The Duke let out a low groan from the back of his throat. Ashley Miller was famous for his devotion to his partner. Unlike Extreme Alphas who lived dissolute lives under the excuse of releasing their pheromones, he never so much as glanced at anyone but his partner. That was one of the reasons for his popularity.
The Duke felt an inner kinship with him too, all the more so since the two of them had been a couple who'd met back in their high school days. But of all things, the partner his son had brought home was the youngest child, Bliss, and that made his feelings complicated.
It would have been better, frankly, if it had been any of the others.
The rest of the Miller children, who shared their father's trait, were predictably famous for being promiscuous, just as one would expect of "that trait." It would have been nice if they'd taken after their parents, but with a constitution like that, there was nothing to be done. The problem was that of all of them, the one his son had set his sights on was Bliss. The twelve-year age gap was one thing, but if Ashley Miller ever learned that the partner his beloved youngest had chosen had such a sordid past, he would surely be shocked. No, he might come charging in to kill Cassian on the spot.
That could never be allowed to happen, naturally.
A useless child, but still his one and only son. He couldn't just leave him to suffer some terrible fate. On top of that, this was the first time he'd ever seen the boy so actively in love, so as a parent, shouldn't he be cheering him on?
Of course... that didn't mean he had no regrets about it.
“His resolve is sorely lacking.”
The Duke clicked his tongue and took a sip of his tea, and the Duchess answered with a smile.
“That's exactly why we have to help. Both of them still seem rather inexperienced, so shouldn't we adults step in?”
“Bliss, maybe, but Cassian's plenty grown up.”
“A little too grown up, perhaps.”
The Duchess took a step back and lowered her eyes. Even so, he was the only child the two of them had, and the Duke, feeling sheepish that he'd done nothing but scold, cleared his throat with an “Ahem,” then replied in a thoroughly softened tone.
“Well, if it's necessary, then there's nothing for it, I suppose.”
“Yes, that's right.”
The Duchess picked up the thread as though she'd been waiting for it.
“Let's watch over them as much as we can, but lend them just a little help when it's truly needed. So slight they won't even notice. Just a touch, ever so slight.”
“...If it's only that much, then I suppose it's fine.”
The Duke still believed that a man ought to win such things for himself, but he couldn't outright deny what the Duchess said. As he reluctantly nodded, she gave a pleased little smile and changed the subject.
“I've been choosing the cake design for this party. The pastry chef seems to be putting in an enormous amount of effort....”
And so their conversation seemed to come to a tidy close. But unexpectedly, the matter unfolded in a way entirely different from what they'd anticipated.
Within the quiet, tranquil castle, only the regular footsteps of two men echoed. The butler, who walked ahead guiding the guest, stopped before a certain door, gave a light knock, paused, and then opened it.
“Marquess, His Grace the Duke has arrived.”
Having announced the visitor, he stepped quietly aside, and only then did the Duke set foot inside. The Marquess, who had been seated first, rose warmly to greet him.
“Oh, welcome, welcome. How good of you to pay me a visit.”
“What are you saying? Of course I had to come.”
The Duke of Strickland's face was, unusually, pale and stiff. After a brief handshake, the Duke sat down as the Marquess invited him to, and only after the butler had poured the tea and left did he cautiously study the Marquess seated across from him.
Noticing the uneasy gaze, the Marquess fixed his eyes on the Duke with a thrilled expression, as though he were anticipating the Duke's reaction. Feeling a cold sweat run down his spine, the Duke spoke up with difficulty.
“Ahem, well, I'm sorry to have come so late. My wife and I only just returned from a trip together. When I heard the report from the head of the PR team, I was so taken aback....”
It had been only the day before that he'd heard of the unsavory incident involving Marquess Manon. Even when the head of the PR team had come to report on what had happened in his absence, the Duke hadn't given it much thought. The notion that it was simply a customary courtesy call was overturned the instant the very first thing came out of the team leader's mouth.
“At the party, Cassian's companion caused a violent scene with Marquess Manon.”
It was a matter that could have turned into an enormous scandal. Fortunately, Cassian seemed to have acted quickly so that it never became public knowledge, but that didn't mean he could simply pretend it hadn't happened. After all, he was the parent of one of the parties involved. That was why he'd hurriedly contacted the Marquess and arranged this meeting....
Unexpectedly, the Marquess's complexion looked remarkably good. His sparkling eyes and flushed cheeks made him look even younger than the last time the Duke had seen him. Anxious and bewildered all at once as to what was going on, the Duke watched as the Marquess broke into a bright smile and opened his mouth.
“Oh, that matter is nothing at all. Surely you didn't come all the way here over a trifle like that?”
“What? I'm not sure what you mean...?”
Seeing the Marquess narrow his eyes and smile as though he knew everything, the Duke grew all the more flustered. He'd come all this way to apologize, yet the Marquess seemed to be expecting something else entirely. Unable to make heads or tails of the man's intentions, he only furrowed his brow, when suddenly the Marquess asked,
“And how is your precious son getting along?”
For a moment the Duke faltered. What was the intent behind this question? Was he being mocked, as if to ask whether his son was eating well and living comfortably after doing that to him?
So the boy's apology wasn't enough to satisfy him.
Convinced of this, the Duke deliberately put on a gloomy expression and answered.
“He's been quite depressed. He blames himself terribly for failing to properly look after his partner.”
Will this much do?
He cautiously gauged the reaction, but unexpectedly the Marquess, as though entirely uninterested, changed the question.
“And so, what came of it with that partner? Have you happened to meet them yourself, Duke?”
“What? Yes....”
Still dazed, the Duke hurriedly went on.
“Of course I've met them. As you saw, they're still young and probably didn't know any better. Cassian should have kept a closer watch....”
“Hahaha, a man who sits idle while hearing his beloved spoken ill of is no man at all. Never mind that. How are the two of them doing these days? I've been wanting news of them, but with nowhere to hear any, I've been rather put out. And here you've come in person, Duke. You've no idea how glad I am.”
...What?
The Duke was bewildered yet again. What on earth was this now? Was he asking whether the two of them still hadn't broken up and were getting along well? Of course, from the Marquess's standpoint, Bliss surely couldn't be all that welcome either.... Unable to grasp what the man was even talking about, the Duke listened as the Marquess kept prattling on in high spirits.
“You can be honest with me. Duke, you're not by any chance planning to announce their engagement at the birthday party, are you? If so, do tell me in advance, and I'll gladly prepare a gift to bring along. You're not thinking of leaving me off the guest list for the engagement, surely? I've been waiting anxiously for word, and if the Count of Heringer doesn't let me know, I'll be truly hurt. Should such a thing come to pass, you absolutely must contact me, Duke. I haven't had anything this thrilling in ages....”
“Hold on, hold on a moment, Marquess.”
Hastily putting out a hand to stop him, the Duke knit his brow and asked,
“I really don't understand what you're talking about. Cassian and Bli, Blair, engaged? What are you saying? Did Cassian say something?”
He had received the report that his son had visited to apologize to the Marquess in person. Even so, he hadn't been able to just let it go and had come himself, and yet the Marquess was rattling off things he'd never imagined in his wildest dreams.
“My, you didn't know?”
At the Duke's reaction, the Marquess finally put on a surprised expression and briefly laid out what had happened the other day. Adding a short apology for his grandson's misdeed, he explained the reason Bliss had been so furious, along with just how passionately the two young people were in love with each other.
“If you'd seen with your own eyes the way the Count of Heringer came to apologize to me, Duke, you'd have known at once. A face in love can never be hidden, after all.”
As the Marquess let out a hearty mwahaha of a laugh, the Duke could only keep watching him, still flustered. Forcing the corners of his mouth up, the Duke hesitated before speaking.
“So even to your eyes, Marquess, that's how it appeared.”
“Yes, of course. So when is the engagement ceremony? It looked as though they'd be holding it soon, yet there's been no word at all this whole time, and I've been so curious. To be honest, when I heard you'd be visiting today, Duke, I expected you'd tell me about it. Is that really not the case?”
At the expression mingling expectation and concern, the Duke couldn't bring himself to answer right away and only worked his mouth wordlessly, until at last he let out a deep sigh.
