Whitney saw Melissa leaving. She was worried about what to say to her mother when she returned, but it didn’t matter anyway.

“Are you worried?”

“No. Rather, I’m looking forward to it. To what elder sister will say to mother. I’m sorry for unnecessarily involving aunt.”

“There are only a few months left until your debutante. Did you enjoy the conversation with Her Majesty the Queen?”

Aunt seemed to be asking me to probe the conversation. There wasn’t much else to say since the conversation wasn’t particularly substantive. Just that Her Majesty’s reaction was positive, I suppose.

“Her Majesty might call for me again.”

Perhaps then I might meet Karl. What expression should I make when I see him? It took great courage to come back and face Melissa again.

‘I don’t want to meet him yet.’

I wanted to buy as much time as possible since we’d meet anyway at the ball after the debutante. He would hide his true nature and whisper sweet words to people with a false face.

“I think so too. Before that, there were strange rumors circulating about the House of Orlean. It seems Cecilia is embezzling property, are you going to watch?”

“I’m already looking into it. When Melissa returns, I’ll receive a letter. I’ve planted one of my people.”

Whitney answered calmly. She had been receiving reports on the same day every week. And tomorrow would be that day, so she would learn what was happening at the ducal residence again.

“Fortunately, it seems there haven’t been any other movements so far. If I fail to give them what they want, things might change, but…”

“If you need help, just say the word. I’m someone who feels guilty towards you, so use me when you can.”

“Don’t say that. I’m always grateful to you, aunt.”

“That’s comforting.”

Aunt returned to her room first. Whitney sat down and took out the letter she had put in her desk drawer. Then she began to read it bit by bit.

Cecilia had been consistently eating away a lot. She probably intended to siphon off almost all the assets before Whitney came of age and took the family head position. Judging by her recent laxness, it seemed to be because of what Whitney had said.

The words asking her to continue overseeing the ducal house’s affairs even after coming of age. She had completely fallen for those words.

‘She must have become complacent.’

Whitney looked at what the butler had reported and organized it on another paper. She needed to figure out where exactly the money was flowing.

‘Come to think of it, as aunt said, Melissa’s hair color does seem to have darkened compared to when she was younger.’

Such a red hair color was a first since birth. At that moment, Whitney recalled a childhood memory.

When she first came, Melissa’s hair seemed to have had a bit more orange tint…

She planned to ask the butler to send her a portrait drawn from childhood.

“Lady Weston, was it? Come to think of it, I don’t even know my stepmother’s background properly.”

Whitney immediately sent a letter to an informant.

[This is the timeline separator]

As soon as Melissa returned to the ducal residence, she screamed.

“How dare they! How dare they!”

She would never forget such humiliation. The way Lady Rubeness had looked at her wouldn’t leave her mind. Melissa clutched her head and threw a fit.

“Melissa! Calm down! What is this uncouth behavior?”

Cecilia frowned as she saw her daughter causing a commotion as soon as she returned. Her temper seemed to be getting sharper recently. Was it since Whitney disappeared from sight?

“Mother should have seen it! How arrogantly that woman held her head high and insulted me! What shame Lady Rubeness gave me!”

“That’s why I told you not to go. What were you planning to do if they asked you to spit out the money you received?”

“We have more than enough money! Is money that important to you, Mother? More than the humiliation I suffered?!”

Melissa screamed at the top of her lungs in a voice choked with anger. With tears welling up in her eyes, she trembled with shame.

“You said, you said I would never suffer such shame again!”

“Melissa. Calm down. You are an Orlean. End this uncouth behavior today.”

Cecilia grabbed Melissa’s arm and whispered in her ear.

“There are many ears listening. Do you guarantee that those here won’t spread our private affairs elsewhere? Your mother taught you never to trust people.”

“You never cared before! Why are you hovering around now?!”

Melissa showed no signs of calming down. Whatever she had heard, Cecilia didn’t like Melissa’s attitude.

“Don’t worry. After all, that child has to return here. There will be no place for her to stand in the ducal residence, so I won’t let you suffer such shame again.”

“Promise me.”

Melissa said to Cecilia, tears streaming down her face. She patted her daughter’s back and whispered.

“Yes, I promise.”

She hugged Cecilia tightly and sobbed. Recalling Whitney’s smiling face, she gritted her teeth.

[This is the timeline separator]

Whitney received and checked the letter from the ducal residence. It stated that Melissa had screamed and caused a commotion as soon as she returned.

Cecilia held parties once every two weeks, inviting people to the ducal residence. Probably to solidify her position in high society.

Other than that, there were no notable points, but it was added that she seemed to have separate meetings with someone from time to time.

“She’s meeting with someone?”

If the butler didn’t know who it was, it meant it was someone who needed to be met secretly. As she had entered as a second wife, Cecilia didn’t get along well with the other ladies. It was natural for her to be ostracized, as the nobles placed great importance on one’s background.

While Melissa captivated people with her rose-colored hair and amethyst-like eyes, Cecilia had hair closer to orange than red and black eyes. Anyone seeing them for the first time wouldn’t think they were mother and daughter.

There was still no news regarding what she had requested from the informant. The preparations for the debutante were already complete. Whitney wished that day would come as soon as possible.

“Young lady, the lady is calling for you.”

“I understand. I’ll be there soon.”

At Sonia’s call, Whitney headed to the study.

“Did she mention anything specific about why she’s calling?”

“No, she didn’t mention anything specific. But I have a guess.”

“A guess, you say…”

“To have a debutante, everyone gathers in the central capital. You’ve learned everything, so now you must go to the capital.”

Whitney’s footsteps suddenly stopped.

‘I didn’t expect to return to the ducal residence so soon.’

As if reading her thoughts, Sonia smiled and said,

“The place you’ll be going is not the ducal residence, but a villa owned by the Rubeness family in the capital. So you don’t need to worry.”

“Thank you for telling me.”

The people of the Rubeness family were kind to Whitney. They were so affectionate and considerate that she didn’t want to leave this place. They were also quick-witted, immediately sensing what she was thinking and speaking first.

Whitney entered the study with a much lighter heart.

“Welcome.”

After a light greeting, she turned her head to see Leo sobbing. As Sonia had informed her in advance, it seemed the time had come for her to leave this place.

“I heard you called for me.”

“Yes, from your expression, I see you’ve heard. It’s time to go to the capital. Everything’s ready, so how about leaving tomorrow?”

“So soon?”

“There’s still much to prepare even after you arrive. Since I can’t go, Sonia will accompany you.”

Whitney nodded. Leo, not wanting to part, approached with a tearful face. He buried his face in her embrace.

“Elder sister. Can I see you again?”

“Of course. Whenever you want to see me, I’ll come visit. I’ll make sure you can come to the capital too, Leo.”

“Really?”

She smiled brightly and stroked Leo’s hair. She would never forget to repay the debt she owed to her aunt.

“Ah, before you go, I should give you a gift.”

At her aunt’s gesture, a maid brought an envelope. She handed Whitney the sealed envelope with a smile.

“I hope this will be of help to you. If you’re not happy, I won’t have the face to see my younger brother.”

“I’ve only smiled while I’ve been here. I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy. Everyone has been so kind to me.”

“I’m grateful you say that.”

“Don’t worry too much. I’ll do well. May I open it now?”

“Of course.”

Whitney carefully opened the envelope with a knife. As she carefully took out the letter, she saw it contained the information she had requested from the informant.

[The Viscountess Weston had been suffering from a chronic illness and eventually passed away after a short time. It was then that Cecilia Weston became the new viscountess. By then, she was already with her young daughter. The identity of Melissa’s father is unknown. Cecilia had a poor reputation in Heartfail. Then one day, she suddenly disappeared without a trace.]

Heartfail was a rural area located at the edge of the Kingdom of Reowen. The lack of information about Viscount Weston was probably due to the lack of exchange with the central capital.

Whitney put the letter back in the envelope and once again expressed her gratitude to her aunt.

“This is exactly what I needed. Thank you. I’ll use it wisely.”