"Mother, Lord Yuri looks rather frightened, so please calm down a little.
"And Lady Claudius—no, may I call you Ophie from now on?
"I'm no longer a princess, so please just call me Liese.
"And you don't mean to make a scene here either, do you, Ophie?"
Lieselotte's gentle voice took some of the strain out of the room.
Celine looked momentarily taken aback, but quickly gave a small nod.
"Y-yes, you're right. That was a bit childish of me."
At Celine's subdued reply, Ophelia regained her composure as well and dipped her head lightly toward Yuri.
"My apologies as well."
Only then did Yuri finally begin to relax.
As he looked at her, a question suddenly rose in his mind.
Why did Ophelia become my consort...? It's not like she fell in love with me at first sight and the Queen Dowager thoughtfully arranged it for me... No. Of course not.
He gave a wry smile at his own impossible fantasy.
In neither his past life nor this one had he ever had any luck with women.
There was no way something that convenient would suddenly happen to him.
Could there be some other reason? Is the Queen Dowager threatening her or something?
The more he thought about it, the less sense he could make of it, and before he knew it, his gaze had drifted to Ophelia's neckline.
Her bright gown plunged low at the chest, and soft cleavage showed through the opening.
Strands of her black hair fell across it, swaying ever so slightly.
Damn it...
By the time he realized what he was doing, it was already too late, and a soft voice came from right in front of him.
"Lord Yuri, you really shouldn't stare at a lady so intently."
He jerked his head up to find Lieselotte standing before the table, smiling at him.
Her eyes told him clearly enough that he would be getting a lesson in manners later.
"S-sorry. I just got lost in thought for a second..."
As Yuri rushed to explain himself, Ophelia, seated beside him, turned a steady gaze on him.
"You were wondering why I became your consort, were you not?"
There was something concealed in Ophelia's eyes as she said it, and they trembled ever so slightly.
"Huh? You knew that right away...?
"But I'm not going to force you to tell me. I just want you to remember this. We're family now, so if something is troubling you, I'd like you to tell me... if you can."
Yuri scratched his cheek and gave her an awkward, slightly bashful smile.
He himself wasn't sure how far he had any right to pry; he only wanted her to feel even a little more at ease.
Ophelia, who had been gazing at Yuri, closed her eyes once and let out a slow breath.
That small gesture seemed to hold both resolve and the faintest hesitation.
"You are right.
"As long as I remain someone you cannot trust, we can hardly build any trust between us."
"So I shall answer you honestly.
"The reason I became a consort... was for money."
"For money?"
Yuri frowned in spite of himself.
He had never imagined that would be the reason.
Ophelia's expression clouded slightly.
But the next moment she had already recovered her usual composure, and she continued in the same cool, even tone.
"There was a certain incident in House Claudius, and we found ourselves in need of a considerable sum.
"At that point, Her Majesty the Queen Dowager offered her support, provided I entered the household as a consort to the baron-consort of Reberk, supplied her with information, and hindered the administration of the territory."
Caught off guard by so sudden a confession, Yuri couldn't hide his agitation.
"Should you really be telling me that?"
The weight of her words settled heavily in his chest.
If the Queen Dowager learned that Ophelia had told him all this, then not only House Claudius but Ophelia herself might be put in danger...
The thought filled him with growing unease.
"Won't the Queen Dowager retaliate against you for this?
"Are you really going to be all right?"
At that, Ophelia gave a small, cool laugh.
"Hehe. Even knowing perfectly well that I am an obvious spy, you still worry about me."
"Well, yes. If something happened to your family, that would put you in a difficult position too, wouldn't it?"
Ophelia hesitated for an instant at Yuri's earnest reply, then quickly let a faint smile touch her lips.
"You are far kinder than the rumors would suggest, my lord.
"But you need not worry."
"...Is that so? If anything really does happen, promise you'll tell me."
Looking at Ophelia's smile, Yuri couldn't help worrying whether she truly understood that.
Perhaps the fact that she could still conduct herself like a proper noblewoman even at a moment like this was part of her strength.
"So then, little Ophie, how far do you intend to go as the Queen Dowager's pawn?"
Celine cut in without warning, her smile light and her tone almost teasing.
"Little Ophie?"
Ophelia's voice rose ever so slightly.
A flash of surprise crossed her face, but she immediately recovered her calm and spoke again.
"The principal wife is the Baroness Regnant of Reberk, so I have no objection."
Her eyes remained fixed squarely on Celine.
"You're awfully stiff. Celine will do.
"As women who love the same man, I'd like us to get along. So then—which is it?"
"Lady Celine... regrettably, I do not yet love Lord Yuri.
"I became his consort for the sake of my house... for calculated reasons."
"And?"
Celine prompted Ophelia to continue.
"As expected of someone who once served as a Virtuous Consort in the Harem.
"You are quite right. I have no intention of being only the Queen Dowager's pawn."
Ophelia answered with a smile.
There was something in her eyes that seemed to say more, but Yuri had no idea what it meant.
He felt as though he alone had been left behind by the conversation, yet at the same time a vague sense of relief settled over him.
At least, it sounded as though she might be willing to stand with them, if only a little.
"I see. So you mean to carry out only superficial sabotage and feed her information, keeping the Queen Dowager's support flowing to your family while also cooperating with us so you can draw a different kind of support from our side."
Celine laid it out as though she could see straight through her.
At those words, Ophelia narrowed her eyes only slightly, but her smile did not falter.
"Huh? What does that mean?"
The question slipped out of Yuri before he could stop it.
Celine only shrugged and smiled.
"Honestly, my lord husband...
"If you don't learn to read the maneuvering in a room like this, little Ophie is going to wrap you around her finger."
Ophelia answered with a gentle smile of her own.
"For the moment, you need not worry, my lord. I have no intention of betraying you either.
"Only..."
Her eyes wavered ever so slightly.
"I intend to cooperate with both sides as far as possible and draw out the greatest benefit I can."
Hearing that only left Yuri more confused.
He tried to sort the situation out in his own head, but no clear answer came to him at all.
"The Queen Dowager is giving your family financial support, right?
"But from us, a different sort of support...?
"If you're talking about drawing out a profit, does that mean you want financial support from us too?"
Yuri folded his arms and tilted his head, thinking it over.
Watching him, Lieselotte let out a soft little laugh and spoke from the side.
"Hehe, Lord Yuri. I don't think that's it.
"Doesn't Ophie want to restore House Claudius's honor as a noble house?"
The moment he heard that, Yuri only looked more confused than before.
Honor...? Huh? How are you supposed to get something like that back?
Still wearing the same cool smile, Ophelia narrowed her eyes slightly and gave Lieselotte a small nod of admiration.
"As expected of Lady Liese. An excellent observation.
"My foremost aim is the restoration of House Claudius's honor."
At those words, Yuri could only clutch his head.
He had absolutely no idea how anyone was supposed to restore honor.
As he sat there thinking, Celine gently stroked his head.
"My lord husband, are you perhaps thinking, 'How do you even get honor back?'"
Celine asked with a smile.
"Wow, exactly right! How did you know?"
Yuri's eyes lit up in surprise.
"Hehe. Your face gives you away far too easily. It was obvious at once."
Celine smiled and gave a small shrug.
"Honor is surprisingly easy to reclaim, so long as one knows the proper way."
"I-is it...?"
Yuri felt a little relieved, but he still had no idea what that proper way could possibly be.
What Celine said always sounded easy...
But could it really be that simple?
"You say that, but... is it really that easy?"
"For you, Lord Yuri," Lieselotte answered at once with a smile, "I believe it would be."