After reading all the words written on the small piece of paper, I burned the paper with a candle to erase any traces.
'It's done now.'
Before the wedding, I planned to send May to her hometown under another excuse.
And the Duke and Duchess of Cretian...
It was time for me to reflect on what lay ahead.
May came into the room with a strange man.
As soon as he saw me, he knelt down and spoke respectfully.
“Hello, young lady. It’s my turn to greet you. I am Tesion Craig, your escort."
It's been quite some time since Tesion was assigned as my new escort knight, but I only got to see his face today.
That would be the case. I hadn't gone out much since that day, and I hadn't even thought about meeting a new escort.
If the Duke, who couldn't stand to watch, hadn't said a word, I would have only seen him on my wedding day.
I nodded, staring at the man with his dark blue hair neatly tied up.
“There isn’t much time left, but please take good care of me.”
"Yes."
Since all the knights of the Duke Cretian's family were descendants of noble families, his every gesture was restrained.
But then what do you do? Be strong with the weak, and weak with the strong.
The corners of my mouth twitched.
“The second son of the Baron Craig family?”
“Yes. Last year, my brother inherited the title and became a baron.”
"Yes?"
I frowned as I recalled Carsis' room in disarray.
Although he had personally requested to be replaced by his escort knight, he had no intention of getting along well with the newly assigned escort knight.
Is it because I suddenly remembered something from the past?
It was difficult to speak kindly to Tesion.
“So that’s why you tormented Carsis so much. It’s because Carsis isn’t a noble.”
"... Yes?"
The Duke told me not to say anything, but I think it would be okay if we just didn't make it public.
“No matter how much you hate it, it’s like that. It’s embarrassing for a bunch of nobles to mess up a commoner’s room like that. As a fellow noble, it’s embarrassing.”
Tesion blinked his eyes as if trying to understand the situation.
“I’m sorry, but what do you mean...”
“Even if Sir Craig didn’t do it directly, you should have stopped your comrades from doing such things. Carsis is also a comrade of the same Order.”
Tesion, who was rolling his eyes to assess the situation, let out a sigh.
Then he tilted his head and spoke carefully.
“Miss. I think you misunderstood something... There is no bullying within our Order. I also heard that Carsis’s room was a mess. There was talk internally about who did it. But no one did anything like that.”
Tesion looked very aggrieved.
“Of course, it’s true that I’ve distanced myself from Carsis. That guy is so blunt. He always ignores me when I talk to him... He’s the type of person who rarely lets me get close to him... And most of all. Who would mess with Carsis? Who would know what kind of revenge they’d get if they messed with that kind of dog?”
“Then what the heck...”
Who did that?
I was confused as she watched Tesion beat his chest as if asking me to trust him.
'If only there had been no one to bully me.'
Suddenly, goosebumps ran down my spine.
'Hey, no way.'
There's no reason for Carsis to do that.
It was when I shook my head that one assumption came to mind.
Another maid poked her head through the open crack in the room.
“Excuse me... Miss. Do you have a guest?”
"Guest?"
Because the national wedding was just around the corner.
There was no one to come find me.
Besides, I don't have any plans for today.
As I tilted her head, the maid continued to answer.
“The young lady of Count of L’Arpege has arrived.”
“...The young lady of Count L’Arpege?”
Why that woman?
We haven't seen each other since the tea party at the Count's residence.
I went down to the reception room with an uneasy feeling.
Then Leila Larpege, who had been drinking tea, stood up.
“It’s been a while, Young Lady Cretian. I’m sorry for coming without contacting you. You must be busy preparing for the wedding.”
“No, I was just taking a break.”
I sat in front of Leila with a friendly smile.
I took a sip of the tea the maids had placed before me and asked casually.
“But why all of a sudden...”
“I heard from my uncle a while ago that you asked His Majesty the Emperor to block the business of the Marquis Verdi family.”
'That man was Leila's uncle.'
I nodded, knowing that he was from the L'Arpege family but not knowing exactly what their relationship was.
“I came here to thank you for that.”
Strictly speaking, it was meant to prevent something as absurd as the Perot auction.
I didn't bother to correct that fact.
“No. I’m doing this for my dear friend.”
Leila blushed as if she was touched by those words.
“I didn’t know that either, and I misunderstood Young Lady a little.”
“What is the mistake?”
“I thought it was the young lady of Cretian who suggested holding a Perot auction for the Marquis Verdi family. That’s why I didn’t attend your birthday party. I’m sorry.”
It was only then that I realized that Countess L'Arpege's daughter had not come to the birthday party.
'I was so out of it that day that I didn't even realize you hadn't come.'
Not only did so many people come to talk to me.
I was so busy thinking about the name of the book I had been reading that I didn't have time to worry about who was coming or not.
But I answered calmly without showing it.
“I knew the Young lady wasn’t here, so I tried to contact you separately. I was in a panic.”
“No, of course you can. I prepared a small gift as a token of my apology for not being able to attend your birthday party.”
“Is it a gift?”
“Yes. This is information that Lady Elizabeth would be very curious about.”
I waited calmly for Leila's next words.
“His Majesty the Emperor has brought in a new ‘dog’ this time.”
My hand, which had been leisurely lifting the teacup, stopped.
“...A new ‘dog’?”
“Yes. But the identity of that ‘dog’ is very interesting. I was really surprised when I heard it from my uncle.”
Oh, what is it?
This ominous feeling.
I chewed on the inside of my mouth, feeling familiar.
And Leila's subsequent words did not disappoint her expectations.
“I heard His Majesty the Emperor’s dog was named Carsis. He was Young lady’s ‘dog.’”
Clang.
At that moment, I dropped the teacup she was holding.
“Oh, my goodness. It seems Lady Elizabeth didn’t know... I was just saying it just in case.”
I, who had barely managed to calm my trembling hands, asked cautiously.
“I wonder if you’re misunderstanding something. Carsis is currently in our territory...”
“No. It was definitely Carsis. I heard my uncle and father talking clearly.”
Then what happened to the letter I received from Linneas a little while ago?
It was even said that Carsis had boarded a ship leaving the empire.
There was definitely something wrong with Leila right now.
In this way, I brainwashed myself into denying reality, saying that it couldn't be true.
***
'There must be something wrong with Leila.'
After Countess L'Arpege's daughter left, I, who was anxious, went straight to see Isaac.
And the news I heard from him upon my arrival was shocking.
“Then... Is it true that Carsis is in the palace?”
Isaac nodded in response to my question, which seemed to show disbelief.
“Yes. According to information from an informant in the palace, two days ago, at dawn, a man with black hair entered the Sollerian Palace secretly. However, it is said that no new man has officially entered the palace.”
Isaac quickly contacted his informant at the palace at my request.
It was common for people who entered the Sollerian Palace to come out as corpses, so the news did not spread quickly.
“But... black hair is quite common. And I’m sure you met Carsis in the territory and even boarded the ship...”
Carsis's black hair and brown eyes were an unremarkable combination.
Therefore, it was difficult to determine that it was Carsis based solely on hair color.
But Isaac seemed to have different thoughts from me.
“Yes. Black hair is common. But what if it wasn’t Carsis who arrived in Cretian territory in the first place?”
“What you mean is... Carsis never even arrived at the territory in the first place?”
“It’s entirely possible. I’ll have to look into it more. But we need to keep as many possibilities open as possible.”
I bit my lip at Isaac's words.
The Emperor was a man who always got what he wanted.
If such an Emperor had already been keeping an eye on Carsis from the beginning and was waiting for the moment when he would descend to the territory.
A chill ran down my spine as the thought occurred to me.
'Then, by now, Carsis...'
I, who had been walking around the living room as if unable to hide my anxiety, stopped.
I wanted to see this anxiety with my own eyes.
“I don’t think that will work. I will have to go to the palace myself.”
Now was not the time to be doing this.
At this very moment, Carsis might be being tortured by the Emperor.
I stood up from my seat as if I could no longer afford to lose time.
Then Isaac stopped me.
“Surely you are going to the palace? What are you going to do there? Even if that person is in the palace, there is no way the Emperor would give him up easily.”
“But I can’t just sit still and wait for your information.”
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