“That’s right.”
At those words, I unconsciously covered my mouth. Now that I think about it, could that be? It was something I had never considered at all.
Regression had become so natural. As I fell into deep thought, Carlothian made me lift my head.
And with a light peck on my lips, he said,
“So don’t take it lightly.”
“…I understand.”
As I nodded, as if I understood, he finally relaxed his expression. I gently placed my finger on his brow and rubbed it, smoothing it out.
“So don’t make such a scary face.”
“I wasn’t.”
“Just now, you looked like a devil coming up from hell.”
“There’s no such thing as hell.”
“That’s not what I meant. We’re not having a fundamental conversation about that.”
As I grumbled, he covered me with a sheet and stood up.
“Just rest for now. I’ll handle things after I receive a detailed report.”
“Oh, you hadn’t received a detailed report before coming here?”
So he came right away after hearing I was attacked? That’s a bit touching.
‘Hmm, still, as a duke, work must come first. Am I thinking too incorrectly about the order of things?’
While I scratched my head, Carlothian went out the door, and the waiting Sir Maicher greeted him.
I could hear voices coming from outside the door. It seemed he didn’t want to leave me alone and was receiving the report right in front of the door.
I slowly closed my eyes. It seemed I was more shocked than I thought, as my heart was pounding loudly. Thankfully, the treatment was quick.
I clenched my hands tightly in front of my chest. Then I curled up and whispered to myself.
‘Let’s forget that sensation. Let’s forget it quickly.’
To forget the feeling of slicing human flesh, I deliberately tried to fall asleep.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
Carlothian’s face after closing the door was extremely cold. It was as if his sharply chiseled features were covered in ice.
The expression he showed to Ariadeline was different from this one. Maicher thought. Carlothian was very angry.
“The coachman?”
“He is currently being pursued.”
“Was there anything strange about Index?”
“He didn’t do anything particularly noticeable. However…”
Maicher searched his memory.
“He was one of those spreading strange rumors about Lady Ariadeline in Anrize and also one of the four who directly insulted her.”
At this, Carlothian frowned.
“Is that so?”
“Perhaps it’s my fault for not reporting that in detail. Still, I thought it wouldn’t matter since he showed a lot of remorse afterward.”
Maicher bit his lip tightly. This was clearly his mistake.
“It seems there was an intention behind linking Miss Ariadeline and me to spread bad rumors.”
“Is that so?”
“Now that we know he’s a spy, we need to suspect all of his actions. We need to track him down based on that.”
The Duke of Denaves family is a house with many unseen enemies. Especially, those who want to undermine him are overflowing in high society.
The number of those trying to hurt him out of light jealousy and hatred is even greater.
“First, allocate more personnel to track the coachman.”
“Understood.”
“What about Index’s corpse?”
“It has been taken to the basement of the annex.”
“Examine the corpse closely.”
“Yes.”
“How long has the coachman been working here?”
“It’s been about three years.”
“It’s clear he’s in cahoots, but seeing that he fled without helping, it seems unlikely he’s connected to the cause of this incident.”
“We’ll know once we bring him in.”
Carlothian thought deeply. Why was it specifically Ariadeline? The target was now Ariadeline, who was merely a sinner, not him.
“Maicher, guard the room.”
“Yes.”
Carlothian slowly walked toward his office. It was certainly strange.
Ariadeline had never been targeted like this during their marriage.
Basically, there had been no forces attempting to assassinate Ariadeline.
Suddenly, Carlothian recalled Anrize. Now that he thought about it, they had targeted Ariadeline back then as well.
What was the reason for targeting her then?
That’s right. It was because of the holy relic. Carlothian concluded that this incident was likely caused by the holy relic as well.
It was the most likely scenario.
However, if that were the case, the number of suspects would increase even more, extending into realms he could not comprehend.
There were countless individuals targeting the holy relic. The point to note here is that Index was convinced that Ariadeline possessed the relic.
‘Now that I think about it, Index wasn’t one of the individuals who participated in the relic search that day.’
But how could he have known? No, Carlothian, Maicher, and Ariadeline hadn’t mentioned anything about the relic to the knights afterward.
As Carlothian reached his office, he attempted to open the door. At that moment, someone called out to him from the end of the hallway.
“Duke!”
It was one of the knights who had gone to investigate Index’s corpse.
“We didn’t find anything unusual about the corpse, but…”
“What is it?”
“There was a deep cut on the thigh.”
At those words, Carlothian frowned. The thigh was definitely the same area where the suspicious man he had met at the temple was injured.
‘Then that means that man was Index.’
In that case, it makes sense that he was confident Ariadeline had the relic.
He had attacked Ariadellin as soon as she found the relic.
‘He might have known that the relic had been absorbed into Ariadeline’s body.’
And if Index had carried out this act under someone’s orders, the one giving the orders would likely already know the whereabouts of the relic.
‘This is dangerous.’
Carlothian concluded that he needed to put even more effort into ensuring Ariadeline’s safety.
‘And the opponent is someone who wouldn’t hesitate to betray the Denaves Duchy.’
Carlothian quickly narrowed down the list of suspects in his mind.
The same ducal family, the temple, and…
The imperial family.
Carlothian furrowed his brows. If Ariadeline had seen him, she would have likely reached out again to smooth his furrowed brow.
He eliminated the last possibility. The Duke of Denaves family was one of the families providing more support to the imperial family than any other.
Since his father, the brother of His Majesty the Emperor, received the title of duke and became independent, this bond has continued. The Emperor also held Carlothian, the son of his brother, in special regard.
For that reason…
‘I didn’t suspect His Majesty when my father succumbed to madness.’
The emperor and Carlothian’s father were extremely close, unlike what one would expect from brothers.
His father had shown no interest in the throne since childhood, and the Emperor had taken special care of such a younger brother, a fact that the nobles still remembered.
‘His Majesty wouldn’t do such a thing.’
Carlothian entered his office and sat down. His aides waiting for him asked.
“What shall we do about this matter?”
“Should we inquire quietly?”
Then Carlothian said sharply, “No.”
He firmly conveyed his opinion.
“We must issue a strong warning regarding the attack on a member of the Denaves family.”
The aides were taken aback. Ariadeline was no longer a member of the Denaves family. Yet Carlothian referred to her as one.
That was certainly
“Ariadeline is a sinner, Duke.”
One of the aides said. Carlothian looked at him indifferently, having anticipated that such a statement would arise.
“I know.”
“But why…?”
Well, soon enough, he would prove her innocence no matter what. Carlothian thought about Ariadeline.
The Ariadeline before, who only asked to be killed, and the current Ariadeline, who smiled in his arms.
She had changed a lot. Perhaps it was because she had found stability in love, even if it was late.
He thought that just as he had changed because of her, she had changed because of him.
“You’ll know soon.”
Days later, the coachman was captured, and news began to spread throughout the capital that the Duke of Denaves would respond strongly if any issues arose regarding Ariadeline’s safety.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
“Did you hear that?”
“Oh, you mean that?”
“What on earth is the Duke of Denaves thinking?”
“He’s already divorced from his ex-wife, and to top it off, she’s a sinner.”
The noble ladies chattered among themselves, sharing gossip. With their elaborate hairpieces, rosy cheeks, and dresses, they sipped tea while glancing at the high seat.
“Your Highness, what do you think?”
At that, Princess Yermondi, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, hesitated as she brought the teacup to her lips.
