Chapter 56
Grimaldi was a region of many winds. Cold air descended like a ski jump from elevations higher than the territory. Adrian had explained that this was due to the cold, heavy air moving according to gravity.
When the wind blew, leaves collided with each other. When the needles of conifers struck together, it sounded like falling rain. The sharp, dry whistling of the wind carried moisture. The current sound was similar.
The swooshing sound of falling water. The sound of conifer needles colliding.
The difference was that here, there was real moisture in the air.
Unlike Grimaldi with its dryness and fires, in Palesa, the sound of leaves didn’t carry the sound of rain. Here, there seemed to be only one sound.
Rain falling.
Duke Woodpecker moved at the king’s summons. Adi followed behind the Duke, who had been properly groomed by his servants.
With each step down the corridor, they felt people’s gazes. Though aimed at the Duke, they spilled over to Adi walking behind. The Duke walked on with an attitude suggesting he was used to such attention.
Whispers about the Duke reached their ears. About how he had really grown, whether the curse was finally broken.
If Adi could hear it, the Duke certainly could too. But he either pretended not to hear or simply didn’t care.
In the gallery before the audience chamber of the inner palace, other nobles who had arrived earlier waited. Though unclear how long they had been waiting, here, order of arrival didn’t matter. The king’s head servant spotted Yuls and offered a light greeting. Yuls returned it with “Count.”
The head servant guided Yuls to an antechamber. Inside were comfortable chairs and a guard knight—Claude’s knight. This revealed who was currently having an audience with the king.
Yuls sat naturally in a chair, crossing his long legs. Adi moved to stand against the wall right beside Claude’s knight.
No one spoke. Yet it wasn’t complete silence. Rain could be heard. Raindrops left trails on the window where they struck.
Soon the door opened and a servant entered. After bowing his head, he was called “Duke Woodpecker.” Yuls rose. At the same moment, Claude entered the antechamber.
Claude, his expression stern, raised his eyebrows upon seeing Yuls, then smiled upon discovering Adi waiting there.
“His Majesty awaits you.”
As Yuls left the room, he gave Claude a look. Claude felt the gaze but paid it no mind. When the door closed, Claude opened his arms in welcome.
“Pretty one.”
“Your Highness.”
Though he seemed about to embrace them, Claude lowered his hands as he approached.
“Are you preparing well to leave Palesa?”
It seemed the Count hadn’t told him. Adi shook their head.
“Father said he would take me back to Grimaldi.”
“What?”
Claude’s expression hardened. His brow furrowed then smoothed as his face showed disbelief. “The Count said that?” he asked again. There seemed to have been some conversation between the two, but exactly what was unclear.
“Now it’s not…”
Worth trying?
“I’ll do something about that.”
…Seems that won’t be necessary. At least it was clear the Count and Crown Prince weren’t on the same side. No, could this even be called taking sides? They might align to some degree, but it wasn’t a complete alliance—just a temporary relationship.
“But Adrian.”
One that would surely break soon.
“Wouldn’t that mean betraying the Count—are you alright with that?”
Instead of answering, Adi smiled slightly. Seeing that expression, Claude tilted his head. Well now, I thought there was no resemblance, but that smile is exactly like the Count’s. Blood will tell, it seems.
“That’s quite an expression.”
To think they’d share the same look when betraying someone.
“I’ll contact you soon.”
As he said this, Claude clapped Adi’s shoulder. Adi narrowed their eyes at the action. He smelled of crushed grass.
“Let’s backstab the older generation together.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
What an untrustworthy person.
❖ ❖ ❖
“When I heard those words, I couldn’t believe it.”
The king spoke as soon as Yuls entered the room.
“Your Majesty.”
“You don’t resemble my sibling at all.”
Sitting on his high throne with his chin propped up, the king looked at Yuls as he entered and said, “You look exactly like that witch.”
Though it had only been a year since they last met, it seemed as if a decade or more had passed. Looking down at Yuls, now the image of a proper young man, the king snickered and said:
“If not for the witch, the Duke would be sitting here.”
“You mean the previous Duke?”
“This position wasn’t meant to come to me originally.”
The king’s words seemed to probe for intention.
“Isn’t that right, nephew?”
“Who knows?”
He was greedier than anyone. That’s why he sat in that position while Yuls’s father lay dead in his grave.
“I was never interested in such things anyway.”
“That’s your opinion.”
“Just as it’s your opinion that my father coveted that position.”
“Then he should have ignored the nobles’ loyalty and oaths.”
“You know how indecisive he was. That’s why he hid the person he loved and put someone the previous king wanted in the position of Duchess. If he hadn’t done that, perhaps the Witch of the Oak Forest would have lifted the royal family’s curse.”
“Indeed. It was foolish.”
The king agreed. Then the royal family wouldn’t have had to fear an unpredictable curse. They might not have believed in curses at all initially. Not until they saw a place directly struck by one.
“Still, it can’t be as terrible as Bellipera’s curse. At least ours came from a sentient being.”
“Sentient beings are precisely what can’t be trusted.”
That wasn’t wrong either. They were as capricious as humans. They cast spells for trivial reasons and created strange methods to break them. Humans called these “curses” when the effects of their pranks and whimsical magic differed from expectations.
“So, Duke, how did you break your curse?”
“My curse differs from the one placed on the royal family. It came directly from my mother.”
“The methods of breaking curses are all similar.”
“Is that so? Then finding someone to love and kissing them should work.”
“…”
The king closed his mouth. Witches were needlessly emotional, setting strange conditions. A kiss from one’s true love, really. He seemed unwilling to share the answer.
“Someone to love, huh.”
Yuls understood. After spending over a decade searching for a way to break the curse, one wouldn’t want to share it easily with others.
“I heard you keep some knight around you.”
“You must have heard it’s not just any knight, but a Grimaldi.”
The name Grimaldi carried emphasis.
“Adrian Grimaldi.”
The child of Spencer Grimaldi, the Margrave of Dalkatir who put him on the throne but could never truly be his ally.
“I saw them once when they were young. Looked so innocent. Never expected such from Spencer.”
Whether to call it innocent or pure. He remembered a boy whose eyes sparkled like amber gems. Unlike the Count’s ice-cold eyes, they were warm colors that left a strong impression.
They smiled brightly too. While royal children wore world-weary expressions from youth, that northern child gathered small wildflowers and grasses with tiny hands, saying they would give them to their sister.
He had thought the Count must worry greatly about how to raise such a child into a Margrave.
“The girl was much more interesting to watch.”
The king said. Though she looked identical to the boy, her eyes resembled the Count’s. Her worn clothes and long hair flew in the northern wind as if she’d grown up in the wild.
The girl who glared at the king like a wary wild animal smiled softly at the wildflowers her sibling brought. At that moment, he had thought neither child seemed like they could have come from Margrave Grimaldi.
“Lord Adrian Grimaldi is quite interesting to watch as well.”
“Oh? Did their sister’s death bring about such a change?”
As if those innocent eyes could go anywhere. It would be fortunate if they didn’t decorate their sword with flowers.
“So you’re saying you and Grimaldi are in love?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You can stop the deception, Yuls.”
“Whatever Your Majesty chooses to believe.”
“I’d like to see them. Curious how much they’ve changed since then.”
At the king’s words, Yuls’s lips curved upward. He looked displeased. This seemed to make the king want to tease him more.
“You brought them along, didn’t you? You always kept your favorites close.”
“If you wish to see them, I’ll call them.”
“No need. They’re a Grimaldi after all.”
The king wasn’t ignorant of the rumors. Palesa Palace was his property, and he heard the rumors of what happened there. Including those about Adrian Grimaldi. The Dog of Palesa—he wondered how they’d earned such a nickname.
“Well, let’s set that aside.”
The king stroked his chin as he spoke.
“You’ve both made things difficult for me.”
Yuls bowed his head, knowing he was one of the two being referred to.
“One extends an invitation, the other makes them stay.”
And the other was Claude Dalkatir.
“I wonder why?”
The king was displeased with this situation.
Lilina
Awawawaaaahhh first description of the twins from a third party perspective
GAHH MY HEART ADRIAN PICKED FLOWERS FOR ADRINAA 


THEY WERE ADORABLE AS KIDS