Chapter 27
[Huh? Do you know who Duke Raymond is?]
[Of course, he’s the one who tried to kill me.]
[Tried to kill you?]
[Yes!]
According to Tuxedo, Duke Raymond hated cats. But hearing more, it wasn’t just dislike—it was outright loathing.
[Why would he kill a cat that’s just sitting there?]
[I don’t know. He says he can’t stand even the sight of one.]
In fact, Tuxedo himself had nearly been killed several times before finding Rosé. Whenever he was scavenging for food and happened to run into the duke, the duke would order his servants to catch and kill him.
[But who am I! I’m the cat who learned survival skills at the commander’s side! I always darted away!]
[Good, well done.]
Rosé already knew the duke wasn’t a good person, but to kill cats for no reason at all…
[Sigh… Even so, I can’t just ignore him.]
Even if she hated the sight of him, she had to endure it. After all, Duke Raymond was far too important in keeping Noah’s position secure.
[In fact, I just saw him. He was over there in the garden corner, talking very seriously with someone.]
Rosé was just thinking that, no matter how detestable he was, she’d still have to coax him into staying on their side. But when she heard that Duke Raymond was having a serious conversation in a secluded garden corner, she couldn’t dismiss it.
[With who?]
[A young man with black hair. But I only saw the back of his head, so I don’t know who he was.]
Black hair? Was there any character in the novel with black hair? Rosé tried to recall…
[Where exactly?]
No one came to mind. Maybe some extra or unimportant background character—but no one important enough to be having a private talk with Duke Raymond.
[By the lilac grove nearby.]
[Let’s go!]
If she didn’t know, she had no choice but to see for herself.
[They were right ahead.]
As they passed through the maze garden and the yet-to-bloom lilac trees came into view, Tuxedo slowed down.
Even though they had hurried out here, would the duke still be around? But then—
“So, what exactly are you trying to say? From the start, all I’ve heard is roundabout probing, not the main point, and I can’t say it’s been pleasant.”
“Probing? Not at all. I’m simply offering you the first chance at a great opportunity.”
He was still there. Just as Tuxedo had said, Duke Raymond stood before a man with jet-black hair.
Rosé, hiding behind a tree, carefully observed the man whose face she still couldn’t see.
‘He’s a noble.’
His clothes, his shoes, his gloves—everything screamed nobility. In this era, society was still rigidly aristocratic. No matter how much wealth a merchant had, they couldn’t afford such formal attire. The gold-thread embroidery at the cuffs and hem was reserved for nobles alone.
‘And he’s much younger than Duke Raymond.’
His voice sounded even younger than Noah’s—like someone barely past his coming-of-age.
‘Who is he…?’
She could infer a lot just from his back and voice, yet no character from the original story came to mind.
Could she have simply forgotten, since she had read the novel so long ago?
‘In a novel so obsessed with bloodline supremacy, a noble with black hair…’
Impossible to forget. Such a striking character would have stood out. And for him to be speaking with Duke Raymond? That was suspicious.
“So, did you confirm it? That the rumors about Lord Zion being alive are true?”
At that, Rosé froze.
“I did look into it, but he isn’t easy to approach. More importantly, even if Lord Zion is alive, why should that be a good opportunity for me?”
“I would think Duke Raymond knows that better than anyone.”
The black-haired man suddenly brought up the original protagonist.
‘What? I don’t even know who this guy is, and now he’s talking about the main character?’
In the original, the protagonists had never approached Duke Raymond before spring arrived. Neither this man nor this situation existed in the story Rosé had read multiple times.
Her mind spun in confusion—
“But then… looks like some stray cats are eavesdropping on us.”
The man suddenly noticed Rosé listening in.
Startled, Rosé shoved Tuxedo’s back, ready to bolt. But before they could run, the man was already at her side, snatching her up with one swift grab.
“Yaaang!! Yaaang! Hissss! (Let go! I said let go!)”
Clutched by the scruff of her neck, Rosé flailed and wailed desperately. The memory of Duke Raymond ordering cats killed made terror surge inside her.
‘I can’t die here! Not like this!’
She had just begun her mission to save Noah—she couldn’t die so uselessly.
“Miaaaooo! Nyaaaaa!”
She cried as loud as she could. They were near Noah’s chambers—surely someone would hear.
“Lady Rosé, out again so soon? Couldn’t resist, I see.”
Her plea was answered. From around the corner, Jonathan appeared like a savior.
Rosé, forgetting that Jonathan wasn’t particularly fond of her, reached out to him.
“Yaaang! Yaaang! (Jonathan! Save me!)”
It wasn’t Noah, but still, an ally had appeared. Maybe it was better this way—Jonathan would handle things calmly, while Noah would have flown into a rage at the sight.
‘If I’m lucky, I might even learn who this man really is.’
Since Jonathan would at least exchange a few words with him, she might get his name, or some clue.
“Would you hand her over, Lord Calliphon? This cat belongs to His Majesty.”
At Jonathan’s outstretched hand, the black-haired man—Count Calliphon—handed Rosé over. His golden eyes seemed oddly familiar.
Rosé sighed in relief.
“Well, well. That was close, Count Calliphon. If you’d upset His Majesty, no amount of begging me would have let your precious oranges be sold in the empire.”
Duke Raymond spoke smoothly, as if nothing had happened.
‘Pfft.’
Rosé couldn’t help but laugh. Just moments ago she’d nearly died, and now—“oranges”?
The gloomy-looking black-haired noble was, apparently, here to sell oranges.
‘Don’t tell me “Calliphon” comes from California…’
The mismatch between his somber aura and the cheerful fruit was funny enough, but the name made it even funnier.
When Rosé let out a soft “prrrt” of laughter, Count Calliphon’s golden eyes flicked toward her. She quickly looked away and pretended to be distracted.
Only Noah could know she understood human speech. If anyone else discovered it, it would just fuel the whole “cursed cat” rumor.
‘So, he’s a noble with an orange plantation as his domain?’
She couldn’t recall him at all, but with that much setup, it was clear the author had made him deliberately.
‘Still, the author really phoned it in with that name…’
It almost made her think he wasn’t that important, since the name felt so half-hearted.
While Rosé buried her face in Jonathan’s arms to hide her stifled laughter, Jonathan continued his exchange with the duke.
“Duke Raymond, you truly don’t recognize her? I thought you’d seen her often enough.”
“Well, my eyes are getting weak with age. Besides, cats all look the same to me.”
“Is that so. And what brings you all the way out here? If you’re lost, the palace entrance is that way.”
Strange—Jonathan was being gentle.
As he spoke, he stroked Rosé’s trembling body with practiced ease, mistaking her shaking for fear rather than suppressed laughter.
“I’ve told you before, Lady Rosé isn’t alone. And yet you’ve slipped out again.”
Though he muttered complaints under his breath, his touch was endlessly gentle.
‘He grumbles, but he really does care about me.’
Normally, Rosé would have smirked, thinking, Ha! Even Jonathan has fallen for my charms. But this time she couldn’t.
‘So, Duke Raymond is already being courted, huh?’
