As soon as morning broke, news spread throughout the Grand Duke’s residence that the master of the mansion had returned.
It was because of this that Sienna, who was heading to the Grand Duke’s office as usual, abruptly changed her plans. While she was pacing in her room, unable to decide what to do upon hearing the sudden news, an invitation came from Declan to join him for breakfast.
Sienna chose the most presentable clothes she could find and headed to the indoor garden.
The indoor garden of the Grand Duke’s residence, which maintained early spring temperatures year-round, welcomed her with its usual peaceful atmosphere. Declan was sitting alone at the table, having dismissed the servants to a distance. Upon seeing Sienna, he stood up and personally pulled out a chair for her.
Afterward, they exchanged unremarkable greetings. Facing the Grand Duke reminded her suddenly of what had happened in Jeremiah’s room.
Her discomfort doubled.
‘I heard he’d be gone for about a week, but I never expected him to return so early.’
However, it seemed she was the only one conscious of such matters. Declan behaved like a gentleman, as if he had completely forgotten about that incident. Even that gentlemanly behavior appeared disagreeable to her eyes.
Soon after, food began appearing on the table one by one.
Sienna glanced down at it. A series of easily digestible foods appeared, including a salad mixed with grapefruit and yuzu, and nuts drizzled with maple syrup.
She unconsciously swallowed. Although she didn’t usually eat breakfast regularly, she did enjoy these types of foods as they didn’t upset her stomach.
Meanwhile, Sienna failed to notice that the Grand Duke’s household breakfast was peculiarly tailored to her dietary preferences.
“Have you experienced any inconveniences during your stay?”
“Not at all. I’m just grateful that everyone has been so kind to me.”
Sienna replied quietly with a smile on her face.
“Even though I must be an unwelcome guest.”
Her additional comment was clearly intended to provoke him, but Declan chose not to respond. As the silence lengthened, Sienna’s gaze grew slightly sharp.
“I am curious though. Why did you bring me here?”
She had experienced too much to accept kindness without suspicion.
“After all, you have everything to lose, don’t you? Personally accommodating someone who was involved in a scandal at the Grand Duke’s residence.”
“You seem to have forgotten one thing. Before being someone involved in a scandal, wouldn’t it be more accurate to say you were someone I proposed to?”
At his monotone voice, Sienna’s face, which had been sneering until just now, stiffened sourly. Instead of continuing the argument, Declan moved a bowl full of fruit in front of her.
“Please eat.”
Sienna’s gaze fell to the bowl pushed in front of her. As she just stared at it quietly, he reached out and personally handed her a fork.
“I heard you often skip meals.”
“I know you took me into the Grand Duke’s residence by the Emperor’s order.”
Finally, Declan’s gaze turned directly toward Sienna. She smirked.
“Until when are you supposed to monitor me? Until a suitable marriage prospect appears?”
“How would I know His Majesty’s intentions?”
Answering indifferently, Declan poured more tea into Sienna’s empty cup.
“But I suppose it’s up to what Her Highness the Princess decides.”
“What do you mean it’s up to me?”
“Exactly what I said. If Her Highness finds a way other than the Imperial Palace and Monferrato, it could end regardless of His Majesty’s plans.”
Sienna quickly lost interest in such obvious talk. She returned to her expressionless face and stabbed a walnut in the salad with her fork.
It was when the walnut had just entered her mouth that he spoke again.
“For instance, overturning the late Emperor’s will.”
No sooner had the gentle voice flowed out than Sienna choked. Her sporadic coughing broke through the peaceful morning atmosphere.
Only after hastily drinking the water Declan poured did her coughing subside. Nevertheless, her startled heart refused to calm down.
Could Theodore have told him?
She tried to deny it first.
“W-what are you suddenly saying……”
“Exactly what I said.”
His smooth voice cut off her words. His well-shaped lips suddenly twisted sardonically.
“Ah, perhaps I should have continued pretending not to know?”
“……”
“It would be quite troublesome if others caught you searching through my office.”
Sienna’s face burned red. Declan watched her reaction with an amused expression.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
“…Not yet.”
When he chuckled, Sienna’s gaze sharpened.
“Are you going to report this to the Emperor? Or perhaps the Grand Duke will personally drag me back to the Capital?”
“My goodness.”
He let out a hollow laugh as if he couldn’t bear to listen anymore.
“You don’t trust me, Your Highness.”
“How could I trust you?”
Despite her growling response, Declan showed no sign of being offended and rested his chin on one hand. Their eyes met at an oblique angle. Sienna felt uncomfortable with his downward-gazing eyes focused on her.
Declan asked in almost a whisper.
“Perhaps because you have someone else to trust?”
“Whatever it may be, isn’t it none of your business?”
When she drew a firm line, Declan’s relaxed expression slightly hardened.
“I suppose you’re right.”
He admitted readily and leaned his upper body back against the chair.
He no longer felt particularly dejected by how she would act casually with a foreigner from another country while constantly showing wariness and hostility toward him.
He understood it intellectually. That he was far removed from the safe zone she had established for herself.
It was an unavoidable fact.
This was separate from the fact that Sienna was always his top priority. Nor could he force himself upon her. Didn’t he already know what results such actions would bring? This time had to be different.
So rather than pushing urgently, he should let her enter his territory on her own.
“I would like to make a proposal to Your Highness.”
“A proposal…?”
Sienna asked again to confirm if she had heard the word correctly. Declan nodded. Sienna stared at him, speechless.
What kind of situation is this now?
As her face became clouded with confusion, he slowly began to speak.
“My family.”
Even after opening his mouth, he seemed reluctant and let out a long silent sigh. It wasn’t easy to reveal a fact he had kept hidden for so long.
“They weren’t killed in a carriage accident, but by someone’s scheme.”
Sienna’s eyes wavered uneasily before falling downward. Declan quietly observed this.
“It was the late Emperor.”
There was no response.
“He believed that my father had an affair with Your Highness’s mother.”
“So.”
Sienna raised her gaze again. Her reddened eyes stood out particularly on her pale face.
“Are you trying to blame me?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Declan answered without showing any sign of surprise at the expected reaction.
From the beginning, this was merely a plausible excuse. His real purpose was simply to help Sienna find the will and reclaim what was hers. Seeking revenge for his family’s grudge was closer to being an excuse.
“At the time, the Princess was merely a child. You are not the one who should feel responsible for that incident.”
Sienna’s eyes wavered greatly at his added words.
“Moreover, it wasn’t even true to begin with.”
“What do you mean… it wasn’t true?”
“My father certainly frequented the Imperial Palace, but he always left for Monferrato with his colleagues. If there had been any improper conduct… there would have been at least one witness.”
While rumors spread widely that the carriage accident stemmed from their affair, there was actually no evidence to support such claims. Far from witnesses, the nobles who still remembered that time found the rumor questionable.
It was true that the Grand Duke’s family had frequent interactions with Empress Melophe during her lifetime.
His father and the Empress were almost like siblings, with an extremely close relationship. Would the late Emperor not have known this fact?
Perhaps his irrational obsession with Empress Melophe clouded his judgment. However, there were certainly aspects that couldn’t be explained by that alone.
“It’s highly likely that someone made false accusations. After all, it would allow them to check both the Grand Duke of Monferrato’s family and the Duke of Ricata’s family at once.”
Sienna, who had been listening quietly, slowly opened her mouth.
“You suspect Count Lowell.”
Declan affirmed with his silence.
Among the great noble families of the continent, only one family remained besides Monferrato and Ricata – the Duke of Lowell’s family. Moreover, since the Duke of Lowell was known for his great ambition, it wasn’t difficult to understand the circumstances.
“But how did you, Grand Duke, know that the will had been tampered with?”
“Not long after I returned from Lopwell, His Majesty personally ordered me. To find the other copy of the will.”
“……”
“This was before Your Highness returned to the Capital, so I still had some trust remaining. Although after the banquet, he completely lost faith in me.”
Declan added detailed explanations, hoping she might let go of her suspicions. A bitter laugh escaped through Sienna’s lips as she quietly listened to the whole story.
So it was all true after all.
She was dumbfounded as truths she had been completely unaware of in her previous life surfaced one by one.
While she felt dejected about her past self struggling from an irrelevant position without knowing these facts, the revelation that Declan wasn’t on the Emperor’s side was a great relief to her.
Her clear eyes, now less dark than before, turned toward him.
“But this is different.”
Her following words were firm.
