Chapter 61
“Welcome, Your Majesty.”
“You and your husband are no less splendid. It’s an honor that you’ve been here early to grace the occasion, Your Majesty.”
“Whose wedding is this, after all? Of course I must be present from the very beginning. As a sign of congratulations, shall I pour you a cup of wine, Countess Clu?”
“Gladly, that would be an honor.”
The Emperor, leaving the men behind as if he had private words, took Yulia to a nearby table.
“Keep this with you, madam. I thought you might need to be careful tonight, so I’ve brought it specially.”
“What is this?”
“It’s something that will help you on your wedding night.”
“Something to help on the wedding night…?”
“Shall we call it a kind of aphrodisiac?”
The Emperor placed a small glass vial in Yulia’s hand and gave her a secretive smile. At the mention of “wedding night,” Yulia was suddenly reminded of what lay ahead, and her cheeks flushed. She couldn’t help thinking that he must have also witnessed their earlier kiss, and she wasn’t sure where to look.
“From earlier on, I’ve noticed the Count’s gaze is far from ordinary.”
Indeed, even now, Kayente’s eyes on Yulia were unlike usual. He pursued her so intently, as though unwilling to miss even the sound of her breathing.
“If he’s so madly in love, why was the wedding delayed for so long?”
“He said he had a lot to do upon arriving in the Empire and wanted to settle matters first.”
“Matters could be handled even after marriage.”
Even Yulia, who knew the secret of this marriage, thought that Kayente really looked like he couldn’t live without her. She had wished he might fall in love at first sight when she walked down the aisle, but she couldn’t believe that Kayente would lose his heart so recklessly in an instant.
Kayente now—and in the past—was never one to be so careless with emotion.
“Your Majesty! To think you graced the humble wedding of my lowly daughter… and even gave her a kiss at the debutante last time. How can we ever repay such grace?”
“Grace? What greater happiness could I have than seeing my people happy? That the young lady I kissed now marries under such blessings is reward enough.”
For once behaving herself, the Baroness nevertheless seized the chance to approach when Yulia stood alone with the Emperor. Perhaps slightly drunk, her gaze was unfocused, making Yulia tense.
“But is not Count Clu, in the end, a man of the Duchy? The wealth he amasses will surely flow back to the Duchy in the end.”
“Mother…”
As expected, the Baroness spoke what ought never have been said, hardening the Emperor’s expression. Yulia thought she should quickly lead her mother away, but looking around, Ian was already drunk beyond standing.
“Mother, where is Father?”
“Well… haven’t seen him for a while. Perhaps chatting with guests somewhere?”
So she searched for her father—but nowhere could the Baron’s figure be found.
The gathering, meant to bless the couple just wed, had left everyone wearing peaceful, happy faces. Kayente found it strange that at an event centered on him, people laughed so idly. Usually, unless absolutely necessary, he rarely saw such gatherings.
“Truly? You accepted it so kindly? Thank you.”
This was thanks to Yulia’s presence. Even outside of a wedding, if Yulia were there, the atmosphere would be like this. She smiled at everyone without reserve and gave her best response to whomever spoke.
But soon this relaxed mood would surely vanish, leaving people edging back and searching for chances to slip away. Kayente couldn’t take his eyes off Yulia, wondering how that radiant smile would change when the time came. The misfortune she would have to bear alone… felt unbearably heavy.
“Brother, His Majesty says he is bored and has requested a cello performance. May I play here?”
Unaware of his thoughts, Yulia returned from speaking with the Emperor and carefully asked his opinion. Looking into her golden eyes, so close, with no distance at all—as if she had forgotten her earlier caution—Kayente felt a tight, painful clench around his heart.
“Brother?”
“Do so.”
It was hard to breathe, and even that reply came forced. Kayente hoped, desperately, that this peace might last even thirty minutes more—at least for the time it took Yulia to play a single piece. That no trouble would arise for just that long. Though he himself had arranged what was to happen, he now found himself anxious over when it might unfold. He even regretted not having been more cautious when hesitation had remained.
Even so, had he the choice again, he would have chosen the same path. Yet… he felt a feeling much like when he had wanted to flee, after the death of the former Count Clu, before the storm of fate.
To throw everything aside and run. Though he could not possibly evade responsibility this time, for it was his own doing, still the feeling arose.
“Where is Baron Lufer!”
But despite Kayente’s fierce wish to deny himself, trouble arrived before Yulia could even take her place with the cello. Four men burst in. They dressed like nobles, but their gestures and tone seemed crude.
“And you are…?”
“Are you the steward here? Where is Baron Lufer!”
“Whatever the matter, keep your voice down. This is a wedding.”
“You think the wedding matters now? Bring out Baron Lufer!”
“For what reason do you seek my husband?”
“Oh, good, the wife is here. Where is your husband! Where is he!”
They pressed toward the Baroness, who shrieked in fright. Ian should have stepped in, but he lay passed out on the table, dead to the world.
“What is going on? Why do you seek my father so urgently?”
Yulia, preparing to play, had to descend from the dais and step in for her mother. Her question was answered with furious shouts.
“Your father told us to trust him and invest, but now he’s disappeared!”
“What about our money!”
“He promised three, four times profit—were you all in on the scam together?”
The men explained:
They had met a merchant from the Ilrn Continent through the Baron’s introduction. This man claimed he sought a company to invest in production, lowering purchase costs through capital infusion, ensuring steady trade. It was all a scam.
“We should have suspected when he talked big about investing but barely put in any advance of his own.”
“But Baron Lufer kept urging us—saying it was a great opportunity—so we fell for it!”
The man had even paid some initial amounts, seeming reliable. But soon he began demanding money—saying taxes were due, bribes needed. Suspicious, but persuaded by promises of huge profit, they kept giving.
“When we said the bonds he issued were due tomorrow, he swore he’d raise the money today somehow. And then—he vanished overnight!”
“Baron Lufer! Where is he! Come out and explain yourself! What are we supposed to do now!”
Yulia, too, searched frantically for her father to confirm the truth, but he was nowhere. Even after scouring every small room in the mansion, nothing. At last, a servant confessed he had seen the Baron slipping out the back door before the banquet began.
“So he really was in on it!”
“You mean he abandoned his family, ran off alone to save himself? On his own daughter’s wedding day?”
Surely her father wasn’t truly an accomplice—he must have been deceived too, Yulia thought, dizzy. She had felt uneasy when he’d been so thrilled about finding a great investor…
When Yulia staggered, Lucy, who had been watching from a distance and ready to move at need, rushed to support her. It was already unbearable that her father had been swindled, that so many were entangled by his urging. But then, as if waiting, well-dressed bankers entered the garden, asking for the Baron.
“Is Baron Lufer here? He promised repayment this morning, but with business hours ending and no funds received, we came in person.”
