Was he… insane?

I stared with wide eyes, my mouth tightly shut.

Some of the nobles surrounding us blushed, covering their mouths with fans or whispering to colleagues and acquaintances standing nearby.

His answer truly made him sound like a man obsessively devoted to his wife, for anyone to hear.

To claim with such an indifferent face that I was his only concern.

Though his lie was masterfully delivered, it seemed convincing enough that Genevieve’s eyes had grown uncontrollably wide.

She glared at him while gripping the armrests.

“Then why did you ask us to find the child?”

“Well…”

Carlo let out a light, hollow laugh while everyone else stood on pins and needles, yet he remained perfectly at ease.

“The Grand Duchess was frightened. She felt guilty thinking a child had been kidnapped because of her. As her husband, shouldn’t I naturally resolve my wife’s anxiety?”

“Ha…!”

“Ah, of course I admit that with these consecutive incidents, I’ve responded rather sharply and caused you concern…”

Wondering what he was doing, I looked up at Carlo and caught his cold gaze fixed on Genevieve, tinged with mockery.

“……”

Whether he deliberately let his words trail off, the briefly noisy hall suddenly fell into a heavy silence, as if plunged into confusion. He had reminded everyone that the incidents against him weren’t limited to today’s abduction on the ship but included the earlier attack at St. Berte Castle.

“Come to think of it, much has happened to His Highness the Grand Duke. Since the Grand Duchess didn’t jump into the water attempting s*icide, this means she’s been attacked twice…”

Someone raised the question from among the crowd.

Dillan, standing near the imperial throne, visibly flustered, lifted his chin and stared at me standing beside Carlo.

His gaze seemed to chew over what might have happened between the Grand Duke and me during this time.

“So please find the culprit, Your Majesty the Empress.”

Carlo’s somewhat arrogant yet gentlemanly tone quietly echoed through the hall.

“The real perpetrator who tried to kill my wife and caused the St. Berte Castle attack.”

“…Do you have someone in mind?”

“I probably do.”

People began murmuring again at his calm, unhesitating response.

“Since both incidents fall under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Police Investigation Bureau, I couldn’t investigate my suspects even if I had them.”

“Grand Duke. Are you suggesting I deliberately gave such orders to tie your hands?”

“How could that be?”

“Then…!”

“I took it as a signal to wait.”

Carlo spoke in a calm tone, as if soothing the agitated Genevieve.

“And so I’ve been waiting.”

“……”

“Waiting so loyally that I’ve come here even after nearly being murdered.”

“……”

Genevieve glared at him with a discolored face.

“Since I’m waiting, I believe you’ll soon provide a definitive answer.”

“…As you should.”

Carlo nodded respectfully and smiled languidly.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. For finding the kidnapped child and promising to track down the culprit.”

“…What?”

“Fortunately, with so many people gathered here, everyone can serve as witnesses.”

“……!”

Genevieve, who had been watching Carlo, suddenly turned around with widened eyes.

The massive crowd surrounding the hall was focused on this scene.

She slowly rolled her large eyes back to Carlo.

“Was this what you wanted from the beginning?”

“Didn’t I tell you? My interest is singular.”

“……”

“What I want is the Grand Duchess’s well-being, that alone.”

Genevieve’s gaze, which had been looking at him incomprehensibly, gradually surfaced above the water. She seemed to have finally found the answer.

“The Grand Duchess’s well-being…”

“That’s right.”

Genevieve, eyeing him suspiciously, slowly rolled her eyes to glance at Dillan.

I finally began to vaguely understand what this man was trying to do.

By declaring that I was his top priority, he was warning that it would be better to change the target of attack to someone other than me.

Since the Empress had promised to find the culprit in front of so many people, the imperial family would have to produce results soon.

Otherwise, they would face criticism for trying to cover up the attacks at St. Berte and on the ship.

So the imperial family would have to create a culprit and present them to the Grand Duke.

In the end, all that remained was for the imperial family to betray the Azanie family and turn their backs on them.

“May we withdraw now, Your Majesty?”

When Carlo asked in a respectful tone, Genevieve, who had finished her thoughts, straightened her upper body that had been leaning forward to shout at him.

“You may go.”

“Are you going to tolerate such an arrogant attitude?!”

As she nodded, Aiden, who still didn’t understand what this meant, fumed at the Empress, unable to hide his indignation.

However, Genevieve wore a very generous expression and cast a glance at me.

“Grand Duchess? You look very tired.”

At that moment, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

“……!”

In that brief instant when she gestured kindly and smiled at me, I felt as though I had seen the Empress’s face like this somewhere before.

An eerie chill ran down my spine.

“Go and rest comfortably.”

I snapped back to my senses at Carlo’s touch as he took me and turned around.

Though Dillan was watching me with flashing eyes full of hostility, I deliberately ignored all those sensations and turned my back.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The nobles who had left the hall began walking down the corridor, promising to meet again tomorrow whenever their eyes met.

“Everyone seems confused.”

Violet, who had somehow approached my side, whispered to me.

As she said, all the nobles and servants were expressing their own doubts.

“So despite having clear suspicions about certain forces, the Grand Duke didn’t investigate them?”

“That’s how it sounded. If the Grand Duke cherishes the Grand Duchess so much, shouldn’t the Grand Duchess be excluded from the list of suspects?”

“Is that really true? It could just be a strategy to make it appear that way.”

“But as he said earlier, if he truly values the Grand Duchess that much, it seemed like a declaration that the Grand Duke will demonstrate through his actions going forward.”

“He hasn’t been that kind of person until now, so it’s too early to draw conclusions either way.”

“Many stories we didn’t know emerged in that hall today. There’s much to watch for.”

As people moved farther away from us, their voices gradually faded.

The atmosphere was cautious about expressing opinions since no one knew how the future landscape might flip.

Violet, watching the backs of the people, whispered to me with an excited face.

“But I agree. When the Grand Duke said earlier that his only concern was his wife…! Haah! All the ladies standing next to me were so amazed that they grabbed their foreheads and covered their mouths! My goodness, such a wonderful person who only cares about his wife! It made me want to get married soon too.”

Violet blushed as if still enchanted even now thinking about it.

She seemed to believe that all his actions toward me today stemmed from his love.

“Haha, did it seem that way?”

I forced a smile and looked at Carlo, who was walking ahead, somewhat separated from us.

Look at that. As soon as he achieved his goal, he immediately kept his distance while walking.

How precise he is.

“Thank you, Your Highness!”

Just then, someone ran up to us and bowed deeply.

“We owe our lives to Your Highness.”

It was Merverly O’Toole and his son.

“…You survived because of me?”

More like you almost died because of me…

Unable to continue speaking, I tried to help the O’Toole father and son stand up, but Carlo, who had approached, stopped me and helped them rise.

“I’m sorry you got caught up in this mess. Please make sure to get your injuries treated…”

When I quickly grabbed the Grand Duke’s arm and shook it, he reluctantly spoke.

“I’ll ensure you receive treatment and compensation.”

The father and son, who had been floundering awkwardly, repeatedly expressed their gratitude.

They also explained that the son had been taken away blindfolded and didn’t know who his captors were.

After watching the pair walk away with support from another servant, I turned around with mixed feelings.

As we walked back up the stairs for quite some time, Violet gently grabbed my arm and nodded toward the Grand Duke.

“Aren’t you going to say anything…?”

Her expression suggested I should say something rather than continuing in silence.

After all, without his help beside me, I couldn’t have promised to help the O’Toole father and son…

“Um, thank you… for the matter with O’Toole, and for taking my side earlier.”

I was reluctant to express gratitude, fearing what heart-piercing response might come.

However, unlike me, Violet’s eyes sparkled with anticipation, wondering what kind words Carlo might offer this time.

“I didn’t do it for you, so there’s nothing to thank me for.”

Ha, see that?

“It was to reduce unnecessary casualties.”

See how he treats me roughly whenever there’s no one he needs to convince?

I suddenly stared intently at his back, which now felt detestable. Then, as if muttering to myself but loud enough for him to hear, I raised my voice.

“Ah, yes. Of course. I only said that because I felt sorry for constantly creating problems by insisting on coming here. I just needed to clear my conscience.”

“…What?”

Carlo, who had been walking indifferently, turned to look at me with a slightly furrowed brow.

“What did you just say?”