Erin greeted the noble ladies, who were looking bewildered as they stared at themselves, with a vacant expression on their faces, with a bright smile. Simultaneously, the ladies who were having a tea party were taken aback and froze as they suddenly noticed Erin.
“Are you Lady Lienster, the Duchess? Welcome. If you had informed us in advance, I would have personally welcomed you,” said Lady Hernan, the hostess of the tea party, as she managed to regain her composure and approached to greet Erin.
“Thank you for welcoming an uninvited guest.”
Erin politely extended her greetings, as if she had not barged in unannounced.
“Lady Duchess, you are always welcome, even as an uninvited guest.”
Erin raised and lowered the corners of her lips ever so slightly.
Contrary to their words, tension had been building since the moment she appeared.
It was only natural, as her sudden appearance at this time was as blatant as it could be.
In the blink of an eye, Erin’s seat was prepared.
From the moment Erin appeared, she became the centre of attention.
Erin leisurely surveyed the ladies as she took a sip of her tea.
It was evident that Helena, who had been approaching Aiden yesterday, was noticeably flustered.
A wicked smile crept onto Erin’s lips.
Slowly, her lips parted.
“You’ve all heard the rumours, I assume.”
At Erin’s suggestive remark, everyone flinched.
“That I might divorce Aiden… or something like that.”
Erin’s gaze was fixed precisely on Helena.
As soon as their eyes met, Helena flinched and awkwardly averted her gaze.
However, Erin persistently stared at her.
One of the noblewomen partially covered her face with her palm and whispered softly.
“Did you, did you hear that just now?”
“…She casually mentioned her name.”
They were taken aback by the way Erin mentioned the name of Duke Lienster to everyone as if she wanted them all to hear it. In fact, Erin deliberately called his name. Uttering one’s spouse’s name in a public setting carried significant meaning; it was either a deliberate warning to them or if it was an unconscious slip, it showcased a relationship so close that they didn’t care about such formalities as the nobility’s speech code.
Ultimately, regardless of how they interpreted it, it meant that Erin was close enough to Aiden to disregard the nobility’s speech code, and they must have realized that it was a warning not to underestimate Ellen if they dared to cross Aiden.
“Seems like you said it on purpose, didn’t you?”
“Well, I never…”
Some only realized this fact belatedly.
“So, there seems to be a misunderstanding,” Erin remarked without turning back. Then, she stared directly at Helena.
In the tense atmosphere, where it felt like the taut rope might snap at any moment, the first person to step forward was Lady Hernan, the hostess of the tea party. Her timing felt unfortunate, as she had to throw herself into the pit she dug, right at her own tea party.
Lady Hernan tried to put on a forced smile, though inwardly she felt unjust. “Madame, I believe there might be a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding, you say?” Erin’s eyes sharpened. She was firm in her stance as if she wouldn’t tolerate any excuses or explanations. “Is that even possible?”
And then, without holding anything back, she delivered a blunt strike, exposing her raw emotions. “Is it possible to call it a misunderstanding when you blatantly looked at my husband?”
Erin’s candid expression heated up the faces of the people in the room. The more they resisted, the fiercer Erin’s determination became.
Then, it happened. A timid but piercing voice emerged.
“Ma… Madame.”
Helena, who had been cautiously observing the situation, suddenly called out to Erin. “Regardless of the circumstances, isn’t this a bit too much?” She emphasized her point with a stern look. “Is it not considered rude to come here suddenly and behave this way? No matter how much of a duchess you are, everyone here is of noble status.”
“So, my actions are making you uncomfortable?” Erin looked at Helena impudently, as if mocking her.
“That’s how it felt,” Helena replied. Erin subtly raised the corners of her lips and cast a piercing gaze at her. Her narrowed eyes were quite unsettling.
“Then it seems like my intention has been well conveyed.”
Helena was about to respond when the situation took an unexpected turn. Hernan, the hostess of the tea party, grabbed Helena’s arm and whispered quietly, “What are you doing?”
“What am I doing? Why is everyone acting like it’s no big deal?”
“Calm down. Don’t make any unnecessary mistakes.”
Other noblewomen nearby also chimed in to restrain Helena. Erin, with her arms folded, watched this scene in silence.
“No, but…”
Just as Helena was about to speak out of frustration, the noblewoman on either side of her forcibly held her arms. Before she could blurt out nonsense, Lady Hernan spoke up first.
“Madame, we have understood what you’re trying to say very clearly. Rest assured, we’ve understood it quite well.”
Lady Hernan smiled reassuringly, radiating confidence. This was also a plea to let the matter rest.
“Don’t push your luck.”
However, Erin didn’t just let it go. She spoke sharply and turned her icy gaze back to Helena.
At the same time, the faces of the noblewomen froze in an instant.
“Well, well… your love is truly… unique.”
“Who would dare to say such a thing?”
“Of course. Have a beautiful love…”
They all tried to break the awkward tension in any way they could, forcing awkward laughter as words spilt out of their mouths. Their smiles didn’t hide the frustration lurking beneath the surface.
“The tea is quite exquisite. I enjoyed it.”
Despite the mixed emotions in their gazes, Erin remained composed. She even seemed somewhat satisfied. After leisurely finishing her tea until the bottom of the cup was visible, Ellen turned to Lady Hernan and spoke with a gentle smile.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“Then next time, please come as an official guest.”
“Well… that would be nice.”
Watching Lady Hernan’s attempt to lift the corners of her mouth with effort, Ellen slowly rose from her seat. Her retreating figure seemed increasingly imposing.
The other noble ladies didn’t release their grip on Helena’s arms until Erin’s figure was no longer visible.
There were red marks on Helena’s arms from their tight grasp.
***
After a while, I felt relieved as if a weight had been lifted from my chest.
Erin’s lips continued to quiver.
Erin, who had been wearing a joyful expression, suddenly stiffened her face and tilted her head.
“I might have been too forward for no reason.”
Suddenly, there seemed to be a hint of regret in her words.
Certainly, her behaviour did not befit that of a noble lady; it was somewhat impolite.
“…Well, so be it.”
However, regret was short-lived, and her sense of accomplishment and relief prevailed.
“Still, I’ll never see him in that state. Hmph.”
She would never dare to approach Aiden again.
If even a hint of such behaviour was detected, Erin would not remain quiet.
Erin’s mood improved once again.
The scene at the tea party after Erin left.
Herena, who had been blocked by Lady Hernan and other noblewomen, expressed her frustration.
“Why is everyone so judgmental!”
“…”
However, they did not respond.
“First, it was Lady Lienster who ignored and showed disrespect. No matter how great she is, there are certain standards to uphold.”
Her words weren’t entirely wrong.
However, rather than agreeing with her, the other noblewomen discreetly avoided eye contact.
But in her excitement, Herena continued speaking without considering others’ reactions, even saying what she shouldn’t have.
“Truly, in the end, if they divorce, everything they have now…”
“It might be best to stop there.”
Eventually, Lady Hernan interrupted Herena.
“It seems Young Lady might be misunderstanding something.”
Lady Hernan calmly spoke, trying to restrain Herena.
“Me, misunderstanding?”
Herena asked as if she couldn’t understand.
Now that I think about it, except for her, it seemed like everyone shared the same thoughts.
Only then did some of the noblewomen look at Herena with a condescending and naive gaze.
Their faces were filled with an expression that said she knew nothing at all.
“Young Lady… Haven’t you heard any rumours about Lady Lienster?”
Lady Hernan asked with genuine puzzlement.
Perhaps the person with the most rumours in the Empire is Lady Erin Lienster, the Duchess of Lienster.
Even the most oblivious person would have heard at least one rumour about her.
The most famous among them was that the current power behind the Liensters was the Duchess herself.
These rumours had been gradually accumulating for a long time.
Especially, it all began with her capturing the elusive Aiden, whom no one could approach when he was younger.
After that, every action Erin took for Aiden became part of the story of how she was taking control of the Lienster family in the making of these rumours.
