After eating, the Archduke left first to prepare for the meeting.
"Lady, how about visiting the castle in the afternoon?"
Since there was nothing special to do, he readily accepted Hamilton's offer.
"Would you like to go with Ed?"
"If Lina wants to."
Edwin smiled and held out his arm to me. He placed his hand on his strong arm and moved slowly.
"The place where you are now is the main building of the Grand Gongseong, the east building is used by the family, and the west building is decorated as a work space."
The main building was in the shape of a C, so the right side was called the east building and the left side was called the west building.
Because the anti-aircraft fortress was so wide, it was not possible to see it all in a few hours.
Hamilton guided me mainly to the spaces I needed to live.
"I heard that Hamilton had been with his father since he was in the Imperial Palace."
"Yes, I have been caring for the Grand Duke since childhood."
Hamilton's eyes gleamed faintly as if he recalled an old memory.
"Your Majesty has been through a long, lonely and difficult time. I was very worried that I would never be able to see you smiling forever."
He stopped walking and looked back at me.
"When I first met the young lady at the Warp Gate, I thought it was a dream. You look so much like him."
A deep wrinkle formed around Hamilton's eyes.
"Your maiden saved your majesty. thank you."
He bowed his head politely to me.
It was a coincidence that the Archduke and I met. Besides, I'm not even his daughter, so she had no reason to be thanked.
Nevertheless, Hamilton's greeting was not burdensome because his heart was touched by his loyalty.
"I really want to thank you. Thank you for being by my father's side until now."
Both Hamilton and Sir Chad, the leader of the Jackal, had been protecting the Grand Duke for a long time.
Perhaps it was because of them that the Archduke was able to endure that difficult time.
"Now that I have seen Your Highness smiling again, I have no free time."
It was as if a little water had formed around Hamilton's relaxed smile.
"You must protect your father and the Grand Duke from now on. If not Hamilton, who can trust the anti-aircraft?"
"Since you acknowledge this old man, I don't know where to put myself."
"With Hamilton, wouldn't it be easy for me to come here to play?"
"Heh heh, I'm going to have to live with this for a long time."
I also smiled face to face with a pleasant bright smile.
"Lina, do you want to come to the North often?"
Edwin, who was quietly listening to the conversation next to him, suddenly asked.
"When everything is finished, I want to come here sometimes. Will it be difficult?"
I can't live with the Archduke, but I think we should meet every now and then.
No matter how much I possessed, I couldn't keep the relationship between husband and wife apart.
Edwin frowned upon hearing my answer and fell into thought.
'Do you hate coming to the North?'
Indeed, if Edwin hadn't met me, he might not have left the West for the rest of his life. So you might not like it.
But if you say you'll come alone, I don't think I'll let you go.
I was thinking of discussing this issue again later, so I was going to move on, but Edwin brought up an unexpected story.
"To go back and forth between the West and the North, the road would be long and difficult."
Uh, are you going to allow me?
As I tilted my head, Edwin grinned and patted my head.
"I'll have to discuss it with the Grand Duke."
"What are we going to discuss?"
"It's a secret," said Edwin, wrinkling one eye.
I didn't think he would give me an answer even if I asked again, so I decided to start by addressing other questions.
"Hey, Hamilton."
"Yes, lady."
Hamilton, who was looking at us happily, replied with a kind smile.
"How did you know I looked like my mother? Have you ever met my mother?"
It's been a question I've been wanting to ask since Hamilton brought up Isabelle's story.
"no. Unfortunately, I have never met Isabelle-sama."
"Then how... ... ?"
"Are you curious? How did I recognize her?"
I nodded and Hamilton smiled softly, leading us somewhere.
We arrived on the 4th floor of the East Building.
"This is where your father stays."
"Yes."
What does this place have to do with Isabelle?
Bewildered, we looked around, and Hamilton ushered us into a room opposite the Archduke's bedroom.
"This is a place that only you and I can enter."
"Can we go into a place like that?"
"If it's a lady, your Majesty will allow it."
Hamilton opened the door cautiously with an inexplicable smile.
The room with a slightly lower illuminance compared to the other rooms was like an exhibition room.
Except for the window, three sides were covered with black velvet curtains, and glass showcases were neatly laid out below.
"Have you hung a portrait?"
Edwin murmured as he looked at the wall covered in velvet curtains.
Hearing what he said, it looked like a painting was hanging behind the curtains due to its size and location.
Hamilton walked over to the window and pulled the thin curtains inside, making the room even brighter.
Thanks to this, the objects inside the glass case were more visible.
I slowly approached the showcase as if drawn to something.
There were various items in the display case.
There were letters and notes, and things that women could use, such as simple hairpins and ribbons.
Among them, the handkerchief stood out the most.
The light gray handkerchief had faded as if it was quite old.
The corners of the handkerchief were embroidered in the shape of a tree with pink thread.
Maybe Kiaro?
Looking at the familiar shape of the tree, I was able to guess who made this handkerchief.
'It was a gift from Isabelle to the Archduke.'
It was only then that he knew who the treasured items on the glass shelves belonged to.
"The things here are yours. These letters were exchanged with my father."
"You know."
Hamilton smiled warmly as he approached.
"Is there a portrait of your mother behind that curtain?"
Hamilton pulled the string next to him without answering. Then the velvet curtain opened and a large portrait appeared.
There stood the Grand Duke of his youth and a woman exactly like me.
It must have taken a lot of time to draw such a large portrait.
Didn't I say that the Grand Duke left for the Imperial Palace shortly after the promise of marriage?
"When was this portrait painted?"
"I think it's been about seven years."
7 years? Then she broke up with Isabelle.
He looked at Hamilton with bewilderment, and he smiled bitterly.
"Can you take a look here?"
As he pulled down the curtains on the other wall, he saw small picture frames hanging side by side along the wall.
The pictures inside the frame were drawn with a pen.
There was only one main character, although there were different moments, such as the way his hair was blown in the wind and the way he smiled brightly at something.
"... ... It's a painting of my mother."
"Yes. Your Majesty painted it."
Somehow, unlike portraits, I thought it was not the work of a professional. Still, it was a pretty good drawing.
"I didn't know my father could paint."
"It was a hobby. It's been a while since you let go of her hand."
There was sadness in Hamilton's voice.
Each painting was imbued with a warm affection for the subject.
How lovely the Archduke was looking at Isabelle, even without seeing it in person.
"Your Majesty looked at these pictures and missed and suffered every day."
No matter how many times I saw it, there were stains on the picture.
"I was afraid that my memory of Isabelle-sama would be blurred, so I suggested a portrait."
He added that the figure of Isabelle in the portrait was drawn based on the Archduke's drawings and his memories.
"After the portrait was completed, he decorated this room to soothe the longing."
Hamilton's brown eyes sank deeply with sadness and regret.
Hamilton must have stayed here when the Archduke was away.
The frame, the display case, and the fact that there is not a single dust on it shows that it has been carefully managed.
Hamilton's deep feelings for the Archduke were felt.
"Lina, let's also go to the estate and paint a portrait."
Edwin, who had been silently looking at the paintings since entering this room, whispered to me.
"A portrait?"
According to Seth, Edwin didn't like to draw portraits, so he said he didn't have any portraits except when he was young.
"Yeah, the two of us. I think it would be good to draw every year."
Not once, but every year?
"Didn't you hate drawing portraits?"
"no. It's boring to have an artist say this and that, and to wait for a long time."
But when I looked up, Edwin laughed.
"I don't think I'll be bored with Lina."
He took me to the front of the portraits of the Archduke and Isabelle.
"Why didn't I think of this? There is nothing I can do to prove that Lina is my bride."
Edwin hugged me from behind and leaned his chin on the top of my head and murmured.
"Can we be together in the picture? It makes me feel better every time I see it."
He was already in a good mood and his voice was excited.
"I have to hire an exclusive painter. All of Lina's daily life should be kept as pictures."
Edwin said excitedly, saying that one room would not be enough, so let's make an entire floor an exhibition room.
If you leave it as it is, you will be building a new building instead of just one floor, so I quickly touched Edwin's arm.
"Wouldn't a portrait be enough?"
"no. How different are Lina's expressions? It went by so quickly that there were not a few times when I was sad."
Why didn't I think of such a good way?
I let out a small sigh as Edwin scolded himself.
My face was already burning at the thought that the first floor of the mansion would be filled with my image.
"Lina will continue to be pretty in the future, so I want to leave her that way. So that you can see it whenever you want to see it. Then, I think you will be happy."
He kissed my cheek and whispered.
"I'm going to decorate the exhibition room, so what if I don't just hang my own pictures, but I also draw a lot of Ed's pictures and hang them?"
"me?"
"Yes. I think I'd be happy to see Ed's drawings too. We become happy together."
As he raised his head and looked at Edwin, the inside of his wall shook violently.
Also, do you hate your own drawings?
As he tilted his head, Edwin's eyes curved round.
"I hadn't thought of that. That Lina can be happy because of me. Okay, let's do that."
As Edwin was talking about how to decorate the duke's exhibition room, an unexpected voice was heard.
"You were here."
"father."
As he walked out of Edwin's arms in surprise, he clicked his tongue slightly.
This was the Archduke's private space and was highly prized.
No matter how good Hamilton was, he was concerned that he entered without the Archduke's permission.
Slowly watching the Archduke's eyes, Hamilton approached him.
"I was showing the girl a portrait of Isabelle-sama."
The Archduke stood in front of the portrait of the two men together without saying a word.
"... ... Does she look like Isabelle?"
"It's just like the mother I saw."
"like that."
The Archduke smiled faintly.
Eyes resembling the greenery of midsummer filled with longing and added Isabelle in the portrait.
"Next time, I want to leave Isabelle as she is. When can you show me?"
I was talking about my white hair and jewelry.
I nodded.
"Father, I want to leave you with me as well."
"... ... Okay, let's call the painter tomorrow."
The archduke opened his eyes slightly, and then smiled softly.
Hamilton, who had been standing behind the Archduke, was seen turning and wiping the corners of his eyes with a handkerchief.
"How was the meeting?"
The atmosphere, which had been wet with gloom, was shattered at once by Edwin's question.
"that... ... ."
The Archduke did not answer easily and narrowed his brow.
I didn't think it would be easy, but when I ran into difficulties, my heart became heavy.
'Didn't you say you didn't tell me about Jueri?'
If that was the case, it could have been a little easier to solve.
No, the alliance that was obtained would have collapsed like a sandcastle someday.
I struggled to get my mind to be weak.
"We haven't decided yet, so let's wait a little longer."
The Archduke smiled intently and exhorted me. There was a hint of regret towards me in his eyes.
You don't have to. Why would a person who was willing to give their life for me feel sorry?
When he took the Archduke's dry hand in his upset heart, he rolled his eyes.
He squeezed my hand tightly and let go, turning his head to Edwin.
"Did Count Isles contact you?"
"yet."
"There seems to be a lot of trouble there. Then, shall we meet from the top?"
Edwin nodded his head.