IORAWM 31

Chapter : 31

How can even the sound of her teeth be so beautiful?

It was like the sound of an instrument descending from the heavens.

At that moment, Nebia’s attention turned to the Grand Duke.

“Who might this gentleman be?”

“…Who are you?”

The Grand Duke answered blankly.

It didn’t even occur to him that replying to a question with another question was rude.

All he wanted—desperately—was the name of the lady before his eyes.

At that, Nebia let out a light, tinkling laugh and replied,

“I’m Nebia of Khalid, a noble lady of House Khalid and a maid serving in the Crown Prince’s palace. Black-haired gentleman.”

Her words pierced through space and lodged themselves deep into the Grand Duke’s ears.

“Nebia… of Khalid…!”

The Grand Duke went pale.

So this woman is… the Crown Princess’s lover?

Nebia looked at Duke Rikesis and smiled in satisfaction, recalling what the Crown Prince had told her before.

“We’ve decided to pretend that Lertie and I are merely a political couple for the time being. Duke Cardmael Rikesis will play the role of the Crown Princess’s lover—so make sure you understand it that way.”

In other words, Duke Rikesis was someone who helped facilitate Nebia’s work as a spy.

But…

…His reaction is a bit strange.

Nebia subtly raised an eyebrow.

The Duke was simply staring at her endlessly.

He hadn’t even introduced himself.

Oh no. Don’t tell me…

Sensing that something was off, Nebia quickly urged the Crown Prince.

“Your Highness, let’s head back to the palace now. Um, sir? I’ve come to escort His Highness—may we get up now?”

“……”

The Duke merely flinched at Nebia’s voice and still didn’t respond.

So Nebia pinched the Crown Prince’s side hard.

Act like my lover already!

“My maid has come to fetch me, so I should be going now.”

Despite a grip strong enough to bruise an ordinary person, the Crown Prince didn’t even blink.

Worse still, his flat tone carried not a shred of affection, and Nebia smiled while grinding her teeth.

Ahhh, I really want to quit this.

Of course, Nebia herself didn’t have the slightest affection for the Crown Prince either.

Because just an hour earlier—

“I hear the Crown Prince chased after the Crown Princess all the way to Kazat.”

“…Pardon? Your Majesty, what do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said! That wench Lertie is fooling around with her lover, and that bastard Crown Prince ran off to interfere! Is this the time for you to be eating yogurt with me? Are you even doing your job properly?!”

Since the Crown Prince’s impulsive behavior reached the Empress’s ears first, Nebia had been chewed out and dragged out in a rush.

Damn bastard! If I’d known things would turn out like this, I should’ve proposed the contract to the Crown Princess instead!

She regretted it deeply.

But since she couldn’t undo what had already been done, she continued playing the role of the Crown Prince’s lover.

Still, why was the Crown Princess’s supposed lover staring at her like that…?

“Then I’ll see you next time, Duke of Rikesis.”

Nebia quickly grabbed the Crown Prince and dragged him away.

As the pair left the club together—

That woman is Nebia Khalid?

The Duke’s vision flashed.

And voices he had heard in the past brushed past his ears.

“There’s a woman said to be dating His Highness the Crown Prince. Nebia Khalid—she’s quite infamous, apparently.”

“We confirmed that Lady Nebia of Khalid has been frequenting the Crown Prince’s bedchambers.”

That woman—the one said to be throwing herself at His Highness…

The source of the misunderstanding.

The root of all evil.

A foreign contaminant.

I have to tell him!

To Prince Abel—“That woman is a black-hearted villain, so please stay away from her!”

I can’t say it.

It felt like a bolt of lightning struck his head.

He absolutely couldn’t say it.

There was only one reason.

“I won’t reveal it. I’ll take it to my grave!”

He had sworn never to speak of Crown Princess Lertie’s secret.

What should I do? What on earth am I supposed to do…?!

The Duke fell into panic.

It was strange.

Until now, his path had always been clearly defined—this level of confusion was unprecedented.

“When you meet your destined partner, it’s like being in an accident—you can’t think straight. When I first saw your father, I felt fate. That’s why I proposed immediately.”

His mother’s voice from childhood rang vividly in his ears.

I can’t… propose.

And thus, the tragedy began.

* * *

“Did you rest well at Duke Haim’s estate? You certainly look healthier.”

“Thanks to you. Then please take care as well, Your Highness.”

Though it was a polite exchange, an odd tension flowed between the Crown Prince and me.

Thud.

After the carriage door closed,

the Crown Prince headed toward the Kazat club where the Duke was. And then—

“Head maid, I’ll be heading straight to the Crown Princess’s palace, so please convey to Duke Haim that I appreciate his hospitality.”

“Yes, my lady.”

After parting ways with the head maid as well—

Phew…

Left alone in the carriage, I clasped my hands together.

Please… let Duke Rikesis handle this well!

I prayed.

Though I tried to remain composed, I was honestly anxious.

The Crown Prince needed to confirm the Duke’s innocence for himself anyway.

That was why, with the Crown Prince’s suspicions at their peak, I had let him confront the Duke directly.

Of course, I was terribly curious about what they were saying right now.

But if I were present and controlling the situation, the Crown Prince would never come to trust the Duke.

It was the moment to make a bold move.

So I had no regrets.

Though I really didn’t like that all I could do right now was pray…

To reduce unexpected situations like this in the future, I need to consider every possible scenario.

How long had I been organizing my thoughts in my diary?

Back at the imperial palace after just two days.

At some point, the carriage passed through the garden gate—the first checkpoint of the palace—and I leaned back into the seat.

But then—

…That carriage?

In the distance, a magenta-red carriage—the color symbolizing passion—caught my eye.

Khalid.

My expression stiffened.

It belonged to the family of my husband’s lover.

And every window of the carriage was covered with curtains.

…I shouldn’t let it bother me.

I stared straight ahead.

But at the very moment our carriages passed each other—

“…!”

I saw it.

From the side window, a woman drew back the curtain and smiled at me.

Nebia… Khalid?

At the same time, I doubted my own eyes.

Nebia—my husband’s lover—folded one eye shut at me with that beautiful face of hers.

Did she just… wink?

After that brief moment, the curtain closed again.

“……”

Even after the red carriage disappeared into the distance and the road turned to gravel, I remained dazed for quite some time.

No—how could she…?

How can someone wink at her lover’s wife?

What on earth was she thinking?!

After blinking in disbelief for who knows how long, as the carriage ride smoothed out, I let out a hollow laugh.

“Ha… unbelievable.”

Originally, Nebia and I had little interaction.

Though she’d been a palace maid for several years, my palace and the Empress’s palace were far apart.

And while the Crown Prince was away at war, I was busy holding down the Crown Princess’s palace.

Still, she could’ve picked a fight.

But she hadn’t—she hadn’t even caused me any particular trouble, which I had found odd.

If anything, I felt favorably toward her.

Of course, not anymore.

Sleeping with someone else’s husband—and then winking at his wife?!

Did Nebia Khalid feel some sense of victory over me?

If so, I wanted to tell her it was all a misunderstanding.

I was the one who discarded the Crown Prince. I wasn’t discarded.

She could take him or throw him away—whatever she pleased!

In any case, I had no intention of giving Nebia any attention.

I’d once felt personal goodwill toward her, but we’d never formed any meaningful bond—so there was no reason to feel betrayed.

Thus, my target of revenge was only one person.

Prince Abel alone.

For the day I would utterly shatter that bastard’s mental state!

I opened my diary again.

Scratch, scratch.

[Things to do after returning: Prepare for the early spring banquet.]

I clenched my fist.

The early spring banquet!

That would be where I fired the opening signal of my revenge against the Crown Prince.