“Her Grace has visited the guild.”
Late at night, this was the first thing Ruth said to Headrin, who had returned home to review documents in his study.
Headrin, who had been smoking a cigar without breaking his focus from the papers, looked up at the unexpected news.
“What do you mean, all of a sudden?”
“Sir Jerome, who was patrolling the estate, saw Her Grace and her maid sneaking out about an hour ago. He followed them and reported that they entered the guild district.”
Headrin set his cigar aside. “At this hour?”
“Yes. She has just returned to the residence.”
A dry chuckle escaped Headrin’s lips. To think his seemingly docile wife possessed a hobby for such quiet escapades. Being caught off guard like this rankled.
“Shall I dig into what the request was about?”
“Why would you?”
“We don’t know if she might be conspiring with the Imperial family. Perhaps she is planning to absorb the Del Marc Duchy.”
“If that were her goal, she wouldn’t risk moving the Imperial Princess. There are plenty of others the Emperor can use.”
“I suppose you’re right.”
“And even if she were hatching such plans, it wouldn’t be now. The Emperor needs my strength.”
The powerful horse that would bring victory in the war of conquest. Headrin could vaguely guess the purpose behind Ivan pushing for this marriage, based on their conversation at the Imperial Palace luncheon.
“Then why would she go to the guild?”
To Ruth’s question, Headrin irritably ran a hand through his damp black hair and pressed his throbbing temples.
That was the very thing he wanted to ask.
What on earth was she thinking? What was she plotting with that small head of hers?
But the guild would not easily divulge a client’s purpose, and forcing them to talk would only escalate matters. If Blair found out, she would hide her tracks even more effectively.
After a long silence, smoking his cigar in deep thought, Headrin commanded in a low voice.
“For now, just provide escort. Don’t let her notice you.”
***
Before they knew it, the New Year’s Festival was only one day away.
It was the last day of the year.
Blair came down to the dining room for breakfast as usual, but Headrin’s seat remained empty.
“His Grace had business to attend to, so he left the estate early this morning,” Mason said, as if offering an excuse.
It was understandable; she hadn’t shared a meal with Headrin since the incident with the maids. Still, it had become a familiar occurrence to Blair.
‘I wanted to thank him for what he did for Lina.’
She didn’t want to owe him any more emotional debts. Blair finished her meal, thinking that if she happened to run into him, she should express her gratitude before it was too late.
Afterward, she tried on the dress for the festival that Baroness Sionel had made, then rested for a while.
“Your Grace, Lady Lorellain is here.”
Drifting off to sleep, she woke at the sound of Lina’s voice; it was time for the tea party she had promised Agnes.
When she arrived at the greenhouse, Agnes greeted her warmly.
“Hello, Your Grace. It has been quite cold. Have you been doing well this past week?”
“Yes. Have you been well too, Lady Lorellain?”
“Of course, thanks to you.”
Since they had set the appointment during their first tea party, this was effectively their first proper counseling session. Blair fingered the rim of her teacup, feeling nervous.
She had never liked meeting strangers. Born as an Imperial Princess, she had been forced to meet many by duty, whether she liked it or not.
However, dealing with the people of the Del Marc Duchy had always been nerve-wracking. It felt as though their constant gaze was measuring whether she was fit to be a Duchess, or a suitable match for Headrin.
After her regression, those gazes no longer frightened her, but strangely, facing Agnes made her heart race. It was as if Agnes could see through everything she held inside. It was unsettling to open up; she hadn’t spoken of herself to anyone since Esmeralda died.
Agnes took a sip of warm tea to thaw her frozen body and initiated the conversation.
“It feels like we just welcomed the New Year, and now it is already the last day. Time truly flies.”
“It really does.”
Blair didn’t want to respond with short answers, but she struggled to find the words. She had lived a life where someone else always led the conversation, which made it difficult to carry one herself.
Fortunately, Agnes didn’t seem to mind.
“We agreed to talk about old stories starting today, didn’t we?”
“Yes. Where should we begin?”
“Hmm, it might be hard to just think of something out of the blue… shall we talk about memories related to the New Year’s Festival?”
“The New Year’s Festival?”
“The events of the year the accident occurred. Do you have any anecdotes you remember? Even something very trivial would be fine.”
Blair could recall that day’s memory without difficulty.
Because that was the day she had first met Headrin.
***
One day before the year she would turn eleven.
Today, the last day of the year, she would meet with relatives to exchange New Year’s greetings in advance.
Blair had spent more effort than ever on her appearance before visiting the Empress’s Palace. She didn’t know why, but Esmeralda had been so busy lately that it was hard to see her.
‘I should ask Her Majesty the Empress to play a card game. I’ll definitely win today.’
She entered the palace with a heart full of excitement. However, there was already a guest there.
“Oh my. You’ve come at the perfect time, Blair.”
Beside Esmeralda, who welcomed her with her usual affectionate smile, sat a strange boy.
He was a neat, handsome youth with fine black hair the same shade as Esmeralda’s, a pale complexion, and chillingly blue eyes.
Blair recognized him at once. He was the young head of the Del Marc Duchy, Headrin del Marc, Esmeralda’s only nephew.
Esmeralda had often spoken of him. ‘He is a very lonely child. It would be nice if he could have a good friend like our Blair.’
At the time, Blair had promised her she would ‘become friends if they met,’ just to put her mind at ease. But facing him now, Blair looked at him with wary eyes. She did not like this uninvited guest who had disrupted her quality time with Esmeralda.
“Introduce yourself, Headrin. This is Her Highness the Imperial Princess.”
Esmeralda gently wrapped her arm around Headrin’s shoulder as she introduced her. The boy with the cold impression stood up and paid his respects.
“Headrin of Del Marc greets the shining star of the Empire, Her Highness the Imperial Princess.”
His manner was impeccable, yet a weariness he could not hide showed in his eyes. Blair flinched. To Blair, who had lived surrounded by those favorable to her, the indifference of a boy three or four years her senior was unfamiliar and frightening.
Unable to run away after receiving his greeting, she stammered, “N-nice to meet you, Duke Del Marc.”
“I thought it would be nice for the two of you to meet at least once, and I am glad that it has happened.”
Esmeralda was delighted, but Blair felt only discomfort. The boy seemed to have no interest in her at all. Observing them, Esmeralda suggested, “Shall we play a card game?”
“Yes, I’d love to!”
Blair was excited, and while Headrin’s expression remained indifferent, he joined in. But as the game progressed, Blair’s expression turned sullen. It was the fourth round, and only Headrin kept winning.
Headrin grew listless from the lack of tension. Blair, who desperately wanted to win, and Headrin, who had no intention of letting her.
They didn’t share a single word, nor did they meet each other’s eyes.
Esmeralda, feeling the awkwardness, suggested, “It seems a bit boring to play the same game. Shall we play Old Maid this time?”
The game began. It progressed quickly until the cards thinned out, and the psychological warfare began.
“Oh my.”
Esmeralda let out a small gasp as Headrin drew a card from her. He had drawn the Old Maid.
Then, it was Blair’s turn to draw from Headrin. He held out his cards with his usual indifferent expression.
Blair hesitated.
‘This person is scary…’
To engage in psychological warfare, one had to read the opponent’s face, but she was afraid to stare directly into Headrin’s eyes. It was partly due to his cold impression, and partly because the rumors about the ‘power’ passed down in the Del Marc Duchy had crossed her mind.