A Reassuring Guest

In late summer, a piece of news shook the city of Le Havre.

Grand Duke Wessen had arrived, bringing his fiancée with him to vacation in Le Havre.

Count Volpe, the City Lord, had already led the city's troops into battle alongside the King. Lady Volpe warmly welcomed Frederick, Maria, and their party.

Since Frederick had come in his private capacity as the Duke of Deer Harbor, Lady Volpe had not held a formal banquet with a long table. Instead, she had arranged a buffet in the garden.

The city's dignitaries and merchants all came to meet Frederick, crowding around him in several layers.

Frederick suddenly spotted someone outside the crowd. The man had his head lowered, but looked vaguely familiar.

He took another look and remembered who it was.

Philip Dafranche had heard that Grand Duke Wessen was coming. After much effort, he'd managed to get an invitation from his superior. To do so, he'd even lent out his son's bicycle.

When he arrived, he felt a little uneasy. He wanted to ask about his younger brother, but would it be rude to bring him up to Grand Duke Wessen out of the blue? What if the Grand Duke said he didn't know the man?

The more Philip thought about it, the more worried he became. He hunched over slightly and kept his head down, afraid Grand Duke Wessen would come over and loudly say, "Oh, your younger brother? I saw him in the papers. He's a thief, probably rotting away in some damp, dark cell by now."

When he saw all the gentlemen and businessmen he never usually encountered crowding around Grand Duke Wessen so tightly that not even a drop of water could get through, he actually breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as Philip was preparing