Chapter 26

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter Title: Chapter 26

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In the dark study, dozens of documents were messily plastered across the walls.

Leroy, who had been blankly staring off at one of them, turned his head as he sensed approaching footsteps.

The moment the door opened, he spoke.

"You said you were going to pick up your younger sibling?"

"I'm just coming back from there."

"It’s late at night—why didn’t you just stay over at their place?"

"I was going to, but something came up that I needed to deliver to you."

As expected, the one who appeared from behind the door was Yonas.

Leroy unfolded his arms and slowly approached him.

He found it odd that Yonas's hands were empty for someone delivering an item, but what Yonas pulled from his pocket was a single thin slip of paper.

"Lady Iona sent this. It's a list of invitations she's received—she asks that you attend a suitable number of them."

Catching him off guard with the unexpected source, Leroy took it without betraying his inner turmoil.

Instead of immediately reading the contents, he held it up to the nearby lamp for a casual look.

He paused for a moment before suddenly speaking up.

"I don’t get it."

"What do you mean, Your Grace?"

"I keep feeling like she’s dragging me in."

Was it because she always managed to throw him off balance?

Being around her sometimes made rational judgment feel impossible.

He couldn’t believe he’d given her another chance, as if he’d been bewitched by someone he shouldn’t even exchange words with.

Leroy quietly recalled the sight of Iona descending the stairs to greet him.

‘……Could it have been a honey trap?’

No.

If that had been her aim, she would have simply claimed to have fallen for him at first sight.

Even if she’d been beautiful enough that day to spark such idiotic suspicions, that alone didn’t make it a crime...

Leroy’s thoughts halted abruptly as he cursed himself inwardly. He really was thinking like an idiot.

As if chastising himself, Leroy said,

"She’s the woman they call the Crown Prince’s dog. It’s only natural not to trust her."

"No? The Crown Prince is a worthless cur not worth such loyalty, and Lady Iona is wise enough to have seen through him early on—not to mention a woman of outstanding character. It seems Your Grace’s judgment is lacking after all."

Leroy doubted his own ears at the barrage of insults his subordinate unleashed without pause for breath.

But judging from Yonas’s brazen expression, it seemed he hadn’t misheard. Only then did disbelief dawn on Leroy’s face.

Until recently, Yonas had openly badmouthed Iona right in front of him.

He couldn’t fathom what had happened during that delivery to make the man do a complete one-eighty.

Leroy eyed him suspiciously and asked,

"Did something happen?"

"What do you mean? I was the foolish and inadequate one who misunderstood Lady Iona all this time. I only hope Your Grace sheds your prejudiced views sooner rather than later and gains enlightenment like I have."

"You want to say it the nice way?"

Leroy raised an eyebrow in warning.

Yonas put on a thoughtful expression, as if pondering deeply.

But in the end, he held out both hands to Leroy as a sign of refusal.

In a rare firm tone, Yonas said,

"No, I don’t want to cloud Your Grace’s judgment for my own personal gain. Though, of course, I’m right and you’re wrong."

With that incomprehensible remark, Yonas quickly added, "Then I’ll be off," and slipped away.

Leroy was so flabbergasted that he couldn’t even grab him in time.

But Yonas apparently had more to say, peeking his head back through the door crack moments later.

"If you’re curious, go see Julia tomorrow. She probably has no idea about the in-law corruption scandal."

"Julia?"

It was a completely unexpected name.

Yonas’s younger sister Julia had been staying in the capital ahead of the social season, even before Leroy’s group arrived.

Wasn’t that why Yonas had volunteered for this escort duty—to look after his sister who was on her own?

Leroy even remembered sending a seamstress with a few dresses as a gift upon hearing the news.

Yonas, usually sensitive to personal rewards, had quietly accepted Leroy’s gesture that day.

He must have been quite worried about his sister’s meager wardrobe.

"Come to think of it, how’s Julia doing? I should dance with her at least once at a ball. We could set a date even now..."

As he said this, Leroy headed to his desk and flipped through his schedule.

He’d been too busy with one thing after another since arriving in the capital to give her any proper attention.

No matter how packed his days were, surely he could spare a moment to dance for a cherished subordinate’s sister.

When Leroy turned back to Yonas with that thought, something was off about his subordinate’s reaction.

Yonas’s face twisted in agony as he barely squeezed out,

"……So it really is normal to go with a guardian?"

"Young ladies usually attend with chaperones or family, don’t they?"

"Haa..."

Leroy countered matter-of-factly, and a deep, earth-shattering sigh escaped Yonas.

"Then I’m off to get beaten by my sister some more..."

With strangely listless eyes, Yonas muttered and trudged out.

Instead of chasing after his subordinate, Leroy sank into a chair, staring at the spot Yonas had vacated.

What held his curiosity more than Yonas’s cryptic words was right there in his hand.

Leroy quietly unfolded the note from Iona.

He’d thought there might be some hidden message Yonas hadn’t mentioned, but as described, it simply listed names of various families.

If there was anything notable, it was the neat handwriting that suited its sender.

Noticing his own strange pang of disappointment, Leroy let out a hollow chuckle.

"She never moves the way I expect."

What would happen next time he saw her? Uncharacteristically, he couldn’t help but look forward to it.

Even though her memories of abuse were vivid, the Modroff estate wasn’t an entirely unpleasant space for Iona. She wasn’t the type to attach deep meaning to objects anyway.

In fact, after removing her not-family family members, she had grown quite fond of living in this beautiful mansion.

With all the bad memories gone, there was no need to dispose of a perfectly fine house—that had been Iona’s judgment at the time.

Buying new furnishings and reorganizing the staff for a fresh start would take far too much effort.

Her thinking hadn’t changed this time either.

‘Right, just get rid of the people. As quickly as possible.’

Why put herself through the hassle of leaving when she could simply drag out those who displeased her?

With that in mind, Iona bustled out of her room early that morning.

Part of it was her early work hours, but more importantly, she had business to attend to first.

Nils and Ivonne had fully immersed themselves in the lifestyle of wealthy noble offspring—rising late in the afternoon to indulge in drinks and gatherings before collapsing into bed at dawn.

To meet Hayden alone without them, there’d be no better time than now.

Reaching the second-floor corridor, Iona spotted Hayden emerging from his room with a sleepy face.

The instant he saw her, his expression turned visibly flustered, and he spun around.

As if he’d left something behind, he reached naturally for the doorknob again...

"Count."

But he failed.

Iona had closed the distance swiftly and seized him with a chilling voice.

"Ah, yes. Good morning. I just forgot something inside..."

Hayden replied as naturally as possible, stretching toward the door once more.

But this attempt failed spectacularly too—Iona smashed the knob with her fist, shattering it completely.

A chunk of the wooden door broke off with a loud crash onto the floor.

Iona said perfunctorily,

"Oops, my mistake."

Hayden clenched his teeth to keep from screaming.

Iona propped her left arm against the wall and peered intently into his face.

"But Count, do you think I’m some kind of germ?"