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Chapter 78
“What? Who just arrived?”
“The Duchess of Feneus has come. Shall I escort her inside?”
Julian, momentarily startled by Aaron’s words, quickly nodded.
“Yes, quickly, bring her in.”
As soon as the head butler went outside, Julian hurriedly got up from his seat and checked his appearance.
He hadn’t expected his friend to show up so suddenly. In fact, he didn’t even know she had come to the capital.
When they exchanged letters last time, there was no mention of her coming to the capital.
“This really isn’t the time for this,” Julian muttered.
After making sure he looked presentable, Julian rushed to the reception room.
Just then, Scarlet was being led in by the butler.
“Scarlet!”
True to her noble demeanor as the Northern Duchess, Scarlet’s face softened into a warm smile as soon as she saw Julian.
“Julian! How long has it been?”
The two friends embraced, delighted to see each other after so long.
“I heard you visited and thought I must have misheard. When exactly did you come to the capital?”
“I just arrived yesterday. Something urgent came up,” Scarlet replied.
They walked into the reception room together, continuing their conversation.
“You could have at least told me if you were coming. I would’ve prepared something.”
“Ah, there’s no need to prepare anything between us,” Scarlet said lightly.
“I just feel uneasy. Aaron, could you prepare some refreshments? You know what Scarlet likes, right?”
“Yes, I’ll prepare them right away,” Aaron responded, taking the instruction from Julian.
“Oh my, you remember even after I haven’t been here for over three years?”
“Aaron is an excellent butler. He’ll bring out your favorite scones and tea,” Julian reassured her.
Even though showing up unannounced could have been awkward, Scarlet smiled, appreciating the effort to make her feel welcome.
“Everything’s been alright, I hope?”
“Yes, nothing unusual. But what about you? Coming to the capital suddenly—was there some urgent matter?”
“I…”
Scarlet couldn’t bring herself to explain that she had rushed here after hearing about Lucia’s engagement.
She felt uneasy about Helwin’s words that he had wronged Lucia. If he had truly committed a serious mistake, Julian would likely have been distant with Scarlet. But he didn’t show any signs of discomfort.
Instead, Julian acted as if nothing had happened.
Scarlet wondered if he was deliberately avoiding any mention of the children, so she decided to observe the situation for a while.
“Being stuck in the north is so frustrating. All the kids are in the capital, and my husband is always off hunting monsters. The castle feels so lonely,” Scarlet said casually.
Julian’s face paled.
“Monsters… there are still monsters left?”
“They’re hard to get rid of, but things are much better than when the monster legions were first discovered,” Scarlet explained.
“That’s a relief. If you ever need our help, let us know. We’ll assist anytime,” Julian offered.
Scarlet recalled the day she had come for the New Year’s celebration a few years back and heard about a monster outbreak in the north. They had relied on Count Agnes’ family for over half a year and had accumulated a large debt.
“You helped us back then, and I still haven’t repaid it all. Thank you, even if just in spirit,” Scarlet said, gripping Julian’s hand warmly.
At that moment, the maids had just prepared the refreshments.
True to Julian’s word, the table was filled with Scarlet’s favorite treats, bringing a smile to her face.
They continued their conversation while enjoying the refreshments.
“Speaking of monsters, something strange has been happening lately,” Julian said.
Scarlet paused mid-sip, raising her head at the mention of monsters.
“What is it?”
“Apparently, there have been odd incidents in the forest. Some nearby fields have been plowed up, and animal corpses have been found in various places,” Julian explained.
“Couldn’t it just be animals?”
“At first, we thought that, but upon investigation, the footprints and the state of the corpses suggest otherwise,” Julian continued.
According to Johan, some animal corpses found in the forest were not simply torn apart by predators—they looked as if long spikes had impaled them.
Moreover, the footprints resembled those of a human, causing Scarlet to frown.
“Any more details?”
“I only heard what he said, but the footprints are definitely enormous—far too large for a human,” Julian said.
If what Julian heard wasn’t exaggerated, this was certainly the work of a monster—and an intelligent one at that.
“I might need to notify the royal court. Thanks for the information,” Scarlet said.
“No problem. But judging by your reaction, it really might be a monster,” Julian remarked.
“Yes, probably. I didn’t expect monsters to be this far south. Did they come down from the north?”
“I don’t know. But something like this has happened before, hasn’t it?”
“When… oh!”
Scarlet suddenly remembered that a monster had been discovered near the capital before.
“That’s right, Helwin said he saw an ogre,” she recalled.
“Even though the academy is far from the capital, it’s still nearby,” Julian added.
Back then, they assumed the ogre had strayed from its group into the nearby forest, but if what Julian now described was truly a monster, this was no longer a problem they could ignore.
‘I need to inform Hel,’ Scarlet thought.
“This conversation is a bit unsettling. Nothing serious will happen, right?” Julian asked, brushing off the goosebumps on her arm.
Scarlet hesitated briefly before reassuring him.
“It’s okay. Nothing serious will happen. If you’re really scared, we could even call our son—he’d take care of it quickly.”
The mention of Helwin visibly flustered Julian.
“H-ha… yes… that’s right…”
A moment of awkward silence fell over the room, and the atmosphere turned cold.
Julian rubbed his damp palms together, realizing his mistake.
“By the way, I heard Lucia is getting engaged. Is that true?”
At that moment, Scarlet spoke, and Julian quickly looked up at her.
Scarlet’s gaze seemed to see through everything.
Julian awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and smiled.
“Y-yes. I hadn’t mentioned it. How did you know?”
“Henry told me in a letter. I’m hurt. Lucia is like a child to me, and she didn’t even share this with me,” Scarlet said.
“Well, there were some matters to attend to…” Julian replied, avoiding Scarlet’s gaze.
“Who is she engaged to?”
“The Marquis Casper.”
“Really? The one who recently inherited the title?”
“Yes. They met through a formal introduction, and it seems they are compatible enough to get engaged.”
“I see… So it’s confirmed? Henry said the wedding hasn’t been scheduled yet.”
“Not officially, but soon, I suppose. The marquis seems to care for our Lucia, and she seems to like him too. I’ll let you know when the engagement ceremony is held.”
Though their conversation seemed casual, tension lingered beneath the surface.
Julian sensed the weight behind Scarlet’s words and hastily changed the topic.
“Any news on Helwin? He should be getting engaged soon as well.”
Placing her teacup down, Scarlet straightened her posture and smiled.
“Not yet. But we should start looking into it.”
Another subtle silence fell. Even without speaking or meeting eyes, the distance between them was palpable.
Scarlet, frustrated by the roundabout politeness, finally gave in.
“Honestly, I thought Lucia would get engaged to Helwin,” she admitted.
Julian looked at Scarlet, noticing her usually sharp eyes now softened.
“I don’t know if I was the only one who felt this way, but I thought Helwin and Lucia liked each other. So I expected them to get engaged when the time came…”
“Scarlet…”
“…Things turned out differently,” she continued.
Julian clenched his fists, understanding her feelings. Just a year ago, he had felt the same.
He had assumed that if Lucia married, her partner would naturally be Helwin, since they had spent so much time together and Lucia liked him.
When young Lucia confessed her feelings to Helwin, he thought it was just childish infatuation.
But she had secretly liked him for years, hiding her feelings from everyone.
If it weren’t for the events at the academy, no one would have known of her feelings for Helwin.
“Do you really intend to let her get engaged like this? It’s such a shame. They like each other. We aren’t opposing their marriage, so separating them like this…”
“It’s already done, Scarlet,” Julian interrupted, his resolve firm.
Scarlet flinched at his determined gaze.
“I can’t bear to see my daughter suffer any longer,” Julian said firmly.
