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Translator: FusionX

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The crown prince had been absent from this banquet.

While that one fact had indeed made me lose most of my interest, it did not mean it was completely meaningless.

The mere fact that I did not go with Theresa could be quite meaningful.

Moreover, Yuria would not even consider me as her partner, so it was obvious that she would not say anything even if I mingled appropriately and then disappeared.

Rather, she would probably find it convenient if I disappeared.

In that case, the possibility opened up for me to meet someone at this point whom I had never encountered in my previous life.

For instance, I might unexpectedly run into Miragen. Or if not, I might accidentally come across Adele.

Either way, it would not be bad for me.

Moreover, wasn’t it quite interesting that the possibility had opened up?

Something I had not experienced in my past 100 lives, for me, who had grown weary of this eternal life, a new experience was more intriguing than anything else.

“Do you intend to stop your preparations at that?”

Renold’s eyes had narrowed for a moment, but I had nodded in affirmation.

The reflection in the mirror did not differ much from my usual appearance.

If I had to point it out, perhaps it was just that I had put on an outer garment.

The unflamboyant, simple dark green outfit suited my circumstances quite well.

Since it was better for me not to stand out today, it was probably better to make the flashily dressed Yuria stand out.

“Even so, since you are not attending as a partner, it would be better if you paid a little more attention…”

“It’s fine. I’m not the main character anyway.”

Furthermore, if I had dressed up extravagantly, it could have become a problem in itself.

Didn’t someone immediately come to mind who would scold me for not knowing my place?

There was no reason for me to listen to such words, and it was better for me to have a low profile.

It was obvious that if someone had heard the news of Theresa’s broken engagement with me, they would bother me.

I had dressed up appropriately and groomed myself to look like a proper nobleman, and it had turned out quite stylish in its own way.

I had smiled slightly to try to fix my slightly sharp impression, but it had ended up looking awkward, so I had returned to my original expression.

It seemed that the more I repeated my regression, the more unnatural smiling had become for me, unlike before.

Was it because there were not many reasons for me to smile? But it was not something I could blame anyone else for.

In the end, it was my own foolish choice that had led to this, wasn’t it?

As I leaned my head back on the chair, recalling Renold’s perplexed gaze fixed on me, I had the feeling that I would often see that strange look in the future.

But what could I do? Our relationship had already become so twisted.

She had chosen to live the life of a Viscountess heir from that time.

It was predetermined that things would turn out like this ever since my futile attachment had tried to somehow undo that decision.

Had I not resolved not to harbor such futile attachments anymore?

I would never treat Yuria like a sister again. Perhaps…

Never.

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It was a little while later that the lurching and shaking carriage finally came to a stop.

The night had already fallen over the capital, but the only thing shining brilliantly amidst the darkness was undoubtedly the lights of the imperial palace.

The stars that should have adorned the sky were nowhere to be seen.

Only the lonely full moon emitted a pitiful glow, serving as proof that the palace’s lights were more radiant than the stars.

As the Taylor family’s carriage entered, the eyes of the surrounding nobles instantly turned in our direction.

Someone whispered as Yuria alighted from the carriage, while another murmured as I extended my hand to assist her.

“So it seems true that he broke off the engagement, despite all his proclamations of love for her.”

As expected, the rumors had already spread, and the nobles added their own comments as they looked at me.

Still, there were no outright negative remarks about me.

There were some comments that Theresa had done something strange or gone mad, but I suppose I had conducted myself properly.

“You did something unnecessary, causing such strange rumors to spread.”

Yuria, who had taken my hand and stepped down from the carriage, opened her mouth in a cool tone.

It seemed that she was not displeased that I was being insulted, but rather that the Taylor family’s affairs were being discussed by others, which she found uncomfortable.

With a resigned mindset, I nodded my head, and a cold voice immediately pierced my ear.

“It would be good for you to make the right judgment. If you act recklessly like before…”

It was the indifferent expression of one looking not at a brother, but at an unruly vassal.

“This time, I will issue a disciplinary order.”

“Yes, I understand. I will be careful.”

In any case, my role today was only to accompany her to the entrance under the pretext of being her partner.

Once we separated, it was likely that the nobles would approach me and bother me, so I planned to simply loiter in the garden.

Yuria stared at me for a moment as I readily acquiesced, then extended her hand to me again.

I grasped her fingers just enough that our hands did not fully touch, and only then could I take a step forward.

“Presenting Lady Yuria Taylor, Viscountess of the Taylor Duchy, and Lord Robert Taylor!”

The noisy palace party fell into silence.

Although I often forgot, the Taylor family was undoubtedly a family at the pinnacle of power.

A family that no noble could easily dismiss due to their near-neutral stance.

A family that had always walked a tightrope but never slipped.

Was it not the Taylor family that even the crown prince could not easily meddle with?

That was why I was all the more curious about what exactly the crown prince had seen in me that made him pin false accusations on me. Of course, the crown prince was not present here.

He was probably dealing with a small rebellion that had occurred in the borderlands at this time.

Since it would take at least a year for the crown prince to return, I had to complete my minimum preparations before then.

As I passed through the entrance, the sensation in my hand disappeared.

Yuria had let go of the hand she had been holding, and before I knew it, she had walked away briskly on her own, leaving me in an awkward position.

‘It’s not that bad.’

People’s attention was focused on Yuria, the Viscountess of the Taylor family.

The princess would probably appear soon and say something, but that was it.

There were not many benefits for me to gain at this occasion today.

And even those would only come if I had the chance to converse with the princess.

Well, I could look for an opportunity after the princess appeared.

Since there were so many people that it felt stuffy, I managed to squeeze my way out and headed toward the garden.

Seeing the roses blooming among the grass that the gardeners had meticulously tended into a maze-like pattern, I turned my steps in that direction.

It was merely a complex design, not an actual maze.

It was a garden created on the vast grounds of the imperial palace, larger than any ordinary large farm.

Of course, it could not be ordinary.

It was a place where one could find all the flowers that would bloom in summer.

The wind carried a blend of countless fragrances, better than any ordinary perfume.

With the full moon behind me, I strolled through the garden.

Although the deserted garden was quiet, this very tranquility was what put my mind most at ease.

The leisure that I could only feel right after a regression, perhaps I would not be able to experience it at any other time.

If it had been like before, I would have rushed around trying to build my own connections.

I had thought that if I could somehow gain even one more person on my side, they might be of help to me later.

But the result had been disastrous.

There was not a single person I could trust.

When an unfavorable situation arose, they all turned their backs on me.

Even the one who had claimed to be my closest friend, the one who had said they truly loved me.

In truth, had they not approached me to take advantage of the Taylor name behind me?

“Pathetic fool.”

As I uttered those self-deprecating words, my heart felt a little more relieved.

My resolution for this life was to never again commit the same foolishness I had in the past.

If I killed the crown prince and died as well… Well, perhaps then I could close my eyes without any lingering attachments.

Gazing absentmindedly at the sky as I stood there, the palace lights had dimmed somewhat, and the faint lights of the stars were now visible in abundance.

The points connected to form lines, and those lines gathered into clusters.

As I was immersed in this celestial shower of light, where not even the smallest darkness could be found, a voice reached my ears.

“It is not good to insult oneself like that.”

The feminine tone carried a peculiar chill to it.

It was not born of the hostility towards me that Yuria had, but rather a rebuke – no, a more accurate assessment of my attitude.

Startled for a moment, I turned my head, and my eyes widened at the attire that was so ill-suited for the imperial palace.

“It has been a long time since I visited the palace, but to have you be the first person I see. Perhaps I should consider myself fortunate.”

While everyone else wore elaborate clothing, her outfit was an ashen black.

In contrast to her silvery white hair mingled with moonlight, the black attire blended perfectly into the darkness.

No, it was less of an outfit and more akin to a cloak.

The cloak said to be worn by those living in the northern regions, with the fur of a wolf encircling the neck, fluttered in the wind as if confirming its authenticity.

“…Lady Adele.”

The ruler of the north, one whom even the crown prince could not easily confront – the possessor of absolute power granted by the empire.

Called the Iron Fortress for guarding the borderlands, but that title referred not to a man, but to a woman.

I caught a glimpse of her snow-white hair, whipping about like falling snowflakes.

Yet her beautiful features did not pale in comparison to the stars, and my gaze remained fixed on her face.

Behind her was the round full moon, and even through the silhouette darkened by the backlight, her faint smile was evident.

For a moment, I muttered in a daze. I had expected her to come, but I had not anticipated meeting her at this point.

“I didn’t think…we would meet like this.”

“I feel the same way. My coming to the garden was mere coincidence.”

Adele Igrit, the Grand Duchess of the North, smiled at me.

“It’s good to meet you, Lord Taylor.”

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