“If I just stay quietly out of sight, and someday when the time comes…”

When the wounded Selina murmured those words to herself, a passing shadow in the corridor happened to overhear her.

‘Waiting for the right moment?’

The shadow was Zenfri.

Unfortunately, he had caught only the last words, without the context before them, and so his thoughts grew all the more tangled.

‘Could it be that her putting a knife to her own throat to demand she be brought to Thalia was all part of some plan?’

Haah.

Zenfri let out a long sigh.

The Selina he had watched during the carriage ride here was nothing like her father, the marquis—a man of the lowest sort.

And what about what he had witnessed earlier in the ballroom?

Anyone could see she had heard every word Libero had spouted, yet she had gone out of her way to pretend otherwise and quietly remove herself from the scene.

Her disposition didn’t seem bad at all.

But…

‘Being the daughter of Bryson Ilios Axell will always be a risk.’

The Grand Duchy had already suffered at the hands of the marquis more than once, each time from that smiling, outstretched hand of his. If not for Calix spotting his schemes early, they might have succeeded completely.

‘And if she’s that man’s daughter, then she must have inherited the same blood.’

Zenfri unconsciously recalled Selina’s face.

She resembled Bryson so strikingly it was uncanny, yet her features seemed to hold a touch more softness.

The marquis’s face, with its already unpleasant, sharply defined features, was enough to set anyone’s teeth on edge. Selina’s, by contrast, was small and fine, yet carried a strangely blurred air—like a watercolor rendered in pale tones.

He wanted, in his heart, to tell Calix at once what he had heard.

But perhaps because that watercolor-like face came to mind, the words wouldn’t leave his mouth so easily.

‘…I’ll keep an eye on her for now.’

And so, for the first time, the always thorough Zenfri chose to overlook something that by all rights he should have addressed immediately—all because of an inexplicable sympathy for Selina.

“I’m not feeling well, so I think I’ll have to retire for the night.”

When Selina returned to the ballroom, she neglected her duties as Grand Duchess.

As the lady of the Grand Duke’s castle, she had many responsibilities at a grand banquet. Above all, it was imperative that she engage with the nobles of the Grand Duchy.

It was her role to greet them, show them warmth and favour, and unite them under the Grand Duke’s banner.

Now, this vital responsibility belonged to Selina, the newly appointed wife of the Grand Duke.

“I truly am sorry. Then, if you’ll excuse me…”

Supported by Lady Lily, Selina left the ballroom.

Narrowing his eyes, Zenfri watched her retreating figure before heading straight to Calix without hesitation.

“Your Grace, is my lady truly that unwell?”

“So I’m told.”

“…Do you believe that?”

Sensing the displeasure in his tone, Calix turned to look at him.

“If I don’t believe her, should I drag her back here and tie her to the spot?”

“My point is—you should at least be suspicious.”

Zenfri then told Calix what he had overheard in the corridor.

“I heard it clearly. She said she was waiting for the right moment. I don’t know exactly what she meant by that, but isn’t it obvious enough?”

“…”

“I know, I know. On its own, it’s not enough to prove she’s plotting something or planning any sort of move. That’s why I thought I’d just keep watching for now. But when she suddenly left the ballroom, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.”

“Zenfri.”

“Yes?”

“Tell no one what you heard today.”

“…Who would I tell?”

“Good. I can count on you.”

Calix gave a brief, amused smile in reply—then turned away.

But as he did, his expression cooled into a frosty calm.

‘She’d acted strangely when crossing the border between the Empire and Thalia as well.’

He had expected Selina to remain quietly in the carriage, yet she had suddenly fled in the dead of night.

Back then, he had suspected her as well, but chose to believe it was simply because she had been anxious about leaving the Empire so suddenly.

But once he pieced together what he had just heard from Zenfri, the story shifted.

‘Perhaps she’d had a plan from the very moment she put a knife to her own throat.’

He didn’t know what had passed between the marquis and Selina. But without at least some concrete plan, she wouldn’t have acted to such an extreme.

It occurred to him that maybe it wasn’t Calix who had been calculating all along—but Selina. The thought drew a dry, humorless laugh from him.

Calix closed his eyes, the tension building behind them.

‘Maybe it was my mistake to see her through the lens of that girl.’

When he shut his eyes, an image surfaced.

A child who had lived alone in an isolated convent where not a single other soul dwelled. She had always worn a hooded robe, so he had never once seen her face.

What he remembered was how slender her arms had been—no, not just her arms; her whole frame was so small that she looked several years younger than she was.

Fragile and delicate as she was, there were still times when she would be stubborn—so much so that even Calix couldn’t win against her sheer obstinacy.

He had promised to come back for her, but for a long time, he hadn’t been able to keep that promise.

He had thought it best to call her once the war had quieted somewhat, once Thalia was safer.

But in the end, the girl vanished without a trace.

Even after searching several times, he couldn’t find her—not the girl herself, nor any sign that she had ever been there.

Was it guilt over breaking that promise?

Was that why Selina’s figure sometimes overlapped with the girl’s in his mind?

“D*mn it.”

Her wrist had been as slender as that girl’s.

Her voice, too, was a problem—soft and delicate, like a fragile fledgling bird—eerily reminiscent of the girl.

‘To seek that child in someone entirely unrelated… pathetic.’

Calix opened his eyes, a scowl furrowing his brow.

From now on, he told himself, there would be no more leniency toward Selina born of seeing the two of them as one.

Guided by Lady Lily, Selina returned to her room in the Grand Duke’s castle, where she slept straight through.

Having fallen asleep without changing properly, she had no idea exactly when she had drifted off. She thought she might have had frightening nightmares, as she woke up with a cold sweat, although she could not remember what they were about.

When she opened her eyes, still in a haze, the same maid she had seen the day before came in to greet her.

“My lady, breakfast is ready. His Grace is waiting for you.”

“Breakfast…”

To Selina, the idea of having breakfast felt oddly unfamiliar.

Her body was heavy, but with Calix waiting downstairs, she couldn’t refuse. With the maid’s help, she changed clothes, put on a touch of adornment, and went down to eat.

“Good morning, Your Grace.”

Selina greeted Calix, who was already seated.

Resting his chin in his hand as he gazed out the window, he turned his head toward her.

His eyes swept over her slowly before he spoke.

“So you were unwell.”

“I think I’m much better after a good sleep.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Once the table was set, the two of them ate without speaking for a while.

They sat facing each other at opposite ends of a long, expansive table, as though in a quiet standoff.

There was a faint chill in the air, unlike usual.

‘It must be because he met his childhood friend—the one he once promised to marry.’

That, Selina decided, was the reason for the sudden coolness in his demeanor. What other explanation could there be? It certainly wouldn’t be something as petty as him resenting that she had left first, or being angry over it.

“I knew you’d had health troubles before, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”

Calix spooned up some of the soup before him and took a sip, his gaze on her.

“…It must be from the long journey in the carriage.”

“I see. Well, this can’t happen again. At the very least, you must fulfill your duties as Grand Duchess.”

He curved his red eyes in a pleasant smile at her.

But the subdued gleam in them made it clear to anyone that he was, in fact, angry.

‘As if he ever truly wanted me to fulfill the role of Grand Duchess in the first place…’

Selina wanted to retort, but she knew all too well she wasn’t in any position to voice such complaints.

What Calix wanted was a useful piece to move for Thalia’s sake.

‘So until the day I leave this place, I just need to give him what he wants. After all, it’s true that Calix is the one who brought me here in Thalia.’

That way, she could ease the weight on her conscience toward him—and quietly watch for the right moment to disappear.

After spending a long time picking idly at the bread in front of her, Selina finally spoke, as if she had reached a decision.

“I’ll fulfill my duties as Grand Duchess.”

“As you should.”

No sooner had Calix replied in his flat tone than Selina’s next words followed.

“…But please don’t expect me to fulfill any duties as your wife.”