Count Ross answered with a reluctant expression. He soon excused himself from the drawing-room under the pretense of carrying out Adrian’s order.
He fell into deep thought as he headed toward the Imperial Palace.
There were many ways to apologize without directly facing the Grand Duke and Duchess. He could send an expensive gift along with a personal letter, or, though it would be a shame, he could even give them one of the estates the Crown Prince possessed.
If he really wanted to meet them, he could simply attend a party where the Grand Duke and Duchess were known to be present.
‘But he insisted on inviting them to the Crown Prince’s Palace? And to send away the Grand Duke, whom he had so painstakingly called upon, even going so far as to make an earnest request to the Emperor…?’
Clearly, his master had some other motive.
What could that motive be? Count Ross pondered this deeply, then suddenly stopped in his tracks as a thought struck him.
‘Is it to be alone with the Grand Duchess…?’
What would be the reason for creating an opportunity to be alone with a person of the opposite sex? Wouldn’t it be because he had feelings for them?
‘He wouldn’t still have lingering feelings for the Grand Duchess, would he?’
Count Ross immediately shook his head as if to deny the thought.
No. That couldn’t be. How coldly had the Crown Prince broken off the engagement with Daniela?
Yet, he couldn’t shake the thought. The Crown Prince’s attitude had been suspicious for a while now. He nervously chewed on his lower lip, filled with unease and anxiety.
‘It seems I need to confirm what His Highness’s true feelings are.’ The Crown Prince had, conveniently, even created an opportunity for Grand Duke Alberich to temporarily leave.
Perhaps with this opportunity, he could test his master’s heart and, at the same time, play a small ‘trick’ on the Grand Duchess, who had been gradually eroding his master’s influence recently.
‘If I use that method, I can cause trouble and still get away safely.’
He took a step with a wicked smile. He looked forward to the day the Grand Ducal couple would visit the Crown Prince’s Palace.
Imperial Capital, Alberich Grand Duke’s Townhouse Main Building.
Daniela was reading letters and documents brought from the Asland estate in the main drawing-room, which had become virtually her office these days. She was searching for clues left by Duke Enchanto regarding Empress Yulia’s assassination.
After meticulously examining the documents, she crumpled the ones she finished reading and tossed them into the burning fireplace.
Beside her, Mela, who was attending to her, cautiously spoke, observing Daniela’s complexion.
“It seems the information you’re looking for isn’t in those documents, Ma’am.”
“…Mm. I guess so.”
“A few days ago, Baroness Grey mentioned that you seemed to have found a clue, but did you not find any special information there?”
Daniela briefly traced her memory at the question, then let out a short exclamation.
“Ah, you mean the fourth clue. ‘The gray tiara placed upon her head, in the land where Melanie sleeps.’”
“Yes, wasn’t it hidden in the tombstone of your mother, the Duchess Enchanto?”
“Yes. I checked everything with Grey yesterday. They were letters exchanged with Viscount Ranken, the former butler of the Duke Enchanto family. They contained where the deeds to the townhouse and the Asland estate were hidden. He must have been afraid I’d squander what little property we had.”
“Oh, is that so.”
“…Ha, now I only need to find three more. Where on earth did Father hide the letters he exchanged with the Empress…?”
Daniela muttered to herself with an anxious voice, examining the document in her hand.
Reading the letters she had found through the clues, she learned how meticulously and cruelly Empress Katrin and her subordinates had planned to eliminate Empress Yulia and Ashid.
This made her empathize with Ashid even more, and her desire to help him grew stronger. Especially since the contract period with him was nearing its end.
‘I must find all the clues, as promised with Ashid, before the contract ends.’
And when he breaks free from the destiny of the villain and truly falls in love with Camellia, the heroine of this world… then she would be able to leave without regret.
…Perhaps.
Daniela unconsciously gave a wry smile and listlessly crumpled the document, tossing it into the fireplace.
How many documents had she burned like that? Just as the pile of documents stacked high on a nearby table had noticeably diminished, Daniela discovered an envelope that was strangely pristine compared to the others. She immediately opened the envelope, and inside was a single card made of stiff paper.
[The treasure hidden in the cave of the golden lion.
One. The red and blue garden, where the hem of spring’s garment has brushed past.
And another. The nest of the bird that will give wings to the lion’s back.]
“I found it!”
As Daniela exclaimed with a voice full of emotion, Mela brightened and asked in turn.
“Really?”
Nodding in reply, she showed the card in her hand to Mela. Mela briefly examined it and frowned, saying,
“Hmm… These clues are still quite ambiguous.”
“I know. What’s the cave of the golden lion, and what is the hem of spring’s garment…?” Daniela narrowed her brow and muttered to herself, staring intently at the card. Meanwhile, Mela, who had been repeating the contents of the card, let out a short cry.
“…Ah! Could it be referring to His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“What?”
“As you know, Ma’am, each family in our empire has a plant or animal symbolizing the head of the household, just like the golden eagle is the symbol of His Highness and the Grand Duke’s family. The Imperial Family has one for each palace. The Emperor and the Emperor’s Palace is the white lion, and the Empress and the Empress’s Palace is the owl. Like that!”
“Ah, so you’re saying it’s the Crown Prince? Because the ‘golden lion’ is the animal symbolizing His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
Daniela nodded at Mela’s answer, agreeing that it made sense, and said,
“So that means the place where this clue is hidden is the Crown Prince’s Palace? The red and blue garden must be one of the gardens in the Crown Prince’s Palace…”
“Yes. …And ‘the nest of the bird that will give wings to the lion’s back’ I dare to guess is the Crown Princess’s bedroom.”
“…Ah. That makes sense. Because the animal symbolizing the Crown Princess is the ‘peacock’.”
‘That means I have to search the Crown Prince’s Palace to get the clues.’
Daniela put down the card and sighed deeply. Duke Enchanto probably judged the Crown Prince’s Palace to be safe, which is why he hid the two clues there.
In fact, from his perspective, it was a reasonable choice. To prevent Ashid from stealing the clues, hiding them in the Crown Prince’s Palace would be the safest option. Furthermore, the Duke would never have anticipated that his daughter would be divorced and cast out.
‘But I broke off my engagement with the Crown Prince and am now married to Ashid by contract.’
Daniela pressed her hand to her temple, indicating a headache. She asked Mela in a small voice,
“…Having a spy infiltrate the Crown Prince’s Palace for a search would be dangerous, wouldn’t it?”
“Of course! If you were caught doing something like that, not only would you, Ma’am, but also His Highness the Grand Duke would be in serious trouble!”
“Ha… what should I do? But I can’t give up on these clues either…”
Daniela looked down at the card with a distressed expression at the firm answer. Mela looked at her with sympathy for a moment, then poured warm, steaming tea into an elegant teacup and offered it to her, saying comfortingly,
“You are a wise person, Ma’am, so if you take your time and think it through, you will surely find a solution. So don’t be so upset. You have me and Baroness Grey by your side, and His Highness is here too!”
“Mm, right…”
‘Ashid would probably be disgusted if I asked him to help search the Crown Prince’s Palace.’
Daniela replied with a reluctant expression and took a sip of the tea. Perhaps because of the worries swirling in her head, the tea tasted particularly bitter today.
Later that day, late afternoon. Alberich Grand Duke’s Townhouse. The Grand Duke’s office within the Knight’s Barracks.
Ashid had been sitting at his office desk for several hours, reviewing reports sent up from the Northern Castle.
After the upcoming debutante ball marked the end of this year’s social season, he would immediately return to the North. The Northern Castle was currently undergoing internal renovations in preparation for that time. The area that especially drew his attention was the Grand Duchess’s bedroom, which Daniela would eventually use.
‘Since she was born and raised in the capital, she won’t be used to the North’s fierce cold and snowstorms.’
Ashid thought this as he drafted a reply to the Northern Castle’s butler.
On the smooth writing paper, he meticulously wrote instructions such as ‘replace the wallpaper with something warm and pretty,’ ‘lay the highest quality fur on the floor,’ and ‘replace the comforters and the curtains hanging from the bedposts with thick, plush ones.’
He then neatly folded the letter, put it in an envelope, and sealed it with wax.
“Your Highness.”
Thank you very much 🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺