Episode 37
After wrapping up Henry’s business as quickly as possible, Edwin took only the remaining men and headed back to
Cardinald Village.
The trip back was just as grueling as the way there. The horses looked ready to collapse at any moment, and even the
usually tireless knights were so exhausted their eyes kept closing.
But Edwin’s hard expression never wavered. One thing kept running through his mind Henry’s muttered words.
‘No. That can’t be.’
Edwin refused to believe it.
There was no way Emilia had that kind of relationship with Prince Leo. Absolutely not.
But once the thought had appeared, it wouldn’t leave. It gnawed at him, over and over.
He clenched his teeth and kept his eyes locked straight ahead.
By pushing himself and the men, they crossed the forest in barely two or three hours and reached Cardinald Village.
“Your Grace! Please, calm down first!”
The knights, stumbling off their horses, shouted at Edwin as he dismounted immediately.
They tried to make excuses saying it was already late, that maybe he should rest first but one sharp glare from him
shut them all up.
That glare made it very clear: anyone who tried to block him now wouldn’t get off easy.
With no one else daring to speak, Edwin strode off toward a certain place—straight to the village chief’s house.
He knocked on the door.
The chief appeared a moment later, beads of sweat on his brow.
“What brings you here at this hour?”
He tried to sound calm, but seeing Edwin up close made it impossible not to tense up.
The duke’s eyes were deadly enough to cut a man in half.
The chief worked hard not to let his nervousness show.
“Let’s talk.”
The chief didn’t want to have any sort of conversation with a man wearing that look.
And it wasn’t just the murderous vibe it was the gut feeling that he already knew why Edwin was here.
His instincts screamed that now was the time to avoid him.
“It’s late, Your Grace.”
The Duke of Casper no ordinary noble had come all the way to his front door. Normally, you’d rush out barefoot if
someone like him summoned you. If he wanted to talk, you’d agree on the spot.
But right now, the chief was desperate to avoid it, even if it meant overstepping.
“If you’ve heard what happened today, then open the door.”
Hearing the anger in Edwin’s voice, the chief stepped back from the doorway and made way.
Edwin, black-haired and sharp-eyed, stepped inside, and the chief hurried to seat him at the table.
As he sat, the chief was already berating himself for not noticing Emilia’s presence sooner, wondering exactly what
Edwin wanted to know.
“Leoqus.”
“That guy stayed in this village too, didn’t he?”
Until now, Edwin hadn’t cared much about Leo. He’d only come here because the Emperor ordered it.
But after meeting Emilia, his entire focus had shifted to her.
Leo had all but vanished from his mind and so had the fact that he and Emilia had been in the same village.
Henry’s words had brought that to light, and it had flipped a switch in Edwin’s head.
There was no way the village chief didn’t know Leo was a prince especially since Edwin had long known how
important this place was to Leo.
“Tell me everything. How did Emilia and that man live here together?”
The chief hesitated. He had already made sure the villagers’ mouths were shut tight told them not to mention a word
about Leo and Emilia, and told those who didn’t know not to go snooping.
He’d said it was for their own good if they wanted to live long. Everyone had agreed, so the rumors never spread.
But if Edwin himself wanted to investigate… that was a different matter.
And the chief could tell that Edwin already knew the truth about Cardinald Village.
If he lied now and got caught, he could clearly see what would happen next and it wouldn’t be good. So in the end, he
told Edwin everything.
The truth was, Edwin’s first thought had been to go to Emilia’s house straight to her.
But he’d turned toward the chief’s place instead.
He couldn’t bring himself to ask her about her relationship with Leo. He was afraid.
Do I even have the right to ask you?
He had already told her everything he wanted to say.
She had smiled at him as always, given the same warm answer, and shown him the same unchanging kindness. And that
scared him.
If she had gotten angry, he could have accepted it. After all, she was the one who had suffered because he stood by
and did nothing.
But instead, she’d only looked at him with pity and apologized.
What could you possibly be sorry for?
He didn’t understand, but her gentleness had a way of washing away the anxiety eating at him.
Still, the thought of letting her see him doubting her it terrified him. What if she grew sick of him?
So instead, he came here to the man who had probably known Leo the longest.
“That’s all you’ve got to say?”
“Yes, Your Grace. That’s the truth.”
The chief had stuck to the facts, no lies.
It was mostly harmless stuff how Leo had helped Emilia settle in and become her friend.
I still don’t like it.
Edwin didn’t like even that much.
Leo was a prince who had a habit of doing outrageous things and had clashed with Edwin more than once.
Edwin had once respected him—he was one of the few competent royals but right now, his opinion of the man had
dropped straight into the gutter.
Maybe the chief was hiding something for Leo, but Edwin felt like he’d gotten all he could for now.
“Where’s Leoqus now?”
“He’s gone to the capital.”
“Did he get summoned by the Emperor before we arrived?”
“No, I think he just decided it was time to leave.”
“So he stays here for a whole year and suddenly takes off.”
Edwin asked no more questions and stood up. It didn’t seem like there was anything else worth getting from this.
But one thought still wouldn’t leave him.
From the sound of it, they didn’t meet by chance. So why did he follow Emilia here?
Sure, Emilia could have arrived in Cardinald without knowing anything.
But Leo? Back then, he’d been in the middle of scheming against the other royals, working hard to solidify his claim to
the throne then suddenly, he disappeared.
At the time, Edwin had been too focused on Emilia to care. But now… now it felt suspicious.
What could he possibly gain from chasing after her?
From what Edwin remembered, Leo was not the type to do anything that didn’t benefit him.
“Your Majesty.”
“Yes, come in.”
The Emperor greeted Diana warmly, and as always, it left a bitter taste in her mouth.
The first day she’d arrived at the palace, she had stood in this very room—and the Emperor had been in that very
seat.
But back then, his eyes had been cold.
No, more than that. Freezing.
No one among the royals had welcomed her. The more she shrank under the heavy atmosphere, the sharper and
more predatory the Emperor’s gaze had grown.
At the time, his stare had terrified her.
Now, thinking back, she could only laugh bitterly at it.
She hadn’t done anything wrong back then. She shouldn’t have been scared—she should have been angry. She should
have demanded to know why her own family didn’t welcome her back.
But she had let the majority’s cold eyes convince her she was the problem.
If Edwin hadn’t stepped in to save her, she probably would have been treated that way forever still unwelcome, still
asked why she’d even bothered to come.
But today, that wasn’t why she was here.
“Your Majesty… It’s been a year since Duke Edwin became single again.”
“I think I know where this is going.”
The Emperor had already guessed why Diana had come.
She only ever came for two reasons: either to get permission to go after Edwin herself, or to ask for help marrying
him now that he’d been alone for a year.
The Emperor would have liked the match marrying the head of the pro-Emperor Casper family to his beloved
princess would only strengthen their alliance.
He’d even hinted at it to Edwin a few times, but every time, the man’s response was ice-cold. You’d think he was part
of the noble faction instead.
Still, he couldn’t just flat-out say “no” to Diana, so he spoke gently.
“Perhaps it’s because the duchess hasn’t been officially declared dead yet. People talk, you know. He’s probably
waiting until at least a year has passed so others will understand.”
In other words, wait until Emilia was officially missing and public opinion was ready.
But Diana’s face twisted at that.
Both she and the Emperor knew Edwin hadn’t even filed a missing person’s report for Emilia. Which meant the
Emperor’s words were just a polite way of saying: I’m not going to help you.
Once again, the one standing in her way was Emilia.
