“What makes Brantley so special to you?” I asked.
Talot’s eyes gleamed at my question.
“When you see him bravely charge forward and take down enemies, no man could help but fall in love. He was so magnificent. Sigh…”
Talot sighed in ecstasy just from reminiscing.
“And that’s not all. When the mercenary group was in danger, he always sacrificed himself to get us through. We owe him our lives multiple times.”
I bit my lip.
‘Brantley went through more hardships than I thought.’
My heart ached thinking about him fighting life-and-death battles every day.
Talot continued, “We’re all so devoted to him, but he never opened up to us. It always seemed like his mind was elsewhere. He didn’t even tell us his name, so we only knew him as the ‘Dark Moon.’ The mystery only made him more appealing…”
“Talot, that’s enough. Leave. I need to escort the Princess,” Brantley said, in embarrassment.
“I’ll follow you without being noticed!” Talot insisted stubbornly and then disappeared.
“So he can hide. He must have revealed himself to catch your attention, Brantley.”
“…Let’s go inside.”
When we entered the cafe, a staff member recognized me and guided us to where the Duchess Moltke was waiting.
Murmer
As we walked to our table, I noticed the unusually intense stares directed at me.
‘What’s going on?’
When I turned my head, everyone quickly averted their eyes.
“Hanelope, come on over.”
The Duchess greeted me warmly as we arrived at the table.
“I’m not late, am I?”
“Of course not. I just arrived early.”
On the table were some desserts, tea, and a book she had ordered.
“Were you reading while waiting?”
“Yes, I was….”
The Duchess replied awkwardly, hastily hiding a newspaper under the book. But I had already noticed the strangeness.
“People were staring at me when I came in.”
“Were they?”
“They’re still glancing at me. Did something happen?”
The Duchess hesitated, then sighed and put the hidden newspaper back on the table.
“It’s because of these d*mn articles.”
My eyes widened when I saw the headline.
< Berg and the Eastern Empire to Form a Marriage Alliance After 100 Years! The candidates in question are Second Prince Gallota and Princess Hanelope >
Gallota’s marriage proposal was swiftly rejected by my grandfather.
Who on earth could have published this? The report was even worse than the title…
< Duke Eisen, who was reportedly present at the negotiation, said, “The marriage alliance proposal is true. While nothing is decided yet, the alliance is likely to happen.” He also expressed his hopeful outlook, saying, “This is a crucial alliance for Berg. Through this, we might even export the Morning Glories to the Eastern Empire.” >
“This is absurd.”
“Duke Eisen has indeed caused another mess.”
The Duchess slammed the newspaper onto the table in anger.
“Dispose of this.”
She requested Brantley. He nodded politely and instantly burned the newspaper with magic. The intensity of the fire even surprised the Duchess.
“Done.”
“Oh..I- I see. T- Thank you.”
Brantley gave a cold stare at the murmuring nobles, making them quickly turn away and quiet down.
‘Why did Duke Eisen give this interview?’
He knew my grandfather would never approve of the marriage alliance.
‘Is he thinking about making a profit out of it?’
He is the largest investor in Morning Glories currently. These flowers brought him a fortune and expanded his influence.
‘But the Eastern Empire is still upset about the leaked cultivation method of Glories. There’s no possibility of exporting.’
So, there must be another motive.
‘Who would want to send me away?’
Suddenly, Yenna’s face came to mind.
“Did Her HIghness graduate early? So, she’s not going back?”
I did sense Yenna didn’t want me back. I also suspected that she had feelings for my father.
‘But Yenna is close to Prince Patrick. So, I was unsure.’
If she had feelings for my father, she might want to get rid of me, his daughter.
‘But this is too extreme of a method, isn’t it?’
It’s not surprising for someone like Yenna, who is with the Great Temple, to team up with Duke Eisen, who supports the Temple faction.
As I pondered, someone strode up to our table.
“It’s been a while, Duchess, Your Highness.”
I couldn’t believe my ears. Why did he have to come at the exact moment?
As I slowly looked up, I heard Duchess Moltke’s disdainful voice.
“Is there any reason for us to meet? Duke Eisen.”
Duke Eisen narrowed his eyes and glared at the Duchess. Thanks to his fortune, he didn’t meet anyone who would dismiss him. But the Duchess had nothing to lose.
Since offering the Mount Paro to the Emperor, the Moltke family received money only from projects within their domain. She harbored ill feelings towards Duke Eisen from past events.
The Duchess snorted and took a sip of her tea.
Oddly, despite his usual temper, Duke Eisen didn’t leave our table.
Brantley watched him with a sharp gaze like a hawk.
“I had business nearby and made to stop by your table.”
“If you’re busy, then it would’ve been better not to greet us at all. I understand, though. When one’s heart is filled with greed, they might lack basic manners.”
Duke Eisen’s lips trembled with anger.
He forced a smile and extended something towards us.
The surrounding murmurs grew louder.
“Oh my! Isn’t that the ?”
‘The Spotted Emperor,’ was another hybrid. It was a Morning Glory with iridescent blue petals speckled with black dots.
It was considered too precious to handle bare-handed, Duke Eisen held it with white gloves.
“That’s the most expensive variant of Morning Glory.”
“They say it’s so hard to cultivate, there are less than ten in the market.”
“Oh my, seeing it in person! Today must be my lucky day.”
A rare variant that had everyone buzzing.
Duke Eisen extended the flower right under my nose. Its cloying, sweet fragrance filled the air like overripe fruit. I wrinkled my nose at the sickly sweet scent.
“A gift for Your Highness.”
“A gift, all of a sudden?”
“Yes. A wedding gift.”
Duke Eisen’s lips curled into a sinister smile.
The fragrance was making my head throb.
“It seems the gift has found the wrong owner. I have no plans to get married.”
“It’s just not officially decided ‘yet’.”
Duke Eisen deliberately piqued the curiosity of those around us.
I smiled brightly and said, “I knew you had an artistic side, Duke, but I didn’t know you wrote fiction too.”
“What?”
“I read your story in today’s paper. It was quite surprising. I don’t recall giving you permission to use me as a fictional character.”
I pushed the flower away firmly.
The overpowering scent seemed to smother my fingertips.
“How unpleasant!”
“What kind of behavior is this!” Duke Eisen snapped.
I remained unbothered and asked, “What are you scheming?”
“Scheming? What does Her Highness’s marriage to the Prince of the Eastern Empire have to do with me?”
“If rumors spread that Morning Glories might be exported back to the Eastern Empire, its price will skyrocket. Are you spreading false rumors for profit?”
“!”
Duke Eisen’s eyes widened.
I had hit the mark.
Duchess Moltke laughed in disbelief. “Spreading false rumors to inflate prices? The flower market has truly fallen far. Duke Eisen, how much longer do you plan to mooch off people!”
“Mooch off I…!”
At that moment, the flower in Duke Eisen’s hand suddenly burst into flames. The fire grew so large it almost touched his head.
“H-How?!”
Duke Eisen screamed and flung the burning flower away. The fire was extinguished as soon as the flower left his hand. But the people nearby screamed and scattered, turning the café into chaos.
“Who did this…! What the…!”
Duchess Moltke poured tea over the outraged Duke Eisen. The soaked Duke Eisen looked at the Duchess in disbelief.
“D-Duchess…!”
“Oh dear! I meant to put out the fire.”
“The fire was on the flower, not my face!”
“Well, the fire is out, isn’t it?”
The Duchess replied nonchalantly.
“You…!”
“Your Grace.”
Just as Duke Eisen was about to explode in anger, Brantley quietly spoke to him.
“You should go change out of your wet clothes.”
Duke Eisen flinched and turned around.
A handsome knight in a mask stared at him with chilling eyes.
