Saman Gold safely reached Queen Olga.

Upon receiving Admiral Licht’s telegram, Leonid folded the paper twice and tucked it into his pocket.

At first, he intended to send Vidal’s diamonds directly to Kut. However, after overhearing merchants discuss the imperial auction event, he altered his plan.

In Olstein, which was preparing to indulge in peace and luxury after the war, the diamonds could fetch a much higher price. Moreover, Queen Olga would likely prefer gold coins over diamonds, which were common in Kut.

Leonid’s prediction proved accurate. Queen Olga promised to send troops whenever he requested, though not as many as he might need—only as many as she deemed fit.

“The best scenario would be not needing troops at all.”

The ship’s construction was proceeding smoothly. Still, the imperial court’s unusual silence, without raising any questions, left him uneasy.

Were they perhaps waiting for the right opportunity?

“……”

Just as the sea naturally has waves, plans are bound to go awry. One simply needs to read the wind and navigate through the waters. Leonid had already braced himself for the inevitable obstacles, big or small, in reaching this point and moving forward.

“That ship…”

Lost in thought, Leonid’s gaze wandered to the scene outside the window.

Commander Marco was rushing toward the castle gates, his movements more frantic than when he had announced the Crown Prince of Olstein’s arrival.

Feeling an ominous unease, Leonid hurried down the corridor and descended the stairs.

“What’s going on?”

“…Your Grace.”

Marco’s face was drained of all color.

“A soldier of the Empire has been killed,” he said, barely catching his breath.

“It seems a sailor from Kut killed him.”

“What did you say?”

Leonid’s brow furrowed deeply. While imperial soldiers often roamed around causing trouble, the conflict had never escalated to matters of life and death before.

It appeared that the rising tensions between the imperial knights, who resented the harbor’s recent resurgence of activity, and the sailors from Kut, who harbored ill feelings toward the Empire, had finally boiled over into a fatal incident.

“This is troublesome. We’ll have to hold a trial.”

“…I don’t think that will be necessary, Your Grace,” Marco hesitantly replied.

“…The Crown Prince’s Captain of the Imperial Guard has arrived. He insists on taking the sailor directly.”

The words struck Leonid like a thunderclap.

***

Racing on horseback to the shipyard, Leonid arrived to find a rugged man parting through the crowd, revealing his face.

“Henrik Karlstad, at your service, Duke Leonid.”

Leonid finally recognized him as the Captain of the Imperial Guard. He had indeed been part of Crown Prince Josef’s escort during his visit.

“Has His Highness the Crown Prince arrived?”

Henrik shook his head.

“I came alone.”

Without another word, he turned his head, focusing on something lying on the ground.

As Leonid approached, the sailors and workers gathered around, lowered their heads, and stepped aside.

“……”

A tarp, shaped to resemble a human figure, was spread out on the ground. Beneath it was undoubtedly the corpse of the imperial soldier. A pool of dried blood had seeped beyond the tarp’s edge, staining the ground.

Leonid knelt on one knee and lifted the fabric, confirming the deceased’s face. The deep gash in the neck made it clear that the soul had long departed for the embrace of the gods.

After a brief moment of silence, Leonid rose and faced the Captain of the Imperial Guard, who had been watching him intently.

“I deeply regret that such a tragedy occurred in Brienne. I cannot raise my head before the Empire,” Leonid said solemnly.

“……”

“I am ashamed before His Majesty the Emperor. I will arrange a trial swiftly to…”

“The sailor from Kut will come with me,” Henrik interrupted curtly.

“Did the commander not already report this to you, Duke?”

“…Captain,” Leonid replied, his face clouded with unease.

“If you do so, it will put Brienne in a very difficult position. There are matters of reporting to the Kingdom of Kut and concerns about future diplomatic relations…”

“Brienne is an imperial province, Duke.”

Henrik cut him off decisively.

“Surely you haven’t forgotten that.”

“……”

“This is a case of a royal knight being murdered on imperial soil. Naturally, the investigation and punishment must be handled within the capital.”

Leonid, too, thought Henrik wasn’t entirely wrong.

However, watching him stirred an uncontrollable sense of unease that spread within Leonid.

‘Why is he wearing Brienne’s clothing?’

Leonid clearly remembered the uniform of the Imperial Guard. What Henrik was wearing now was distinctly different—a tunic and cape commonly worn by the people of Brienne, and they looked brand new.

This meant that Henrik had deliberately bought new clothes upon arriving here to conceal his identity.

The thought of this made unease bubble up within Leonid. Why had Henrik been secretly stationed in Brienne? What had he seen, and what had he done? What had planted the seeds of suspicion in his mind?

More specifically, the seeds that Crown Prince Josef had likely sown.

“Do you really have to take him?”

“…Yes.”

Henrik’s reply was resolute.

“My stance hasn’t changed. If you keep opposing this, I’m prepared to report it to the Imperial Court.”

“……”

“Isn’t it better to let the Empire punish the criminal to avoid backlash from the knights?”

At Henrik’s words, Leonid’s gaze drifted toward the onlookers standing at a distance. The citizens of Brienne looked at Leonid with uneasy expressions, while the sailors of Kut glared at Henrik.

And all of them seemed intimidated by the deadly stares of the Imperial soldiers who had just lost their comrades.

Leonid let out a deep sigh.

“…Do as you will.”

***

Betty had been busy since this morning, rushing about to pick the last wild strawberries of the spring.

“If it rains again, all the strawberries will be gone. I’m planning to gather as many as I can and make jam before that happens.”

At Betty’s words, Helen offered to help, saying it was one of the fruits the lady enjoyed, and tied on her apron.

“Would you like to join us, my lady?”

Apparently, wild strawberries grew abundantly around the low hill near the detached palace. The weather had grown warm—occasionally even hot—at midday, so the outing promised to be a pleasant walk.

But Amelia shook her head.

“It feels like the sunlight’s getting stronger… I’ll stay in my chambers today.”

Helen nodded at her response.

“Well, you have been spending a lot of time in the garden lately.”

Amelia had been fretting for days, worried the deer might wander beyond the castle walls and get killed by a soldier’s spear.

Thankfully, now that it had been weaned off milk and started eating hay, it rarely ventured far. It seemed more interested in munching on the weeds in the garden than exploring. It was probably curled up in the underbrush, resting at this very moment.

“Then, my lady, please choose the color for the tablecloths. We need to refresh them for summer.”

Betty’s voice was bright with anticipation for the coming season.

“All right. When will you be back?”

“I won’t take longer than tea time. But just in case…”

With that, she set down a cooled pot of herbal tea and a plate of jam-covered cookies on the parlor table.

“Take your time.”

“If it starts raining, we might have to turn back as soon as we step out.”

Both women left the room, smiling.

***

The sound of their footsteps descending the stairs and their exchanged chatter faded into the distance. As it did, the smile on Amelia’s face slowly disappeared, like a melting candle that was about to extinguish.

Her refusal to go out stemmed partly from wanting to avoid the sun and partly from feeling that walking outside would bring her no joy at all.

“We’ll be able to return to Brienne soon.”

Madame Verny’s words should have been cause for joy. But understanding that it hinged on Brienne’s independence weighed heavily on her.

War or invasion against the Empire to achieve independence was unthinkable. So, was her father preparing to negotiate with the Crown Prince? Amelia had been mulling over this possibility for days.

Last night, after spending too much time alone with her thoughts, she found herself briefly entertaining the absurd idea of directly asking Josef about it. But remembering how carefully Madame Verny had guarded her words made it clear that something was being planned in secret, without the Empire’s knowledge.

Amelia’s thoughts, wandering as though lost in a maze, were interrupted by the sound of raindrops tapping against the window.

The thin rain trickled down the glass like beads reflecting the scenery, only to slide away. A sudden shower on a sunny day would surely bring a rainbow. The thought reminded Amelia of Helen and Betty being outside, though a bit belatedly.

“Oh, dear, what should I do?”

She sprang to her feet, wondering if they had found shelter from the rain or were heading back to the estate. Either way, they were bound to get wet.

Amelia went to the bathroom and grabbed a large, lightweight towel, then hurriedly descended the stairs and flung open the door—only to gasp in surprise.

“Ah!”

She froze at the sight of Josef, his arm half-raised as if he had been about to knock on the door. Despite knowing she shouldn’t, a short gasp escaped her lips.

“…Your Highness.”

Amelia wasn’t the only one startled. Josef, too, seemed momentarily stiff, his brows slightly raised, clearly not expecting the door to open before he announced his presence.

“What… brings you here…? I mean, how…?”

“……”

“I greet Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”

Amelia struggled to calm her racing heart. As her breathing steadied, she unclenched her whitened fingers, letting go of the tension.

“May I borrow that?”

When she looked up, Josef’s gaze was fixed on the crumpled towel in her hands. She noticed tiny droplets of water clinging to the ends of his hair, smaller than dew on grass.

“Have you been caught in the rain?”

“A little. I didn’t expect a shower.”

Josef took the towel from Amelia and began drying off the rainwater as he spoke.

“Aren’t you going to invite me in?”