Eun-woo grabbed him after she rolled up her sleeve and stretched out her hands.
"Wa, wait!"
She pondered on what she could do to gain his attention elsewhere, and spat out what she could remember.
"I met your older brother on the terrace earlier!"
Instantly, it became silent.
Afterwards, she opened her closed eyes.
The first thing that caught her eyes were Ikshid's eyes, which was almost brown. She has never seen him with his surprised look. After Ikshid, was her Older Brother, Diego. A man who had never frowned previously, was putting a serious expression on his face.
"Ah…"
Eun-woo looked up and looked at Tashian's face, wondering what she had said wrong. And when she saw the emotions that came to his face, she was surprised and bowed her head again.
It was an indescribable anger, and I hate to admit it, but it has a hint of fear.
For the first time, Eun-woo felt her back filled with her cold sweats as she watched the three men in front of her, making the same faces with their closed eyes.
'What kind of person is he…?'
Eun-woo shrank her shoulders while remembering the creepy voice of Chief Reinhardt who said, Benepis.
Again this time, the first thing to regain composure was Ikshid.
"In that case, he had the mask Diego didn't know where it had vanished?"
Eun-woo replied in surprise.
"Ye, yes. I couldn't see him well because of the dark, but it was definitely the same mask."
"Are you sure you met him alone?"
"Yes. Chief Reinhardt was definitely alone."
When he heard Eun-woo's answer, Tashian's chin gained strength. However, Eun-woo did not notice it and only looked at Ikshid's eyes.
As soon as the prince heard her answer, he grabbed his forehead as if he had a sudden headache. He threw away the golden mask he held in his hand and raged.
"Damn it! No matter how much an heir has no restrictions around the Imperial Palace, this was too much…! I can't believe he'd wander around leisurely without any prior notice beforehand! With his actions, he openly mocks the honor of the Imperial Palace…!"
The successor position is the highest authority boasting independent power within the Hellasium. It was the authority of the Chief that even the crown prince could deprive him of his right to succession overnight.
At that time when no one dared to say anything along with Ikshid's anger as if they were gnawing ice, a person approached Ikshid, who had been a witness on what was happening so far.
"I beg your pardon, Crown Prince."
When she opened her mouth, a clear, clean, and straight voice ranged out. And at that moment, Eun-woo almost collapsed into her seat as he was contemplating.
It was Selena.
She took off her mask and was walking slowly, but straight to Ikshid.
"Everyone has been gazing in this area since earlier. May I suggest that all of the people involved in this discussion move to a different place to continue this talk privately?"
Eun-woo witnessed Ikshid's golden eyes shake as if they were convulsions as if looking at Selena.
She let out a sigh of despair inside.
It was a moment of desperation. The male and female protagonists of the novel met only in this situation. It was the moment when all the efforts she had been preparing from the very beginning went to nothing.
Eun-woo's mind turned white like a blank sheet. She ran out to try something and tried to block between them, but it was already late. The meeting between Ikshid and Selena was accomplished.
Eun-woo had no choice but to look at the two, who had already made eye contact, from afar in a cold sweat.
Eun-woo could guess from Ikshid's expression that he has been captivated. His expression as he saw Selena was completely mesmerized.
Everyone in the banquet hall looked at the Crown Prince and the red-haired lady looking at each other in the center of the hall, and the siblings, who were next to them as if they were possessed by something.
However, no one has noticed a person who had his black mask in the corner.
***
No matter how good the party ended, like a dreamy time, the frightening sight which unfolded before her eyes passed quickly. About two weeks had passed since the prolific victory celebration banquet ended.
Before the banquet was over, servants of the Duke had to get used to the newcomer. After Marquis Eleanor, the head of state had received another guest, Marquis Diego Miller.
To be precise, their master was blind to such an extent that he had to provide his room and board at the mansion for free.
This was the beginning of the situation.
"What? The renovation work for the Duke's Mansion has been postponed…?"
Eun-woo sipped the tea in front of her and stared at Diego, who was looking elsewhere.
At first glance, the marquis was dressed so comfortably that he could not be recognized as a noble man. His vest and shabby suit pants on top of his shirt would have been good fabric if he was a servant working in this mansion. Only his distinct features, which were too unrealistically obvious to be a servant, were telling him that he was not an ordinary person.
Diego's gentle honey-colored hair was scattered casually on his straight forehead. His long and abundant inner eyebrows slightly facing his sister were hardened with tension.
He sipped over the teacup he was holding in his hand and mumbled back.
"… That's what happened."
Eun-woo was personally experiencing what it was like to be speechless because he was handsome.
She wondered whether she would rip off his brother's hair below his ears, who pretended to hum as to not make eye contact with her.
However, after a while, Eun-woo shook her head and examined the number of cases in which she and her brother could use to escape from this Residence.
"Hey, I'm sure the latter option has local land. I don't care if it's not the capital. It doesn't matter if there's a long way to go to the countryside!"
Eun-woo eventually set off a fire in front of her Brother, who was unable to give a proper answer while only talking. In her roar, Diego gulped down the tea he had in his mouth at once and coughed as if he had heard a tiger roaring.
"So about that…"
Eun-woo crossed her arms and looked at her Brother with stern eyes, as if she would never let it go. Diego, who had never been intimidated even in front of a crowd with hundreds of people, couldn't do it in front of his sister.
He hesitated, and eventually uttered in a voice that seemed to confess.
"… I sold it out."
Eun-woo had the illusion that her body was staggering and falling backwards at the moment at his words.
Is this how it feels to be dizzy and expect that the sky had turned yellow in front of your eyes?
"We had so many local estates… which had been sold out by you… was it that you were talking?"
Eun-woo couldn't believe her ears. Isn't Marquis Miller the next duke after Duke Verk the power of Hellasium?
"Just where exactly did you need all that money?"
"Don't worry! I left a small land. I have left the land and fields."
"That's not the problem right now!"
Eun-woo grabbed Diego's collar right away and complained while holding back what she wanted to say.
"Then, where are we going to stay now?"
Eun-woo said, 'No way', to Diego's face in her mind. She asked in a forced voice.
"… You don't mean that we will stay at the Duke's Residence, do you?"
Diego said with a good smile in vain.
"Don't worry. In this spacious Duke mansion, is there no place for this brother to lie down?"
"Brother!"
Eun-woo screamed and grabbed her forehead with both hands.
How would she face Tashian in the future again? Not only her, but with her Older Brother, Diego who seemed to want to stay here like a tick.
She lifted her hair and looked at her brother just in case.
"The duke knows about this…?"
Don't tell her that he would live here without the owner's permission!
However, the Marquis only sipped his tea in his hand without saying a word.
In his silence, she groaned and shouted.
"Older… Brother!!"
At that time, butler Johannes appeared from her behind where the brother and sister were sharing refreshments.
"Lord Marquis Miller. Lady Miller. His Highness, the Duke is coming."
Eun-woo was happy to see Johannes, but suddenly became stiff after she had said what she needed to.
"He happened to come at the perfect time. Brother, when Lord Verk comes, ask him to allow us to stay in his mansion."
Shouldn't the landlord at least know that a new person is staying at his house?
But when she turned her head toward Diego Miller, the chair was already empty without him.
Eun-woo touched her head again and collapsed.
"Brother…!"
"…What's going on?"
At that time, a heavy voice was heard. Eun-woo saw the duke crossing the corridor of the lounge and entering the place where she was. As usual, Eun-woo blushed at his wonderful appearance.
Tashian, who had reached just a few steps before where she was sitting, frowned as he looked at the opposite side of her, which was placed with a pile of empty teacups.
"…That's understandable. Did he run away again?"
Eun-woo noticed that this was not the first time Diego Miller ran away, judging from his blunt tone. She murmured softly, looking at his wits.
"Tashian, I'm really ashamed to face you. From me to my brother…. I'm really sorry."
Not long after the Duke accepted Miss, and her Brother, as a guest, as a pair of brothers and sisters, the inconvenience could not be termed as an inconvenience.
"It's not the first time it's happening. I don't care."
He trudged back, sitting on the seat where Diego Miller was sitting awhile back.
For some reason, as Diego Miller stayed in the mansion, his forehead always seemed to have fine wrinkles.
Tashian took the new tea cup brought by the maid and added it in a chilling voice.
"The next time I encounter him, I'll take him off, smack him, and kick him out."
His voice did not show any playfulness. Eun-woo could tell that his sad words were sincere to the bone.
He let out a sigh and muttered.
"...He's such an unpredictable man, so you don't know when and where he'll appear, so it might be better to put him right under your eyes."
Eun-woo only fiddled with the handle of the teacup without finding anything to say. She didn't know anything about Diego Miller's past, so she couldn't find anything to say.
She carefully checked the Duke's countenance, and suddenly he opened his mouth.
"It's been a long time since you've seen your brother's face."
When he said that, she blinked her eyes multiple times. She got into trouble.
How can she say that this would be her second time seeing his face except yesterday, let alone the word, long time?
Tashian was waiting for her, hoping for an answer.