“It’s alright if that’s not the case. If there’s anything else you want, just say it. I’ll grant whatever it is.”

His face was full of concern. He’s clearly misunderstanding something, isn’t he?

I discreetly hid the soap bubble bottle behind my back and widened my eyes.

“Your Grace, will you really grant anything I ask?”

“Yes.”

I could roughly guess what he was misunderstanding, but I decided not to clear up Ilion’s misunderstanding.

Instead, I lowered my voice slightly and controlled my emotions. Ahem.

“Actually, every day has been so difficult lately. I want to go to the village freely, I don’t like being watched by Lucas every day, and I wish you’d remove the location tracking spell now.”

“I see.”

As I mumbled with a face that looked like I might cry, Ilion looked down at me quietly.

Thinking I might not get another chance like this, I started voicing all my complaints one by one.

“You call me the Duchess, but Your Grace just uses me…”

“Use you?”

“You’ve been making me work every day.”

“…That was the punishment you agreed to accept.”

Ilion rebutted in a low voice.

“Look at my delicate arms. I’ve been working so much that my arms ache these days.”

“……”

I continued to voice my complaints, making pained noises.

“Above all, I want to stop taking etiquette lessons every day…”

After listening quietly for a while, Ilion asked in a low voice.

“…Let me ask you one thing.”

“Yes?”

“…Why did you come up here?”

“Well, life was too hard, my family treats me like an outcast, and I felt so suffocated that I couldn’t bear it anymore, so I came up here.”

As I showed off my storm of acting skills, barely holding back tears, Ilion’s eyes looking down at me grew increasingly cold.

“I see. In that case, let’s move up the wedding.”

“What?”

Wait, why is that the conclusion?

Ilion was cutting out everything else and presenting only the conclusion.

“No, that’s not what I meant. Is there really a need for that?”

As I hurriedly tried to stop him, his cold voice cut in.

“It seems your family is putting too much pressure on you, so it would be better to hurry the wedding. Since we’re on the subject, let’s do it next month. If we solidify your position as Duchess, no one will be able to touch you.”

“Mo-moving up the wedding isn’t such an easy thing, and shortening the schedule from two and a half months to one month seems unreasonable in many ways…”

“Don’t worry about that. Who do you think your marriage partner is?”

“……”

Looking at Ilion smiling with his lips curled up, I started to feel dizzy.

You’re speaking so confidently, but do you know you’re going to die for treason in two months?

“I’d be perfectly satisfied if Your Grace just granted a few of my small requests.”

Why do you keep trying to shorten my life span? Please worry about your own life!

“Of course. I should grant your requests too.”

He reached behind my back and took the soap bubble bottle, placing it on the floor. Then he gently pulled my hand.

“Before that, you should think carefully before speaking.”

Ilion was still smiling.

“I know very well that you’re a liar. You must know that I’ve been turning a blind eye to it until now.”

His calm, red eyes looked at me.

“Wh-what are you saying? I’ve only been speaking sincerely all this time.”

“Really? Even when you said you loved me?”

“O-of course.”

“If you’re going to insist on that, fine. I’ll continue to turn a blind eye to that one thing.”

Where did it all go wrong? I thought my acting was perfect. Why doesn’t he believe me!

“However, if you’re thinking of deceiving me to do something unnecessary, you’d better stop.”

Saying this, Ilion kissed the back of my hand that he had pulled.

It was a clearly different look from when he had grabbed my neck at the Imperial Palace. His voice wasn’t threatening at all either.

His actions were polite and gentle.

But why is my heart beating so wildly? The ominous sound of my heartbeat echoed in my ears incessantly, just like back then.

“O-of course. How could I ever deceive Your Grace?”

Ilion looked at me and then brushed away my hair that had been tousled by the wind.

“So, what is it that you want?”

I stared at his nape for a moment, catching my breath. The buzzing sound of my heart gradually subsided.

***

“You’re going to the Imperial Palace?”

“Yes.”

During breakfast, Ilion told Sebastian about his schedule for today.

“Then shall we cancel the visit to the mine?”

Sebastian asked with a troubled expression at the suddenly decided schedule.

“If only they hadn’t left yet…”

“Left?”

It was hard to show my face every morning to match Ilion’s schedule. And today it was even harder because I had overslept.

Listening to the conversation in a half-asleep state, I asked Sebastian.

“People from the guild were supposed to come too. If Your Grace has another schedule, we need to cancel the appointment.”

“……”

Ilion, who had been listening quietly, looked at me. Then he casually muttered.

“Then shall we postpone going to the Imperial Palace by a day?”

“What?”

It was a promise I had obtained from him by giving up the freedom to go to the village as I pleased and the opportunity to quit etiquette lessons.

The request to visit the Imperial Palace and meet the Saintess. How many wishes had I given up for that one thing!

This can’t happen!

My drowsiness completely disappeared.

“It can’t be helped. It’s too late to cancel the appointment with the guild.”

Ilion shrugged as if it really couldn’t be helped. There’s no way he forgot his schedule… It seems like he’s doing this on purpose.

In the end, even though I knew it was bait, I had no choice but to take it.

“Can I… go instead?”

“You, Miss?”

Sebastian asked in surprise, apparently not expecting that I would offer to go.

“That would be fine, right, Your Grace?”

“I didn’t know you were interested in the mine.”

“How could you say such a hurtful thing? Of course I’m interested in helping with Your Grace’s work.”

Ilion smiled at my reluctant answer.

It must have been amusing to see someone who was demanding money instead of land just a few months ago suddenly change their attitude.

It felt like I was being played by him again, but I was the one at a disadvantage.

I could see with my own eyes that Ilion’s condition was getting worse day by day. The spots that had already reached his nape now seemed difficult to hide even with a shirt.

So I needed to meet the Saintess as soon as possible. I had the responsibility to help with that.

I didn’t want the story to go wrong any further because of me.

So for that, I could freely express as much disposable interest in the mine as needed.

Moreover, I could endure motion sickness as much as…

“……”

No, motion sickness is a bit…

Somehow, my appetite completely disappeared, and I put down my fork.

There’s a difference between being able to endure something and stubbornly leaving behind aftereffects.

“Are you done eating for today?”

Ilion asked, seeing me put down my fork.

“I’ve lost my appetite a bit. Haha.”

Who do you should is to blame for that?

***

With a light stomach but a heavy head, I returned to my room and prepared to set out. Now that I thought about actually going there again, regret washed over me.

“Miss, do you really have to go?”

Lily asked worriedly about the unplanned schedule.

That’s what I’m saying. Do I really have to go there again?

“There’s no choice. We can’t cancel the appointment either.”

“That’s not what I mean…”

Lily, who was helping me change clothes, trailed off.

“What is it?”

Seeing Lily’s unhappy expression, I pressed for the reason, and Lily hesitantly opened her mouth.

“Actually, I heard a strange rumor when I went to the village a few days ago…”

“What kind of rumor?”

“Well… There’s a rumor that a witch lives near the mine.”

“A witch?”

Not a monster, but a witch… I couldn’t help but laugh. A witch? That place wasn’t suitable for people to live.

“No way… Why would a witch choose to live in such a rugged mountain?”

Lily had always liked stories that had been circulating for a long time and often told them to me, but most of them were just baseless rumors.

It seemed she had heard another implausible rumor this time too.

“It’s true. The workers there saw her. A red-haired witch who eats people.”

“Red hair?”

It was quite specific information.

“Yes. You know about it too, don’t you? The incident seven years ago when a witch appeared in the Selvas region and devastated it.”

“Ah, yes. Right. I know about that.”

I don’t know anything about this world, let alone seven years ago, not even a year ago, but I nodded along knowingly.

“Everyone’s in an uproar, saying the woman they saw near the mine might be that red-haired witch from back then.”

“The red-haired witch?”

Seven years ago would have been when Ilion was around twenty. It was probably right after he received his Duke title, so that witch wouldn’t be related to Ilion’s curse.

Still, just in case, I asked Lily for more details.

“It was seven years ago, so my memory is a bit hazy… What happened in Selvas?”

“Oh my, haven’t you heard about the witch appearing and burning down Selvas? And it wasn’t just any fire, but one started by magic that couldn’t be extinguished no matter what they tried. They say even the lord abandoned the place and ran away. It’s a very famous story.”

“Ah, right. That’s right. I know. I just forgot for a moment.”

I nodded exaggeratedly.

“So that’s the red-haired witch, right?”

“That’s right. I’m worried because she suddenly appeared at the mine after being quiet for a while. What if the witch is after the ore?”

“Well, what would she do with the ore?”

Having finished changing clothes and buttoning up the last button, I responded casually to Lily’s words.

Come to think of it, Ilion received the curse for killing a witch, so there’s no way that witch could still be alive. The red-haired witch probably has nothing to do with it.

Moreover, there’s no guarantee that the person the workers saw at the mine was really a witch. Why would a witch appear at a mine just for some measly ore?

“Is mining ore such an easy task?”

“But you never know…”

However, the timid Lily couldn’t let go of her worries and kept cautioning me until the end.

“Don’t worry. Lucas will be coming along too.”

I said, patting the worried Lily’s shoulder a couple of times.