A Three-Way Encounter
Blair followed the hand with startled eyes.
Standing before her was Mikhail.
Blair naturally placed her hand on top of his and asked,
“How did you recognize me?”
“People who come to places like this usually can’t wait to flaunt their status.
If someone tries to show off their family seal more prominently, that’s one thing—but people who arrive in a hired carriage are rare.”
“Still, there must be at least a few people who come in hired carriages.”
“Well, let’s just say it’s the power of magic.”
Mikhail brushed it off with a playful smile and guided Blair into the gallery.
This private gallery held an art auction once every season.
Today was the spring auction.
Among the works scheduled to appear today was a painting that Ivan’s attendant intended to buy.
Blair had come here to secure that painting in advance—and also to purchase a few artworks to fill the rather empty ducal residence.
“This way.”
Following Mikhail down to the basement, they arrived at a spacious hall shaped like a theater.
Unlike a theater, however, the lights were bright.
The two of them sat down in a relatively quiet area.
Looking at the stage, it seemed the auction was still being prepared.
Blair kept glancing around.
On the table before them were several numbered cards, an oak board, and a round sign.
Mikhail watched Blair looking around with the curiosity of a child, finding the sight amusing.
“It seems this is your first time at an auction house.”
Only then did Blair realize her behavior wasn’t very ladylike and she set down the sign she had been examining.
“I never had the chance to leave the imperial palace.
My father forbade me from going out because it was dangerous, and my health was also poor…”
But in truth, there was another decisive reason.
Blair disliked attracting attention.
Simply because she was a princess, every word she said or glance she gave would invite endless speculation.
People judging her based on a fleeting moment they happened to see.
And…
“Blair, if you are a princess, behave like one.
Please don’t embarrass your mother!”
Katrina’s obsessive fixation on even a single mistake.
Because of that, she still felt uncomfortable drawing people’s attention.
After becoming the Duchess, she had gained a little freedom from those gazes.
Blair had wanted to go out and see the outside world she had never properly experienced as a princess.
Together with Heredin.
If she was with him, she felt the gazes of others wouldn’t matter.
“Heredin.
If you have time, would you go with me to see the clock tower in the plaza?”
“I’ll inform the knights.
It’s cold, so dress warmly before you go.”
But he was always busy, and when he did have time, it was difficult to leave the bedroom.
At the time, she had believed that was love.
After all, he had worried about her kindly.
Even though she longed to go outside, she had still enjoyed being held in his arms.
“That man always put his own desires first.”
Perhaps she had known it all along, yet pretended to understand him, desperately rationalizing it so she wouldn’t feel miserable.
The sudden memory of the past made Blair smile bitterly.
Seeing the faintly bitter smile on her lips, Mikhail spoke with a gentle grin.
“It seems I’ll have to take you out often under the excuse of your requests.
I know many nice places in the capital.
Suddenly I feel a great sense of responsibility.”
Blair blinked at his words.
She couldn’t understand why he was offering such kindness so readily.
After thinking for a moment, she reached a simple conclusion.
‘Money really does solve everything.’
His kindness must simply be professional courtesy toward a client.
His straightforward smile made it hard to imagine any ulterior motives hidden behind it.
Before long, the preparations for the auction were nearly complete.
Watching the stage, Mikhail spoke.
“Before the auction begins in earnest, there’s something I would like to ask you.”
Blair instinctively sensed that the topic he wanted to bring up was related to Caligo.
And as expected, he mentioned the name.
“The man named Caligo Elparind is a knight of the House of Delmark.
May I ask why you are investigating him?”
Blair hesitated at the question.
One of the reasons she had met Mikhail today was to hear news about Caligo.
But she couldn’t explain the true reason.
‘…I can’t tell him that man will kill me in the future.’
When Blair couldn’t answer immediately, Mikhail asked again, as if he had expected this reaction.
“If it’s difficult to say, could you at least tell me whether you’re looking for him for a good reason or a bad one?”
“It’s a personal… unpleasant matter.”
Mikhail’s brows furrowed at her answer.
The vague sense of foreboding he had felt grew stronger.
Of course, it was still only a premonition.
If he spoke about something uncertain, it might only put her in danger.
He needed to dig a little deeper.
“I will investigate further for now.
He may be more dangerous than expected, so please keep your distance if possible.”
Just as Mikhail finished speaking, the host who would conduct the auction stepped onto the stage.
Soon after, the auction began.
* * *
The gallery director stood beside a man with his hands neatly clasped and looked up at him.
A tall figure with a perfectly straight posture, and a handsome face that suited the word “beautiful.”
Even simply standing there and admiring a painting, he looked like part of the artwork itself.
It was Heredin Delmark, the largest investor in this gallery.
His mother, Eloise—the previous Duchess of Delmark—had come from the Marquess House of Piache, which was famous for supporting artists.
Perhaps because he had grown up in such an environment, she too had been deeply knowledgeable about the arts and had supported many impoverished artists during her lifetime.
Her son Heredin had continued her legacy by investing in the gallery.
Yet every time the director saw him, he felt intimidated.
Partly because of his unreal appearance, but more than that, there was an indescribably cold pressure surrounding the man.
Even without considering the fact that he was the gallery’s largest investor.
Especially today.
‘He seems strangely sharper than usual today…’
Still, he had never seemed this frightening when his aide was present.
After cautiously observing Heredin’s expression, the director carefully asked,
“Um… did your aide not accompany you today?”
“He had other matters to attend to.”
Ruth had voluntarily been working outside for several days.
Unaware that this decision had been made to avoid Heredin, who had become extremely sensitive after the discussion about his contract marriage.
“Ah…
I see.”
The director’s expression darkened instantly, but Heredin, still looking at the painting, did not notice.
“There are quite a few good paintings here.
I’ll visit again sometime soon.”
Private galleries periodically replaced the artworks on display.
This both attracted visitors with new exhibitions and helped discover emerging artists.
After the exhibitions ended, the artworks were sold to nobles through auctions or direct sales.
“You intend to purchase a painting?
If there is a piece you want, please let me know now.
I can set it aside in advance.”
“No, my wife will choose the paintings.”
A few days earlier, Ruth had told him about the day he helped Blair prepare for the banquet.
Blair had mentioned that it would be nice to hang more paintings on the walls.
Remembering that comment while visiting the gallery, Heredin had impulsively arranged a meeting with the director.
The director looked at him with curiosity.
‘Are he and his wife closer than expected?’
When news of Heredin’s marriage to Blair had spread, most people assumed he would treat her poorly.
The long-standing feud between the imperial family and the House of Delmark was widely known.
Yet the Heredin before him now almost seemed to cherish his wife.
Of course, it could simply be an act for the sake of appearances.
Whatever the truth was, it was enough to play along appropriately.
“Haha, of course the mistress of the house should have the final say in decorating the residence.
Then if you inform me the day before, I will be waiting.”
Heredin left the exhibition room with the gallery director.
At that moment, a large crowd was coming up from the basement.
Seeing this, Heredin glanced toward them.
The director quickly explained,
“Ah, today is the spring auction.
It seems the auction has just ended.
If you are interested…”
While the director spoke, most of the crowd passed by.
A little later, a man and a woman came up together.
Heredin had been about to walk past them without interest, but when he saw them, he stopped.
The veil attached to the woman’s hat covered part of her face.
But he recognized her immediately.
That woman was his wife.
Blair was smiling brightly as she spoke with a man he did not recognize.
The sight felt unfamiliar.
Strangely so.
The gallery director was still saying something beside him, but Heredin heard none of it.
“Your Grace?”
At the same moment the director called him, Mikhail—who had been smiling gently at Blair—lifted his gaze.
The smile vanished from his face when his eyes met Heredin’s.
Only then did Blair notice the strange tension in the air and followed Mikhail’s gaze.
At the end of it, she saw Heredin.
Blair’s eyes widened in surprise.
“…Heredin?”
Her blinking eyes showed only surprise at the unexpected encounter.
There was no sign of panic from having a secret discovered.
Reading that emotion, the corner of Heredin’s lips twisted