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Chapter 8
The fact that such a random, contextless word slipped out of her mouth was another problem entirely.
Heinrich stared at Nadia with a baffled expression.
Startled, Nadia quickly released his wrist and stepped back.
“My apologies, Your Grace.”
“What exactly are you doing?”
“Well…”
Since she had already blurted out the word walnuts, she needed to come up with a convincing excuse.
“There are walnuts in that cheese. Walnuts are… a rather divisive food. Especially when mixed into cheese. So I wanted to warn you beforehand.”
Suspicion filled Heinrich’s crimson eyes.
Apparently, her excuse had not been sufficient.
Keeping his gaze fixed on Nadia, Heinrich placed the cheese into his mouth. The firm line of his cheek softened slightly as he chewed, and after a moment, his throat bobbed quietly as he swallowed.
‘Walnuts. There were walnuts in it! And he still ate it?’
Nadia could not hide her shock.
When Heinrich was younger, he had once become severely ill after eating walnuts. It had not been life-threatening, but he had suffered badly enough to throw the entire Baldwin Ducal House into chaos for quite some time.
After that incident, Heinrich would not even look at walnuts anymore.
No—more accurately, foods containing walnuts were never even served at all.
Heinrich stared intently at Nadia before narrowing his eyes.
“This is a party hosted in my own estate. Do you think I wouldn’t know what kind of food is being served?”
“No, Your Grace. I acted rudely. Please forgive me.”
“How did you know?”
Heinrich was not a fool. What kind of baron’s daughter grabbed a duke’s wrist simply because she thought he might dislike walnuts? Only a madwoman would do such a thing.
Naturally, he was asking how she knew about his allergy.
Of course, Nadia feigned ignorance and answered quietly,
“…I’m not sure what you mean.”
“So you have no intention of answering for now. Lady Nadia, do not forget that I am watching you.”
After glaring at her for a moment longer, Heinrich turned and left.
Once he disappeared completely, Vivian hurried over and stood close beside Nadia.
“My lady! What in the world were you doing just now? Why did you suddenly act like that? Ahh, my heart nearly stopped! You’re usually so composed, so why did you suddenly cause trouble?”
“You’re right. I must have gone insane for a moment.”
Nadia pressed a hand against her chest, trying to calm her racing heartbeat.
“…I’m truly an idiot.”
To begin with, if food containing walnuts was being served at a party hosted by the Baldwin Ducal House, then that meant walnuts were no longer a problem.
Perhaps Heinrich’s allergy had naturally disappeared as he grew older. Or perhaps a magician had treated it.
Normally, Nadia would never have overlooked such an obvious clue, but the moment Heinrich lifted that cheese toward his mouth, she had become too worried to think rationally.
All she could picture was the image of the small boy burning with fever.
The child who, with cheeks flushed red from illness, had stubbornly insisted he was fine and told her she did not need to worry.
Even then, he had tried so hard to act mature.
And now he was a fully grown adult who no longer needed Nadia to protect him.
Nadia laughed bitterly at herself.
Heinrich left the garden immediately and called for Allison.
Allison hurried over, nearly out of breath, before quickly scolding his master.
“Your Grace, you cannot leave in the middle of the party like this. The Dowager Duchess will—”
Looking utterly exhausted, Heinrich raised a hand to cut him off.
“I’m going back shortly. Save the lecture for later. There’s something I need to investigate.”
“What? In the middle of the party? What happened?”
“Nadia Hess knew about my allergy.”
At those words, Allison’s face immediately turned pale.
“How? That information is strictly confidential. Even within the Baldwin Ducal House, only a handful of people know. And besides, Your Grace no longer…”
“I no longer have such a trivial allergy. A magician treated it. She doesn’t seem to know that part, though.”
“Did Lady Hess try to feed you walnuts?”
Allison’s eyes sharpened dangerously, as though he might drag Nadia away for questioning immediately.
But Heinrich shook his head.
“That’s what makes it stranger. The moment I tried to eat the walnuts, she panicked and stopped me. Then she pretended ignorance while offering a clumsy excuse. When I met her before, I thought she seemed intelligent.”
“That really is strange. I’ll investigate her again, but… perhaps it’s something like this?”
“Go on.”
“Isn’t Nadia Hess Baron Hess’s adopted daughter? I heard she was originally an orphan with no known background. Apparently she remembers nothing from before the age of ten. What if that story is false? What if she used Baron Hess’s sympathy to elevate her status?”
“You mean she’s targeting me now for another rise in status?”
“I don’t think it’s impossible. While investigating Your Grace in hopes of marriage, she may have discovered the walnut allergy. Naturally, she would keep such information secret.”
Allison’s reasoning was sound.
There were countless women who would use every method imaginable to marry Heinrich. Even if Nadia were one of them, it would not be contradictory.
But…
The expression Nadia had worn when he lifted the cheese still lingered vividly in Heinrich’s mind.
There had been no trace of greed in her eyes at that moment.
For the first time in a very long while, Heinrich felt as though he had witnessed someone’s pure goodwill.
Moreover, throughout the entire party, Nadia had continued looking at him, yet there had been neither admiration nor awe in her gaze.
Instead, her eyes had carried the tender longing of someone looking upon a dearly missed person.
And that unsettled Heinrich deeply.
As evening fell, the party grew even livelier.
Magical stone lanterns hung from every large tree, causing the garden to become even more beautiful as darkness settled in.
The Dowager Duchess of Baldwin gracefully rang a small bell, and the clear sound spread throughout the garden. The attention of the guests immediately gathered toward her.
“Thank you all for attending tonight. Recently, I acquired a beautiful sculpture, and I wished to admire it together with all of you.”
The Baldwin Ducal House had cherished art for generations.
Art was one of the reasons the people of the North had managed to endure life upon such harsh lands without losing heart.
Whenever the Baldwin Ducal House hosted a party, they always included an opportunity to introduce a new artist. For emerging artists, it was an extraordinary opportunity, so it was only natural that everyone admired Baldwin.
Beside the Dowager Duchess stood a neatly dressed woman.
“Sir Shuliano, would you introduce this beautiful work for us?”
At the Dowager Duchess’s request, Shuliano enthusiastically began explaining his artwork.
While admiring the sculpture, Nadia overheard a quiet private conversation behind her.
“I heard the Dowager Duchess of Baldwin was introducing a new artist for the first time in a while, so I expected more. It’s somewhat disappointing.”
“Well, the Baldwin Ducal House hasn’t hosted parties for quite a long time. Most promising artists have been heading south lately.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Not only artists. If you knew what extraordinary item I recently acquired, you wouldn’t even spare that sculpture a glance.”
It was the classic tone of a con artist baiting curiosity to lure in a customer.
Perhaps Vivian sensed it too, because she glanced back briefly before whispering into Nadia’s ear.
“I think I saw that man in those documents.”
“Who?”
“That one! Viscount Royce, I think… wasn’t he the one who played tricks with art dealing and got released because there wasn’t enough evidence?”
At those words, Nadia subtly raised her fan to cover part of her face while observing the man behind her. The more she looked at him, the more closely he resembled the portrait she remembered.
‘He escaped during his trial and even had a bounty placed on him, but the matter was eventually smoothed over. They claimed it was merely a misunderstanding because he had gone traveling, not fled. The bounty was withdrawn afterward. He’s not someone particularly important, but…’
If this had happened elsewhere, she would have ignored it.
But this was the garden of the Baldwin Ducal House.
How dare he attempt to swindle people on land ruled by Heinrich?
Regardless of the bounty, Nadia decided she needed to deal with the insolent man.
“It is a work by Pamela, the artist who once dominated the continent five hundred years ago. The very masterpiece that disappeared a century ago…”
“Surely you don’t mean The Emperor’s Bird? You managed to obtain it?”
“Yes. I’m only telling you this, my lady. It’s such a magnificent treasure that someone timid like me hardly dares show it to others. Ah, if only it could find a worthy owner, then perhaps it could once again see the light of day…”
Viscount Royce continued laying bait for his scam, but the noblewoman shook her head.
Pamela’s The Emperor’s Bird had vanished long ago, and no one had seen it since. Merely viewing it once would be enough to boast about in noble society for years.
However, Viscount Royce was a man who had once stood trial, making him difficult to trust.
“Oh my, such a remarkable treasure is beyond someone like me. But if you ever decide to display it, I would happily come see it.”
Though clearly reluctant, the noblewoman eventually walked away.
As Viscount Royce clicked his tongue in disappointment, Nadia approached him and greeted him politely.
“You are Viscount Royce, correct? It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Nadia of the Hess Baron family.”
