***
“On our wedding day most of the temple space will be opened. Only for the two of us, the main characters of the wedding.”
I nodded my head.
Indeed, quite a lot of space was needed to hold the ceremony.
The servants to take care of my attire alone were full, and there was space needed for the guests to rest.
“So, on the day of the wedding…………..”
“Not a very long time will be allowed. And the place where the girl is will never be open.”
He rang the bell on the table. With a light knock, the old butler entered.
He handed him a bundle of folded papers that he seemed to have prepared in advance. Then he stood with his feet together beside Devan.
Devan handed the paper to me.
As I took it, I glanced sideways at him.
“The butler…………………”
“He knows all the facts. It’s you, me, and the butler.”
It was only natural, since they had been together since Devan was young.
I understood again why Devan had brought him here.
I guess he needed an aide he could trust.
“So, what’s this all about?”
“Open it.”
I unfolded the paper and found a drawing in it.
Instantly, Killian’s drawing of the Grand Duchy came to mind, but it looked much more professional than that.
“Where are these drawings from?”
The Imperial Palace? Another palace? There was nothing familiar about it.
“It’s the temple.”
I raised my head in surprise and looked at Devan.
He continued, munching on the meat with an indifferent look.
“Don’t be so surprised. It’s easy to get this much with a little bit of money. But what’s important is what comes next.”
I opened the next page.
There was a different drawing.
Unlike the first one, which was detailed and divided into different areas, it was a rough, general drawing.
“Compare the two.”
Hearing Devan’s words, I placed the papers upside down and compared them.
Both buildings were horizontal, with a vertical corridor sticking out of the center.
“No way, this is ……”
I was able to find out without difficulty.
The second corridor was much deeper than the first.
“Is it a hidden space?”
“Yes. The first was an officially known drawing of the inside of the temple, and the second was measured from the outside for length and proportion. That means there’s an unknown, secret space inside the temple.”
“And there….”
“That girl must be there. Maybe, I’m almost certain of it.”
In there, there was Cordelia.
My heart was pounding. Finally, I would get to meet the girl.
I stared at Devan with a gloomy face.
“Don’t make that face. You’ll meet her on the wedding day anyway.”
“Oh, have you set a date for the wedding?”
“Yes. You know that your debut is two weeks from now, right? The wedding will be a week after that.”
I opened my mouth a little and closed it again.
I thought it might be too early, but there was no reason to delay it. It was a wedding in name only.
I carefully wrapped the paper around again and handed it to the butler.
“What will happen to the ceremony? Will I have time to see Cordelia in the meantime?”
“You don’t know?”
Devan gave me a strange look.
“We both have to spend the night in the temple the day before the wedding.”
“……what?”
“It is customary. It is to purify the body and mind before marriage.”
Why in the world does the Temple like one night so much?
It was the same with the qualifying exam to choose the heir to the throne, and you think one night in the temple will change anything significantly?
Devan tilted his head at my absurd expression.
“I don’t think it’s that bad.”
“What do you mean it’s not bad? That we’re spending the night together?”
I frowned and stared at him.
“Security will be poor in the morning, so you can get out of your room and see the girl.”
“Oh….”
I tapped the hem of my dress a few times and cleared my throat.
“How can you guarantee that security will be light in the morning?”
“Because I’ve slept there once. During the qualifying exam, Astrilla and I were both asleep as soon as we entered the room, sullenly and uncomfortably.”
“What did you do in the temple?”
“I think you have a pretty good idea what it was.”
“But are you sure it’s the same now as it was then? It was a certification exam then……….. It’s a wedding now.”
“I looked up a few of the nobles who had ceremonies in the temple and they were all the same. They fainted as soon as they entered the room.”
“Do they use sleeping pills?”
“I don’t know what it is, but the Temple let their guard down believing it…………”
“The temple would never trust the Imperial Guard, and even if they hired mercenaries, it’s only a line to keep their secrets from leaking out, so they wouldn’t leave it to others if they really wanted to hide it.”
“Then…….”
“Then, they would stand guard among themselves, but no matter how much training they have, a priest is a priest. It will not be difficult to subdue them.”
Devan shrugged his shoulders.
It reminded me of the last time he had defeated the demons. It was a well-founded sense of confidence that made him quite trustworthy.
“However, in this case…………”
Devan opened his mouth unexpectedly, but then closed it again.
“What’s the matter? What were you trying to say?”
He looked a little complicated.
He spoke indifferently, changing the subject.
“….. No, your meal will get cold.”
I narrowed my eyes and looked at him, then quickly cut the meat slowly.
He seemed to have something to say about the temple, but it was for the safe idea that he would do it whenever I needed him to.
The fact that I had found Cordelia and the well-founded belief that I would be able to see her was enough to make me happy and I had no time to worry about it.
The slightly cooled but still tender meat disappeared naturally without many bites.
Devan continued to eat in silence as well, and the only sound in the hall was the clattering of dishes. Finally, I would be able to see Cordelia. It was while I was eating, immersed in such joy.
Breaking the silence, Devan asked.
“Speaking of which, have you decided on a debutante partner?”
“…What?”
I almost spit out the meat in my mouth. It was already down my throat, so I didn’t have to spit it out.
Debutante partner?
I blinked my eyes, unable to answer as I had naturally assumed it would be Devan.
Devan dropped his gaze and busied himself with cutting the meat.
Was I alone in my illusion? Do I have a separate debutante partner even when I was about to get married?
“That’s…….”
“I see you haven’t decided yet.”
Languidly, I put my fork and knife on the plate that was half eaten when Devan said that.
He dabbed at his mouth with his handkerchief in an elegant motion. The astute butler cleared the dishes away in the blink of an eye.
“That …………… Devan, aren’t you going to attend the debutante?”
His mouth hardened.
“As you can see, I’ve been very busy these past few days. I don’t know if I have time.”
I bit my lips up a few times.
“…… Usually, debutante partners are…………..”
“Like your father.”
I shook my head hard.
“Your brother.”
I frowned.
Devan shrugged.
The whole point of debutantes in the first place was to find a fiancé.
It was preposterous that a married aristocrat would have a debut. So, there has never been a case where the person has a husband.
My face bled at the fact that I had just realized.
Had I been under some foolish illusion?
“Why are you giving me that look?” (Devan)
Suddenly, I remembered something from a long time ago.
I was at a weekly social gathering at Count Diego’s mansion, and I had talked about debutantes with many ladies.
That day, everyone there wanted Killian as a partner. And then a young lady shouted,
“Excuse me, then, Young Master. Will you be my debutante partner?”
Her tone was like a high-pitched scream, and her face was red and hot.
I seemed to like her a lot.
Because the unknown and courageous had beauty.
“Devan…”
“Yes. Is there anything you want to tell me?”
“That partner……”
“Why, do you have a partner? Do you have someone you like?”
He frowned slightly. My thoughts were still the same. It was the one where the brave get the beautiful.
All I had to do was ask him to go to the debutante together and be my partner. No matter how unprecedented it is, he will listen if I ask.
It wasn’t much of a story. So I had to open my mouth.
I took a deep breath.
***
What great courage that was.
I remembered that aristocratic young lady whose face I couldn’t even remember.
So did she have her debutante with Killian after all?
Perhaps Killian had refused, since I was kidnapped shortly thereafter.
Perhaps I should apologize to her when we meet in the capital.
She showed such great courage, but I ruined everything. I actually admired her. As I walked through the garden, I kicked a stone with my foot.
I could feel the disgruntled look in the eyes of the attendant who was following me. By all accounts, this was not the appearance of a noblewoman, let alone a Grand Duchess.
There was only one reason why I was so frustrated.
After all, I had just finished my tea with Devan and was waiting for dessert while he drank another cup of tea.
I couldn’t tell him.
I couldn’t say a word to him that I wanted him to be my debutante partner.
What the hell is that all about!
I kicked the stone away once more. The stone rolled away. I followed my gaze and saw Karen and the Kingsguard soldiers in training. It was a performance hall.
Karen! I opened my eyes.
Yes, there was Karen. Only a few hours ago, he offered to be my partner, didn’t he? I hurried to the performance hall.
“Sir Karen!”
I shouted at the entrance of the performance hall, and all the soldiers’ eyes were on me at once.
Karen looked flustered and quickly came up to me.
He beckoned to the soldiers in a proper manner and even managed to give them an order, but it seemed that he was leading the detached palace’s Kingsguard, as he said earlier.
“Lady! Do you have some business here? It hasn’t been long since you broke up with me, but if you come like this, there might be a rumor.”