The Archduke’s Flower Is in Danger - Chapter 10

From early morning, the footsteps of maids hurrying between the Grand Duchess’s powder room and dressing room were frantic.

“Lady Idel, please lift your chin just a little.”

Feeling the touch of the brush sweeping across her face, Idel Fleure tried her best to grow accustomed to the process. Following the maid’s skillful movements, a bright vitality was added to her translucent skin.

At the Count’s estate, her personal maid, Bien, had groomed her skillfully, but the experienced maids of the Grand Ducal House were far more numerous and professional.

“Since it is a dinner at the Imperial Palace, a dress that is formal but not excessive would be best.”

At the Count’s estate, her sparse wardrobe—born of her lack of interest in clothing—had always left Bien fretting. The dressing room here, however, was on a completely different scale, packed with garments of luxurious fabric brought from the Charlotte Boutique.

A maid approached, carrying a cream-colored dress intricately embroidered with delicate lace. The current trend favored dresses that emphasized natural lines rather than the excessively puffed crinoline style, and bright pastel tones over intense primary colors.

“My goodness! Lady Idel, you are so beautiful.”

Her wheat-colored hair, treated with fragrant oils, flowed down as smoothly as honey. Above the flower pin securing her hair, an exquisitely crafted Turkish diamond shone with a subtle glow.

“You look like a flower fairy.”

“His Grace will fall in love the moment he sees you!”

The young maids’ eyes sparkled as they looked at the prospective Grand Duchess. The way the icy Grand Duke melted only in front of her was the most popular topic of conversation among the servants lately.

“Lady Idel, if you are ready, shall we go to His Grace’s dressing room?”

Marlene, watching the scene with a satisfied expression, made the suggestion.

“To His Grace’s dressing room?”

“Did you happen to see the section in the guidebook I gave you yesterday regarding what a wife must personally attend to before her husband’s official outings?”

Idel recalled the contents of the Duchess of Roman’s guidebook, which she had read thoroughly before bed last night. If it was something to be handled before an official outing… Ah!

“Are you referring to tying His Grace’s cravat?”

“That is correct. Now that the Grand Duchess is here, this old woman can finally stop doing it in your stead.”

Marlene guided her to the Grand Duke’s dressing room with a benevolent smile.

The spaces for the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess were mostly interconnected. After opening the inner door of the Grand Duchess’s dressing room and passing through a short corridor, they reached the door leading to the Grand Duke’s dressing room.

“Your Grace, we are coming in for a moment.”

Upon entering after a short knock, they saw Kaeron Roman de Helios standing before a full-length mirror, with attendants waiting nearby holding his attire. He was in the middle of fastening the buttons of his dress shirt, which was draped lightly over his shoulders. Between the open flaps of the shirt, his broad collarbones were revealed. Idel’s gaze was momentarily stolen by the smooth, delicate chest muscles beneath, which looked as though they were carved from stone.

“It is quite troublesome when you stare so intently.”

Startled by his voice, which held a hint of amusement, Idel’s eyes met his in the mirror. His deep blue eyes were watching her changing expressions with interest. Idel quickly lowered her gaze in embarrassment, pressing her hands against her cheeks. Her entire face felt hot, as if a fever had suddenly flared up.

“What is the matter? I am still preparing.”

“Lady Idel has come to tie your cravat herself.”

“Ah… I see.”

The smile on Kaeron’s lips deepened at the sight of the woman who was still blushing and didn’t know what to do with herself. While her pure, refined appearance after her grooming caught his eye, it was her shy expression—reminiscent of a newly blooming bud—that drew his gaze even more.

“Come here. Closer.”

When Kaeron turned around and called her, the hesitant Idel slowly approached and stood before him. An attendant handed her the cravat.

“…I only learned this quickly, so I might be clumsy.”

“It is alright. The first time is always like that.”

Holding the cravat, Idel took a small breath. Avoiding the gaze that looked down at her, she reached out and wrapped the cloth around his neck.

With the motion that felt almost like an embrace, her scent permeated his senses deeply. His gaze became profound and soulful as he watched the woman tie the knot with slightly trembling hands.

“My maternal grandmother told me once. Why the custom began for the Duchess to tie the Duke’s cravat before an official outing.”

His voice had dropped an octave as he mentioned the late Duchess of Roman. Idel raised her head and looked at him with curious eyes.

“It was meant to remind the Duke that even when he goes out into the world, he belongs to the Duchess. It carries the meaning to remember that you are bound to one another, just as this cravat is tied.”

His deep blue eyes, filled with a craving gaze, seemed to imply something more. Idel’s hands, still holding the cravat, tightened instinctively.

A carriage engraved with the crest of the Grand Ducal House arrived at the entrance of the Imperial Palace. The Grand Duke and the prospective Grand Duchess, escorted by him, stepped out.

“Welcome, Your Grace. And Lady Idel.”

The courtiers, led by the Emperor’s Chief Attendant Isaac, who had come out to meet them, bowed in greeting. Though they maintained a disciplined posture, they could not resist casting glances toward the veiled prospective Grand Duchess.

So that is the prospective Grand Duchess.

She truly possesses the grace to capture the Grand Duke’s heart.

The courtiers whispered quietly as they watched their retreating figures walking toward the Emperor’s audience chamber.

“Are you nervous?”

Kaeron looked at her, feeling her hand tremble slightly in his.

“It is my first time visiting the Palace. And my first time meeting His Majesty.”

“There is no need to be so tense. As I told you, you are a person of the Grand Ducal House. Do not be discouraged anywhere, even if you are standing before the Emperor.”

It was a blatant display of arrogance, yet it seemed perfectly natural for the Grand Duke. Feeling a strange sense of stability from him, Idel relaxed her posture and straightened her back.

“It has been a long time, brother.”

Emperor Pascal greeted Kaeron as he entered the chamber. Soon, his gaze shifted to the woman beside the Duke.

“So, you are the prospective Grand Duchess.”

“I greet Your Imperial Majesty. I am Idel Fleure.”

Idel offered her greeting with flawless etiquette. Once the veil was lifted, the prospective Grand Duchess proved to be a beauty of even greater elegance than expected.

So this is my brother’s type.

Pascal thought to himself as he sat across from the couple at the table in the audience chamber. Sitting next to the Grand Duke’s large and solid frame, the prospective Grand Duchess looked even more fragile. However, her unwavering, calm expression was strangely similar to the Duke’s.

“I was curious. What exactly prompted my brother to announce a marriage so suddenly? I barely restrained myself from rushing to the Grand Ducal residence immediately.”

“Your temperament is as unchanging as ever.”

“It was just like you to let me find out about your marriage through a newspaper article without a single word to me. I was actually worried you wouldn’t even come to dinner today.”

The Emperor, his eyes full of feigned hurt, spoke in a tone that sounded like he was sulking. Idel was internally surprised by the Emperor’s informal and unpretentious demeanor.

Unlike Kaeron, who had black hair like the late Empress, Pascal was a handsome man with blonde hair like the late Emperor. However, their deep blue eyes—the symbol of the Imperial Family—were identical. The two looked more like close brothers than an Emperor and a Grand Duke. It felt somewhat endearing to see the younger Emperor complaining to his older brother.

“Now that I see the prospective Grand Duchess, I understand. Even my brother, who used to keep women at a distance, is but a man before such a special beauty.”

To Pascal’s wild assumption, Kaeron gave a mysterious expression that was neither an affirmation nor a denial. Idel also remained silent with an awkward smile. Although they were bound only by a contract, it seemed he intended to keep this secret from the people of the residence and even the Emperor.

Noticing Idel’s slightly pale complexion, the Emperor laughed meaningfully.

“No matter how much you adore your bride… making her part with her family before the wedding was a bit much.”

At the mention of family, Idel’s eyes wavered. Kaeron’s eyes also narrowed. Despite the subtle shift in the atmosphere, Pascal continued to smile as usual.

“One of my aides happened to visit a salon of a family he is close with and ran into Lady Roseline.”

At the unexpected name, Idel’s shoulders flinched. Pascal watched her reaction closely.

“I heard Lady Roseline was so saddened by the sudden parting with her sister that she had tears in her eyes. She said she didn’t even get to say a proper goodbye.”

Tears in her eyes from the sadness of parting? Idel bit the inside of her lip. If Roseline had shed tears, it was certainly for a different reason.

“So, what is your point? You know I do not like talking in circles.”

“I was just getting to the main point. I prepared a surprise gift since the prospective Grand Duchess was coming.”

Pascal, not at all cowed by Kaeron’s cold expression, called for the Chief Attendant with a wide smile.

“Isaac, have her come in.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

As Isaac opened the door to the audience chamber, a woman stepped inside. A flamboyant dress rippled like a flower in full bloom with every step she took. As the sound of footsteps drew closer, the familiar scent of roses grew stronger.

“I offer my greetings to the beloved Emperor and the Grand Duke.”

It was a voice like a chirping bird. Idel knew well the woman who used such a voice to casually push others off a cliff.

“Welcome, Lady Roseline.”

“Thank you for inviting me, Your Majesty. For allowing me to see my sister like this.”

“I, too, understand the desire to see one’s sibling.”

Pascal gave a devious smile as he introduced her arrival to Idel.

“Are you surprised? I sent for Lady Roseline specifically. I thought the prospective Grand Duchess would want to see her sister.”

“…Thank you for your consideration.”

At the stiff voice responding to the Emperor, Kaeron stared intently at Idel’s face. He knew that when she felt a sense of vigilance, she would close her lips tight and maintain a firm expression. Kaeron frowned at the sight.

“I missed you, sister.”

Roseline smiled broadly at Idel, her eyes crinkling. To an outsider, she looked genuinely happy to see her, but within those eyes lay a vivid hostility that only someone who had lived with her for over a decade could read.