The incident of the Duchess of Monde being officially banned from entering the Imperial Palace was a tragedy for the Monde ducal family, who had to repay their debts by raising money through social circles. For everyone except the Monde ducal family, it was merely a headline adorning the gossip column of high society.

What an exciting story! My goodness, ever since the sudden announcement of Grand Duke Lyssenford’s marriage to Princess Ostein, interesting events keep happening!

The marriage itself is already intriguing, and on top of that, the Duchess of Monde ignored Princess Ostein’s greeting in the morning and was banned from the Imperial Palace in the evening!

The Kraine social circles, while pretending to hide their vulgar voyeurism, more actively hosted events to gather the latest news. When events are held, people gather, and when people gather, new stories naturally emerge. Who would refuse that!

“From what I hear, didn’t the Duchess of Monde already go to Grand Duke Lyssenford and have a big argument with him? Is that true?”

The pretentious gentlemen, already knowing everything, feigned ignorance to bring up the topic again.

“Who doesn’t know that? Her voice was so loud, it echoed through the corridors of the Imperial Palace. It was so noisy that His Majesty the Emperor must have known about it.”

The ladies pretending to be elegant eagerly fanned the flames of the topic. It was a common sight in Kraine high society.

“Well, Monde should be struggling a bit. Without Lyssenford, they don’t have the ability to repay their debts, and now that they’ve even torn down their castle to sell construction materials, with the marriage gone, what do they have left to see?”

“Still, to ignore the greeting of a princess who could be her daughter. Does that make any sense? Where did her age go, really? She should be ashamed.”

The elderly ladies and gentlemen shook their heads and added more blatant comments. Their age allowed them to speak more colorfully about various things, using it as a shield. The more stubborn they were, the more direct their words became.

“It’s a marriage ordered by His Majesty the Emperor, but… She can’t protest to His Majesty, and Grand Duke Lyssenford is a soldier, so she can’t reason with him. So Princess Ostein is the easy target, isn’t that it?”

“Even with a mountain of debt, she spends lavishly, and now she can’t even distinguish between a mere duke and a member of the Imperial family.”

Words become sharper after just a few rounds. This was also why the Ostein ducal family remained completely silent. People were already talking, so they didn’t even need to mention the Duchess of Monde themselves.

The Emperor had settled it, and high society naturally followed the Emperor’s orders. So the Monde ducal family could only shrink back.

“What on earth is this, Mother!”

Beatrice Lavallee, the flower of high society, burst out in anger at the Duchess of Monde.

“Mother, don’t you have any sense? You should do it where no one can see, how could you do that where people can see!”

“People were hidden behind the pillar, so I couldn’t see! Do you think I would have done that if I had known? Of all people, why did Sinere have to be there!”

They were caught red-handed by Countess Sinere and two other ladies-in-waiting to the Empress.

The Duchess of Monde was a friend of the Empress and her chief lady-in-waiting, and she was also in a position to take care of Grand Duke Lyssenford, so she wielded considerable influence in the Imperial Palace by fully utilizing this. That influence was her lifeline. The money Beatrice brought in from social circles was also enormous.

But aside from having a lot of debt, the two of them, who only saw the glamorous side of social life, ended up spending as much as they earned, so it all amounted to the same thing. The speed at which the debt was being cleared was slow, very slow.

“Ah, stop it! You’re making me lose my mind too!”

“How can I go out when Mother has been disgraced! Don’t you know how important social circles are?”

“You think I don’t know that?”

Loud voices filled the Monde ducal family’s townhouse in Kraine, which they had forcibly purchased. The maids stayed far away from the reception room.

“How dare you disrespect your mother like this? Do you think you could have come this far without me?”

Beatrice rolled her eyes, looking as if she was going crazy because of her mother’s shouting.

“What have you done, Mother! I achieved all this by struggling at the bottom!”

“Listen to how she talks!”

“If you were going to make such a fuss, you should have gone to Peon and congratulated him! You should have at least said congratulations on the marriage!”

“You try doing it!”

In fact, Beatrice’s personality would never allow her to go and offer congratulations either.

No matter how much she didn’t see Peon as a man, it was a matter of pride. But now that things had turned out this way, she was just blaming her mother. Blaming others is something anyone can do easily.

“After giving birth to you so beautifully and supporting you all this time, you think you did it all yourself and act so arrogant? How dare you behave so rudely! Is this how I taught you?”

“It’s true that Mother acted stupidly! Do you know what they’re saying outside? They’re laughing at how the Duchess of Monde dared to treat Princess Ostein like that! How am I supposed to face that girl now that Mother has done this!”

Kaella! Honestly, even Beatrice felt dizzy when the marriage announcement was made. It felt like the Emperor was telling her, ‘Know your place.’

Kaella de Chasseur, who had always followed behind Peon despite her higher status, was now attached to Peon. While Kaella seemed ridiculous when the three of them were together, to outsiders, Beatrice was clearly Peon’s mistress.

She didn’t want to be something like that. Her dreams were set on higher places. She had struggled so hard to get this far, but from the moment Peon got married, somehow the way things were rolling didn’t sit well with her at all.

“Don’t you know how important it is for us to have access to the Imperial Palace? It’s blocked for three whole months, and do you think Mother will be able to maintain her position as the Empress’s chief lady-in-waiting after those three months?”

“Who’s taking that away? It’s only a three-month suspension because you’re the chief lady-in-waiting. And stop making such a fuss. I can go everywhere except the Imperial Palace.”

“Stop saying such foolish things! What use is it to go elsewhere if you can’t enter the Imperial Palace?”

The Duchess of Monde had the privilege of being close to the Empress, whom the Emperor rarely showed to others, setting her apart from other nobles. But now, with the Empress fallen ill and her access to the Imperial Palace forbidden, the loss was enormous.

“This child really has no respect for her mother! Did you come into this world and grow up all by yourself? Huh?”

“After creating such a mess, why can’t you understand the situation, Mother! Right now, everyone is laughing at us, and next, they’ll be gossiping about how luxurious that girl Kaella’s wedding dress is!”

It’s about losing attention. Beatrice, who had lived off of just that one thing – attention – always satisfied her desires by looking down on and disregarding Kaella.

It’s naturally irritating when the type who sits quietly, calmly doing needlework and reading books, stupidly devoted only to Peon, suddenly pops up like this. Because there’s nothing that can be done about their status.

Regardless of her feelings for Peon, Beatrice decided to pay back for this properly. Kaella had always been trampled by her without a peep, so she shouldn’t be climbing up just because she’s marrying the object of her long-cherished unrequited love.

*

“I can’t imagine how upset you must be about this, but Daddy can only tell you not to worry about it.”

Adeo took off his glasses and opened his arms to his daughter. Kaella calmly hugged her father back.

“I’m fine, really.”

“No, no. To ignore a greeting head-on, that’s unacceptable. It’s insulting and absolutely unforgettable.”

But the father and daughter knew that for the sake of status, honor, and face, it was better in many ways to ignore such low behavior and move on.

Even if Kaella meets the Duchess of Monde again, she will greet her with the same smile. That was the Chasseur family way.

What could be done? For Kaella, the fact that the Emperor himself had intervened was more weighty and important than the Duchess of Monde ignoring her greeting. There was absolutely no way out of this marriage. Grand Duke Lyssenford probably felt the same way.

“She’s not worth worrying about.”

Quite a merciless statement came from Adeo’s mouth, who was known for his gentle personality. That was also the reason he had endured in the brutal social circles with his gentle nature.

“Seeing how she treats you, who could be her daughter, it seems impossible to deal with her using common sense. So don’t worry about it at all. His Majesty the Emperor has taken good care of it, hasn’t he?”

Rather than being grateful to the Emperor, it meant that it turned out fortunate for Kaella.

“Yes. It’s fortunate that I didn’t see it.”

“To say it didn’t bother you at all would be a lie. After all, it’s a family with long-standing ties to your future husband.”

Adeo thought it was rather good that the much-talked-about Monde, Lavallee family wasn’t noticeable. If Beatrice, who had clung to the Imperial family because of Peon, were to steal attention even at Kaella’s wedding, Kaella would truly be upset.

“Now that it’s come to this, let’s focus only on the wedding preparations. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime wedding, isn’t it? I’ll do my best.”

But Kaella wasn’t interested in the wedding preparations. Whether others said it was once-in-a-lifetime or not, she didn’t place much meaning on it. So she was just going along with everything, saying “That’s fine” and “Yes” perfunctorily.

If beautifully decorating the path to death would reduce or eliminate the pain when dying, she would do her best enthusiastically, but otherwise, she had no interest.

“Don’t overdo it, Father.”

“You’re too modest, it’s a problem. How can you have so little desire?”

Well, that’s because the Emperor who had already taken everything away was now trying to put on a show with the little money he was giving. Even though things were different now, she knew well that no matter how well-prepared they were, she wouldn’t be welcomed at Lyssenford.

“What would you like as a wedding gift? If there’s anything you want, I’ll get it for you. Tell me anything.”

Kaella smiled. She didn’t need useless gifts that wouldn’t matter anyway. She murmured while arranging flowers in an empty vase in the study.

“As long as you’re healthy, Father, that’s enough.”

At that answer, Adeo’s expression crumbled as if the world had ended.

“Good heavens. To think my daughter’s sense of humor is so old-fashioned. Kaella! Isn’t that something straight out of ‘Heckercos’ Morals for Children’? Speaking of which, where is that book? I need to burn it. It’s the most useless book in the world.”

The harsh cold of Lyssenford had killed even her sense of humor, so Kaella just smiled ambiguously.

“Be greedy, Kaella. It’s just this once! I want to do everything I can for you. Actually, I’d like to give you a good estate too. What use is my health? Your happiness is what’s important.”

Adeo pulled his daughter, who had moved away for a moment, back into his arms and patted her.

“They say Lyssenford is cold and harsh, but I believe you’ll adapt when you go there. The Grand Duke will support you strongly. If it’s cold, come out to the estate I’ve given you for a while. Yes, that would be good.”

“I’m fine, really.”

But no matter how much Kaella tried to dissuade him, Adeo wouldn’t stay still. If it was just her father, that was one thing, but what surprised Kaella, even scared her, was how proactively Grand Duke Lyssenford was moving.

Starting with abruptly setting the wedding date, everything was rushed, from the dressmaker to the lawyers adjusting the marriage contract, to the palace administrators conveying opinions about the scale of the wedding, all shuttling between the Grand Duke of Lyssenford’s residence, the Ostein ducal house, and the Imperial Palace several times a day.

“It’s because you’re too uninterested.”

“I’m in the process of checking all the documents, though.”

“Still, how can you not even give an opinion on the dress? The Grand Duke sent a lot of fabric, saying there shouldn’t be a shortage even for the veil you’ll wear.”

Indeed. Why would that person do that? Peon was pouring enormous funds into this marriage, to the point of raising unnecessary worries about whether Lyssenford’s finances were alright. It was unlike him, who always prioritized military funds.

‘No, perhaps it’s a new side of him that I didn’t know.’

Kaella, despite being the Grand Duchess, was suspected of possibly being the Emperor’s spy throughout her married life. Even getting involved in household affairs was an extremely difficult task.

But Peon was highly respected by his people. He was kind to people, no, even to the war horses, dogs raised in the castle, and stray cats roaming around. Kaella, who was treated worse than a stray cat, couldn’t understand because of this.

‘Is it because Father is alive?’

Is Peon showing appropriate respect because the title of Princess Ostein is protecting her? Even so, the fact that Kaella is the Emperor’s niece hasn’t changed, so why? She couldn’t understand. Not understanding made her increasingly anxious.

“Of course, it’s not for the groom to interfere with the wedding dress, but there shouldn’t be any shortage. But you’re saying you won’t wear even a single jewel?”

“Yes, clean and neat silk is enough without decorations, Father.”

Kaella answered absentmindedly while continuing to think. Is this all a trap? Peon’s current actions were impeccably clean.

He was acting literally by the book. Where had the Grand Duke of Lyssenford gone, whom everyone found frustrating because he didn’t know how to bow appropriately? Just like a different person…

“Kaella?”

With a crash, the vase slipped from her hands and shattered. The broken porcelain pieces scraped across the floor as they rolled.

“Oh dear. Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

Adeo, startled, moved Kaella away from the broken vase.

“I’m fine.”

Kaella mumbled with widened eyes, looking at the broken vase. She could hear her father calling for a maid in the distance. For a moment, a chilling fear crept over her, but Kaella muttered several times that she was fine.

It’s fine. She always had a last resort, didn’t she? No matter how hard she tried to understand and survive, nothing would change anyway. It’s fine.

“I’m fine.”

Kaella clasped her trembling hands together. Feeling fear is ultimately because one wants to live.

She knew, but she gave up once again today. If she wanted to die comfortably, she had to go through with this marriage. She could die at least painlessly in a place beyond the Emperor’s gaze.

*

“Please take good care of our Peon, Kaella. As you know, he’s a child with so many wounds.”

But dying quickly and comfortably wasn’t easy either. First, she had to deal appropriately with all sorts of meddlesome people before getting married.

For example, people like Beatrice Lavallee, who pretended to meet by chance in public view, smiling kindly while saying, ‘I know the man who will be your husband better than you do.’

Kaella looked at Beatrice, the beauty often compared to the full moon, summer roses, and a fresh garden, with an indifferent face.

After dying once and waking up, some changed like different people, while others didn’t change at all.

“I thought it was the Duchess of Monde speaking. Perhaps it’s because you resemble the Duchess so much, sister.”

Was there a law saying Kaella couldn’t change? She looked at Beatrice, smiling at her husband’s love, while mentioning someone who had greatly wronged her.

What’s wrong with openly disliking someone you can never beat? It’s not like the Grand Duke of Lyssenford would turn to look at Kaella or respect her just because she treated Beatrice Lavallee well.

Anyway, even if the ugly and stupid Kaella does something stupid and mean again, what does it matter?