“It’s been a long time, Your Grace, and Your Grace the Grand Duchess as well.”
He bowed deeply toward us.
‘If it’s Duke Seraph…’
I vaguely recalled him from the original story.
The Seraph Ducal House was one of the leading noble families aligned with Ian, standing against the Emperor, the princess, and their supporters.
Straightening up from his bow, he asked, “How have you been?”
“As you can see,” Ian replied indifferently.
Unlike Ian, who seemed uninterested, Duke Seraph looked like he had much more to say.
Over his shoulder, several nobles—likely his entourage—were watching us closely.
‘All nobles, huh.’
This latest assassination attempt had surely stirred up conversation, not only among the Emperor’s faction but within the noble faction as well.
Normally, Ian would’ve quietly handled the assassin on his own and buried the incident. But since I got caught up in it, the matter had grown too big.
‘If they’re openly approaching Ian at an imperial banquet like this…’
It must mean that Ian had been ignoring numerous requests for an audience from the noble faction.
Come to think of it, over the past few days, he had stayed in the estate, keeping a close watch on me instead of going out.
‘So, he’s been dodging them all this time?’
I felt momentarily astonished by his steadfastness.
However, this time, it didn’t seem like Ian could avoid them. The nobles were standing their ground, clearly not intending to leave.
“If you’re not too busy, could we have a brief word?”
“As you can see, I’m busy.”
“Your Grace,” Duke Seraph pressed, his voice lowering.
Ian, who had been glancing back and forth between the duke’s shoulder and me, sighed in irritation.
“…Haa.”
It was an open display of exasperation.
“I’ll have to step away for a moment, wife,” he said with evident reluctance.
Meanwhile, I couldn’t hide my delight as I nodded eagerly.
“Of course, take your time.”
This was perfect.
Please, just go.
The awkward tension between us had been killing me, so this was a welcome escape.
“Seems like it’s an important matter. Don’t mind me; go handle your business,”
I said, even waving my hand as if to shoo him away. Ian’s expression crumpled like a crushed can.
He narrowed his eyes and scrutinized me closely.
“I’ll be back soon.”
For some reason, he put a strange emphasis on ‘soon.’
“You don’t have to rush.”
“No, I’ll be quick.”
Ugh. Why is he like this?
He squeezed my hand slightly, which he was still holding.
“So, wait for me.”
His tone was more of a command, almost a warning.
He must know that the moment he leaves, I’ll try to run off.
“Yes, well…”
I trailed off, avoiding his gaze.
Still staring intently at me, Ian sighed heavily, as if resigned to the situation, and walked off with the nobles.
‘Take your time! Come back after the banquet’s over!’
I silently cheered him off and turned around, feeling refreshed.
‘I should use this as an excuse to sneak outside for some air.’
I’d been feeling suffocated by all the staring eyes since earlier. However, my brilliant plan failed before it even had a chance to begin.
“Oh my, Your Grace the Grand Duchess.”
The moment Ian disappeared, a group of women who had been waiting for the opportunity immediately approached and surrounded me.
“It’s been a while. How have you been?”
“Do you remember me? I’m from the Marquis of Eckhart…”
“I saw you last week at the Zed Boutique, and now here we are again!”
They all greeted me with friendly smiles, their eyes sparkling with excitement.
‘Well, so much for escaping.’
Feeling a brief wave of dizziness, I quickly composed myself and smiled mechanically.
“Yes, it’s good to see you all. Apologies for the late greetings.”
“Oh, it’s no trouble. You and the Grand Duke were absolutely mesmerizing while dancing!”
“Right? Everyone was watching the two of you!”
“And your dress today is stunning! Madam Zed’s work is truly remarkable.”
Their tone was friendly and polite as they showered me with compliments.
From among them, a small girl with creamy curls and silver-gray eyes, who had been standing shyly, cautiously spoke up.
“Hello, Your Grace. I’m Mary from the Marquis of Merry.”
At that, my eyebrows shot up. She was really the daughter of Marquis Merry.
‘So, she was at the boutique as well…’
Did she have some reason for approaching me? I was about to take a closer look at her when the other ladies quickly swept me and Lady Mary aside, guiding us toward a corner.
Lady Mary, who seemed about to say something, was swept up along with us, blinking in surprise.
“Why don’t we sit over there instead?”
“Yes, since you’re alone right now, come with us.”
In the end, I found myself surrounded by noblewomen, heading toward a seating area with sofas.
“Are you feeling better now?”
“Back at Zed’s boutique, you couldn’t even pick up your outfit and had to leave.”
At their concerned questions, I nodded calmly.
“As you can see, I’ve recovered quite well. Didn’t I even dance with the Grand Duke?”
“That’s a relief.”
“You two looked so perfect together. Truly a stunning couple.”
“And the way you danced the waltz! It wasn’t the first time you two have danced together, was it?”
It was our first time today…
“Even the people who were gossiping about it being just for show have gone quiet now.”
“Exactly! How could anyone say such a thing when the two of you get along so well? Did you see how the Grand Duke was looking at the Grand Duchess earlier?”
“I thought honey was going to drip from his eyes!”
I hadn’t said a word, but they were eagerly building a narrative amongst themselves.
‘Well, Ian was being a bit excessive.’
It nearly suffocated me, but from their perspective, I suppose we did look quite affectionate.
As the conversation continued, someone suddenly spoke up.
“So the rumors from a year ago must’ve been nonsense, right?”
Huh?
I turned my head.
The speaker was a noblewoman with blonde hair and purple eyes.
“Countess Aitehaus, really! Why would you bring that up now?” exclaimed the Marchioness of Eckhart, sitting next to me, clearly startled as she scolded the other woman.
“Oh dear, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up…”
The Countess Aitehaus, realizing her mistake, quickly covered her mouth with her hand. Several other noblewomen glanced at me, looking uneasy.
‘Interesting…’
My eyes narrowed.
‘Wasn’t something similar mentioned at Zed’s boutique?’
There was definitely something I wasn’t aware of. Perhaps I could find out more.
“Ahem.”
I cleared my throat deliberately, pretending to be displeased, and some of the noblewomen flinched.
“A rumor from a year ago… so it’s still circulating?”
I pretended to know and asked.
Acting as though I knew something in this situation was safer than acting clueless, lest I draw strange looks.
While it was possible Eloise might not have known the rumors, if everyone here knew the story, it would be more natural for me to act this way.
As expected, my words prompted hasty denials from all around.
“Oh no! Of course not. No one believes that anymore.”
“Yes, that’s right. The social world is always full of baseless rumors. A year ago, people didn’t know how well you and the Grand Duke got along.”
“I never believed it from the start.”
‘It seems like everyone here knows this story…’
Time to push a little further.
“Still, if it’s being mentioned now, it must not have died out completely, right?”
I kept my expression stern as I fixed my gaze on Countess Aitehaus, who had first brought it up.
She looked increasingly uncomfortable.
“I’m terribly sorry. It was a slip of the tongue…”
The other noblewomen quickly exchanged looks and began rushing to cover the situation.
“Countess Aitehaus must have been mistaken.”
“Yes, as far as I know, it’s an old rumor that’s long gone.”
“After all, there’s no way someone as dignified as the Grand Duchess would abandon her duties and disappear. The Grand Duke is always by her side.”
I froze at the last remark.
‘Disappear…?’
My sharp instincts told me there was something important here.
I scanned the group quickly, stroking my chin.
“Hmm, it seems some still believe it. Do you all think my actions a year ago were suspicious enough to warrant such rumors?”
I asked, hoping to prod them further, and they hurried to dismiss the idea.
“Of course not! It’s just one of those baseless rumors that people who love to gossip made up.”
“Exactly. It’s not like there aren’t other noblewomen interested in magic or rituals as a hobby…”
“There was just so much attention on you at the time, Your Grace. That’s all.”
“And the Grand Duke wouldn’t pay attention to such absurd rumors. Who could possibly fulfill the role of Grand Duchess as perfectly as you?”
‘…Magic?’
I furrowed my brow.
The fragments of information were sparse, but piecing them together wasn’t difficult.
About a year ago, Eloise had apparently shown an unusual interest in something magical, enough for others to notice. And it seemed there had been rumors that she intended to disappear through those means.
To an outsider, it might have seemed like baseless gossip. But I couldn’t afford to dismiss it lightly.
‘Could this have something to do with how I ended up possessing her body?’
It was a credible hypothesis.
“That rumor…”
I was about to ask for more details when a voice interrupted.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
….
I fixed my Ko-fi finally..
Honestly, I was quite sad because no one supported me until now on ko-fi, but I found out that’s the problem was with my PayPal…
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