CH 13.5

“Ah, look into that, too. I want to know why the Baron and Baroness Este came.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Lucas said, glancing briefly at Owen, who had pulled out a small notebook and was making notes.

“It looks like Duke Frederick helped the woman… Why do you think he did that?”

Heinrich, who hadn’t yet gained full control of even Duke Frederick’s inner circle, had made a move this time, and it was sure to stir up trouble within the family.

Heinrich knew it, but he made the move anyway. Neither the finances nor the power of Count Pinatelli would have been enough to sway the emperor’s mind.

In other words, if Heinrich hadn’t intervened, Charlotte would have been captured long ago.

At Lucas’s puzzled expression, Owen replied.

“It’s a well-known rumor that Duke Frederick has been following Lady Pinatelli since time immemorial, and it’s no wonder he’s siding with her now.”

“Is that so?”

That’s what Owen said. Even at the hunting competition that day, as soon as he spotted Charlotte, he rushed at her.

It was a far cry from his passive demeanor when he’d taken down his prey.

“You may not have known, as the Duke is not interested in gossip in the social world, but there are quite a lot of stories about the fight between Duke Fredirick, the Marquis Benière, and His Highness the Crown Prince over Lady Pinatelli.”

“… Including the crown prince?”

“Yes, that’s right. The most recent rumor is that the crown prince has purposely kept Lady Pinatelli’s best friend, Lady Arias, by his side.”

“Why would he keep his best friend by his side if he can’t claim her? How stupid.”

Owen shook his head at Lucas’s sour criticism.

“Doesn’t the Duke even know about jealousy-inducing tactics?”

“…Inducing jealousy?”

Lucas looked at Owen with a rare look of surprise. Owen finished his note and closed his notebook. He pushed up his glasses and spoke again.

“Yeah, it’s a common tactic. Since you are measuring me, I will also measure you with another woman… It’s something like this.”

“How do you know that, when you’re not even in a relationship?”

“Do I have to try be in a relationship to know?”

Lucas looked at Owen, who replied with an expressionless face.

“You haven’t been in a relationship behind my back, have you?”

Of course, the idea of a relationship didn’t occur to him.

“Why do I have to have a secret love affair?”

“That’s the thing.”

For a moment, Lucas thought he was surprisingly in agreement with Owen on the idea of romance.

“You’re not winning her heart when you’re doing stupid things like making her jealous.”

Lucas really didn’t understand. To think that once he had a woman in his life, he wouldn’t think about trying to get her to look at him in some way, but would instead put his ego first and think of childish, cheesy tactics.

“Look for romance with your mouth. The people of the Vassium Empire are very hungry. Those who don’t even know what real romance and love are.”

“Didn’t the Duke himself say he doesn’t fall in love?”

“…”

Lucas’s mouth fell open for a moment at Owen’s words.

Then he remembered Theobald. He hadn’t known or cared about Lila, and now he seemed to care.

The way he’d sought her out at the palace was suspicious. He’d never come to him on his own initiative, and it was funny that he’d asked him to tea.

“It’s strange…”

He remembered what the gray wolf had said.

“He’s descended from a black wolf…”

Muttering low enough for Owen to hear, Lucas turned to the window.

Unlike the north, the sky was low and the stars were few in the capital.

As he stared off into the distance, Lucas said.

“I guess I don’t like the capital after all.”

* * *

After drinking a potion worth the price of a house every day, Lila quickly recovered. Upon her recovery, Lucas asked her to return to the North.

But Lila wanted to see Michael, to find out if life at the Academy was okay and how he was doing.

A grim-looking Lucas told her about the academy, but she was adamant.

“I really need to see him, I only saw him briefly the other day.”

“He’ll be back for the holidays anyway, why do you need to go see him?”

“How can you wait until winter, it’s only early fall.”

“…Really. You act in such a way that I can’t help but be jealous, my lady.”

Lila’s shoulders shook as she met his deepening mint eyes. She remembered the fiery night of yesterday.

She’d feasted on those eagle eyes as if they would consume her.

“…To be jealous of your nephew is not a good look, husband.”

Lucas smiled genuinely when he saw her blush as she replied politely.

“Didn’t I tell you that I don’t care what people think?”

“…You did.”

“The rumors still haven’t died down. Perhaps we should return to the North sooner rather than later.”

Lucas had a point, but Lila had it. It was a magic tool that was so perfect that she wondered if Michael had made it for today.

“I have a device that will make me unrecognizable that Michael made for me, do you mind if I wear it?”

“…”

Lucas’s brow creased at the unexpected answer. Lila was more insistent.

“As a bonus, I was wondering what the cosmetic shops and massage parlors in the capital are like, and…”

One of Lucas’s eyebrows shot up at the out-of-the-blue cosmetics reference.

“And?”

“And…”

Lila, her cheeks still flushed from her hesitation, continued in a smaller voice.

“I want to go on a date with Lu. I’ve never been out in the capital before.”

She finished with a glare at Lucas, who usually didn’t need to say anything, but was acting really frustratingly today.

He blushed down to the nape of his neck, and only then did he realize what she had said.

“Ha…”

Covering the corners of his mouth with a large hand, Lucas stifled a laugh.

“Do I really have to say the whole thing to get it? You don’t usually do that…”

As she fanned her face with her hand to cool off from the embarrassment, Lucas said in a voice that couldn’t keep the smile off his face.

“Yes, you always tell me, I always love your honesty.”

He smirked, a deep dimple forming on his face. The tear mole on his cheeks greeted her.

Unable to tear her gaze away from his smiling face, Lila thought to herself.

‘C, cute… younger men are the best!

Lila put on a light yellow dress, a matching bonnet, and the device Michael had made for her.

It was a pendant, designed to prevent facial recognition. The transparent crystals woven into the necklace glowed like jewelry.

To match her coupled look, Lucas wore a pale yellow shirt, brown pants, and a vest.

As a finishing touch, he wore a green jacket as deep as the color of bronze, and he offered her his hand politely.

“Shall we go, then, wife.”

His voice was low and very sweet. Lila couldn’t help but blush. It was as if the voice had been whispering in her ear.

“Hmm, that’s a little odd.”

Wondering if the tool was working, he grabbed Lila’s chin and lifted her up.

Her face, obscured by the bonnet, lay before him. His mint-colored eyes narrowed, and he arched an eyebrow in a subtle expression.

“Why can’t I see my wife’s face too…”

“Then, shall we use the magic device later?”

Wondering what in the world was making him look like that, Lila fished in her pouch for a hand mirror.

She checked her face, and it felt really weird.

“Um… that’s really, really, weird.”

It felt like water had been spilled on a precisely painted watercolor. The random smudges were like an abstraction.

In other words, her face was as bizarre as an abstraction.

She said she wore it because of rumors, but he suddenly felt skeptical. As she crumpled her face in frustration, Lucas asked.

“Are you making a face, or are you smiling?”

Looking up at him, who was frowning as much as she was, Lila unclasped her magic pendant.

She slipped the pendant into her pouch and smiled brightly. They took each other’s hands as if they were finally facing each other properly.

Climbing into the carriage, they were escorted out by the servants. Lila gritted her teeth at the change in demeanor of the servants, who were doing things they wouldn’t have done before.

As the carriage pulled away, Lila turned to Lucas.

“Husband.”

“Yes, wife.”

“Before we leave for the north, I’d like to see the capital estate’s servants shuffled off, and of course the manor in the north as well.”

Lucas arched an eyebrow at her as she spoke. She’d expected him to be pleased, but his unexpected reluctance caught Lila off guard.

“I mean, it’s not like I’m going to change it completely… right?”

Lucas flashed her a wry smile as she timidly added.

“It’s not that I don’t like it, I just left it because it was annoying… but if my wife says so, then I’ll have to go along with it.”

Lucas, who hated being around people, leaned back as he counted the number of servants in the capital and northern mansions.

As he leaned back and pondered, Lila looked up at him, her eyes wide.

“Then… You’ve been neglecting it because you’ve been lazy?”

Lucas replied, shrugging off Lila’s wide-eyed stare in disbelief.

“Not necessarily, but…”

“I see, and I didn’t even realize it…”

“No, you don’t.”

“What.”

“It’s a misunderstanding, wife.”

“I don’t think so, do you? Who would just ignore something that bothers them?”

Lila was dumbfounded. It made her feel like an idiot for feeling heartbroken to see him being ignored by his employees.

Biting her lip and crossing her arms, Lila glared at Lucas.

Lucas had a strange feeling. He didn’t think she was angry, but he felt hot. She wasn’t glaring at him, but her cobalt gaze made him sweat.

So he apologized unconditionally.

“I’m sorry, Lala.”

Lucas lowered his eyebrows as he called her by a nickname. If Owen had seen him, he might have covered his mouth in silence.

As if he’d seen something he shouldn’t have.

“The Duke may have been fine, but Michael was very distressed, and I’m sure the Duke made a fool of himself, even for you.”

The calm explanatory tone was pleasant to hear. Lucas smiled softly, not realizing he was being scolded.

“I hope you don’t do that in the future. I’d like to see your place in the dukedom properly established.”

“You’re absolutely right. I’ll definitely support that.”

“You’ll have to stick to your word… and don’t just dismiss it as a nuisance again.”

“Yes, I understand.”

As the two people were arguing, the carriage entered a busy street. The streets were bustling with carriages and people, much more lively than the northern streets.

Lucas tapped on the connection to the coachman, and the two stepped out of the carriage at a suitable stop and blended into the crowd.

“Shall I wear the pendant?”

“Hmm…”

They’d gotten off in the commoner district, not the noble district, so Lucas took a moment to look around and shook his head.

“Let’s just wait and put it on. I think it’ll be okay as long as they don’t take a closer look with the bonnet anyway.”

Lucas recalled the eerie face of the woman he had seen earlier. Although he had said it to stop Lila, who was persistently urging him to go see Michael, he was not the type to be concerned with rumors.