The Mansion Awaits Spring - Chapter 52

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 52
[Pejin Dieusz, Captain of the Special Investigation Bureau of the Empire]
He wrote it that way, then tore the envelope apart.
[Pejin Dieusz, Second Son of the Dieusz Family]
No matter what he wrote, his guilt toward the dead remained the same.
With his face buried in his hands, lost in thought, Pejin recalled April standing in the fog with that characteristic calm expression of hers.
He wanted to know why she had seemed so unaffected in that place.
If he understood that reason, wouldn’t he be able to prevent further deaths?
After a moment, Paul entered the office and spoke.
“Captain, are you finished with the letters?”
“I’m done. Once I send them all… I need to return to the Lunos Residence.”
“Again?”
“If I understand why April can stand unharmed in that fog, I might be able to reduce casualties next time.”
“I see.”
Paul nodded.
Pejin closed his eyes, then opened them and murmured.
“Perhaps I should just speak frankly to April Lunos and ask for her help.”
“…Her Highness?”
“Yes. What do you think?”
Even as he spoke, Pejin’s eyes held a light that Paul had never once seen in him before.
His gaze sought unconditional agreement, yet carried a pressure that bore down upon his subordinate.
Pejin could be indifferent in manner, but he was not particularly authoritarian about work—he was acutely aware that he had been installed as the bureau’s director through a parachute appointment, precisely because of his bloodline as the second son of the Grand Duke’s house.
Yet now he was applying pressure to secure agreement about himself.
Paul, unfamiliar with such a gaze, spoke hesitantly.
“Give me a moment.”
He went out and returned with Logan.
Logan, who had been dragged away from his Magic practice without warning, listened to the whole story and spoke to Pejin.
“That sounds like a good idea.”
“You think so?”
At Logan’s immediate agreement, Paul stared at him with wide eyes.
Paul had fetched Logan because he didn’t know what to say to a Pejin who seemed so stern, only to have Logan agree outright—something he found hard to believe.
Logan continued.
“But Miss April will feel a great sense of betrayal.”
“Which is why I’d rather tell her quickly.”
“That won’t help. You know Miss April is fond of you, Captain.”
Paul started at words he had been thinking but had never spoken aloud, while Pejin fixed Logan with a glare.
Logan pressed on.
“When people feel betrayed, there’s no telling what they might do. Especially when Miss April is not someone who tolerates injustice. What if she discovers the fog originates from the Empire and rushes to shut down the factories immediately? What will you do then?”
“……”
“You would have to kill her.”
Paul felt both relief at having brought Logan and regret at not anticipating the atmosphere would become this heavy.
Pejin stared at Logan for a long moment, then nodded slowly.
“I’ll take that into account.”
“Yes, sir. That would be best. Well then, I’ll take my leave.”
Logan bowed respectfully and left the office.
* * *
Since April Lunos had appeared at the sponsorship party, the nobles who visited the Grand Duke’s Residence had been quick to bring up her name.
Most of the talk had been negative, but not entirely.
Every conversation began with the question of why Pejin Dieusz had brought April Lunos to the party, and surprisingly, the discourse contained some positive elements.
Those who had actually met her said she wasn’t quite as vicious as rumor suggested.
Of course, she did appear even more forceful than reports indicated. Yet this was only natural for someone serving as head of a household, and though the tides of Imperial culture had washed over the island, the people of Right Island still harbored, in some deep recess of their hearts, the traditions of sailors and a reverence for commanding captains—sentiments from which they could even draw favor.
With the ears of the Grand Duke and his wife present, people could not speak openly, yet expectations for the Lunos Family had indeed taken root.
This year’s Social Season had ended with the sponsorship party, and next year’s Season would not begin again until late March, when the snow fell a little less.
As always, the Grand Duke’s family would host the first event to mark the opening of the Season, followed by the foremost families preparing their own celebrations.
All eyes had turned to the Lunos Family. Curiosity about when the Lunos Family, which owned the largest ballroom on Right Island, would hold their own social gathering had become intense.
Yet no conversation was stronger than the curiosity about the relationship between Pejin and April.
In such a state, it was only natural that all attention should fall upon the courtier who had recently returned from the Lunos Residence.
Vincent Grand entered the Grand Duke’s Residence immediately upon returning from the Lunos Family.
Before anyone could ask him anything, Vincent Grand gulped down drink the moment he stepped into the Grand Duke’s Villa.
Vincent had gone today to make his courtship proposal, yet returned with nothing to show for it.
Thus he needed to redirect people’s attention and offer excuses for his courtship’s failure.
In such circumstances, there was no better excuse than ‘there was another man.’
He opened his mouth before anyone could question him.
“She was in the company of an escort. Of course, he was attending to police duties. But the way she looked at him was not like that. It was clearly… the gaze one casts upon a rival.”
The murmuring died away for a moment, then spread rapidly through the room in a wave of whispers.
At that moment, one of the police officers from the Special Investigation Bureau wore an awkward expression.
To prevent further misunderstanding, he ultimately decided to damage Pejin’s reputation.
“The Captain remained at the Lunos Residence out of necessity. He was unwell—in a state where he could not possibly return home.”
“Unwell, you say?”
A lady asked the question, and the officer replied.
“He had caught a cold. Having spent so long in the Empire, he seems susceptible to such illnesses……”
Guilt consumed the young officer at having made his director seem like a weak man, and his ears flushed crimson.
Yet far across the dining room, Miller, who had heard from his own men that Pejin had stayed at April’s residence, had grown grave—so grave that the officer could not help but speak.
Fortunately, the officer’s words had their desired effect, and the moment Miller heard them, he laughed—a cheerful, gentlemanly laugh.
“That’s just like him.”
With that laughter, the atmosphere of the Villa regained its warmth.
That warmth persisted, fortunately, until just after noon, when Pejin returned holding the Sponsorship List.
As Pejin descended into the Villa’s garden, he spotted the Grand Duke and his wife watching him with barely concealed smiles and narrowed his eyes.
“What is it? That sinister look?”
“How can you call your only older brother sinister? That’s harsh.”
“The look warrants such harsh words.”
Pejin chided him, then bowed and raised Heidi Dieusz’s hand to his lips in greeting. After saluting her thus, Heidi spoke.
“So you caught a cold?”
“Who leaked that? It was supposed to be a secret.”
“It was for your sake. They said you stayed at Miss April’s house. People needed to know the reason.”
Pejin let out an amused snort and searched with his eyes for Vincent Grand—thinking what a loose-tongued fool he was.
Heidi continued.
“We wanted to clear up any misunderstanding.”
“What misunderstanding could there be?”
Pejin replied with composure, hands clasped behind his back.
“If the person I brought to the party had not been to my liking, I would never have stayed at her residence.”
“Pejin.”
“I would have dragged myself away even if I collapsed in the street.”
Pejin spoke as though testing them, his gaze fixed on his brother’s face.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————