~Chapter 16~
Five people came out of the reception room.
There was a high-ranking priest, three assistants, and finally the Duke, who was seeing them off.
“It was an honor to meet you, Cardinal Andre.”
“You are too kind. His Holiness is watching the achievements of the Duke of Lombard with great interest, so we expect even greater accomplishments from you in the future. May God’s grace be with you.”
The Cardinal shook hands with the Duke, then nodded politely to me and left.
I also bent my knees slightly and waited until the Cardinal and his group were gone.
Once their footsteps faded, I looked up.
“Are the guests leaving already? I thought they’d stay for two or three days.”
“His Holiness the Pope was just chosen. Cardinal Andre is his closest aide, so he can’t be away from the Grand Cathedral for long.”
“That’s good. Then can I go back now?”
Since I came here just to greet the guests and they were leaving, there was no reason for me to stay.
As I turned to leave, the Duke spoke up.
“I have something important to discuss. Please come in for a moment.”
“You’re not allergic to cats, are you?”
“Fortunately, I am not.”
Tsk.
I didn’t really want to be alone with the Duke, but too many people were watching, and I was also curious since it seemed related to the Cardinal’s visit. So I went inside.
The Duke led me to the sofa and started as I expected.
“Soon, we’ll have a guest from the Grand Cathedral. He will be staying in northern Lombard for a while, so I’d like you to prepare for his visit.”
“Is this an important guest?”
He nodded and handed me a letter instead of answering.
I considered pretending I couldn’t read, but decided it was too much trouble, so I just read it. Anyway, it was too late to hide things now.
The letter was simple.
It said that someone carrying out the Pope’s orders would be sent to Lombard, and I should make sure there were no mistakes while he was staying.
After I finished reading, the Duke continued.
“So, I’d like you to be in charge of welcoming the guest.”
“Me? Oh, I really can’t do that.”
“As I thought. I must have overestimated your abilities.”
As I thought? What does that mean?
If it were the old me, I would have protested. But after being reborn, I wasn’t desperate for other people’s approval anymore.
Whatever.
“Too bad. It would have been a good chance to impress the head of the Inquisition.”
“The Inquisition?”
“I mean the Department of Doctrine. The visitor is a direct investigator under the head of the Inquisition.”
The head of the Inquisition was a position of high authority, just under the Pope and the Secretary of State.
But the real problem was something else.
The Inquisition—also called the Department of Doctrine, or the Heresy Tribunal!
“The head of the Inquisition… Why are they sending someone all the way to Lombard? Did someone commit heresy?”
“Who knows. Maybe there was a report that someone is possessed by a demon.”
“Haha, a demon… That sounds scary. There’s no way something like that really exists, right?”
Even as I spoke, a chill ran down my spine.
If the head of the Heresy Tribunal was sending an investigator, just how serious was the report?
Or maybe it was about someone so important that the head had to act personally.
Like… me?
‘If my life is in danger, I need to start thinking fast.’
I had to make sure the Inquisitor wouldn’t suspect me, not even a little. I couldn’t give them any reason to doubt.
In the end, there was only one way.
‘I must impress the Inquisitor with my devotion.’
I’d use every trick to move the Inquisitor’s heart and send him back to the Cathedral.
If I had to, I’d even do that gesture with my fingers to show devotion…
“Such an important guest can’t be left to others. I’ll do it myself!”
“I knew you’d do well.”
“Of course!”
The Duke, satisfied, spoke lightly.
“The Inquisitor might actually be here to see me.”
“…What?”
That was unexpected.
I blinked at the strange information, but the Duke acted as if it was nothing.
“I caused some trouble beyond the northern wall.”
“Uh, what kind of trouble?”
“Are you curious? If you want, I could tell you.”
But the way he looked at me was so intense, I didn’t dare say I was interested.
I quietly looked away. At that moment, I saw the untouched snacks left by the Cardinal.
Suddenly, my stomach rumbled loudly.
‘Ah! I shouldn’t have skipped breakfast!’
If he were a normal gentleman, he’d pretend not to notice, but unfortunately, the Duke wasn’t that type.
“Did I just hear something strange? Did you skip a meal?”
“…”
“I think I hear it again.”
“Please, think about a lady’s dignity!”
Yes, in the past, except for the short period after my parents died, I never skipped meals. Even if eating was painful, I always forced myself to eat.
If I died, no one would be sad—but many would laugh at me.
But now, as Elysia, things were much more relaxed. There was no need to obsess over food.
Still, the Duke’s stare made me uncomfortable.
“What time is it, and you still haven’t eaten? I didn’t train the staff so poorly.”
“I just had things to do.”
“Like what?”
“Should I really report every little thing to Your Grace?”
“Is that so? Who was it? Which servant?”
He looked so serious—even though he didn’t really care about me, it was enough to fool anyone who didn’t know him.
‘He probably just doesn’t like the servants acting carelessly.’
He was a former soldier, strict about rules.
I didn’t want to think too hard, so I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“I’m on a diet. It’s a basic skill for noble ladies.”
“Ah.”
He repeated “diet” and looked oddly troubled for once.
His sharp gaze finally softened.
“That’s too bad. I actually like women with curves— Ow!”
I didn’t wait for him to finish and kicked the table.
He annoyed me even more by making weird comments about his “type,” so my leg moved on its own.
The Duke doubled over in pain.
“If you can still talk like that, I’m not worried about you.”
I glanced at his hand.
I’d heard the mine administrator Patrick was being investigated, but hadn’t heard anything about the Duke’s injury from saving me. I felt a little guilty, but seeing how he talked, I realized he was just fine.
But the Duke misunderstood my words.
He looked a little surprised and muttered,
“Were you worried about me?”
“No.”
“But you checked my injury just now. Why?”
“Maybe your hearing is going bad. You should see the doctor.”
Just because I mentioned the doctor didn’t mean I was worried, but the Duke seemed to relax.
Then, acting like a clueless boss, he said,
“I haven’t eaten either. Why not eat together while we discuss the guest?”
“I’ll just count this as my meal.”
I quickly grabbed a dessert from the table.
The rich taste of madeleines with butter and sugar hit my tongue.
Dizzy from the flavor, I stuffed all the snacks into my mouth.
The Duke watched with his chin propped on his hand.
“You eat well. But didn’t you say you were dieting?”
“I’ll start tomorrow.”
“Hmm.”
“What? Why are you looking at me like that? If you keep staring, I might not treat the guest nicely.”
He closed his mouth at my gentle threat. Even the Duke of Lombard was scared of the Inquisitor.
That was the end of the conversation.
I hugged purring Nero to my chest and stood up.
Almost at the same time, the Duke also stood and blocked the door first.
“Tell Bertolt to give you whatever budget you need.”
“Thank you, I won’t hold back.”
“…”
“Anything else?”
Standing there face to face with the Duke, old memories came rushing back.
Back then, even with the huge gap in our status, Edwin never liked it when I bowed to him.
He didn’t just dislike it—he would get really upset.
So whenever we stood eye-to-eye, I always noticed this:
He was almost two meters tall, with broad shoulders, an open shirt collar, and the clear outline of his collarbone and chest.
‘That’s how it was, once.’
Even though our ranks were different, I thought of him as my only true friend—the lord I would have gladly given my life for.
“…Well, I’ll be going.”
Unable to stand the silence, I broke it.
I bowed lightly and reached for the door handle.
Suddenly, the Duke seemed to remember something.
“Since you’re helping with official business, I have a small gift for you.”
“Hmm?”
I stopped without meaning to.
A gift from the Duke wouldn’t be ordinary.
No matter how much I already had, I guess people’s greed really has no end.
The Duke spoke with a softer face.
“Unlike you, who criticizes my taste, I always respect yours. So you should show the same consideration to Baron Comte.”
“…?”
“I’ll promote the Baron. Please accept this happily.”
Damn it. One day, I’ll really pluck out those rotten eyes of his…
“My lord, what are you thinking?”
“Hm?”
Edwin looked up from his paperwork.
The old steward was looking at him with a worried face.
“It’s about the Duchess. Not only did you promote her closest ally, Baron Comte, you even gave her charge of the household.”
“You call preparing for a guest ‘running the household’? That’s an exaggeration.”
“But…”
Bertolt hesitated, unable to continue.
Edwin knew what he was thinking.
He probably wanted to ask: Are you really okay with Elysia, the old enemy’s daughter, taking over Lombard’s affairs?
‘He always worries, just like before.’
Edwin smiled faintly and looked away.
He noticed the spot where Elysia had been sitting. The empty teacup and the clean plate of desserts.
It was nothing special, yet for some reason, it caught his eye.
