“Your Highness, please wake up. Your Highness?”
My body shook. Is it an earthquake? Forcing my tired eyelids open, I realized it was not my bed that was swaying but my own body.
“Hmm?”
“Why are you so tired? Did you not sleep last night?”
“Yeah?”
Last night… My drowsy eyes snapped wide open. Last night?
“Uh, uh, wait…”
Karl must be lying next to me. I hurriedly pulled the blanket to cover the empty side. But when my palm brushed against the fabric, it felt cold, lacking any warmth of a person.
“What’s wrong?”
“Here…”
Karl had definitely been here, but when I turned my head, there was no one. Only the rumpled sheets and blanket were left. Was it a dream? While I was flustered and unsure, Leev began to neatly straighten the bed as if it were routine.
“It seems you went to bed late. It’s the first time you’ve stayed up this late.”
“Is that… so?”
Fortunately, Leev didn’t seem to notice what had happened here last night. It seemed Karl had appeared in the dark and disappeared before dawn.
I felt relieved but also, for some reason, a little disappointed and sad, so I absentmindedly brushed my hand over the empty space beside me.
“Yes. Normally, you would have already started your day by now, wouldn’t you? Oh, did you perhaps have a bad dream? The blankets are a mess.”
I knew the reason the blankets were in disarray, but it made my face burn with embarrassment.
“Li-Leev. I’ll take care of the blanket. Can you do something else?”
“Huh? No, I won’t. I’m planning to wash the sheets today.”
“Oh, okay….”
I was relieved to hear that they would be washed. As I sat up, Leev quickly folded the blanket and stacked it to one side.
“Are you tired?”
Leev continued tidying up, and I moved to the coffee table to sit down. It was just a short distance, but my body felt strange, as if it didn’t belong to me.
The sore discomfort following the night spent with Karl never became familiar. Or, would it ever become familiar?
“Yeah. A little.”
“You look very tired. I’ve brought some tea leaves that are good for restoring energy. I’ll prepare them right away.”
How did they know I would be tired? I quickly tidied up the bed and caught a glimpse of Leev’s face as she poured the tea.
For some reason, even though I hadn’t done anything wrong, my face felt hot, and my heart raced like a child caught playing with fire.
“Did you perhaps have a dream about the Duke?”
“Cough, cough, cough.”
“Oh my, are you okay, Your Grace? Here, a napkin…”
Unexpectedly, when Karl was mentioned, I accidentally spat out the tea. Oh no, Leev is so observant.
“It seems you really did meet the Duke in your dreams. Regardless of how tired you look, you have a bright expression.”
Do I? I absentmindedly rubbed my cheek. Karl had tormented me so much that I couldn’t sleep all night, only to disappear without a trace.
If not for the pain I felt throughout my body, I might have mistaken Karl’s sudden appearance for a dream.
“Today is a day off from morning duties. You can rest more. Would you like more tea, Your Grace?”
“Ah, yeah. That would be nice.”
Fortunately, today was a holiday, a day I could have with no obligations. Did Karl know this and come to find me, or was it just good timing? Either way, I was grateful.
If I had to keep moving with this aching back and complete my duties without telling anyone, it would have been quite difficult.
I didn’t need to hide the fact that Karl had traveled here with teleportation magic last night, but I certainly didn’t want to declare, “Karl used magic to come see me, and we spent the night together!” in front of others.
Of course, the people here would praise Karl with thumbs up, but I didn’t want to endure the knowing smiles and proud looks that seemed to say they understood everything.
The servants of the Duke’s household, and of course, those of the Ruizette family as well, reacted with pride whenever they thought Karl and I wanted to do something together.
Those gazes and sentiments were quite burdensome.
Soon, the marriage of a royal couple leading a nation was not just a private matter; as Cecilia had said, it could directly affect the stability of the Empire.
They say the more you have, the more you have to endure. I hadn’t realized how embarrassing it was that private moments between a couple couldn’t just remain private.
“Valerie?”
“Miss Valerie got up early, had breakfast, and is with Lady Cecilia.”
I guess I should spend some time with Valerie since there’s nothing else to do. The child, who has been growing a lot lately, was becoming more lovable as each day passed.
I was soon going to learn when and where Valerie was born and how she got here, but at that moment, I still didn’t know.
***
You seem to be in a good mood. Clovis was preoccupied with observing the expression of his superior, who had only returned to his original position around dawn.
Karl, who had disappeared past midnight and returned just before daybreak, seemed not to have slept at all, aside from sitting in a chair for about ten minutes with his eyes closed.
Yet, despite looking tired, his face showed no signs of fatigue and appeared joyful, which kept drawing Clovis’ gaze.
After briefly resting his eyes, Karl immediately started his work, acting as if nothing had happened. His first task was to read and approve the mountain of documents that came flying in.
While still focused on the papers, Karl indifferently threw a question to Clovis.
“Why?”
“Excuse me? What did you say, Your Highness?”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“What do you mean… how am I looking?”
“It’s that look in your eyes. I don’t like it.”
“What do you mean? Is this gaze filled with loyalty and respect for you, Your Highness?”
“Oh, here we go again. Don’t start teasing me. The moment you add a single word, I’ll accuse you of disrespect and make you regret it.”
Seems like the one starting is you, Your Highness. Clovis quietly chuckled to himself. All in all, it seemed Karl had a very meaningful and happy night.
The atmosphere around Karl felt oddly different from the previous day, positively so. His usually indifferent expression harbored an undeniable aura of happiness.
Yes, this is happiness—nothing extravagant. A secret and joyful time spent with a loved one.
“That’s enough.”
“Excuse me?”
“Limit your strange thoughts there.”
“What thoughts are you talking about? I was only thinking about the contents of the document I just reviewed.”
It seems the esteemed Duke has eyes on his crown too. How does he know what my expression is like while I’m focused on the papers? Flustered, Clovis adjusted his chin with his hand.
“Your Grace, there’s an urgent messenger.”
At that moment, a knight from the royal investigation unit suddenly entered, completely changing the atmosphere in the office.
Since everything has specific procedures and order, it was unusual for a knight to rush directly to the Duke’s office without a report from the upper ranks.
In other words, it meant an urgent matter had arisen. Clovis’s previously joyful expression quickly turned serious.
“An urgent message?”
“There was an intrusion in the underground prison last night.”
Thud. Karl placed the stack of documents he was holding down.
“An intrusion?”
In the underground prison managed by the royal investigation team? That was something impossible and utterly unacceptable. The knight immediately knelt in front of Clovis, who wore a stern expression.
“How many intruders?”
“There were three.”
“Three, huh…”
Unlike the knight who rushed in hastily, Karl remained calm. It was as if he had expected this to happen. The knight took a slow breath, surprised by the unexpected reaction of the Grand Duke.
“Their purpose seems quite predictable.”
Karl stood up. Clovis quickly took Karl’s outer garment from the hanger and draped it over his shoulders.
“What is the condition of the intruders?”
“Yes. They have been apprehended and detained immediately.”
Karl had not expected Franz to remain still while investigating the underground market’s magical stone suppliers. His prediction that Franz would try to eliminate anyone who could provide harmful testimonies came true.
“What about the suspects who have finished their statements?”
He was referring to the old women. The knight bowed his head and answered.
“They’re safe. As you commanded, the suspects captured in the underground market were moved to a different location beforehand.”
Before leaving last night, Karl had already hinted to Clovis that assassins would soon strike the underground prison, threatening many captured at the market.
Quick-thinking Clovis had prepared a trap. He secretly relocated the old women and deliberately relaxed the guards during the shift change, allowing anyone to intrude.
As a result, the assassins most likely sent by Franz fell right into Clovis’s scheme.
