Episode 42

“Isn’t that His Grace, Grand Duke Elzerian?”

“And the one beside him is…”

Whispers rippled through the crowd like waves.

With Aria’s debutante ball, a major social event, approaching, the jewelry store felt particularly bustling. A significant number of nobles had come to choose their jewels.

All eyes in the store were suddenly fixed on us.

“Oh my, Your Grace the Grand Duke.”

An employee of the jewelry store hurried over, clearly flustered.

“It’s such a rare honor to see someone of your stature here in person.”

“I need to choose jewels for the debutante,” Chris said, causing the employee’s eyes to widen as they looked at me. I could practically see the calculations running through their mind.

The employee cautiously observed me before asking, “Would it be appropriate to choose something that matches the necklace you’re currently wearing, Lady Mindia?”

It was a perceptive question.

Only then did I remember that I was already wearing the necklace Chris had given me, and I instinctively gripped Chris’s arm.

“Now that I think about it, you’ve already given me a jewel…”

“But it’s not for the debutante,” Chris cut off my protest with that one sentence, nodding to the employee.

By then, people had started to gather around us. Although no one approached directly, I could feel their eyes on us.

I was well accustomed to being the center of attention, but today, it felt strangely uncomfortable.

“…”

The stares, filled not only with curiosity but even with a touch of kindness, felt oddly unsettling.

As my fingertips twitched involuntarily, Chris gently placed a hand on my shoulder and spoke to the employee.

“We’ll need a private room.”

Thanks to the sudden silence, Chris’s words carried farther than expected. It seemed people interpreted his request differently.

“…A private room in broad daylight?”

“They must be really close.”

Those were overreactions. Even if they weren’t involved romantically, many nobles preferred using private rooms simply to avoid the crowd.

But to those adding fuel to the gossip, it didn’t appear that way. Even though I understood this, I couldn’t help but feel a slight warmth creeping into my ears.

‘I know it’s better for both of us if people misunderstand like this… but still.’

“Right this way, Your Grace.”

Before I could say anything, the employee led us to a private room. Oddly enough, being out of sight made me even more tense.

“If it’s for the debutante, you should spare no expense.”

The employee presented a brooch set with a yellow sapphire. It seemed they were consciously avoiding pink sapphires, knowing that Aria had already chosen one.

‘It’s not even my debutante…’

But the brooch was genuinely beautiful. The frame was intricately crafted in silver, indicating that much care had gone into its creation.

The yellow sapphire’s sheen scattered light across the ceiling of the private room.

“What do you think?” Chris asked calmly. I wasn’t in a position to express any preference. When I nodded, Chris, who had been staring at the brooch, responded.

“It reminds me of the brooch I gave you.”

“The one you gave…?”

The next moment, I recalled the brooch Chris had given me, the one the Duke had taken on my behalf. A lilac-colored brooch that matched Chris’s eye color.

I found myself at a loss for words, merely staring at the brooch.

Indeed, this brooch seemed to pair well with that one, though it wasn’t likely the jeweler had intended it.

Chris, perhaps interpreting my silence differently, raised an eyebrow slightly.

“If it’s not to your liking, we can choose something else…”

“No.”

When I nodded, Chris personally pinned the brooch to my collar.

I could only hope that the sound of my heart, beating so rapidly, wasn’t too loud for him to hear.

Even knowing that he was doing this purely out of a sense of duty and alliance, my heart still betrayed my will.

‘Calm down.’

It was only after I reminded myself that he would one day find true love and give Aria the same attention that I felt my heart settle somewhat.

The employee, oblivious to my inner turmoil, exclaimed, “Oh! It suits you perfectly!”

The employee held up a mirror for me. I was startled by the face reflected back at me.

Instead of the usual pale, weary woman, a girl with a slight blush on her cheeks and a softness in her eyes—someone who looked as though she knew what it was like to feel cared for—gazed back at me.

Seeing this, I felt my heart calm even more.

‘I’m wishing for something impossible.’

But if I could bring down the Duke’s household, then one day…

‘…Perhaps it will be possible for me to dream of this kind of happiness with another man.’

Resolutely calming my thoughts, I took Chris’s outstretched hand, and he led me outside naturally.

People turned their heads as we passed, whispering among themselves. The brooch on my chest seemed to shine brightly, so much so that it almost felt blinding.

We climbed back into the Grand Duke’s carriage, and Chris escorted me right to the front gates of the Reinhardt manor.

Before leaving, he whispered.

“I’ll see you at the debutante.”

“…”

“As for the reply to Lady Aria… I’ll make sure to send it personally through a letter.”

As soon as Chris departed, I hurriedly entered the manor and made my way to my room.

I collapsed onto the bed and stared at the brooch for a long time. The debutante was only a few days away.

—

A few days later, on the eve of Aria Reinhardt’s debutante, Countess Claire stood in the toilette room of the manor, looking distressed.

“…”

The atmosphere was anything but pleasant, and for good reason.

“A rejection, really?”

Aria’s sweet voice was tinged with despair.

A letter had arrived directly from Grand Duke Elzerian, declining to be her partner.

To make matters worse, rumors had already spread throughout the social circles.

It was now widely known that the Grand Duke had personally chosen jewels for Mindia Reinhardt.

The speculation about a romance between the two, once dismissed as unlikely, had ignited into full-blown gossip. A love affair between families that were once enemies was perfect fodder for both positive and negative reactions alike.

“Could it be that Lady Mindia is up to something?” one of the maids huffed, her voice thick with suspicion. Aria’s face grew even more troubled. The maid, emboldened, pressed on.

“She must not have delivered the letter properly! Or perhaps she did something to it to make the Grand Duke see Lady Aria in a bad light!”

“If that were the case, the Grand Duke would have mentioned it in his reply. He would have questioned why such an offense had been committed against him,” came an unexpectedly calm rebuttal from Lady Ellie, who had been standing quietly in a corner.

She was known for always siding with Aria, so the maids looked at her with surprise and reluctance.

After her brief interjection, Lady Ellie returned to her embroidery, working on the freesia pattern Aria had once gifted to the Empress.

Countess Claire watched the entire scene unfold and let out a sigh.

From her perspective, it was probably for the best that the Grand Duke had rejected Aria.

‘If it were anyone other than Lady Mindia, this scandal wouldn’t be so easily tolerated.’

Had Mindia been a legitimate daughter of the Reinhardt family like Aria, the scandal would have been less acceptable. The risk of a high-profile love affair between enemy families was substantial.

The likelihood of it ending well was slim, and if it went wrong, both sides would likely face significant disgrace. Rumors of some sinister plot would dominate the narrative.

Countess Claire knew of several such unfortunate cases.

There was a countess who disappeared from social circles after rumors spread that she used dark magic to seduce an enemy, and a marquess whose tragic love ended with the lovers stabbing each other.

‘Besides, Lady Aria already has the Crown Prince. The Empress Dowager herself seems to have her eye on her.’

And the Crown Prince was no small catch—he was the Crown Prince of the entire empire. Love may be fleeting, but power is eternal, was the honest opinion of Countess Claire, who had herself married for political reasons.

Had she chosen someone other than her husband in her youth, she wouldn’t have achieved the status she now enjoyed.

“Your Grace…”

Aria sighed. Countess Claire adjusted her opinion of Aria slightly.

‘Kind and beautiful, but overly naive.’

Of course, that kind of innocence combined with such beauty would earn points with men looking for a gentle and obedient wife.

Still, Countess Claire felt it was her duty as Aria’s prospective chaperone to offer some comfort.

“Lady Aria, there’s no need to worry too much.”

“Countess Claire…”

“There are many distinguished men in the empire aside from the Grand Duke. Although there’s little time left, what about writing a letter to His Highness the Crown Prince?”

“…To the Crown Prince?”

Aria’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yes. After all, His Highness the Crown Prince is the partner that every young lady wishes for at her debutante.”

“…If His Highness attends, do you think Mindia might change her mind?”

The unexpected question startled Countess Claire.

“Lady Mindia?”

“Mindia places a lot of importance on a gentleman’s background…”

Was Aria planning to ask Lady Mindia to switch partners?

Just as Countess Claire was about to respond, feeling a bit taken aback, Servi entered the toilette room, looking pale. He was alone, which was unusual.

“Lord Servi, weren’t you supposed to bring Lady Aria’s debutante dress…?”

“Weren’t you coming with the dress designer?”

Another person added.

Servi pressed his lips together tightly, saying nothing. The atmosphere instantly grew colder.