Chapter 13
“Thank you all for accepting my invitation. It must have been sudden for you.”
The characteristic green eyes of the Imperial Family swept over the attendees. The host of the tea party and the empire’s one and only Imperial Princess, Arien Hiel Terga, spoke.
“What are you saying, Your Highness? It’s an honor to spend time with someone as noble as you.”
“Y-yes, me too. Thank you for inviting me.”
Once one person stepped forward, nearly everyone began to chime in with a word or two.
The only ones who remained silent were Karina and Celine. Especially Celine, whose expression had been sour the entire time. There was no need to ask why—it was obvious. Sitting right next to Arien was Cornell, who naturally opened her mouth to speak.
“I was actually very happy when I received your invitation, Your Highness.”
“What are you talking about? Of course, you’d attend, Cornell.”
“No, it’s just that I’m not very outgoing….”
As she trailed off, Arien’s gaze softened.
The women who saw this could do nothing but bite their lips in frustration, unable to express their dissatisfaction.
“I want to use this opportunity to get closer to everyone. I’ve been upset because I haven’t had the chance to do so.”
Her words, laced with thorns, were aimed directly at one spot on the table.
“Especially you, Lady Celine. I look forward to getting along with you.”
When Cornell smiled brightly, Celine flinched, her shoulders trembling. Karina quietly lifted her teacup to her lips.
‘This is why I didn’t want to come.’
Celine’s attendance had been somewhat expected, but the unexpected addition of someone else had turned the atmosphere even more tense.
In truth, Cornell’s attendance wasn’t particularly strange. She had ties to the Imperial Family. As the only daughter of the former chairperson who had served as an advisor to the Emperor, it was only natural.
“Yes. It would be nice to get along.”
“Thank you. I believe we briefly greeted each other at a party before. Do you remember?”
“…Yes, somewhat.”
“You haven’t forgotten. Well, it was quite a memorable moment for me too.”
At her suggestive words, Arien tilted her head in curiosity. One of Celine’s group hurriedly interrupted.
“More importantly, Miss Cornell, what brings you to the Imperial Palace?”
It was a somewhat abrupt question, but it seemed like the best option. Cornell answered without hesitation.
“There was a meeting for minor nobles this morning. Her Highness invited me to come after it ended.”
“I see. You must have worked hard.”
The awkward conversation ended, leaving a brief silence. Celine, who had barely gotten through the moment, looked visibly relieved.
However, the peace didn’t last long, as someone brought up a new topic.
“Now that I think about it, I think I saw Young Lord Phyllis earlier. Was it for the same reason?”
It was the daughter of an Earl’s family who had arrived shortly after Karina. She must have run into him in the courtyard by chance.
“No. It’s true he stopped by briefly, but it wasn’t for the meeting. Probably….”
“It must have been something my brother arranged.”
Receiving a glance from Cornell, Arien answered in her place. Despite her soft tone, there was a subtle sharpness in her words.
“He said he was going hunting in the forest near the Imperial Palace. I don’t know why he chose a day like today to do such a thing.”
Her bright smile contrasted with the tension in her hand gripping her glass.
While everyone continued their conversations with their own perspectives, Karina kept her gaze lowered, just as she had at the beginning. Some noticed her and glanced at her cautiously.
It didn’t feel like consideration. Perhaps they didn’t even have the luxury to think of it that way.
‘I knew he was coming, but he arrived earlier than expected.’
Phyllis, whom she hadn’t expected to meet, had treated her more casually than she’d thought. It was a relief. Even though she tried not to dwell on it, the awkward atmosphere from that time kept surfacing in her mind, making her worried.
‘Then I’ll get going. Have a good time.’
But why? His usual demeanor hadn’t made her feel the least bit happy.
“Lady Karina?”
“…Ah, yes. I’m sorry.”
Lost in thought, Karina snapped out of it at Arien’s voice. Before she realized it, everyone’s attention was on her.
“You don’t look well. Are you okay?”
Arien asked in a concerned tone. Just as Karina was about to answer that she was fine, she noticed Cornell staring at her.
Her gaze, a mix of concern and indifference, felt strangely cold.
“If you’re really not feeling well, you can leave early.”
“I….”
It was a considerate gesture, given the situation. After some hesitation, Karina opened her mouth.
***
The chilly air seemed to have warmed slightly under the afternoon sun. Karina walked along one side of the courtyard wall. Being a bit farther from the indoor garden helped her feel more at ease.
‘I should’ve just left.’
She regretted staying but quickly brushed it off. Leaving a gathering she had attended at the Imperial Princess’s invitation wasn’t something she could do lightly. Besides, she couldn’t let Phyllis disrupt her daily life any longer.
Their connection would soon end anyway. At the very least, she wanted to sort out her feelings on her own.
“Don’t be pathetic.”
Muttering words that couldn’t be more pathetic, she stopped in her tracks. At that moment, a yellow butterfly fluttered upward. Reflexively looking up, Karina froze in place.
A tree that had grown inside the wall, its branches covered with vibrant autumn leaves, stretched toward the high autumn sky. Among the red maple leaves, a man blinked down at her. As he bent forward, the branch he was holding swayed up and down.
“Miss Karina?”
“What….”
Caught off guard by the absurd sight, Karina couldn’t finish her sentence and simply gaped. Meanwhile, Noah removed his foot from where it had been resting on the wall. His foot, which had been on the thick branch, moved through the air.
“Wait…!”
Before Karina could react, Noah lightly landed on the ground. His movements, cat-like, left her speechless. In fact, everything about the situation was baffling.
As Karina struggled to find words, Noah reached out his hand. He plucked a piece of leaf from near her ear and showed it to her.
“Hello. We meet again in such a place.”
Still the strange man, saying strange things with a smile. Without giving her a chance to respond, Karina asked directly.
“What are you doing here?”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“No, why are you here… why.”
Her disbelief left her at a loss for words. Noah, seemingly understanding her question, tilted his head and asked back.
“I was following a butterfly… Is this a place I shouldn’t be?”
Even after hearing his answer, her confusion didn’t clear up. On the contrary, Karina felt even more bewildered. Meanwhile, the yellow butterfly flew leisurely over the wall and disappeared.
‘He followed a butterfly? Into the Imperial Palace?’
It was an absurd story. No sane person would jump over the Imperial Palace wall for such a reason.
“The weather is nice today. The sky is beautiful too.”
But seeing Noah smile so brightly, many of her questions began to fade.
‘I don’t know anymore.’
In the end, Karina gave up trying to interrogate him. After all, it didn’t seem like knowing the answers would change anything.
Noah, holding a fallen leaf in his hand, continued to gaze at the sky. Karina quietly observed him. His neatly dressed uniform and well-groomed hair only made him seem more suspicious. Above all, it had only been two days since her investigation into him and his family, the Velcarids, had turned up nothing.
‘Velcarid…? I don’t know. I’ve never heard of such a name.’
‘Perhaps you’re mistaken?’
After searching through the study and office, she had even subtly asked her father and the butler, Derrick, only to receive the same response.
Even if it was a family with no influence or fame, this was impossible.
“What are you thinking about so deeply?”
Her mind, full of speculations, went blank as a crimson maple leaf entered her line of sight.
“You can have it. I can always pick up another one.”
For some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to say she didn’t need it. Silently, Karina took the maple leaf.
A single leaf seemed to magically dissolve her wariness. Everything about this situation was incomprehensible.
Momentarily dazed, Karina snapped out of it and looked up.
‘This isn’t the time for this.’
Noah had just turned to walk away. Hastily grabbing his sleeve, she stopped him in his tracks.
“Leave quickly.”
“Sorry?”
“You need to leave. Right now.”
“Where should I go?”
His expression and tone were genuinely clueless. Karina immediately pointed beyond the wall.
Go back the way you came.
It was an obvious statement, yet Noah simply blinked at her.
“You just asked me if this was a place you shouldn’t enter.”
She hesitated over what to explain first but one thing was clear.
“Yes. You shouldn’t be here. This is a restricted area. Something serious could happen to you.”
At the very least, she couldn’t let this man wander freely around the Imperial Palace.
In truth, she could have simply left him alone. Karina wasn’t kind enough to extend excessive courtesy to someone she wasn’t close to. However, today was a little different.
‘Her Highness the Princess is nearby. If he gets caught now…’
If she let him roam freely and he was caught by the guards, he might face severe punishment.
“Hurry. You can climb back up there, right?”
“I can climb, but… are you sure this is okay?”
Noah looked up at the tree with a troubled expression, but Karina urged him on regardless. Soon, her worries became reality. Voices began to echo from the path just outside the trail they had walked in on earlier.
“Someone’s coming. Hurry and go!”
Karina, now thoroughly flustered, instinctively pushed Noah’s back with her hand.
“Understood. Then…”
Noah, who had shown no sign of moving until now, finally took a step. Relieved, Karina withdrew her hand from him.
At that moment, her knees were suddenly lifted, and her feet left the ground.
“Hold on tight.”
The sensation of floating in midair was vivid. Her arms, now with nowhere else to go, instinctively wrapped tightly around his firm neck in an instant.
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Tillda
That FL is so frustrating. Is she an android with frequent shutdowns? She’s from ducal family. Even if not a social butterfly she ought to have high class social skills. Not clamping her mouth like a fish.