Chapter 36
“Arcadia Iskas.”
“Huh?”
I was surprised when he suddenly called me by my full name. He extended his hand and smiled.
“Welcome to our home. As a member of the Duke of Acanthus’s family, I welcome you.”
Unlike before, this time his words were very sensible. It seemed that the duchess’s words about him welcoming me were true.
“Thank you for the warm welcome.”
I took his hand, and suddenly, past memories came flooding back. Back then, he had kissed the back of my hand; could it be the same this time?
But unlike when he was a child, he didn’t give me a surprise kiss. He simply brushed the back of my hand gently with his thumb and then let go.
Strangely, that felt even more ticklish. It was as if something was gently brushing against a part of my heart.
At that moment, Rose came over and nudged my hand with her nose. Then she leaned in, as if to say it was time to pet him again after the greeting.
“You have a lot of charm for your size, don’t you?”
As I laughed and petted Rose, Hyperion quietly murmured.
“Indeed, Rose seems to like you.”
“Really?”
“Rose is generally cautious around strangers. It seems he knows you are a welcome presence in our home.”
Ah, so that was what it meant. I wondered if I was saying something strange again.
“As you can see, I’ll be staying here for a while. I’ll be relying on you without any shame.”
“I think I’ll be the one owing you a great debt.”
“Why?”
“I’m sorry to mention this in advance.”
“What is it?”
“You’ll find out what it is soon.”
As he let out a low sigh, I became even more anxious.
“I’ll definitely repay this debt later.”
Hyperion extended his arm to me. Throughout the walk back to the room, while receiving his escort, my mind was filled with question marks. What on earth was going on?
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
At the dinner table, there were three members of the Duke’s family, me, and Derek. However, there was enough food laid out for nearly ten people.
Even Derek, who could handle ten men alone, would find that overwhelming, wouldn’t he?
“It’s so nice to have a guest for dinner at the mansion after such a long time. It’s been quite lonely with just the three of us eating.”
The duchess, speaking with a bright smile, seemed genuinely happy.
Although she said that, I was sure there would be no end to the line of nobles wanting to be invited to the Duke’s dinner.
Then the duchess looked at Derek with a soft gaze.
“Sir Rotrek, while you are here, please don’t hesitate to tell us if you need anything. You are a truly precious guest to us, just like Arcadia.”
Derek smiled widely, placing a hand on his chest in gratitude.
“Thank you, Duchess. You are truly a kind person!”
I looked at Derek with a warm feeling in my heart.
As a child, he was a coward and only interested in food, and I wondered when he would ever become a proper person, but seeing him now, he looked quite grown-up. He expressed his thanks politely. It feels rewarding to have raised him, truly.
“Is this your first visit to Rosen, Sir Rotrek?”
At that moment, a voice came from across the table. I tore my gaze away from Derek and looked at Hyperion.
“No, I participated in the debutante ball last year.”
“Then starting this year, you should seriously consider a marriage partner.”
Hyperion’s comment stemmed from the custom that after participating in a debutante ball, one should find a marriage partner within two to three years. If there were no suitable women or if he were to be rejected, Derek would have to find his match in the Grand Duchy.
“That’s true, but since I came here with Lady Arcadia this year, I plan to focus more on my duties.”
“The Duke’s family is fully prepared for the protection of the young lady. I hope, Sir Rotrek, that you enjoy the social season without any burdens.”
“Ah, yes, thank you.”
The two continued their typical social conversation, asking personal questions without being intrusive and maintaining a friendly dialogue by finding common interests.
However, throughout the conversation, Derek had a strangely tense expression. That felt a bit unusual. He wasn’t the type to easily feel intimidated by anyone, so why was he like this?
“Arcadia.”
I turned my gaze at the Duke’s call.
“How’s helping your father with his work?”
I skillfully reframed my thoughts, thinking, “I feel like I’m going to die because of a tyrannical boss!”
“It’s tough, but I’m learning a lot. My father teaches me a great deal.”
“When I met Karim the last time, he mentioned that the recent damage from monsters has decreased significantly. He said it’s largely due to your efforts.”
“Did Father say that?”
“Yes, he talked about you a lot before returning to the Grand Duchy.”
Could it be that he was just boasting about me without any awareness? Ah, how embarrassing. Why is it always my share of the embarrassment?
“Recently, the internal affairs of the Ram Empire have become complicated, so the stabilization of the situation with the northern beasts is a great help to the whole country.”
The Duke’s eyes were deeply sunken as he spoke those words.
The Ram Empire was a powerful nation located right next to the Kingdom of Castoria, always eager to swallow us up.
Despite having vast territories, they had long coveted Castoria’s high level of culture and fertile land.
If it weren’t for the power of the Grand Duchy and the Duke’s family, perhaps the Kingdom of Castoria would have already disappeared from the map long ago.
The Ram Empire had been relatively quiet for the past ten years. This was due to the complicated internal affairs within the empire.
Five years ago, after the late emperor passed away, the eldest son inherited the throne, but the problem was that the second prince’s faction was quite powerful.
As a result, the Ram Empire had been divided into two factions: the emperor’s faction and the second prince’s faction. Because of this, the Ram Empire had not been able to pay much attention to the Kingdom of Castoria for some time.
However, the situation changed drastically this year.
The emperor’s efforts to keep the second prince in check ultimately bore no fruit. It would not be an exaggeration to say that all the power in the empire was now in the hands of the second prince. He had the ability to strike down the emperor at any moment.
Having stabilized the domestic situation, it was all too clear where he would turn his gaze next.
“Ashil Myura. We’ll have to see what kind of moves he makes now.”
Ashil Myura. To be precise, it was Duke Ashil Myura Narsak of Vaskaya. The title of Duke of Vaskaya has traditionally been given to the second son of the emperor.
“What kind of person is he?”
The duke frequently traveled to the Ram Empire as a diplomatic envoy, making him well-informed about the empire’s affairs.
After stroking his chin for a moment, he said, “…he’s a bit unusual.”
“What do you mean by unusual?”
“He seems to have an oddly strong interest in Castoria. He speaks our language quite fluently.”
“Are you saying he deliberately learned Castorian?”
“Yes, I was a bit surprised too.”
Nobles of Castoria learn the Ram language from a young age. Considering the empire’s influence, this was only natural.
However, it was very rare for members of the Ram imperial family to learn our language.
“And five years ago, when I first met him at the new emperor’s coronation, he asked me a rather strange question.”
“A strange question…”
“He asked me if my daughter was really dead.”
“Th-that’s not unusual; it’s rude!”
I snapped, anger boiling inside me. To ask someone who lost their daughter long ago if she was really dead—was he insane? Or are all members of the Ram imperial family like this?
“He apologized politely and withdrew when I confirmed it. It seems there was some misunderstanding.”
“Regardless of whether it was a misunderstanding, it was still rude and unpleasant. Is that just his nature?”
“He’s known to operate very quietly within the Ram Empire, so there isn’t much known about his personal life. I don’t know any more than this. If you want to know more, you can ask Hyperion.”
I turned my head to look at Hyperion. He was quietly listening to our conversation with his eyebrows furrowed.
“Hyperion predicted early on that the duke would seize power in the Ram Empire.”
I was a bit surprised by that statement. While the duke had all the power now, until a year ago, no one could have predicted how the situation would unfold.
In fact, the emperor’s side was more dominant. No matter how incompetent the emperor was, he held the most crucial military power.
The situation changed drastically when the emperor’s right-hand man lost his support base and fell from grace. Once the right arm was severed, the left arm followed, and one by one, the limbs were cut off. If that hadn’t happened, the situation might have been completely reversed by now.
Through my conversation with the duke, I realized that my father and I lacked critical information about the Ram Empire.
If a war were to break out with the empire, the first to suffer would be the Grand Duchy.
Just as I was about to ask more questions, the voice of the duchess suddenly rang out.
“What is everyone doing without eating?”
Somehow, we had stopped eating and were solely focused on our conversation. The duchess shot a sharp glance at her husband.
“Gerard, how many times have I told you not to bring up serious topics at the dinner table, especially in front of guests?”
“Th-that’s not what I—”
The next arrow flew toward Hyperion, who had been sitting quietly.
“Hyun, you should have been more aware too. If your father is acting like this, you should at least have properly entertained the guests!”
“I’m sorry…”
“And Arcadia!”
