15. i never wanted this three-way encounter

Due to Lysith fainting on the spot, the hunting festival concluded in an uneasy atmosphere. Of all people, it had to be her who collapsed.

Even if she hadn’t been the Lady of the hunting festival, it probably would have ended that way. Most people present at the time thought so.

They couldn’t help but think that way, as most attendees of the hunting festival witnessed it. Well, the lady’s complexion suddenly turned deathly pale, and then she collapsed with a thud!

And when all eyes focused on Emperor Verheigen, who had abruptly stood up as she fell, it was Grand Duke Clonair who quickly rushed past them.

The Grand Duke, who instantly left the winner’s position, attended to her, and the emperor also seemed quite eager to check on her. However, being the emperor, he could only approach her after perfectly concluding the ceremony with the face of a ruler.

After the hunting festival ended, the nobles continued chattering as they moved toward the evening banquet. How often in life would one see both the emperor and the Grand Duke with such flustered expressions in the same place? Some even stomped their feet in curiosity, wondering whose hand she would take.

For the Noble faction, it was quite a predicament. They would have considered taking her hostage or using her politically if they could, but she was someone they had never even thought of seriously presenting to the emperor as a potential empress.

Moreover, if they mishandled her, they would face the Tower Master’s wrath as well.

Anyway, Lysith, who had somehow been moved to the imperial palace, was still unconscious, and two men were watching over her after hearing about her condition from the imperial physician.

……In a somewhat ominous atmosphere.

“But why is the Grand Duke here?”

Verheigen was the first to pick a fight. Dietrich, who had been staring at Lysith’s complexion—which had somewhat improved since earlier—did not respond, quite disrespectfully.

Verheigen, seemingly not expecting an answer in the first place, continued.

“I heard she collapsed due to excessive stress. Don’t you think it might be because of the Grand Duke?”

“She was looking toward Your Majesty when she collapsed.”

“So you’re saying it’s my fault?”

“……”

Dietrich deliberately chose not to answer, but his intended meaning was clear. His confidence wasn’t unfounded, as his relationship with her had improved considerably lately.

Above all, when he had conveyed his intention to offer all his game to her, her expression hadn’t been bad at all. So, if that man hadn’t interfered, she might have shown him a smiling face.

“Huu.”

Verheigen, who had been frowning momentarily, pressed his forehead firmly. Recently… no, since Lysith had left the imperial palace, his insomnia had worsened again, and this crazy bastard was pouring oil on his already sensitive nerves.

“You don’t seem aware of how much interest you have in your ex-wife.”

“That’s my business.”

Despite his answer, Verheigen let out a light snort.

“It’s my business too. The lady might become empress.”

“……”

At Verheigen’s words, Dietrich’s brow, which had been maintaining relative composure, instantly contorted. Certainly, the relationship between the two didn’t appear particularly bad, but Dietrich’s hostility and wariness toward Verheigen were boundless, making his reaction inevitable.

“I doubt the lady would agree to that.”

“How would the Grand Duke know?”

“If she had, she wouldn’t have done what she did at the Grand Duke’s residence last time……”

“Grand Duke Clonair.”

Know the difference between what can and cannot be said.

Along with Verheigen’s words, which sounded as if he was biting them back, came a sharp gaze that seemed to want to tear Dietrich apart right then and there. Dietrich took it in stride.

A gaze that would have made Lysith faint again had she been awake passed between the two men.

What broke this sharp confrontation between the two men was Serul, who had been standing like a ghost beside Verheigen, seemingly there yet not there.

“I apologize, but perhaps both of you should move elsewhere instead of doing this here……”

At Serul’s tired tone, Verheigen snorted, but soon agreed with the need for Lysith’s rest and quietly rose from his seat.

Meanwhile, Dietrich, who had turned his gaze toward the sudden interloper, narrowed his eyes imperceptibly before also standing up and leaving the room, apparently in agreement.

After the two men who had been glaring sharply at each other left, Serul, who remained in the now quiet room, trudged toward the door and heaved a heavy sigh.

“Ha……”

Lady, how on earth did you survive between these two?

Serul felt like shouting that question at the top of his lungs right now. From what he had heard, the three had already encountered each other at the hunting grounds. Moreover, having directly heard that His Majesty the Emperor had grabbed the Grand Duke by the collar, Serul clutched the back of his neck.

While he felt sorry for the lady caught between the emperor and the Grand Duke, on the other hand, if not for her, there would be no one to control these two men.

Eventually, what awaited Serul as he came out of the room was Verheigen with a displeased expression. He vaguely thought the emperor might say something like “How dare you make the emperor wait,” but his statement was even more hopeless than expected.

“Are you interested in my Lysith? Why are you dawdling like this?”

“What? Me? The lady? Am I crazy?”

Despite Serul’s response full of bewilderment, Verheigen continued to look at his aide and friend with a disgruntled gaze before moving on. Serul, whose wits had flown away, only managed to gather his senses and follow him after a few seconds had passed.

* * *

Several hours after the two men left the room, Lysith, who had regained consciousness, sat leaning against the bed’s headboard, receiving treatment from the imperial physician.

“Are you feeling dizzy?”

“No.”

“It seems to be due to excessive stress received in a short period.”

“……Yes.”

Having expected this explanation, Lysith obediently nodded at the imperial physician’s words.

Excessive stress received in a short period.

It wasn’t hard to know why. The level 9 quest, unwanted sudden attention, and the unexpected affection level figures along with the self-loathing from feeling deceived.

After the imperial physician left, Lysith looked out the window and realized it was already night. It was fortunate that she had regained consciousness quickly.

If she had remained unconscious for a long time, there would have been more than one or two things to fear.

“Should we prepare for you to attend the banquet?”

“No, it’s fine. By the way, when do I have to leave the imperial palace?”

“I haven’t heard anything about that, but shall I ask?”

At the maid’s words, Lysith shook her head, saying it was fine. Though she had asked herself, she didn’t think anyone would rush her to leave the imperial palace. That is… the master of this palace.

Previously, she might have thought it was excessive self-consciousness or that she had let her guard down too much, but now she was in a situation where affection levels were visibly materialized before her eyes. Lysith decided to believe in that crazy affection level of 10000.

Anyway, it was now the time when the post-hunting festival banquet would be in full swing.

Normally, she would have attended too, but since she had collapsed, everyone would understand her absence.

‘I don’t have the confidence to manage my expressions at the banquet either……’

For now, she just wanted to rest a bit.

Understanding her wishes, the maids helped with her meal from beginning to end with a consistently polite and respectful attitude.

Now she understood why they had said something about her being a noble person during her previous stay at the imperial palace. Perhaps rumors about her receiving the emperor’s affection or becoming empress had been circulating since then.

Or it could have been that Verheigen had given orders.

After resting for about two hours, rolling around in bed without thinking about anything, Lysith draped an appropriate shawl around herself. Shaking off the maids who wanted to accompany her, she headed out to the imperial palace garden.

It was a place she had often visited when bored during her previous stay, so the path was familiar.

Despite being nighttime, the garden shone beautifully thanks to the lighting. The garden lights were installed in places that clearly showed consideration for the atmosphere, flower arrangements, and tree shapes.

As Lysith, passing between flowers, suddenly turned her gaze to the left, she spotted a man thoughtfully touching flowers.

“……Dietrich?”

Despite her tiny whisper, the man whipped his head around like lightning. Then, blinking his eyes blankly for a moment, he muttered as if answering her whisper.

“Just now, my name.”

Ah, that’s right. Lysith awkwardly touched her slightly disheveled hair. She had been thinking of him by his name all along in her mind, and ended up calling him by name, causing an unfortunate incident.

“Ah, I’m sorry. It just slipped out.”

“No need to apologize. How are you feeling? Are you alright?”

The considerable distance between them was instantly reduced by a few steps from the man. Approaching, Dietrich carefully extended one hand, hovering around her shoulder before slowly lowering it.

“I’m fine. It’s not like I’m sick or anything.”

Answering appropriately, Lysith glanced up slightly. Instantly, a system window popped up before her eyes.

[Checking affection level…….]

[Affection check complete]

[Affection level calculated: 10000]

“Haah……”

Even looking at it again, it was a number that made her sigh and feel overwhelmed.