As if he meant it, Julion ordered Freck to bring in a new couch.
“Get something sturdier than this.”
However, Freck, looking flustered, approached Julion.
“Your Highness, there are no new sofas sturdier than this one in the palace right now. I’ll have to order one from a furniture store.”
“…Then, when would be the earliest we could get it?”
“Even with an express order, it would take at least a week. Since this sofa was remarkably sturdy…”
Freck responded with a melancholic look, gazing at the sofa armrest brutally torn off.
After a moment of silence, Julion spoke casually.
“Then bring the one from my office here.”
“……?”
“The sofa in my office is sturdier than this. It’s not brand new, but it’s good for temporary use.”
Freck, unsure how to react, let out a subtle smile.
I, finding the conversation increasingly bizarre, spoke up.
“Never mind. It’s not like we need a couch that badly. Let’s just wait.”
I wondered why the conversation had suddenly turned to the couch. Trying to sip my tea again with a sigh, Julion, still emphasizing the importance of the sofa, continued talking.
“No, that won’t do. Since I’m the one who broke it, I should take responsibility. Freck, bring it now.”
“Oh, okay.”
In the end, Freck disappeared to fetch the sofa, and I let out a wry laugh.
“No, really, I’m fine…”
“Not having a sofa here is not fine. Where am I supposed to work without it?”
“Why are you working here? You should work in your own office.”
It was a straightforward statement, but Julion paused and blinked slowly, as if pondering deeply.
Then, as if something had occurred to him, his eyes sparkled.
“We still have a lot to discuss, don’t we?”
“……I suppose we do.”
“And with Ares not around, I feel more at ease if I’m close.”
“This is the imperial palace… What danger could there be? Besides, there are many knights in Garnet Palace. They are all people you sent, right?”
“I’m better than a hundred of them.”
“No, that’s not what I meant…”
Why is he suddenly like this?
He acts as if he would lose his mind if he couldn’t stay at Garnet Palace.
‘Do I look that anxious?’
This was a change after being sick a few times. Even after repeatedly saying I’m fine, he doesn’t seem to believe it, which is frustrating.
“When Ares returns, I’ll go back to my palace.”
Julion added somewhat timidly.
Since I was the one who insisted on sending Ares, I finally backed down.
“……Okay, then.”
Upon my approval, Freck, who was waiting outside, brought in the sofa.
Certainly, it looked bigger and sturdier than my original one.
Watching the sofa with its armrest torn off being discarded, I couldn’t help but think of Ares, who used to complain about everything.
“By the way, he should be arriving soon.”
“What are you talking about?”
Julion, who was giving various instructions while the sofa was being placed, asked.
Taking another sip of tea, I replied,
“I mean, Sir Ares. He should have arrived in Liliana’s territory by now.”
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
Since Duke Cassian’s visit, Liliana has been on edge.
Even the servants were having a hard time trying to match her mood, especially the butler.
“The garden doesn’t suit my taste.”
“Yes, my lady. I’ll change it.”
The gardener spent the night sprucing up the garden.
“There’s a scratch on the table.”
“I’ll replace it.”
Even the top-quality furniture that arrived last month,
“What’s this on the dress? It looks tacky.”
“I’ll get a new one, my lady.”
Even the dress that was custom-made by a famous designer that cost a fortune. Everything was being disposed of with Liliana’s single word.
Until that day, an urgent message came from the mansion’s entrance.
“My lady, Lady Yeffa, has come to visit!”
Liliana’s irritation reached a fever pitch.
“What the……!”
This is ridiculous. She had been told that Roxis was taking her away. She’d been told the same thing by one of her spies at the palace.
They said that while heading south, Yeffa was attacked by unidentified individuals and escaped.
“Why is she in my territory?”
Considering her father’s firm order to protect her, it seemed unlikely that Roxis would carelessly take care of Yeffa.
Liliana sighed irritably.
“Everything is so bothersome. Bring her inside for now.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Watching the servant politely step back, Lilliana nervously picked up some documents and threw them. The butler standing by her side had a premonition of another turbulent day.
It seemed like it wouldn’t be an easy day again.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
[Remember. The only place you can turn to is where Liliana is. You must go there.]
[You said father abandoned me. Isn’t it dangerous to go to Liliana?]
[That order was given only to Roxis. Liliana hopes to become the rightful successor, surpassing Roxis. Do you think she will help Roxis carry out the order effectively?]
It was a ploy to take advantage of the subtle war between Liliana and Roxis.
It sounded plausible, but there was one concern.
[But in the end, Liliana won’t be able to defy Father’s words. She may hide me for now, but later she’ll have to…….]
[Before that happens, you will fall into my hands again, by all means].
At first, it was hard to believe how she could make such a bold statement.
But Yeffa was forced to believe.
“Yes, I was able to escape by taking advantage of the attack.”
Everything in Rohiriel’s speculation aligns.
“That’s right. Rottie helped me. And this.”
Yeffa pulled out a neatly folded letter from her bosom.
It was a letter from Rohiriel, asking to deliver it to Lilliana as soon as they met.
“Rottie asked me to pass it on.”
Holding the letter, Liliana skimmed the surface before tearing it open.
Rohiriel’s seal was imprinted and sealed with wax.
“Interesting.”
It was the first time they exchanged letters. And it was a letter delivered through Yeffa, of all people.
Liliana, with one corner of her mouth raised, tore open the letter.
There were no common greetings, only one concise sentence.
<Father has already decided on the next duke.>
It seemed like an ordinary message, but not for Liliana.
The letter was crumpled in her hands and fell to the floor.
It was unbelievable information. Information she didn’t want to believe.
If it had already been decided, what had all her efforts been for?
‘Is he stubbornly making that idiot Roxis the duke?’
Because he’s the son?
Was that why she was being pushed back despite having better achievements?
Liliana’s mind was filled with endless thoughts.
She didn’t want to believe the information, but Rohiriel was always one to gather information discreetly.
Perhaps she was sending this letter because she had somehow found a route.
The question was why she was doing this, and why she was giving her this information.
Liliana asked.
“Why would Rohiriel be helping you? You two never got along.”
“Oh, that’s because…”
After rolling her eyes once, Yeffa answered,
“She hates Roxis. She hates him so much she can’t stand the thought of her becoming a Duke.”
“Is it because of that woman, her nanny, or whatever? You’re involved in that too.”
“I’m only slightly involved! I just said one word, that’s all.”
Yeffa seemed to think it wasn’t a big deal, but from Liliana’s perspective, it was just as bad.
Roxis directly killed Rohiriel’s nanny, but Yeffa was the one who revealed her hiding place. Furthermore, going back, the order came from their father.
Everything was connected, yet it was strange that Rohiriel focused only on hating Roxis.
“Maybe… is it because I didn’t get directly involved in that incident?”
So Yeffa will be dealt with eventually, and her goal is to get rid of Roxis and then their father?
Thinking this far, the crazed Liliana sneered.
Even though she hadn’t had a hand in the nanny incident, she had been involved in something worse.
“How foolish.”
No matter how much she tries to seek revenge, it will all end in vain.
She was blindly chasing after something without even knowing who her true enemy was.
Liliana’s mood seemed to lift again after its recent dip.
“Did you call me stupid?”
Yeffa’s eyes widened, still unable to comprehend the situation.
Liliana looked at her sister and thought.
She’s going to die soon anyway. I’m going to make herself useful until the end.
“First of all, get some rest. You’ve had a long day.”
“…… Okay, thanks, sis.”
“It’s nothing. We’re sisters, right? We should help each other when times are tough.”
“Are you not going to report to Father?”
“Of course not; how could I?”
Liliana smiled sweetly and motioned for Yeffa to go to an empty room.
After all, her father’s orders to Roxis were to secure Yeffa, not kill her.
If she keeps her, Roxis would fail his mission. Then he would be completely out of their father’s sight, and she could pretend to have found Yeffa and bring her back to him, and everything would be perfect.
Rohiriel had probably sent her here because she knew she couldn’t refuse.
‘Even if this is poisoned, I’ll take it.’
It was clear that Rohiriel was up to something.
But whatever the poison is, Liliana was confident she would not be affected.
‘I’m sorry, Rohiriel, but it won’t work the way you want it to. I don’t know. Maybe I’ll give you Roxis and Yeffa if you bend over and beg before me.’
Liliana hummed as she imagined the stiffening Rohiriel coming in front of her.
