Duke 122

CHAPTER 122

***

Translator: Rae

"What kind of state is she in?”

“She’s in the middle of changing into her dress, so she’s currently wearing a robe.”

Only a robe?

At Lulien’s words, Dustin’s furrowed brow eased, and before he realized it, he swallowed hard.

The image of Alicia clad in nothing but a robe was a dangerously tempting thought.

But, instead of forcing his way in, he chose to step back.

They had made certain promises regarding the engagement, and if he wanted to use what he carried hidden on her people, provoking her temper would do him no good.

“Then there’s nothing I can do about it. Tell her I’ll be waiting in the hall.”

“Understood. Thank you for your understanding."

Receiving Lulien’s courtesy, Dustin turned and headed toward the chapel.

The moment he stepped inside, nobles hurried over to offer their congratulations.

"Congratulations, Your Highness.”

“What a blessing for the Empire. My sincerest congratulations.”

Bathed in praise, Dustin’s mood lifted, and he acknowledged the nobles’ greetings with a generous expression.

“I appreciate all of your congratulations.”

At the prince’s response, the nobles smiled—then flinched as if burned, hastily stepping aside or retreating.

The Duke of Russet was approaching. With his usual smile.

"Your Highness.”

“Duke Russet.”

"Congratulations on your betrothal."

After offering his congratulations, the Duke of Russet cast a glance around, wordlessly signaling the surrounding nobles. They immediately cleared away, leaving the two of them alone.

Once they were by themselves, the duke lowered his voice so others wouldn’t hear.

“The event is proceeding smoothly, just as planned.”

“Is that so?”

“The main force will pass through the gate shortly, and the supporting units and the knight order will depart for here as soon as His Majesty makes his entrance.”

Since they had agreed beforehand to refer to the operation as the ‘event,’ the soldiers as the ‘main force,’ and Veramus as the ‘supporting units,’ Dustin understood the duke’s meaning at once.

At the same time, the corners of his lips curved upward into a long smile.

The thought that both the throne he so desperately desired and Elysia herself would soon be in his grasp sent a deep surge of satisfaction through his chest.

“Then all I have to do is carry out the engagement ceremony naturally?”

“Exactly.”

"That much is easy. But I don’t see Her Majesty the Empress anywhere. She didn’t go to see Alicia, did she?”

As Dustin’s eyes narrowed with suspicion, the Duke of Russet let out a silent sigh.

Every conversation somehow circled back to Elysia.

“It seems there was an issue with her shoes as she was leaving the Empress Palace. We received word that her entrance will be slightly delayed.”

“Is that so? Then that’s a relief. And what about Duke Deimos?”

Dustin’s gaze sharpened with wariness as he asked the Duke of Russet.

“Has Duke Deimos shown any unusual movement? Has he noticed what we’re doing?”

At the string of questions, the Duke of Russet raised both hands in a calming gesture.

“He appears to have stepped away briefly, but according to the other nobles, he seemed quite relaxed. If he had discovered our plan, there’s no way he’d be so at ease.”

“True. If he had, this place would already be in an uproar. He wouldn’t have let the ceremony proceed.”

“Precisely.”

“You’re right, Duke. Still, something feels off. I don’t know what it is.”

Wearing an uneasy expression, Dustin turned his head as noise rippled through the entrance of the chapel. Before his eyes, the nobles parted to either side as if water being split.

The imperial family was entering.

Seeing this, Duke Lasset quickly whispered to Dustin.

“That is proof that Duke Deimos is unaware of anything. If he knew, he would never have allowed them to come in like that. So put your mind at ease and go offer your greetings.”

Dustin looked at the Emperor, the Empress, and Rashian entering among the nobles. Watching their warm, harmonious aura made his smile twist slightly on its own.

“Yes. After all, this may be the last time I greet them as family.”

By the time Dustin moved toward the imperial family with the Duke of Russet, a perfectly courteous smile had already settled on his face.

***

Seated in her dress, Alicia startled and turned her head at the sound of movement.

Her tension melted away the moment she saw Lulien entering alone, and the tight line of her lips relaxed.

"Did he left?”

When Alicia asked, Lurien came closer and signaled with her eyes for the maids standing behind to leave.

Once the maids exited the waiting room, she patted Alicia on the shoulder.

“He’s gone, so relax. Just like you said, it seems he’s decided to keep up appearances now.”

“That’s only because he thinks it’s just for today. You know exactly what that lunatic’s thinking. It’s obvious.”

Watching Alicia grumble about the lunatic, Lurien let out a small chuckle and patted her shoulder again.

“You did well. Dealing with that lunatic all this time.”

“It’s not over yet, you know? I still have to see his face in a little while.”

“His Excellency the Duke promised it wouldn’t take long. If that’s the case, then it’s already settled.”

At Lulien’s words, Elysia recalled Iker whispering for her not to worry. He had promised it would all be over before she shared the vow kiss with Dustin.

'Right. Don’t worry. Just do what I have to do. Leave the rest to Iker and Har.’

The wavering deep-violet eyes hardened in an instant.

Elysia looked at Lulien and asked.

“You checked all the evacuation routes, right?”

“Before I even could, Nocturne had already checked everything. I had nothing left to do.”

“Aide Sied?”

When Alicia’s eyes widened in surprise, Lulien sighed and nodded.

“Yeah. It seems His Excellency the Duke ordered Nocturne to take command and evacuate everyone if anything happened.”

“That’s an important responsibility. It could be dangerous.”

“Exactly. He doesn’t even have good reflexes. I’m not sure he’ll be okay.”

"Hm…”

Watching the worry fill Lurien’s face, a mischievous smile crept onto Alicia’s lips.

"All right. From now on, your mission is to take responsibility for the evacuation.”

“I told you, Nocturne already—seriously, did you even listen?”

Despite Lulien’s scolding, Alicia remained unfazed.

“Who said you had to handle everyone’s evacuation? You just need to take responsibility for Aide Sied’s evacuation.”

"What?!”

“You don’t need to worry about me. Just look after Aide Sied.”

At Elysia’s unexpected words, Lulien’s eyes shook violently.

Seeing her close friend rendered speechless for once, Alicia gave a playful wink.

“You take care of your man. I’ll take care of mine. No—actually, is my man taking care of me? Well, I doubt I’ll ever need to look after Iker. He’s practically capable.”

“…Even in a situation like this, you’re bragging about your lover? Must be nice, having a perfect one.”

Lurien shot her an incredulous glare, but Alicia didn’t miss the slight upward curve at the corner of her lips. It seemed her suggestion had struck home.

“Alright. Shall we go?”

Taking a deep breath, Alicia rose from her chair and lifted the hem of her dress, checking her thigh.

Instead of silk stockings, she wore black trousers, and strapped firmly to her thigh was a holster holding a pistol.

It was something she had prepared, just in case.

Letting the dress fall back into place, Alicia looked at Lurien with eyes blazing with resolve.

“Let’s go, Lulien. We are ready.”

***

The deserted backyard of the temple.

Leaning against a tree, Nocturne took a pocket watch from his coat and checked the time.

Exactly nineteen minutes. That was how long it had been since Iker had left him behind.

After arriving at the chapel, Iker had said he had something brief to attend to and quietly led Nocturne and a single knight to this place.

[“It should take about twenty minutes. I’ll be right back.”]

With that relaxed remark, Iker had headed toward the back of the temple with the knight.

When a flustered Nocturne asked what was going on, all he received was an incomprehensible reply.

[“I thought I’d create an interesting situation.”]

In the past, Nocturne would have agonized over what that meant. This time, he didn’t.

He had always considered himself intelligent. Even if he fell short of Lulien, he had graduated second in his class at the academy, and even the Queen had acknowledged his abilities.

Looking back, it was embarrassing, but there were moments when he had even wondered if he might be a genius.

But after coming to the Empire and working alongside Iker, he abandoned that idea completely.

The word genius belonged to someone like his employer.

Trying to understand such a person’s words was pointless. Accepting that made things much easier.

‘He should be coming back soon.’

Thinking there was about a minute left, Nocturne was just slipping the watch back into his coat when he spotted Iker emerging from behind the temple.

He straightened at once and hurried to Iker’s side.

But something was odd. His employer was alone. The knight he had taken with him was nowhere to be seen.

"You must have been bored waiting. Nothing unusual?”

“No issues. But Sir Kane doesn’t seem to come back with you.”

As Nocturne glanced behind him, Iker lifted the corner of his lips slightly.

"I gave him a mission.”

“A mission? All of a sudden… what kind of mission—?”

“It’s something that’s no longer useful, but still needs to be protected. You’ll find out in time.”

“…?”

“Let’s head back. Everyone must be waiting.”

Questions spun wildly in his mind, but Nocturne quickly brushed them aside. Whether he worried or not, time would reveal the answers.

Rather than waste his thoughts on that, it was far better to focus on carrying out the task Iker had entrusted to him.

He had been given the important duty of evacuating everyone safely. A duty that might even earn him some favor with Lulien.

Repeating his responsibilities in his mind, Nocturne followed closely behind Iker as he led the way.