Chapter 11
~Chapter 11~
The fact that his twin brother had been chosen by the princess and become a duke was the most painful thing for Benedict.
“Damn that luncheon……!”
Every time he thought of it, he ground his teeth.
The luncheons hosted regularly by the Empress every season were tedious events where one had to play along with the idle chatter of elderly noblewomen.
After attending a few times with his mother and coming back utterly drained, Benedict had generously passed the duty on to his younger brother, Roan. And at the very first luncheon that Roan attended with their mother, the now-adult Princess Jeremia made her appearance. She had come to pay her respects to the noblewomen ahead of her social debut.
“If I had gone, I would have been the one to marry the princess!”
Jeremia had fallen for Roan at first sight and openly shown her feelings, leading the Kingsley family to unexpectedly send their second son off to the royal family in marriage.
Since Jeremia had monopolized the royal family’s affections, the late Emperor could not allow her husband to be merely the “second son of a viscount’s family” and bestowed the rank of duke upon Roan.
Of course, the real power in the dukedom belonged to Jeremia, but as the saying goes, “the position makes the man,” and Roan had grown into a figure befitting his station.
“The dukedom is nothing but an empty shell. Look, he couldn’t refuse the Emperor’s request, went off to the battlefield, and came back as a corpse.”
Benedict tried to act as if it didn’t bother him. But he couldn’t help his greed for the business rights monopolized by the dukedom.
“What matters to us is tangible gain. Cedric is just a twenty-five-year-old pup. If we handle him gently and coax him well, our family will be the ones wielding the dukedom’s power.”
“That guy already seemed awfully cunning.”
“It’s just an act. He suddenly had to shoulder the weight of the dukedom right after returning from the battlefield—he must be overwhelmed. We need to make good use of this opportunity.”
Just as father and son exchanged sharp glances, a commotion arose at the entrance, and Cedric Kailas appeared.
His teeth-grinding expression from moments ago vanished without a trace, and Benedict hurried down the stairs with a welcoming smile.
“Cedric! You’ve come!”
“Uncle.”
Cedric gave a light bow in greeting.
Benedict felt his demeanor was somewhat arrogant, but he had to admit something.
‘He really stands out. Is it because royal blood flows in his veins?’
The blond hair inherited from his mother was dazzlingly bright, and his crimson eyes, called “blood eyes,” were equally captivating. But it wasn’t just his hair or eye color that defined Cedric. He was unparalleled in every way.
Even as a child, he drew gazes without saying much, knew how to express anger with just a smile, and never easily let anyone get close.
Yet everyone was desperate for even a brief conversation with him.
So even at events like this, Cedric was always the center of attention.
Thanks to that, any family that earned his favor or his acknowledgment would naturally draw notice as well.
Now that he held the dukedom, whichever family he chose as a business partner would undoubtedly become the talk of the town.
That was exactly what Benedict was after.
‘Right, it’s not flattery. I’m using him.’
The Kailas Dukedom held business rights worth a fortune. If the Kingsley family could exert influence over those ventures, their status would surpass the dukedom’s mere title.
Benedict placed a hand on Cedric’s back and began introducing him to his close associates.
He had deliberately chosen clothes in a style similar to what Roan preferred, creating the illusion at a glance that Roan had come back to life.
“With both of you here like this, you really look like the Duke and Viscount Kingsley. Of course, since your fathers were twins! Haha!”
“Indeed. It’s heartbreaking that Father passed away, but with Viscount Kingsley here, it must be a great comfort to His Grace.”
Benedict’s associates kept mentioning the resemblance between him and Roan, as if it had been scripted in advance.
But Cedric merely nodded with a polite, soft smile. Then, at an opportune moment, he changed the subject.
“I must beg your pardon, Uncle, but I’ve been working all afternoon without a drop to drink.”
Benedict realized with inner panic that he had been dragging Cedric around without even offering him a drink.
“Oh, look at me! Seeing you after so long, I got carried away with joy…….”
“I understand. Hosts are always busy. Don’t worry about me. Please continue your conversations. I’ll just grab something to drink.”
With that, Cedric smoothly excused himself and headed to the beverage table where champagne bottles chilled in an ice bucket.
As he pulled out a bottle and poured it into a glass, no one dared approach. It was rude for lower-ranking nobles to be introduced to higher ones or to speak first without cause.
Of course, there were exceptions, but facing Cedric Kailas made people uneasy, so they hoped to catch his interest without crossing the line. Fully aware of this, Cedric coolly downed the chilled champagne without glancing at anyone.
‘Uncle must have put a lot of effort into this party.’
The champagne, casually placed for anyone to take, was of excellent quality. Only then did he check the vintage on the bottle. It was the 1953 Rousseau Blair. Definitely not chosen by someone without taste.
As Cedric quenched his thirst, he heard footsteps approaching from behind. Curious who had the guts to cross the line he’d drawn, he didn’t bother turning around.
“Excuse me.”
A young woman approached naturally and poured herself some champagne. With her abundant blond hair piled up and wearing the latest striped dress, she seemed unremarkable at first glance.
But Cedric suspected she was anything but ordinary. And as expected—
“Oh my! Isn’t that Duke Kailas!”
She feigned innocent surprise, as if she’d only just noticed—convincing enough for anyone to buy it.
Cedric gave a slight nod in acknowledgment but said nothing. As if anticipating this, the woman hesitated a moment before speaking again.
“I…… I didn’t expect to see you here, but if I got the chance, I wanted to apologize properly.”
Only then did Cedric turn his gaze to her.
“Properly? Have we met before?”
A flicker of embarrassment crossed her face, but she quickly smiled—uncomfortably, or trying to seem so.
“I should have introduced myself first; how rude of me. I’m Bella Listerwell. At the victory banquet last May…… well, I saw you because my cousin had stolen Your Grace’s brooch and was wearing it…….”
“Ah, the Listerwell family.”
A forgotten memory resurfaced. Did this incident really need to be brought up so often?
It wasn’t a pleasant memory. How could this get more attention than his father’s death?
“I believe I mentioned it then…….”
“Yes, of course Your Grace was very generous to us. You have no idea how grateful my father is. The cousin who caused the trouble has been sent to a convent for some reflection.”
Cedric lowered his gaze to the champagne in his glass.
As Cedric fell completely silent, Bella bowed her head with a sorrowful look—but not enough to fully hide her face from his view.
She subtly leaned her shoulders forward, accentuating her cleavage and the ruby necklace.
“Our family never intended or foresaw such an incident. But we’re taking full responsibility without excuses. I sincerely apologize.”
Her clasped hands looked delicate. Her well-manicured nails and flawless fingers spoke of a life spent doing nothing but lifting teapots. Cedric set his champagne glass on the table and repeated what she had preempted earlier.
“I clearly said then that I hoped we wouldn’t meet again over something like this.”
Startled by his cold tone, Bella looked up.
She hadn’t misheard. Cedric was clearly showing his displeasure.
“W-Well, I took that to mean we shouldn’t meet over such an unfortunate incident…….”
“I decide what counts as unfortunate. And this conversation falls squarely into that category.”
Leaving the speechless Bella behind, Cedric turned away without hesitation and muttered,
“So Viscount Listerwell sent his niece to a convent.”
