Chapter 97:  The Grand Duke’s Daughter’s Care (1)

「――――――!!」

A round of applause burst forth from the retainers.

Amidst it all, I remained kneeling on one knee, slightly dazed.

Even though I had been the chief secretary, I never imagined I would receive such an award in the Imperial Palace.

“From this moment, Roger Julius shall be granted the qualification to become an Imperial Advisor.”

The Empress, hands clasped behind her back, gestured for me to stand.

In response, I straightened my knee and rose upright.

“And this miracle of fifty thousand gold will surely become known not only to the Imperial Household but throughout the Empire for generations.”

“It’s all thanks to Your Majesty’s encouragement.”

Margaret lightly patted my shoulder.

Then she gazed warmly at Echina and spoke.

“Stay here for just one more week. I’ll make sure you have an audience with His Majesty when he returns.”

She would let me meet the Emperor.

That might be the greatest honor in the Empire.

After all, it meant meeting the most powerful man who ruled over this vast continent.

“I shall receive it with reverence.”

I placed a fist smoothly over the left side of my chest.

Then I bowed deeply to express my gratitude.

――――――

Once again, the congratulatory cheers of the retainers rang out.

However—

The expression of Baron Arman, who had been watching the entire situation unfold before his eyes, was far from pleasant.

“Julius…?”

Our eyes met.

But I didn’t show even the slightest expression to the man who had once been my father’s rival.

“That bastard’s son, how dare he…”

I merely turned my head indifferently and gave Echina a bright smile.

“……”

Echina clapped along with the others, as if congratulating me.

And yet, for some reason, her eyes seemed bitter.

「――――――」

After the award ceremony ended, we moved to the official residence prepared near the detached palace.

There, in the first-floor lobby, I sat across from Echina at a café table.

A newspaper lay on the table.

It was the Imperial Daily, updated every day at noon.

On the front page, today’s events were boldly reported.

「The Miracle of Fifty Thousand Gold.」

A grand image of me receiving a letter of appreciation from the Empress had been vividly drawn by the journalists.

Below that, Lucun and the Grand Duke’s daughter—who had accompanied me as co-winners—stood side by side, smiling brightly as they became the models for a group portrait.

“Your Grace, I see you managed to smile when the portrait was drawn.”

“I didn’t smile.”

Echina sat with her legs crossed, silently sipping her tea.

Today, her gaze looked especially cold.

“Ah, then the journalist must be an artist. Imagine sketching Your Grace’s smile from pure imagination.”

“……”

Echina quietly set down her teacup.

Then, resting her chin on the back of her hand, she stared straight at me.

“So, what do you plan to do from now on?”

“What do you mean?”

I tilted my head with a look of pure innocence.

Echina pointed at my face with a sulky expression.

“Didn’t Her Majesty the Empress say she would recommend you as an Imperial Advisor?”

“Oh, that. I’m not thinking much of it. After all, the most brilliant strategists in the Empire will be gathered there.”

Even though I had been the chief secretary of the Grand Duke of the North, being an advisor was a different domain entirely.

Surely, there would be a long list of people far more experienced in that field.

For me to compete with them would be like the army fighting the navy at sea.

“There’s no way I’d make it.”

“Well, still… there’s always the ‘what if,’ isn’t there?”

Echina sighed deeply and fiddled with the bangs sticking out in front of her forehead.

Then, as she brushed them aside, her sculpted, beautiful ear came into view.

“I mean… if it’s the Imperial Palace, they must bring in plenty of income. With all the lobbying and requests for favors, I’m sure it pays well…”

There I was, thinking purely rationally.

Seeing this, Echina narrowed her already sharp eyes even further.

“Is that really all you think about?”

Something else, huh.

Of course I had other thoughts.

If I were stationed at the Imperial Palace… would I still get poisoned to death like in my previous life?

No—I couldn’t say for certain.

The princes were still, in ways both obvious and hidden, competing for the throne.

The Second Prince was the strongest contender, but the rivalry with the Third Prince had been intense.

Even though the Second Empress tried to mediate, the retainers beneath them had surely been driven to their limits.

So what about the advisors serving at the Emperor’s side?

If anything, they’d be under even more pressure.

“……”

Echina seemed to cheer up slightly at the sight of me hesitating in such serious contemplation.

“Yeah, getting promoted isn’t always a good thing. You suffer the moment you leave home, after all.”

The Grand Duke’s daughter uncrossed her legs.

As she did, the faint sound of her stockings gliding against each other rang out like a stringed instrument.

“Will you be resting now?”

“Of course. I have to return to Nord tonight.”

Naturally, I moved to stand beside her.

Then, out of habit from my days as chief secretary, I scanned the area skillfully.

“Then I’ll prepare as well.”

However, Echina declined, saying it was fine.

“No, you should stay here. You have to meet His Majesty the Emperor.”

The Grand Duke’s daughter waved her hand coolly, indicating she’d go alone.

Then, like always, she strode off ahead with her dignified steps, as if she were used to going places by herself.

“You’d only be in Nord a few days before having to return to the capital anyway. Better to rest well while you can.”

She offered those words with what seemed like genuine consideration.

And yet…

‘Was the Grand Duke’s daughter always this kind of person—someone who cared for others?’

Back in those days, she was cold, completely focused on her survival and swordsmanship.

But now that the future had changed… it felt like she was changing too.

In a good way, of course.

“Understood. Then with your permission, I’ll remain here.”

Yes, meeting His Majesty the Emperor still had to come first.

Just meeting the Emperor alone would raise the Erian Foundation’s reputation and push its stock value even higher.

‘But I shouldn’t try to do more than that.’

Excessive greed always led to disaster.

Since both the Saint and Helena had already arranged individual meetings to maintain their business partnerships, there was no need to extend a hand toward the Imperial Palace as well.

“Then, travel safely.”

I bent my waist into a ninety-degree bow and offered Echina a playful, exaggerated farewell.

The Grand Duke’s daughter simply waved a hand indifferently and continued walking.

However—

Once she had gotten quite far from me, she suddenly stopped in her tracks.

Then, glancing back at me, she muttered under her breath.

“And yet, he says he wants to follow me at least once.”

I blinked in surprise at Echina’s quiet murmur.

Then, just as our eyes met—those long, fox-like eyes of hers—

I was momentarily caught off guard by the sudden glimmer in the Grand Duke’s daughter’s gaze. My eyes blinked instinctively.

‘What… what did I just see?’

My eyebrows twitched, as if a fox had sensed a predator nearby.

I rubbed my eyes and looked toward Echina again.

But she was already long gone.

‘Strange. For a split second, her expression felt different from usual.’

Was it just my imagination? I rolled my neck to shake off the tension.

Come to think of it, I’d been feeling unusually tired lately—it probably meant I’d been pushing myself too hard.

‘Anyway, I’m not scheduled to meet Saint Istina for another three days. I should really take that time to rest properly.’

With that thought in mind, I strolled alone through the halls of the official residence.

Afterward, I returned to my guest room and collapsed onto the bed, still in my formal attire.

“……”

A lot had happened.

I had thought I’d feel free once I left the Grand Duke’s house behind.

‘Well, this time was different. The project had already been proposed by the Imperial Palace before I left anyway.’

The meetings with the Saint and the Western Grand Duke’s daughter were supposedly just meals, too…

It shouldn’t be anything serious.

After that, I could really go home and rest.

Thinking so, I closed my eyes without even washing up.

The urgent matters had been taken care of, so at least for today, I planned to sleep well.

But—

That moment of rest wasn’t sweet.

Later that evening—

“……”

When I awoke from a short nap, a splitting headache hit me.

Was it because I’d used my brain too much for the first time in a while?

I’d felt chills even during the day… and now, it seemed I’d come down with something.

“Phew…”

Back when I trained in swordsmanship at the Academy, I’d never once caught a cold.

But now that I’d let my guard down, the fatigue seemed to hit me all at once.

With a dazed body, I barely managed to lift myself off the bed.

Then I stepped out into the hallway, searching for somewhere I could get some medicine.

‘The physicians have probably all gone home by now.’

In this situation, where could I possibly get medicine?

As I mulled it over, one man came to mind.

Mikhail, the renowned physician.

He was surely staying at the official residence.

After all, he had to report to the Imperial Palace every morning.

But even so, finding him within this three-story building wasn’t going to be easy.

“……”

First, I slumped into one of the chairs in the hallway.

Clutching my pounding head, I fell into thought.

‘By now, Echina’s probably already on her way back.’

I had to handle this situation alone.

I glanced up at the clock mounted on the wall.

The time was 11 p.m.

Most of the guest rooms were dark by now, their occupants fast asleep.

“……”

After checking the time, I dragged my aching body outside the residence.

Then, stepping back a bit, I looked up at the windows of the guest rooms.

As expected for such a late hour, most of them were dark.

But there was one room—tucked into a corner on the first floor—that still had its lights on.

Without hesitation, I headed straight for it.

When I stood on my toes to peer inside the window—

I caught sight of a familiar back: that of Nobu.

――――――

I gave the window a gentle knock with the back of my hand.

Nobu fumbled for his monocle and turned his head toward me.

“Lord Roger…? What brings you here at this hour?”

“May I come in for a moment?”

It would’ve been polite to greet him first, but the pounding in my head forced me to cling straight to the window frame.

“I’m having a bit of a headache, you see.”

“Come in. If you’re here as a patient, then of course you should.”

The renowned physician immediately opened the window wide.

Thanks to that, I barely managed to climb through.

“Sit in that chair by the desk.”

Mikhail returned from the powder room carrying a chair.

Then, he told me to hold out my hand.

I extended my wrist as instructed, and he began his examination right away.

“Hmm…”

In that moment, his eyes turned sharp and focused—like he’d returned to his younger days—whenever he conducted a diagnosis.

Soon, Nobu removed his monocle and let out a short breath.

“Seems like you’ve caught the flu. Not surprising, considering you arrived from Nord and immediately took on such a major project…”

“That’s a relief. I was nearly unable to attend the audience with His Majesty.”

I let out a quiet laugh and exhaled deeply.

But the physician, far from reassured, spoke in a cool tone.

“Don’t take it lightly. Young men who used to live like knights tend to fall hard when they let their guard down.”

“You know I used to be a knight?”

I asked, and he chuckled while pointing at my thick arms.

“What kind of secretary candidate has arms like these? I had a good hunch from the start.”

“I’m actually considered lean for a knight, but you’re very observant.”

Even in the middle of being sick, my usual shamelessness slipped out.

Seeing that, it was clear this wasn’t a fatal illness.

“Here, this medicine should be enough to get you better. But there are two types.”

“Do I have to choose between them?”

The physician showed me two powders on white paper: one blue, one red.

“Yes. One takes effect slowly but doesn’t hurt much. The other works quickly but makes the day you take it miserable.”

“I can already tell the painful one is the red one.”

I pointed at the menacing crimson powder.

“Correct. But it’ll go toe-to-toe with the illness inside you.”

Fight it inside me, huh.

“Then I’ll take that one. I need to recover quickly if I’m going to meet His Majesty.”

The physician, saying he figured I’d choose that one, mixed the powder into a glass of water.

In an instant, the clear water turned into a vivid red juice.

“Drink it all in one go.”

I downed the medicine in one long gulp.

Then, wiping my lips with the back of my hand, I let out a cough-laced breath.

“Phew…”

“You’ll be fine for now, but the fever will spike soon, so you’d best get a good night’s sleep.”

“Understood.”

I thanked the physician and left through the front entrance.

Mikhail watched my unsteady back as I walked away, then approached the golden birdcage in his bedroom.

“Still, I’d better inform the guardian.”

As a doctor, he wrote down the details of the treatment.

He tied the note to an owl’s leg and sent it flying northward.

Toward a woman who was probably returning home with lingering concern in her heart.

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