Chapter 30

A letter arrived from Grand Duke Kahil, who had been staying only at the ducal residence. It was a letter expressing his wish to stay at the Imperial Palace, and after receiving it, Evan accepted Kahil’s request to stay at the palace.

“Yes, I was just as surprised when I first heard Grand Duke Kahil would be staying at the palace. I only found out yesterday, too.”

The one who accepted was Evan himself, but he seemed completely unconcerned about Kahil’s arrival, even this morning. Watching Evan, Diana herself began to feel uneasy.

“I just don’t know what made him accept so suddenly this time.”

“He must have been curious. Grand Duke Kahil is quite an interesting person, even from my perspective.”

“That’s true. Anyone would be curious.”

He was of imperial blood and had first appeared in the northern domain. Sophia’s words made sense, but Diana had her own concerns.

“…When they meet, they’ll just quietly have tea and talk, right? Right?”

“Who knows. I think it’s their first meeting.”

“That’s true. But just because it’s their first meeting doesn’t mean they won’t cause a stir, right?”

Having experienced the Prince’s Rebellion, Diana didn’t feel comfortable about Grand Duke Kahil, who shared imperial blood, coming to the palace. With Kahil still somewhat of an unknown, Diana had no idea what would happen when Evan and Kahil met.

“Honestly, it’s not even clear what Grand Duke Kahil feels about the imperial family… Of course, he wouldn’t listen even if I tried to stop him.”

If trouble was going to happen, she’d just have to do her best to prevent it. Diana firmly resolved not to let a second Prince’s Rebellion break out.

“So how are you planning to meet Grand Duke Kahil? As far as I know, the only official appointment he has today is with His Majesty.”

“Not all meetings happen by appointment, do they? Sometimes you run into someone by chance, maybe even open the reception room door by accident. Then you might just happen to find the Emperor and Grand Duke inside.”

“…You’re not being serious, are you?”

“Oh, why not? Someone once wandered into my social gathering by accident. It could happen to me, too.”

Sophia’s earnest words made Diana quickly intervene.

“Wait, wait. Calm down. His Majesty did barge into the Marquisate’s social gathering, but your case is risky. We still don’t know what kind of person the Grand Duke is.”

“Right. So I’ll find out when I meet him, won’t I?”

“You could get a blade to the throat before you find out.”

More urgent than Evan and Kahil’s meeting was stopping Sophia from doing anything reckless. To prevent the worst, Diana began to persuade Sophia.

“Just don’t go opening the reception room door. Instead, let’s try to create a chance encounter some other way. I’ll help with that. So, um…”

Evan, Kahil, and Sophia—Diana instinctively felt that a meeting of these three would be the worst. As she brainstormed, Diana’s eyes landed on the book.

“Right, this book. Let’s use this.”

“The book?”

“The Grand Duke must know there’s a book about him. If you run into him, you can use the book as a reason to start a conversation. There’s only one corridor leading to the reception room, so if you stay nearby, you’ll meet him.”

“But I haven’t read the book.”

“It’s mostly about fighting off enemies in the northern domain. If he asks about the content, just laugh. I’ll handle the rest.”

Well, anything was better than opening the reception room door.

“Got it? Even if the Grand Duke just heads into the reception room, don’t follow or open the door. That’s where it ends, okay?”

“Alright. I don’t want to go that far just to see the Grand Duke.”

Sophia agreed to Diana’s words. Diana glanced at the clock and stood up.

“Then it’s about time to get ready. The reception is scheduled for just after lunch.”

If she wanted to bring Sophia along, it was better to go with some time to spare. Diana hurriedly took Sophia outside.

“Is it because of the Grand Duke? The palace feels unusually quiet today.”

“It’s not just your imagination. I feel it too.”

Was this also Kahil’s influence? The whole palace seemed tense at the news of his arrival. It was truly silent, as if something big was about to happen.

“Especially today, they said only authorized staff should go near the reception room. Probably for the best.”

It was also to prevent any incidents other than the meeting with Evan. Diana gripped the book in her hand tightly.

“So everyone’s nervous?”

“Seems like it. I even heard some maids gossiping about wanting to see his face.”

“Hmmm, is he that handsome?”

“Maybe. You can’t really tell from the pictures… But I doubt he’s ugly. If nothing else, I admit the imperial family has good looks.”

Their personalities often ran opposite to their looks, though.

“Then the Grand Duke must be somewhat handsome too.”

“Really? Are you interested in him?”

“Me?”

Diana shook her head in disbelief.

“That’s ridiculous. Not at all. I’ve never even thought about it.”

“Why not? You never know. Maybe you’ll like him when you meet. Didn’t you say before you liked reliable people? Isn’t that what people say about the Grand Duke?”

“Well, I don’t dislike reliable people… But that doesn’t mean I like all reliable people.”

“True, and if you married him, you’d have to move north. That’s not good. Plus, being cousins with the Emperor isn’t great. It’s fine, though. I’ll introduce you to better men.”

“No, really, you don’t have to… Wait, wait.”

As they walked down the corridor, Diana suddenly reached out to stop Sophia. Her gaze turned to the garden beyond the corridor.

That person over there, could it be…

There was a group in the garden. Judging by their attire, they were knights and staff. But Diana’s eyes were fixed on the tall, black-haired man standing in the center.

“…Grand Duke Kahil?”

It was their first encounter, but she recognized him instantly. Towering above the others, with a massive build, thick eyebrows, and calm red eyes gazing at the sky. His presence was so beastly, it made her think the drawings hadn’t done him justice.

“You know who he is at a glance. Now I see why the ‘Lord of the North’ rumor spread.”

Sophia also recognized Kahil immediately. As she looked him up and down, Diana was flustered.

“How long has he been waiting here? And why isn’t he in the reception room?”

“Maybe he wanted to look around the palace first. The reception room is right ahead anyway.”

Sophia, looking intrigued, moved closer.

“Well, this is perfect. Our ‘chance encounter’ will be in the garden.”

“How is this a chance encounter? In a corridor, you might bump into each other, but in a garden…”

“Hello, you must be new here. Did you lose your way?”

Sophia naturally walked out of the corridor and approached the group first. The group turned their eyes to her.

“We were walking through the corridor and you seemed troubled.”

“Oh, it’s fine. We were just looking around the garden for a moment.”

A staff member stepped forward to answer Sophia. Then Sophia looked at Kahil standing behind them, her eyes curving.

“Oh my, is that Grand Duke Kahil behind you?”

“…….”

“What a coincidence. My friend and I were just talking about you, Your Highness the Grand Duke. My friend is a fan.”

Sophia pointed to the book Diana was holding. Kahil’s gaze shifted to Diana. At the sight of those cold, red eyes, Diana unconsciously swallowed.