“You pointed out that adult men and women who should know better were in the same room, so I simply gave you an answer that fits your criticism. Is that something to find insolent?”

“…!”

Melissa’s eyebrows twitched with anger. With an expressionless face, Rihana conveyed that since Casian was her fiancé, there was absolutely no problem with them being in the same room together. 

Since there was nothing wrong with her words, Melissa couldn’t say anything more and quickly turned around.

“Lord Casian! Let’s go back now!”

Casian’s eyes widened at the sudden suggestion to return.

“Pardon? Your, Your Highness…!”

Because the Princess was going downstairs dressed only in a chemise with just a robe thrown over it, Casian took off his jacket and put it over her robe as he followed her. He acted thinking it was impossible for the Empire’s Princess to go outside dressed in a chemise, no matter what. 

But the fuming Princess went downstairs like that, and Casian, who was following behind her, hurriedly told the waiting servants to bring the carriage.

Rihana thought her fiancé flustering over the Princess was pathetic, but she didn’t show it and went downstairs to see them off.

* * *

“What on earth is the matter?”

After getting in the carriage, Casian went in front of Melissa, who was wearing his jacket, and asked while buttoning up the jacket for her. Melissa stared at him without answering.

“Your Highness.”

“What did you do?”

“Pardon?”

“In the room with Countess Ariella, what did you do?”

“…”

“Don’t tell me you advised me to embrace that slave so you could do that with Countess Ariella?”

“Your Highness.”

“I never gave you permission to be with Countess Ariella!”

Casian frowned at Melissa’s unreasonable accusations. But he soon returned to his characteristic gentlemanly expression and spoke while looking at Melissa, who was still angry.

“What could I possibly do with that woman while leaving Your Highness behind? The reason we were in the room together was because we had something to discuss briefly about the matter of sending her to the frontier.”

“…”

“She’s a woman who will be banished to the frontier anyway. Why are you so concerned? The one who will be by my side is Your Highness.”

At those words, Melissa’s expression brightened a little.

“But why is Our Highness so angry? Did that slave displease you?”

“…”

“You didn’t keep him at the Princess’s palace to enjoy him more, and even personally walked to Countess Ariella’s estate. I was curious about the reason.”

“…That man…”

“Yes.”

“He’s a eunuch.”

At Melissa’s words, spat out with a frown showing her annoyance, Casian’s eyes widened.

“…Pardon?”

“He doesn’t get hard. What could I do with someone like that?”

“…Ah… Oh my.”

Unlike his tone that seemed flustered as he muttered, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.

A eunuch. This was something he hadn’t thought of.

“Are you certain he’s really a eunuch?”

Casian asked again for confirmation, thinking that Melissa, who knew no men other than himself, might be mistaken. When Melissa said that no matter how much she touched, undressed, and seduced him, he wouldn’t get hard, a satisfied smile formed on his face. 

Raiden had been continuously bothering him, so this was truly fortunate news. A eunuch. It seemed like that man being by Rihana’s side wouldn’t bother him anymore.

“Our Highness must be very frustrated.”

Melissa, who had discovered that Raiden was a eunuch, was incredibly lovely to him. So today, he felt like he could do anything for her. Casian placed his hand on Melissa’s thigh and smiled affectionately.

“You must have missed my body.”

“Mmm…”

When the hand placed on her thigh gently rubbed over the chemise and his thumb pressed firmly between the split gap, a soft moan flowed from Melissa’s lips.

“I’ll escort you to my estate.”

Melissa wrapped her arms around the neck of Casian, who spoke like that with a crooked smile, and nodded vigorously.

* * *

After Melissa and Casian disappeared, Rihana immediately went up to the second floor. Raiden, who was standing at the entrance to the second floor, was staring intently at her.

“Are you okay? Nothing happened?”

“Did you have a good time with your fiancé?”

Raiden asked her with a face devoid of any smile. Rihana looked at him, blinked her eyes, and soon let out a small laugh.

“Are you also bothered by me being in the same room with my fiancé?”

“…”

“Rai, I…”

“Cough!”

Suddenly, blood spilled from Raiden’s mouth when he coughed.

“Rai!”

Rihana supported him with a shocked face. Raiden pushed her away and continued to cough up blood. Fear filled Rihana’s eyes.

Raiden stopped coughing only after spitting up blood several more times. Laid on the bed in Rihana’s room with her support, Raiden looked at Rihana, who was wringing out a wet cloth with a deeply worried face and wiping his face.

“What on earth is this? Are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Why suddenly… Did Her Highness the Princess do something to you?”

“What did you do with your fiancé?”

Raiden asked back in response to Rihana’s question. It seemed like her being in the same room with Casian was quite bothering him. Rihana shook her head while wiping the blood from the corner of Raiden’s mouth.

“Nothing happened. We just discussed my future arrangements.”

“…Arrangements…?”

“…He wants to send me to the frontier.”

At Rihana’s words, Raiden’s eyes widened slightly.

“I don’t know the reason, but he seems to want to remove me from His Majesty the Emperor’s side.”

“…”

“Well, it’s not hard to guess the reason. Doesn’t he want to break off his engagement with me and marry the Princess?”

“…Did your fiancé say such things directly with his own mouth?”

“Not exactly, but what other reason could there be for wanting to send me to the frontier?”

At her words, Raiden stared at her with a thoughtful expression. Something about Casian’s reason for wanting to send Rihana to the frontier bothered him.

When the thought that perhaps Casian also knew about what Lady Pellentes and the rebels were planning to do quickly flashed through his mind, his eyes unconsciously widened. 

Actually, while checking the Princess’s palace, he had thought about the dangers Rihana would have to face in the upcoming rebellion. 

He had worried about whether he could safely extract her without any harm when she would stand as a shield in front of the Emperor on the day the rebels stormed in to strike down the Emperor.

But hearing that Casian wanted to send her to the frontier made him think that might actually be good for Rihana, and he became curious about Casian’s intention to suddenly send his fiancée to the dangerous frontier region at this time. Could he possibly know everything? 

His curiosity quickly turned into suspicion.

He already knew that Duchess Pellentes was making steady efforts to bring Casian to their side. 

But he hadn’t thought that someone who was attached to the Princess would easily join hands with the rebels. Looking at his actions one by one, he seemed to care more about Rihana than the Princess, but that might just be some remnant of conscience toward his fiancée.

“So?”

Raiden asked while looking at Rihana. Since her going to the frontier would be good for him too, he wanted to confirm.

“I refused.”

“Why.”

Because Raiden asked urgently the moment she finished speaking, Rihana’s eyes widened.

“…Because I have no reason to, and I don’t want to?”

“…”

“Our family has served by His Majesty the Emperor’s side for generations. It’s also my natural duty to guard His Majesty’s side.”

“I see.”

Raiden muttered lowly with a bitter expression.

“Why…? Do you also want me to go to the frontier?”

“Yes.”

Rihana looked at Raiden with slightly surprised eyes, not having expected him to say that.

The Empire’s frontier was a place frequently attacked by barbarians and monsters. It was also a place where wars were frequent, sometimes even attacked by other countries. 

His words that he wanted her to go to such a dangerous place made her feel much more hurt than when Casian had tried to send her there.

“Why? Do you know how dangerous that place is?”

“I know. But you won’t be in danger.”

“…What?”

“Because I won’t let that happen.”

“What does that…!”

“Well, let’s talk about that gradually, but think about it. Guarding that place would be much more beneficial to the Ariella family’s honor than guarding by the side of that rotten Emperor.”

“…You! Don’t say such things carelessly!”

“Are you going to arrest me?”

“…Don’t even breathe such words anywhere else. You’ll really be arrested immediately and lose your head.”

“I’m saying it because it’s in front of you.”

“Don’t say it in front of me either. I’m His Majesty the Emperor’s guard knight.”