“Are you saying it was nothing to you, Duke?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm. That doesn’t seem quite right to me.”

“What do you mean……”

“From my perspective, you seem to be overlapping me with Leo.”

Feeling as if his hidden feelings were being clearly seen through, Jürgen dropped his gaze. Albert burst into laughter as if to say “See?” and said,

“I understand completely. It can’t be helped. As blood brothers, we might unconsciously show similar traits. But there’s one thing I want to make clear. I swear on the throne I’m about to inherit, I truly just want to get along well with you, Duke.”

“……Thank you for saying so.”

Of course, Jürgen knew. He and Albert had rarely crossed paths, which meant there had been no opportunity to harbor personal feelings.

But the same was true with Leopold. What made the former Crown Prince harbor malice toward him wasn’t himself but the previous Duke.

Jürgen could still vaguely remember. How he increasingly resembled his father as he grew older. And how the Crown Prince’s gaze changed as he came to resemble the previous Duke more and more.

To be precise, it wasn’t actually malice directed at Jürgen. If he had known sooner that Leopold harbored malice toward someone else, could he have made some change between them?

Now that everything was over, he could only make meaningless assumptions.

“I only hope that Your Highness hasn’t experienced the pain of being hurt by my father.”

“I spent most of my childhood as a thoughtless second prince. I barely have any memories of the previous Duke. We might have met once, but he probably didn’t care about me either. Back then, I was just a five-year-old child throwing tantrums, demanding to have an entire shiny black steam locomotive.”

He burst into laughter while saying this. Literally, he was a prince who had spent his childhood ordinarily and affluently. This clearly distinguished him from Jürgen or his older brother Leopold.

Jürgen believed Albert. He couldn’t find any trace of the deficiencies he himself possessed.

In fact, that was why he couldn’t feel comfortable around Albert. Unlike Leopold, his unblemished appearance felt awkwardly unfamiliar.

“The one who was supposed to inherit the crown was Leopold, not me. No one thought Father would pass the crown to me. Leo once said this too, but a life free from responsibility was truly wonderful. Looking back now, it really was.”

“……Is His Highness all right?”

“Ah, you mean Leo.”

Albert, who had been thinking with his smile momentarily withdrawn, soon answered.

“Leo always wanted to put down the responsibilities he carried on his shoulders. He wanted to be freer than anyone else.”

Another smile appeared on his lips as he spoke in a calm voice. It was a bitter smile, clearly different from before.

“I wish he could have left with a light heart, but there’s no way to know exactly what’s in his mind. Anyway, Leo has decided to stay quietly in the southern villa for the time being. Though he wanted a free life, I think it might feel rather lonely for him, so I’m planning to visit him soon.”

“I see.”

“Father might think differently, but I want my brother to feel more at ease. It seems you also harbor no unnecessary resentment toward Leo, Duke.”

Jürgen silently nodded. As Albert said, he didn’t wish for Leopold’s unhappiness. He only hoped that Leopold too could escape from the shadow of the previous Duke.

All Jürgen wanted was to make Diez’s life rich and peaceful.

He hoped that when news of his marriage to Diez eventually reached the villa, there would be no one in the Empire who would curse her future.

For that to happen, there was no choice but for things to go as Albert said.

For Leopold to finally find peace.

“I also hope His Highness can fare well.”

“Someday it will have to be so. After all, he is my brother.”

Albert’s gaze, which had been thoughtful with his chin resting lightly on his hand, turned toward Jürgen again. Soon his eyes began to sparkle with wit.

“So, it seems time to return to the main point. I think we’ve talked enough about me, now I’d like to hear about you, Duke.”

“……You’re not going to let it go, are you?”

“Of course not. I can’t stand being curious. If it’s something difficult to talk about, I won’t pry further.”

It was a private concern too trivial to share with the future king. But he couldn’t deny that he needed advice.

After a moment of conflict, Jürgen carefully began to speak.

“Actually, I was thinking about my fiancée.”

“Miss Schleicher? Come to think of it, you did say you were engaged to her.”

“You may know this, but when she first returned to the Duke’s mansion, I hurt her several times. Though Diez doesn’t show it, I’m concerned that those wounds might still remain.”

“So you think Miss Schleicher hasn’t completely gotten over the hurt she received.”

Albert sank into thought with a serious face, as if it were about his own lover. Or perhaps he seemed more enthusiastic now that he could finally share in Jürgen’s personal concerns.

“Do you think past wounds are interfering with Miss Schleicher’s happiness?”

“It seems that possibility can’t be ruled out. Recently too……”

When he saw Diez crying alone while she had been sleeping soundly, Jürgen felt his heart sink. No matter how he thought about it, the only one likely to appear in her bad dream was himself.

“……I saw Diez having a nightmare.”

“Everyone has nightmares from time to time.”

“That may be true, but…”

“So you have misgivings about yourself, that’s what you’re saying. I understand.”

At this diagnosis that hit the mark so precisely, Jürgen could only close his mouth.

“It seems you haven’t talked about the nightmare. How did Miss Schleicher seem after she woke up?”

“By the time I noticed, she came into my arms.”

“What? Then it doesn’t seem to be your problem. Why worry further?”

“Still, there’s always the possibility.”

“Hmm.”

Though he didn’t seem to understand immediately, Albert, who had been rolling his eyes in thought for a moment, soon said,

“First, I think the answer is already determined.”

“The answer…… you say.”

“That is to have a direct conversation with Miss Schleicher.”

Albert, who had been examining Jürgen’s expression, grinned.

“How about that? Simple and clear, isn’t it?”

“That does seem like the fastest way……”

“Even if Miss Schleicher pours out resentment toward you, you shouldn’t fear that. If you’ve decided to soothe her heart, you should also be prepared to face whatever happens.”

There was nothing wrong with his advice. It would be much better to follow Albert’s suggestion than to guess at Diez’s inner feelings.

“……I understand.”

“Then I’ll leave early, so hurry back to check on your fiancée. No matter how busy you are with public affairs, what could be more important to a man about to be married than taking care of his fiancée?”

Facing him as he winked and subtly pushed him away, Jürgen couldn’t say anything.

The day passed in an instant. Looking up at the sky that was gradually changing its color, that thought suddenly came to mind. Diez, who had just entered the mansion after strolling through the garden, immediately smiled upon encountering Jürgen who was returning home at the right time.

“Jürgen, I missed you.”

“Diez.”

He embraced her and briefly kissed her forehead. The sensation of being held in his broad embrace was always reassuring and comfortable. Even more so because she knew that the one offering that embrace loved her.

After exchanging greetings in their own way, Diez looked up at Jürgen.

Was it an illusion or not?

Somehow, Jürgen, who seemed hesitant that day, asked with a strangely tense face.

“Diez. Don’t you feel like having sherbet today?”

“Sherbet?”

“If it’s all right, I’d like to eat it together……”

He’s always awkward when it comes to directly expressing his feelings. Wanting to treat her to sherbet meant he wanted to spend time with her.

Diez, who immediately noticed what Jürgen wanted to say, smiled again.

“I was just thinking about dessert, so that’s perfect.”

She headed with Jürgen to the space where they usually enjoyed tea time. The sunlight streaming through the large window softly illuminated their heads. Soon, a perfect dessert set was placed before them as they sat across from each other at an elegant ivory table.

Whether it was true that she had been thinking about dessert, Diez’s expression instantly brightened. Jürgen took the opportunity to glance at her while she couldn’t take her eyes off the sherbet.

He had arranged this meeting as advised…… but how should he begin? Seeing Diez’s happy face as she looked at the dessert made it even harder to speak. He feared spoiling her mood.

But he didn’t intend to sit there like a fool after going to the trouble of arranging this meeting. As Albert said, he couldn’t just remain afraid. Jürgen had made similar mistakes before. He didn’t want to repeat such mistakes again.