“Was Marquis Ingrave always so quick to raise his hand?”
His adjutant, Vale, immediately answered.
“There have been no such rumors, so I doubt it happens often.”
“He raised his hand so naturally, though.”
“……Shall I look into it?”
“Yes.”
Nathan had also noticed something else. Given her father’s temper, there was no way he would willingly let her go when she tried to become independent.
He had stepped in and stopped him this time.
But now, there was a chance the marquis would act behind the scenes.
Nathan recalled an order he had temporarily forgotten. Since Rachel Ingrave had entered the Imperial Palace, the task of taking turns watching over her, which Lou, Paula, and Max had been carrying out, had been temporarily suspended.
Normally, the right thing to do would be to withdraw the order now.
‘……A little longer.’
He still could not be certain that she was safe. If the Ingrave family tried to harm her, it was his duty to stop them.
“Assign a shadow to Marquis Ingrave. Keep an eye on him in case he tries anything. And change Rachel Ingrave’s status from someone under surveillance to someone under protection. Deliver the revised orders to Sir Lou, Sir Paula, and Sir Max.”
“Understood.”
He would have to postpone calling off the marriage discussions. He did not know what Marquis Ingrave might do, so it would not be too late to end things once Rachel’s safety was more secure.
……Still, unless it was absolutely necessary, he would keep his distance from her. So she would not have to worry about him.
The incident in front of the Violet Palace spread far and wide throughout the night. News of the conflict between Rachel Ingrave and Marquis Ingrave, as well as Duke Nathan Valencia stepping in to defend Rachel Ingrave, quickly spread.
There was also plenty of gossip behind the scenes. Duke Valencia had brought up the faint possibility of a marriage arrangement to intervene in the Ingrave family’s internal affairs, but after the incident, he had declared that the young lady’s wishes would come first regarding the marriage.
And yet, the duke had gone out of his way to intervene on her behalf.
With the emperor frequently visiting the Violet Palace these days, the court and high society were buzzing with all kinds of rumors.
As soon as morning came, the emperor rushed into the Violet Palace. Rachel, who had barely finished washing her face, greeted him while still half asleep.
“You’re here, Your Majesty.”
“I heard Marquis Ingrave raise his hand at you. Are you all right?”
With hurried movements, he held Rachel and looked her over from head to toe. It was now early winter, and thanks to the temperature-control magic covering the entire Imperial Palace, the weather was only a little chilly. Still, it was enough to wake her up.
“I’m fine. Won’t you come in first? I haven’t had breakfast yet, and I’m not sure whether you’ve eaten.”
“……I haven’t either.”
The report about the previous night had reached the emperor while he was having breakfast. However, neither his chief attendant nor the other attendants had said anything.
Rachel nodded.
“Then would you like to eat with me? I’ll tell them to prepare two servings.”
“Sure.”
It was the first time she had sat across from the emperor in the dining room. They sat at a round table.
Rachel ate breakfast across from the emperor. The Imperial Palace’s head chef was very skilled, and the food had a different taste from what she had eaten at the marquis’s residence.
Seeing how excited she looked, the emperor, Terrius, made a strange expression.
“You……”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
“Never mind.”
The emperor barely ate. He kept looking at her instead. Rachel found it a little strange for a moment, but soon stopped thinking about it. As she had begun seeing Nathan Valencia more often, she had grown used to him, and even to the discomfort she felt around the emperor. But that did not mean she wanted to get closer to either of them.
They were still uncomfortable to be around.
And now that she had gained the independence she wanted, she was thinking of gradually putting some distance between them.
The emperor finally spoke when dessert was served.
“You seem to have a worse relationship with the marquis than I thought. I had assumed that when you said Marquis and Marchioness Ingrave were troubling you, you meant they were pressuring you to get married.”
“……”
Rachel looked at the emperor without saying a word. He had not even touched his fork, and a strange look of concern had settled over his sculpted face.
“Would it really be all right for you to leave the Imperial Palace like this, Lady? How about staying here until the marquis and marchioness calm down?”
At last, she spoke.
“I’ll be fine, Your Majesty. Besides, the marquis and marchioness will never calm down. They never forget things like this.”
“……!”
As someone who had once been their daughter, she knew that better than anyone. Unless Rachel disappeared from their sight forever, they would not stop attacking her until they were satisfied.
Rachel calmly lifted her teacup. After gazing at her expressionless face for a while, the emperor asked,
“Would you like me to help?”
“……Pardon?”
“I asked if you wanted me to meditate. In exchange, stay in the Imperial Palace a little longer, Lady. There’s no need to leave in a hurry.”
“……”
The emperor had seemed unusually interested in her departure from the palace for some time. Rachel lowered her gaze and answered.
“There’s nothing to gain from staying too long. I might also cause trouble for you, Your Majesty.”
“What trouble?”
“……”
For now, the rumors had died down because Nathan Valencia had openly referred to himself as her prospective fiancé.
But it was also true that strange rumors had begun to circulate as the emperor came and went from the palace where she was staying.
Rumors that the emperor might have taken a liking to Rachel Ingrave.
‘As if that could happen.’
Rachel, who knew from the <Record> that the emperor had married Aisha Labelyn, found the idea absurd.
“I’m going to become a baroness now. As a low-ranking noble, I don’t want to make a bad impression on the person who will become the future empress, Your Majesty.”
“……What?”
Even when she had been a marquis’s daughter, a duke’s daughter had been intimidating enough.
Now that she was becoming a baroness, she wanted even less to become Aisha’s enemy.
Besides, even if Aisha did not become empress, she had manifested the Labelyn family’s special ability, “magic,” with strength that ranked among the greatest in history. It was practically certain that she would become Duke Labelyn.
Once she left the Imperial Palace this time, Rachel intended to live quietly. She thought it would be nice to spend the rest of her life in a warm room, wearing soft clothes, eating delicious food, and living comfortably and peacefully until she died.
As for the problems involving the Ingrave family, well, there was nothing she could do about them in this life. She would have to find a way to deal with them little by little.
“……You really have no interest in me at all, do you, Lady?”
His words sounded ominous, and Rachel frowned slightly.
“I’m not sure what you mean. Do you want me to work in the Imperial Palace?”
“……”
The emperor silently grabbed his forehead. The chief attendant standing behind him looked at him with pity. The chief attendant and servants of the Violet Palace, as well as Rachel’s own maids, wore similarly strange expressions.
Why?
“……Are you planning to go out again today?”
The emperor’s low voice pulled her out of her thoughts. Rachel nodded.
“Yes, Your Majesty. I commissioned repairs for my residence yesterday and ordered an outfit for the ceremony where I’ll receive my title. I need to go check on them.”
“All right. Then have dinner with me when you get back. Come to the Sun Palace. You remember our promise, don’t you?”
In exchange for letting her choose the residence and estate she liked most first, she had agreed to accept his invitation.
Remembering the promise, Rachel nodded.
“Yes, I understand, Your Majesty.”
“Good. I’ll see you then.”
Rachel saw the emperor off as he left. When she took a quick look, his expression seemed a little stiff, but at least he did not appear as angry as he had before.
There was nothing particularly good about his visits, so why did the emperor insist on coming every day?
“……Do I look that capable to him?”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind. Becky, please prepare for our outing.”
“……Understood.”
Rachel changed her clothes and climbed into the guest carriage provided by the Imperial Palace. Her new residence, which was being renovated, was waiting for her.
***
The emperor could hardly believe the situation.
After showing her so much kindness, all she could say was that she did not want to make a bad impression on the future empress.
“Duke, do you think this makes any sense?”
“……”
In the office of the Minister of Inspections.
Nathan silently rubbed his temple as he watched the emperor rush straight to find him as soon as he entered the palace. Then he took a short, deep breath.
“So, let me get this straight. You’ve come to me for romantic advice?”
“Yeah. Is that a problem?”
“……”
After staring at the emperor for a moment, Nathan quietly picked up his quill instead.
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