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Chapter – 09
As Bihan rode toward the slums with the wizard’s instructions, the sky over the capital began to turn a dull gray.
Rosemary would sometimes check on the slums herself; occasionally, she even visited alone on horseback.
Even the people helping in the slums admitted that the eastern district wasn’t very safe. Because of that, the subordinates Bihan had assigned to watch over Rosemary had shifted their focus from surveillance to protection.
But they hadn’t been ordered to shelter her from the rain…
Even if Rosemary got wet, Bihan had come to the slums blindly, without being able to appear before her.
“Where are you…?”
Bihan dismounted near the clearing in the slums that Rosemary often visited and looked around. Drops of rain began falling from the gray, darkened sky.
“If she gets caught in the rain…”
Even if Rosemary had gone inside one of the houses, there wasn’t a single one in the slum that looked like it could properly keep the rain out.
After circling the clearing and confirming that no one was around, Bihan headed back toward his horse.
I need to make sure she’s alright before I can leave. I should call a subordinate to check on her…
He sensed someone nearby. Lifting the edge of his cloak, which was half covering his vision, Bihan stopped in his tracks.
“Ah…”
Under slightly wet black hair, her lavender eyes glimmered. A pair of pale hands stroked the horse as she turned her head.
This time, their eyes truly met. Rosemary smiled calmly and gestured beside her.
“There aren’t many houses with intact eaves around here, so I ended up standing here by chance.”
“….”
“You’re the owner of the horse, right?”
Bihan pulled his cloak tighter and approached Rosemary. He couldn’t believe they had actually run into each other.
He nodded silently. The thought that someone might see him like this later—suspicious and awkward—came before anything else.
“The rain’s quite heavy. Before the rainy season starts, someone should repair the leaking roofs…”
Rosemary frowned deeply, lost in thought as she looked up at the rain-filled sky.
It could be called a conversation, though neither spoke much; this was the first time they were really exchanging words.
No, it was also the first time he was this close to the real Rosemary—not the one from papers or from afar, but the actual Rosemary.
“You were the one who passed by the soup kitchen the other day, right?”
“….”
“Today’s not a serving day. We do it once a week. There’s no limit, so you can come freely if you like.”
Bihan could only nod awkwardly, as there was no other excuse. But even with just a shabby cloak, he would hardly look like one of the slum residents.
Moreover, a horse is an expensive mode of transport. A person riding a horse visiting a free soup kitchen—it makes no sense. And yet, why does she seem less suspicious…
“The boy with brown hair and the girl with red hair—do you remember them? They’re siblings, Eric and Sandy.”
“Ah…”
“I heard from the children that someone tried to take the relief supplies from the foundation. But then ‘the men in cloaks we saw last time’ came to help them.”
Bihan had come to the slums to see Rosemary, but happened to intervene when the children he had once seen were in danger. It was only natural he helped.
“Thank you. Usually, no one helps here,” Rosemary said with a bitter look, gazing at the rainy sky.
Bihan realized with certainty that she truly wanted the eastern slums to be rebuilt. Her reasons were unknown, but the sincerity was undeniable.
Someone connected to Adrian wouldn’t directly make such an effort for the slums. No foundation or person needed to watch her out of concern for harming Eclett Adrian.
So… he no longer needed to watch over Rosemary.
“If I delay any longer, your group will start to worry.”
Rosemary bent to tie her boots, as if preparing to leave. Before Bihan could fully think, he loosened the strings of his cloak.
The shabby cloak slipped off above Rosemary, who was bent over tying her laces.
“Huh?”
Before she could lift her head, Bihan leaped onto a rooftop, vanishing from sight.
“…No… where did he go…?”
Rosemary glanced around the alleyways, exhaling as she pulled the worn cloak back over herself.
“I’ll come again later. I need to return the cloak to the horse’s owner and make sure the horse was taken care of. If not… I’ll take it with me.”
Assuming the owner might be listening somewhere, Rosemary spoke to the horse and ran off beneath the eaves.
Bihan brushed the rain-soaked silver hair from his eyes, watching her leave. His subordinate appeared to hand him the cloak he had dropped, but he shook his head.
“Just make sure she gets home safely. From now on, your job is only to ensure the young lady’s safety when she goes out.”
Bihan descended from the roof, stroking his horse as he whispered,
“You follow her too. She gave away that cloak, so there’s no way for her to see me now.”
He had no reason or way to appear before her, other than hiding his identity.
Bihan left the slums shortly after. For about a year afterward, until he met Rosemary again as Bihan Kysers, he never returned.
“Can’t say.”
“…Are you kidding, Duke?”
“….”
“Huh?”
Bihan’s silence made Luke frown.
“You won’t tell me about this thing with Eclett?”
“….”
Anything related to Eclett Adrian required Bihan and Luke to cooperate. They shared the same goal: protecting Eclett. Pretending otherwise would only hinder that goal.
This case was no different. Eclett had been rescued from the Adrian estate and was safest at the Kysers residence, yet she still seemed fearful.
It was as if she knew something was about to happen.
‘So that’s why Luke Ventus came to see me,’ Bihan thought.
It wasn’t only Luke; Prince Edgar was also using his intelligence network to investigate the foundation. Its growing influence made it harder for Rosemary to hide her identity.
“Let me ask again: the foundation in the eastern slums… you really don’t know who’s behind it? Surely the Duke must know.”
“I never said I didn’t know. You simply don’t need to concern yourself with it, so there’s no reason for me to tell you.”
“Is that so? But it feels… off. My intuition is telling me I should investigate that foundation.”
Luke stood, realizing persuasion was futile. Though his information-gathering couldn’t match Bihan’s, he could learn things firsthand.
“Then I’ll—”
“Eclett will come looking for you.”
Luke paused, just as he was about to head toward the eastern slums.
“…Eclett will look for me?”
“Yes. Tell the servant at the door, and they’ll guide you to her room.”
After a brief hesitation, Luke nodded and left Bihan’s study, buying some time.
The reason both Prince Edgar and Luke were interested in the foundation was because its true nature was unknown. They couldn’t figure out who was behind it, even though it planned to build a library in a controversial area—Eclett Adrian’s hometown.
“Housekeeper.”
Bihan called, and the housekeeper bowed as he entered.
“Yes, sir?”
“Call Kael. And prepare the carriage… no, the horse.”
There was no time for a carriage. He needed to warn Rosemary of the danger and… now he wanted to help her directly.
That brief meeting with Rosemary Kysers as Bihan Kysers—every word they exchanged was sincere.
“Milady, I may be able to help you.”
“You may always seek me out, milady.”
“I am Bihan, milady.”
“Next time we meet, I hope you will call me that.”
Time had passed enough for him to understand and accept the reasons for his unusual actions and speech.
She was simply that remarkable. Naturally, this would happen.
He thought ruefully of the engagement letters that his elders had sent to Riotium—how he wished he could have been involved with her from the start, to help her.
A knock snapped Bihan from his thoughts. He rose, holding a newspaper.
[Library for Commoners to Be Built in Eastern Outskirts Slum]
The article spoke of her plans. The library would be built—naturally, she would accomplish it even without his help.
“Come in.”
“…Bihan?”
“Eclett.”
“I’m busy…?”
“No, it’s fine. What is it?”
“I have a favor to ask…”
Yes, he hoped she would come to him—the real Rosemary Kysers, not Eclett Adrian.
