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Cayena shook her head.

“It’s not that. I was just thinking of something else.”

“We have several other dresses you could wear.”

Cayena looked down at the apricot-colored dress. She guessed that the maids had worked hard last night to obtain the dress from the capital’s most popular boutique.

“Blanc’s Boutique is the most prominent store these days. I like it quite a bit. You must have worked hard yesterday night.”

The maids, who did not expect to hear such praise, paused. They had heard the recent rumors that the princess had changed, but the princess had a chaotic image in the Kedrey duchy.

Having seen her in person, they did not believe the rumors; yet, she had not been any more particular than other noble ladies today.

Clang!

In that moment, the youngest maid dropped a sugar bowl, spilling sugar all over the table and floor.

Instantaneously, the atmosphere in the room turned cold.

“P-please kill me, Your Highness!”

The maid prostrated herself on the floor with a pale face. The other maids also hardened their expressions.

Making a mistake in front of a guest would cause problems for the duchy’s prestige. Moreover, this mistake happened in front of the princess.

They quickly stepped back and lowered their heads. Cayena took the teacup placed on the vanity and had a sip. The fragrance and taste were good. The temperature was fine as well.

“The tea tastes good enough that sugar isn’t necessary. Who made it?”

The youngest maid raised her head.

“I prepared the tea…”

Even if Cayena said it was fine, she could not avoid being reprimanded.

This was because she made a mistake in front of the duke’s guest and the imperial family. The maid had only spilled some sugar, but that was just the way things were.

“I’d like to ask you to brew tea for me if I visit again,” Cayena said.

With this, the youngest maid would not be fired.

The maid realized that she had been done a kindness.

“…Thank you, Your Highness. I will serve you with all my heart!”

The maids were deeply amazed by Cayena’s display of tolerance.

In particular, the older maids were impressed by Cayena’s demeanor. Wasn’t she the very image of an ideal mistress?

Duchess Kedrey, Raphael’s mother, was a perfectionist and stingy with praise. She punished them a lot more than she rewarded them. Accustomed to such a mistress, they were dazed by Cayena’s actions.

After they finished dressing her, Cayena was so beautiful that she naturally drew admiration. Her hair had been tied high up to reveal her pale neck. Instead of a clunky necklace full of large jewels, she wore a thin necklace with pink diamonds.

“Your Highness, Master has invited you to the dining room.”

As calmly as she could, Cayena replied that she would go. Her mind was distracted all the way to the dining room.

‘I should have just asked him to take me to the palace at dawn.’

She had to look at his face so soon after they had shared their deep feelings with each other. It was no different from torture.

The door to the dining room opened. Pink peonies in full bloom entered her sight.

Raphael was wearing comfortable indoor clothes and had his black hair down. He was reading the newspaper when he encountered Cayena’s gaze.

It felt like a meeting of newlyweds in the morning. Again, her heart tickled.

“I greet Her Highness, the Princess.”

He greeted Cayena shamelessly and naturally. Cayena almost mistook herself as an officially invited guest.

“…I didn’t think that the person who saved me twice would be the one to actually kidnap me,” Cayena pointed out, smiling.

Raphael calmly pulled out a chair for her. He quietly whispered into her ear so that no one else would hear. “I wish that was truly the case.”

“……!”

Raphael sat down across from Cayena before she could reprimand him. Then, he added, “I have no intention of causing trouble to Your Highness.”

‘He sure talks well.’

Once they were both seated, the servants began to put out their meal. Raphael watched them set down the plates one by one and said, “Henverton Gillian has been assassinated.”

“His accomplice moved slower than I expected.”

“All the contractors who were captured yesterday were also killed.”

The employees who were serving them gulped.

On this refreshing morning, at a place filled with pink peonies, the conversation between the attractive duo was a bit gory.

The servants quickly arranged the food so the two could eat, and they fled the dining room.

Raphael continued, “If the contracting business belongs to Archduke Heinrich as you claim, Your Highness, it’s clear that he’s behind these murders, too. This means that he must be the accomplice to your kidnapping.”

Cayena shook her head. “From what you said, I’m certain of this. The accomplice is Zenon Evans.”

It was an unexpected name.

Raphael tilted his head, curious. Cayena moistened her lips with a drink, not touching the food.

“The abduction last time must have been a collaboration between Henverton and Zenon Evans. However, Heinrich was the master of several mercenaries that they had hired.”

“How are you so confident about this?”

“It’s because I threatened Heinrich’s contract house. Though he was uncertain whether to believe me, when I visited the temple, he took the bait on purpose.”

It was fortunate that Yester was overconfident in his power. Zenon would never have bitten such a bait.

“I never expected you to intervene and actually wipe out his operation.”

“……”

For a moment, Raphael thought about how to scold this reckless lady.

“What would you have done if I wasn’t there?” he asked.

“I had a secret guard.”

“I didn’t see them.”

“Because it’s a secret.”

Raphael pretended to give up, realizing that Cayena had no intention of speaking about it.

“I will accept those words the same way I did when you said you no longer cared for me.”

“You…!”

Cayena’s face flushed at the sudden attack. It was very embarrassing.

She had really cleared up her feelings for Raphael immediately after she came back to this life. That was what she had thought until yesterday.

However, Raphael somehow naturally sneaked into her heart. Even so, it was surprising that Raphael also cared for Cayena.

“I thought that Your Excellency hated me.”

Raphael admitted it. “It certainly may have looked like that in the past.”

“Then I must have behaved properly. I thought my plan would work as long as we came to be good friends.”

At that, Raphael smiled warmly.

The smile was soft enough to break down Cayena’s commitment to maintaining her composure. Her cheeks were tinged with a ripe peach hue, like the curtains of the room she had stayed in.

“It looks like you completely won me over, Your Highness.”

She lost. It was Raphael’s perfect victory.

Cayena turned her gaze for a moment to calm her thundering heart.

“But why did you bring me to your home?”

“If you had stayed in the imperial palace, you wouldn’t have been able to rest like you are doing now.”

That was true. If Cayena had been at the palace right now, she would have been bombarded by Rezef’s faction.

“I coincidentally found that the princess was being attacked. Following their tracks, I happened to find their base.”

It was a good alibi. In any case, the people that Cayena had brought from the palace had fallen asleep because of some gas.

“Since they may retaliate, I brought Her Highness to a safe house, namely my mansion, where I could immediately make use of my knights.”

This excuse of protecting the imperial bloodline was only possible because it was Raphael, the only one capable of mobilizing his forces.

The fact that this had occurred at dawn, when the emperor could not be woken, also played a factor.

“I heard that the high priest visited the imperial palace today, so Heinrich will not be able to move quickly.”

He cut some boiled meat into small pieces and nodded. Because of the recent series of crimes involving temples’ annexes, the church had been in tumult. This would greatly undermine the authority of the clergy.

Moreover, since the victim of the crimes was the imperial princess, the imperial family may shut down this temple forever. But—

‘Somehow, it feels like he was just trying to bring me here.’

He had given good reasons, but she couldn’t get rid of the thought that he had arranged this so that she would stay over at his villa.

She looked at him with suspicious eyes, but Raphael only shrugged.

“If I had sent Your Highness to the imperial palace like this, you would have avoided me. Then, we’d only see each other during your coming-of-age.”

Cayena, who had intended to do exactly that, was astonished.

“A long time would pass between now and then, so you would have pretended not to remember it or acted like yesterday didn’t happen. Am I wrong?”

“Um…”

His prediction was shockingly accurate. Cayena couldn’t refute it at all.

Raphael stood up and placed a plate in front of Cayena. She hadn’t been eating, and Raphael had cut up some meat for her.

“…Duke, I’m not your lover. It’s troublesome if you act this way.”

With a straight face, Raphael asked, “Then why didn’t you reject me?”

He was referring to their kiss.

“…Aren’t you speaking too shamelessly?”

Raphael responded lightly to her criticism.

“Right now, I have the courage to act shamelessly.”

‘Who on earth said that he’s a gentleman?’

What kind of gentleman spoke so forwardly?

Her flushed cheeks had no opportunity to cool down. Her heart continued to flutter.

“Duke.”

“Raphael.”

He leaned down close to her and met Cayena’s eyes.

“It sounds better when you call me like that.”

~~~