Chapter 53

“Harriet—”

“So just answer one thing.”

It was a simple question she had prepared in advance, yet voicing it felt terrifying. The oppressive air that used to cling to Damian during the days when he seemed to breathe cigars instead of oxygen felt like it was brushing against her spine. Even so, she wanted to hear the answer.

“Is it Bleria?”

Tell me the rumors are false, that the most critical concern isn’t worth worrying about. But all she received in return was silence.

So that’s how it is.

Harriet withdrew her hand and turned her back to him.

“I’m going to sleep. Get out.“

“…Rest well.”

Damian pulled the disheveled blanket up to her shoulders and left the room. In the darkness, Harriet covered her eyes with one hand.

How did things end up like this?

Her palm was soon damp. She had gotten the clarity she wanted—the truth was now unmistakable. Yet Harriet couldn’t erase the image of the girl who kept appearing in her mind.

***

“Lady Bleria?”

The guard at the front gate blinked as he looked at Bleria standing next to Mixel Luke. A suspect in a fraud case and one of the victims, side by side—it was an odd pairing, to say the least.

“I haven’t heard anything about you leaving, my lady.”

“I just informed my father. I’ll be visiting the Allnight estate.“

“There’s been no message to me.“

“Must be a mix-up. Or do you suspect the Lady of Heaven of lying?“

“N-no, of course not. I’ll open the gate. Please wait a moment.”

The guard hastily opened the gate, though he kept tilting his head as if he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. Bleria busied herself, smoothing her skirt, feeling oddly childish and attempting something uncharacteristic.

Outside, Mixel Luke’s carriage awaited them.

“I’ll arrange a carriage for you,“ the guard offered.

“No need. Since we’re headed to the same destination, I figured I’d escort her myself,“ Mixel Luke interjected.

“In that case, should Sir Lavender accompany—“

“Does it look like we need extra protection?”

Mixel Luke spread his arms theatrically. His broad chest muscles were revealed as his collar shifted, prompting the guard to close his mouth. It wasn’t acceptance as much as an unwillingness to deal with Mixel Luke. Ignoring him, the guard addressed only Bleria.

“Safe travels, my lady.”

Once they boarded the carriage, the wheels began to roll. Bleria felt a wave of relief as the Heaven estate grew distant through the window.

I didn’t think it would go this smoothly.

Her heart raced from the thrill of her first act of rebellion, though the strange exhilaration didn’t last long.

“So, stepping into this carriage means you trust me at least a little, right?“ Mixel Luke said.

“…I just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible.“

“Whatever the reason, let’s call it a runaway romance.“

“If you’re ready to die, that sounds perfect.”

Mixel Luke raised an eyebrow.

“If I vanish now, it’ll be considered a kidnapping involving the Lady of Heaven. Kidnapping isn’t something you can settle with a few days in an interrogation room.“

“I’m quite good at escaping, actually.“

“And who gave you that strength? The Duchess of Allnight herself. If you cause trouble, the intelligence division’s agents might come looking for their real master. Am I wrong?“

“Damn. With that innocent face of yours, all you do is run calculations in your head.“

“Innocent…?”

The unfamiliar word left her speechless. The disparity between the description and herself was so vast that she couldn’t even recall her face for a moment.

“By the way, did you miscalculate? If I disappear now and the rumors spread further, people might assume I fled because my identity was exposed. Not a kidnapping case, but a con artist’s escape.“

“In that case, wouldn’t you be an accomplice for aiding my escape? Same result, isn’t it?”

“That’s precisely my intention.”

“….”

“Relax, I don’t plan to act on it yet.”

Bleria stared at him for a moment before sighing. Boarding this carriage hadn’t magically restored her strength. She didn’t want to argue for long.

“Fine.”

Mixel Luke crossed one leg over the other and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knee and his chin on his hand. The position made him look thoroughly roguish.

“How strange. I thought you’d fly into a rage. I even braced myself to get hit the moment we met.”

If you know, just shut up.

Right now, Bleria felt like a wrung-out rag. Hunger and sleeplessness had dulled her mind, and her already cold body felt even more chilled.

Seeing that he seemed to want an argument made her even less inclined to indulge him.

If only they could reach their destination quietly. She closed her eyes, but Mixel Luke, persistent and talkative as ever, broke the silence again.

“Anyway. I’m sorry about grabbing your wrist and making that bet last time. Looking back, I get why you’d hate it.“

“It’s fine.”

Even if he apologized, he’d probably snap and lash out soon enough, making it meaningless.

The winter air was biting. Bleria absentmindedly rubbed her arm but stopped. Her body had grown thinner than before. Soon, the tailor would bring her altered dress, probably slipping off her again.

Speaking of which, the secret letter…

As she was thinking, Mixel Luke suddenly thrust his coat toward her. Startled, she took it.

“Then let me make up for it with something other than words.“

“With a coat?“

“Not just that. If there’s anything you want to know, I’ll answer one question, no matter what it is.“

“Was it you who spread the rumors, Count?”

The question came out immediately, and his crimson eyes flickered. Worried he might feign ignorance, she quickly clarified.

“The rumor about being stabbed as a child and falling off a cliff.“

“Well… I just nudged someone who already knew the truth. I didn’t lie.”

Mixel Luke was clearly the culprit behind everything related to Eos Liche. Deciding as much, Bleria held the coat out to return it, but Mixel Luke didn’t take it.

“If you wear it until we arrive, I’ll share another story with you.“

“I don’t need it.”

“You’ll regret not hearing it.”

Judging by the irritation rising at his cryptic demeanor, she must have regained some energy compared to when she was at the estate.

Bleria considered throwing the coat at him but resigned to slipping her arms into the sleeves. There was no harm in wearing it—worse rumors about her were already circulating anyway—so she might as well hear what he had to say.

The coat carried a strong scent of men’s cologne, not to her taste. Still, Mixel Luke smiled, seemingly pleased.

“What do you think about that rumor?“

“I wasn’t aware the story you mentioned was your opinion.“

“You don’t seem to believe it.“

“No, I don’t.”

Eos Liche is a fake. I’m not falling for your tricks.

It was unclear if Bleria was speaking to Mixel Luke or affirming her resolve to herself, but she said it firmly.

“I don’t believe it.“

“How can you be so sure when you have no childhood memory?“

“If someone had attempted to assassinate me, the culprit would have been publicly exposed. For rumors to only surface now makes no sense.“

“What if the perpetrator couldn’t be punished?“

“If they were already dead, they’d still be made an example of—“

“What if they were someone nobody wanted to punish?“

“…Are you saying it was the emperor himself?“

“In Heaven, he’s as good as an emperor.”

Realizing his meaning, Bleria’s mouth fell open.

“Jeremiah Heaven, the current Duke of Heaven, intoxicated with dream poppy, harmed his daughter with his own hands.“

“W-what…?”

The notion that the duke himself had wielded the blade to kill her was too absurd.

As she was about to dismiss it outright, an image of the duke’s face came to her mind—his expression when he saw the scar on Eos. That pale, corpse-like visage.

In retrospect, it wasn’t the face of someone moved or confused by the traces of his real daughter. If anything, it was one of sheer terror.

“Ah.”

Bleria clamped a hand over her mouth as if to stop someone from reading her thoughts.

“The duke may have believed no one witnessed the incident since he ran off alone during the hunt, but the groundskeeper saw it. He had picked up the pendant the lady dropped and followed to return it. And then…”

A sword. A pendant. The groundskeeper. The words aligned, forming a puzzle whose resulting picture was anything but beautiful.

“We’ve arrived already, how inconsiderate,“ Mixel Luke remarked.

Only then did Bleria realize the carriage had stopped. Outside, the Allnight estate loomed into view. When the footman opened the carriage door to help her, she stepped onto the ground, still half-dazed.

Mixel Luke retrieved his uniform coat and climbed back into the carriage. Bleria looked up at him, silently questioning why he wasn’t coming with her.

“I have a mountain of work piled up from being stuck for so long. Besides, I’m terrified of facing the old lady right now, so I’ll keep my distance.“

“…I see.“

“Oh, and this. You dropped it.”

Mixel Luke handed her a pristine white letter. Its design was painfully familiar.

Not even bothering to hide it anymore, huh.

Bleria sighed resignedly as Mixel Luke gave her a boyish grin.

“You should read it this time.“

“...”

“Shall I swear on my name in true aristocratic fashion? If that’s not enough, I’ll even stake my late mother’s name on it.”

Unwilling to let him keep holding it out indefinitely, Bleria took the letter.

As soon as she did, the carriage departed briskly, leaving her standing there, letter in hand.