Chapter 4
“Sophia.”
“Yes, miss?”
“We need to keep an eye on Arno.”
“On young master Arno? Did he do something wrong again?”
“Wrong? He does that as easily as breathing. That’s not it. I want to know what he’s doing with the Duke of Valdeon—whether they’re up to something strange.”
“W-What?”
“If Arno’s like that, his friend probably isn’t normal either.”
“This is the first time I’m spying… Wait—miss! Don’t tell me…”
Sophia suddenly got excited and looked at me strangely.
Did I say something weird?
“Don’t tell you what?”
“Are you… maybe interested in the Duke of Valdeon?!”
“Sophia. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but absolutely not.”
But she didn’t seem to believe me at all.
“Don’t be shy, miss! You’re at the age to feel that way!”
Yup, she’s off in her own imagination again.
“Sophia. Focus. It’s not like that.”
“Don’t worry! I won’t let you down. Leave it to me!”
“…Can I really trust you?”
She held my hands tightly and her eyes sparkled with excitement. I didn’t feel reassured at all.
And sure enough, a few hours later, my desk was covered with piles of documents.
“What is all this, Sophia?”
“It’s everything about the Duke of Valdeon! With this, winning his heart will be easy!”
“Hah… Sophia. Let me say this one more time. I’m not interested in Duke. Not even a little.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Then I guess… I’ll have to burn all this.”
She sighed, disappointed, and looked down.
“…Well, since you already collected it, just leave it there.”
It wouldn’t hurt to know more about him, just in case.
I leaned back in my chair and held my aching head.
It had been a tiring day.
I closed my eyes for a short break—
Whoosh!
A gust of wind blew in through the open window. The papers flew up, and one landed softly on my face.
The old, musty smell hit my nose. I pulled the paper away and looked at it.
“François II. Takes the throne over his older brother!”
It was a news article from over ten years ago.
Known as “The Blue Palace Incident,” the emperor had suddenly died without naming an heir, causing huge chaos.
He had two sons.
The first prince, Carlois, was away at war the day the emperor died—and was also the one who saw his father last.
That gave the second prince’s supporters reason to spread suspicion.
Later, a will was found saying the emperor wanted to pass the crown to the second prince, François.
Carlois lost everything and was sent away from the palace, barely keeping the title of Grand Duke.
That event was what started César Valdeon’s desire for revenge—
Because Carlois was his father.
I had no intention of getting involved in the original novel’s story.
I just wanted to pull Arno out of César’s plans, like grabbing a prize from a claw machine.
I dropped the old paper on the corner of my desk and didn’t think any more of it.
* * *
As the sky outside turned golden-orange, I had a light dinner and opened a colorful letter Sophia gave me.
It was from my cousin who lived in Bellenie.
To my dear cousin Agnès,
Hey sis! It’s been a while. How are you?
It’s already hot here! I sweat just from walking in the garden!
My Lucia Day is coming up soon. If you can, come visit me in Bellenie.
From Joël,
who has grown a lot taller!
P.S. Mom says Arno is really busy these days. But honestly, I wasn’t planning to invite him anyway.
The letter was all over the place, but very Joël-like.
He was still only nine, though soon he’d be ten.
I smiled as I remembered the tiny boy he used to be.
I picked the cutest letter paper I had and wrote a reply.
Then I paused to think about what gift to send him.
“Sophia, what do boys usually get for Lucia Day gifts?”
“Probably a wooden sword or toys?”
“What did Arno get?”
“Master Arno… got so many things it’s hard to say…”
She trailed off.
“Really? Then I’ll go ask him what he liked best.”
I headed to Arno’s room.
Knock knock.
“Arno? Are you asleep?”
There was no answer, so I quietly opened the door.
The lights were on, and I looked around to see if he was there.
Then—
“Ah—!”
A weird sound came from one corner.
I turned my head—and couldn’t believe what I saw.
I rubbed my eyes.
Nope. Not a dream.
César slowly lifted his head and saw me.
He paused, then smiled.
Why are those two boys touching each other with their shirts off at night?
I just stared, frozen.
My brain went blank—should I cover my face? Should I scream?
Just then, Arno seemed to notice something and turned around.
When he saw me, his expression changed.
I took a step back.
“When did you get here?”
“…Don’t say anything.”
“What? What’s wrong?”
I didn’t answer.
Arno narrowed his eyes, sensing something was off.
He got up quickly from the sofa—then tripped and fell.
Yeah. I knew you were pretending to be calm.
“Wait! It’s not what you think!”
I stepped back again.
“…I won’t tell Dad.”
“What are you thinking?! Agnès, come here! César, stop smiling like that!”
Arno hit César, who was silently laughing.
As I watched them, soft music seemed to play in the background, and I imagined pink hearts floating between them.
Was this… a lovers’ quarrel?
Right in front of me?
“So this is why… you brought him here. I get it now.”
“What? What did I even do?”
“I must’ve seemed like such a nuisance, not knowing anything…”
“What are you talking about?”
“What will happen to our family now?”
Arno kept going “What? What?” like a broken record, and César couldn’t hold back his laughter anymore.
“Haha… Hahaha!”
“Agnès! Stop imagining weird things!”
Arno quickly buttoned his shirt messily and walked toward me angrily, face red.
I tried to back away but got caught.
He made me sit on the sofa.
I sat with a grumpy face, glaring at him.
“You little rascal. What’s inside your head? I really want to crack it open and see.”
“I won’t tell Dad. Promise.”
If Dad found out, he’d be shocked. He can never know.
“Even if you did, you’d be the weird one.”
“Oh really? Want me to tell him two shirtless guys were touching each other in one room?!”
“That makes me sound like a pervert,” César frowned, folding his arms.
“I saw it! You were… you were…”
I couldn’t finish the sentence. It was too embarrassing.
“You were…?”
My face turned red as I remembered it again.
“You were…”
César laughed and suddenly grabbed Arno’s shirt collar—
Pop! The buttons flew off, and his bare chest showed.
“AAAH! Gross!”
Cover yourself! Right now!
“What are you doing, Valdeon?!”
Arno yelled, covering himself in shock.
What was that?! In front of me?! Did he just undress him?!
My eyes shook wildly.
But then…
César said something totally unexpected.
