ITMHIAM 20

Chapter 20

It was a night with a bright moon—a perfect evening for a ball.

Fortunately, the dress he had prepared was reportedly delivered safely to Edith Prim.

With his chin resting on the back of his hand, Johannes wondered whether what he had done had helped in any way.

It had all started from a simple curiosity.

Would Edith Prim choose to protect her pride?

It was, honestly, a pathetic little prank. Nothing serious. Just a small mischief.

And he hadn’t the slightest intention of retracting that mischief—at least, not until the report came in.

“We received word through Madam Marilyn. It seems Miss Prim is not in good condition,”

Frett Gunner straightened his posture and continued.

“I heard you sent her a thin muslin dress. Even if she’s quite sensitive to heat, it is mid-winter. Isn’t that a rather unreasonable outfit?”

To summarize: Are you out of your mind?

Even Johannes had to admit, in hindsight, that it wasn’t a sensible decision.

“So, is she going to wear it?”

“Considering that Madam Marilyn hasn’t said otherwise, I believe she is.”

A woman of unmatched stubbornness.

“If she has any sense, she’ll know what to do.”

Johannes replied. Frett Gunner, however, tried to defend Edith.

“But as someone who grew up a commoner, it must be difficult for Miss Prim to refuse a gift from her master.”

“She’s just foolish.”

“It’s not foolishness—”

Frett Gunner stopped mid-sentence. After all, his superior had been born a high-ranking noble—he would never understand, no matter how much one tried to explain.

“What about the preparations for the ball?”

As expected, Johannes didn’t dwell on Edith’s situation and quickly moved on.

With a sigh, Frett Gunner answered.

“Everything is perfect. All the nobles have arrived.”

“Good work.”

Seeing his subordinate still looking troubled, Johannes dismissed him with a short command.

Darkness settled over the office. Left alone, Johannes tapped his desk rhythmically with his long fingers.

Then his gaze shifted.

On one corner of the desk was a thick white shawl, neatly folded. It had been prepared along with the dress.

He had never intended to send only the dress.

He had clearly seen her shivering from the cold. But then she kept avoiding him using that as an excuse—such a blatant lie.

She must really hate me.

In a sense, it was a crime of impudence.

Typical Dochilian nobles did not care about the weather. They flaunted their elegance no matter the season and feared neither the biting sea winds nor the sky above.

If they could shine, they would gladly wear clothes that didn’t suit the season.

But Edith Prim was not raised as a noble of Dochilia. He knew this.

Was I too harsh?

He couldn’t allow her to fall ill.

Letting out a sigh, Johannes picked up the shawl. He walked with long strides out of his office and headed to where Edith was staying.

He hadn’t gone far down the corridor when a ridiculous sight unfolded before him. Rather than anger, it brought a scoff of disbelief.

“I didn’t think the dignity of House Schultz had fallen this low.”

Suppressing the urge to swear, he spoke. A pair of eyes, green like dawn’s light, turned toward him.

The man who had frozen stiff let go of my throat.

I collapsed to the floor. Coughing violently, I could still feel the cold gaze directed at me from above.

When I regained my senses, I saw the man hesitating, stepping back slightly.

After catching my breath, I slowly raised my head.

Johannes emerged from the center of the marble corridor, wearing a pitch-black tailcoat that fit his broad shoulders perfectly. He looked every inch the host of a grand ball.

In his right hand, he held an embroidered white shawl—an item that didn’t quite suit him.

His cold, icy gaze shifted from me to the man.

“Worse than I thought.”

His tone was dry as he continued.

“To think you’d dare such a brazen act inside my castle.”

“N-no! I… I just…!”

The man’s hand trembled like an aspen leaf. He stood awkwardly, looking utterly lost—like a hyena faced with a predator.

“I thought she might be an intruder sent by the royal family…!”

Ignoring the babbling man, Johannes slowly approached. He walked past the trembling man and extended his hand to me.

I took his large hand and stood up. He draped the shawl over my shoulders before turning back to face the man.

His lips parted, and a dry voice emerged.

“Viscount of Schwaben. Do you truly believe this young lady looks like an intruder?”

He glanced at me with a faint hint of admiration.

“At worst, she looks like an ordinary lady who hasn’t even learned self-defense. Are you saying you lack the discernment to recognize even that much?”

The viscount, who had been glaring at me moments before, took a deep breath. Johannes’s cutting words didn’t stop.

“I see the madness in the blood of House Schwaben hasn’t thinned over generations.”

The viscount’s eyes widened. He trembled with rage before finally shouting, spitting as he spoke.

“Do not insult the honor of my house!”

“I wasn’t aware there was any honor to insult.”

Unlike the enraged viscount, Johannes spoke in a flat voice.

He didn’t even seem to think he was insulting him.

“I was already impressed by the bastard spawn’s disgraceful antics—but to find someone worse here… remarkable.”

He didn’t even mean to mock. But truth, after all, is the sharpest dagger.

In the faint moonlight, the viscount’s face turned from red to nearly black with rage.

“…What did you just say! Duke, I will not tolerate such rudeness!”

“And yet you believed it was acceptable to be rude to my fiancée?”

Johannes tilted his head slightly.

At the same time, the viscount’s raised shoulders sank.

He looked down at me with disgust.

“You don’t even look surprised. That means you already knew she was my fiancée.”

“That’s—!”

“I’ll inform your father. How well he raised his legitimate and illegitimate sons the same. The depth of that denial is truly impressive.”

In other words, I’m going to tell your father everything, so clean up your own mess. Said in a most aristocratic fashion.

The viscount then pointed at me, shouting in panic.

“N-no! I only suspected she might be a spy—I was acting out of loyalty—!”

“Are you saying your father sent a spy in a dress to House Evanstein?”

Johannes’s sharp voice made the viscount flinch and wave his hands in denial.

“Never! I’d never be so disrespectful—!”

“In that case, shouldn’t you have brought her straight to me?”

Throwing a glance at me, Johannes’s voice sank further.

“If House Schwaben has no part in this bastard’s dirty deed, why were you choking her?”

The viscount’s eyes widened. He looked like a man struck in the heart.

“Your house’s reputation has already suffered enough from that ridiculous scandal with Banux. You should be more careful not to take it out on innocent people.”

For someone who had just been running his mouth, the viscount was now utterly speechless. It seemed Johannes hadn’t said anything untrue.

Looking at the dumbstruck man, Johannes finished coldly:

“Wait at home. We’ll be taking appropriate measures with your family soon.”

The viscount fled with a face red and pale by turns, leaving only Johannes and me in the corridor.

“Thank y—”

“How did you end up here? You were supposed to remain in the inner quarters until the ball.”

He cut me off and asked stiffly.

He had shown no emotion when speaking to the viscount, but now he sounded angry.

So nobles must hide their emotions with other nobles—but it’s fine to lash out at me?

My brief sense of relief vanished, replaced with resentment. I stared directly at Johannes’s stern face.

Was he angry because he was worried about me? Or was it because someone dared to harm a future duchess of his house?

Maybe I was only being acknowledged because I was useful. When I wasn’t, he’d just ignore me. Even so—I nearly died. My throat still ached.

“I asked why you were here. The ball is about to begin.”

When I didn’t answer, his face grew even more rigid.

Ah. Was he angry because I might not make it to the ball on time? Because we needed to announce our engagement? Because the people wouldn’t get their exciting news?

A bitter laugh escaped me. Emotion welled up inside. I answered, my voice sharp.

“I got lost.”

“There’s no reason to get lost at this hour. You should have been helping with preparations.”

The way Johannes snapped made me feel like I had to defend myself.

“My head hurt. I felt suffocated. It was so loud outside, and I thought I’d never feel better staying in that room. So I…”