Episode 37

I was at a loss for words.

It seemed that Chris had also realized that he often asked me these kinds of questions.

“Your Grace, I…”

I didn’t know how to continue.

“For how long…”

His rarely shown cold demeanor sent chills through my bones. The air was as frigid as when he first showed hostility toward me at the communion.

“How long must I keep asking you not to do this, to take care of yourself?”

I tried to understand his anger.

‘…If something had happened to me, he would have lost his informant. It’s only natural for him to be upset.’

Chris had come all this way, clearly intending to cooperate with me.

He had made the effort to ally with the daughter of his enemy, and then I nearly shattered our fragile alliance by putting myself in danger.

From his perspective, it was entirely reasonable to be angry.

‘But it was necessary.’

Even if I had to choose again, I would still go to the Oracle. The certainty I gained from the Oracle today was valuable information.

Although getting pickpocketed wasn’t part of the plan.

And earlier, I truly believed there was no way out.

‘…I never imagined that someone would come to save me.’

A lump of emotion suddenly rose in my throat.

I barely managed to swallow it, feeling Chris’s hand leading me, and forced myself to speak calmly.

“I had to do it.”

“……”

“There was something I needed to gain. And in the end, I returned safely…”

Before I could finish, something in Chris’s eyes deepened.

As I looked into his eyes, I felt as if the cold scent of violets brushed past my nose.

“Never again.”

Chris paused for a moment before continuing.

“I hope this never happens again.”

“……”

“Please, don’t do this again.”

‘Please, he says.’

Why does he speak so earnestly?

Instead of answering, I looked at the cloth hanging from Chris’s waist. It was soaked with the blood of men whose identities I didn’t even know.

‘…They must all be dead.’

Remembering that he had said we were the only ones in that alley, their group must have been all there was. There would have been no one to call for help.

‘Killing someone is never a pleasant thing.’

I’ve stained my hands with blood before, but it was never an exhilarating experience. It felt like my soul was cracking each time. Chris had come all this way and committed unnecessary killings.

When I thought about those things, I felt like I could understand the emotions Chris was feeling and the words he was saying to me now.

I quietly nodded.

“I’ll try.”

“Trying isn’t enough.”

“If I stay idle, I won’t accomplish anything, Your Grace. You mustn’t forget the terms of our agreement.”

“Agreement?”

“I chose to side with you, not the Duke. To do that, I need information, and information isn’t obtained by sitting still.”

A sigh almost escaped me, but I held it back.

“These kinds of situations will inevitably happen again. However, if Your Grace wishes, I’ll do my best to avoid danger…”

“Why do you try to do everything alone?”

“……”

“Why alone?”

Chris, having spoken that far, fell silent for a moment. I too had nothing to say and kept my mouth shut.

The reason I sought out information alone was clear. It was far less dangerous for me to take action than for Chris. Moreover, Chris was already in a position where he was practically under surveillance by both the Duke and the Imperial family.

Perhaps realizing this, Chris carefully chose his words.

“From now on,”

Chris spoke again.

Our eyes met once more, his gaze more intense than before. His eyes were filled with an incomprehensible mix of emotions, as if he wanted to express anger or perhaps spill out something unsaid.

In that moment, I thought I saw a trace of sadness in his eyes.

Then Chris spoke firmly.

“If something like this happens again, contact me first.”

I was surprised by his unexpected response.

“Your Grace, there’s no need for you to accompany me…”

“I no longer want situations like this to arise without my knowledge.”

“……”

“Nor do I want you to be in danger where I am unaware.”

Unconsciously, I placed a hand over my chest.

‘…He’s fully acknowledging our alliance.’

Of course, Chris had already shown signs of accepting my proposal, but his words just now solidified that even more. Chris took a deep breath before continuing.

“If necessary, I will lend you my knights as escorts when you go out.”

“……”

“So please.”

Instead of refusing, I nodded. It felt like the only way to regain Chris’s trust.

The conversation ended there.

We walked for quite some time. Chris kept adjusting his pace to match my slowing steps.

As we walked, we eventually left the dark alley and arrived at the shop where I had first swapped clothes with Marie. It was late, and there were few people around.

I suddenly remembered that there was something important I needed to tell him.

“Your Grace, I should share what I learned from the Oracle…”

“Not now.”

“But it’s important information.”

“My Lady.”

Chris whispered in a lowered voice.

“Please don’t make me out to be a cruel person.”

With those words, Chris slowly let go of my hand. Then, he turned and walked away.

“Cruel…?”

I muttered in confusion, just as the shop’s door opened, and Marie rushed out, screaming.

“My Lady!”

“Marie?”

Marie, her face on the verge of tears, wrapped her arms around my shoulders, sobbing.

“How did you end up like this…!”

Only then did I enter the shop and look in the mirror. My face was pale as a corpse.

Realizing how I looked, the tension suddenly drained from me.

‘I managed to face Chris looking like this?’

The realization of having run around all day, negotiating, and facing life-threatening situations made my legs feel weak.

Fatigue hit me all at once. Now that I was in a safe place, my body betrayed my will, and I felt myself start to collapse. My strength kept slipping away.

I tried to steady myself as I spoke.

“Sorry, Marie. The clothes…”

“Please, don’t worry about that!”

“I’ll wash the clothes…”

In the middle of speaking, everything went black.

* * *

I slept like the dead for several days before I finally recovered. It was a relief that I hadn’t been sick for longer.

Fortunately, no one discovered that I had been to the Oracle.

The people of the Duke’s household were only concerned with matters related to Chris, so they likely didn’t even realize I had collapsed. I was told there wasn’t much commotion anyway.

Of course, Marie was in a frenzy.

“My Lady!”

“I’ve rested plenty.”

“No! No! Here, drink this too.”

She seemed to feel even more guilty, thinking that the trouble happened because she hadn’t been able to accompany me.

Marie handed me a cup of tea brewed with herbs Chris had sent. I sighed, took a sip, and continued speaking to her.

“Don’t you remember? I was the one who told you not to follow.”

“But still…”

“And besides, I can’t rest any longer. The Duke summoned me, didn’t he?”

At my words, Marie nodded reluctantly, her face showing clear displeasure at the idea of me overexerting myself.

While I was touched by Marie’s concern, I couldn’t help but wonder.

‘Why is the Duke summoning me again?’

As I thought about it, I started to have an inkling of what it might be about.

The last time he called me to a family dinner, it was to pressure Aria into giving up on Chris. It didn’t work out as he had planned, though.

‘I really wish she would just give up.’

It would be nice if Aria would simply let go of Chris…

I recalled the look in his eyes as he had gazed down at me, and my mood darkened slightly.

‘Never again do I want something like this to happen.’

‘If something like this happens again, contact me first.’

I was happy to hear those words, but in the end, Chris probably said them because he didn’t want me to be a wild card in his plans.

‘I should’ve asked him about Aria.’

How does he feel about her? Does he, like everyone else, feel love for Aria?

‘…No, how could I ask something like that?’

A sigh escaped me.

At the very least, I hoped that if Aria confessed her love to Chris, he would reject her.

But in the current situation, that seemed unlikely.

‘Even with the Crown Prince, her destined partner, approaching her, she seemed determined to reject him because of Chris.’

I shook my head slightly to clear my thoughts and spoke to Marie.

“I should go see the Duke. Help me get dressed, Marie.”

Marie carefully dressed me.

It didn’t take long to reach the door of the Duke’s office and knock. I straightened my shoulders, determined not to look like a patient.

“You summoned me, Your Grace.”

I had just entered the office and lightly greeted the Duke when he immediately skipped over any pleasantries and got straight to the point.

“I’m planning to hold a debutante ball for Aria.”

‘Of course.’

I had noticed an increase in the number of merchants visiting the Duke’s household in the past few days. It seemed they were preparing for this event.

Unlike me, Aria had missed the usual timing for a debutante and hadn’t had a formal debutante ball.

A young lady who hadn’t completed her debutante ball occupied an ambiguous position in the marriage market, not fully recognized as an adult. So, I had expected that Aria would be given her debutante ball soon.

‘In the original story, the Duke also hosted a grand debutante ball for Aria.’

A splendid and beautiful debutante ball just for her, with a secret meeting with the Crown Prince who came as her partner—a typical event for a heroine.

What puzzled me was…

‘Why is he telling me this?’

There was no reason for the Duke to inform me about this.

‘Is he telling me to stay out of sight in my room during the ball?’

But the next words from the Duke were beyond anything I could have imagined.

“…You should also help prepare for her debutante.”