The moment she heard that question, it felt as if time had stopped inside the carriage.
Kisa immediately spat out her answer as soon as she understood the meaning.
“I don’t believe it.”
However, several questions whirled chaotically in her mind.
Did I pronounce it correctly? Did my voice sound normal? Was there an unnatural pause between hearing the question and answering?
‘Did I just lie?’
Did she truly not believe what she had heard about Seyard from Daniel?
That question weighed heavily on her mind, but Kisa soon denied it.
No, it wouldn’t be a lie.
If someone were to ask her which way her heart leaned more, she could confidently answer, “I don’t believe it.”
Even though she knew better than anyone that her heart merely leaned but hadn’t completely fallen, Kisa deliberately ignored this fact.
“I don’t believe it, Seyard.”
Then, as if trying to deny the slightest hint of distrust in her heart, she repeated the same words.
“There’s no way Seyard would be that kind of person. Daniel must have been talking nonsense.”
Her tense gaze turned to the person sitting across from her.
As if hoping for confirmation from his own lips that the answer she had just found was correct.
After a moment, his lips parted.
“Kisa.”
Though it must have been a name he had called dozens of times already, strangely her heart fluttered.
It felt like the beginning of a reprimand for her immaturity in not trusting him completely.
Just as Kisa tightly clenched her fist resting on her knee, Seyard suddenly let out a faint sigh.
“I’m relieved. I was worried you might believe it.”
Fortunately, the emotion reflected on Seyard’s face was relief.
“O-Of course. I don’t believe it.”
Kisa too breathed a sigh of relief. He was the same Seyard as always.
“But truth and lies are cleverly mixed, so others might believe it.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, the person Daniel Lowens claims to have met is probably really from Bonzmos. He might have seen me a few times as well.”
Seyard put his hand on the back of his neck with an embarrassed expression.
“It’s shameful to admit, but the story about me frequenting gambling houses in the past is true. The monastery was too boring for me, and Bonzmos wasn’t a very prosperous area, so there wasn’t much in the way of entertainment or amusement besides alcohol and gambling.”
“That certainly makes sense.”
“After first going with Cobi, on days when I wasn’t in the mood for alcohol or felt awkward drinking during the day, I would spend time at gambling houses. Ah, but not to the extent of becoming addicted to gambling. While watching people was interesting, I never developed much interest in gambling itself.”
At least since she had never come across any articles about Duke Hillan being spotted at a gambling house in the capital, that part seemed to be true.
“Um, who is Cobi?”
When Kisa asked about the unfamiliar name that had just appeared, he kindly explained.
“He was a young man who came in and out of the monastery, taking care of various odd jobs. Though he had somewhat unreliable qualities, his nature was cheerful and optimistic, so he wasn’t someone you could dislike.”
Anyway, he continued.
“I admit that my attitude was poor for someone staying at a monastery, but I find the evaluation of being a ‘thug’ unfair. I decidedly have no memory of bullying ordinary people, breaking the law, or doing bad things.”
Just as she was about to agree with his feelings, Kisa closed her mouth at his next words.
“Above all, the claim that I had a woman I was seeing is completely absurd.”
This was the part of Daniel’s words whose truth she had been most curious about.
“At that time, I was in no position to…”
Just as Kisa swallowed dryly and focused on his words, the carriage came to a stop.
Without noticing, the Duke of Darion’s mansion, today’s destination, was visible through the window.
Having been so immersed in conversation, she hadn’t even noticed that the carriage had entered the grounds.
“Your Grace, we have arrived.”
The coachman who had gotten down from his seat opened the door.
“Um, Seyard…”
Kisa looked back and forth between the wide-open door and Seyard with a bewildered expression.
It was vexing that their conversation had to be interrupted just when important matters were about to be discussed.
But she hesitated to ask him to continue, afraid it might seem like she was paying too much attention to Daniel’s nonsense.
Whether aware of her burning curiosity or not, Seyard gave a slight smile.
“Shall we head out?”
“Yes?”
“There’s still quite some time before the concert begins, so shall we walk through the gardens that the Duke of Darion’s family boasts about in the meantime?”
He had already noticed her inner thoughts and was saying he would tell her the rest of the truth.
“Is that alright? Outside there are people…”
“It’s fine. Surely we can find a private space for a confidential conversation somewhere in such a vast garden.”
Seyard, who had stepped out of the carriage first, extended his hand toward Kisa.
“Yes, let’s go.”
Kisa gladly took his hand.
A few minutes later, the two were walking through a garden where spring flowers bloomed in abundance.
The Duke and Duchess of Darion, who regularly held concerts at their mansion and thus loved art, must also be interested in landscaping, as the scenery was truly beautiful.
Seyard, who had been quietly taking in the surroundings, suddenly spoke.
“With gambling, you only lose your stake, but once a relationship is formed, it’s not so simple.”
The conversation that had been cut off earlier resumed.
“It would be a lie to say I had absolutely no interest in romance or love, but at that time, I was in no position to have a lover. If I loved a woman, I would naturally want to spend my life with her, which would increase the possibility of having children. That was a luxury I couldn’t afford.”
Kisa silently listened to his words.
“My family didn’t expect me to become a devout monk at the monastery, but the reason they sent me there, of all places, was because they hoped I wouldn’t start a family like a monk would. One seed of misfortune was enough.”
The Hillan family didn’t want to risk complicating the succession structure because of Seyard’s children.
“It’s true that I went through an embarrassing period of wandering due to my resentment toward my family and rebellion against the old-fashioned ways of the monastery. However, I swear I never formed connections that I couldn’t take responsibility for.”
He stopped walking and met Kisa’s gaze.
“I would like you to believe this one thing.”
His eyes were so sincere that it was impossible to think he was lying.
“If I really had a lover, my family would have noticed first and sent me to a different region. Or they might have even imprisoned me.”
But thinking that Kisa wouldn’t easily believe him, he added a few more words with an awkward look.
“If you were to ask that person from Bonzmos whom Daniel Lowens met about who the woman I was seeing was, they wouldn’t be able to answer. Because there was no such person.”
He seemed strangely flustered, unlike the usually composed Seyard.
“People are really too much. Just because I secluded myself in the mountains after getting tired of gambling, they spread such rumors. Well, perhaps I’m partly responsible too. Even though I knew there were rumors about me having a woman, I was too bothered to actively explain. Back then, I didn’t want to interact with others due to my rebellious spirit—”
“Seyard.”
Kisa gently tugged at his sleeve, bringing his reddish-brown eyes, which had been directed at the ground, back to her.
“You don’t need to say more.”
Unlike before, she could now say with confidence.
“No matter what others say, I believe you.”
After a moment of silence, he smiled somewhat wearily and thanked her.
“I hope you’ll continue to believe me in the future as well.”
Late spring petals fell on the man’s head as he spoke those words.
Afterward, Kisa and Seyard briefly discussed how to respond to Daniel’s scheme before the concert started.
“I’ll make my own preparations for any contingency, so don’t worry.”
“Alright. I will absolutely not respond if Daniel tries to arrange a meeting.”
“It would indeed be better not to get involved from the start. However, if you ever want to speak with that person, I won’t stop you.”
“What? I don’t want to at all. I believe in you, Seyard.”
“…Thank you for saying that.”
Though he didn’t show it, Seyard seemed secretly pleased when Kisa declared this.
Soon Kisa could understand why he had said that.
From his perspective, it would probably be difficult to strongly demand that Kisa not meet the witness Daniel was bringing.
It might look like he was trying to preemptively block the possibility because he had something to hide.
Though she understood his feelings, Kisa wished Seyard would just honestly tell her not to meet with them.
‘Sometimes he’s like this.’
While he would readily step in and help with Kisa’s matters, he tended to be defensive about his own affairs.
How should she put it? It seemed like he didn’t have much faith in the goodwill directed toward him.
Thinking about it, he had experienced being abandoned by his family early on, so it made sense.
If Kisa had gone through the same childhood as him, she would probably have become an even darker person.
Just as her heart suddenly swelled with emotion and she felt admiration for Seyard who had grown up so admirably despite his unfortunate environment—
“I see Duke Hillan here!”
A man appeared before the two who were about to head back to the townhouse.
“It’s been a long time.”
When Seyard greeted him familiarly, the man showed great interest in Kisa as well.
“So this is the rumored fiancée. She’s as beautiful as they say.”
“The engagement ceremony has not yet taken place. Kisa, you can go inside first if you’d like.”
“Yes, I’ll see you later then.”
Sensing that if she stayed, she would be bothered with various questions for quite some time, Kisa accepted Seyard’s consideration and headed toward the mansion.
But it wasn’t long before she had to question whether that was the wrong choice.
“Oh my, Lady Vansfelt.”
She encountered two women who pursed their lips meaningfully upon seeing Kisa.
They were attendees of the princess’s tea party.
