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Chapter 21
Odellia closed the door and the moment she saw her reflection in the mirror, she gasped—swallowing a shriek. *Is this how I presented myself to His Highness?!* She swept back her mane-like, puffed-up hair and let out a sigh.
“Why on earth would he come looking for me so early in the morning……?”
The maids who had entered to help her change busied themselves about, exchanging glances among themselves.
“Oh my, Lady Odellia. You went to bed early last night, so you probably didn’t know.”
“Hm?”
As Odellia blinked, another maid added.
“His Highness Calix stayed here last night.”
“E-Excuse me?!”
Odellia stared at the maids with a bewildered face, and they gave her knowing smiles. They had quickly grown fond of their young lady—who was a bit rough around the edges yet polite and kind.
“He stayed in the guest room, didn’t he?”
“S-So that’s what happened……?”
One of the maids approached, holding a dress on a hanger.
“How about this pink dress for today?”
“Isn’t that color a bit too lovely for me to wear?”
As Odellia waved her hands without hiding her awkwardness, the maids all laughed in unison.
“That’s the exact color of Lady Odellia’s cheeks right now~”
Odellia glanced at the mirror and confirmed that her cheeks were indeed redder than the pink dress—then covered her face with both hands.
Then, feeling someone’s gaze upon her, Odellia turned her head in embarrassment. One of the maids pursed her lips.
“What is it? If you have something to say……”
When Odellia asked, the maid hesitated for a moment, then gave a small shake of her head.
“……No. It’s nothing, Lady Odellia. Let me continue helping you change.”
She simply couldn’t bring herself to say: *Last night, I happened to see His Highness Calix leaving Lady Odellia’s room……*
If Lady Odellia truly didn’t know, then what on earth had His Highness been doing in her room? The very thought was indecent, and the maid resolved not to speak of it.
And Odellia had no way of knowing about such concerns.
—
After changing, Odellia headed back to the dining room, where Calix and the Grand Duchess were waiting for her as before. Perhaps because it was the first time she was having a meal with Calix this early in the morning, her heart tingled subtly.
Pretending nothing was amiss, Odellia cautiously addressed Calix.
“I heard you slept in the guest room. You should have woken me.”
Calix set down his cup and answered nonchalantly.
“You seemed to be sleeping so soundly that someone could have carried you off and you wouldn’t have noticed. How could I have the heart to wake someone who was even snoring?”
“I-I snore?!”
The Grand Duchess’s expression stiffened slightly as she looked at Calix. But Odellia, being dense, didn’t quite grasp what his words might imply. Seeing her like that, the Grand Duchess unconsciously shook her head.
Calix grinned and kept teasing Odellia.
“It echoed all the way down the hall.”
“Don’t make fun of me, Your Highness……!”
Just as Odellia protested, the butler appeared with the daily newspaper. The Grand Duchess took it and unfolded it—then her expression tightened slightly.
One page featured an article about two sons of an earl’s family who had been brutally murdered in what appeared to be a robbery. Beside their small portraits, a series of sentences emphasized the gruesomeness of the incident.
“Good heavens. How could such an unsavory incident occur in the middle of the social season……”
The Grand Duchess clicked her tongue and set the paper down with a thud. Odellia tilted her head and asked.
“Has something happened, madam?”
“Two young lords from an earl’s family were robbed, it seems. They were attacked on their way out of a social club…… My word, how dreadfully they died.”
The Grand Duchess shook her head and flipped through the paper again. Odellia casually took the article and began to read.
—
*[The incident is believed to have occurred around midnight last night. The eldest and second sons of the earl’s family were ambushed by assailants as they exited the social club.*
*The scene was found in a gruesome state, with the victims discovered severely disfigured, particularly around the face. Numerous stab wounds were also confirmed.*
*Given that all valuables were missing from the bodies, it appears to be the work of robbers. However, the most peculiar point is that both victims had their lower halves severed.]*
—
Odellia swallowed hard. The illustration in the article was sanitized, but the horrors described in text were beyond imagination.
“What kind of grotesque thing is this……”
Just as she murmured to herself, the mansion’s door burst open. Cedric—who appeared to have run at full speed, his clothes barely in order—rushed in, gasping for breath.
“Huff…… Huff……”
His shirt was crookedly buttoned, his hair disheveled, and his face was pale. His eyes, fixed on Odellia, wavered frantically.
Odellia shot up from her seat and approached Cedric.
“What’s wrong with you? Sweating like this in the morning…… Wait, don’t tell me you ran all the way here?”
Cedric caught his breath and quickly grabbed Odellia’s hands.
“Odellia, I—!”
As he began to speak, Cedric’s gaze fell upon Calix sitting at the far end of the dining room. The moment he saw him, Cedric closed his mouth.
“What about it?”
Odellia tilted her head and asked. Cedric let out a small breath.
*’Ah, so this is His Highness’s way.’*
It wasn’t just a simple realization. He felt it deep in his bones—a certain pressure and helplessness.
The moment last night when Calix had grabbed him by the collar in the carriage flashed vividly before his eyes. He had learned then that there are people who can break another’s will without harsh words.
That silence, the strength in his fingertips, and the presence that overwhelmed everything without a single command—it was still pressing down quietly on Cedric.
After staring blankly into space for a moment, Cedric finally forced a smile.
“No, it’s nothing. I just ran over and…… I’m a bit thirsty. Haha……”
“Of course you’re thirsty after running like that. Come on, let’s go inside.”
Odellia laughed in disbelief and led Cedric toward the dining room.
Once inside, Cedric offered a formal bow to the Grand Duchess and Calix. Calix acknowledged his greeting with the same composed expression as always.
From that moment on, Cedric’s gaze was fixed on Calix seated across the table. He caught his breath, lost in thought.
*’Did he hire someone? Or did he do it himself? How can he look so unbothered? After reading that brutal article…… how can he eat breakfast so calmly……’*
No matter how he thought about it, people had died…… how could he wear such a placid face? Cedric’s gaze toward Calix, once filled with wariness, now gradually took on a hint of fear.
But whether he knew of that gaze or not, Calix continued his meal with Odellia as calmly as ever.
Cedric deliberately spoke to Odellia, reaching for bread as if to act natural.
“Odellia. Did you see the article too?”
“You mean that one? Yeah, I saw it. It was grotesque. Severing the lower half…… It seems a bit extreme for just a robbery—feels more like a grudge.”
Calix smiled wryly and pushed the bread basket toward Cedric.
“If it were a grudge, what kind of grudge do you think it would be?”
Odellia hesitated for a moment, then answered with a slightly embarrassed face.
“Well…… severing a man’s lower half…… it seems like it would have to do with a woman, wouldn’t it?”
Calix chuckled.
“I think so too.”
Then, staring directly at Cedric, he continued.
“Cedric. I’m glad to see you don’t have any bruises on your face.”
“Bruises……?”
The topic naturally shifted from the murder case to Cedric’s complexion. Odellia peered closely at Cedric’s face.
True enough—as if he had been in a fight, there were clear scratches here and there, even if not quite bruises. She was startled and grabbed his face, demanding.
“What’s this? These wounds?”
Cedric blinked in surprise.
“Oh? No, these are just……”
“Wait—don’t tell me you got into a fight with someone?”
Cedric waved his hands and quickly denied it.
“A f-fight? Who would I—!”
Watching him closely, Odellia turned her head toward Calix.
“Your Highness, it seems like you know something.”
At that, Calix merely shrugged with a blank expression. Odellia grabbed Cedric’s face again and pressed him.
“What is it? Did you really get into a fight with someone?!”
Cedric dropped his shoulders as if he could no longer hide it.
“I—I just got into a little quarrel with some thugs, that’s all……! Right, Your Highness?!”
His eyes carried a clear meaning of surrender. A resignation to comply through silence.
