The name of Roam is absolute. Which meant that a Roam in peril was unworthy of holding power.
Though I had narrowly averted one crisis for Roam through Lilia, that very act had now backfired, and I must properly resolve it.
My father's determination to present me, the Resurrected One, as Roam's successor in place of my sister, the Phrygian, was precisely that.
It was a kind of show, to demonstrate that we, the direct line, were still worthy of the name Roam.
"Might I ask what you intend to do there?"
"Well, I've considered various things... Ultimately, I must first drive out my sister, the Phrygian."
If my sister were to become the next duke, Roam would somehow overcome its crisis. She was a person of such capability.
Therefore, I had no choice but to drive her out entirely.
At my answer, Heinri, who had fallen silent for a moment, frowned and cautiously began to speak.
"I have something to discuss regarding that as well. It seems Duke Roam intends to send the minor duke to me."
"Ah, my apologies. I made a vague remark to my mother, and it seems she took it seriously."
"Will you resolve this?"
Heinri wore a genuinely disgusted expression. I answered him in a gentle tone.
"You need not worry about that."
Even without my intervention, my sister, the Phrygian, would absolutely never agree to marry into the imperial family. The moment she became a member of the imperial family, she could never become the head of the Roam family.
"I know my sister, the Phrygian. She is a person who would do anything to prevent me from taking her place."
Even if it meant an engagement of a level she had never imagined.
Just considering a few scenarios, the reaction of the Roam family was vividly clear.
My sister, the Phrygian, unable to accept her fate and stubbornly clinging to the bloodline of a collateral branch to reclaim the headship, and my mother, who would clearly be unable to tolerate such behavior and would be furious.
And my father, who would absolutely support my mother's will, and Sayri, hiding in the folds of my mother's skirts, who would be dragged unwittingly into the succession struggle.
The division of Roam was a foregone conclusion.
"Your Highness need only say that, due to the pain of heartbreak, you will focus on state affairs for the time being."
Since it proves his feelings were deep enough to extract me from the imperial palace, this excuse should work for a while.
At my advice, Heinri, uncharacteristically, pouted his lips somewhat childishly.
"That is not an excuse, but the truth."
"Ah."
As I closed my lips with a stung expression, Heinri let out a deflated laugh.
He, who had uttered something that was clearly half-serious as if it were a joke, shifted the conversation with a generous voice.
"I pray that your path ahead is always smooth and safe."
"...Thank you."
"That necklace... you may take it. If you are comfortable with it."
Heinri's gaze turned to the necklace hanging around my neck.
I, who had been unconsciously fiddling with the communication necklace around my neck, glanced down.
Frankly, until I reach the Roam residence, I would need to contact Heinri, so the necklace would have its use, but I doubted I would have occasion to use it again even after that.
Yet, I felt it would be a waste to simply discard it.
"Contact me when you need a friend, occasionally. I'll listen to your drunken ramblings."
As if guessing my thoughts, Heinri added. Hearing that made the answer easy.
"Drunken ramblings are excessive, but I will send occasional greetings."
At my words, Heinri let out a soft chuckle.
"Very well."
Afterwards, we had a leisurely teatime. It was the most carefree and comfortable teatime since I entered the imperial palace.
* * *
The Phrygian was finally driven out of the study.
"Father!"
The Phrygian's cry of shock, as had been the case for the past few days, did not reach Duke Roam.
The Phrygian, who had been treated as the minor duke all her life, was for the first time seized by servants and dragged out into the corridor. She truly could not believe her situation.
"Let go of me this instant!"
Roughly shaking off the servants, she staggered and regained her balance.
"......"
The Phrygian, glaring with bloodshot eyes at the firmly closed study door, turned her head at the sound of footsteps.
The Duchess of Roam, her back elegantly straight, stopped and frowned upon seeing her.
"Phrygian, what is this disgraceful behavior?"
"Disgraceful? Does this look disgraceful to you now?"
"It will soon be time for our precious family member to return. Do you wish to ruin what should be a happy reunion?"
At the Duchess of Roam's words, the Phrygian let out a disbelieving laugh. However, she tried to calm herself, suppressing her rising voice.
"Mother, this is truly not right. Father is making a mistaken judgment now."
At the Phrygian's words, the Duchess of Roam slightly narrowed her brow.
"Dare you doubt the authority of Duke Roam, in the Roam residence itself?"
A reproachful gaze swept over the Phrygian. Finally, unable to contain her anger, the Phrygian raised her voice.
"I have lived my whole life as the minor duke! Does it make sense to cast me out like this so suddenly?"
At first, she thought it was a misunderstanding.
Her workload had decreased strangely, and the subordinates she commanded began to be assigned to other duties one by one on the Duke's orders.
As the Duke's summons abruptly ceased, even her visits to the Duke's study disappeared.
All within a matter of days.
Then recently, the moment she received a sudden notice prohibiting her attendance at the imperial palace banquet held to express gratitude to the Resurrected One, the Phrygian realized.
That something was gravely wrong.
"Did my taking the lead in adopting Lilia as a daughter now come back to haunt me?"
No matter how she thought, there was no other reason. But the Phrygian felt genuinely wronged.
At that time, it was Crown Prince Maxel who first suggested the idea of adopting Lilia as a daughter of Roam.
Moreover, even if the Phrygian had advocated for the adoption, could she have accomplished it alone!
It was the Duke who, upon seeing Lilia's precognitive ability, decided to accept her, and the Duchess also agreed. So why must she alone pay the price for that matter?
"Phrygian."
The Duchess of Roam called her. The Phrygian clung to the Duchess's arm.
"Mother, please persuade Father. He won't listen to me."
At her daughter's pitiful plea, the Duchess of Roam paused for a moment but soon let out a long sigh and removed the Phrygian's hand.
"You must tidy your appearance first. Do you intend to greet your long-absent younger sibling in such a state?"
"Is that child's return important right now...!"
The Phrygian, raising her voice as if frustrated, suddenly stopped speaking.
Staring blankly up at the Duchess of Roam, she muttered in a disbelieving voice.
"You said... you succeeded in persuading Anelli."
The Duchess of Roam said nothing. She merely gazed at the Phrygian with the stern face she had seen all her life.
Her mother was a person more suited to Roam than anyone.
To the extent that she had always proudly thought that the mistress of such a family must have the same fortitude and dignity as her mother.
'So in a case like this...'
"Why is Anelli coming to Roam?"
"Phrygian. Did you not hear my words?"
Another reprimand followed, but the Phrygian's mind was filled with other thoughts.
"Mother, Anelli wouldn't have agreed to return without a reason."
Muttering to herself, the Phrygian recalled a recent family meeting.
The Duchess of Roam, having met Anelli, said before the family. That Anelli was extremely uncomfortable with life in the imperial palace, and if she needed somewhere to rely on, she agreed that Roam was suitable.
The Roam family had always thought Roam would be most comfortable for Anelli, so they did not deeply question the Duchess's words at the time.
Then the Duchess of Roam... had a long, separate conversation with the Duke.
'The time I was excluded from duties was...'
After the Duchess of Roam returned from meeting Anelli.
"Mother, surely not...?"
The moment the Phrygian tried to speak as if possessed, a butler came panting up from downstairs.
"The carriage has passed through the main gate!"
"Send all the hired staff to their quarters. Ensure their lips are sealed tightly. Phrygian, tidy your appearance and, taking care of Lilia and Sayri, come out to the lobby with them. If the Roam star has risen, you must naturally join in welcoming the family."
Just then, the Duke, having heard the commotion outside the study, opened the door and emerged.
The Duchess of Roam calmly informed her husband of the situation and then moved downstairs with him.
Only the Phrygian, left alone in the corridor, stood pale-faced, breathing heavily for a long while.
'They have already...'
The Roam servants, as if not seeing her, busily focused only on their own roles.
Some hurried towards the quarters, others prepared to serve the late-night visitor.
'This cannot be!'
The Phrygian, standing dazed, turned her body roughly. The Duchess's words to tidy her appearance were long forgotten.
'This cannot be!'
She descended the central staircase and reached the lobby in one breath.
In the large lobby, only a few key figures like the butler and head maid were present as hired staff. Perhaps because of that, it felt somewhat desolate at a glance.
In the center of the lobby, beside the Duke and Duchess of Roam standing side by side, Sayri was rubbing her sleepy eyes. A little apart from them was Lilia with an anxious expression.
"Big sister!"
Lilia, chewing her lip and fidgeting anxiously, called out joyfully to the Phrygian.
But the Duke and Duchess of Roam did not turn to look at the Phrygian. They were staring intently at the firmly closed front door.
The Phrygian, who had stopped dumbly before the central staircase, also turned her gaze to the front door following them.
*Clunk.*
With the sound of the doorknob turning, the massive door slowly opened.
Simultaneously, the Phrygian muttered as if grinding her teeth.
"Anelli Roam..."
A dreadful feeling, as if covered in filth, enveloped her entire body.
It was the moment she became certain that everything had gone wrong.