Chapter 19

The Duke of Blair visited Fernan’s private mansion about an hour before Julia arrived.

His daughter, Cornelia, was standing beside him.

"I didn’t expect your daughter to come with you."

Despite the numbness in his voice, Fernan's eyes showed signs of annoyance.

Duke Blair has been requesting a face-to-face meeting since the founding festival.

Since he expressed his willingness to visit the Grand Duchy in person, Fernan had no reason to refuse and accepted the request without hesitation, but he didn't know Duke Blair would come with his daughter.

"I have come to see Your Highness once more. It seems that you misunderstood me on the day of the banquet."

Cornelia smiled lightly. After seeing that serpentine smile, the memory of running into that woman on the terrace on the day of the banquet came vaguely to Fernan’s mind.

This made him feel uncomfortable, but at the same time, he understood why the father and daughter visited him.

"Let's sit down first."

Fernan, who had been staring at them, nodded and led them to their seats.

As soon as they were seated, the Duke of Blair opened his mouth with a respectful smile. 

"Marquis Elody must be on fire by now. I don't know how he knew I was coming here, but he went on a mad rampage."

Marquis Elody was a savvy man, pacing from place to place and gathering information. So he was well informed about the Duke of Blair’s business.

"It's easier to deal with it if you know it in advance."

Fernan narrowed his brows dourly. He pictured the Marquis rushing to the Emperor to report the situation.

It was supposed to offend the Emperor if the Grand Duke was in contact with another family with an evil heart.

"Well, by the way. I heard from my daughter the other day that Your Highness is already thinking about divorce.”

Duke Blair’s condescending words brought back another memory of the day of the banquet to Fernan’s mind, when he was annoyed by Julia's constant approach.

“Do you think this marriage will last forever?”

Remembering that moment, Fernan, who was somehow in a depressed mood, looked at Duke Blair and answered in a cold voice.

"Your daughter seems to have a light mouth. I didn’t expect she would pass on the dialogue she overheard.”

Cornelia visibly flinched at the cold words. Without even looking at her, Fernan went on without feeling guilty.

“So, the reason you came this far was not because you were curious about whether I was getting divorced or not, was it?”

"Of course not."

Duke Blair, perplexed for a moment by the tense atmosphere, quickly cleared his throat and began to get to the point.

The reason Duke Blair approached Fernan was to ensure that he would be drawn into the aristocracy. Currently, Fernan was in a neutral  position, but his shell belonged to the imperialist faction. Along with the fact that he was the emperor's nephew, the main reason was that he married Marquis Elody’s daughter.

"Although you’re currently in a relationship with the Grand Duchess… Well, divorce is something you can do any time.”

"…"

"Of course, moving rashly will arouse His Majesty's suspicion. But that is when there is no reason to do so."

Duke Blair added in a meaningful tone.

"It would be a different story if the Grand Duchess had a major flaw that made divorce unavoidable." 

Duke Blair continued to speak smoothly.

"Even if she doesn’t have any flaws, you can make it up. Yes, you can spread a few fatal ugly stories about a young and beautiful noblewoman."

The Duke's words followed, and Fernan clenched his fists unknowingly. Blood ran down the back of his hand. Fernan, who had been staring at the Duke with a seething gaze, quickly returned to his expressionless face again. 

"I'm flattered that you even made your own plans for my divorce."

Even though Fernan was being sarcastic to the fullest, Duke Blair skillfully passed on his words.

“The Grand Duke's divorce is an essential element of the plan I'm proposing.”

The Duke’s lips lifted straight up as Fernan tilted his head as if to say, "Tell me your great plan once.”

"After the divorce, let's make a connection with my family."

"…"

"…Do you not know. If you carry my family on your back, His Majesty will not be angry with you for very long."

Fernan, who was silently listening to the Duke's words, let out a small sneer.

That was the reason Duke Blair came to see him.

He wanted to force his daughter on Fernan. Duke Blair wasn't any different from the Marquis Elody.

"This is your chance to get out from under the shadows of the royal family. Wasn't this a marriage that the Grand Duke never wanted from the beginning, and was unreasonable in many ways?"

The Duke's words were not wrong. Fernan never wanted this marriage and could have ended it whenever he had the chance.

But, why does the question Julia asked come to his mind at this moment?

“When are you going to divorce me?"

He thought of her face as he listened to her quiet voice, and for a moment his feelings fell completely to the bottom.

For some reason, he felt his heart sink heavily.

In fact, whenever he thought of her lately, he was always surrounded by this feeling.

‘Why on earth….’

Fernan’s brows narrowed as he pondered in front of the Duke. The rootless afterimage of Julia completely eroded his mind.

She was a woman who was constantly bothering him even when he tried to ignore her.

A strange woman who wouldn’t care about his rude words and cold treatment. She didn’t even show anger when she was being bullied by the servants.

He had been desperately pushing her away because he was bothered by the way she looked at him with clear eyes, but she was  always the same.

She got on his mind like that. He didn't know when or why.

He could never quite acknowledge that fact and ignored it, but her face always came up suddenly and stirred his mind endlessly.

‘Have I finally gone mad?’

‘Yes, I must have gone crazy.’

"Your Highness?”

Fernan finally raised his head at the voice calling him. He stared at the Duke and Cornelia, who were looking at him.

He knew that joining forces with the Duke of Blair would be convenient in many ways. But he didn't have the slightest desire to do so.

Rather, he was with Julia….

Fernan, who flinched with confusion, raised his eyes and opened his mouth.

“Duke Blair.”

His expression tightening as he left his tangled mind behind him, Fernan continued to speak with a stern voice.

"I don't intend to divorce. So, don't look for me for this anymore."

The Duke, who sent Cornelia out, tried to persuade Fernan for a long time.

However, when Fernan refused to the end, the Duke returned to the capital and promised to come back in the near future.

Fernan knew that the Duke wouldn’t give up easily, but that didn’t matter. Because he (Fernan) was not going to change what he decided.

He still didn't know what this anxious feeling was every time he thought of Julia.

If he could see her face and hear her voice, would he be able to understand what this unsettling feeling was? Fernan, who returned to his castle earlier than usual, headed for Julia's room, passing all the servants who greeted him.

Stopping in front of the door of the large room, he knocked on it without hesitation.

Soon the door opened and Julia appeared.

Julia looked up at him without saying a word. Her pale face was expressionless, and he did not hear the usual greeting asking if he was back.

Fernan stared at her warily, and then opened his mouth.

"What have you been up to?"

Julia, who had dropped her gaze, made a small movement of her lips.

"I was just sitting."

Her voice was subtle and faint. Fernan examined her secretly, wondering if she was hurting, but at that moment, she pulled out something.

“This letter was sent to Your Highness. I was going to deliver it to you in person, but something came up….."

Receiving the letter, Fernan glanced at the sender and shoved it roughly into his pocket. He didn't even need to read it, seeing that it was a letter from the Marquis.

Fernan hesitated for a moment, then spoke casually.

“Have you eaten yet?"

"No."

"Then let's go down together now."

Julia looked up at him quietly and immediately dropped her gaze on his outdoor clothes.

When she saw that he was still dressed in his morning clothes, Julia spoke calmly.

"I think it’d better  if you change your clothes first. I'll go down first and wait."

With those words, Julia walked past him. For some reason, the back of her as she carried her feet felt different from her normal appearance.

Fernan watched the distant Julia for a while before turning away.