There was someone with a more slippery tongue than Alexandru.
“Oh my God! It’s so ominous.”
Helen, who had no sense of timing, crept between them.
Although she was oblivious to everything, at this moment Helen seemed like Alexandro's savior.
He silently applauded Helen's courage.
“Let's stop this boring conversation, Your Highness. Please tell us about the capital.”
Helen added a playful laugh, lengthening her words.
She seemed genuinely interested in the Duke.
She couldn't understand the dynamics between Saiki and Clint, so he casually asked the question to lighten the heavy mood.
Of course, there may be more personal interest in Clint.
Alexandro thought it necessary to change the atmosphere between them, so he quickly intervened.
“Hahaha, yes. Your Majesty, can we share a story we all know?”
Upon hearing this, Clint stared at Alexandro as if he could kill him.
He tried his best to avoid eye contact with Clint, who seemed to think he might die here with just one look.
Fortunately, Helen quickly responded to Alexandro's words.
“Really? I’m very interested in the lives of the nobility in the capital.”
Helen asked with sparkling eyes, focusing solely on the Duke.
Clint wasn't happy with Helen's behaviour, so he took a sip of his drink and turned to look at Saiki again, responding.
“I see so. The lady, or should I say, Her Highness, must be quite familiar with life in the capital.”
Alexandro pointed directly at Psyche, once again feeling a sense of impending doom.
“Um, sir, I mean, Your Highness, he never talks about his time in the capital. There are probably only unpleasant memories. So, I apologize for asking, and...”
Helen's words stopped, and Clint's face became more threatening.
Alexandro felt like crying.
“Oh, was life in the capital unsatisfactory for you?”
Clint asked Saiki again.
Alexandru felt that the conversation, which he had carefully conducted, was beginning to return to square one.
“Regarding life in the capital…”
Saiki seemed determined to remain silent and ignored, and she spoke up, drawing everyone's attention to her.
“It is not something worthy of Your Majesty’s attention.”
“It's interesting, though.”
“Ah…”
Alexandro just wanted to disappear from this place.
He realized that he should not interfere in the emotional battle between the higher-ups.
Apparently Saiki's choice of words "interesting" didn't sit well with Clint.
But Alexandru had long ago given up on the dynamic between them. He decided to focus only on eating the food in front of him, because he was no longer able to contribute to lightening the atmosphere.
After all, he never wanted to get involved in emotional conflicts with those above him.
“I am sorry to hear that. Your Majesty seems to have dried up emotionally.”
“Instead... my wife leans more in that direction.”
Saiki smiled, greeting Clint's words with a smile.
"Oh, really. Do you two have any meetings in the capital?"
In the end, it was Helen who came between them again.
“…”
Helen took advantage of the moment when Clint was temporarily speechless at the mention of 'my wife', and delved into the conversation.
“Enough of the boring talk. Is there any interesting news from the capital these days?”
Helen asked with a twinkle in her eyes.
After regaining his composure, Clint deliberately averted his gaze from Saiki.
“News from the capital…”
“…”
After hearing this, Saiki completely lost interest in Clint, and only focused on pricking her plate with her fork.
“There doesn't seem to be much news lately.”
“Even old news will do! This place is so remote that news from the capital rarely reaches us.”
Helen asked with a dissatisfied expression.
“Old news then.”
Clint mumbled, as if remembering something, and spoke again.
“There is a lady named Rachel.”
“…!”
At these words, Saiki's gaze naturally gravitated towards him.
She didn't expect to hear the name "Rachel" again in this place.
Even now, remembering that name made her angry; She didn't like that Clint mentioned him.
“She got married and apparently hosted a banquet more lavish than that of the princess herself.”
“Oh my God! How wonderful are the banquets in the capital? They must be very lavish and expensive, right?”
Helen responded enthusiastically, like a girl dreaming.
Saiki was somewhat surprised.
She didn't think she'd hear the name "Rachel" again here.
Thinking about it, she found it hard to believe that the troubled woman who couldn't distinguish between heaven and earth in front of her had abandoned Clint and married another man.
“Who is her partner?”
Saiki couldn't help but break her silence out of curiosity.
“Married Viscount Marcin.”
“…”
Saiki still finds it confusing.
However, she didn't like Clint bringing up Rachel's story here, especially when it was clear he wanted to keep them apart.
Despite her intention to create clear boundaries between them, Saeki felt uncomfortable about revealing Rachel's story here.
“But haven’t you finished eating?”
Trying to sound friendly, Helen quickly changed her tone and asked, "Should I show you around? Claude will guide you. Have a pleasant evening."
Without making eye contact with Clint, Saiki quickly apologized, feeling concerned about the developing situation.
Clint tried to follow her, but Helen insisted on hearing more stories about D.C., effectively preventing him from leaving.
Ignoring the laughter between Helen and Clint, Psyche stormed off, leaving them behind.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Ha...I'm really tired.”
As soon as she left the dining table, Saeki thought about quickly washing up and going to sleep.
Feeling so exhausted by Clint's visit that had disturbed her peace, Saeki had no intention of leaving the dining table suddenly.
But for Rachel's story to be mentioned in a meeting where they met after a long time – it was something she could not bear.
“The child…comes to my mind.”
Her mood has dropped for no apparent reason.
Dealing with Clint alone was stressful enough, but the thought of a dead baby made it seem like her body and mind wouldn't take it.
Saiki sat quietly on the bed, pecking her cheek gently.
“There is no need to talk about this matter.”
She deliberately swallowed her feelings and shook her head.
“Oh, I wonder if Sherritt fell asleep?”
She thought Sherritt, who had to eat dinner and sleep alone while welcoming Clint's party, was on her mind.
It bothered her even more after spending so much time alone.
She thought she should see Sherrit quickly and get back to bed early.
She pulled the rope to call the maid.
“Is Sherrit asleep?”
“Oh, she kept complaining about wanting to see the lady and then suddenly fell asleep.”
“Oh really?”
Psyche, who was about to put on her robe to leave, sat down again when she heard that Sherrit had fallen asleep.
Although she felt sorry to hear that Sherrit had fallen asleep nagging, Saeki didn't want to disturb her by going into the room and waking her up.
“Okay, take good care of her so she doesn’t wake up. Tomorrow, as soon as she wakes up, tell me. I’ll go see her.”
“Oh, Miss Sherritt will be delighted!”
"Yes."
Psyche felt a little better when she thought of seeing Sherritt in the morning.
“Aren’t you going to sleep, ma’am? Shall I get you some tea to help you relax?”
"No, I'm tired. I can sleep right away. Just go."
After these words, the maid bowed politely and left the room.
When she saw the maid leaving, Saiki quickly took off her robe and placed it on the table.
“It's time already...”
The night was already deep.
She was wondering if Claude had concluded the dinner with Clint party well, but she trusted Claude and decided to get some sleep.
Knock knock.
When she was about to get into bed.
Someone knocked on the door, and I panicked and quickly pulled the cover.
"Huh? Did Sherrit wake up?"
Thinking it might be Sherrit, Psyche hurriedly got out of bed.
“Come in.”
After a while, the door opened.
Naturally, she thought it was a returning servant, but to her surprise, it was none other than Clint.
Saiki quickly wrapped her robe around herself, feeling shocked.
She made a sharp sound without realizing it.
Are you crazy?
“…”
Clint entered quietly and closed the door loudly.
“Where do you think this is the right place for you to come in?”
Clint spoke, smiling slightly.
“Is it not permissible for a husband to enter his wife’s room?”