“Just ask Anton to send Lara to you as your personal maid.”

“What if he refuses?”

“Asking when you know there’s no choice is a waste of time.”

Kartun stood up and extended his hand to Daphne.

“Your Highness!”

Daphne protested again, but as he said, it was pointless. Kartun wiggled his large hand in the air once more, urging her to take it quickly.

Daphne took his outstretched hand with exasperation and stood up. Kartun then began to walk slowly while escorting her.

He maintained a perfect distance—neither too close nor too far—and matched his pace to her steps. It was an impeccably elegant gesture.

“As it happens, I’ve become curious about Helmut Bering too. I decided it’s much better to stay by your side and wait rather than searching for him. I can’t use someone as skilled as Lara for just any task.”

“I agree with that. So please give her a more important mission than monitoring me.”

“Protection is included. And doing both is quite a challenging task. You should be grateful I sent her at all.”

“Fine. I surrender. And thank you.”

Though her tone betrayed reluctance, her eye contact with Lara following behind them was warm and sincere.

Lara nodded back, though she didn’t seem to agree that her assignment was particularly challenging.

Daphne turned her head forward quickly with an awkward smile. Then she added to Kartun.

“But please have her keep her distance when I meet with Gabriel.”

“You don’t actually expect me to agree to that, do you?”

When Daphne stopped walking and tried to withdraw her hand from his arm, he quickly grasped it. Then he resumed walking.

Daphne followed reluctantly, almost being dragged along, while grumbling.

“If that’s how it’s going to be, Gabriel and I will come visit Your Highness instead. Would you be satisfied if we talked in front of you while you watched?”

“I must decline. People from the grand duchy detest members of information guilds. Lara is only tolerating it because of my orders.”

Kartun looked at Lara as if seeking confirmation. She stepped forward silently and moved close to Daphne, nodding firmly. Unlike before, her expression now showed complete agreement with Kartun’s opinion.

It seemed there was some history with Gabriel that Daphne wasn’t aware of.

‘Gabriel, what on earth did you do in the grand duchy?’

Daphne sighed softly and spoke without looking at Kartun.

“Your Highness, I sincerely congratulate you on saving Lady Margo.”

Though he had been responding immediately to everything she said, he remained silent for a while. Instead, his arm intertwined with hers gradually tightened.

Daphne tried to gauge his feelings by sensing the movements of his muscles through the fabric.

‘It’s not similar to my situation, is it?’

The only person Daphne wanted to save was Fabian. For the rest of her family, she had merely prevented their crises for the sake of the future.

‘Surely he didn’t do it out of necessity?’

Come to think of it, she had no idea what the relationship between him and Margo had been like in her previous life.

As she pondered this, Kartun spoke softly.

“I’m also very happy not to have lost my mother.”

“Then why did you tense up?”

Daphne patted his arm once to let him know how she had noticed. Kartun gazed at her intently and answered.

“I’m surprised that I can receive such congratulations.”

Daphne unconsciously swallowed.

As he said, having someone else who had returned to the past and could understand each other’s feelings was truly special. Perhaps they could deeply empathize with one another.

And that was equally frightening.

She had thought she could freely do what she wanted because she knew the future, but having someone else with the same knowledge could be a major threat.

Though they had agreed to cooperate for now, would there come a time when they would point daggers at each other?

Nothing was guaranteed.

Another thought occurred to her.

‘I wonder… are Kartun and I the only ones who have returned?’

Perhaps her expression had darkened, because Kartun’s arm tightened again.

Yet she didn’t feel the fear of facing a powerful enemy. Instead, she felt at ease, as if she had gained a reliable ally.

But that feeling lasted only a moment. Daphne steeled her relaxing mind.

‘Don’t be mistaken. People change easily depending on the situation. Kartun and I… there are no exceptions!’

Yet his warm body temperature against hers seemed to whisper otherwise.

Confused by these conflicting emotions, Daphne quietly withdrew her arm and stepped away from him.

Then she added an excuse.

“…Father has been reacting sensitively. His unusual interference is somewhat uncomfortable, so I hope Your Highness will understand.”

Kartun nodded as if he understood.

“Is your determination to break off the engagement unchanged?”

“Yes.”

Daphne answered firmly.

“If necessary, I’m prepared to take legal action.”

“Can you afford the costs? You’ll need quite good lawyers.”

“Thank you for your concern. But as Your Highness knows, I don’t act rashly without a plan.”

Her answer seemed to displease him, as the muscles in his jaw tensed slightly.

“You never ask to borrow money.”

Daphne looked at him as if it were obvious.

“Of course I know Your Highness has more than enough ability to pay. But there’s no need…”

“You mean there are others from whom you’d rather ask for help?”

Why was he asking when he already knew?

Daphne simply nodded calmly.

Kartun stared intently at her, now standing a couple of steps away. His gaze was so direct that Daphne averted her eyes slightly.

In the past, his hazelnut-colored eyes would occasionally darken. Usually before heading to battle or when contemplating strategies against monsters.

But this time they had darkened so much they appeared almost black.

Sensing her gaze, Kartun spoke again.

“I’m finding the capital increasingly boring. That’s why I want to resolve things quickly and return to the grand duchy. Many events will soon unfold in succession.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You don’t actually expect me to explain, do you? You just acknowledged that we’re not that close.”

When Daphne furrowed her brow out of habit, he smoothed it out with a playful smile.

“It’s a surprise. Look forward to it.”

She wanted to protest that she hated unpredictable things, but gave up. Seeing the lingering playfulness around his lips, she knew he wouldn’t give an easy answer.

Daphne said one last thing.

“Did you know your eyes darken before you make a decision?”

Kartun stopped walking.

Just as he remembered her small habit of nodding, Daphne had noticed his.

“I don’t know what you’re contemplating, but if it involves me…”

Her voice lowered.

“Please at least inform me of the result once you’ve made up your mind. I don’t want to be swept up in something without knowing anything.”

What frightened her most was an unknown future and unfathomable intentions.

She desperately hoped that her former comrade in battle would show her this small mercy.

⁕⁕⁕

Meanwhile, Werner stood by the window in his office, looking outside.

His assistants were anxious because mountains of documents awaited his approval. Yet he remained motionless by the window.

He was searching for Daphne’s unique hair color amid the summer garden that had turned green.

‘The Grand Duke constantly hovering around Daphne is really irritating.’

It was the instinct of a seasoned warrior.

The way Kartun looked at Daphne resembled a pirate eyeing a merchant ship.

‘Could he have feelings for our daughter?’

He found the question ridiculous even as he asked it himself.

It was similar to how people didn’t believe him when he fell for Christine.

‘What that man wants is clearly different from what ordinary men desire.’

As he was lost in these thoughts, the Emperor’s messenger arrived.

Werner greeted him with the same respect he would show the Emperor herself, and the messenger proclaimed the Emperor’s command in a loud voice.

“By order of Her Majesty, the Sun of the Empire! The loyal subject, Marquis Werner Armin, is to enter the palace immediately!”

The Emperor had always sent informal letters. But now an official messenger was delivering a command.

Werner felt his heart sink. His sharp instinct, honed from navigating the unpredictable seas, was screaming that this was no ordinary matter.