ICPTD 10

Chapter 10

“You should have an affair with me.” (1)

The suffocating silence was broken again—this time by the arrival of the servants who had come to serve dessert at just the right moment.

“Have you finished your meal, by any chance?”

One of the servants who had been clearing the imperial dining table and had now reached Leopold cautiously spoke to him.

It must have been because a nearly untouched steak still sat on his plate. The meal didn’t seem finished, so the servant had asked.

Leopold gave a small nod. The servant quickly understood and set down the dessert.

A slice of cake decorated with plump bluish-purple blueberries was placed before him.

At that moment, an image of a woman’s pale violet eyes suddenly flashed through his mind.

“Were they lighter than this?”

Before coming here, he had seen that woman in the Bern marketplace. She had been laughing and spinning around beside Hugo, looking absurdly cheerful. Hugo’s mouth hadn’t stopped smiling either.

It was ridiculous.

He was the one who had brought her back when she was on the verge of death and taken her home safely—and yet she was entertaining some other bastard.

Strictly speaking, wasn’t he the one who deserved that gratitude?

Perhaps that was why he had given the order in a fit of irritation.

“Stay close to the road.”

The knight had hesitated, confused, but soon obeyed his master’s command faithfully.

And then, as the carriage passed near her—

For a brief moment, the woman’s pale violet eyes, as she spun around, met his gaze perfectly.

She looked like she had just encountered a ruthless loan shark. Her startled expression made Leopold feel absurdly annoyed—and strangely displeased.

She’d probably faint if someone told her to repay a debt right now.

After that, she had practically thrown herself into Hugo’s arms. Leopold bit back a low curse without realizing it.

“…What a damn mess.”

It must have been because Hugo Otero had recognized the carriage—or more precisely, its owner. The way he held the silver-haired woman and shot a hostile glare had been deeply irritating.

It was like a shameless debtor desperately hiding away his most precious jewel.

“The more you act like that, the more I can’t just ignore it.”

How dare you. You who took everything from me. You insignificant thing.

Was happiness really something you deserved, after barging in and turning everything upside down?

While he was lost in thought, commotion rose again in the dining hall.

“I don’t care anyway. I’ve never accepted that so-called sister-in-law, so if you’re planning to keep calling her that, exclude me.”
“Erica!”
“What? I’m just kindly stepping aside for my brother!”

Another headache-inducing family.

Of course, their usual ridiculous arguments had nothing to do with him, and he had no intention of getting involved. But there was one reason Leopold endured this uncomfortable, suffocating gathering.

The annulment.

The Emperor had suddenly called this family dinner, something he rarely did. His awkward talk about “family meals” and his obvious hints all pointed to one thing—the marriage of his daughter.

So today, this had to be settled.

Dragging it out any longer was pointless.

As Leopold idly poked at his food, a plump blueberry rolled off the cake.

In truth, a marriage could only be concluded with the approval of both family heads. Leopold had been “fortunate” or perhaps “unfortunate” enough to inherit his father’s position as head of the house after he fell into a vegetative state, which had allowed him to delay the marriage until now.

If his father had not become a vegetative patient… if that incident had never happened… Leopold would likely already be married to the princess.

Probably sold off like a breeding stallion.

“Enough! Every time you gather, you children lose all sense of dignity and only fight!”

At last, the Emperor’s voice erupted in anger.

Wiping his mouth irritably with a napkin as if he had lost his appetite, the Emperor stood up. Then he paused, turned slightly, and looked at Leopold.

“You, come with me.”

As expected. Everything was going exactly as anticipated.

The Emperor would call him aside—and bring up the marriage.

It was time.

A faint memory surfaced in Leopold’s mind.

“Just prepare for the wedding, okay? Don’t you remember?”

And just like that time, the princess’s smiling face appeared before him.

A deeply unpleasant smile.

Leopold couldn’t believe his ears.

The annulment wasn’t supposed to come from his mouth—

“It seems you’ve understood. The annulment you wanted so much—I will grant it.”

It came from the Emperor.

That was unexpected. This wasn’t the kind of man who would give in so easily.

Leopold calmly asked, “Is there a condition?”

“A condition… as expected, you don’t accept things blindly.”

With a faint sneer, the Emperor walked to a corner of his office and retrieved something from a safe.

“This is the engagement contract between you and my daughter, stamped with imperial approval.”

Slightly puzzled, Leopold reached out to take it—but the Emperor pulled it back as if teasing him.

“However, there is a condition.”

“Speak.”

Clearing his throat, the Emperor spoke as if delivering a decree.

“The responsibility for the annulment must not fall on Erica. In other words, it must appear entirely to be your fault.”

“So you want the rumors to circulate that way.”

“…Yes.”

“So you’re asking me to do something that will ruin the princess’s reputation.”

At the mention of his daughter, the Emperor’s golden eyes flickered slightly.

“Ahem. You know mere rumors won’t be enough.”

“….”

“And if I approve the annulment now, people will assume my daughter was the one who cheated. That would permanently ruin Erica’s reputation. She should have… been a bit more obvious about it.”

Leopold nodded slowly.

He, too, was no stranger to rumors of infidelity. Some intentional, some not.

But compared to him, Erica’s scandals had been far too reckless. That was the main reason her reputation had plummeted.

Still, something felt off.

The Emperor had been determined to keep this marriage before—so why suddenly agree?

Unless something had changed.

Unless he was in a situation where he had no choice.

The Emperor’s eyes looked less confident—and more anxious.

Leopold decided to trust his instincts.

“If that’s the case, I have another request.”

“…You want more?”

The Emperor clicked his tongue but gestured for him to continue.

“Destroy the will my father left behind, which the princess took.”

The Emperor’s expression visibly stiffened.

“That case was already closed.”

“Perhaps. But it still contains information that could implicate my mother.”

“….”

“And you’ve kept it all this time to use it against me, haven’t you?”

“Leopold…!”

The Emperor raised his voice.

But Leopold’s gaze remained cold and steady.

“Things are different now.”

In the end, the Emperor yielded—but added a warning.

“Fine. But the scandal must be far more shocking than my daughter’s. Enough to dominate public attention. And the partner must be equally involved.”

That was fine.

Leopold’s lips curved slightly.

In fact, he might already have the perfect candidate.

A woman he had noticed earlier at the imperial banquet.

He lightly licked his lips as he thought of the blueberry.

Tomorrow, he would summon her.

Violetta Hernandez.

“I think you should have an affair with me.”

Violetta, who had been dragged to the ducal estate early in the morning before even starting her consultations, wondered if she had finally lost her mind.

The reason was the man casually sitting on the desk, bathed in calm morning sunlight, speaking those absurd words with a perfectly composed face.

An affair?

Was he talking about the wind kind of affair?

Maybe her ears had broken from the oppressive aura of the ducal estate… or her mind had snapped the moment she entered.

Either that—or Leopold Otero had completely lost his mind.