Chapter 57: 58

“What’s going on, Liddell?”

Exactly. I want to know what’s going on too. Or maybe it’s just a mood swing.

Well, if we meet and greet, we’ll naturally find out.

Anyway, since we are the only two Duke families of the Kleinin, so whether it’s late or early, I and Alan had to eventually face each other.

“Hisch, wait a moment.”

I gestured to Sir Ted to stay put as Hisch and I walked away together.

We pushed through the crowd and approached Alan and Violet. As expected, Alan spotted me and excused himself from the person he was talking to, taking a step towards me.

Just that alone made people discreetly give us space.

“Lady Catlan. Ah, have you received a title?”

His gruff voice resonated softly. I looked at the man in front of me once again.

Even though it wasn’t a tightly fitted garment, the fabric that wrapped around his body, perhaps due to the man’s sensuous physique, was revealing his body shape as it was.

In contrast, the man with restrained and disciplined blue eyes had one hand firmly supporting the waist of the woman next to him.

… Even with such careful observation, Alan Levitea was objectively good-looking to an extent that was beyond sufficient.

“ Little Duke [1] Levitea, it’s been a while.”

Encountering a face like this on the street would make people go, ‘Wow, damn,’ while admiring him. I discreetly tightened my grip on Hisch’s arm and smiled broadly.

But now that I think about it, my husband is even better.

“I heard you got married, but my work has been a mess, so I couldn’t come to see you. Would it be alright for me to introduce myself to your wife next to you?”

On the other hand, Violet was also stunningly beautiful, with pink hair cascading down to her waist and slightly flushed cheeks that made her even more lovely.

However, for some reason, the woman appeared with a slightly pale face and glanced at Hisch discreetly.

Especially when her gaze met Hisch’s, her eyes trembled so delicately that there was no room for any other explanation.

Could it be?

I thought to myself in response.

I wondered if Hisch had something to do with that shocked look she had just given me.

Surely, at this point, it won’t be revealed that my husband is somehow entangled in a secretive arrangement with the female protagonist, right? It can’t be… 

I glanced at Hisch with a side glance, but the man seemed to be seeing them for the first time. Alan, who didn’t notice me deliberately managing my expression, nodded his head.

“Of course. This is Violet Levitea. My wife, Violet. And this is…”

With a completely different attitude from when Alan addressed me, he looked at Violet with a momentary softened expression.

However, in that instant, she staggered. Alan stopped speaking and quickly supported her, and I, too, was startled and reached out my hand to Violet.

“Ah. I-I a… I apologize.”

She was visibly flustered. I quietly observed her reaction and, with a gentle smile on my lips, met Violet’s eyes.

“You seem a little pale. Are you alright, Madam?”

“Oh, thank you for your concern. But, I’m fine. Really, I’m fine…”

“You’re not fine. You were staggering earlier.”

Alan scrutinized Violet with a concerned expression. As she attempted to deny her condition politely once again, I spoke up first.

“It might have been surprising to suddenly have so many people approaching and greeting you. Even from a distance, the crowd gathering around the two of you was truly… remarkable.”

Upon hearing my words, Alan raised an eyebrow and glanced around. All those stares… Don’t tell me you really want to drive away all the guests at the party?

But well, if this were a novel and I were the reader, Alan’s futile attempt at restraint would have seemed cute.

“If Madam is fine with it, I can guide her to the lounge. Taking a moment to catch your breath might help.”

“Ah… I.”

“That’s right, Violet. Go ahead and do that. I’ll be with the Baron’s husband.”

I sent a questioning glance to Hisch, asking if he was okay with it. He still had a surprised look on his face, but he nodded slightly as if giving permission.

“I’m really alright…”

However, despite Violet’s words, she didn’t resist my supportive touch. I gently guided Violet, being careful as if I were truly someone who worried about her.

As I walked through the corridor connecting the party venue to the lounge, the noise that had been considered natural just moments ago suddenly subsided.

Tap, tap. The only sounds in the corridor were the footsteps of Violet and me, creating a somber atmosphere.

Once we reached the lounge, I felt that due to the presence of others, I might not be able to hear the information I wanted. I opened my mouth slowly.

“Madam.”

“Ah, yes.”

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“To be honest, the reason I suggested accompanying you, apart from noticing that you didn’t look well, was because I sensed your interest in my husband when you saw him.”

As I spoke, Violet’s body stiffened at the touch of my hand.

“It was as if you had seen him somewhere before… or as if you knew him well.”

“……”

“I love my husband so much that when I saw a beautiful woman showing interest in him, I couldn’t help but become blinded by jealousy.”

I chuckled, exaggerating my words, and smiled mischievously.

“Have you, by any chance, met my husband before?”

“Ah…”

“Have you?”

If someone with dignity looked at someone else with such a shocking expression, wouldn’t they be obliged to provide an explanation?

Violet looked at me with startled eyes, as if my tone demanded such an explanation.

Then, as if she understood the content, she lowered her gaze.

With the other hand that I hadn’t held, she tightly grasped the hem of her dress and raised her head again.

“I’m sorry. It’s just… it’s a bit complicated to explain.”

Her response left me slightly bewildered. No, could it be true that there was a complicated entanglement between her and my husband?

“Then, for a moment… um. Not in the lounge, but perhaps somewhere secluded like the garden…”

I nodded in response to her words. That was exactly what I had in mind as well.

・❥・

There might be couples having secret meetings somewhere in this vast garden, but there didn’t seem to be any visible at the moment.

As soon as we set foot in the garden, Violet skipped alongside me, her footsteps light and swift. Moonlight spilled over her forehead, making her silhouette appear almost ethereal.

You need to have that level of presence to become the female lead, I thought fleetingly. I would never receive such a spotlight, being the center of attention in the world.

Violet quickly turned her head and looked at me. Having organized her thoughts, she spoke in a calmer voice than before.

“… Baron. First of all, let me apologize. I would never… see your husband in the way you’re thinking. It’s not like that at all, Baron.”

Of course, she wouldn’t. However, I waited for her to continue without giving a response.

“To share this story, there is something I must first mention… It is a fact that has not yet been announced publicly, both in my family and in my husband’s family…”

“……”

“Each member of the so-called noble families has their own abilities, they say.”

“… Could it be?”

When I expressed the slightest hint of surprise, she nodded.

“I can briefly glimpse into the future.”

“……”

“Although I’ve had occasional dreams with a sense of premonition, I never thought of it as any kind of ‘ability’ I possessed… But it turns out it is.”

No, what?

As I listened to her words, the first scene of <I Picked Up My Husband> came to mind, almost involuntarily.

Alan gets injured for some reason right from the beginning of the novel. And in a dream, Violet vaguely sees a scene where she hurriedly hides his body in a nearby cave. 

As a result, Violet’s first encounter with Alan was when she went to the cave, wondering if there was really an injured person.

I thought it was just a narrative device that naturally connected the destinies of the two characters. Who would have thought there would be such a behind-the-scenes story?

I was surprised by that aspect, but Violet attributed my reaction to her own ability and calmly nodded her head.

“I have occasionally had such precognitive dreams since I was young… It’s not as frequent as having visions of the future, but there’s one dream that I’ve consistently had since I was very young.”

As the woman calmly continued her explanation, I blinked my eyes in response.

She said that the dream always begins with the death of a certain man. After an unknown man dies, a world unfolds that appears to be on the brink of destruction.

By the onslaught of monsters pouring down fiercely, similar to the present but even more intense, the frontlines reached a territory below the capital, and Kleinin engaged in a desperate resistance there.

That territory was located not far from the capital, divided by mountain ranges, and in the dream, Alan would use those mountains as a shield to fend off the monsters, bringing the dream to an end.

As Violet spoke about her dream, I could sense the tremor in her soft voice, indicating that she had condensed and omitted several brutal and detailed aspects.

However, my attention was fixated on one thing, and I disregarded those minor signals.

Because the characteristics of the territory she described overlapped with a region I was familiar with.

Could it be… Ensis?