Though it was a brief conversation, it was enough time to at least get a fragmentary understanding of Evolaine.

A clever and transparent child. But that’s what worried her.

Could this child truly handle being Cardel’s escort?

She didn’t doubt her ability.

After all, she was a descendant of Kelic.

Cardel was also a magic swordsman, so there wasn’t really any reason he needed her escort.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she was chosen simply following the Radelica family tradition.

‘I’m worried she’ll be tainted by darkness.’

The young thing had managed not to be swept away so far, but who knew what the future held?

Then Elisa’s eyes, lost in her own thoughts, widened.

She saw someone near Evolaine, who was being held captive and tormented by Ashili and Lucia.

Someone she’d completely forgotten.

“Duchess?”

“…That can’t be.”

The fragrance must be a coincidence. The fact that the Marquis of La Voletta’s mistress was also a gypsy was a well-known piece of gossip.

But thinking of her made Evolaine’s features look different.

She’d thought Evolaine only resembled the marquis, but looking again, that wasn’t true.

“Duchess? What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.”

It must be her imagination. It had to be.

She’d heard the marquis’s mistress was dead.

“By the way, where is Heron? He wouldn’t leave your side.”

“Heron said he had somewhere to stop by briefly. It’s a banquet anyway, so it’s fine if he comes slowly, isn’t it?”

“That’s true.”

The duke pressed his lips firmly against Elisa’s hand as she easily accepted this.

“You…!”

“Aren’t you curious about me? I’ve been counting the days waiting for only you to return…”

Smooch—

“I’m hurt, Duchess.”

When he completed the embarrassing act of even making a sound with his lips on her hand, Elisa’s face turned bright red.

“Are you crazy?! In such a public place…!”

“Didn’t you say you’d allow it today?”

“That’s not how you’re supposed to interpret that!”

Elisa glanced around quickly and made eye contact with her children.

Ashili looking at her father like she was disgusted, and Lucia’s intense gaze expecting something.

And caught between them, Evolaine experiencing an earthquake in her pupils.

‘So that’s how you want to play it, is that it?’

Whatever the case, she didn’t like being led around.

Elisa snatched the duke’s hand, knelt on one knee, and pressed her forehead against it like making a vow.

Then she rose and led him to the middle of the banquet hall.

“May I request a dance, Duke?”

The disciplined knight’s etiquette had been quite the topic even when Elisa was unmarried.

A woman who commanded prestige as the empire’s female knight and held both fame and family in her hands.

Young ladies secretly envied and admired her, while young lords were busy adoring her.

“With pleasure, Dame Elisa.”

The duke finally looked satisfied as he took Elisa’s hand and began dancing.

And Cardel, who witnessed the entire scene while re-entering the banquet hall, had to work hard to smooth out his crumpling face.

He had much to say but wouldn’t.

That was the best consideration Cardel could offer.

But unfortunately, the harmonious atmosphere didn’t last long.

“Your Grace, a moment.”

Leopold approached the duke, whose eyes still dripped with regret after finishing just one dance.

“What is it?”

“We’ve lost contact with Lord Heron.”

“What?”

“His location hasn’t changed for an hour, so we thought he’d stopped moving, but we were wrong.”

Leopold pulled out a magical device that could track Heron’s location from his pocket.

The gem indicating his status was blinking while dyed red.

It was an emergency situation.

“…Find him immediately. By any means necessary.”

Heron’s safety was important, but above all, they had to prevent the classified information he possessed from being stolen.

“Now I understand why those bastards attended today’s banquet.”

The Duchy of Arpi. A family with dark, gloomy intentions like a snake.

‘I finally caught their tail—I can’t let go.’

“Is anyone on standby nearby?”

“I sent Marchi on my way here. But whether they can make contact…”

Leopold trailed off.

Though he’d sent ‘Marchi,’ elite personnel even among the Lacrel Knights, he worried about what would happen if something went wrong with Heron.

The duke was worried too.

But expressing concern here or giving instructions out of worry would only break trust.

Just as Heron trusted him and carried out his mission, he had to trust Heron.

“Heron will handle it well and return, so you do what you can do.”

“…By your command.”

After sending Leopold away, Elisa approached.

“Is everything alright?”

“Of course. Nothing will happen.”

It would be fine. But no matter how many times he repeated it, feeling anxious was an unavoidable human emotion.

Then Evolaine approached.

“Duke.”

“…No.”

The duke firmly blocked her. He could clearly see Evolaine’s intentions.

“How do you know what I’m going to say?”

“You’re going to follow Leopold. Isn’t it obvious?”

“Yes, you’re right.”

“You…!”

The duke started to shout but soon regulated his breathing to calm himself.

Why would she try to jump into a situation so dangerous that even Heron, his aide, faced a life-threatening crisis?

“Anyway, no. Not you.”

“Duke, I’m a member of the Lacrel Knights.”

“……”

“I’m a knight of the Lacrel Knights that you personally selected.”

The duke avoided Evolaine’s eyes and didn’t reverse his decision.

Those upright eyes. He hated how those eyes saw through his heart.

“You’re too young, so no. You’re inexperienced at handling Kelic, so no.”

He knew he was being unreasonable. Evolaine was ultimately a knight squire of the order his family led, and regardless of age, she had a duty to provide support.

So this behavior was quite contradictory.

‘Have I grown attached in just a few months?’

He felt pathetic for being unable to think objectively.

Was it because she was the same age as his children? Because he knew her unfortunate birth background?

Whatever it was, he was favoring Evolaine and wanted to favor her.

“Duke, I promised to prove my usefulness. In exchange, you accepted me.”

What goes around comes around.

“Even if I’m young, I’ll help with our forces. Though I’m inexperienced, I can still use it.”

“……”

The duke couldn’t say anything.

As someone who’d clearly witnessed the marquis wielding Kelic with his own eyes, there was no room for rebuttal.

Clap— Clap—

Elisa, who’d been watching, applauded and smiled brightly.

“A perfect defeat, don’t you think?”

“……”

That fresh smile was particularly annoying today.

“…Just don’t get hurt.”

In the end, the Duke of Radelica had no choice but to allow it.

As Evolaine said, he’d given her qualification for the Lacrel Knights’ entrance exam after seeing her ‘Kelic’ ability.

Stopping her here with simple sentiment didn’t make sense.

“Yes! Thank you, Duke.”

Evolaine bowed at the waist and immediately left the banquet hall.

Her fearless appearance seemed somehow admirable, yet also pitiful.

“…This is bitter.”

“…Father, what you’re holding is champagne…”

“……”

“……”

Cardel stood beside him, looking at the duke with pity—when had he arrived?

“Ahem! Did you get some fresh air?”

“Yes… but where is Evolaine going?”

“Something came up that required support, so she went. She’ll be back shortly, so go dance or something.”

“I’d rather not…”

“What?”

When his inner thoughts slipped out, Cardel stopped, thinking ‘oops.’ But the duke, who’d caught the small mumble perfectly, began nagging his son who had no social skills.

Cardel, well aware of his own lack of eloquence, sealed his mouth instead of making excuses and let it go in one ear and out the other.

Then an unexpected person approached the father and son exchanging affectionate nagging.

“…And when you come to these places, it’s customary to show your face to the young ladies. You don’t need to get engaged yet, but still, if you want to do anything in this ecosystem, you need to make yourself known. But why can’t you use that handsome face of yours…!”

Just as the duke’s voice was about to rise—whether from speaking like an overbearing parent or getting worked up from alcohol—a familiar silhouette entered his vision.

Wavy sky-blue hair and striking white eyes.

Not completely white but with a pale blue tint, giving an eerie sense of pressure to anyone who saw them.

“…Second Imperial Consort?”

“Duke.”

At the Duke of Radelica’s words, nobles nearby turned their gazes one by one.

The Second Imperial Consort? Really?

Since she was an imperial woman with such elusive movements, drawing attention with each appearance was natural.

As the nobles’ interest poured in, the Duke of Radelica, who’d been blinking, hurriedly grabbed the collar of his briefly runaway mind and showed proper courtesy.

“It’s been so long that I’m quite surprised. I greet Vesasium’s Second Moon.”

“…It’s been a while.”

‘Hmm?’

The Second Imperial Consort responded surprisingly simply. Acting differently from how he remembered, the duke thought she seemed changed.

Normally she would have maintained a somewhat cheerful attitude, but today she moved quietly like someone trying to leave no trace.

Just like when she entered the banquet hall moments ago without anyone noticing, so that no one would notice.

‘Has she had a change of heart?’

There were always many matters in the imperial family, so she might have become dejected after experiencing some incident.

It would be troublesome to be involved in power struggles, but it also wasn’t proper to ask nothing of an imperial woman who’d approached directly.

The duke carefully chose his words to begin.

“Have you been well?”

“…Well, what do you think?”

“You don’t look well.”

“Then I suppose I haven’t been well.”

The Second Imperial Consort answered ambiguously. More precisely, she was talking in circles.

‘She’s hardly revealing her intentions.’

From what he remembered, he’d never seen her act this calculatingly…

“I heard the prince chose an escort. My congratulations are late—I apologize.”

“Not at all, Your Imperial Consort. I’m simply glad you’re congratulating us directly.”

‘Is this the main point?’

Of course, since it was first revealed at the banquet, it was natural and not strange for an imperial family member to offer congratulations.

But why had he been feeling uneasy since earlier?

“I wanted to greet both the prince and his escort directly, but I couldn’t—what a shame. Where did the escort go?”

“My aide is with her at the estate. They forgot to bring something they needed.”

The duke smoothly deflected with a bit of banter, and after a brief silence, the Second Imperial Consort spoke.

“…I’d like to see the escort later as well, so I hope the prince can visit together. Would that be alright?”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

“Then I’ll expect you to come.”

Once the main point was finished, the Second Imperial Consort immediately mixed into the crowd and concealed herself.

She seemed to have left the banquet hall.

‘She seemed different somehow.’

She couldn’t hide her impatience while bringing up the main point. Normally the Second Imperial Consort’s specialty was detecting strangeness like a ghost and getting past unfavorable situations.

Knowing that, he’d deliberately added that they’d forgotten something, but the Second Imperial Consort didn’t react.

‘Instead, she pretended not to hear and only brought up her own business.’

Why this sudden interest in Evolaine? One thing was certain—he didn’t have a good feeling about it.