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Chapter 23
“You don’t know… Lady Helena?”
“I still haven’t memorized all the nobles’ names yet. Is she someone I should know?”
‘You absolutely should, she’s the love of your life!’
Yurita struggled not to look horrified.
“Well… not necessarily, but I thought she was close to Your Grace.”
“Could you tell me that lady’s full name?”
“Helena Leyden. The eldest daughter of Baron Leyden.”
“Helena Leyden….”
‘And you still don’t know her?’
Eustace still looked completely clueless.
Good heavens. The original male lead didn’t even know the original female lead. That could only mean the story had already twisted far beyond recognition.
‘This is a disaster.’
The ripple effect from the emperor ordering Yurita into a political marriage with Zachary had been far too great.
“I’m sorry, Duchess. I really don’t know her.”
“Ah, no, it’s alright. You have nothing to apologize for.”
“Still, since you told me about her, I’ll make sure to greet her if I meet her someday.”
At that, Yurita smiled with slight relief.
“Yes, do that.”
‘Maybe their meeting has simply been delayed a little. I should wait and watch what happens for now.’
But even as they continued walking together, Yurita couldn’t stop her thoughts from spiraling.
‘…But does knowing the original story even mean anything anymore?’
Now that the romance between the original protagonists wasn’t even happening, she couldn’t tell whether knowing the route where Zachary became a villain would be useful or not.
‘…Still, it can’t hurt to prepare for it just in case.’
“Oh, I think we may have walked too far in.”
Eustace’s words snapped Yurita out of her thoughts. Before they realized it, the two had completely separated from the emperor’s party and wandered deep into the maze garden.
Perfectly trimmed trees formed dense, towering hedge walls, making it difficult to tell where the entrance even was.
“Hmm, should we try heading back the way we came?”
Eustace calmly took the lead and began searching for the entrance with Yurita.
But there were far more forks in the path than expected, and after turning several corners, they completely lost all sense of direction.
“That’s strange. I’m pretty sure we came this way….”
Wearing high white heels, Yurita began to feel pain in the backs of her feet.
Still, she didn’t want to show it while Eustace was trying so hard to find the way.
‘Everything here looks the same.’
Eustace turned back toward her.
“Is it hard for you to walk?”
“…Honestly, a little.”
Eustace hesitated for a moment. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.
“If you don’t mind… would you like to hold onto my arm?”
Yurita looked at the politely offered arm.
‘…Well, this much escorting should be fine, right?’
Truthfully, she was reaching her limit walking any farther.
Yurita took hold of Eustace’s sturdy arm. Just as he guided her forward again—
‘Huh?!’
She accidentally stepped on the hem of her long dress and pitched forward. Eustace, who had been firmly supporting her hand, was dragged down with her and collapsed as well.
“Ow….”
“Are you alright?”
When Yurita slowly opened her eyes, leaning against the thick bushes, Eustace’s face was right in front of hers.
Meanwhile, in the southern region.
“Achoo!”
Blending into the chaos of the marketplace, Zachary sneezed violently.
Picino, who had been looking around nearby, approached him.
“Are you alright, Duke?”
“This market reeks of pepper, herbs, and spices. Mixed with the stench here, it’s unbearable.”
Blocking his nose with his sleeve, Zachary spoke in a stuffed-up voice.
“We’re almost there. Just head into that alley.”
As they entered where Picino pointed, the noise of the crowd astonishingly faded away at once, replaced by a silent, eerie alleyway.
As though he had been here before, Picino confidently walked to the very end of the alley and knocked on a door.
“Hey, proprietor. I’ve come to buy that item again.”
After a long moment, the gruff voice of an old man answered.
“I’ve got no business with you. Leave.”
“What? What an insolent bastard. Open up already. I’ve come with a very important person today.”
“Ah, are you talking about that duke you mentioned before? I thought that matter was already settled.”
“What do you mean settled? You’d better open this door before you regret it!”
“I’m telling you, it’s already settled— Gah?!”
With the proprietor’s shout, Zachary kicked the old door clean off its hinges, sending it flying inward.
Even the latch tore loose, and the heavy sound of metal crashing echoed weakly through the alley.
Startled, the proprietor looked up to see a red-haired man in black glaring at him terrifyingly.
“W-Who are you…?”
“Duke Zachary Killaster.”
“Y-Yes?!”
“The item?”
“If you mean the item… Duke Killaster already bought it….”
“What? You dare mock the Duke right in front of him?!”
Picino pulled a pistol from his coat and pointed it at the proprietor.
“Eek! I-I’m not lying, sir! Two days ago, someone claiming to be Duke Zachary Killaster really did purchase the item!”
“Hey.”
At Zachary’s low voice, the atmosphere instantly chilled.
The faintly glowing red eyes staring from the darkness made the proprietor feel suffocated.
“What did he look like?”
“H-He had red eyes, and… well, he wore a hat and glasses, so I couldn’t see him clearly.”
Picino immediately grabbed the proprietor by the collar and shook him.
“You death-wishing idiot! You handed the item over to some impersonator without even confirming who he was?”
“But! He had the Killaster family crest!”
“What?”
Only after Zachary gestured did Picino release the man’s collar.
“And how are you so certain it was genuine?”
“I’ve made my living in this business for years. My eye for distinguishing authentic items from fakes is razor sharp. From what I saw, the crest was definitely real.”
Zachary and Picino exchanged looks.
“Besides, he paid double the price I asked for. There was no reason not to sell it.”
“Do you know where he took the item?”
“Forgive me, but I can’t pry into a customer’s private affairs….”
But under Zachary’s fierce red gaze, he couldn’t stay silent.
“H-He said it was a gift for someone living in the capital. But he didn’t say who. I swear that’s the truth.”
“The capital?”
A crease formed between Zachary’s brows.
A short while later.
Zachary and Picino left the proprietor’s shop and returned to the market.
“So it was all for nothing. After all that, the trail leads back to the capital.”
Smoking a cigar, Zachary muttered irritably.
“Who could possibly dare impersonate you, Duke? And they even had the family crest….”
“Looks like one of my relatives decided to play games.”
“Your relatives?”
“In the Naroa Empire, only members of the Killaster family have red eyes. I heard the family crest was lost during my father’s generation. If some lowlife stole it, there’s no way to recover it. Not that I care about some crest anyway….”
Zachary exhaled a thick cloud of gray smoke.
“But once I catch whoever it is, I’ll kill them.”
Picino barely managed to suppress a flinch. His master’s words were absolute.
“Anyway, we’ll continue tracking the buyer who impersonated me once we return to the capital. Let’s head back.”
“…Duke, but the horses….”
When they checked the horses tied at the stable, all of them were still suffering from dehydration.
“We rode nonstop from the capital until dawn today. They’re not fit to depart yet.”
“What? So we can’t leave today?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to stay at an inn for one night? The horses need rest, but so do you, Duke. You haven’t slept at all while traveling. If you keep this up through today, you’ll collapse.”
Though Zachary clearly disliked the idea, he eventually nodded. His boot crushed the ash that had fallen from his cigar.
The hotel Picino reserved was the finest in the region, but Zachary’s expression still didn’t improve. Staring at the wide, luxurious king-sized bed, he muttered:
“She’s not here. Tch.”
