The Affair

For all the weight of the word she had just spoken, Esika's voice was almost offhand. Superot's brow furrowed at once.

"Betrayal? You're saying that girl dared to betray you?"

One of the things that had always put Superot on edge about Yuri was the sense that, for all her outward calm and her readiness to yield to Esika in everything, her true feelings were far from pure. It was as if she were forcing herself to play along while hiding some other design. Having studied commercial psychology from a young age and learned the art of reading people, he had never been able to shake his distrust of her. He had even quietly voiced his opposition when Esika, after marrying into the duchy, had summoned Yuri to her side. Esika, of course, had not so much as pretended to listen.

"Yuri has become the head lady-in-waiting here, and she clings to the Dowager Duchess in order to torment me. She's also seducing my husband, Kalian. I'll tell you the rest later."

Esika lifted her cup with unhurried hands and drank. Superot's insides seethed at her words.

"So that ungrateful girl means to make an enemy of Brigate."

He did not need to be told how deeply the betrayal must have cut Esika—outwardly bright, inwardly so tender. How many trials must she have endured before she could speak of it with such composure?

"I'll go to the Dowager Duchess this instant and have the girl cast out—"

"I'm sorry, Brother, but this is a matter between me and the Klaus family. It's also a matter between Yuri and me."

"But, Esika—"

Esika set her cup down with a soft clink.

"The Dowager Duchess does not tolerate outside interference. Least of all from Brigate."

She went on without pause.

"So all I need from you, Brother, is that you proceed exactly as I wrote in my letter."

Superot stared at her, dazed. She was unmistakably different from the sister he had known. What, in all this time, had happened to Esika?

A cool light entered her eyes as she smiled.

"One day, that girl will pay the perfect price for her betrayal."

She did not seem inclined to say more. But Superot had trusted his younger sister in the past, and he trusted her still.

"You've changed a great deal since marrying into the ducal house, Esika."

At last he nodded and continued.

"Very well. Do as you wish. Don't worry yourself over it."

At his assent, Esika smiled faintly.

"Thank you, Brother."

Sharing tea with her after so long, Superot found her utterly unlike the heedless girl she had once been. Her face seemed even more beautiful than before her marriage, and from the way she held her cup to the careful management of every expression, she looked every inch a proper duchess, steeped in the etiquette of noble wives. The sight left him with a bittersweet ache—and a strange, quiet relief. At least she would not live her life being trampled by others.

"By the way—did you purchase the land in Elmyur that I mentioned last time?"

"I did. Here. I brought the papers as well."

Superot handed her the deed he had received after the purchase. With Chwihen so much in the spotlight, land prices in Elmyur had been driven far lower by comparison. Esika unfolded the certificate and looked up in mild surprise.

"But this is larger than what I asked for."

The document showed a tract roughly twice the size of the land she had originally intended to buy.

"I added some of my own funds. Thinking it over, I realized I'd never given you a proper gift after your wedding… Accept it, Esika."

Something flickered in Esika's eyes at his words. Superot Brigate, her eldest brother, could be a little stiff, but beneath it he had always looked after his siblings with quiet care.

"Thank you, Brother."

Land of this scale would become an enormous foundation for her. As she expressed her gratitude, a smile touched Superot's lips as well.

"There's one more thing I'd like to ask you, Brother."

"Of course. Ask me anything."

Esika finally gave voice to the question that had long weighed on her mind.

"When I was eight… what happened in Hasets. I can't remember it, so I was hoping you might tell me about that day."

At the unexpected question, Superot's brow twitched.

The next morning, Kalian woke to a crushing headache and scowled. He pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose for a moment, then sat up in bed with his eyes still screwed shut. The covers, which should have come with him, caught on something and refused to follow.

Slowly, Kalian turned his head.

And jerked his hand back in shock.

"……."

Yuri Anesis—who always wore her golden hair pinned up so neatly—lay beside him, strands of it fallen across part of her face. He could see the pale expanse of her bare skin, and the sheet drawn just high enough to cover her chest.

Kalian's face went rigid. For a long time he did not move.

What had happened last night?

Your Grace already governs your lands so well and enjoys such high regard—and the Emperor's trust as well. Ever since my days in Anesis, I've always hoped I might meet Your Grace just once.

Only fragments of Yuri's face surfaced in his mind—smiling as she poured wine into her own glass. The headache still pounded behind his eyes, and he could not form a single coherent thought.

"……."

A moment later, Yuri's delicate brows drew together. Her lashes fluttered, and she opened her eyes. When her red gaze met Kalian's, it widened slightly in what looked like surprise—then she shyly looked away.

Her reaction left him with no room for doubt.

Last night, he had shared a bed with Yuri Anesis—Esika's friend.

The back of his skull throbbed as if he had been struck.

"…Damn it…"

The irritated mutter slipped out before he could stop it. Yuri flinched, then slowly pushed herself upright, drawing the sheet up over her chest with one hand.

"Your Grace… I…"

Kalian's gaze returned to her. She hunched her shoulders, bowed her head deeply, and spoke in a voice thick with suppressed sobs.

"…It isn't Your Grace's fault. It's mine—for not being able to refuse you when you were drunk."

Her trembling voice spilled into the quiet room. Kalian was not angry at her. He was furious with himself—for getting so drunk he could no longer tell heaven from earth, and for actually committing adultery with Yuri.

He had always been interested in her. He had even been drawn to her enough to give her an Allet Ring. But he had never crossed that line. He had merely enjoyed the dangerous game of exchanged glances and half-spoken interest, and he had always stopped short of anything that would demand real responsibility.

Yuri watched his face, then spoke mournfully.

"It's all my fault, so please don't blame yourself."

"…Yuri."

Kalian pressed his fingers to his forehead and exhaled the word on a sigh. Watching tears slide down her cheeks, he felt a flicker of pity. Any man would, seeing a woman who had spent the night with him trembling and weeping.

"You've done nothing wrong. If anyone is at fault, it is me."

Yuri was the head lady-in-waiting of House Klaus, and Kalian was her master—the duke.

"Your Grace! This is my first time as well. Hic…"

At that, Yuri looked up at him with tear-bright eyes—and threw herself into his arms. Kalian instinctively stiffened at the sudden embrace, but after a moment he lifted an awkward hand and patted her back. Her claim that it had been her first time only drove the sense of responsibility deeper into him.

"What… what are we supposed to do now? I don't know anything…"

Her shaking voice reached him from against his chest. She must have been just as shocked by what had happened; he had to calm her. And above all, Esika must never learn of this.

In the depths of Kalian's eyes, the aftershock of a situation that had struck like lightning was still churning darkly.

"She received her brother?"

At Leona's sharp question, the maid bowed her head low.

"Yes, my lady. Baronet Superot Brigate just finished tea and took his leave."

Leona made no effort to hide her displeasure.

"The moment I leave my seat, she acts as if this is her own chambers. How bold of her."

Esika Klaus—daughter of some obscure baronial house. A creature of base blood who ought to be crushed underfoot whenever one pleased, yet she had the gall to hold her head high. And now she seemed to be shaking even Kalian's heart. Leona would not stand by and watch any longer. The moment the profits from the Chwihen development came in, she would throw Esika out of House Klaus even if it meant returning the dowry she had brought with her at marriage.

"And where has Yuri gone? I haven't seen her all morning."

Leona's gaze cut sharply through the room in search of her. Yuri had not been seen since the night before. As if on cue, the door opened, and Yuri entered with her head bowed.

"You sent for me, Dowager Duchess?"

Leona's cool eyes raked Yuri from face to feet. Then her lips moved.

"Have you been out catching the night dew?"

At those words, Yuri's hands twitched. This was the same Leona who had once caned her calves until she fainted simply for speaking as if she had designs on Kalian. One suspicious move, and there was no telling what might follow.