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Cedric was silent.

[“…….”]

[“Haha.”]

Bishop Nikos laughed. Cedric patted his cheek, wondering if he had made such a blatantly strange face.

[“That’s too much of a joke.”]

[“She’s a poor girl. She is probably someone Grand Duke doesn’t even know about.”]

Bishop Nikos made a soft voice.

[“I don’t know. Isn’t she Marquis Rosan Heir Apparent?”]

Cedric answered in a hazy voice. A person with such a status would not be so easily put into a pitiful position.

Of course, Cedric knew it was just a myth.

Even then, the girl stood still. She was no longer a painting on the wallpaper, but a shadow that was cast on the wall.

He tried to turn his gaze away. He was about to stop talking, but Bishop Nikos didn’t seem to want to change the topic.

[“That’s why, it’s even more unfortunate. She’s a rare and talented girl, so it’s a waste for her talents like this, so I tried to get her to go to church and invite her to become a priestess, but she doesn’t seem to want to do that.”]

[“A priestess?”]

Cedric had no intention of reacting to Bishop Nikos’ words, but he could do nothing but express his astonishment.

To suggest that to the heir of a Marquis family before she even becomes an adult.

In order to establish a succession structure under the second son, people would send the firstborn to the monastery in advance, but there was no way for the intended heir to do that.

Bishop Nikos seemed content from surprising Cedric.

[“Isn’t it better than to lose all rights to her mother, become a puppet and be locked up in a mansion, or to dig up her talents for an arranged marriage?”]

[“Talent……. You have a high opinion of her. You seem to know the Lady well.”]

[“Few people know that Marchioness Rosan hates her daughter for being ugly and doesn’t let her go outside. Well, she still goes to the temple often. A lot of people know the situation.”]

Bishop Nikos said,

[“You might think that it is harsh to recommend a young Lady who is not yet 20 years old to go to church, but faith alone does not necessarily make you a priest, doesn’t it? There is also a way to devote herself to learning as an academic priest.”]

It wasn’t wrong. Although the importance was gradually shifted to the Imperial University, the temple still held hegemony in various fields such as philosophy, ancient language, history, and logic, not just theology.

There were still many cases in which children born into poor families become priests for their studies.

[“I am not saying this because I covet Marquisate Rosan, but she is worthy of becoming Akim’s successor, so it is worth trying.”]

[“It seems that she is really smart if Bishop Nikos says so.”]

Although he is not personally acquainted with Bishop Akim, knowing what kind of person he is, Cedric was a little surprised.

Bishop Nikos was a friend of Bishop Akim, and he was also a man of respect. With this being said, perhaps the talent he was talking about was real.

Bishop Nikos shook his head.

[“But the mother scolds the girl about what she was doing when she has learned so much. She ended up not even attending the research group.”]

[“It is impossible for anyone to know where one’s happiness lies. Didn’t the Lady reject the Bishop’s invitation?”]

Cedric replied bluntly.

Bishop Nikos nodded his head. He didn’t seem to be talking with a very deep heart from the beginning. He was just talking because she stood out.

But Cedric was feeling a bit frustrated.

If that had happened to Evron’s family, he thought he would probably have intervened as a guardian, whether they wanted to or not.

After that, the two exchanged greetings about the current situation of several people, nothing special.

Until then, the girl was still standing against the wall, not talking to anyone.

Cedric became conscious of it and his heart became uncomfortable. It was difficult to reach out his hand, but as Bishop Nikos said, a dance might be okay.

Rather than leaving a non-adult girl standing against the wall of the ballroom with no one to talk to anyway.

He also knew that a dance with him would make the girl more comfortable with the next few banquets.

Still, his hesitation was, after all, because she was Miraila’s daughter and Lawrence’s sister.

He didn’t even want to mention his brief lesson of dancing.

The music paused for a moment. The people who were dancing stopped on the spot. The skirts, which were spinning round and round, landed and dyed the room with brilliant colors.

The Emperor took Miraila’s hand and came out. Lawrence followed.

Cedric seemed to know whose clothes the girl was wearing originally belonged to. Miraila was wearing a similar dress.

Of course, Miraila was not buried in the fancy fabrics and corsages. A large bunch of peonies, like leaves and ribbons adorned her, only made her stand out.

The Emperor looked around the hall with a smile and found Cedric. Cedric lowered his eyes and politely bent his knees.

[“There is no reason to break the fun because of me. It’s a light banquet, and I am just an invited guest, so please relax.”]

When those words were finished, the music resumed.

Cedric waited slightly nervously. He thought the Emperor might call him or come his way.

Then, he would have to say hello to Miraila and pretend to know Lawrence. He came prepared, but it didn’t feel very good

However, instead of calling him, the Emperor greeted him lightly, took Miraila’s hand and slid into the center of the ballroom.

The people left the space for the Emperor and Miraila wide open, and started dancing again, filling in from the edge like supporting actors on a theatrical stage.

Cedric made eye contact with Lawrence as well, but both pretended not to know each other roughly and looked away. Lawrence wouldn’t want to chat with him either.

Seeing a familiar face, Cedric also parted ways with Bishop Nikos and went to say hello there.

Then, at a glance, Lady Rosan, came to the end of his gaze and he stopped.

He saw the bright blue eyes engraved on her pale face. The eyes that no one was watching flew through the ballroom on the music as if dancing.

Does she want me to look at her or not?

The excitement mixed with worry and expectation made her expressionless face look like a 9-year-old innocent girl rather than an 18-year-old.

Cedric got a strange feeling and followed her gaze. Thinking that Bishop Nikos’ worries were in vain.

Had it been a young man at the end of that gaze, people would have thought the girl was passionately in love.

But it was her mother who could turn her gaze there.

But Miraila’s head never turned toward the girl. There were no normal greetings or conversations that should have been there.

Cedric looked at the girl. The girl slowly lowered her head.

What was there was no longer a shadow on the wall, but a girl awkwardly dressed in her mother’s clothes that didn’t fit.

Cedric seemed to have seen the flowers wither before they even bloomed. He heard something fall.

He thought it would be the sound of buds falling.

＊＊＊

When he suddenly opened his eyes, the moonlight that had penetrated through the curtains was shattering white on Artizea’s shoulders.

Cedric pulled up the blanket and covered her up to her neck. Artizea muttered in a half-sleep voice,

“Aren’t you sleeping, what are you doing?”

“Just old memories.”

It was impossible to tell whether he was dreaming after a brief sleep or was thinking in a dream.

Cedric smiled to himself, stroking Artizea’s cold shoulder until it warmed up.

He didn’t mean to wake her up, but Artizea seemed to wake from sleep. Cedric pressed his lips to her shoulder and said,

“Isn’t there a dress with flowers on it? As big as a fist.”

“I know what you are talking about. In the midst of the Iantz embroidery trend, there was a new style that was tried once.”

Artizea yawned and stretched. And she muttered as she still closed her heavy eyelids,

“It failed because only Mother could pull it off. It was originally made for Mother.”

“I remember that you looked like you were buried in a cloth tomb when you wore it.”

“Have I ever worn anything like that?”

Artizea murmured and, unable to return to her dream, opened her eyes. She seemed to remember when that was.

“At that time, you were…… ? Ah.”

Artizea’s face lit up.

She had a good memory, she remembered Cedric was present at the banquet, and it was a compromise for the Western Army, and she can’t even remember what rumors circulated after that.

In the end, Cedric went back that day without dancing or even emptying a glass.

Thanks to that, there wasn’t a word of support for Lawrence.

There was no story other than the Emperor forced Grand Duke Evron to attend for Miraila. That, too, was profitable enough.

Cedric hugged Artizea’s head and buried her face in his arms before Artizea could say any more.

It was a little embarrassing for him back then.

As a human being, he turned away even when he saw Artizea, and even then, he never forgot that face.

But he did not reach out his hand until the very end. He had the opportunity a few more times.

“Do you know when I started to care about you?”

He could only feel the presence of Artizea holding her breath instead of answering.

Cedric laughed a little. He had no intention of speaking about it. Because he actually didn’t even know exactly what he was doing.

However, that fervent sunflower-like gaze turned toward him from some time ago, and whenever he was conscious of it, he heard a thump in his chest.

He always considered it the sound of regret.

He’d never saved anyone he could have saved then. He didn’t think it was all his fault for everything that happened after that, but maybe, perhaps, those words were the sound of rubbing against reality.

But now that he thought about it, it was probably the sound of a new seedling coming up where the bud had fallen.