Chapter 33
For several days after that, nothing happened. Guarding the Duke wasn’t difficult. After duty ended, Adi would have breakfast, fall asleep quickly, and wake in the afternoon. Then the cycle would repeat: training, back to work.
However, Adi’s actions had caused certain misunderstandings.
Roy adamantly claimed he hadn’t started it. The rumor hadn’t spread from Bert either, nor from any other servants. Roy’s investigation traced its origin to House Lintew—or more accurately, it could be said to have come from the Duke of Woodpecker himself.
“My, how scandalous!”
Such whispers would follow when Adi passed through the inner palace. Even Roy, walking beside them, would flinch.
“Every night?”
“Yes, every night.”
“They say they spend every single day together?”
Such rumors spread among the maids and servants. When they know something, it means everyone they interact with knows it too.
The kitchen staff, the knights and the nobles they served, even the stable hands knew these rumors. The problem was that Adi didn’t know exactly what the rumors were. They had no one close enough to share such gossip.
“…”
Except Roy.
“What exactly are people saying?”
Why did he have to be the one to tell them? Looking uncomfortable, Roy sighed deeply at Adi’s urging gaze before speaking.
“You know how the Lintew daughter has feelings for His Grace?”
Adi nodded.
“We tried to arrange some ‘chance’ meetings at her request.”
That must be the Second Knights colleague he mentioned knowing.
“The Duke said he already had someone he was interested in, so such approaches wouldn’t work.”
“And?”
“They asked who.”
“Then?”
“His Grace said your name.”
He said the full name: Adrian Grimaldi. Nobody in Palesa would be unfamiliar with the Grimaldi name.
Not only because of the Count’s current position in the Ionad royal court, but no knight could be unaware of Palesa’s Dog. The servants and maids naturally knew too, as they quickly picked up palace gossip. Particularly since Adi Grimaldi’s appearance was famous in many ways.
“…And the result?”
“Can’t you see? The rumors are rampant that you seduced His Grace.”
“…”
“They say the father ensnared the king, and now the child has seduced the Duke.”
Come to think of it, both had royal blood. Did even the disreputable Grimaldis have some special way with their people, or perhaps some other secret? They say witches bewitch people, so maybe with a witch’s curse they could enchant the royal family… What an absurd thought.
“Besides, you’re nowhere to be seen, while only Bert and I are visible. You’re a guard knight too, so where are you? It’s obvious, they say—you must be serving him at night, that sort of talk.”
Roy continued.
Serving at night? It was just guard duty. Though Adi intended to ignore such baseless rumors, people seemed to think differently. Roy asked with a skeptical expression.
“It’s not true, right?”
“…”
“Really?”
“It’s not.”
Adi answered seriously.
“You don’t trust me either?”
“Were we ever close enough to trust each other?”
Besides, trust in Adi wasn’t particularly important in this matter. To be precise, it was the Duke of Woodpecker they couldn’t trust rather than Adrian Grimaldi. Well, His Grace was a grown man and such things could happen, but this, this…
“To think he had such preferences.”
Who would have dared imagine it? But since the Duke himself declared his interest in Adi Grimaldi, lately men would hover around during daytime guard duty.
He was worth coveting. Handsome, tall, and a Duke with royal blood. Wasn’t Dalkatir a place that didn’t care whether one kept male or female lovers, as long as bloodlines continued?
“Looking at you, I guess I’m not His Grace’s type. I don’t mind as long as it’s not me. But doesn’t he need an heir? Ah, right. You’ll return to Grimaldi anyway, so if you think of it as a seasonal fling…”
“Roy.”
Adi called Roy’s name to stop him from continuing. There was no telling where his thoughts might wander.
“There’s really nothing between us. I’m just potentially connected to breaking His Grace’s curse.”
“How?”
Even as he asked, Roy reached his own conclusion—was it because they were both cursed? After all, they say poison cures poison. Then could curses cure curses too? Could curses even be cured?
“I don’t know yet.”
Adi answered.
“So we’re just researching ways to break the curse.”
The problem was that this “research” involved Adi kissing the Duke’s hand.
Like now.
Adi looked down at the Duke’s large, delicate hand. It was quite different from their own hands, calloused and scarred from wielding swords.
Though not ashamed of the wounds and scars on their hands, seeing them like this, they certainly didn’t look feminine. While Adi didn’t want to look feminine either, somehow seeing that hand stirred strange feelings. Even though most nobles who didn’t handle swords would have hands like that.
“It’s not working.”
Yuls said.
“Are you considering loving me?”
“…”
Hadn’t he said to love him if the curse wouldn’t break? First they needed to know whether the curse would break or not. The Duke said he had a way to find out. Afterward, Bert had sighed heavily before finally telling the Duke they absolutely couldn’t find Dorothy.
Adi couldn’t ask who Dorothy was.
Dorothy’s fate wasn’t what mattered to Adi. This situation was.
“Your Grace, if I may be so bold.”
“If it’s too bold, don’t say it.”
“…”
Adi closed their mouth. But they couldn’t keep secretly kissing the Duke’s hand forever. No matter how they thought about it, it seemed unlikely they had affected the Duke’s curse. There had been many variables that day. The assassin, for example.
“It might be something else.”
Adi was willing to recall what that “something else” might be and search for it together with the Duke.
“No, it’s you.”
The problem was the Duke.
“My instinct tells me so.”
“…”
He wouldn’t listen at all. While high nobles were said to be like that, Adi wondered how long they’d have to play along.
Adi wasn’t a Woodpecker knight but a Palesa Palace knight, currently just a borrowed guard. But they couldn’t ask the Second Knights Commander or the Operations Supervisor to change it now.
“It’s troublesome how little information I have about you, Adi.”
Yuls said.
“You’ll eat anything, and though I heard you fight often, I thought you picked fights, but you don’t really care unless others bother you. As for women…”
Saying this, Yuls looked Adi up and down. Though their body involuntarily tensed, Adi didn’t show it.
“You seem inexperienced.”
“…”
“And no men either, it seems.”
What about you, then? They seemed equally matched in that regard.
“Since I can’t see anything to tempt you with, could you tell me what you like?”
“Your Grace.”
“What is it?”
Yuls smiled. As if he might really try to seduce them. But Adi knew it was just out of necessity, and the memory of his childlike appearance was still too vivid in their mind.
The biggest reason was that Adi didn’t trust the Duke of Woodpecker. Whatever he did, they had no intention of listening to him. This act would end once the Duke returned to Woodpecker.
Return… Come to think of it, how long would the Count stay in Palesa? They needed to see his face when he arrived. Though they would return for night guard duty, it might be late. Even if they asked Bert to adjust the schedule, the Duke would ask why.
“What are your plans for the festival, Your Grace?”
“Festival? Do you like festivals?”
“No. I’ve never… I mean, I don’t remember going to one. I was too young.”
“Is that so?”
The Duke, seeming uninterested in that answer, continued.
“Festivals are all the same. Just one of those days when people get to breathe a little.”
Speaking thus, Yuls frowned at the sounds of revelry continuing late into the night outside the window.
This was what he particularly disliked about Palesa. People making noise day and night, laughing, drinking, obsessing over formalities, wasting time.
They spout nonsense about it being the proper duty of nobles. For them, every season is a festival. Surely this makes the meaning of festivals hollow. But the common people rejoice in that one week.
What festivals did Grimaldi have? All that came to mind about that place was beauty, witch hunts, and Spencer Grimaldi. Nothing else left an impression. In fact, if Spencer Grimaldi hadn’t appeared, the Grimaldi territory would still primarily be known for witch hunts.
“Would you like to see the festival?”
Yuls said. Adi replied, “No, it’s just…”
“Father is coming to Palesa for this festival.”
“…What?”
