didn’t know much about it, but outside the castle, a fierce political battle was taking place.
The influence of the position of Grand Duchess was greater than expected. Enough to demand a banquet while escorting the subjugation force.
She asked Leonard.
“Will this happen in other castles as well?”
“It could be.”
The blonde knight affirmed.
“I was concerned about rude vassals, but I think there are people who want to please the Grand Duke in this way. Better than rude, but…”
“We’re not out for a picnic.”
She bit her lip.
No matter how much she expected to be treated like the Grand Duchess, they were in an urgent situation. An expeditionary force should be able to pack up and leave, even at dawn, when an enemy appears. It was better to be neglected and be able to leave freely, so she couldn’t delay by getting involved in this complicated matter.
She spoke firmly.
“For now, I want to focus only on subjugation.”
If she didn’t visit the lords, the rumors would probably get worse. The gossip that the Grand Duchess could only wield a sword might inflate.
But now was not the time to care about her reputation. Somewhere people were getting hurt. It would be difficult, but…
“Even if we have to camp, I want to get to our destination as quickly as possible. Is that possible?”
Leonard immediately lowered his head.
“I’ll make that adjustment, Madame.”
She nodded with a short sigh.
Outside the drawing-room window, summer stars were ignorantly shining brightly.
＊ ＊ ＊
The maids of the castle were polite and served her until she went to bed. They helped Amarion take off her dress and wash up, and provided her with soft silk pajamas.
After she changed, Mary suddenly stuck her head into the room.
“Here, Madame.”
Amarion was surprised to see the object in Mary’s hand. It was Volume 2 of , which she had been reading in Morte.
“A book! Mary, why did you bring it?”
“I thought it would be good for Madame to read when she rests…”
Mary blushed and handed her the book.
Amarion didn’t bring the book because she was afraid it would be damaged on the battlefield. But looking at Mary’s eyes shining as if she was hoping for a compliment, Amarion couldn’t say so.
Finally, she smiled and nodded.
“Thank you. Good night, Mary.”
“Have a good rest, Madame!”
Mary smiled brightly, bowed her head, and disappeared. Amarion bid goodnight to all the maids and climbed into bed.
The bed was unfamiliar.
It was a bedroom with no weapons in it, and she was wearing a dress, not a shirt and pants. And above all, Victor wasn’t there. In the last few months, she had never slept without Victor.
She took her eyes off the empty spot next to her and opened . The bookmark had been placed in the spot where she had stopped reading before the trip.
Dordophin was offering the dreadful sword that could cut anything to Flamberge.
[“How are you, my Lady! Is this the really sharp knife?”
Flamberge smiled broadly at Dordophin’s words.
“That’s right, knight. With this, I can cut down flowers, noisy wasps, and disobedient dogs!”
The guards guarding her tower trembled at her words.]
Amarion clicked her tongue.
How could Dordophin be so ignorant?
It was constantly mentioned that Flamberge was a suspicious and cruel person. No matter how beautiful she was, how could he love such a woman?
She carefully examined the illustration of the guards crouching next to Flamberge, then closed the book and set it down on the bedside table. Shortly after, a servant came in and turned out the lights.
As she lay down on the bed, the thoughts she had ignored naturally flooded her mind.
‘Is Victor okay?’
‘Just before I left, Victor slept well, although he looked tired. These last few days, I was able to sleep without holding my sword.’
‘But what if he is like me now? What if he can’t sleep because the bed is too empty?’
She closed her eyes and buried her face in the pillow.
Still, now was not the time to think about Victor. She had work to do. It was so important that she refused to attend the banquet, and even ignored Victor’s plea not to go. Besides, she still vividly remembered the disappointment she felt towards him. It was only yesterday that she was disappointed with his selfishness.
She didn’t know why her heart was so sore.
She trembled at the unfamiliar feeling and pulled the blanket around herself tightly. Her head and heart were a mess.
She just missed his musky smell.
＊ ＊ ＊
The lights on the Morte estate were not extinguished until late in the night. Sir Carlz gathered his documents and headed to the Grand Duke’s office.
The subjugation army arrived at Norvant’s mansion safely, but that was only the beginning. In addition, there were a lot of documents to be processed.
Catalina, who was still bedridden, said she was bored and requested some miscellaneous books. He looked down, dissatisfied with his perfectly organized paperwork. He wasn’t reluctant to bring the books to her, but this work was urgent.
It would have been nice if Sir Leonard had stayed.
He grunted and opened the door to the office. His master was still sitting at his desk, preoccupied with his paperwork.
“Isn’t it time for you to go to sleep?”
The Grand Duke shook his head. He rubbed the corners of his eyes.
“I don’t want to sleep.”
“Do you happen to be sick?”
“No, that’s not it. I just don’t want to sleep without her.”
Carlz silently put down his stack of papers. A question popped out of his mouth suddenly.
“Why?”
“…”
“Is it okay if you keep hiding everything? As always, so you don’t know a thing. If you had a conscience, you would be feeling guilty right now.”
The Grand Duke’s bright yellow eyes stared sharply at his knight.
But there was no rebuke. Being able to speak freely was the only perk of being childhood friends.
And his question, as always, was poignant. Perhaps Leonard knew, so he left. He knew all the things he had been hiding, and his external circumstances.
The Grand Duke put down his quill.
“…I thought I could hide her away from the world when I came to Morte. So I came here in a hurry.”
“…”
“But I was wrong.”
He clenched his hand into fist. Carlz was silent, so the Grand Duke continued.
“Even if I hid it, she would have eventually learned about the execution. How could I stop the mercenaries from coming to her or hide the fact that Catalina Cataleon was injured? There are people who educate her, and her eyes are as keen as a bird’s.”
“…”
“And me…”
Victor was silent for a moment.
The purges carried out by the brutal new Grand Duke several years ago were still vivid in the minds of the people. So it was only a matter of time before she found out about his past. There was a limit to covering mouths with fear alone.
The Grand Duke lowered his gaze.
“I shouldn’t have shown her to anyone in the first place.”
There was no expression on his dry face. As if he had already felt the same regret dozens of times.
His knight pointed out.
“Madame is not a prisoner. You couldn’t have locked her up forever.”
“I know… I still wanted to.”
Victor replied calmly.
To be honest, he was crazy. No matter how much Victor said Amarion was a shy lady, how could he hide her from everyone? He couldn’t and he shouldn’t.
However, Carlz could not blame his master. This was because he remembered those who fell through his master’s fingers like grains of sand.
Victor was not as rational as Amarion. He was more brutal than necessary, and there was no hesitation in preparing an execution. His perfect mask was shattered when he sensed that she was leaving for a perilous journey. His smooth lies and smile failed him.
He’d lost too much to handle her absence.
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And the result was this.
He let his woman leave, and was left alone.
***
Kofi shop updated till chapter 63.