Rosenta woke up.
However, rather than feeling refreshed or clear of mind, he was dizzy.
What he had read yesterday had been replaying in his head over and over again. Naturally, he hadn’t slept well.
‘How many times did I wake up last night?’
"What should I do first?"
He hadn’t been able to read the whole book.
This was because he couldn't absorb all that information, and there was still a lot to read.
He’d barely managed to fall asleep and was thinking that today wasn’t his day...….
"It’s still shocking."
While washing himself and getting himself ready to leave the bedroom, he continued mumbling.
Like a student trying to force knowledge into their head that won’t absorb.
"The Holy Kingdom...….”
Drove away the darkness.
He pieced together the information he’d read yesterday like a puzzle.
It was written that Rouge's subjects slaughtered those who opposed them, leaving only a few behind.
They didn’t kill them all for fear of being punished.
Then, those who obeyed were rewarded accordingly.
"This empire was one of the rewards."
Questions about the strange power system of the Helios empire and the abilities of its dukes began to be resolved gradually.
Everyone, except the descendants of the priests of Harmonia and the royal family, still used their ‘names’.
Cardia, Gray, Snow.
And even Estella, who once again tried to revolt and is being watched and despised.
"I guess I’ll have to check first."
Honestly, this was a story of the past.
He didn't think it was very important to him who was living in the present, but it could also be a story that only affected him.
“……It might be different if it were his father."
‘Yeah, stop thinking. It's time to act.’
He went straight out to the hallway.
Then, on his way down the stairs, he came across Edmund, who was coming to meet him just in time.
"Duke? You’re up early."
Normally, he would have greeted Edmund warmly, but now there was no time for a proper conversation.
He gave strict orders.
"Edmund, follow me."
He took Edmund to a hole in front of the shrubbery.
He had Edmund guard the entrance with his back to him.
"You stand here and ensure no one approaches."
"What? Yes, sir."
Edmund seemed puzzled, but he followed his orders without a word.
He went inside with a relieved mind, thinking that he wouldn’t have to work under anxiety.
There was a reason that he’d come to the hole Enoch made for him.
First, he summoned his magic space.
"Magic space."
A black ring formed and floated in the air.
He summoned the skeleton that would act as his errand boy from inside it.
It was a skeleton wearing courier armor for emergency use.
Because it was still asleep, the skeleton remained still like a mannequin.
Rosenta recited the command.
"Wake up."
At that time, a loud sound could be heard from within the armor, and an eerie breeze began to swirl around the skeleton.
He waited for a moment.
Rosenta immediately opened the mouth of the helmet and put his hand inside.
He felt the cold bones.
He was not panicked or afraid; instead, he tried to clear his mind.
"Read."
In his cleared mind, he recalled the image of a certain graveyard.
He then visualized the skeleton in front of him digging into the tomb of "Caligo Estella” ...….
He even imagined it dragging the coffin containing his body to him.
Finally, Rosenta spat out the words,
"Bring it."
***
Vivian came again for another day visit.
However, it seemed that she’d come with a different purpose from yesterday.
Rosenta saw a large chest.
"What's this?"
"It's a gift. Open it!"
Vivian giggled as if she was enjoying his confusion and urged him to open it quickly.
She couldn't stay still for even a moment, like a person who was about to witness a surprise event.
‘What present will it be this time?’
It was definitely a gift that would suit her tastes more than his. He was more worried than excited.
But he didn't show it.
As he always did, he opened the lid of the chest with an expectant expression on his face.
"Flowers?"
He wasn’t sure whether to consider it fortunate or to ask what it was.
It was actually filled with purple and pink flowers. It was fragrant.
"A sculpture?"
‘I don't think they’re meant to be used for decoration or in a bath...….’
As expected, the sculpture hypothesis was more plausible.
Regardless of the purpose, he’d received a gift, so he tried to replace the cover with a thank you.
"Thank you. I’ll keep this well...….”
"Oh! It's not over yet!"
Vivian quickly blocked him with her arms wide open.
Vivian grumbled and took the lid he held and put it on the floor.
Then she pointed back to the chest and told him,
"This is just a decorative cover to sneak it in. The real present is underneath."
"The real gift? What on earth did you bring to require all this?"
"That's a secret."
Vivian was very excited as if she couldn't simply tell him.
It'd been a long time since Vivian was so excited.
As a result, his expression, which had been hardened throughout the day, gradually softened.
After bursting into laughter, he rummaged carefully, thrusting himself almost inside the chest.
Things started to come out one by one.
Things piled up on the table before he knew it, and finally, a long piece of cloth was held in his hand.
It was a dress. A black high-cut dress with white lace.
He held the dress away from his body with his fingers, as though it was something he couldn’t touch up close.
Then he asked,
"Vivian, what is this?"
"I bought something that fits Rosen’s body. And I bought the rest because I thought they’d be needed."
‘The rest’ Vivian referred to were the feminine products on the table.
In fact, he’d secretly gone out and got them once or twice. It was inconvenient because there was no one to buy women’s products for him.
‘I don't even have Anna anymore.’
So, he was grateful for this, but he wasn’t particularly interested in the dress.
"Thanks for this, but I don’t need the dress. We've already bought plenty of clothes together."
‘If I have too many, it's just a burden and I won't be able to wear them all.’
Was Vivian thinking differently, however? She shook her head very firmly when he said it.
As if she’d never take it back.
She even shook her index finger and spoke as if she were scolding him.
"No. The clothes we bought then aren’t appropriate for the banquet. You have to wear something appropriate for the dress code when you go to the banquet."
"What do you mean ‘banquet’?"
He burst into a faint laugh.
He couldn't imagine it at all. ‘Rosa’ and a banquet were concepts so far from one another.
He held the dress out again towards Vivian, who was staring blankly at him.
"I won't be attending any banquets anyway, so I won't even get the chance to wear this."
"Why? You'll need it for the upcoming banquet."
Vivian never took it.
On the contrary, she said something absurd.
Naturally, Rosenta couldn't understand, so he had no choice but to frown and ask Vivian again.
"What do you mean by the banquet? No, even if we were to hold a banquet, what would that have to do with this dress…….”
Vivian cut him off.
Then she tilted her head as if she couldn't understand what he was saying.
"There will be a banquet for the Woman in Purple."
***
On the way back to the imperial palace.
If everything had gone as planned, he would have to inspect a few villages just like when they’d set out.
From the beginning, he left the imperial capital under the pretext of inspection so as not to cause anxiety among the people of the empire.
However, Theodore passed through each village without stopping, never stopping to rest even when his companions showed signs of fatigue.
He was even riding on horseback, foregoing the carriage.
"Your, Your Majesty!"
Eventually, one of the priests who had been following behind approached Theodore.
The priest was pale.
In fact, he was so tired that his upper body kept swaying and his voice was weak.
"The saint said that she also wants to rest for a while...… If we come across a small town, we should stop by there...….”
"You are the ones who said you would not go back to the Holy Kingdom and joined us. Rest is a luxury at a time when we are busy."
Without blinking, Theodore rejected the offer.
He also had another reason to go in such a hurry.
Rosenta Estella.
‘I mean...… the woman in purple.’
The day after vainly losing her, Theodore saw an article related to the 'Magic Tower Lord'.
Enoch Wolf. As soon as he saw the name, Theodore noticed that it was Rosenta's butler.
At the same time, funnily enough, the wolf-masked man that took the woman in purple away came to mind.
Theodore had learned to predict and plan using the information given to him from an early age.
And now, he had been given some information that he felt overlapped.
So, he had to go back as quickly as possible and check if what he was thinking was correct.
His hazy gold eyes flashed sharply like a hawk seeking prey.
"Your, Your Majesty."
He had been organizing his thoughts for a moment.
Perhaps the priest had not given up. He approached Theodore again.
"Then, if we could stop so everyone could have a drink...….”
"Nota is coming soon. If you can't keep up with me, take a break on your own there."
It was a very cold answer.
Eventually, the priest gave up on resting and slowly ended his speech.
Finally, the obstruction disappeared.
Theodore accelerated towards Nota again as if he had been waiting to do so.
"I need to check...….”
‘I'm not going to ask openly.’
If his speculation was correct, it wouldn’t be easy for him to answer what he’d gone to such lengths to hide.
Instead, he had his own plan.
Earlier today, Theodore sent a letter through 'Sol'.
"Vivian, the woman in purple was a great help when I went on my inspection tour.
I'd like to hold a banquet for her, so please send an invitation by courier.
Also, to the new Tower Lord.
I want to hold a banquet as soon as possible, so I'd appreciate it if you could come forward and help me with the Marquis.”
‘If I send it to Vivian, it'll naturally reach the ears of the marquis.’
However…….
"If it's true, what should I do from now on?"
Theodore felt like he was going back and forth between hot and cold baths. Even though he was looking forward to it, his anger crept out.
Then he became happy and sad all over again.
Theodore called out the name, biting his lower lip to the point of bleeding.
“……Rosenta."
The moment he brought up the name.
Suddenly a high-pitched voice came from a carriage behind.
"Your Majesty!"
Theodore's face scowled at the interruption.
He bluntly answered the owner of the carriage approaching him.
"What's going on?"
"Oh, that's...… Our people seem tired, so I'm thinking of following your Majesty's recommendation."
"I see."
‘Are they following separately?’
Theodore tried to accelerate again, thinking it was fortunate that the load was reduced.
But he couldn’t pull the reins.
As soon as he heard Yura's words, the strength in his hands holding the reins disappeared.
"They say that the Duke of Estella's castle is nearby, so we will stop there for a break."