Chapter 127

The Marquis of Rowissum’s Townhouse

“Sister?”

When I suddenly barged in, Ernst widened his eyes.

“What brings you here?

I’m afraid I have no business with you.

“Where is he?” I asked directly.

“On the second floor, in a meeting.”

“I’ll go up and wait.”

“Sister!”

Ernst called out to me in a flustered voice as I ascended the stairs. However, it barely registered with me.

Since they were in a ‘meeting,’ it was obvious which room the Duke Rohitham’s party would be in.

It must be the dining room on the second floor.

I waited in front of it.

Even the butler’s attempts to dissuade me, saying Ludwig would come to see me if I sat in the drawing room, didn’t matter to me.

The meeting ended quickly.

New faces who had arrived just a few days ago, including Hans, Johanna and Ludwig’s people, came out first and widened their eyes when they saw me.

“Countess Balthus?”

“I have something to say to him.”

Seven pairs of eyes simultaneously turned to Ludwig.

Ludwig, who had just risen and was organizing his things, looked at me steadily. He didn’t seem surprised at all. It was as if he had predicted that I would come looking for him like this.

“……You all can leave now. Countess Balthus, please come in.”

Ludwig spoke in a clear voice.

His six people glanced at me with anxious eyes as they passed by.

I kept my gaze fixed on Ludwig and approached him.

I heard the sound of the dining room door closing behind me.

“Do you know that strange rumors are spreading in the capital?”

I asked Ludwig abruptly.

“The rumor that I’ve taken a liking to you, Countess?”

I thought he would feign ignorance, but his straightforward approach left me speechless.

When I momentarily forgot to respond, Ludwig laughed softly.

“Is that strange?”

“Of course, it’s strange. This is no time for such things.”

“Is that so?”

Ludwig leisurely drew the curtains, to an almost annoying degree. He glanced at me over his shoulder and smiled mischievously.

“I think there’s no better strategy.”

“A strategy… you say?”

“Yes. Isn’t Countess Balthus’s plan like this? First, King Karl asks ‘Duke Ludwig’ to personally request cooperation and bring in Rudolf. Second, induce emotional agitation in Rudof.”

He was spot on.

I decided to keep silent and see what kind of logic Ludwig would unfold.

“The first means to agitate Rudolf emotionally is ‘Hamlet,’ and the second is my exposure to the social circles in the capital.”

“…….”

“The more famous I become in the capital’s social circles, the more anxious my uncle will get. ‘Could that young man who suddenly appeared in the Kingdom of Arlo, who lost his memory, really be Ludwig?'”

“That’s right.”

“Now that the head of the Red Crow is asleep, recovering his magical power, there’s no way to curb his rash actions triggered by his anxiety.”

Up to this point, it’s all I knew.

It’s a story we’ve repeated hundreds of times while planning the strategy. But…

“I understand up to that point. But Duke, what you’re doing now is…”

“Romance, isn’t it intriguing? Especially if it’s the romance of a noble young man who has lost all his memory.”

At his words, the mouth I had barely opened closed again.

In the shadow cast by the curtains, Ludwig’s violet eyes stared directly at me.

“As an expert in drama, you know better than anyone. There’s no rumor that spreads as easily as a scandal.”

……True.

If it involves a scandal, descriptions of Ludwig’s appearance would spread more vividly and thoroughly.

I hadn’t thought of that.

Why didn’t I think of that?

I lowered my gaze and bit my lip in self-reproach.

Because of that, I only realized that Ludwig had approached me with quiet steps when his voice reached me from up close.

“Can I be happy about this?”

It was a question that sounded somewhat out of the blue.

I looked up to ask what he meant, but I couldn’t open my mouth easily when I locked eyes with those heart-meltingly beautiful eyes.

“……About what?”

I managed to open my mouth, but I immediately regretted asking. My voice trembled.

Ludwig’s eyes narrowed pleasantly.

“I thought, if it’s you, Countess, you would already know my intentions and accept my actions. But you were taken aback and confused, enough to rush over to find me. So unlike you…”

As he pointed out how my actions must have appeared, my face flushed hotly.

I shaded my eyes with my hand.

Oh, no…

But Ludwig, seemingly oblivious to my embarrassment, continued speaking gently.

“So, that means… you couldn’t judge it purely rationally, right?”

As he said that, he gently lowered my arm.

“Am I shaking you up?”

I had nowhere left to retreat after hearing that. I closed my eyes and counted to three silently. Steadying my breath, I opened my eyes firmly, determined not to be swayed or look away, no matter how beautiful his eyes were, like amethysts.

“Yes, I’m being shaken by you, Your Grace

I vividly remember the sweet kisses we exchanged countless times since the Cordelia audition.

“Honestly, yes, it seems I easily lose my reason when it comes to you. I act foolishly, unlike myself.”

I somehow felt my words quicken. I was careful—very careful—not to let my tongue slip. I couldn’t afford to seem sloppy.

“But!”

I shouted, cutting off my words with force. Ludwig flinched momentarily at my loud voice, which I usually only use on stage. Seeing that reaction, I somehow felt a smile creeping up. But the next moment, I felt hollow again.

“I think now is not the time to be shaken by you, Your Grace.”

“Why not?”

Does he really not know?

“Because we’re doing something monumental!”

“…….”

“If you planned to create a scandal, you should have informed me. I was confused. If I had known it was all part of the plan, I would have…”

“Countess.”

Ludwig cut me off.

“I’m sorry. I think I made you misunderstand.”

“Misunderstand what?”

“The term ‘strategy.’ I chose the wrong word.”

He gently grasped my arms.

“I wanted to treat you specially. That’s just how I felt.”

“…….”

“But it didn’t hurt strategically, so I didn’t hold back. I think this way of putting it is more accurate.”

My heartbeat quickened. I was filled with his violet eyes.

“I like you, Countess.”

“Your Grace…”

“Oh, that just now.”

Ludwig lowered his head and laughed softly. When he looked up again, the smile on his lips was slightly cooler than before.

“You’re calling me that on purpose, right? As if I’m no longer ‘your Roche.'”

“That’s obvious.”

“Why? Just because I’ve returned to being Ludwig, it doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten the memories of being ‘your Roche.’ In fact, I’ve regained all the memories from before the summer.”

His voice, which had been calm, began to speed up, now tinged with heat.

“So now I’m even more ‘Roche’ than before.”

“That’s wordplay.”

I twisted my body slightly and slipped out of his grasp. My heart felt like it would melt, but I pulled myself together and maintained a poker face.

“In Roche’s world, I was everything, Your Grace, because I was the first to jump into his world, which was as blank as a sheet of paper, having lost his memory.”

But that’s not the case for Duke Ludwig.

He has a country to worry about.

Do I have to say this out loud?

While I hesitated, Ludwig spoke first.

“I’m afraid, Countess,” he said, “that the old Countess is acting as if Roche had never existed.”

“…….”

“Countess, do you know what it means that I’ve regained my status?”

Ludwig put his hands behind his back and approached me gently, like he was dancing a waltz. He leaned in slightly to match my eye level, and coming so close, it felt like he would kiss me.

I flinched but didn’t step back.

“Of course, it means I have a nation to take responsibility for…”

His breath touched me.

“But it also means we don’t have to be secret lovers anymore.”

It tickled.

I felt like I had to hold my breath.

“Now we’re on equal footing, aren’t we?”

Perhaps because I was holding my breath, I felt dizzy. I couldn’t tell if I understood his intentions correctly.

I took a step back helplessly.

A gentle arm wrapped around my waist.

“Until Rudolf responds, we need to be as noticeable as possible. So…”

“Your Grace.”

“What is there to hide?”

He smiled dazzlingly.

It felt different from the smile he showed when he was glad to see me outside.

“I’ve been really frustrated all this time, Countess.”