CHAPTER 28……………………………………………………
The invitation I opened wasn’t very long.
It contained a brief greeting and, just as Duke Alexis had said, a note that Rojian wanted to see me.
“If you don’t wish to see me, there’s no need to meet. I will respect your choice.”
“…….”
Why would Rojian specifically want to see me?
I thought of Rojian, whose face hadn’t aged in over ten years.
It wasn’t surprising that the emperor had been captivated by a man like him.
Judging by his appearance alone, he was a man of striking beauty, almost breathtaking.
“There’s no reason not to meet him either.”
I folded the invitation neatly in half and continued speaking.
“Besides, Rojian was asking about Duke Alexis, you know.”
“…….”
“Apparently, he hasn’t been visiting the temple lately.”
I let out a deep breath.
I narrowed my eyes at the expression on the duke’s face—caught in something he shouldn’t have been aware of. If Duke Alexis, who wasn’t particularly devout, had a reason to go to the temple… what could it be?
“Perhaps…”
He flinched at my question.
“Are you unwell?”
“Of course not.”
“Right, I thought as much.”
Even though Duke Alexis was human, and it would be natural for anyone to have illnesses, imagining him unwell was difficult.
“I’ll send an invitation saying I plan to visit.”
“Please do.”
After finishing that, I quietly left the study.
Rojian probably called April separately to talk about the engagement.
Humming softly to myself, I scratched my forehead and slowly walked along the soft carpet of the corridor.
“Miss, have you finished talking with the duke?”
Patrick seemed ready to enter the study, with a tray holding water and a very small pouch.
Why a pouch? As I stared, Patrick spoke cautiously.
“The duke was very worried about you.”
“Is that so? Very worried, was he?”
“…….”
“And I also told him he had no right to worry.”
“……Miss.”
He looked concerned, as if hoping I wouldn’t hate the Rize household anymore.
Perhaps it was because the duke promised to give me a fair recompense, or maybe there were other reasons.
It all felt somewhat coercive, as if urging me to forgive quickly, and I swallowed my displeasure.
“But Master Patrick, is the duke unwell?”
“Of course not.”
I frowned slightly at the immediate denial.
“He is in perfect health.”
“Really?”
“Were you worried about him?”
His gray eyes sparkled with hope, and I smiled faintly.
“No, not at all.”
I crushed the hope in his gaze that perhaps our relationship might improve.
After Patrick disappeared from view, I lowered my previously upturned lips.
The kind, gentle smile that had been aimed at me vanished entirely as he lightly knocked on the wooden door.
“Come in.”
At the short permission, Patrick cautiously opened the door.
Inside the study, Duke Alexis sat, his face weary. His steel-blue eyes fixed on Patrick, who exhaled heavily before stepping fully inside.
Patrick placed the water and small pouch on the desk and checked the duke’s complexion.
Since Agletini’s illness, the duke’s face rarely showed color—fatigue and other circumstances left it hard to see vitality.
“Miss Irina was worried about you, Duke.”
“Me?”
Though the voice was cold enough to make saying “worried” almost inappropriate, asking at all indicated concern.
If Irina had truly intended not to forgive, she wouldn’t have come to this mansion, nor inquired about the duke’s health.
Even if this was overly optimistic thinking, I wanted to believe it.
Though it was audacious, I wanted our relationship with Irina to return to how it had been.
Even if it couldn’t fully return, I wanted some forgiveness for the cold treatment she had endured.
Of course, for this to happen, at least Barak would have to cooperate.
Patrick nodded slightly, showing his support, and Duke Alexis let out a hollow laugh.
“Ridiculous.”
It was immediately clear that he didn’t believe it.
Patrick offered a faint, wry smile at the duke’s disbelief. Leaning back in his chair, Alexis’s gaze quietly fell.
The Rize household had been the first to abandon Irina, so it wasn’t surprising that she hated the mansion. Yet, the contempt and loathing she displayed seemed to carry something else.
Alexis straightened in his chair.
Yes, Irina was right. Angelica and the household still clearly remembered how they had taken her.
They had snatched the child from her father, Daniel. They bribed and intimidated the man trying to protect her—the Rize household.
“Take Irina as you and the duchess wish. But I have one condition.”
I imagined he might ask for a fortune, since she was his only remaining treasure—the daughter—and he would demand a sum to match that value.
Whatever amount he demanded, I would have been willing to pay.
Duke Alexis desperately wanted to find his youngest lost daughter, and for Angelica, who had lost her mind after her daughter vanished.
“Name any sum you wish—”
“I don’t need money.”
Perhaps Daniel felt even handing over his daughter demanded some conscience. But his words were unexpected.
“Do not abandon Irina. Protect her as your daughter, until the very end.”
Daniel’s last expression had been hard as stone.
This was his condition.
Daniel, who had refused every bribe, immediately changed his mind when offered a sum sufficient to ensure a lifetime of care.
Alexis ran his tongue over his dry lips.
“Come to think of it, I never asked how he’s been.”
“Who are you talking about?”
“Her father, Daniel.”
Thinking back, I hadn’t paid attention since the moment Irina arrived at this house.
Even though Daniel refused money, Angelica had been sending monthly funds and medicine. Irina herself had never brought up her father.
Both as a child and now, after returning to the mansion following her father’s death.
“Patrick.”
“Yes, Duke?”
“Find out about Irina’s father.”
“……Yes?”
His pale face belied his sharp, steel-blue eyes, which shone fiercely, reminiscent of his younger days when he ruthlessly cut down enemies on the battlefield.
“I need to know how he has been.”
“Tamitarte-nim, today’s medicine—”
A priest entering greeted Tamitarte, but his face froze in surprise.
The young man’s perfect, almost divine features stiffened, and the knight beside him mirrored the same rigid expression.
‘Something must have happened in the royal family.’
The priest, guessing vaguely, stepped aside respectfully.
Tamitarte threw open the guest room door roughly, sweeping back his long violet hair.
“Damn it…!”
Despite his delicate, flower-like beauty, harsh curses struggled to escape his lips.
His hazelnut-orange mid-length hair and sunset-colored eyes made him unmistakable.
“Bliss, did you see that too?”
I asked Bliss, both a knight of the temple and his personal bodyguard. He nodded.
The woman loitering near the temple entrance was unmistakably Vernis Devin.
“How is Vernis…?”
He gnawed on his nails.
She looked slightly more mature but remained the same Vernis Devin from memory.
And… how was she alive?
“Ah, damn it!”
Tamitarte cursed violently, beating his head and collapsing into a crouch.
“Someone will hear you.”
“Let them hear, damn it!”
If the temple guards realized the reason for his anger was Vernis Devin, he would not leave it be.
“Vernis Devin is definitely dead.”
His light blue eyes flickered with worry as Bliss shook his head slightly.
She was certainly dead. Vernis Devin’s execution had taken place in the square, and the body had even been displayed as an example.
