Chapter 69

Evan gently set the broken quill pen aside and gave an order.

 

“Liman. Go to the information guild and have them investigate again. Don’t miss a single person.”

 

“Yes, understood.”

 

Liman quietly added the task to his mental list.

 

“And what do you plan to do about the banquet?”

 

“Do you think my uncle will attend?”

 

“I believe he will. Wouldn’t he be more sensitive than anyone else to the fact that the young mistress has recovered?”

 

“Trailing after me like a shadow. What about the empress’s movements?”

 

Evan rose from his seat. This was no time to sit idly by. There was far too much to prepare if he was to build a secure fence around Lepina.

 

“She is an enemy, but she understands the political arena well. And thanks to what the young mistress said, she has her eyes wide open. She isn’t making any particular moves.”

 

A deep sneer curved Evan’s lips.

 

“So he’ll be discarded soon.”

 

“It seems so.”

 

“As his nephew, I should knock some sense into him before he drinks himself into false hope.”

 

Liman bowed politely.

 

 

***

 

 

In the end, Evan was stuck at a banquet he had practically been dragged to by force, killing time.

 

He was doing his best to suppress his irritation. Even when he responded halfheartedly to the nobles’ chatter, they showed no sign of leaving him alone. He wanted nothing more than to throw everything aside and storm out, but this too was for the future.

 

Yet despite his efforts to rein himself in, the words echoing inside him slipped out of his mouth.

 

“I want to spend a day with Lep…”

 

Of all times, why now? Lately, they hadn’t spent much time together, and they had even endured the pain of separation—only to overcome it just recently. It was a time when whispering love wouldn’t be enough.

 

Evan felt, more keenly than ever, that he needed those moments.

 

Staring blankly out the window at the sky, he murmured to himself. The sky was clear—perfect weather for a walk, or even for dozing off beneath a large tree.

 

More and more people approached him, each one spouting what they called well-wishes, though every word grated on his nerves.

 

Sipping his wine, Evan thought there were far too many strangers here.

 

“You must be feeling quite lonely, young master. But those who must leave, should leave, don’t you think?”

 

He had let them talk freely, and now they were spouting nonsense.

 

“Who are you referring to?”

 

“I heard it myself. You should forget that mere count’s daughter and fill the emptiness in your heart with a new connection…”

 

He wanted to ask who they had heard that from, but Evan only smiled faintly.

 

“Young master, during His Highness’s birthday celebration, we truly thought something terrible would happen.”

 

Evan found the lingering gazes of the young ladies bothersome.

 

“Thank you for your concern. Thanks to my fiancée’s devoted efforts, I’ve recovered completely.”

 

At the word “fiancée,” the people around him visibly stiffened.

 

“You still call her your fiancée?”

 

“Have you not been able to forget her?”

 

Whispers and idle gossip spread around them.

 

“C-Countess Clies’ excellence is well known, of course. But aren’t you currently separated after a broken engagement?”

 

It was a roundabout way of saying they were no longer engaged—no more than strangers now. As he spoke, the noble quickly scanned Evan’s surroundings. Like hyenas eyeing prey, other nobles with the same goal were visible.

 

‘A noble marriage isn’t built on love. Joining hands with me would be far more beneficial to House Weiss than House Clies.’

 

With such thoughts, they all pushed their daughters forward.

 

Evan, eyes half-lidded, read their intentions easily and clicked his tongue inwardly.

 

He silently looked down at the young lady standing shyly beside the approaching noble. Her face was somewhat familiar. Noticing Evan’s gaze on his daughter, the noble smiled smugly and presented her to him.

 

“This is my daughter, Melanie.”

 

“Lord Weiss, it’s been a while. I am—”

 

Evan didn’t wait for her to finish. He was already sick to death of being hounded.

 

“Ah, I remember. We attended the same academy.”

 

At the fact that Evan remembered her, Melanie’s face brightened. Now that he was no longer a man with a limited lifespan, he ranked among the top three most desirable grooms. But the next words from Evan made her flush crimson.

 

“Aren’t you the young lady who ran away in fear when I vomited blood?”

 

“……”

 

“Haha, it seems my daughter was afraid of blood…”

 

It was far from a pleasant laugh, but he tried to smooth over the situation. Evan scoffed lightly.

 

“She was so startled she screamed at me to clean it up immediately.”

 

He had been poisoned, with the toxin circulating inside his body. No one could say whether contact with his blood might poison someone else as well.

 

At Evan’s blatant mockery, their lips pressed tightly together, and the young lady clutched her dress in humiliation. But it stirred not even a shred of sympathy in Evan.

 

“There seem to be many people who keep bringing up young ladies to me, so let me be clear…”

 

Evan slowly swept his gaze around. The nobles and young ladies waiting their turn flinched.

 

“The talk of a broken engagement is false. So please keep your proposals in your pockets. I am already deeply in love with one person.”

 

Evan’s bright smile, blooming like a fully opened flower, was enough to stir hearts. But soon, a shadow fell over his eyes.

 

“Introducing other young ladies brings me nothing but displeasure. You wouldn’t want to make an enemy of me, would you?”

 

“O-of course not!”

 

At his cold rejection, the nobles hesitated, then hastily began making excuses. Those who had been about to present their daughters hurried to pull them back.

 

Evan finally escaped the crowd of nobles and let out a deep breath.

 

“That damned broken engagement.”

 

The rumors the nobles spread about Lepina and Evan’s broken engagement relentlessly gouged at his painful past. As memories surged up like molten lava, he downed his wine in one gulp, ice clinking in the glass, hoping it would cool the boiling anger.

 

“But not anymore.”

 

A smile settled on Evan’s face.

 

The real problem had been overthinking everything and failing to make the most important confession. Considering that his frequent declarations of affection since childhood might have caused confusion, the fact that his confession never reached Lep made his bones ache with regret.

 

“There’s an important banquet coming up. I should attend that one with Lep.”

 

He needed to make it clear to the retainers that he stood confidently as the heir. Count Montena had also sent him an invitation—an event attended only by the duke’s retainers. Bringing Lepina would drive the point home unmistakably.

 

“It seems there are men who approach her when I’m not around. I should act quickly.”

 

It was true that House Clies was inferior to House Weiss. But setting aside the duchy, when it came to House Clies—especially Lepina Clies—she was more than suitable as a bride.

 

Remembering the moments when those who knew this tried to approach her, Evan frowned. If he had attended banquets alone, without a partner, Lepina’s situation would have been no different.

 

Just then, Evan heard footsteps approaching him. At last, the target was coming to him.

 

“Well now, if it isn’t my nephew.”

 

Evan glanced at Hedeis. So his face really had brightened.

 

“Have you been well? We meet again.”

 

The uncle Evan knew was a man who had lost to Evan’s father, one who burned with resentment toward the victor. Yet lacking ability, he only continued to fall.

 

Ambition toward those above was necessary—but his methods were too vile. Crawling under the empress’s skirts in the end. If House Weiss had fallen into his hands, the outcome would have been obvious.

 

“Is that so? I suppose we have been running into each other often lately.”

 

His hearty laughter grated on Evan’s ears. How many times had they met under the guise of coincidence already?

 

Watching him burn with competitiveness even toward a child had been ridiculous. Parading the number of nobles at his side, then appearing at every banquet Evan attended after recovering, as if to pour cold water on him—it was all laughable.

 

Most of those around him were nobles aligned with the empress.

 

“It seems you wished to see me often, Count, so I attended on purpose.”

 

“……”

 

At Evan’s words, Hedeis’s brow furrowed. He hated being called a count. Once a duke, now reduced to a count—naturally so.

 

“Haha, that’s rich. Yet wasn’t it you who avoided approaching me?”

 

“You appeared to be engaged in an important discussion, so I hesitated to interrupt.”

 

Hedeis looked down at Evan, who spoke shamelessly. Along with nobles aligned with the empress, he had been watching Evan’s actions closely. The so-called important discussion amounted to nothing more than calming the empress’s faction, flustered over what would happen to the position of the duke’s heir. Grinding his teeth, Hedeis glared.

 

Those around them watched Evan and Hedeis with interest. Evan disliked being a spectacle, but now was the time to respond properly. He couldn’t allow this arrogance to continue forever.

 

At previous banquets, Hedeis’s provocations had been a secondary concern. But now, Evan was willing to engage him seriously. Hedeis had subtly pressured him at every banquet. Seeing Evan continue to attend and seemingly reclaim his place made him increasingly impatient.

 

“Hey! No matter what, I am your uncle. Show some respect.”

 

Hedeis raised his voice boldly, for the benefit of the many nobles—both empress-aligned and otherwise—watching from behind. He didn’t realize that such behavior only demeaned himself. It was the typical noble belief that raising one’s voice solved everything.

 

“Respect… And who, exactly, does House Weiss owe such courtesy to? Ah, perhaps you do, Uncle. I saw you earlier, heading off to greet someone.”

 

A chilling killing intent laced Evan’s words. An inexplicable shiver ran down the nobles’ spines. Startled, they turned their eyes to Hedeis.

 

He bit down on his lip. Just as Evan said, he had gone to greet nobles aligned with the empress—those who would become his backing.