Chapter 9.2

The midday sun was scorching. Cesare gazed out at the garden visible through the window, wondering why Crown Prince Edward was staring at him with such a peculiar expression.

 

“…Is something the matter?” Cesare finally asked, unable to bear it any longer.

 

Edward’s eyes sparkled as if he had been waiting for that cue. “Do you know that Duke Lyon’s family is coming to the Imperial Palace today to pay their respects?!”

 

“I am aware that Duke Lyon is coming.”

 

As members of the Imperial family, it was expected they would offer their greetings before departing for the duchy. It was standard protocol for the head of the house to do so. Usually, when children were young, the couple or the head came alone, but since the children were now grown and married, they were coming together.

 

“I thought you might want to see their faces. Or perhaps you’ve already met separately and don’t feel the need?”

 

“It’s not that, but I am currently in the middle of work…”

 

“I’ll give you time! Your only sister is heading down to the provinces; who knows when you’ll see her face again? I’m not a cold-hearted man who would keep you tied up!” Edward declared happily.

 

Cesare looked at him flatly. “If you are simply looking for an excuse to abandon your own duties and leave the palace…”

 

“Do you think I’m doing this because I want to play?! I’ve been worried about that child this whole time! I’m trying to be considerate, and yet…”

 

“I appreciate the sentiment, but she would likely find my presence burdensome. It is enough for me that she lives happily… and to see her healthy at future Imperial events.”

 

Leticia already had good people around her. Cesare felt that trying to force himself into her life was a useless intrusion born of his own greed. While Sebastian and his father seemed eager to restore their relationship with her, Cesare believed he shouldn’t do so out of a selfish desire.

 

“Talk to her anyway. You’ve wanted to apologize to her for a long time! This is an order!”

 

Cesare looked at him as if questioning what kind of ‘order’ that was, but Edward practically shoved him out of the office, adding one last piece of information: “…Lady Tesseia will be at the Second Garden of the Main Palace!”

 

 

***

 

 

“Would the Lady and the Young Duke care to view the garden for a moment?”

 

They had finished their greetings to the Emperor, Empress, and the Crown Prince. While Duke Carlyle waited for a private word with the Imperial couple, an Imperial servant made the suggestion. Curious, Leticia and Terdis followed the servant to the Second Garden.

 

Unlike the First Garden, which was open to officials, this area led to a glass conservatory. The servant only accompanied them to the entrance, leaving Leticia and Terdis to walk hand-in-hand along the path into the greenhouse.

 

“Ah.”

 

They wondered if the Crown Prince had pulled strings for Cesare, or if Cesare had used his own connections. Cesare was sitting in a chair at a table in a corner of the conservatory. Terdis had already sensed someone’s presence and warned her, so she wasn’t startled—she just hadn’t expected it to be Cesare.

 

Cesare slowly stood up. “Leticia… Young Duke Lyon.”

 

“Greetings,” Terdis said first, and Cesare nodded. Leticia felt a slight discomfort, but it wasn’t the volatile emotion she had felt with Godfrey.

 

Cesare was a brother she had once admired, and afterward… someone she had simply tried to forget. As she tried to offer a light greeting and pass by, Cesare called out to her.

 

“Leticia, could we speak for a moment?”

 

With no one else around, the three of them naturally sat at the table. No servants were visible, but there was an air that one would appear with tea the moment they were summoned.

 

“I’m not sure if you’ve already had tea. Shall I call a servant?”

 

‘Does one really just appear out of nowhere?’ Leticia wondered but kept her face neutral. “No, thank you. Father will be looking for us as soon as his conversation is finished.”

 

That meant they would have to leave the moment a messenger arrived. Cesare realized he didn’t have time to hesitate.

 

“I heard you are heading to the Lyon Duchy in two days.”

 

“Yes…”

 

Though the social season hadn’t fully begun, if they intended to hold the wedding in the duchy, they had to go now to prepare. Once they left, they would likely only return for occasional Imperial events. Leticia looked at Cesare, thinking of the words she might have said if they were a normal siblings.

 

“Digging up the past to apologize now might be a pathetic act for my own sake… but I find myself wanting to apologize anyway.”

 

Leticia knew what he was referring to. It had been a single friction, but it was the event that had severed them forever. She lowered her gaze.

 

“That… you don’t have to apologize for that. You were young too. You disliked me, so how unpleasant it must have been for you.”

 

“I am sorry, Leticia. Both then and now… I am sorry for being a person who only hurt you and couldn’t be a source of strength.”

 

As he apologized while looking her straight in the eye, Leticia watched him quietly. She had admired him once. Knowing the original story, she had been happy that Cesare was her biological brother.

 

‘My heart followed my body; I was naive back then…’

 

That clumsy dream had shattered easily. The moment Cesare slapped her, it felt as if sharp fragments of reality had pierced her.

 

“It wasn’t ‘okay,’ but… what can I do?”

 

If only Sebastian or Godfrey had been like Cesare—if they had simply disliked her and kept their distance, they might have eventually become awkward but distant acquaintances. But they weren’t, and there was Aaron who had stood by and watched. As she grew older, the pain might fade, but she suspected her longing for family would vanish along with it.

 

‘We won’t be like a family, regardless.’

 

She thought they would become like distant relatives who had a bad history—forever unable to be close. As Leticia wore a self-deprecating smile, Cesare spoke with sudden resolve.

 

“I know we have never looked like siblings. But is there truly no way at all for us to become closer?”

 

Leticia was surprised. He had seemed to respect her wish to keep her distance. “I… don’t have the confidence to live like family with those two and the Duke. And you can’t live without seeing them, can you?”

 

“I shall do exactly that.”

 

Cesare answered without a shred of hesitation. Leticia’s mouth fell open. If Sebastian or Godfrey had said this, she would have dismissed it as empty words. But she had read the novel and played the game; she knew who Cesare was. He was not a man who made promises he couldn’t keep.

 

“If that is what it takes to be your brother, I will do it.”

 

Unexpected tears suddenly spilled over. Leticia didn’t even know why she was crying.

 

“Leticia, what is wrong?”

 

A panicked Cesare pulled out a handkerchief, which Terdis took to wipe her eyes. Leticia shook her head.

 

“No. I… I just said that in passing. Please don’t do that.”

 

“But…”

 

“How could you? My heart wouldn’t be at ease seeing you live like that. Just the fact that… you said you would is enough. I’m happy with just that. So…”

 

“Leticia.”

 

A hand reached across the table and took hers. She couldn’t pull away. She thought she was fine not being part of the family, but it seemed she was happy to know she wasn’t alone. Knowing that someone in her family would prioritize and love her meant everything.

 

Cesare wasn’t worried about Aaron; worrying about Duke Tesseia was a fool’s errand. Godfrey and Sebastian? They were adults who had grown up receiving everything they wanted. The only one he worried about with a burning intensity was his youngest sister—who seemed to have everything yet looked so precarious.

 

“Who are you worrying about? Even if I never see my father or the other two again, I will live the life I want.”

 

Even if his relationship with Aaron soured and he was no longer Young Duke Tesseia, he was confident he could survive. Leticia panicked, seeing his firm resolve. It would be a disaster if he quit being the heir just to reconcile with her.

 

“Please don’t. I don’t want that!”

 

Seeing Cesare smile at her predicament, Leticia felt a genuine sense of crisis. He looked like he really meant it. He was exactly the kind of person who would go through with it!

 

“B-Brother doesn’t have to do that, so…”

 

When Leticia finally called him that with her eyes squeezed shut, Cesare seemed to stop breathing for a moment. Terdis looked at her in surprise, and Cesare asked in a trembling voice:

 

“Le… ticia, did you just call me ‘brother’?”

 

“Yes. Brother… Cesare.”

 

Feeling his face flush with joy, Cesare squeezed her hand just enough to feel it, without causing pain. “Thank you, Leticia.”

 

Leticia’s face grew hot for a different reason. She never thought a day would come when she would call one of them “Brother.”

 

“In exchange… well, it’s not an exchange, but I would appreciate it if you didn’t mention those three in front of me.”

 

Cesare gave a bittersweet smile at her small request. “I will do that. Since you asked, I must listen.”

 

Beside her, Terdis thought Cesare was holding her hand for far too long. He knew he was her brother, but the intimate atmosphere was irritating.

 

‘Am I being too much?’

 

He didn’t want Leticia to never reconcile with her family. If it eased her burden and she wanted it, reconciliation was a good thing. But seeing the Leticia he considered his own pay attention to someone else… wasn’t exactly sweet.

 

‘Brother… because he’s her brother. A male sibling. I don’t have siblings, so I don’t know the feeling, but… maybe she wanted to reconcile with Brother Cesare even if the other two were out of the question.’

 

If Leticia was happy, Terdis was happy. But… why did he have a sour stomach? He glared at their joined hands, wanting to pull them apart. Fortunately, an Imperial servant arrived to find them, allowing him to reclaim Leticia for himself.

 

 

***

 

 

Waiting patiently was not in Dominic’s nature. He used a spy from the Luendal Empire planted in the Sachsen Empire to damage part of the ruins beneath the Imperial Palace. He believed that if he broke the barrier that made infiltration difficult, he could sneak in undetected.

 

The task, requested through Duke Lyon, was finished in an instant, and Dominic finally entered the place where Nina was supposedly staying.

 

But… the room was empty. Dominic, hidden by invisibility magic, wondered if he had the wrong room.

 

‘She should definitely be here.’

 

He had a bad feeling. Having lost her trail several times before, Dominic concentrated his mind to find the fluctuations of mana. ‘These numerous unrecovered wave patterns… no doubt. A mage was living here.’

 

As Dominic hesitated, he felt someone approaching. While he hid, maids entered. They gossiped while cleaning the empty room, but their movements were strange. The room was bare of furniture, yet they were wiping the air as if furniture were there. Dominic approached one of them and confirmed both maids were under a spell.

 

He carefully peered into their memories, ensuring their minds weren’t damaged.

 

‘As I thought…’

 

This was indeed Nina’s room. She had cast a spell on the people in the palace long ago and fled. The spell made them unable to perceive the fact that she had vacated the room.

 

“Damn it!!”

 

Dominic exited the room in a rage. He should have attacked even if it was risky.

 

“When did she run?! With whose help?! I was watching so closely!”

 

As he flew through the air away from the palace, he fumed. But he knew there was something more important than anger. ‘I will bring an elder skilled in tracking and find her trail!’

 

He might be a few days late, but it wasn’t a total loss. He gnashed his teeth, swearing to chase her to the ends of the earth and kill her.

 

 

***

 

 

Despite the late hour, Bill Larqus welcomed Leticia and Terdis warmly. He had fully recovered after Leticia’s treatment and had resumed his external activities. He was sad to hear they were leaving for the Lyon Duchy to prepare for the wedding, but they promised to meet again at the next Imperial event.

 

Her aunt and uncle also exchanged a few words with them—either because they were less intimidated or because they had changed their attitude after a scolding from the Marquis.

 

Bill seemed to want them to stay the night, but since Terdis looked troubled, Leticia politely declined and left the Larqus estate. Thinking it was unlike Terdis to act that way, she looked at him curiously.

 

As the carriage crossed through the night, Terdis seemed both relieved and strangely excited. Molly, sitting across from them, was already dozing off.

 

“Ter, Grandpa seemed like he wanted us to stay… why did you look so troubled?”

 

It wasn’t like they were leaving for the duchy the very next morning. They had one more day.

 

Terdis’s face reddened at the question. “You noticed after all. I figured you would, since you turned him down so indirectly.”

 

“Are you still uncomfortable with my grandpa?”

 

“No! He’s a wonderful person. I like that I have a grandfather now, too…”

 

Leticia tilted her head. “Then why?”

 

“It’s just… it’s hard to do that while traveling. So I was planning to be with you all night tonight and all day tomorrow…”

 

“Do what?”

 

When Leticia, her eyes wide, didn’t understand, Terdis smirked and beckoned her closer. He whispered into her ear:

 

“The thing I do every night… that keeps you from sleeping.”

 

Realizing what he meant, Leticia turned bright red and tried to pull away, but Terdis held her tight.

 

“Ter! The things you say!” She lowered her voice, glancing at the sleeping Molly.

 

Terdis chuckled. “I feel like if we could go separately from my father, I could even do it in the carriage.”

 

“N-no! I’ll never let you do that…”

 

Terdis grinned, rubbing his face against hers like a spoiled child. “Then you’ll listen to my selfish request tonight, won’t you? I want to do it a lot, Tisha.”

 

Leticia, threatened with the prospect of being seduced in a carriage, ended up promising to grant his wish. Terdis laughed happily, showering her cheeks with light kisses.