“I have some information to deliver to His Majesty.”
“Information for me?”
“Yes.”
He naturally lowered his voice following me, and I nodded slightly in response.
Seeing my nod, Ruth took his hands off his waist and glanced at the nobles gathered in groups of threes and fives. Then, after a while, he leaned in slightly and whispered in my ear.
“Which family is the information about?”
“…!”
Suddenly, the scent of cedarwood intensified, and it felt as though warmth was emanating from somewhere.
I swallowed my dry saliva due to an unexplained thirst.
“…Dright.”
“Hmm.”
At my slow response, Ruth made a meaningful snort, estimating the value of the information I knew with his eyes.
After being lost in thought for a few seconds, he then pulled back, loosely untied his neatly tied cravat, and proceeded to unbutton several buttons in a row, saying,
“There are still many matters that need to be dealt with, so I can’t afford to waste time.”
“Oh, in that case….”
“So, let’s not delay here any longer and go.”
Ah, it wasn’t a way to say let’s talk next time.
I hastily pulled down the corners of my lips that were sticking out.
The tension that it might be a rejection from him melted away in an instant.
Noticing my silent agreement, Ruth gently ruffled his neatly arranged hair and drew a plain smile in his eyes.
“Thank you for understanding.”
After murmuring softly, Ruth stepped out of the banquet hall. Then, the door of the banquet hall closed with a thud behind him, shutting out the bright lights and noise.
“……”
When I was just awkwardly moving my mouth in the suddenly quiet atmosphere, I heard Ruth muttering to himself.
“I’m tired. It feels like I’m wearing clothes that don’t fit.”
“What?”
Having unintentionally heard Ruth’s muttering, I tried to hide my startled expression.
He shrugged his shoulders as if it was nothing to worry about and changed the topic.
“It’s nothing. So, where shall we go now?”
“I think we need to go to a private space. As you know, the conversation we are about to have is as confidential as it gets.”
“Then, shall we go to my bedroom, which is closer than the banquet hall?”
“I don’t mind.”
“Alright, then.”
As soon as his bedroom was decided as our destination, we started walking.
The pale moonlight spilled into the empty hallway, where the footsteps of seemingly one person echoed rhythmically.
***
“So, what is the information you want to convey to me?”
As soon as we arrived at his bedroom, Ruth asked outright, appearing as if he did not want to waste even a moment, resembling someone being chased.
This made me feel unexpectedly impatient, so I stopped looking around Ruth’s bedroom and quickly sat down opposite the sofa where he was sitting. Then, I succinctly relayed the information I had heard from Ian at the banquet.
“Count Dright is secretly operating a casino.”
“Count Dright is running a casino?”
Ruth’s eyebrows furrowed in disbelief as he repeated my words.
Indeed, not just him, anyone would react similarly. Count Dright was renowned for his integrity. The very idea of such a person running a casino was a profound contradiction.
But Ian had never brought incorrect information before. Therefore, I did not doubt the information Ian provided.
Seeing the firm conviction in my eyes about the integrity of the information, Ruth’s expression gradually softened.
“The source of the information is reliable, I see.”
“Absolutely.”
“……”
At my unwavering response, he bit his lip. Soon after, his clear eyes became clouded with concern, as if covered by fog.
Looking into Ruth’s eyes, which oscillated between distrust and trust, I allowed myself a slight smile. Having anticipated this situation from the start, I could maintain my composure.
From a young age, Ruth was entangled in disputes over the imperial power. If my memory serves me right, there were times he practically died due to the greed of a ‘brother’ who committed treason.
Having lived through such experiences, it was nearly impossible for him to easily trust others.
Therefore, even after a year of his ascension to the throne, his relationship with the four major ducal households, who held immense power, remained precarious.
For Ruth, who was cautious in trusting others, it was essential to have assurance that these households would not turn their swords against him. Their ambiguous actions and words failed to provide that assurance.
In such a state, Ruth surely sought even a slight assurance from them. The support of the Council of Elders, a pivotal power structure, stems from the solid backing of the four ducal households.
It’s likely he reached out to ‘Serbia Obelton,’ the eldest daughter of the Obelton family, after his attempts failed.
Had he succeeded in securing the loyalties of the four ducal households, he would not have needed my help.
So, what was the reason Ruth could not be assured of the loyalties of the four ducal households?
It was because of the nobles who exploited Ruth’s isolated position to fully cloud his judgment and senses, like Viscount Dright, for example.
“Ha.”
Bursting into a short chuckle, Ruth continually washed his face with his hands. Then, after a while, he asked with a face cleared of confusion.
“Do you also know that Duke Dright is a philanthropist?”
“Yes. I’ve heard that he funds projects to support children in poor neighborhoods with the money he makes from running a hotel.”
“Right. But hearing the information you’ve shared made me curious.”
“About what?”
“Why a hotel, specifically.”
Why a hotel, you ask? That’s obviously because the main clientele is the high nobility…
“Ah.”
I cut off my flowing thoughts and let out a sigh.
Running a hotel for the high nobility and using the profits to help children in impoverished areas seemed like an exceptionally clever charity operation at first glance.
However, digging deeper into the matter changed the story.
To gather the necessary funds for a charity project for the slums, a moderately priced inn open to everyone would have been more beneficial than a hotel targeting high nobility.
This is because the high nobility usually use their private mansions scattered throughout the empire when traveling.
So, what could be the reason Duke Dright insistently operates a hotel?
“It seems likely that there’s a casino secretly run by Duke Dright at that place.”
The answer was surprisingly easy to come by. The hotel operated by Duke Dright would be the base for the casino.
Ruth chuckled confidently at my speculation.
“So, you’re thinking the same, huh?”
“Of course, it’s just a hunch at this point, with no physical evidence.”
“Right. That’s the problem.”
However, no matter how certain we were, we only had our suspicions. This made it awkward to act rashly.
The best way to obtain beneficial evidence would be to visit that casino, but…
I swallowed the sigh that was about to escape.
Considering it’s a casino secretly operated by Duke Dright, it wouldn’t be open to everyone. There would likely be specific days it’s open or something like a pass to enter.
And this meant, there was no way we, with nothing to our names, could enter the casino.
So, what should we do? It seems too wasteful to just let this information go.
“…Hmm?”
My train of thought, following one question to another, soon arrived at another question.
But how did Ian come to know of the casino’s existence?
If even Ruth hadn’t suspected it, it meant Duke Dright had been quite meticulous in hiding the existence of the casino.
Therefore, it definitely wasn’t by chance that Ian came to know about the existence of such a place. He must have fulfilled certain conditions and obtained the permission to enter the casino.
What conditions Ian met, I’m not sure, but if my guess is correct, the permission he received could be the key to providing us with the evidence we need.
I’ll have to ask Ian the next time I meet him. That’s what I decided and began to speak.
“I think the source of the information I’ve obtained might have a way to get the evidence. So, when there’s a chance later…”
“Wait a moment.”
Ruth, who had been silently listening, suddenly cut me off with a flustered expression.
“Are you thinking of going to the casino yourself to get the evidence?”
“Uh? Oh, yes. There’s no other way, right?”
“…”.
The only people I could trust and delegate this task to were essentially my mother, Ian, and Ruth. This was because others were unaware of my secret or the contract between me and Ruth.
Excluding my elderly mother and Ian, who had to maintain his position as the head of a family and should not be aware of the exact details of the contract between me and Ruth, the only person left was Ruth.
Moreover, Ruth was already overwhelmed with work to the point of overworking due to the duties he needed to handle as the emperor.
So, I decided to go there myself. After all, my position as the Emperor’s fiancée was just a cover, and my influence was lower than others, so there was less risk involved.
Moreover, even if something were to happen to me, my family would be sad, but it wouldn’t significantly affect Ruth’s future.
They might not even care beyond that. After all, we are just strangers tied together by a contract. It wouldn’t be strange for us to part ways at any time.
As I replied monotonously, Ruth’s expression darkened. He looked at me with a gaze that seemed both exasperated and intensely focused, as if looking at a mischievous child.
“As you know, the casino is a place where all sorts of crazy people gather. People crazy about money, alcohol, women, and more. And yet you want to go there yourself.”
“Then all the more reason for me to go. We can’t send someone who is not part of our agreement to such a place.”
“You are… Ah…”
Eventually, Ruth gave up trying to convince me and swept up his striking platinum hair with a hand gesture full of irritation.
“Am I just a decoration in front of you?”
“Pardon?”
I was surprised by his unexpected reaction.
Ruth thought I would welcome the idea of going myself, maybe that was a misunderstanding.
“According to your words, it is our contract. So, shouldn’t we be the ones to take action?”
“But isn’t Your Highness busy? I heard you barely have any time as it is…”
“It’s just that there’s no time to waste on useless things. This matter is not useless at all.”
For some reason, seeing him reply in such a stiff and firm tone, it seemed like he was really angry.
Seeing Ruth with a clearly displeased expression, I felt sorry, wondering if I had been too presumptuous.
I cautiously offered an apology.
“…If you were offended, I’m sorry.”
“There’s no need for you to apologize since you did nothing wrong. Just…”
Ruth began to speak in a gentler voice, then suddenly let out a deep breath as if he had been holding it in.
“It’s just that it bothers me that you try to shoulder everything on your own.”
A faint worry seeped into his tone, which had become affectionate again, and suddenly I remembered something Ian had left unsaid before.
“Sister has always been like this. Insisting on handling every matter by herself, not caring if she breaks down. That’s why I’m afraid that Sister might abandon herself at any moment…”
