Chapter 9
Attending the banquet in this manner, I unexpectedly faced a dilemma and couldn’t even catch my breath.
After exchanging greetings and brief conversations with the Duke, the only sound filling the restaurant’s silence was the clinking of dishes.
‘I noticed earlier, Rachel seems quite distant with the Duke.’
It seems like the gatekeeper and I would get along better…
Between the chilly breeze blowing, I wiped the sweat off my forehead, feeling a heavy sense of responsibility, breaking the silence.
“Um… thanks to the Duke’s permission today, I had a good outing in the village. It seems like the Lady also enjoyed it.”
Although Rachel didn’t even make a similar comment, I roughly twisted it to my liking.
Fortunately, Rachel didn’t bother correcting me, and the Duke showed interest in my words.
“Oh? Where did you go?”
“Since it was your first time in the village and time was tight for a full tour, I took you to the back hill.”
“The back hill? Why there?”
“You can see the whole village at a glance from the top!”
The Duke seemed slightly surprised by my answer, staring at me intently before nodding.
“To come up with the best way to tour the village in a short time, quite impressive.”
“Well, it wouldn’t be polite to keep the Duke waiting at the dining table.”
I mumbled, sneakily glancing at the Duke’s reaction.
While the Duke listened to what Rachel and I did today, he didn’t spare a glance towards Rachel.
‘No, his granddaughter went out for the first time in a while! Doesn’t he even ask if she had a good time?’
Watching the distant relationship between the stern granddaughter and the Duke, I added one more word.
“Next time, Duke, you should come to the village with the Lady and me!”
Hoping to bring the two closer together and for the Duke to take an interest in Rachel.
But…
“If time permits.”
The Duke glanced at Rachel, who quietly focused on her meal with indifference in his eyes.
‘The conversation came to an end, followed by another suffocating silence.’
This time, I observed Rachel closely.
Seemingly accustomed to the silence, Rachel solely concentrated on her meal.
“Rachel doesn’t seem to follow the nanny so closely.”
Could it be that, being the only family left, she relies on the nanny due to her strained relationship with her grandfather?
“But the nanny doesn’t seem like a particularly good person.”
Certainly not to me either.
And above all… even if she has a nanny, getting closer to family might be more beneficial for Rachel’s emotional well-being.
Maybe it could prevent a gloomy future.
“If I knew why things are awkward between Rachel and the Duke, I could help bring them closer.”
To find out, I’ll have to engage in more conversations with both of them.
As I pondered how to continue the conversation with the two of them, the butler quietly entered the dining room.
“Your Grace.”
“What’s the matter?”
After a moment of hesitation, the butler responded with a troubled tone, “An inspector has arrived from the Royal Palace.”
Dias neatly packed the last loaf of bread into a bag.
The woman who had been admiring his face smiled as she accepted the bag he handed her.
“See you again tomorrow, Dias.”
“Thank you as always, Madam Enri.”
As Dias left the shop, he turned back and flashed a warm smile at the woman customer looking at him.
With the last customer purchasing all remaining bread, today’s business concluded earlier than usual.
Vivian had just finished dinner, thinking of having a simple meal.
As she prepared to close the shop, a bell rang on the door.
Before Dias, who was about to speak to the customer, could turn to face them, he realized that the person behind him was not a customer.
Through years of training, he could instinctively tell without looking.
“Are you Dias Hessen, Vivian Hessen’s father?” asked the visitors, with the emblem of the Royal Knights on their arms, a familiar symbol to him.
Dias’ gaze wavered as he wondered if they knew Vivian’s true identity.
He discreetly moved a bread knife nearby behind his back, showing great skill in his actions.
“What brings you here?” he asked.
The man who seemed to be the leader of the group approached Dias at the counter.
“I am Curtis Rohan, a knight of the Royal Knights. I would like to see my daughter for a moment, is she home?”
As Vivian’s name was mentioned by the knight, Dias’ expression turned cold behind his glasses.
He tightened his grip on the knife, readying himself.
“Why do you seek my daughter from the Royal Palace?” he inquired.
Fortunately, their purpose seemed to be related to Lady Edelvine rather than Vivian.
Regardless, Dias did not want to reveal Vivian to the knights.
He needed to get rid of them before Vivian returned.
“I’m sorry, but Vivian is not at home right now,” he started to say, but was interrupted by Vivian’s sudden arrival.
“I’m back!”
Feeling energised, I entered and paused.
“What’s going on here?”
Several dishevelled men were surrounding Dad in a tense situation!
Though I didn’t know the details, I could instinctively sense that it was a serious situation.
As I was still trying to grasp the situation, a man who seemed to be in charge approached me.
“Are you Vivian?” he asked with a smile, but I knew better.
People who only smile with their mouths like that should be careful!
I cautiously faced the man, prepared to run for help if needed.
“Yes, that’s correct?”
“We are the royal knights who have received the emperor’s orders.”
Only then did I notice the emblem embroidered on the man’s left sleeve.
‘That is…’
It was the royal crest my father had shown me once.
[If you see someone wearing clothes with this emblem, stay as far away as possible, Bibi.]
My father always advised me to avoid encounters with royal knights and nobles whenever possible.
Even though there are good nobles, the bad ones might try to punish me even if I haven’t done anything wrong.
The closer they are to the emperor, the harsher the punishment they might deliver.
At that moment, I recalled the situation at the villa a while ago.
The stiff expressions of the Marquis and Rachel upon hearing that an inspector had come to the palace.
‘These people are here to monitor Rachel.’
They heard about Rachel being my playmate and now they are trying to dig up information about her through me.
“I have a few questions I’d like to ask. Would it be okay to step outside and talk?”
Just then, my father, who had approached us, enveloped me in his arms.
“Let’s talk here.”
The commander’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Surely, as a royal knight, I wouldn’t kidnap a child?”
“It seems like you’re still unmarried, so please understand a parent’s concern for their daughter. I ask for your understanding.”
“Listen, the words that come out of my mouth as a knight of the emperor carry his authority. Defying me is akin to treason.”
Despite the commander’s intimidating threat, my father seemed unwilling to let me go.
Watching the tense atmosphere between them, I nervously swallowed.
‘I’m sure if they fight, Dad will lose…’
Our father, though healthy, is a fool when it comes to fighting!
‘As expected, I have to protect Dad.’
Before the situation could escalate further, I quickly intervened.
“W-what are you talking about?”
“I heard you are the princess’s playmate. I thought of asking a few questions about the princess.”
As expected, the men approached me with an investigative air.
‘But as Rachel’s friend, I can’t pass information to the emperor’s side.’
I looked at them and inwardly smirked.
‘These men don’t seem to be married yet.’
Talking to a nine-year-old like this, how ridiculous!
