Amelia had no choice but to let Josef into the mansion.

Judging by the fact that he had been about to knock on the door, he clearly had something to say. Moreover, she did not have the authority to refuse a visit from the Crown Prince.

Besides, with the sudden downpour, his clothes were likely wet.

“There are no maids around at the moment, so you may find things a bit inconvenient, Your Highness.”

Amelia said this as if seeking refuge in her last excuse, but Josef merely responded,

“You must be the one who feels uncomfortable.” 

Finishing his sentence with a faint smile.

“……”

She turned around, heading upstairs toward the parlor.

The spacious room was quiet and bright. Strangely enough, the rain had already stopped. Would it start again? She hoped it wouldn’t, and that Betty and Helen would return soon. As she watched the sunlight drying the raindrops, Amelia vaguely entertained this hope.

“Sit.”

Josef’s voice felt as though it was gently pressing down on her shoulders. Draped neatly over the backrest of his chair was his jacket, catching the sunlight. At least his shirt didn’t seem to be wet. As she glanced at the neatly folded towel he had set on the side table, Amelia sat down on the diagonal sofa.

The two sat in silence, like the furniture filling the room. Amelia fixated on the water droplets trailing down the surface of the pitcher containing cold herbal tea, spreading out onto the tray below.

Her focus became entirely absorbed by the trivial matter of whether or not the edges of the jam cookies had gone stale. If she didn’t, she feared she might become too aware of the odd tension in the room from being alone with Josef.

Josef, meanwhile, was rolling a small cigarette case in his hand, resting on the armrest, when he finally spoke.

“Mind if I smoke?”

The question was as sudden as the earlier rain falling from the clear sky.

Amelia nodded, but Josef continued fiddling with the case a few more times before finally asking,

“What were you planning to do if you’d won the bid?”

“Pardon?”

“For the diamond.”

What had she been planning to do? She wasn’t an emperor or a king; she certainly didn’t have an absurd amount of gold coins, like forty thousand, lying around.

“I think I would have given up.”

“You raised your hand to bid for it without having the money?”

Josef’s tone carried a scoffing reproach.

“Isn’t that fraud? Thanks to you, I ended up paying quite a hefty price.”

“…Are you saying I need to pay the difference?”

Josef burst out laughing at her question, to the point where Amelia felt embarrassed, wondering if what she’d said was truly that absurd.

“You say the most ridiculous things sometimes, Amelia,” he said, his voice still laced with laughter.

“Did you really think I came here to collect money?”

“Then why did you come?”

It was the most natural question for her to ask. But the moment she heard his reply, Amelia regretted it.

“I was curious how Leonid is doing.”

“……”

“I haven’t heard any reports lately.”

His words made it clear that he was already keeping an eye on her.

… She tried not to hunch her shoulders, not to exhale too deeply, not to let her lips tremble. To evade Josef’s scrutiny, she had to remain tense—to conceal her unease, she had to focus.

Today, it was easier than on other days. Because, in truth, she didn’t know much.

“There hasn’t been any news since the letter I mentioned before.”

Still, she felt as though words she ought not say—like “independence” or “return”—hovered dangerously close to her lips.

“So you know nothing at all?”

“…Yes.”

With a disinterested expression, Josef set the cigarette case he’d been holding onto the table. His hand rested not far from the tray holding tea and cookies. Seeing that, Amelia suddenly realized she had neglected to offer anything to drink while entertaining the Crown Prince.

She considered saying something courteous like, Please enjoy some tea while you stay, but found it impossible to inject even a drop of sincerity into such words. So, instead, she simply poured the tea from the pitcher into the shallow cups without a word.

“Ah.”

The heavy pitcher wobbled slightly in her hand, and Amelia accidentally spilled some tea onto the tray. A few drops even landed on the saucer and the table—more than enough to be noticeable.

“……”

Amelia’s expression hardened. To make such a clumsy mistake in front of Josef, of all people! Still, given that Betty usually handled everything from brewing the tea to pouring it into cups, perhaps it wasn’t entirely fair for Amelia to blame herself.

Josef cast a brief glance at the spilled tea before taking the pitcher from her hands. He poured the remaining tea into another cup without spilling a single drop, then used a towel to wipe the table clean. Finally, he took the cup she had left half-filled and began drinking.

Seeing Josef’s profile, with his lips curled in a silent, suppressed laugh, Amelia felt an overwhelming urge to leap out the window.

****

The rain had completely stopped. Thanks to that, Betty and Helen didn’t return to the mansion until long after Josef had left.

“Oh my, Lady Amelia. Did someone stop by?”

Amelia, who had been in the study, headed to the parlor at the sound of Betty’s voice. Betty was clearing the tray from the table, so Amelia assumed her remark was based on the number of teacups.

“This case looks unfamiliar.”

“…Case?”

On the table sat Josef’s cigarette case, apparently forgotten. Amelia sighed softly.

“His Highness was here.”

“Pardon? What for?”

“It seems he was curious about Brienne’s news. Perhaps it’s for surveillance purposes…”

Her words trailed off as she picked up a cigarette case. The flat, gold-plated box gleamed coldly in her hand.

“I should deliver this later.”

“Leave it be. He might visit again, after all.”

Betty said it lightly, as if joking, but Amelia couldn’t help but think it might be true. After all, he had come alone today, without the chamberlain or Henrik.

“I’m sorry, Lady Amelia. I should’ve arrived sooner.”

“Hmm?”

“I don’t know how many attendants His Highness brought along, but it must’ve been quite troublesome for you.”

Betty awkwardly admitted she’d been late because she had been too engrossed in chatting with Helen. Amelia shook her head.

“It was troublesome, but not difficult. His Highness came alone.”

“What? Oh… I see.”

Betty seemed surprised by her words but quickly closed her mouth and continued tidying up the table. Just before leaving the room, Betty turned back as if she had something to say.

However, upon seeing Amelia gazing at Josef’s cigarette case with a conflicted expression, Betty left the drawing room silently.

****

The clear sky after the rain soon revealed the moon. Josef, following Henrik’s report after his return from Brienne, made his way to the torture chamber.

The place was far beyond the entrance to the underground prison, located on the western edge of the castle. Opening a small door embedded in the wall, he descended a hundred steps before reaching a rusted iron door. Without a lantern to guide him, Josef navigated through the darkness, pushed open the iron door, and entered the stone-walled chamber.

“Your Highness, this is the man,” Henrik announced.

Josef looked down at the man tied to a chair. His eyes were blindfolded, and a gag muffled his mouth. The man’s clothes were stained with hardened blood, likely evidence of torture.

According to Henrik, the man had gotten into a scuffle with a knight from Olstein over bumping shoulders on the street. After taking a severe beating, he managed to retaliate and slit the knight’s throat during a momentary lapse. He was evidently a resilient man.

Of course, Henrik’s reason for bringing him here wasn’t his resilience or the fact that he had killed a knight.

“Are you the navigator of the Kut merchant ship?” Josef asked.

The man twitched as if he had something to say.

“Mmph! Mmmph!”

At Josef’s signal, Henrik removed only the gag from the man’s mouth.

“…As rumored, Your Highness is a cruel man,” the navigator said weakly.

“I may have committed a crime, but it doesn’t warrant being dragged to the Empire like this. It was self-defense!”

“How much do you know about the ship?” Josef ignored his protest and asked.

“…Ship? What ship are you referring to?”

The navigator’s voice faltered, confusion replacing his indignation. He turned his head from side to side, as if trying to locate Josef.

“The ships being built in Brienne.”

The man’s murmuring stopped abruptly at Josef’s words. Henrik immediately threw a punch, striking the man’s jaw.

“Ugh!”

The navigator’s body lurched sideways, and two bloody teeth fell from his half-open mouth.

“Agh… ahh…”

“Next will be a blade. Now, speak,” Josef coaxed.

The man whimpered, his jaw creaking as he sobbed.

“P-please, spare me, Your Highness.”

“That’s not an answer. Weren’t you said to be resilient?”

At Josef’s words, Henrik drew a dagger from his belt—a narrow, pointed rondel dagger.

“You’d better talk before I gouge out your eyes,” Henrik said, placing a hand on the blindfold over the man’s eyes.

“W-wait! Wait, wait!”

“Stay still. Struggle, and you might break your nose too.”

Henrik pinned the thrashing man by wrapping an arm around his neck and held his face steady as he pressed the blade against the man’s cheekbone. As the metal began to cut into the flesh, the man kicked wildly and screamed.

“Aagh! I’ll talk! I’ll talk! The navy! It’s for the navy!”

“…Go on.”

“In Brienne! They’re building ships for the Imperial fleet. Th-they told us to transport timber discreetly, so regular sailors wouldn’t know!”

Henrik released the man from his grip, his expression growing graver. The man, still sobbing hysterically, gradually calmed down.

“How did you find out?” Josef asked.

“Only a few of us navigators know. I overheard it by accident,” the man replied in a resigned tone.

“They said Brienne is building a total of eleven ships. In return, we’re supplying timber at a discounted rate…”

“Eleven ships?”

Josef’s voice sharpened, and the man nodded, sniffing.

“Yes… They said one of them would become a ship for Kut.”