Chapter 76
#076. Touched and Fell Away
Olivia's frozen breath grew increasingly clear. Her innocent green eyes, unsure of what to do, trembled.
This was it.
Edwin smiled gently and leaned back. Then, as if he had finished an amusing story, he raised his palm.
"...I was just joking. Though it seems my joke wasn't as funny as Olivia's."
It was dangerous.
Olivia, staring at him with wide eyes, was incredibly beautiful, but at the same time, devastatingly tempting.
Edwin already knew how sweet the inside of her slender wrist was, and how hot her red lips had been against the pulse of his wrist.
"I like you, Edwin."
Even her confession, which had radiated a heat more dizzying than the summer heat.
Edwin narrowed his eyes slightly, averting his gaze from Olivia's. If she knew how intense the desire rising beneath his bright smile was, Olivia wouldn't smile at him like that.
Since that sweet day, his patience had been growing shorter and shorter. Every time he swallowed the rising impatience, anxiety rustled within him.
He hoped Olivia wouldn't notice.
If Olivia wanted, Edwin could be a gentle gentleman as much as she desired.
But Olivia didn't respond to his playful act. Instead of awkwardly smiling as usual and obviously changing the subject, she pressed her lips together and looked at Edwin.
Was this what it meant for unease to sprout? With a sharp sensation pricking him, Edwin hesitated and parted his lips.
"Olivia?"
At that moment, the smoothly rolling carriage suddenly shook. Without a moment to think, Edwin quickly grabbed Olivia.
"I apologize, Your Highness, Lady. A rock rolled in the way for a moment..."
It was the moment the coachman's voice was heard from outside. A warm sensation brushed past the corner of Edwin's right lip like lightning.
It was a cautious touch, so fleeting that he couldn't even be sure if it had really happened.
Edwin slowly blinked at the lingering sweet scent fading from his nose. Olivia, holding her head high, looked at Edwin with a determined face.
"Well, even though we're not married yet. Still, we're clearly wearing rings together like this."
The red gemstone ring on her finger was enough to prove their relationship.
It was quite a bold move, even in his own opinion. But the voice she had boldly uttered began to tremble. Olivia's gaze went further and further down.
From his dazed, vacant red eyes.
To his prominent, well-shaped nose.
And his red lips...
Olivia couldn't bring herself to look at the lips she had pressed against his, instead staring at his sharp jawline.
Her vision blurred white. She couldn't know, and didn't want to know, what meaning the gaze directed at her held.
As if on cue, the loud coachman shouted from outside.
"The rock has been cleared! We will pick up speed again!"
"That's a relief."
Olivia smiled awkwardly and gently pushed Edwin's shoulder.
She only wanted to move a little away, but the shoulder she touched with her fingertips didn't budge like a rock.
Surprised that he didn't move, her pushing hand stopped.
"Why are you so surprised?"
Edwin gently grasped the hand awkwardly suspended in the air. Olivia stammered.
"No, that's. I just wanted you to sit down. Because it's dangerous. That's what I was trying to do..."
"I know. So you don't have to be so surprised. We've already touched more deeply than this."
Olivia, startled, widened her eyes and waved her other hand.
"Did, I?"
The tone of her voice stood out noticeably.
It was evident that Olivia was conscious of him.
The corners of her eyes, above a face that was somehow bewitching like a blooming rose, curved mischievously.
"Ah, it was too short, so I don't remember it well. I don't think we touched."
Edwin drew out the end of his words and tapped the corner of his lips with his empty hand. Then, he subtly observed Olivia.
The small hand trapped in his hand had forgotten to fidget and was tense.
Her round eyes, feigning innocence, glanced at Edwin.
And the moment their eyes met.
Her peach-colored cheeks flushed red. The eyes that were blushing as if embarrassed were so lovely that Edwin felt his head spin dizzily for a moment.
"...By the way, Lord Calter is not to be seen. Neither is Dian. Both of them were definitely here a moment ago."
He had seen them busy preparing to leave in the morning.
Edwin was frustrated by her feigned innocence. So, he revealed his true feelings as if it were nothing.
"They must be somewhere. More than that, I want to talk more about the situation a moment ago."
"...Come to think of it, I think we need breakfast."
"...Really. You know how to make it so I can't win."
Edwin shook his head, groaning. Olivia smiled brightly.
* * *
Meanwhile, at that time.
Winster Calter watched the carriage procession safely leaving the outskirts of Vikander and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
It was fortunate that the procession escorting them within the Grand Duchy was long. Otherwise, he almost wouldn't have been able to lure Jade Madeleine to this place, far from the city gates, before the carriage came out.
"...You deceived me. You said Olivia was here."
A savagely honed anger swirled.
Oops. Winster shrugged and subtly stepped aside. Then, he smiled playfully. It was difficult to hurl insults at a smiling face, after all.
...Of course, that was just useless words between him and Jade Madeleine.
Although he had kept a reasonable distance, Jade Madeleine could close that gap and approach him at any time.
While not letting his guard down, Jade Madeleine spoke intermittently.
"Even though I received the Oath of Vikander, Olivia is still my..."
Jade paused, his lips moving silently. The distorted face clearly revealed what he had swallowed in silence.
Sister.
The feeling of regret was reflected in his appearance as he constantly knocked on the gates of the Grand Duke Bikander's Ducal Palace every morning, even after being driven away several times. But that had nothing to do with Winster.
Whether someone else was withering away or was rumored to be homeless among the nearby inns.
Instead, Winster was interested in something else.
The order he received from His Highness the Grand Duke just before departing this morning.
"...Since you're slow to get news, I'll tell you specifically,"
Winster Calter's voice lowered secretly. Jade clenched his fist tightly. He couldn't even properly feel the sensation of his nails digging into his palm.
Jade was a natural-born Knight. His sharp insight, which allowed him to clearly judge the upper hand, determined that Jade had to yield now.
"I'm doing this not only because the Lady received the Oath of Grand Duke."
Then what else.
The words he was about to reflexively utter disappeared in an instant. Winster's voice continued without inflection.
"I, too, have sworn an oath to the Lady. No, all of Vikander has sworn an oath to the Lady."
"..."
"The Oath of Vikander is not light. The Knights of Vikander, who do not kneel even before the Emperor, swore allegiance to the Lady in just a few weeks."
He couldn't utter any words.
Jade knew very well how meaningful a 'Lady's Oath' was to a Knight.
That's why his heart had sunk when the Grand Duke said he had sworn an oath to Olivia.
But, in the end. All of Vikander had sworn an oath to Olivia.
It was the most perfect loyalty.
"To whom did you swear an oath, Lord? What about the Madeleine Knights?"
At the same time, it was a terrible sense of defeat.
He had never once thought of swearing an oath to Olivia. That child...
Olivia was...
"Ah... Come to think of it, isn't it true that the Madeleine you love so much hasn't even made her Debutante yet? I'm surprised you have time to be here doing this. You must be siblings with a deep bond that brings tears to my eyes."
Jade's face, unable to answer, was pathetic. Winster smiled. And he gathered a very small amount of affection and gave helpful advice.
"If I were you, I would focus on something more productive."
"..."
"For example. How the Princess, who had been lingering in the Katanta Territory, managed to create a report on Vikander's Abandoned Mine."
"..."
"If not, you could spread the story of how much our Lady is making Vikander shine."
"..."
"Or, you could spread the story of the Lady, who is so revered that she receives the farewell of all of Vikander even at this early hour."
Jade, who had been thinking about what that had to do with him, paused for a moment. Winster smiled mischievously, as if to say he had finally noticed.
"The situation is completely different from when you came from the capital. The moment anyone dares to be rude to the Lady, there are countless Knights who will honorably step forward."
"If you're going to chase her away anyway, spread the story so that Olivia won't have any trouble when she goes to the capital."
If it was a rumor borrowed from Jade Madeleine's mouth, it would be certain.
Winster, so proud of himself for handling the Grand Duke's orders so thoroughly, added with a smirk.
"Of course, His Highness the Grand Duke is at the very forefront."
"..."
"Unlike the Madeleine Dukedom."
Jade's eyes lost their black light. His slender body, which had been standing steadily, faltered. Winster, who did not show even a hint of warmth at that sight, turned away without regret.
Dian, who had been watching the whole scene from behind, clicked his tongue. Even though he was disgusted by the Madeleine Dukedom, which was on the Emperor's side, Winster was acting very cruelly.
"Do you have some kind of bad blood with Jade Madeleine?"
Winster shrugged instead of answering.
Bad blood? This was an attitude of concession and concession. As the Lady's second Knight, and as someone who had seen everything that happened in the capital.
This much was natural.
* * *
Tiaje Palace at midday.
Maria widened her blue eyes and looked at the palace corridor.
"Wh, what is this..."
"His Highness the Crown Prince has ordered it."
Baroness Sophron answered calmly, even to the horrified voice.
"Leopold?"
Baroness Sophron's eyebrows rose at the sight of her calling his name so carelessly. But Maria was so shocked by the state of Tiaje Palace that she didn't notice anything.
It had only been three days since she had met the Princess and had been unable to come to the palace due to illness. In that time, the palace she had painstakingly cultivated had returned to its strange state.
Above all, these rustic blue hydrangeas!
Instead of the overflowing lisianthuses, the side table and blue hydrangeas had taken their place again. Maria's mood plummeted at the sight of these simple colors.
No, in fact, she had been angry from the moment she entered this palace.
Baroness Sophron, who held her head high in front of her, and the maids who looked down on her and watched the situation.
Above all, Leopold, who had ordered the palace to be changed.
How could he do this to her? He hadn't even sent her a letter while she was sick!
"...Can you change this without my permission just because His Highness ordered it?"
The maids behind her flinched at the sharp voice.
A bright blue anger flashed above her clear blue eyes. But even when faced with that gaze, Baroness Sophron's expression did not change.
Even knowing that, Maria could do nothing.
Baroness Sophron was the Head Maid of Tiaje Palace. In the absence of a Crown Princess Consort, it was natural for her to listen to the Crown Prince's orders in terms of etiquette.
"Tea!"
Baroness Sophron's face clouded over for a moment at the sharply shouted word. But the maids followed Maria's words to the letter. One of them quickly brought tea.
Maria's mood became uncomfortable once again when she saw the tea pot set spread out in front of the table.
"That's not my tea pot!"
A tea pot with embossed green flowers imported from the Gerswin Kingdom. This tea pot, of which only two sets had entered the Empire, was the one Maria had been using since she first entered Tiaje Palace.
At first, she had disliked the green flowers because they were rustic, but Leopold especially enjoyed drinking tea from this tea pot. As a result, Maria had also cherished the tea pot.
But Baroness Sophron replied indifferently.
"I took care of all the tea pots while I was taking care of the tea pots."
"Both sets?"
"Yes, Young Lady."
The attitude of asking as if something was wrong infuriated Maria. She couldn't take it anymore.
Maria gritted her teeth and looked straight at Baroness Sophron.
"Didn't you know that I liked that tea pot the most?"
"...I was going to take care of it while you weren't here for a few days."
In fact, she had deliberately started taking care of it after seeing the carriage coming. This was the Madeleine's tea pot, after all.
Baroness Sophron's indifferent answer avoided any cause for complaint. So Maria became even more angry. The blue eyes, which had been sparking with fire, suddenly cooled like ice.
At that moment, when Baroness Sophron paused at the strange atmosphere, Maria smiled brightly.
Soon after.
"Ah!"
A piercing scream echoed throughout Tiaje Palace.
