“…That’s the Azanie son?”

The next day, after finishing work at December, our carriage stopped in front of the Urban Theater in Grand Town. Odin pointed at Dillan visible through the window and asked.

I hugged Odin and answered quietly, conscious of Joseph and Medlin’s eyes.

“Yes.”

“…Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“He shouldn’t look like that…? Why is he handsome?”

Odin gaped in disbelief.

As he said, it was undeniable that Dillan had quite a handsome appearance.

The topic of good looks suddenly reminded me of Carlo, and I whispered to Odin.

“What about Carlo then?”

“He’s fundamentally different from such ordinary handsomeness, and I’m not just saying this because he’s my descendant. His appearance should be considered absolutely and exceptionally perfect.”

Pfft, blood really is thicker than water.

It was fascinating to see even Odin, who grumbled about Carlo, defend his distant grandson.

But objectively speaking, the assessment of Carlo’s superior looks wasn’t false, so I had nothing to counter with.

It just stung that such a fine man had left for Novahans without giving me a second thought.

When the servant opened the door, Joseph and Medlin got out first and escorted me.

As I was about to step onto the street, Joseph spoke.

“Would you prefer if we kept some distance?”

“…Oh. Is that allowed?”

Carlo had always insisted I shouldn’t go around alone, but since yesterday, Joseph and Medlin seemed to stand at a distance whenever I met someone.

“If that’s what you wish.”

I glanced at Dillan, who was watching me from a bench, then nodded to Joseph.

“Yes. I’d appreciate that.”

As Joseph readily began to walk away, I suddenly called him back.

“Joseph! Don’t go too far.”

“…Pardon?”

“Stay close enough that you can come immediately if I call? Close enough to hear if I speak loudly?”

The person I was meeting was Dillan.

Unlike the Carrisford apothecary or Brianna, who wouldn’t attack me, Dillan was from the Azanie family, and I couldn’t predict how he might suddenly change.

Joseph looked at me with surprised eyes, then slowly nodded.

“Understood. Don’t worry. I’ll be nearby.”

“You’ll come right away even if I’m quiet?”

“Of course.”

Reassured by Joseph’s answer, I held Odin and strode toward Dillan.

Dillan was waiting for me on the terrace in front of the Urban Theater.

“Finally, we can meet…”

As I approached, Dillan’s greeting, accompanied by a slight smile, suddenly broke off.

His strange gaze was fixed on Odin.

“I heard rumors, but they were true.”

“What rumors?”

“That you keep a lion.”

“Ah, yes. As you can see.”

Dillan looked at me and Odin in turn, then pressed his lips firmly and sat back down.

The terrace had tables with partitions between them, covered in vines and flowers, giving off a pastoral feeling.

As I sat down, Odin bristled and stared intently at Dillan.

“Why did you want to meet?”

“After coming all the way here, you still want to claim you’ve lost your memory? If you had truly lost your memory, you couldn’t have come here or read the letter I sent.”

Dillan raised the corner of his mouth in a sneer, his eyes remaining cold.

I had the fleeting thought that he gave off a well-groomed but somehow old-fashioned impression, making the surrounding air feel stifling.

I placed Odin gently on the table.

“True. The fact that I read your letter could be interpreted that way.”

“If not, how did you read it?”

“Answer my question, and I’ll tell you.”

He glanced once at Odin, who was glaring at him, then frowned.

“It sounds like you want to negotiate with me using such a trivial reason.”

“If you don’t like it, let’s stop.”

When I made a gesture ready to leave without hesitation, Dillan sighed heavily and gripped his teacup.

“Tell me what you want to know.”

“You said at the Imperial Palace that I wanted to kill the Grand Duke. Why is that?”

He stared at me and laughed silently.

It felt strange, as if he had been waiting for my question.

“Because it’s true.”

“I don’t think I would have done that.”

“You had someone else you loved. Is that reason enough?”

Odin turned toward him, more startled than I was.

I reflexively wondered if I should cover Odin’s ears so he couldn’t hear.

“What are you saying?”

“To be precise, it was unrequited love. Of course, the object wasn’t the Grand Duke.”

“……”

“You wanted to run away with that man. He was your first love. You believed if you did everything as instructed, it would happen, so you wanted to kill your husband.”

I anxiously watched Odin, then suddenly realized Dillan’s tone was quite different from before.

Unlike when he was talking about the letter, Dillan’s tone when speaking about me having someone else I loved was excessively stiff and precise.

It wasn’t even sarcastic.

“Ah…?”

It was as if he was speaking for the servants to hear.

So this could reach Carlo’s ears?

I narrowed my eyes and looked at him suspiciously.

“Did I really?”

“Aren’t you curious about who you liked?”

“Not at all!”

Dillan’s eyebrows twitched immediately.

I deliberately raised my voice and continued loudly.

“The only person I love is Carlo, what are you talking about? Are you trying to break up your happily married sister and her husband?”

“…What?”

“Even if there was someone I liked in the past, that’s just the past! What kind of brother says such things!”

“Lea…”

“Seeing how you dwell on such nonsense about first loves and unrequited love, you seem completely immature. Did you call me out just to say this?”

“……”

“No matter what anyone says, the current me only knows Grand Duke Carlo. He’s handsome, s*xy, capable, affectionate, kind, and only has eyes for me!”

Of course, this was half truth and half lie!

I shouted vigorously, hoping Joseph would hear.

“I’m so busy just thinking about my beloved Carlo! What’s this sudden talk about first love? I’m leaving! Have a good day!”

Fearing he might harm me, I quickly picked up Odin and stood up, but Dillan grabbed my arm.

“This bastard, how dare he!”

Even though Odin bit his arm hard, Dillan paid no attention and spoke quietly while looking straight into my eyes.

“Why do you keep getting involved in things you can’t handle? Do you think the Grand Duke will always take your side?”

“W-what are you doing?”

“You had the nerve to send a letter asking my father to return the money.”

“……!”

“Since you survived as a suspect in the attack incident, my father has fallen ill, so I’m handling affairs now. Oh, is this good news for you?”

“……”

“Keep your mouth shut and stay quiet. Live like a mouse. Just do as I tell you. It’s easy, isn’t it?”

“How is that easy? Is it easy for you to live as others tell you to? Oh, is that how you’ve been living?”

“I’m kindly telling you that’s the only way you can survive, right now! Aren’t you afraid of what we might do to you anymore?”

Dillan whispered through clenched teeth.

I looked at him and spoke.

“Do you have evidence?”

“What?”

“You’re talking like you hold my life in your hands. I’m asking if you have evidence. The kind of evidence that could kill me.”

“Do you really think we don’t have any?”

“I haven’t seen it, so I don’t know.”

His eyes instantly changed to an eerily deep green.

“Then wait quietly.”

“……!”

I’ve caught him…!

“Don’t try to reveal who the real culprit of the ship incident is, and accept whatever the Imperial Palace says as the truth. That’s the only way you can survive.”

My heart was pounding, but I had to provoke him more to get as much information as possible.

“Unlike some people, I don’t plan to live being pushed around.”

“What?”

“Your Highness!”

Joseph called out to me, apparently sensing something was wrong as our voices had suddenly lowered.

As Dillan’s grip loosened in hesitation, I quickly shook off his hand.

At the same time, Joseph pulled away the wooden partition that had been serving as a screen.

“Are you alright? Suddenly there was no sound…”

“I’m fine.”

I answered as if nothing had happened and looked at Dillan.

“Contact me if you need anything. After all, you are my brother, so I’ll meet you anytime.”

Bang—!

Students positioned themselves with grenades in hand. Soon after, they lit the fuses and threw them toward the targets. The sound of explosions echoed all around.

When the commander signaled them to move, the students began running in unison.

The Novahans Islands military training gave tasks to be solved on each island and verified if the commands were executed clearly.

Many of the islands had challenging terrain, making it a training that half the students gave up on.

Carlo, who had been quietly observing the students while moving between islands by boat, finally returned to the barracks.

“Would you like some coffee?”

When the army supervisor jumped up from his seat and asked, Carlo nodded and sat back deeply in his chair.

Through the gaps in the tent, he could glimpse students in dark green uniforms, darkened by the sun, running around.

He had been watching such dark figures swarming about all day since yesterday.

“……”

Of course, it was a familiar sight.

In war, he had witnessed humans in even worse conditions. Yet he had never before recalled impressions like the atmosphere being gloomy or tedious.

It was puzzling why this scenery suddenly felt uncomfortable.

Was it always like this…?

Watching humans running through dense forests or crawling across beaches, he had the fleeting thought that he wished something else would overlay his vision.

Perhaps delicate rose-colored hair, or eyes sparkling with vitality… or a cute, fragile voice calling him.

“Here you are. And this is a message for you, Inspector.”

It was from Joseph.

He opened the envelope indifferently and read the letter with dry eyes.

The content was short and concise, just like him.

[This evening, Her Highness the Grand Duchess plans to meet Dillan Azanie.]

Carlo neatly folded the letter with his long, thick fingers.

He tilted his head slightly with an expressionless face.

“Lishi Nighten.”

His gaze soon turned to the army supervisor, who was adjusting his hat and about to leave.

“Bring the boat.”