“Indeed. It has been a long time, Helen.”
I replied to Helen a beat later, who greeted me as if nothing had happened between us, maintaining her composure. I was relieved that my expression did not crack too much in front of Helen, contrary to my concerns.
After exchanging brief greetings with me, Helen turned towards Ruth, who was standing next to me. She then elegantly smiled and slightly lifted the hem of her dress.
“I am Helen from the Abyss Duke’s family. It is an honor to meet the Empire’s light.”
“…”
Ruth briefly frowned, as if trying his best to hide his surprise at an unexpected situation.
I could empathize with his perplexity because the phrase “It is an honor to meet the Empire’s light” was typically reserved for when the heads or sub-heads of families met the Emperor. Therefore, it was surprising for Helen, who was neither, to use that greeting. I too felt somewhat uneasy about it.
However, at the same time, I felt like I understood why she greeted him in such a manner, so I held back from commenting. Ruth seemed to understand as well, as he soon returned to his expressionless face and nodded slightly.
“That’s nice. It’s our first time meeting like this, isn’t it?”
“Yes. It is an honor, Your Majesty.”
“An honor, you say? It’s nothing more than a meeting brought about by coincidence.”
“It seems that it’s up to the involved parties on how to utilize coincidence. And I did not miss that coincidence, and since His Majesty responded to the coincidence I did not miss, should it not be considered an honor?”
“Your eloquence flows like a flowing mountain stream. Indeed, my fiancée… it’s understandable why you’d fall for that.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. Thank you.”
In the moment Helen was about to dismiss Ruth’s somewhat aggressive comments nonchalantly, Ruth, who had stepped closer to her, whispered softly enough for me to overhear.
“But you should be careful, shouldn’t you?”
“Eh? I don’t quite understand what you mean…”
“Showing your desires so openly only serves to make more enemies.”
“…Was it that obvious? I thought it wouldn’t seem so strange since I was there as the host of the banquet and representing my father.”
“Well, I don’t know about how others see it, but to me, it seemed like you were planning to use me as a lifeline, which didn’t exactly make me feel great.”
“A lifeline, that’s not entirely incorrect. But you feeling that way and still talking to me now, doesn’t that mean I am a necessary piece for His Majesty?”
“You’re quite sharp. But you’re wrong. I already have a carrot to wield in the form of the Duke of Abyss himself. The reason I’m still having this conversation with you is, ”
While deeply engaged in conversation with Helen, Ruth glanced over at me and his expression softened in an instant. If I were to make a comparison, it looked as if he was seeing a harmless small animal.
Suddenly, I wondered, why is he looking at me?
Not wanting to intrude on their intense conversation, I had been quietly observing. Now, I looked back at Ruth, who seemed reluctant to take hid eyes off me, with a gaze filled with curiosity.
Ruth, eventually returning his gaze to Helen after catching my eye, snapped coldly, “I’m not so heartless as to throw away what I’ve picked up just because my feelings were a little hurt, if that’s what you’re implying.”
“Understood. I get your point clearly.”
Despite the aggressive tone, Helen seemed unfazed, possibly having anticipated Ruth taking such a stance.
“Please enjoy the banquet for now. I will soon send a servant to inform you where we will meet.”
“Alright. I hope it won’t take long. This place hardly seems enjoyable to me.”
“Yes. Then, I shall take my leave. Have a good time, Your Majesty. And… Serbia.”
“Yes?”
It seemed that their conversation had ended, and at Helen calling me, I hurriedly looked at her to find Helen with her eyes downcast in an almost apologetic way.
“It might be funny to say this now, but I never intended to pressure Serbia. I just wanted to express my feelings honestly, but it seems I was mistaken. I’m sorry.”
“Ah.”
I seemed to understand why she was apologizing, so I didn’t ask for an explanation. Instead, I wondered what to say so that it wouldn’t be rude to Helen.
To be honest, it’s undeniable that I had a lot of conflicts about wanting to remain friends with Helen, regardless of what happened between us. I wanted to remain friends with her, who is both straightforward and kind, but I questioned whether it was realistically possible and if my heart would be at ease throughout.
However, that wasn’t why I was late in responding to Helen’s message. The reason I was late in replying to her letter was because I was contemplating whether it was the right choice to hold Helen’s hand, and if her reasons for wanting to be like us were for her own benefit, whether I wanted to help her with that.
So, if Helen apologizes for continuing to want to be friends,
“It’s okay, Helen. The reason I was late in responding wasn’t because of that, but because of something else.”
It was alright.
“Phew, I’m glad to hear that. Anyway, I hope you have a good time in Serbia.”
“Yes.”
Despite my doubts about having a good time in the deceitful world of socializing, as Ruth thought, I didn’t quibble over Helen’s choice of words. I wasn’t there to fight with her but to collaborate.
Having concluded our conversation, Helen soon turned around and disappeared into thin air.
As Helen gradually went out of sight, and I was still watching her, Ruth came up close to my face and asked in a light voice,
“Is that person the fox she was talking about?”
“No, it’s Duke Hazel.”
“Hmm. Well, he seems quite fox-like too. Clever. But that makes me like him even less.”
“You’re not planning to refuse to join hands with Helen because you don’t like her, are you?”
Swallowed by a sudden anxiety, I asked, and Ruth quietly burst into chuckling.
“Of course not. I was just seriously wondering why such people are always drawn to you.”
“Is that supposed to be a good thing?”
“It’s half and half, I suppose. Anyway, there are some finger foods over there, let’s try……”
“Who is this? Isn’t this Lady Obelton?”
“!”
As I was having a quiet conversation with Ruth, suddenly, a familiar yet chilling voice came from behind, making me jump in surprise and turn around. That’s when my eyes met with Duke Hazel, who was leaning on his cane.
Ah.
A low sigh burst forth. The chest announced its presence with a dull ache, but there was no time to care.
It was the appearance of fear.
“…Duke Hazel. It’s been a long time.”
“Yes. It really has been a long time. And this is….”
As I forced a feigned sincerity in my words, Duke Hazel finally looked at me with satisfied eyes. Then, after a while, he turned his attention away from me and bowed to Ruth.
“I see the Empire’s light.”
“You still look well, Duke Hazel.”
Ruth, responding to Duke Hazel’s greeting, did not seem to welcome his presence even as he ran to meet him. So, I was inwardly relieved. If I couldn’t properly respond to the fear, it seemed like Ruth would handle it instead.
Perhaps irritated by Ruth’s unfriendly words, Duke Hazel’s smile froze. Along with it, Ruth did not avert his gaze from Duke Hazel either.
Thus, a silent tension continued between the two, and during this, Ruth loosened his cravat that was tightening around his neck and waved his hand.
“If there’s nothing more to say, then that’s it….”
“Ah, Your Majesty. But have you heard of the golden blood?”
“Golden blood?”
…Golden blood?
At the unexpected subject that came from the mouth of Duke Hazel, my entire body froze momentarily. I was so confused that I even forgot how to breathe, my mind turned into a blank slate, and my head that I barely managed to lift creaked like a broken toy as it rose.
Soon, finding Duke Hazel looking directly at me with a smile that reminded me of a snake, I swallowed my breath and muttered with a trembling voice,
“That, that is.”
“Yes. Originally, it was a gift from the gods and belonged to the royal family, but as the royals became more corrupt, it is known that the gods took it back. That golden blood.”
Surprised and holding onto a sliver of hope that it might not be what I was thinking, it was futile. After such a definitive statement, instead of hope, a speckled despair came flooding in like a high tide.
I found myself at a loss for words, simply twitching my lips. Saying anything wrong here could lead to disaster.
My heart pounded so fiercely that tinnitus started to ring in my ears. That tinnitus seemed to laugh at me, wanting to shatter my fear like Ruth’s suggestion, swelling and then diminishing repeatedly.
Having glanced at me frozen like stone, Ruth took my hand and carefully moved me behind him, then asked Duke Hazel with a face feigning kindness,
“I’ve heard of it before. But why bring up that story all of a sudden?”
“Ah, that is.”
With a malicious smirk creeping onto the lips of Duke Heizel, it seemed he had thought of something amusing. Then, rolling his eyes, he caught me in his gaze.
After staring at me intently for a few seconds, Duke Heizel finally finished speaking, his voice tinged with laughter.
“I’m curious about what His Majesty would do if a person with the golden blood actually existed.”
