Chapter 4: It became a northern anti -aircraft

She seemed pleased that an expression, for the first time, appeared on my face, resting her chin on her hand with an arrogant look and a leisurely smile.

“I greet Your Grace, Douglas Rostain, the one and only Grand Duke, the moon supporting the Empire’s sun, once more.”

Helena rose from the sofa and meticulously paid her respects.

With an exasperated expression and heightened vigilance, I conspicuously perked my tail and ears, scrutinizing her every move, and gave a small nod in response to her greeting.

‘What is this woman doing?’

As I crossed my legs and looked down at Helena with an equally arrogant expression, the woman who had seemed like a small animal just moments ago was gone, replaced by a predatory face, like a tiger stalking a lion, staring straight back at me.

‘Did I misjudge her?’

My brows furrowed at her reaction, yet she merely smiled.

“What is your reason for wanting to see me, Lady? If you have wasted my time for a trivial reason…”

“I will compensate Your Grace for that time.”

“…”

‘Ha. Where does such confidence even come from?’

She cut off the Grand Duke’s words.

If other nobles or my retainers had witnessed this, they would undoubtedly have caused a fuss, calling it disrespectful and demanding her immediate execution.

‘The Empire’s notorious villainess.’

When I first saw her, I thought such a description didn’t suit her at all, but now, it seemed it might not be so inaccurate after all.

Her beauty, enough to be called one who could topple kingdoms, combined with a cold aura, pride in her status, and a wicked, headstrong personality.

Indeed, it was understandable why the Empire’s naive young lords and ladies would fear her. With a personality like that, they had reason to be afraid.

Now, I was so dumbfounded that I no longer had the energy to be angry.

I rested my hand on the armrest of the sofa and spoke.

“You speak interesting words, Lady. To say you will take responsibility for my time. Can you handle it? Remember, the Grand Duke’s time is precious.”

“I will engrave that well.”

“…You truly don’t yield a single word.”

As I raised the white flag first, her smile deepened.

Staring blankly at that smile for a moment, I swept one hand across my face and spoke.

‘Was that what it meant to be enchanted by a face?’

Catching the corner of my mouth that was trying to curl up, I quickly hid my expression and gazed at her blankly.

“So, what is your purpose in seeking me out, Lady?”

With a face that seemed to have anticipated my question, she looked at me like a general entering a battlefield and opened her mouth.

“Nothing else, Your Grace, but if you are amenable, I wish to converse with you.”

Helena lowered her eyelids and smiled softly.

‘What on earth is her purpose?’

I narrowed my eyes. I couldn’t fathom Helena’s reason for seeking me out.

“It’s surprising that the Lady wishes to converse with me. Wasn’t someone like me beneath your notice?”

As I mentioned earlier, I had heard that Helena was the Crown Prince’s fiancée since childhood, and thus had no interest in any man other than the Crown Prince.

On the contrary, I heard she publicly insulted me at a gathering of prominent young lords and ladies, calling me the biggest obstacle to the Crown Prince’s rise to power.

I had heard that a child of my retainer, who was present at that gathering, returned to the North and caused a great fuss to my retainer.

Although I didn’t fully trust it since it was just a rumor, even from the child of a cherished retainer, her current actions suggested it wasn’t entirely unbelievable.

Therefore, I didn’t pay it any mind.

Because I knew well the fate of those who were blinded by such love and gave up everything.

‘Surely, she hasn’t grown tired of the Crown Prince and come to me, has she?’

As I looked at her with a somewhat serious expression, Helena offered a slightly troubled smile.

“Indeed, that was true in the past, but I do not love His Royal Highness the Crown Prince now.”

‘Does that mean her love has cooled in the interim?’

‘So, as I expected, she really did come to me because she was tired of the Crown Prince?’

A laugh escaped me.

In my eyes, which were fixed on Helena with a cold, hardened gaze, no warmth could be found.

I was about to rise from the sofa, feeling no further value in continuing the conversation, but Helena spoke to me calmly, her face serene.

“Your Grace, Rostain.”

There it was again. Those eyes again. Those clear, steadfast amber eyes, hard to believe they belonged to a villainess. Strangely, my gaze kept returning to Helena’s eyes.

“Soon, the ‘Countess’s daughter’ and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will fall in love, and I will be disinherited by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. As the villainess, I will be purged by them.”

I frowned.

For the first time, I could tell she was speaking with genuine emotion, but conversely, it made me trust her even less.

Love, purge, as if she already knew her future… Hm?

‘She knows the future? How could she know such a thing?’

As I sent her an even more suspicious glare, as if demanding an immediate explanation, Helena gave a bitter smile and began to speak.

“It’s a story related to a certain book. In it, the villainess is disinherited by her fiancé, the Crown Prince, and loses everything to the Countess’s daughter, ultimately being framed for regicide, imprisoned, and ending her life on the execution block.”

I furrowed my brows.

“What is that supposed to mean, all of a sudden?”

“Please, listen to the end. There’s more to the story.”

I didn’t know if Helena noticed my agitation or not, but it was clear that my eyes were trembling intensely at that moment.

‘Surely, she isn’t what I’m thinking, is she?’

“But surprisingly, it turned out that all of it was planned by the Countess’s daughter.”

“…How unfortunate.”

“Yes, truly unfortunate.”

Outwardly, I spoke to Helena as if unconcerned, but inwardly, a myriad of thoughts were tangled and chaotic.

I let out a hollow laugh and spoke with a cold expression.

“Hmm. Is the villainess in that book referring to yourself?”

“……Surely not. It’s just a novel.”

There seemed to be a long pause before that. Even though it was obvious she was feigning ignorance, Helena didn’t open her mouth further.

‘Does she not intend to say it herself?’

“It seems you’re the one who’s disappointed, not I, Lady.”

“Ugh.”

As if she heard my passing remark, Helena let out a small groan and tightly clutched her dress.

‘Is that the correct answer?’

As I raised my eyes and stared at Helena with a more persistent gaze, she broke eye contact, cold sweat beading on her forehead.

“It can’t be helped. I’ll tell you something good, so would you lend me your ear for a moment?”

Helena put on a resolute expression and gestured for me to come closer.

To act so disrespectfully again—if it were any other Grand Duke besides me, she would have been instantly beheaded.

I obediently leaned in, lowering myself to Helena’s height.

I was curious what she would say, and Helena possessed information I didn’t.

“You may not believe me, but I actually know the past and future of this world. And that includes Your Grace.”

It was a statement not easily believed.

Though I had heard such fraudulent schemes were increasing these days, I never dreamed that a Lady would be a swindler.

Thinking it would be good to gather a little more information and gain certainty, I nonchalantly retorted.

“I see.”

“…Pardon?”

My reaction must have been too nonchalant, as the one who spoke seemed more surprised. Hmm, this is amusing. I felt as if I might discover a new preference.

“You, you’re not very surprised.”

“I’ve seen many swindlers who go around perpetrating such frauds. Though I never expected the Lady to be one of them.”

“A swindler?!”

Helena, speaking with a face flushed red as if in a fit of surprise, was unique in many ways.

Ah, she was indeed a woman fun to tease.

Pfft, when I chuckled softly for the first time, Helena momentarily froze.

“How do you know such things?”

At that moment, as I completely wiped my expression clean and looked at her with a serious face, I saw Helena hiccup in surprise, but I didn’t care about that now.

What I wanted to know was the ‘truthfulness’ of her information, not to watch her hiccup.

…Though it was a little cute.

“I find it difficult to explain that at the moment.”

‘A swindler after all? Or simply mad?’

As I looked at her with a gaze that treated her as mad, Helena calmly met my eyes.

“This is truly absurd. If I spread a rumor that the Lady is mad, you’re finished.”

“I know Your Grace is not such a person.”

“You know me, Lady? Huh, listening to you now, it feels incredibly unpleasant, as if you claim to know everything about me. Let me be clear. If you cannot explain the reason, I will not believe your words, and I will have you locked away in a mental institution for deceiving the Grand Duke. Is that acceptable?”

For the first time, I doubted if the person before me was truly only nineteen years old.

To my question, Helena smiled even more brazenly.

“It is acceptable. Your Grace, do as you please. I came to see Your Grace today to discuss something else entirely.”

“Is this finally the main point?”

Suddenly, curiosity sparked within me.

What was her reason for going to such lengths to meet me?

The question I had harbored ever since I first saw Helena in this reception room was now about to be answered.

I erased my cold expression and looked at Helena with interest, as if inviting her to say more. Responding to my gaze, Helena also offered a comfortable smile.

“Your Grace.”

Helena’s lips moved.

It’s easy to say now, but I should have stormed out of the reception room before hearing it.

“Will you not marry me?”

The window opened, and a strong wind blew in. Helena’s green hair brushed her cheek, gleaming even brighter in the sunlight.

My gaze was fixed blankly on her green hair for a moment before I gripped my reason, gritted my teeth, and asked Helena.

“What you… just said, are you serious?”

My head began to ache from the conversation, which was now utterly unpredictable.

“Yes, I am serious. I need Your Grace.”

Unlike me, Helena firmly stated her point.