Adi returned to the Duke's residence, barely dry after washing in a room in the outer palace - and ran into Bert, who had just woken up.
Bert looked at her and began to say that you need to dry your hair properly, otherwise you will catch a cold. Now you are young and don’t understand, but when you grow to my age, you will feel the difference. Adi nodded obediently.
Bert yawned widely - there was no dignity of a guard knight in his appearance. However, everyone is perfect only at work; There are almost no perfect people in private life.
— Did you have lunch?
- No, I just returned from training.
— As soon as you have free time, you go straight to training? Well done. Then all the more you need to eat more.
Bert led her to the dining room. Adi asked what to do with wet hair, to which she received the answer: it will dry itself. It’s unclear what tune to dance to here, but Adi herself was hungry, so she followed Bert without objection.
The food in the dining room of the inner palace was quite good. Better than the outer palace or the Third Order of Knights. Here it was as if food was approached as an art - not like in a knight's dining room, where just meat is enough. Do security knights always eat like this? The following question arose. True, sweet desserts are not to Adi’s taste.
— Palesa is generally not bad, but the food here is so-so. In comparison, the food in Jonad is tastier.
- Is it true?
— The food in Woodpecker is also delicious.
— And in Grimaldi it’s not tasty.
— Grimaldi... Yes, this place is not famous for its cuisine. What is it famous for anyway?
- A witch hunt?
-...
Yes, indeed this is exactly what it is. Bert thought about how to answer, but then snapped his fingers.
- Exactly! There are a lot of beauties there!
“Although many died during the witch hunt, many beautiful women are actually born there from generation to generation.”
- Looking at your face, I believe it. Are the men there that good looking too?
“I didn’t go and look at men, so I don’t know.”
- So, he was looking at women?
Well, Adi saw more women than men, if only because there were maids around. When Adi remained silent, Bert patted her on the shoulder, saying that you are still a man.
Whatever thoughts he had, they were definitely very different from reality - Adi thought, but did not say anything.
Bert did most of the talking during the meal. Like, you come here every year and nothing changes, it’s boring. There's nothing left to watch. Having learned that Adi had hardly been anywhere, he offered to take her to good places.
Adi calmly ignored the offers and continued to eat, but she thought: is now the right time to say what she never dared to say? Adi interrupted Bert.
- Your Grace.
- What? Do you want to go somewhere else?
“Duke, you often suffer from assassination threats, don’t you?”
How did talking about tourism suddenly turn to assassination threats? But if it's part of the job, then it's quite appropriate.
Bert was going to ask not to talk about work while eating, but since Adi was talking for the first time herself, he replied: “That's right.” Bert, thinking that in this way they would slowly become closer, leaned forward, as if asking if she had any other questions.
- And in Pales too?
- Right.
“Does it matter whether it’s day or night?”
- Doesn't matter. Usually assassinations happen at night, don't they?
“Is that why you guard at night?”
It was a prickly question. Bert narrowed his eyes. He did not know whether he was being tested or whether they were pursuing other goals. The best thing to do was ask directly. Bert asked directly without hesitation:
“You think I’m not trustworthy if I don’t give you the night shift?”
“No,” Adi answered. "No?" But then there must be a reason for such a question. Bert was about to open his mouth, but Adi continued:
“I think it’s quite natural that you don’t trust me.” After all, I had just been transferred to the Second Order of Knighthood.
Having said this, Adi lowered her gaze. What if the real Adrian was in this place?
Adrian received an appropriate education, but Adrina received very little.
I tried, studying all night, but there is a difference between what is learned from childhood and flows naturally like water, and what you acquire belatedly.
If Adrian had been born stronger, and she would have been weak. If only she herself lay in that grave.
What would Adrian do? In this situation. At the order of the Count.
- But you just got transferred, right?
- I'm Grimaldi.
“I thought you didn’t understand political affairs.”
“I don’t understand much, but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand anything at all.”
Bert nodded to Adi's frank answer. That man would not raise his children in any way. But it seemed to Bert that in the Adrian he saw there was a strange lack of education. Lack of naturalness, or something.
“There are many in Pales who are hostile for various reasons, and if you think about my count...
Not “father”, but “my count”. Isn't this like appealing to a superior?
“It seems to me that they are not on good terms.”
“But you, sir, don’t look like you’re on good terms with your count.”
Bert said this with bewilderment. At least judging by the correspondence, their relationship did not seem so bad. It seemed that even this Spencer Grimaldi was affectionate with his offspring, but now, judging by the words...
- How can we be on good terms?
...Was this letter just for show?
“We’re just the same Grimaldi.”
That's what Adi said. Adi hated the count. Even more than she hated discrimination. Probably, it’s also uncomfortable for the beloved side. Although whether it could be called love remained a question. ...Did guilt mean that?
If you look at it this way, the Count seemed to dislike both Adis. After all, what is the use of loving or not loving? One way or another, the count thought about who was more useful, who would become the heir, who was worth supporting, and he chose. And that choice turned out to be Adi.
After the death of one Adi, another Adi took her place. Perhaps this name was invented precisely for this purpose.
- But why are you suddenly talking about this?
After a short silence, Adi began: “It’s just...” Killers, we need to stop.
“I was wondering if it would be worth strengthening security.”
Would it be against the Count to wonder how she knew this? But she was interested. Was this what the request to wait at the Palais meant? If so, how did the Count expect her to end up in the Second Order of Knighthood? Did the count really have a hand there too? As that page said.
— Strengthen security.
Bert said this, looking at Adi. It’s strange, recently she said that security was not needed.
Bert looked at Adi. He saw a gaze calmly watching him. Even when their eyes met, neither Adi nor Bert could understand what the other was thinking.
***After finishing their meal, Adi and Bert returned to the residence. Security time was about to begin, and Adi changed clothes to go to the reception area. Roy Gagliardo stood by the sofa in the waiting room. The door opposite the reception area was closed. Roy turned to the approaching Adi:
- Did I see how you looked?
“The weather was good, and I was looking out the window and just happened to be there.”
- I know.
Roy didn't know Adi very well, but it seemed to him that the Adi he saw was rather indifferent to others. After their eyes met, she would probably just pull the curtain and want privacy because she was too lazy to say hello or exchange simple glances. In such actions, Roy also felt a certain rejection.
“Today I met the second daughter of the Lintu family. She loved the Duke since childhood.
- How do you know?
- Because from the Southern lands.
Who is from the southern lands? The Duke and the Lingtu family are a given. Did he really want to say that he himself was also from the southern lands?
— We knew each other, perhaps?
When Adi asked, Roy frowned and abruptly looked away.
- Why?
“Sometimes it seems to me that you don’t know etiquette.”
-...
“Perhaps there is some problem in Grimaldi’s training?”
- Was. She wasn't really trained.
Only Adrian received training. And even this is unknown whether it was ideal.
After all, at first Spencer Grimaldi only ordered Adi to be trained, but he himself never did this directly.
— Because he spent more time in the capital than on the estate.
Adrina also only received retraining from the same people who trained Adi. They didn't hesitate to call Adrina Adrian. They were all like puppets in the service of the count.
“Is that why you received a knighthood from the Crown Prince?”
- Yes. I received it from the Crown Prince on my first visit to the capital, when I saw it for the first time.
In fact, Adrian did not go to the capital. Both the title of knight and the sword received through Spencer Grimaldi. Even if the Crown Prince were standing in front of her now, she would not recognize him.
- Who did you have lunch with?
— With Kenneth Max.
- Who is this?
“You don’t even know your boss?” He is the commander of the Second Order of Knighthood. We discussed security issues.
Having said this, Roy clicked his tongue.
“Looks like that bastard had no intention of sending me to the Duke.”
“That bastard didn’t tell me that the Second Order of Knights has its own training hall.” That's why I went to the Northern Palace, where I got caught up in a showdown.
-...They probably thought that you yourself had come to arrange a showdown.
Adi didn’t consider it anything serious, but looking at Roy’s reaction, she doubted whether she was wrong?
- When you finish your shift, come back. I'll show you where the training room is.
Roy paused.
- This is not out of friendship. You helped me - so I'm just repaying the debt.
Adi raised an eyebrow. Maybe, if you look closely, he won't be such a bad person.