Chapter 10

“Ricia! What are you doing! Are you crazy?”

Petrick’s shout, drenched in champagne, bounced off the round ceiling and returned to the floor.

In contrast, Letricia’s voice became even calmer.

“Crazy? No, Petrick. My mind is perfectly sound. More than ever.”

Letricia placed the now-empty glass on the terrace railing.

And with her hand now freely unburdened, she touched her lips that had spoken of breaking the engagement.

“That was easier than expected.”

Something this easy.

Why had she made so many excuses and circled around it until now?

Whew. After releasing a short held breath, Letricia faced Petrick directly.

“I’ll send the engagement cancellation request to the mansion soon.”

“Letricia! Stop right there! I’m not finished talking!”

Completely ignoring the still-squawking Petrick, Letricia turned her gaze to Lorazne, accompanied by light applause.

“Congratulations, Lady Apfelts. Now you won’t need to meet your lover in secret places like this.”

“What? Congratulations?”

“Now that Petrick’s fiancée position is vacant, Lady Lorazne can take that place.”

With a gentle curl of her lips, Letricia removed her engagement ring and handed it to Lorazne, who was glaring at her murderously.

“Isn’t it worth celebrating that you’ll be the legal wife rather than a mistress? You’ve accomplished quite a difficult feat, Lady Lorazne will be an inspiration to many future mistresses.”

“Wh-what? Mistress, are you directing that at me? Petrick! Say something!”

Though Lorazne pressed Petrick with her face turning deathly pale at those few words, Petrick could only gape, apparently quite shocked by the situation.

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

Having said everything she needed to say, there was no reason to stay longer.

So as Letricia was about to leave with a light bow, she turned back with a short “Ah.”

“By the way, Lady Lorazne. You’d better buy all new clothes and accessories before entering the wedding venue.”

“Who are you to tell me what to…”

“The clothes you’re wearing now, the pin in your hair, even that fan in your hand.”

Letricia methodically pointed out everything adorning Lorazne with her straight finger, then stopped it in front of Petrick.

“They were all things Petrick gave to me first. I’m just concerned about you being branded as ‘second-hand,’ that’s all I’m saying.”

With those final words telling her to choose wisely, Letricia truly intended to leave this time.

But the next moment, her arm was grabbed with strong force and her vision suddenly flipped.

Her breath caught at the peachy scent mixed with alcohol emanating from Petrick.

“Where are you going, Ricia? You should hear my answer first. Breaking the engagement? You think I’d accept such a thing? Don’t even dream of it.”

Petrick’s eyes flashed as he pushed Letricia precariously against the terrace railing, as if he might push her down at any moment.

“You know well that without my consent, the engagement can’t be broken, right Ricia? So let’s not embarrass ourselves and pretend what just happened never happened.”

“…What should we pretend never happened? The breaking of the engagement? Or me catching you in the act of cheating?”

“Both, obviously.”

Feeling her waist bend further under Petrick’s force, Letricia let out a clear laugh.

Petrick was right.

In this country with its rigid class system, without the Godwin family’s permission, Letricia, being of lower status, couldn’t unilaterally push for breaking the engagement.

‘Could Petrick think I brought up breaking the engagement without knowing this?’

Wondering how he viewed her, Letricia swallowed a bitter breath and removed her hand from the railing.

“Whoa!”

As Letricia’s feet left the ground, a startled Petrick reflexively pulled her back, and in that moment Letricia grabbed his cravat.

The next moment, with a ripping sound, the brooch-decorated cravat flowed into Letricia’s hand.

Though it might look like an ordinary brooch to others, Letricia knew this emerald brooch contained a recording function.

Once when Petrick was drunk, he had said something while waving the brooch on his neck:

“Ricia, do you know what this is? Looks like a normal brooch, right? But it’s not, I hired a very expensive magician to put a recording spell on it.”

Petrick had gone to the trouble of modifying the brooch this way hoping to catch some weakness of his half-brother, Peter Godwin, the legitimate heir to Duke Godwin.

Unlike Petrick, Peter Godwin was thoroughly meticulous and thus had few weaknesses, making it extremely difficult for Petrick to find flaws to bring him down.

But thinking that he must make mistakes sometimes being human, Petrick habitually recorded all of Peter’s words whenever they met.

Though so far all he’d captured were useless conversations proving what a diligent talent Peter was.

Anyway, today too Petrick had worn the brooch to this event he was attending with Peter Godwin.

Normally, one couldn’t enter the palace wearing such suspicious magical items, but since the Godwin family was also part of the Empress Dowager’s faction, it seemed Petrick could enter without a body search, just like Winston.

“Ricia, why…”

“So it was working after all.”

Confirming that the emerald embedded in the brooch was glowing strangely, Letricia showed it off by waving it just as Petrick had done before.

“Petrick. If you keep being stubborn like this, I’m thinking of letting Duke Godwin hear the sweet conversation between you and Lady Lorazne recorded here. What do you think? Even then, can you pretend today never happened?”

“What? No… Absolutely not!”

Petrick’s face, which had been so confident until then, quickly drained of color at the mention of Duke Godwin’s name.

Though Duke Godwin had Petrick as an illegitimate child, he also considered his history of keeping Petrick’s mother as a mistress the only blemish in his otherwise perfect life.

And perhaps because of that, he pathologically hated immoral relationships between men and women, so it was obvious what would happen to Petrick’s position if the Duke learned of this situation.

“Ricia, give me that brooch!”

Finally realizing his situation had become quite disadvantageous, Petrick belatedly tried to snatch the brooch, but Letricia extended her hand holding the brooch outside the terrace, avoiding his grasp.

“Don’t do anything foolish, Petrick. Not before I throw this brooch down to the guard’s feet below.”

“Ricia, did you really take some wrong medicine? Why are you suddenly acting like this!”

Seeing Letricia precariously holding the brooch as if about to drop it, Petrick stamped his foot, unable to do anything.

Although he had entered the palace without issue, bringing unauthorized magical items into the palace was still illegal.

If the guards discovered the brooch’s existence, things would certainly become quite complicated.

Finally unable to think of any solution, Petrick released his grip on Letricia’s shoulders.

“…Damn it all. Fine. Let’s break the engagement, if that’s what you want.”

After briefly savoring his usually sparkling face now hideously twisted, Letricia pushed Petrick away and straightened herself.

“Is that enough now? Ricia, I gave you the answer you wanted, so return the brooch.”

“No.”

“…?”

At Petrick’s expression that seemed to protest what more could be wrong, that he’d agreed to break the engagement so wasn’t everything settled, Letricia neatly gathered his disheveled front before passing by him.

“I’ll return it when the engagement cancellation request bears the Godwin family seal. I should have some proof that Petrick will keep his promise, shouldn’t I?”

“Damn it, Letricia!”

* * *

“Hah…”

Slipping away from the terrace leaving behind Petrick’s angry shout, Letricia leaned against the wall.

Her condition had continued to worsen even during that brief struggle with Petrick.

And as if to prove this fact, blood began flowing from her nose again.

At least it’s fortunate she didn’t show this state in front of Petrick.

“I should… lower my head.”

This time, instead of throwing her head back, Letricia pinched her nose bridge while lowering her head as Winston had taught her.

Then she quickly wiped the blood with Petrick’s cravat that was still in her hand.

Blink.

Opening her eyes after closing them to clear her dizzy vision, Letricia moved while supporting herself against the wall.

It seems unreasonable to stay at the banquet any longer in this state.

So she thought she should bid farewell to Winston who would be waiting for her and leave the banquet hall, but how sensitive his senses were.

Before Letricia could even get near him, the man who had been staring down with a bored expression raised his head.

“Is your conversation finished?”

Then seeing Letricia holding her nose, his lips hardened.

“Is it bleeding again?”

“Ah, no, it’s just…”

Old habits die hard. As Letricia unconsciously tried to hide her condition out of habit, the lips of the man facing her hardened further.

“What do you mean no.”

Then he muttered while pulling away the cravat pressed under her straight nose.

“Judging by this terrible design, I suppose this cravat also belongs to your fiancé? Ah. I suppose he’s not your fiancé anymore.”

Perhaps because their distance wasn’t far, Winston, who seemed to have heard all the conversation, threw Petrick’s cravat carelessly to the floor.

“Whatever it is, it’s rather inappropriate to use something like this even in an emergency. It’s so tacky it’s embarrassing to even hold.”

“Pfft…”

At his blunt tone that could have been either joke or truth, Letricia let out a deflated laugh despite knowing it didn’t fit the situation.

Just like before.

He must be the only one who could criticize Petrick’s taste so sharply, when Petrick was supposed to be leading the capital’s fashion trends.

At Letricia’s response, Killian’s expression, still wearing Winston’s face, became subtle.

With a look that seemed to reproach her for laughing in such a situation, he then rummaged through his inner pocket.

Remembering he had already used his handkerchief on Letricia, he clicked his tongue as if annoyed and pulled down his cravat to press it where Petrick’s had been.

“It’s fine…”

“I won’t count this as a debt, so just keep it pressed.”

His attitude remained consistently calm.

One might ask if something was wrong seeing her like this, but perhaps being naturally uncurious, Killian didn’t seem to even think of asking such things.

Though feeling strange about his unfeeling attitude, Letricia tried to convey words promising a future meeting with a light bow.

“I’m indebted to you again. …Thank you for everything today, Lord Hilton. But I think I need to leave first, so it will be difficult to talk more.”

She was saying he could notify her in writing later when he decided what to demand from her.

But before she could finish speaking, Killian cut her off.

“No need to wait. I’ve decided what to ask for.”

And at the same time, the waltz playing downstairs ended, and after a moment of applause followed by silence, the Emperor’s voice announcing rewards for Duke Heberus could be heard like background music.

“One of the two is very simple, so I’d like you to grant it now. It won’t take long either.”

“…Alright. What would you like to ask?”

Thinking a moment would be fine, Letricia nodded her head up and down.

Instead of answering immediately to her response, Killian once again lowered his gaze to the floor below.

“…Furthermore, lamenting that the position of Grand Duchess remains empty, I hereby command the marriage between the Grand Duke and the daughter of Marquis Luzabek upon the conclusion of this victory banquet.”

In the banquet hall now, along with several rewards being bestowed like alms, the Grand Duke’s marriage was being announced.

Though the person in question had never agreed, Killian, listening quietly to the news of his marriage being proceeded with arbitrarily without his permission, twisted his lips crookedly.

“It’s nothing much, just become my bride for a moment.”