"No matter how I look at it, I can't figure it out."
Unable to find the intersection between Viscount Benjamin and the Second Prince, Herald put down the documents on the table as if throwing them and pressed his throbbing eyelids.
Dillon tidied up the scattered papers and said,
"Things aren't going as well as you thought, I see."
"Yeah. It's hard for a normal person to understand the actions of an abnormal one."
Dillon paused for a moment before asking again.
"By any chance, you're not saying you're the normal one, Captain?"
"That's right, why?"
"Good lord."
Dillon slapped his forehead and sighed deeply.
"If others heard this, they'd be shocked. They'd say it's nonsense."
In the Knights' Order, the hierarchy was so strict that it was unimaginable for a subordinate to talk back to a superior or question right and wrong. If such a subordinate existed, they would be disciplined immediately or, in the worst case, stripped of their knighthood.
However, Dillon spoke as if Herald was a friend rather than a superior, and Herald, far from scolding Dillon, laughed amusedly and asked back.
"Are you saying I'm abnormal?"
"Not abnormal, but not normal either. No, maybe I should say abnormal. Usually, knights from high-ranking families don't volunteer for border guard duty."
Yet the second son of the Maximilian Duke's family, the Empire's Sword and the Emperor's right hand, had come to the border guard. Not forcibly transferred for causing trouble, but voluntarily, which turned Cardin's border guard upside down.
There must be something behind this. The Cardin border guards all eyed Herald suspiciously.
Dillon was no exception, and although much of his suspicion had dissipated after four years, he still found it puzzling.
"I'm really curious, so let me ask. Why did you volunteer for Cardin's border guard, Captain? With your skills, you could have easily joined the Imperial Knights."
Herald shrugged.
"I remember answering that before."
"You mean that nonsensical answer about being bored in the Imperial Knights?"
"Nonsensical? I was being sincere, and you evaluate it like that. I'm disappointed."
"Don't say things you don't mean."
Dillon retorted curtly as he stood up.
"If you're done checking the documents, let's go. The Duchess emphasized to me that there's a small welcome party this evening and asked me to bring you early."
Deep wrinkles formed on the handsome face at the mention of a party.
"Do I really have to go?"
Herald showed his dislike openly, but Dillon didn't back down.
"The Duke also said to bring you no matter what."
At the mention of Duke Maximilian, Herald reluctantly stood up.
As Herald was about to get into the carriage after leaving the cafe, he turned his head. On this bright spring day, someone was walking between the streets lined with pink flowers in full bloom.
"...Liliana Benjamin?"
It was Lily. He had thought he should see her in person at least once, as she might have a deep connection with the Second Prince, but he never expected to meet her in a place like this. Herald was a bit flustered by this unexpected coincidence.
Still, it saved him the trouble of seeking her out.
Herald pulled his body, which was halfway into the carriage, completely out and stared intently at her.
The Lily portrayed in the portrait was vibrant like a flower bud about to bloom, but the Lily he saw in person had no trace of vitality, like a flower that had already withered. Her lifeless eyes, as if she had experienced all the hardships of the world, were impressive in a different sense.
Perhaps that's why. Herald, who couldn't take his eyes off her, sensed a strange presence and turned his head. His golden eyes flashed sharply as he looked into the dark alley despite it being broad daylight.
Someone was tailing Liliana Benjamin.
[This is the timeline separator]
Because her family's carriage had left without her, Lily had no choice but to rent a shared carriage.
The rental fee was higher than expected, so she couldn't buy any of the fruits her mother liked, but fortunately, she was able to arrive at the nursing home just in time for visiting hours.
Lily's mother, Grace Benjamin, was currently hospitalized at Calvador Nursing Home, the best-equipped facility in the Empire.
The problem was that the better the facilities, the higher the cost.
Above all, for safety reasons, the nursing home only allowed visits once a week, and only for two hours. Other nursing homes were similar.
So Lily had been personally caring for her mother, and even after getting married, she had intended to continue doing so, but it fell through due to opposition from Fredick and his family. Especially Samantha, who threw a fit saying she couldn't live in the same house as a mentally ill person, leaving a deep, indelible wound in Lily's heart.
Thus, her mother was admitted to Calvador Nursing Home at the same time Lily married Fredick.
Lily took comfort in the fact that her mother was staying in a well-equipped place cared for by professionals, but she couldn't help feeling dejected every time she saw the bleak gray building surrounded by high fences. It felt more like entering a prison than a hospital, which made her feel even worse.
"Wow, it's elder sister!"
It was also devastating to see her mother, who didn't recognize her daughter and called her "elder sister" with a bright smile. Lily bit her lip hard, feeling like she was about to burst into tears.
"Why are you making such a sad face? Are you sick somewhere?"
"Huh? No. I'm fine, mo..."
Mom. Lily swallowed the word that almost reflexively came out and smiled bitterly.
Grace, who had suffered severe burns all over her body in an accident two years ago and whose mental age had regressed to that of an 8-year-old, couldn't remember anything related to Lily or the Benjamin viscounty.
Lily had wanted to help her mother regain her memories, calling her "mom" and saying various things, but whenever she did, Grace would scream or pull her hair, having seizures.
Search "lover" on redcatty(.)com to read ahead up to chapter 70.