“Then, I’ll arrange the earliest possible date as soon as I receive word from you, Your Highness.”
“I like how efficient you are. Enjoy the party then, Duchess.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The Princess twirled the non-alcoholic juice in her wine glass and skipped off to the other side of the room.
Once she was completely out of sight and I was alone again, I took a sip of the half-empty champagne, surveying the atmosphere around me.
“Hmmm…”
Somehow, the air felt a bit different now.
It made sense, though. When I first entered, most of the gazes were filled with confusion and curiosity, but now many people were subtly watching me, as if waiting for an opportunity to approach.
‘Well, it’s understandable.’
After all, both the Princess, who was a key figure, and the hostess, Duchess Brilluze, had shown positive attitudes towards me.
Thanks to the way things had turned out, the situation had become quite advantageous for me.
At this point, I almost felt grateful to Isabella and her group for provoking me.
‘Alright, the mood is good.’
Handing my empty champagne glass to a servant, I grinned and started to move.
Since the atmosphere wasn’t too bad, I might as well take a closer look at the talents who could be beneficial to Diana.
As I leisurely strolled through the greenhouse, someone called out to me.
“Umm… Your Grace, the Duchess?”
‘What now?’
I turned around to find another group of women approaching me.
This time, they were a bit younger than Isabella’s group, likely in their early to mid-20s.
‘Is this the second round already?’
Even though I’m well-suited to online battles, I’d prefer to avoid a second round so soon.
I’m already exhausted from dealing with Isabella, the Princess, and the Duchess.
“…What brings you here?”
I asked with a polite smile, maintaining my guard.
However, the atmosphere was noticeably different from when Isabella’s group approached me earlier.
“Ah, well…”
“Lady Franklin, what should we say?”
“I-I don’t know…”
Watching them nudge each other and giggle nervously, I thought to myself,
‘There’s no need to fight this time.’
I didn’t feel the slightest bit of threat.
With my calculations complete, I smiled brightly.
“I’m not sure what you want, but there must be a reason you called me. Please feel free to speak.”
“Ah, well… we just wanted to talk to Your Grace.”
“Of course, you’re more than welcome. As you can see, I don’t have anyone to chat with right now.”
As soon as I gave my permission, their eyes lit up. Without hesitation, they flocked around me.
“Hello, Your Grace. I’m Lizzie, the second daughter of the Logan family.”
“And I’m from the Eckart Marquis family…”
I listened to their introductions with a warm smile.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“The pleasure is all ours, to be able to meet you like this.”
“You were so impressive earlier!”
“Indeed, Your Grace’s charisma is hard to match.”
“Exactly, I always knew that Lady Howard would face a reckoning sooner or later. She’s been picking fights everywhere!”
It seemed that they were also deeply impressed by my verbal sparring with Isabella Howard.
At this point, a question naturally arose in my mind.
What was Isabella Howard trying to achieve by picking a fight with me?
It didn’t seem like she gained anything from it.
Was she trying to rally allies behind her?
While I was lost in these shallow thoughts, the young ladies exchanged glances and smiled at me warmly.
“By the way, Your Grace, your dress is absolutely beautiful.”
“That’s right! I’ve actually been admiring it since earlier.”
“It’s a style of dress I’ve never seen before. I’ve always learned that symmetry is the most beautiful form for a dress, but this one isn’t symmetrical, yet it’s so elegant!”
“That’s true. Is this skirt designed to resemble a rose?”
“I thought the sparkly parts at the bottom were jewels, but they aren’t, are they?”
“Oh my, what is this?”
“It’s like magic!”
“Now that I think about it, the Princess was also closely examining Your Grace’s dress earlier…”
A warm smile spread across my face as the conversation quickly shifted to my dress.
“Oh, this is a gown infused with magical light powder. I was hesitant about trying this new style, but hearing your compliments brings me great joy.”
“Oh my, magic!”
“In fact, I overheard some of the young ladies whispering as you made your entrance earlier, Your Grace.” one of the women whispered to me.
“I bet everyone is secretly trying to find out which salon made it!”
“That’s right!”
They laughed together, their youthful excitement shining through.
Then one of them widened her eyes and focused her gaze on the brooch at my waist.
“But… as beautiful as the dress is, this brooch at your waist is truly stunning.”
“Oh my, did you notice that too? I couldn’t take my eyes off it either.”
“Usually, brooches are worn on the chest…”
Now, all their attention was drawn to the brooch on my waist.
‘Yes, you do have a good eye.’
And I was delighted by their praise.
After all, this was a piece of jewelry I had specifically chosen to show off.
“Is that so? I selected this brooch especially for the party. It’s a half-heart shape, and I even had it custom-made to emit a fragrance.”
“Oh my.”
The ladies elegantly covered their mouths in admiration.
“A half-heart… does that mean there’s another half?”
“Ah, now that I think about it, I believe I saw a similar brooch on the Duke’s cravat earlier.”
“Oh my, I remember that too…”
As expected, they had been examining every detail since I walked in holding Ian’s hand.
The women, who were abuzz as they pieced together the puzzle from my casual remark, looked at me intently.
Their eyes clearly asked for confirmation.
Instead of answering, I simply gave them a gentle smile.
Yes, that’s right. It was intentional.
It didn’t take long for them to interpret my smile as confirmation, and they began to gush with excitement again.
“How romantic!”
“Indeed. I guess not all rumors are true.”
“That’s right. When the Duke kissed the Duchess’s hand earlier, I could feel my heart fluttering!”
Watching the conversation flow positively in my favor, I allowed myself a faint smile.
‘Did you see that, Ian Cloud?’
I told you this would be effective.
Seeing the nobles, who had previously looked at me with a mix of curiosity and hostility, now approaching to talk, felt strangely satisfying.
Of course, the real work starts now.
Feigning nonchalance, I brought one hand to my cheek and sighed softly.
“I didn’t intend to make it so obvious, but the Duke was so upset by the rumors circulating…”
“Oh my…”
“No matter how much he dotes on me as his new bride, it’s my fault for staying cooped up in the duchy all this time.”
The ladies seemed to be completely taken in by my sincere performance, exchanging glances amongst themselves.
‘This should do the trick.’
I had shown off the brooch, played my part, and set the scene for a favorable reevaluation of Ian Cloud once the party ended.
A Duke who dotes on his wife so much that he stopped attending social events for two years and, upon returning, makes a grand display of affection in front of everyone?
What an interesting rumor!
‘Of course, only a few people would fully believe this right away.’
But starting is half the battle.
Reputation can be rebuilt slowly over time.
As much as I wasn’t thrilled about giving Ian Cloud a better image—who was once the worst of the worst—I could tolerate it for the sake of Diana’s reputation, who loved him.
‘You should be grateful you married well.’
If it weren’t for Diana, you’d get nothing, you fool.
I was grinding my teeth thinking about Ian when one of the ladies clapped her hands.
“Oh, do you think today’s events will make it into the Aria Gazette? The story of the Duke and Duchess, I mean!”
“Oh my, that’s right. It very well could!”
As soon as one person brought up the topic, the rest of the women eagerly nodded in agreement, their eyes sparkling.
I was the only one standing there clueless, unable to understand their conversation.
“The Gazette?”
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