67. The World’s Greatest Stalking Contest (2)
“Wait… don’t tell me…”
I wanted to believe my eyes were deceiving me.
But that crest.
The carriage outside the window was far too familiar.
“Why is Seraphine coming to the Duke’s estate?”
I clearly wrote “let’s meet sometime soon,” not “drop by my house the moment you get my letter.”
I looked up at the Administrator with a pale face, but all he could do was give me a troubled look.
【Administrator: (;´・`)>】
So, he wasn’t going to interfere this time either.
“Damn it, I’m going crazy.”
Count Vermont and Seraphine.
Two people who should absolutely not meet, now within just a few meters of each other.
There was no way this wasn’t going to spiral into disaster.
Without thinking twice, I bolted straight down to the first floor.
Meanwhile, in front of the Serteia Duchy.
Seraphine, who had just stepped out of her carriage, looked around in flustered confusion.
Butler William hurriedly came forward to receive the unexpected guest.
“I am Seraphine from Viscount Blaine’s family. I came to see the Lady!”
Seraphine caught the butler at once.
“Where is Lady Roselia? Please, where is she?”
“…Pardon? Did you and Lady Roselia have a prior appointment?”
The butler was bewildered.
Other than Count Vermont’s visit today, there had been no notice of any scheduled guests.
Seraphine quickly showed him a letter from Roselia.
“I hadn’t heard from her in so long, but yesterday, at last, I received her reply. She said we should meet soon.”
“…I’ll send a servant to confirm my lady’s wishes.”
But Seraphine couldn’t even wait for that short moment and fidgeted anxiously.
“Nothing’s happened to her, right?”
“…What do you mean?”
“Like, what if she’s been kidnapped and locked away, or had an accident, or—or maybe she’s come down with some strange illness?!”
“…”
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t tell me it’s true! I can’t just sit still—Lady Roselia! Lady Roselia!”
While the butler was struck speechless, Seraphine was already desperately looking around for Roselia.
“Lady Seraphine!”
“My Lady!”
At that moment, Roselia hurriedly ran out and appeared before her.
Seraphine’s eyes widened.
Roselia was still as beautiful as ever, and unlike what her letters had suggested, she looked perfectly healthy.
“You’re safe, my lady…”
Seraphine had been so worried she couldn’t even eat properly. She’d even planned to scold Roselia once they met, demanding to know what had happened.
But now that she was here, all she felt was overwhelming relief.
“I was so worried. But seeing you looking so well—it’s such a blessing.”
Her chest brimmed with uncontrollable emotion.
Roselia, however, was only thinking of getting Seraphine away—anywhere safe—before she ran into Count Vermont.
“We can catch up later. Come with me, quickly!”
Roselia grabbed Seraphine’s wrist and pulled her along.
In that instant, Seraphine felt her wrist grow hot, the warmth spreading up and striking her heart.
“M-my heart…!”
She clutched her chest as if about to collapse. Roselia panicked.
“Are you all right?”
“No, I’m not…! I mean—yes, I am.”
So… was she or wasn’t she?
“You’re really fine, right?”
“Yes. Too fine. I feel wonderful.”
…She was definitely not in her right mind.
“Anyway, what brings you here all of a sudden?”
Roselia asked as she tugged Seraphine along. Seraphine followed helplessly, like a puppet that had lost its strings.
“Well, since I couldn’t reach you for so long, I started asking around. And eventually, I even sent a message to His Highness the Crown Prince—”
“…What?”
What kind of insane initiative is this?!
She wrote to Perwin? Of all people?
Is this what it means to be the heroine? That kind of guts isn’t normal… Roselia thought with exasperated admiration.
“His Highness told me that you hadn’t replied to his letters either, and you hadn’t made any official outings.”
“….”
“But he also said that this wasn’t the first time you’d cut off all contact and shut yourself in your estate for a while, so there was no need to worry.”
That had been the old Roselia, before possession—back when she’d been abused by Petunia.
To others, it looked like eccentric whims, but in truth, she had been locked away by force.
“This time, too, he said it was probably just your fickleness, and that paying too much attention to it would only encourage you to act out more.”
“…What?”
That bastard Perwin. He made her sound like some attention-seeking brat?!
Roselia’s expression soured, so Seraphine quickly added,
“Of course, I know you’re not like that, my lady. I was just so worried that maybe something terrible had happened…”
She spoke with a downcast face.
“The moment I got your reply yesterday, I couldn’t wait any longer. So even though I knew it was rude, I just had to come.”
Driven by nothing but her determination to see Roselia, Seraphine had stormed into the ducal estate—only to turn into a meek little lamb once she actually faced her.
“I’m truly sorry. I must have startled you.”
“…It’s fine. We’ll talk more inside.”
Roselia rubbed her aching temples.
“Ah, wait! His Highness the Crown Prince will be here soon, too!”
“What? Why him?”
“The Imperial carriage has arrived!”
No sooner had Seraphine spoken than a commotion arose at the front gate.
With the attendant’s shout, a golden, eight-horse carriage emblazoned with the Imperial crest rolled in, dazzling in its grandeur.
The household staff came rushing outside in a frenzy.
“Roselia!”
At the same time, Icart emerged from the mansion and rushed toward her.
A tiger in front, a cliff behind.
From both sides, a massive whirlpool closed in on Roselia.
Please, everyone just leave my house.
Or at least let me escape on my own.
But the situation was already beyond saving.
The Imperial carriage and the Crown Prince’s retinue surrounded the estate, their oppressive aura tightening like a siege.
I stepped forward first to greet him.
“…I greet Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
“It’s been a while. You’ve been hiding so well, I was starting to worry.”
Perwin brushed off my greeting with just a nod, then looked me up and down.
His pleasant voice flowed easily, but though he said he had worried, his face showed only leisure. His “worry” weighed nothing compared to Seraphine’s.
Seraphine subtly drew closer to me.
Across from Perwin, Icart’s glare was sharp and unyielding.
“What business brings you here without warning?”
“Do I need permission to visit my fiancée?”
He scoffed.
Though the spring sunlight bathed the garden, only cold tension flowed between the two.
Perwin’s icy blue eyes shifted to me.
“My lady, you’ve been unusually quiet. Did something happen?”
“Well—”
“If it’s about that matter, then discuss it with me.”
Before I could answer, Icart stepped forward.
Perwin’s brows knitted in annoyance, but Icart didn’t care.
“For some time, I have personally overseen Roselia’s correspondence. Useless letters, I disposed of myself. She probably doesn’t even know such letters ever arrived.”
“…What?”
He confessed without hesitation. A confession, but practically a declaration of war.
Perwin let out a sharp laugh.
It was no different from admitting he had thrown away Perwin’s letters.
But he wasn’t the only one shocked.
“Then… the reason I couldn’t reach Lady Roselia all this time was because you intercepted my letters, young lord?”
“Lady Seraphine?”
Perwin’s displeasure was expected. But Seraphine’s cold reaction left me stunned.
In the original story, no matter what cruelties she suffered, she always smiled and said she was fine, that it was enough she hadn’t been hurt too badly.
But now? She was openly indignant.
“This is far too much! Do you know how worried I was, thinking something might have happened to her?”
“I knew you resented me, but to have such poor manners toward a lady as well…”
Seraphine burst out in anger, and Perwin immediately sided with her.
Their gazes met, sparking with a strange energy. Something beyond camaraderie, almost like… comrades-in-arms.
“I can’t let this go. Shouldn’t the Serteia family already be restraining themselves after Lady Petunia’s incident?”
“….”
“And now, of all people, the young lord behaves like this.”
Perwin’s sarcasm cut sharp.
Beside him, Seraphine nodded firmly.
“Well, if you plan to return to the Academy soon, perhaps I could overlook this quietly. So? When do you intend to go back?”
“That’s none of Your Highness’s concern.”
“Oh? The Headmaster’s been searching for you desperately. How could I possibly ignore that?”
Perwin gestured to an attendant.
The attendant handed Icart a prepared document.
At a glance, it looked like correspondence with the Academy’s Headmaster, concerning Icart’s return schedule and research.
“You fled politics for the Academy, so at least fulfill your duties as a scholar. At this rate, your laziness is unacceptable. You should return as soon as possible—”
“No. I won’t go back.”
Finally! Yay! We have an answer of some kind about what he’s supposed to be doing at the academy!