146

“We’re acquainted from last time, right? Chancellor.”

“Ah, yes. That’s right.”

Princess Seref gave a soft, angelic smile. Her aura was a stark contrast to ours, who were far from bright light.

“I heard you’re engaged to Duke Vespera. Is that true?”

I didn’t think I could completely avoid it, so I nodded calmly.

“Yes, it’s true.”

“What a surprise.”

Kiara bristled, as if irritated by the princess’s reaction.

“‘Surprising’? In what sense do you mean, Princess?”

Princess Seref folded the fan she held and rested it against her chin, falling silent for a moment.

“Literally. There have been many young ladies who spread rumors about the Duke, but this is the first time the Duke himself has acknowledged it. Whoever the partner was, they would be surprised. I mean nothing more by it.”

Only then did Kiara’s hostility soften somewhat.

“Miss Kiara, it’s been a while. You haven’t shown up much at banquets or salons lately.”

Kiara answered nonchalantly.

“I’d appreciate it if you’d call me young Marquess instead of ‘miss’, Princess Seref. I’m busy with heir training and can’t be as active socially as before.”

“I see. I remember you two having a master-servant relationship, so it’s surprising to see you behaving like friends.”

For some reason, the princess’s demeanor was different from how I remembered her. Kiara seemed to feel it too; when our eyes met, we raised our guard even more.

‘Is it because of the Duke’s wife’s scandal?’

I felt no guilt about that incident being exposed. The guilty party was obvious to anyone. Did she really think she could commit such filthy acts and never be found out? The ruined marriage was her own doing.

“I’m envious of you two.”

The conversation slid into an increasingly strange direction. I couldn’t tell if that remark was sincere or fake. Kiara furrowed her brow.

“Princess, what on earth is your intention, suddenly…”

At that moment, the young ladies who seemed to be the princess’s followers quickly surrounded us.

“How dare you defy our princess when you, of lowly birth, seduced the Duke?”

“The Duke will soon learn of your lowly origins!”

“Why on earth would he become engaged to such an undignified girl?”

The rudeness that couldn’t be ignored flowed freely simply because the princess was present. I thought I had a good angle. I was about to hit them with blunt facts after a long time when an unexpected person preempted me.

“How dare you be rude to the Chancellor and Count?”

It was Princess Seref.

“P-Princess!”

She spoke sharply in a voice that paid no heed to rank—this was a first. Kiara’s eyes widened as well.

“Do you still see that person as young Marquess Kiara’s aide? She now holds a position far more noble than yours, so apologize for your rudeness at once.”

“P-Princess, but that’s…!”

“Quickly!”

The young ladies, who had only been watching each other, begrudgingly apologized in tiny mosquito-like voices at Princess Seref’s urging.

“S-sorry, Count.”

“We apologize for our rudeness, Chancellor.”

Princess Seref inclined her head slightly toward Kiara and me.

“Allow me to apologize on their behalf. I’ll invite the two of you separately.”

What was that. Kiara and I exchanged puzzled looks but had no grounds to refuse, so we agreed. Princess Seref then took her followers and departed gracefully.

“What on earth is happening? Can a person really change that much while you haven’t seen them?”

Kiara glared at the princess’s retreating figure with a deeply suspicious expression.

“Indeed.”

Her past face, smiling emptily beside the Crown Prince, kept circling in my mind.

The next day. The central ministries, where I went to work as usual, were in an uproar.

“Chancellor!!!!! How did this happen!”

“Coco, I knew you’d pull it off. Nice baiting.”

“I still can’t believe the scene I saw yesterday!”

Chancellery officials swarmed to my desk and bombarded me with questions. As expected, I had no idea how to calm them down.

“He’s the same as anyone else. Being a Duke doesn’t make him more special.”

“But we’re still curious!”

There were many embarrassing details in my love life I wouldn’t want to recount, so I tried to brush it off with a laugh. Then the communication artifact lit up.

Nathan Harkot (Minister of Finance): Chancellor, could you come to my office for a moment? I have something urgent to discuss.

“…”

The reason was obvious, but leaving this place was the priority. I hurried out saying the Minister of Finance was calling me.

Even upon arriving at the Ministry of Finance, curious looks were still directed at me. To my surprise, only Reyra the finance officer remained unfazed.

“After all that wandering, you finally succeeded.”

“Yes?”

She then grabbed my cheeks and stretched them out.

“Ugh. Why would you do that?”

“I’m just disappointed to hand this cute creature over to the Supreme Justice.”

“I’m not an animal, milord…! Ow, that hurts!”

“The Minister of Finance has been chomping at the bit. He recommended you here and thinks he looked out for you, but he’s upset he wasn’t told in advance. Soothe him well. He just left, refusing mercilessly, saying it’s a private matter. The mood of our Ministry of Finance officials for the day depends on you.”

“Yes…”

He really is ruthless with others. Of course, I still wondered whether I should inform the Minister of Finance when dating someone. But I somewhat understood his feelings, so I knocked and entered his room.

“Come in.”

He pointed to the opposite seat and motioned for me to sit on the sofa. Tea was prepared in advance, unlike usual. He seemed intent on interrogating me.

‘The Supreme Justice was his protégé, and I was a bureaucrat he had recommended since my early days, so maybe he feels a bit parental.’

Thinking that made his resentment somewhat understandable. So instead of being blunt like Ren, I decided to answer vaguely. I’m rather tight-lipped anyway. I skipped the formalities and went straight to the point.

“You were very surprised yesterday, weren’t you? If you have questions, I’ll answer them as fully as I can. So… could you please not make that face?”

He wore a pitifully forlorn expression that said, ‘I’m so hurt I could die!’ His brows and shoulders drooped, looking like someone with a deep wound; it tugged at my sympathy. His usual cool, calculating, and composed demeanor was nowhere to be seen.

“Ahem. Yes, I understand you’re hurt.”

When I approached him with an open mind, he awkwardly returned to his usual self. He must have been very curious.

“Since when did you two become like that?”

This was the question everyone was most curious about.

“There were no signs at all. Didn’t you even argue with him? You may not know, but Vespera never raises his voice during work. He doesn’t get excited.”

The ‘Little Lamb’ I saw at Those Who Can’t Resign was different, but to others he seemed to be the very picture of perfect reason.

“So much so that when the two reconciled, officials said there was finally someone who could speak candidly to the Supreme Justice. And yet it ties together like that—I’m really… I can’t understand young people’s romances these days.”

The Minister of Finance’s expression was pure bewilderment.

“The reason I didn’t tell anyone about our relationship was, as you can see, that I didn’t want us to go through a situation like today.”

I slowly withheld secret matters like the oracle and simply answered his curiosity. The funny thing was, when I told him about the first time I rejected the Duke, the Minister nodded in understanding.

“Do you think dating that ice-cold man is fun? Actually, I sent him a partner at the last banquet because he was stumbling around alone and I thought you might at least keep him company. But I didn’t expect him to get hooked like this. Once he bites, he never lets go. Be careful, Chancellor.”

“I’m very much aware.”

Now that his resentment was completely appeased, the Minister of Finance laughed heartily. He even confirmed that he was likely the first among the central ministries to know.

“I told you. Now stop asking. What is this…?”

“It’s proof to measure trust.”

“What nonsense. Think whatever you like.”

“You’re gradually changing the way you treat me, the Minister of Finance.”

“Minister of Finance. Things have changed a lot. I’m now a Count and the Chancellor. I change drastically with rank and title. Do you understand?”

“Eh. You gave a fish to a cat. Still, it’s better than being crushed by the position, so I’ll let it pass.”

He slowly sipped his tea and carefully set down the cup. His expression was serious, unlike before.

“Cornelia, you know well what you should be worried about now, right? It’s Code Blue.”

I nodded.

Code Blue. Crown Prince appearance.

In other words, we had to be wary of the Crown Prince’s antics due to the public revelation of my relationship with Ren.