“I’m sorry, but we won’t be able to attend.”

With a pleasant curve to his eyes, Calix conveyed his refusal to the imperial messenger who had come bearing the Emperor’s command.

“P–pardon? What… what did you just say?”

Catching the man entirely off guard, the reply had him staring in disbelief.

“I said we can’t go.”

But Calix’s answer remained the same.

“H-however, this year’s hunting festival is being hosted personally by His Majesty the Emperor, for the sake of fostering unity between the Hartenberg Empire and the Grand Duchy of Thalia—!”

“The problem lies in the conditions for participation.”

Arms folded as if the matter troubled him, Calix pointed to the line that read “Couples must attend together.”

“It seems our duchess will have a hard time participating.”

He cast a brief glance toward where Selina stood. The fact that he had refused the Emperor’s invitation right in front of the messenger—and had used her as the excuse—sent a flush rising to her cheeks.

“Our duchess has no intention of fulfilling her duties as a wife for the time being.”

“…Excuse me?”

The messenger’s eyes darted between Selina and Calix, clearly at a loss as to what that meant.

Calix stuck out his tongue in a mock show of regret, as though lamenting the unfortunate turn of events, and turned away.

“A shame, but it seems we’ll have to decline this year’s hunting festival.”

He left the messenger behind and vanished into the castle.

‘He—he just leaves it at that?’

Selina stared after his retreating back, dumbfounded.

A servant hesitantly approached her and asked.

“My lady… did something unpleasant happen between you and His Grace?”

“N–no. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it unpleasant…”

Her mind grew tangled. Saying she wouldn’t fulfill her duties as a wife didn’t mean she had intended to refuse official events.

There was no way Calix, sharp as he was, could have misunderstood what she’d meant. Which could only mean one thing—

‘He did it on purpose. He wanted to put me in a difficult spot.’

She recalled the way he’d stuck out his tongue before turning away, as if to flaunt it.

Clenching both fists tightly, Selina thought hard about how to resolve this. If His Majesty the Emperor had extended the invitation, then surely the marquis would be present as well. And if she failed to attend such an event, the marquis would inevitably hear the reason from his informants.

‘And if he hears that Calix and I aren’t on good terms?’

The marquis wouldn’t care in the slightest about the reason. His only concern was achieving his secondary goal. If Selina didn’t attend, he would assume that gaining leverage over Calix was proving difficult—then he’d either pressure her directly or try another means to achieve his plan.

‘And that would make deceiving him even harder for me.’

Selina bit down hard on her lower lip.

No matter how resentful she might feel toward Calix, she still didn’t want to put him in danger. To keep the situation from spiraling, she would have to attend this hunting tournament with him.

“It was nothing but a trivial jest. His Grace and I will be attending together, so please, put your mind at ease—and tell His Majesty the same.”

Feigning composure, Selina addressed the messenger. Only then did the stiffness in his expression ease, if only a little.

“Thank you!”

Bowing to her, the messenger set off back to the Empire, carrying word of the duke and duchess’s acceptance.

“Lily, please see to the unpacking. I think I should pay His Grace a visit.”

“Yes, my lady.”

Leaving the sorting of the luggage to the servants, Selina made her way in the direction Calix had gone.

Entering through the doorway where he had disappeared, she found a long corridor ahead. At the far end, a door stood wide open—as if he’d meant to make it perfectly obvious that he was there.

‘He’s got a more childish side than I thought.’

Having been addressed as ‘Your Grace’ all her life, she’d assumed he would always act with gravitas. But he was no different to the slightly foolish, endearingly clumsy boy she had once seen in the monastery.

Pausing beside the open door, Selina cleared her throat once before stepping inside.

In the centre of the vast library, a plush sofa stood, on which Calix lay with a book closed over his face.

“Your Grace.”

“…”

“…You’re awake, aren’t you?”

“…”

From the steady but irregular rise and fall of his chest, it was obvious that he was pretending to be asleep.

Selina took a slow, measured breath, then spoke.

“You know perfectly well that saying I wouldn’t fulfill my responsibilities as your wife doesn’t mean I intend to skip official events.”

“…”

“Did something I said offend you, Your Grace? If so, please tell me. If there’s something I need to correct, I will—”

At that moment—

“Correct?”

Calix pushed the book away from his face and pulled her wrist towards him.

She fell forward, landing pressed against his chest as he lay on the sofa. Perhaps because of the thin fabric she was wearing, the place where their bodies met felt closer than ever. She tried to pull away, but he wouldn’t let her.

“What exactly is it you’re going to correct?”

His gaze, dark and heavy, held her face. Then his eyes drifted lower—from her eyes, to her lips, and then slipping further down to the curves of her body pressed against him.

Calix’s mouth twisted into a crooked smile.

“Are you about to say you’ve changed your mind and want to share a bed with me after all?”

“Th-that’s not…”

“Anyone watching might think I’m some man obsessed with getting you into bed.”

With a faint, dismissive laugh, Calix released her wrist and rose to his feet.

“I never wanted that to begin with, so don’t flatter yourself.”

He made it clear that he had never intended to do such a thing. He could never desire the Marquis’s daughter; he had brought Selina here for reasons of calculated convenience.

They might have been bound by marriage, but the idea of harbouring affection for her — let alone consummating the relationship — was absurd.

So why did her words make him so angry?

What Calix couldn’t understand about himself was precisely that.

If his wife had suggested something he hadn’t thought of, he should have been grateful; thankful that it would enable them to use their time more efficiently.

So why had he reacted as if her words had hurt him?

‘I should have been the one to say it first… but I didn’t.’

In the end, the answer to this incomprehensible question was nothing more than something foolish.

“And don’t misunderstand me. When I said I wouldn’t go to the hunting tournament, it was only because I didn’t feel like going there with you.”

Wasn’t that perfectly reasonable?

He didn’t know what she was truly planning, nor what schemes she and the marquis might be weaving. Why would he want to step into enemy territory with such a woman? That was all there was to it.

“…Your Grace.”

Selina, who had been quietly listening until now, called to him softly. He didn’t spare her so much as a glance, nor did he reply, yet she seemed to have something to say.

Drawing closer—close enough that no one else could hear—she leaned in to murmur in his ear.

“You told me to prove my loyalty to you, didn’t you?”

Then, in a whisper he could feel against his skin,

“I’ll go to the hunting tournament and bring back information on the Imperial army.”

Calix let out a hollow, humorless chuckle.

“So please… go with me to the tournament this time.”

Did noble ladies of the Empire have some kind of mania for hunting tournaments? If not, was it that, having been cooped up in poor health, her heart’s desire was to finally attend one?

What could possibly make her go so far as to offer to gather Imperial intelligence, just for the sake of persuading him to go with her?

“And the things you tell me…”

His voice was colder than usual, his gaze fixed on her.

“How am I supposed to believe them?”

For a moment, Selina’s expression wavered — no, ‘crumbled’ might be a more accurate description. However, it disappeared so quickly that, in the next instant, her face was as composed and impassive as ever.

This led Calix to conclude that Selina’s initial reaction to his suspicions was merely one of surprise.

“Whether you believe me or not is Your Grace’s choice, I’m simply going to keep my word.”

Calix stared at her for a long moment, as though trying to read her, before finally speaking.

“As you wish. We’ll leave on the weekend, once preparations are complete.”

She had only just managed to persuade him to attend the hunting tournament. Bowing to him, she left the room, only to let out a long, weary sigh the moment she stepped into the corridor.

It felt as though her heart had been crumpled like paper.

Time passed quickly, and soon it was time to depart for Selhain, where the tournament was to be held.

Since long journeys are more exhausting the slower you go, they chose not to travel in a large carriage this time. Instead, they would ride on horseback.

To avoid attracting attention — and thus any threats to Selina — they would travel in a small group and stay in modest inns along the way.

Although some were concerned about the duchess taking such a rough journey, Selina was pleased. After all, a journey that once took over ten days could now be completed in just three.

“You needn’t worry—we’ll be accompanying you!”

Several familiar faces, including Alter and Zenfri, were due to join them. She regretted that Rocheste, who had always started a conversation with her in the past, wouldn’t be there. However, she was grateful that Karen wouldn’t be coming either.

If she had been, Selina’s poor riding skills would have been all the more apparent in contrast to Karen’s confident and capable performance.

The real problem was that Selina didn’t know how to ride at all, which meant that she would have to share a horse with Calix, with whom things were still awkward.

“Get on.”

Standing beside the horse, Calix took her hand and pulled her up into the saddle. She would have to ride close to him for at least the next three days.