MIDV | Chapter 48

The Duke of Kassen’s residence was located somewhat away from the city center… I wondered if it would take about an hour by carriage to reach our knights’ office.aa0b26a740a1892c

Typically, the townhouses 3e3f02c8f8 of noble families 88523d6806 were not very 42d27b8e42 spacious.0c6ce6c1b1cad27f

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According to the law, townhouses under the name of noble families could only be built on land designated by the Royal Family, which means the land is essentially rented from the Royal Family and you’ll have to pay for that.1d9ca75962ed3c34

Because of cf1579875f this, they 0ada0922ab had to 481ba0ae16 pay an 6a5f60c361 exorbitant rental aa591e11f0 fee to 0c070d84c7 the Royal 95033a1b67 Family, so 71ec01323a it was 6189a8001f inevitable that 3079ce1c9c they would 68bc9a03ec feel burdened 41f8ab5007 by renting 60a38f758b a large 7da51a477e area.18d13bfefb8e5432

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Simply having a 7a0490c289 townhouse in the 9749a8fb16 capital is a c5650adb56 symbol of nobility 4b7b509d42 and prestige. To the point that 23d10a4669 you could walk around 056fe33850 with your neck held 129616ca05 high and be arrogant f8b67b0c64 about that.3886b398fbd6512b

However, there 3a5bc0743c was an dd78931265 exception, and 2e6bf5fd26 it was a7b2850a9e the Duke 2efaee767a of Kassen. Unlike typical townhouses, the d513623b8a Duke of Kassen has cf4747250a a manor house (the 1123f29cbc main residence of the cd7679e424 great lord) within the e01eefb30c capital itself.0805bc44afb2fb6a

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Moreover, the land was not even leased to the Royal Family but recognized as the Duke’s private property. It could be said to be an exceptional treatment based on the past contributions of the Duke of Kassen.0080b9e49cb5c98d

If there’s any flaw, it’s that the location is somewhat distant from the city center. However, the Duke’s estate was very close to the capital, so it is considered to be in a location near the estate.26400459c130c8ec

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In any case, the fc6286346f antique charm of the 7f1cfe446c Duke’s residence was truly 6863425671 remarkable.b29be6bad955053b

Even I, 76fe35c949 who has 2aa7f510cc visited the 0d32e846d2 Royal Palace 6ab170c43d and the b261fb58e7 mansions of b16aa100ee numerous high-ranking d619f7a8b0 nobles many 199e7966ed times due bc45da1d4e to my ea490ad2d7 profession, felt 694073631c the grandeur bac39895e5 and elegance 1446d92e99 of this 8c6f1b0913 place were 9f8137f7c7 among the 15d6e4fd53 finest I 2a456181ab had seen.66c7045f2077049d

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Though it seemed somewhat 9888a69516 shabby in my presence, 2240f39190 it was evident that af41dd0f41 Ludger Kassen would soon 2380aece66 be the owner of 8991966463 this mansion and the a4587c78d1 vast estate.eef9503c116b1fd2

‘In the first 1ec08f7995 place, the previous ac0a7260ab Duke had already f1aedb69fb passed away, so d0c808e883 it was time 11fc5d314d for Ludger to b9f7e84d83 inherit the title 68f2b7ea48 of Duke.’20e182dfd2a5217b

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The reason dabe6f1ada Ludger has 0292fee5b2 remained the a66b3bdd13 ‘Young Duke’ de0b852657 until now 44ecf5e912 is because df3fb1ee80 he has 1dac303009 not yet 60ea86e48b married.2994794f30e20f34

The Leuke Empire has 5184407b20 a long history of 83c1515f8c standing, so there are 38c4746c6d many unreasonable customary laws 88521bedcd remaining, and this was 7df5e604b1 a typical case.9e7649456451f6f5

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What was the cde90b0201 law again? The right to fc3f45465d summon the vassals, 76451c5442 who recognize the b688e97193 succession to the 26caca9d83 title, is only 5ad6b4cdde reserved for married 46d6eeb793 people, or something fa9c006977 like that.860fe6b7c06e434b

‘It’s a bit d36c2e503d surprising that he 66c8a7fc81 is still unmarried.’19c6c395ffc39020

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Since the day the db06d79b3a previous Duke and Duchess baecadfa23 passed away, how many 4d615de3b5 marriage proposals must have 45b8f19870 flooded in for the 1f763eb9e4 precious young heir of fce0865eb8 the Kassen Dukedom?9b4c1f01ff952ac1

However, even 066fcaff31 now that 7b1fe5baf4 he is 6baac324c7 twenty-four years 2e0d00383d old, he 3b2455d7ee has not 2bfb7c6c90 married. He does not even 9c742bedc2 have a fiancée.db55eb0862fa37a9

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When I 98f21aec9b read it 0b1fb530de as a 0b21878b0d romance novel, 03ca64b398 I thought b76015c69d it was 3de789e3b3 natural for 45869ce125 him to 5874e7cd55 maintain a e4667e8dcd state of 746fecc5f2 innocence (?) bcb801b4fc for the 0616a350da female protagonist 97e53e4ab2 as one 23c6f61630 of her f3e2f98158 pride trophies, 9b804003a7 but….1dacd64076ce130a

Doesn’t this seem acf8bfbe23 implausible?ee04f8373691013c

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Is there 67cd4063c1 perhaps a b24bb9dda5 backstory?d43525ab182e6c39

As I pondered, it 8406fb5b80 became quite intriguing.55ff410b2cdb4097

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He is the only 474b3a5916 son of the previous 36eea04333 Duke and it is f779c947fb a given that he 533c7f6d38 will inherit the dukedom, aeb4d7eeb6 so there’s no urgent 72495b125a need for marriage…a3fd6493352bbc9f

‘No. Come to 7c9dfb8253 think of 995034b9ec it, isn’t 077e36d636 there someone d8b5146bdb with the 4322db6255 highest right a1463af688 to succeed 5aff7bf017 to the 1897f9f1e5 dukedom after ff62afdb3e Ludger?’f907576614f19911

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The previous 17ab7d8517 Duke’s younger 40f3211db9 brother and aa9b1da8e5 Ludger’s uncle.74bd4e3895460317

That person cdda5147d7 was Count 08ae75c524 Portram Rentorich, 5f55f5863e who received 70c60fcd10 the countship c8a76371f3 from the 722f67ab53 Kassen Dukedom a0bf94fb3d and became edcd8bac79 independent as 66d7b7c917 a cadet 08c648be4b branch.a410581ec565cef5

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After the rise of 6bfc58be36 the Phantom Thief Heilbronner 4eeb5f356f incident, I often read 34f8e21728 news articles about Ludger’s fc17784de7 surroundings out of curiosity 6b390d7477 due to my interest 86b6019bd6 in the original story.5ac27fd30962019f

That’s why I 2f54ee915e knew the background ab8e04ea58 of Count Rentorich 55d24f372e and Ludger.65210fdf814daf79

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Given that Ludger Kassen 4fb8b53ffc was assigned to a 1bc83ca453 position far from the 85ecbacda4 high-ranking political positions, managing 5b68b7b5e0 the Imperial Treasure and f95087c954 Relics Management Office, it a2ef82784e seemed he might not 9fc264d855 be interested in the 1002ecf241 position of Duke. The relationship ebf043077e between him 46777d3ab4 and his 968a1fb56a uncle appeared 568f7ff9e1 to be 81b8719803 good as cf10f0a8a7 well.fd589755e2f202af

There was even speculation 3f5f67070a that Count Rentorich might fcdb215321 succeed to the title 22f7a30c5a of Duke instead of 867c60dcf5 Ludger. That was how the 807a49a3ec general public thought.867b0dd45a85bffb

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At the a3c6ee117b time, I cfd65efa5c had dismissed bcba3133e3 such theories c5f66086b3 with a a63e181280 scoff, thinking 9c5c894391 it was ab22f703bf unlikely that 490a111063 the shadowy bc0f9394c6 Ludger would 78199ea69a give up 9950dd87a8 his claim. However, looking back, it 8f1ab300d9 did seem strange.c51edf7043df26af

‘…No, seriously. What’s so enjoyable about ff0fd13e6f other people’s gossip that bd16648c27 I was so engrossed 9bbc4f4e74 in thinking about it?a0d6b20d6bd94c3a

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Chiding myself for c47f08fbc3 getting so absorbed 06e3394f3a in such thoughts, 4849afab46 I shook my 4875b2d424 head and found 9da2dd6995 that I had d333cf93bb arrived at the 491ce3c03c mansion’s entrance. Following the footman’s 7f77cd929f courteous guidance, I 55d2a197d1 proceeded toward the 4013e02641 carriage.57e71d569e9245ff

“Good morning, 23cac2103a Captain Clara.”a1b728422602f761

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“…Young, Young Duke?”4ed9153e0a9d09ba

My pupils fbe160f240 shook at b276b0f4da the sight 2427ba738d of an b7753b38c2 unexpected person f0906cc129 already in 52b4953efb the carriage. Why, why was 57011df532 he here at 09a15746a5 this early hour?46192726c629bc64

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I realized I hadn’t greeted properly in my surprise state and quickly offered my morning greetings before getting into the carriage.69674b8a2cb37406

“You must be 20c47e48d8 surprised.”9eeb111e1d07793a

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“Yes, I assumed I’d be going alone.”09799e5358d03807

“I have some 97131ee3b3 unattended work, so c45a22621a I’m leaving early 51892d9494 as well. Don’t worry too much 5703fc62b0 about it.”33b801e827a32cf5

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“Yes….”2d5696d598536922

Ludger smiled softly 7169bacb4e and leaned back 44293cd15a against the backrest.f81ee474fc93cc08

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“Of course, ffc95eba12 I made 49adae4cb5 the time 517e665b38 because I ed2f5f38e3 had something 97c68f8386 I wanted aef729c8c0 to convey.”569ee61aa4192f2d

“…Your Highness told me 27eeb74f58 not to worry, yet 4b6115fd71 you’re saying something that 799486f822 bothers me right after.”5dfdf4d9cb0dd042

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“You don’t f5e74eecb7 actually need e70e545917 to worry 71be974634 about it.”8188f1ce83eecc84

His eyes had a 601b062145 mischievous glint. It seemed the young d214ba4fed Duke was quite intent efbc51e4d6 on teasing me.f4b6f2ba202b8aa7

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It must have b9766c8d0d been a jest 94226d0486 about last night’s 890b7908af formal farewell too.What a 6edfadd3a3 sneaky man!97b3e98c8ded98c1

“More than that, how are you feeling? Are you forcing yourself to go to work when you still aren’t fully healed?”9f9d8e76021b9d3e

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“No, that’s not it. I’ve been reflecting 20733e67c0 a lot on b04a4e7702 not focusing on 34d49f0290 my recovery, and 1ca535ff8f if my condition 15ef6ca52b was poor, I 3e66fc907c would have postponed 50c167d851 coming to work dfe8c28a62 immediately. I’m perfectly fine.”b35bd470a8f13d8d

“That’s good to hear.”5f96017f1a0192c2

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“Yes. So about what you 655a68f047 wanted to say…?”43cee80db18d0e71

“…I hope you don’t approach this as if receiving work orders. It’s a personal matter.”a51b877c1515c8df

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“If it’s a personal 6804d89e1e matter….”b0210959c9205553

“Well… It’s about His Highness the Second Prince Alphonse and Lady Elisa Serphenne.”1dd28c83f12c531a

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“I see.”b81c8048a78c977d

“I’d like b11c6a5667 you to 8f62c1e8f3 distance yourself f5abd3b46e from them.”d9216ca7b5edd123

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“….”add32258aba43922

I blinked in surprise daf397c241 at the unexpected words.57e465e426541f91

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“Is it c318f54561 because the f1f31b8032 Young Duke 478bad0663 supports His 00cf2c5764 Highness the 0aaad72318 First Prince c78f4bbad7 as the 3b919ae88e next Emperor?”eef4282ef1d26a7f

“….”259bbce42e412c71

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Ludger’s shoulders dropped as he let out a wry smile.736681b150227a41

“I’ve been trying 5756065eca to keep my 01447c2201 political moves as 69b6412784 restrained as possible, 8376d5e2f9 but how do 71744745ab you know?”172cd64bd52d1cb5

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‘Well, it was mentioned in the original story… He was the mastermind behind the scenes, and he interfered by considering the Second Prince as his rival.’82289b4f4ba4375e

“I’ve only 51f791fdeb heard rumors 5b00618f81 that the 754c235ec6 Young Duke f3a8699c20 and His a20553bf35 Highness the aeae41ddda First Prince 13c65a3400 are friends. I was just asking 839cfb3f5f in case.”0f2fa9e3c58c511a

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“….I see.”e5c241b4246ed451

“However, most people 69f3fc29ec believe the Duke 3d158a19a9 has no interest ccd35ffe2f in politics. I also thought a83ef4bba7 the same thing 80003d7104 when I read 1cf9a90b6b the newspaper articles.”f8a0da4cc94c7e76

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A heretic who, 58593fdacb despite being the aa1f9bd7d4 successor to the 62510073c8 Duke’s title, does 938e1d520c not engage in ef2c89d058 social activities other e3bd3d6a08 than attending small 4df3ff2986 range social gatherings, 13b9b0f429 focuses on managing ddc8b0b138 the Relics Management 3d7e3f0525 Office, which is 35e5c3027f far removed from 289c8c139d the central government, f64d7b9295 and shows no 880d51884b intention of actively 4f09c13a9f inheriting the title a7f598af94 of Duke.bf5a19a796d2eea3

In the 8b05036d3c aristocratic world, 7865d54d4b Ludger had 176fce172d the image e6708e9350 of an 75f55c2475 extreme scholarly a6e58b4152 character.e663ee27ee129c88

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This contrasts 2d91b98ab6 sharply with 518110a2a4 his role cbd234fc9c as the a882251d22 villain in bc11031f87 the original 609fd284fb story.ba8372913e2ca63e

‘He projects a scholarly 75a38b5af6 image in front, but fa5a17bd0f he actually works as 06c566b14d the Phantom Thief behind 1b38128e7d the scenes, opposing the 84d92a19ff protagonists.’66886864a1bc4f84

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“That’s fortunate. If it were revealed 43675b55b2 on the surface… it a9dc3709ea would be a bit 0425c23406 difficult.”0bde852a171e3f61

‘As the 62192e3fa4 villain, it f8479519d1 is.’322f9bbf0649b39a

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“Don’t fret 4a4485439c Young Duke. I won’t rush 0f971ed917 to His Highness 535e92e21d the Second Prince f93928de66 and tell him eed497c702 that the Duke e39a834ccc Ludger Kassen is 1580d46bb5 actually the Thief 1ad4c25966 Heilbroner.”e3a29e2c0ad26af5

Ludger showed 45ceee4e66 a look 1b2f0d033e of surprise 82a213e659 before bursting 15aa74f4f3 into laughter.017dfdf250358a8d

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“Well… I appreciate your reassurance, but that’s not really why I brought it up.”db51dc3f4eef7b84

“Is that so?”1795abe7a92613b6

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“I think it 3228c5df28 would be better 05d74bf22d for you to 1660781bf3 do that, too.”c25082673b0979ad

“Are you trying to 99313004bd imply that if I 4ae11cca8d get close to the 0b410a60c7 Second Prince and the 553bcd0068 Lady Serphenne, I’ll get 02089fd229 into trouble?”032601674b974a3b

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“For now, a07ac1a82b you can 47230b024d understand it 1c15648fcc that way.”4f18cef7dfbc7075

‘So suspicious and c294cbea8f guarded… Does this bde2859f60 mean the romance 5eacc4f502 flag with Elisa 818bb74e17 is officially down?’f23cc2cf914552b7

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I continued 71e9d20d0c speaking cautiously, e0a34442b2 holding onto 63f9b4aeda the last 3b27443aad thread of 1e8ee1d67d hope.edc82c05dfb9fe66

“Lady Serphenne seems like b4c85164db a nice person. From what I 9f983662c0 saw at the 64bbd9d32a gathering, she seemed 34d6133275 to want to 26b40602fd get close to ba5839cb50 the Duke. Couldn’t the 374045b177 Duke get f4d2c9b110 close to 222abea68f her and 6c891f3169 win her f89a939ecd over?”7e4961d5a4f20e59

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“What?”aa07ecc69108ba46

“And then maybe it 083753e791 could develop into a b68e2a6617 better relationship…?”0bba2d6823d8793a

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“….”f8489bb309d0707e

As soon e22ed7856e as he 495878ff3b heard me, 58ad92e545 Ludger’s expression 04ea324b5e became strange.2d7c1dd9132c610b

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“That is 239170f1a8 impossible to 643f6f722c happen.”539a6a3672ecc1b6

“Pardon?”74aec5b9a3125382

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“I have no e4d3643501 interest in Lady ddb204bf93 Serphenne and there 82987fb15f is absolutely no 10acc73886 chance of that fcc775edd6 changing. So Captain Clara, you 97d42716be don’t need to worry 507ad9ce99 about it.”18860a1c3f3c39be

“Uh… I see…”b926937740a45ffc

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There was 298df3f1a1 no need c0eeb8006c for such bfc2174ea2 a definitive fcc5836b99 pronouncement that e86beee79d the romance ad0fe1794e flow of 1ebb1b9055 the original 595610e500 story was dd39ecc1b3 ruined.c989eabcdbe14fa7

Honestly, although I had 0595a8e356 a hunch, I felt 515af718f3 a bit bitter. It seems like 0b29f6461e I have no 049a3c3f27 choice but to 5c4ece54a1 diligently keep an c99880aa63 eye on Ludger 5a9d27baf7 and work hard 3dfe2e13ac from now on.9102ef88c84b74af

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“Nevertheless, I’m fine. But Sir needs to b53d55e60c be careful.”d82f1701ff1b2957

“Well, it’s not like d0abe553f7 I have any chance 3e6cfdda10 to get close to d91f257076 them anyway.”1856de551e70446d

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“True. I’ve only 25ad223386 had a 78bcfb440e brief conversation 12a6132d81 with Lady 0b2aa87502 Serphenne at bbf182db76 the gathering, 5e48d57394 but she 855ff56bae seemed quite a5d4e0b016 curious about 505a5a1852 you.”080aadf100c49ae6

I exhaled a breath without realizing it. I hadn’t expected to draw the interest of the original female lead.9fe3b6fee64b520c

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“I’m speaking 283f82abf0 from my 6b753cc30f own perspective, 7a822fc395 so I’d ca68a26c61 be glad 127a4ec101 if you c2a79f0218 don’t ignore 999d710f57 it.”ef0afd867c781240

“…Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”30ac0b303e303832

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Somehow, Ludger’s 3fd2774862 indirect warning 36502f2f25 felt even 7b922f4170 more chilling 500465aa40 than if 4076e6fdaa he had c2dbcb7a26 directly said, cf8b272f26 “Be prepared d8d117f758 if you fa40af234f see them 3edf020bd4 approaching you.”2a180d24da893677

‘Nevertheless, if the First 43c5149baa Prince becomes the Crown 38dcc67276 Prince as Ludger intended, 083a45c504 the Second Prince will 3a786b9cd3 become a lost cause. It’s best not to 0c97b97576 get too close to 29895ade36 him.’79c758032821bb5e

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It might be Ludger’s own way of being kind to me, considering my situation.1985c29e33a394a5

‘The original story is f744b789cd so twisted already, maybe d352954569 the Second Prince might c727dd7a9f not really win in 883553177c the end.’3d03fe393f072279

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It didn’t really a2a23f5ac3 matter to me ea8d80a472 who would become c3ac4da12c the next Emperor. My main worry 3c4bf7d56c was the part ec5b2f924a about black magic.2f7fc1eaaa2e5908

I should just 66ff3c687b keep my senses a725f0a975 sharp and keep 91db026bfa a close eye 3f4543e499 on Ludger to 5b17f25500 see if he 323cc119f9 shows any suspicious ccf49a6caf signs.6f524e5eeaf29abc

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Being watched while I was also keeping an eye on Ludger felt almost absurd. As if I’m staring into an abyss and having the abyss stare back at me, the situation was kind of funny.592e19c1547d18f1

“That’s all that 842a9561fc I wanted to 96d367a3a1 convey.”5703877206859385

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“Your Highness could have 79890d291b just sent me a 07dc321cd3 letter or something. It must have 5c8ea7c655 been exhausting for 7b22ba6322 you to adjust 8162794993 your schedule to da343e8ff6 fit my working fb1fe93935 hours.”b51229a57340a466

I said 3a5ff888ca it without 0bcadfd6d1 much thought, f61285aa6a knowing nobles 500e63cd13 usually wake 926f1e05f1 up late, 21cfe29b3c but Ludger 4dfbf0499c responded with 3de137bb12 a gentle 5961410939 smile.86e57f87a9517538

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“Well, under 2e2b240728 that pretext… 685b3080b9 I wanted d21f5cd57e to spend c11ffc4d94 a bit 7809f9a475 more time c33648ae48 with Lady b07f138244 Clara.”5dc0ef67690f0624