WARDV 20

chapter 20

Jingle, jingle.

Every time the carriage moved, the sound of gold coins clinking in the purse echoed softly.

That sound, repeating so regularly, could have been annoying—yet rather than irritated, I found myself humming.

Besides…

‘Hehe, and the scandal broke perfectly too.’

I smiled in satisfaction as I looked over the newspaper Wig had brought earlier.

The scandal between Idris and me, which had broken out yesterday, was once again splashed across the front page today.

The thought of drawing the attention of the entire empire from now on was a bit exhausting.

But imagining how Paydan must be grinding his teeth while reading the article made me smile effortlessly.

“I should’ve done this in my past life, too.”

Is this what it feels like to have a long-standing pain finally pulled out?

Just as I was feeling a slight regret over time already gone—

Jingle.

The sound of the coins broke my train of thought.

‘Anyway, if days keep going like this, I should be able to buy Mother’s land when it goes up for auction.’

No, at this rate, I might even be able to buy a house as well.

‘But buying a house right away will be hard.’

The money is one thing, but a good property has to be available, and I’d need to hire staff to fill the place too.

‘For now, I guess I’ll have to stay at the Grand Duke’s estate a while longer.’

I’d been tense when I first stepped into the estate last night, but after spending a peaceful night there, my guard had eased a little.

At the same time, it suddenly hit me—I never thanked Idris.

‘It probably wasn’t easy letting someone else into his private space.’

I’d make sure to thank him when I got back to the estate.

Just as I resolved that, the gold coins jingled once again.

The moment I heard it, a good idea popped into my head.

“His Majesty has sent a personal letter.”

Butler Borman, who had just entered the office, handed the emperor’s letter to Idris.

Idris glanced at it with disinterest.

‘…It’s here.’

The emperor’s personal letter had arrived the day after the scandal with Leticia broke.

He didn’t need to open it to know what it said.

Is the scandal true? Come to the palace.

That sort of thing.

‘My brother really does worry too much about his grown-up little brother.’

Idris sighed quietly.

“Leave it and go.”

Borman bowed respectfully and exited.

But Idris didn’t even open Ajeph’s letter—his thoughts had drifted elsewhere.

“I wonder how the casino went…”

Last night, Leticia had left the estate saying she was going to a casino.

Gambling—it’s the final hope of those pushed to the edge of life, yet also a bottomless pit of despair.

Idris had offered to lend her money if she needed it, but Leticia refused.

“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t be a prince on a white horse?”

“That’s—”

“I can handle it. On my own.”

She’d gone off boldly to the casino—was she smiling now, or crying?

Well, he didn’t really want to see her cry.

“…I’m curious.”

Letting out a nasal sigh, he stroked his chin.

He hoped that the woman who had become a new source of interest in his otherwise boring life would continue to amuse him for a long while.

Just as the wait was getting tedious—

“Idris, if you’re free, may I come in for a moment?”

A knock came with the familiar voice.

“Come in.”

As soon as he gave permission, Leticia entered the office.

Idris paused momentarily when he saw her.

She wasn’t in the plain clothes she usually favored—today, she wore a glamorous red dress.

Since it was the unspoken rule to dress up for the casino, it seemed she had done just that.

‘This definitely suits her better…’

She was a woman born to match wealth and glamour.

It was almost a shame she’d kept that dazzling face hidden all this time.

Lost briefly in thought, Idris looked at Leticia, who had come right up to his desk.

“How was the casino?”

“What do you think?”

Usually, it was him who answered a question with a question—but she seemed to have picked up the habit from him.

Idris smirked and replied.

“You probably won. I don’t bother talking to idiots who stay until they lose everything.”

Whether he was right or not, Leticia grinned.

Then she placed a small box, about palm-sized, on his desk.

“A gift.”

Idris looked between the box and her with a puzzled expression.

“I don’t think I’ve done anything worthy of a gift.”

“You let me stay here. No matter how big the house, it’s not easy to open your private space to someone else. Thank you.”

Idris opened the small box.

Inside was a butterfly-shaped tie pin.

“It’s not much compared to what you have, but I wanted to say thank you, even if it’s just like this.”

Seeing the way Idris’s eyes lowered, Leticia added sheepishly,

“Um… if you don’t like butterfly-shaped accessories, I can bring you something else—”

Just as she was about to retrieve the gift, Idris spoke.

“No, I like it. I’ll use it.”

Only then did a relieved smile spread across Leticia’s face.

Idris gazed at her quietly.

Why, he wondered, did she keep reminding him of Aria?

Even though he knew there was no connection between the two, he couldn’t help but keep looking at her.

‘Why those eyes?’

Did she want to say something?

Just then, as Idris’s strangely intense gaze made Leticia feel awkward—

A knock broke the silence between them.

“Your Highness, I’m coming in.”

It was Heather.

At the same time, Idris smoothly shifted back into his usual laid-back demeanor.

Leticia let out a small sigh but didn’t think much of the change in his mood.

Well, it wasn’t the first time the man had been hard to read.

“I’ll get going then. I stayed up all night and I’m tired.”

“Alright. Get some rest.”

Leticia left, and Heather entered.

He gave Leticia a polite nod, but his eyes held a trace of disapproval.

Idris didn’t miss it.

“What’s with that insolent look?”

“N-No, nothing at all.”

Though he never openly expressed it due to Idris’s orders, Heather clearly couldn’t hide his feelings even in his expression.

Idris decided to let it slide this time.

“We had a meeting with the airship engineer at lunch, right?”

He stood as he spoke.

“Yes, sir.”

“Let’s head out now. There’s somewhere I want to stop by first.”

“Uh, one moment, Your Highness.”

Heather’s gaze landed on the unopened letter from Emperor Ajeph.

“Aren’t you going to read the letter…? It’s from His Majesty, after all.”

“Later.”

Idris brushed past Heather nonchalantly and headed for the door, but Heather couldn’t take his uneasy eyes off the letter.

‘If His Majesty sent a personal letter, it must be something serious…’

Across the empire, only Idris would dare to leave a letter from the emperor unopened like that.

Just as Heather, still worried, was about to follow—

Idris suddenly returned to the desk.

‘Is he going to read it now?’

Heather watched with anticipation—

But instead of the letter, Idris picked up the butterfly-shaped tie pin Leticia had given him.

He pinned it onto his tie and strode forward.

“What are you doing? Let’s go.”

Still feeling uneasy, Heather silently followed behind Idris.