Chapter 19

Ver started living in his office again. Just like before, when he had been all by himself, he devoted himself to work. He tried to shake off the thoughts that did not disappear even after he buried himself in the paperwork in front of him.

Even after sitting for a long time, the speed at which he completed the documents was slow. A few hours had already passed, but only five documents had been finished so far.

Eventually, he put his pen down. Then he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Because he couldn’t sleep properly and instead worked endlessly, his eyes had become dry and stiff.

“My lord.”

Albert couldn’t help but worry about Ver, who hadn’t rested properly in days. The habit that disappeared after Lady Weiand’s visits suddenly reappeared. He didn’t come out of the house, not even for a short walk.

Something must have happened.

“I’ve sorted out the letters.”

Albert set down the letters he held, along with the peppermint tea he prepared for Ver. These minor tasks were usually handled by the mistress of the house, but there was currently no mistress for the Grant household, so Ver handled them himself.

Ver pressed down his stiff eyes and looked at the letters. Since the letters have already been filtered once, he only had to review the ones that were important.

Among the letters, Ver picked up an exceptionally conspicuous piece of paper. It was a brilliant golden invitation.

“Is it already that time for the imperial ball?”

“Yes. It’s just around the corner.”

It was the biggest event of the year in the Arceo Empire, which gathered all the local nobility. When he went with Cecia last year, he remembered coming back early because she was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people present.

‘I’m going alone this year.’

Suddenly, someone’s words flashed in his mind.

“If you had asked me to be your partner, I would have agreed.”

He remembered Prillance playfully declaring these words at the party. Perhaps if it weren’t for the current circumstance, he would have genuinely asked her to be his partner. But now he couldn’t.

Ver shook his head. After an unabated tide of thoughts rolled through his mind, he looked at the remaining letters and saw a letter from Minnippi, a former territory of the Grant family.

“They sent another letter?”

“Yes.”

It was a letter from a custodian who usually delivered news regarding the territory in the past. The letter had arrived not too long ago.

He was a capable person who never usually made mistakes, but it seemed old habits die hard.

“Doesn’t Minnippi belong to the imperial family now?”

“That’s what I know for now. Would you like me to take a closer look?”

No matter who the territory belonged to, he was not authorized to open this letter.

“No.”

Ver shook his head, troubled over whether he should send over a letter to the imperial family. Just in case the custodian gets reprimanded, he thought of writing a letter for him. Then he opened all the remaining letters, sorting and keeping the important ones.

“Discard these.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Among the letters that would soon be ashes was the letter from Minnippi. Ver got up from his seat.

It would be good to get some air.

***

A few days later, a letter from Lady Weiand arrived at Viscount Royne’s estate.

Upon receiving the letter, Viscount Ben Royne had a strange look on his face.

“Have you done something wrong?”

But Cecia could not answer. She didn’t know whether the fault lied with her, or whether this was about Roman.

The fact that Prillance loved Roman – it was something one could figure out even after attending only one social event.

She recalled how the noble ladies whispered in Prillance’s absence, describing her actions as pathetic.

“Well, this is understandable considering the present situation.”

Ben quickly understood.

“You should go, but remember not to make a slip of tongue. Do you understand? Just listen and don’t talk too much. And…”

Suddenly, there was a knock on the office door. Reese, the butler of the Royne household, came in.

“My lord. A letter came from Minippi.”

“Oh, is that so? What’s going on?”

“They seem to be having some management problems.”

Reese glanced at Cecia. Ben nodded, signifying he was aware of the glance.

“Anyway, you have to be careful. Understand?”

Ben urged Cecia.

“If there’s nothing else, you may leave.”

“Alright.”

As if it were urgent, Ben sent Cecia out of the office. Cecia quietly rose from her seat and left his office.

Nevertheless, she could hear Ben’s angry voice.

“They can’t even manage it properly!”

Cecia was now familiar with this tone. It was the tone he used whenever he was irritated. She couldn’t point out exactly when it started, but she thought it was around the time of the fall of the Grant family. She could still faintly feel the anger she felt after her engagement was broken.

She remembered how eager Ben was to disentangle himself from the Grant family, as he pushed for an engagement with Roman.

A few days after, he said he won exclusive trading rights with a country in the East. One of the many he said was to come. At the time, he smiled boisterously, stating that her engagement with Roman would not be long after. His face revealed that he had been suffering from sleepless nights for several days.

Knowing his father’s efforts, Cecia had been quietly following his father’s words and accepted her engagement with Roman without protest. This was the only thing she could do in the present situation.

But then she recalled how Ver was with Prillance at the garden party. He even held the considerate face she remembered. Maybe the two were engaged just like Roman and her? There was no reason not to.

For some reason, Cecia’s heart ached.