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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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I had cleared my schedule.
It meant I had more immediate tasks to attend to, but I would visit the North for a while after this was over.
Perhaps looking forward to that brief respite would help me get through these busy days.
I expected things to get hectic after my visit to the North.
This trip might be one of the few chances I had to relax.
While I had planned to visit eventually, it was sooner than expected.
But there was a reason I had cleared my schedule to go to the North.
“The masked figure has appeared in the North.”
“We haven’t confirmed it yet, but it seems likely.”
We hadn’t been able to identify the masked figures.
We only knew that they followed the Crown Prince and were involved in something related to the Four Dragons.
Arwen had said she had a hunch and would investigate, so I needed to look into it when I visited the North.
But the main purpose of my visit was to appease Adele.
I hadn’t expected her to be sulking because I had been a little late in contacting her.
I wasn’t upset by her behavior, I was more surprised than anything.
I was trying to figure out what to say to her when I saw her.
My schedule for today was full, and tomorrow, I would depart for the North.
I stretched for a moment and organized the documents on my desk, then picked up Adele’s letter.
As always, her handwriting wasn’t particularly neat.
Her hasty scribbles reflected her impatient personality, and her tone could be perceived as rude by those who weren’t close to her.
Perhaps others tolerated it because she was the Grand Duchess, but I thought I should help her improve it later.
It was a bit surprising that Kaitel hadn’t made a move against Adele yet.
I had to wait and see what would trigger his actions.
That was why I was going to the North, to check for any potential threats.
If there were any, I would eliminate them.
And if there weren’t, I would take measures to ensure they never existed.
I was confident Lothos would handle it well if I informed her.
Anyway, what I was currently doing was investigating the disturbances in the outer territories.
There had been an unusual increase in unrest lately, and I was trying to find the cause.
This wasn’t a simple matter.
If it was merely due to the change in leadership, it would have subsided by now.
It was as if someone was deliberately stirring up trouble, gradually escalating the situation.
My primary goal was to find the source.
Once I found it, my next objective was to figure out their motives.
There was no need to rush.
I could leave it to Renold or Arwen, they would find the reason eventually.
However, this was the one thing that only I, the Duke, could resolve.
Click, click.
The sound of my shoes echoed coldly through the quiet hallway.
The remodeled hallway was gone, revealing the path to the basement.
There was no sound except for…
Faint, shallow breaths.
I followed the sound, and a familiar face came into view.
Yuria, still alive, hadn’t spoken a word since that day.
She wouldn’t say anything even if she did, but I looked at her, her head always bowed, and finally spoke.
“You haven’t eaten again. I told you it wouldn’t kill you.”
Yuria’s days were filled with hallucinations.
The special drug Arwen had created induced nightmares, and whenever she grew accustomed to the fear, it reset her emotions, inflicting even greater terror.
Drool trickled from her trembling lips.
The elegant woman was gone, replaced by a pathetic figure consumed by fear.
I didn’t think she would be able to speak coherently even if she tried.
If there was a chance, I would prevent her from communicating, but she seemed so broken that it wasn’t necessary.
The reason I came here was simple.
To check on Yuria’s condition and to maintain her consciousness, preventing her from completely losing her mind.
I infused her with divine power, and her clouded gaze cleared slightly.
Her eyes met mine for a moment, then her head drooped again, drool dripping from her chin onto the floor.
“Not bad. I’m glad you’re still alright.”
I hoped she would live a long life.
A healthy, long life, perhaps until I died.
Of course, she couldn’t be happy.
She had killed so many people, there was no way I would let her off so easily.
Unlike Theresa, I had no intention of letting her go.
Yuria still had a long way to go before she atoned for her sins.
Arwen would take over while I was in the North.
Yuria wouldn’t see the sunlight for a while.
I hoped she wouldn’t lose her mind during that time.
I hoped the constant despair would gnaw at her, leaving her a lifeless doll, her hopes severed at the end.
I felt a strange sense of satisfaction whenever I told Yuria about my accomplishments as Duke.
I didn’t know what I would be thinking if our roles were reversed.
Would I still be hoping for regression? Or would I be broken and defeated?
Thankfully, reality had shown me favor.
I would keep Yuria confined to prevent any further danger.
I wondered what she would be like after my return from the North.
I pondered this for a moment before stepping back.
I disappeared from the basement, and once again, only the shallow sound of her breathing echoed through the empty room.
It was a sound that would continue endlessly.
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News of Robert Taylor’s departure for the North spread quickly.
Adele, who had orchestrated it, already knew, but her subordinates, who viewed her relationship with Robert as something special, reacted even more intensely.
Lothos sighed longer than ever.
Bunta sharpened his weapons, excited about the prospect of fighting again.
The other officers also began to prepare themselves mentally.
“Don’t you think they’re a little too fired up?”
Lothos’s question made the officers look at each other.
In truth, it was Lothos who was most invested in Robert’s visit.
He had been the one who prepared Robert’s room.
Lothos cleared his throat at his comrades’ strange expressions and sighed, his lips trembling slightly.
“…This isn’t a normal situation. I’m not the only one who thinks so, right? Surely not.”
“We don’t need to worry about it. It’s the Grand Duchess’s business after all.”
Bunta nodded in agreement with Ilona, the only woman present.
He had always thought Lothos was overly concerned with Adele’s personal life.
At first, he had wondered if Lothos had a crush on her, but considering the age difference, that would be a crime.
Perhaps he was trying to be a father figure to her.
If Adele found out, she might try to kill him.
That was how Bunta interpreted Lothos’s actions.
“You worry too much.”
“Bunta, that’s because you’re oblivious. Have you seen the look on the Grand Duchess’s face when she looks at him? She’s different.”
“He’s handsome. He’s a good fighter. How many men like that has the Grand Duchess met? I think he’s the first.”
They were around the same age and had similar tastes.
Ilona had never seen Adele interact so naturally with anyone before.
She had been with Adele since she led the mercenary group, and she had often witnessed Adele crush men who were merely handsome.
Ilona thought this encounter wasn’t a bad thing.
It would have been more natural if someone wasn’t making such a fuss.
Ilona smiled wryly, and Lothos flinched under her gaze.
“They’ll figure it out on their own. We don’t need to worry about it.”
Those who remembered Adele’s childhood always spoke of the loneliness she had carried as a young girl.
She lost her father at a young age and learned of his death after achieving everything she had set out to do.
She rarely smiled, preferred to be alone, and was obsessively fixated on anything that piqued her interest.
Many pitied her.
Now, she smiled more often and even showed jealousy at times.
Robert Taylor might be a good person, but for those who had rarely seen Adele smile, they couldn’t help but view their relationship favorably.
There was no need for fuss.
She was simply meeting the person who should have been by her side all along.
It was frustrating to see them holding back their feelings.
But they couldn’t force it, could they?
It would happen naturally when the time was right.
Bunta glared at Lothos, and Lothos, snapping back to reality, smiled wryly.
“Alright, I’ll stay quiet this time. But you’re not going to yell at me for doing so, are you?”
“You’re the only one who got beaten for making a fuss last time.”
“I only found out later why you tried to drop me during the festival. You were trying to leave them alone, weren’t you?”
Bunta sighed in exasperation, and Ilona chuckled softly.
She didn’t understand why he was acting this way.
They would meet eventually if left alone.
It was fate.
Just as the Grand Duchess had met them one day without any prior arrangements and taken an interest in them, Robert’s visit was also part of that fate.
“Anyway, I think we should get going. They’ll be arriving soon.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
Ilona stood up, and Bunta followed, dragging Lothos along.
There was no need to call Adele separately.
She was already waiting outside, her preparations complete.
Ilona hoped Adele wouldn’t be late this time.
She chuckled, remembering Adele’s expression when Robert visited last time.
She had never seen Adele so anxious before.
Who would have thought the great Grand Duchess would be so flustered over a man?
It was then that Ilona realized Adele’s feelings went beyond simple interest.
But if it happened again, she didn’t think it would end well.
They waited for a while, and then a pack of wolves approached, kicking up dust in their wake.
Adele stirred, and Ilona stopped Lothos, who was about to follow her, placing a finger to her lips.
There was no need to interrupt their meeting.
It was enough to observe and witness the Grand Duchess, so different from before.
Adele, who had rushed ahead of everyone else, had a smile on her face.
She seemed to be trying to suppress it, but when her eyes met Robert’s, the corners of her lips twitched, a sight that couldn’t be missed by anyone present.
“Hmm, I knew it.”
“Right? I told you not to interrupt.”
It was a rare sight in the North to see a man and a woman smiling at each other, especially when it was the usually stoic Grand Duchess.
And amidst this special scene, she noticed something else.
The wind was unusually warm.
The usual north wind had disappeared, replaced by a gentle south wind that caressed their cheeks.
Spring.
It was a season that felt out of place here, a season she sometimes wished would just disappear.
But today, it was the perfect season.
Ilona watched them and murmured softly.
“It’s spring.”
Spring had come to the North.
She could finally feel it.
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