Perhaps she could also work in something related to art—the thought flashed through her mind.

She didn’t need to paint herself.

Like Tomer said, the world was wide and there were plenty of art-related professions.

Screech—

Around that time, the train came to a complete stop.

“Our train has arrived at Timaru. Passengers, please make sure you don’t leave any belongings behind…”

Everyone stood up and grabbed their suitcases, drowning out the conductor’s words. Daphne also stood up first and helped Tomer with his suitcase.

“Thank you, Mr. Belinda.”

“See you again, Daphne.”

Did Tomer feel the same way she did?

That they would meet again someday?

* * *

Timaru, a small city with a population just under 50,000.

She’d finally arrived.

Daphne stopped a passing pedestrian on the street and asked.

“Excuse me, is there a decent inn around here?”

“Not on this street, but turn at the corner, go further inside, then keep going straight to the right and you’ll find an inn.”

Fortunately, the pedestrian was kind enough to help.

“Thank you.”

Daphne bowed and hurried along. Having little luggage meant she wouldn’t tire immediately, but her feet started hurting as she kept walking. She wanted to quickly enter any inn and rest.

Somewhere reasonably clean where she could just lay her body down would do. And ideally, an inn that subscribed to newspapers so she could look through the job listings would be even more perfect.

After walking for quite a while, something felt off.

For some reason, she had the feeling someone kept following behind her.

Daphne whirled around and shouted.

“Who’s there?”

Whoosh—

Only the chilly evening wind blew.

Daphne turned back around and walked.

Step, step, step.

Sure enough, footsteps persistently followed.

Daphne grew increasingly frightened. She pulled her robe tight over herself and tensed her legs. She prepared to run with all her might at any moment if something happened.

That’s when it happened.

“Kyaaah!”

The person who’d been chasing her from behind shoved Daphne, knocking her to the ground. Daphne screamed and struggled.

While she lost her balance and staggered, strong hands grabbed her bag.

“Let go! Let go of it!”

The opponent was a street vagrant. His massive body reeked of not washing for a long time. 

Daphne tried somehow to get up, but the vagrant wouldn’t let go and pressed down on her with his body, trying to steal her bag.

“Ahhh!”

This time the scream that burst out wasn’t Daphne’s. It was the vagrant’s scream.

“Ah!”

Daphne’s eyes widened in that instant. She saw the person who’d saved her.

The silhouette of the man with the streetlamp behind him felt somehow familiar.

“Daphne, are you alright?”

The person extending his hand to her was Tomer.

“Yes…”

“Are you hurt anywhere? My daughter’s house happens to be near here. It would be good if you could come along for a bit.”

This wasn’t a situation to decline. Her head felt dazed, like someone had struck it with a hammer.

Daphne nodded in a daze and followed Tomer to the house where his daughter lived.

Elda, her old friend who had abandoned her.

Her stomach twisted at the thought of meeting her again, but Daphne had no proper choice right now.

* * *

Two hours later, at Duke Seyfried’s estate in the capital.

“A street vagrant tried to harm Daphne, you’re saying?”

“Yes. He tried to harm the Duchess. It nearly became a serious incident.”

Astaire sat perched on his study chair, receiving Germo’s report.

The man sighed meaningfully while staring at the ceiling once, then looked back at his aide and asked.

“What happened after that?”

“Fortunately, a man named Tomer Belinda helped the Duchess. He’s a man who works as an art dealer in Timaru City. If there’s one notable detail, it’s that the man’s daughter was the Duchess’s classmate at the Academy.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

“Pardon?”

Germo asked back in surprise.

“It would’ve been better if that Tomer or whatever hadn’t shown up.”

At Astaire’s chilling words, Germo got goosebumps. The aide couldn’t say anything and just moved his lips.

“…”

“Then Daphne would have come back to me. After realizing how harsh the world is.”

It’s hard outside the cage, Daphne.

If he met her now, Astaire wanted to tell her that.

“…I-I’ll keep watching. Should I continue the surveillance, Your Grace?”

“Yes.”

Astaire was actually tracking all of Daphne’s movements. From a few documents in the ducal estate’s study, he could still keep her in his sight.

Nevertheless, he didn’t rashly intervene.

Rather, not intervening would be the way to make her return to him.

He believed she would beat the ground in regret and come right back to him.

She needed to know.

How harsh the world was.

Because she’d received his patronage, entered the Academy, married him, and only stayed under a comfortable roof, she didn’t know the world’s dangers.

Daphne needed to learn now.

That she needed Astaire Seyfried.

No, that it had to be Astaire Seyfried.

“I’ll be going then. Good work.”

“Yes. I’ll continue watching carefully.”

Just as Germo was about to leave the study, Astaire suddenly called him back.

“And.”

“Yes?”

“That vagrant. We can’t just leave him alone, can we?”

Astaire’s eyes glinted coldly.

He couldn’t easily forgive anyone who touched his Daphne.

“Send him to hell painfully.”

“Oh, right.”

Astaire stopped Germo again just as he was about to leave once more.

“Investigate that matter too. That man who attached himself to the Duchess. Tomer Belinda.”

“What? He seems like just an ordinary art dealer.”

Astaire said nothing.

He sparkled with eerily clear eyes, propped his chin, and stared into space. Even Germo watching Astaire flinched at the atmosphere.

“No, there’s something.”

Astaire spoke in an utterly cold voice.

“Someone she coincidentally met on a train happens to be her classmate’s father, and she runs into that person again, which helps her avoid a robber.”

“…”

“Don’t you think that’s strange? It’s too much to be coincidence.”

“It certainly is.”

Germo broke out in a sweat for no reason and wiped his temple with a handkerchief.

All kinds of things happen in the world. He’d thought this was one of those cases, but apparently his superior the Duke’s judgment wasn’t the same.

“Investigate thoroughly.”

“Yes.”

“Whether there might be any connection to the Second Prince.”

“The Second Prince…?”

Germo always acknowledged that Astaire had excellent analytical skills and good intuition simultaneously.

But he thought this case was going a bit too far.

Must be because the Duchess is involved.

Thinking that, Germo bowed and left the study. This time Astaire didn’t stop him either.

* * *

Elda’s house, where they arrived following Tomer, was small enough for barely two people to live.

“The house is small, so this is embarrassing, haha.”

Tomer awkwardly rubbed the back of his head and opened the door. Daphne herself didn’t mind at all.

The cozy two-story house with a blue roof reminded her of the house she’d lived in with her father, Viscount Brandley, in the past. Though the Viscount had blown away even that small house through gambling debts.

“Tonight’s dinner is meat pie.”

As soon as they entered the house, Tomer led Daphne straight to the dining room. Just then, a piping hot, golden-brown meat pie was coming out of the oven.

That’s when her eyes met Elda’s in the kitchen. The moment Elda saw Daphne, she froze stiffly. She nearly dropped the pie she was holding.

“…Hello.”

Elda finally spoke. It was too late now to pretend she didn’t recognize Daphne.

“Elda. It’s been a while.”

Daphne also spoke, trying to act as nonchalant as possible. An indescribable silence flowed between the two who’d exchanged greetings.

The golden-brown meat pie was delicious, but Daphne couldn’t properly taste it, distracted by Elda sitting across from her.

“I’m sorry to serve such inadequate food to the Duchess.”

Tomer, who misunderstood Daphne’s behavior of not eating well, spoke quietly from beside her.

In that moment, Daphne’s eyes widened.

“…You knew?”

“How could I not? I knew the moment I saw your eyes hidden by the robe.”

Even though her face was known through newspapers and such, it wouldn’t have been easy to identify someone just by looking at their eyes. Perhaps an art dealer’s eye really was different. 

She was secretly impressed.

Daphne bowed her head deeply, grateful to Tomer for recognizing her at first glance but pretending not to know.

The food suited her taste. The situation just didn’t allow her to eat it deliciously. Daphne tried her best to taste the pie and ate the entire portion Tomer had served her.

Once she started eating, it went down smoothly.

Tomer seemed bothered by having revealed he’d recognized Daphne, and spoke almost defensively.

“Still, I figured you must have some circumstances. As I said before, my wife…”

“Dad, you didn’t tell her all that too, did you?”

Elda set down her fork with a clack. A chilly atmosphere instantly enveloped the table.

Tomer made an “oops” face and couldn’t meet his daughter Elda’s eyes.

In this uncomfortable atmosphere, Daphne hurriedly added.

“I don’t know much.”

Elda seemed embarrassed that Tomer had told Daphne about her mother, but it was already spilled milk.

She couldn’t pretend not to have heard what she’d already heard.

Daphne quietly closed her mouth and focused only on eating.

“…Anyway, don’t worry too much, Duchess. I’ll keep your secret.”

Tomer couldn’t meet Daphne’s eyes and avoided them this way and that. Come to think of it, at some point Tomer’s behavior and manner of speaking toward her had become cautious.

That was all after he learned she was Duchess Seyfried.

“Please treat me comfortably.”

“Aw, still, how could I…”

Tomer muttered with a smile at Daphne’s words, but the middle-aged man seemed much more at ease.

Meanwhile, Daphne felt a wordless, persistent gaze.

The owner of that gaze was Elda sitting across from her.

The moment their eyes met, she quickly looked away.

It was the look of a thief caught stealing.

Daphne felt uncomfortable.

Though it was true that Elda had betrayed her, time had passed and passed until the memory of that time had diluted. Daphne didn’t expect Elda to treat her well, but still, as long as she was staying at her house, she didn’t want Elda to develop uncomfortable feelings toward her.

“Looks like everyone’s finished eating.”

The meat pie plates were gradually emptying. Tomer went to the kitchen and brought back fruit tarts along with refreshing orange juice.

“So, Duchess.”

Tomer spoke to Daphne again.

“Have you thought about what kind of work you’ll do to live here in Timaru?”

“Hmm.”

Actually, something had occurred to her.

Ever since Tomer said he worked as an art dealer, Daphne had vaguely thought she wanted to do something related to art.