Melissa shouted to be let out from inside the locked room.

“How could you do this to me! What will His Highness Karl think of me? He said he loved me!”

Bang bang. The sound of knocking on the door echoed through the mansion. Cecilia ignored Melissa’s cries as she sipped her tea.

“How childish. Blinded by love without even knowing the current situation.”

“She’ll change her mind soon. More importantly, I heard a date has been set for the family meeting. What are you going to do?”

“Butler. Can’t you see I’m trying to enjoy my tea? How tactless of you to ask such a thing. All Whitney can get back from me is just the empty title of family head anyway.”

Cecilia clicked her tongue. She had thought him to be a sharp and perceptive person, but lately his words have been quite unsatisfactory.

“That’s why I didn’t invite them today. We’re all in this together after all. They’ll all take my side if I give them money. They’re all obsessed with money and won’t care who becomes family head, and nobles may look proper on the outside but are full of greed inside.”

She took a breath as she set down her teacup.

“They won’t side with Whitney now. Even if Lady Rubeness intervened, they know it’s me, not Whitney, who fills their bellies. They’ll surely be trembling in fear that I’ll demand repayment of the money I lent them.”

To gain control of the Orleans duchy, Cecilia had reached out to Whitney’s paternal and maternal families. Of course, she only contacted the financially struggling houses. By giving a little to those desperate ones, she gained their votes.

It was Cecilia who kept giving them money, so they wouldn’t welcome a change in family head.

“The tea smells especially good today. Tell them to serve our guests generously when they arrive soon.”

“Understood. Then I’ll prepare the reception room.”

“If Melissa keeps shouting, put her to sleep. One pill should do. Won’t the guests be startled if she keeps yelling like that?”

The butler received a pearl-like pill from Cecilia. After carefully leaving the study, he immediately went to write an urgent message to Whitney.

Whitney received a letter from her maid. It said that her mother, anxious about the family meeting, had called guests to the mansion.

‘Not content with just lending money, what kind of deal is she trying to make.’

She would surely say that if Whitney became family head, the debts would have to be repaid immediately. The cash-strapped relatives would panic at those words and move as Cecilia wished. They would make up all sorts of reasons why Whitney couldn’t become family head and resort to dirty tricks.

In fact, as her mother predicted, Whitney was planning to go to them with the loan documents and demand repayment. Or else receive compensation of equal value. The financial statements of the Orleans duchy were a mess. Not only her mother and sister’s extravagance, but there was no clear source for where money was flowing, and at this rate they would go bankrupt.

It was already fortunate they hadn’t gone bankrupt yet, it was such a mess. Cecilia didn’t seem to care about that either. She probably thought that if the Orleans duchy went bankrupt, she could just steal another identity and infiltrate somewhere else.

Of course, she would have to deal with Melissa first. When she was young, she didn’t stand out and could be taken around to garner sympathy as a widow, but now that Melissa was all grown up, even that was difficult. People in the capital already knew too much about the two of them, so the only options were to go to another region or seek asylum in another country.

She raised the corners of her mouth as she copied down the list written in the letter from the butler.

“Hmm, it looks like I can get rid of those leeches more easily than I thought.”

Whitney was in a good mood. She hoped the family meeting day would come soon. She had already decided how to dispose of them. It was time to return the favor to those who took advantage of others’ sorrows and misfortunes.

‘I really will be leaving this place soon.’

She carefully surveyed her room. Unlike the attic room she had stayed in at the ducal residence, the spacious room had a bed too large for sleeping alone, and the wallpaper had elaborate vine patterns extending to the ceiling. Expensive items were placed here and there, and there was even a private room.

A couch sofa comfortable enough to lie down on, a desk with space to spare even with books piled on it, and high-quality parchment and paper on top. These things weren’t absent from the ducal residence, but if she became family head, she would have to implement austerity measures.

Whitney let out an involuntary sigh. If there was one thing she still hadn’t figured out, it was her father’s accident. She still hadn’t found any witnesses, and those involved had disappeared who knows where.

‘It definitely wasn’t just a simple accident.’

She needed to find solid evidence so they couldn’t escape. Whitney looked at the clock. They had planned to eat breakfast together, but their schedules didn’t match so it was postponed to dinner.

So she got up to head to the dining room for dinner with Cheston. It felt like it had been a long time since she had eaten with him.

Hmm.

Whitney was flustered. She had clearly thought she would be eating alone with Cheston, but she had to go to the main palace with him after receiving an invitation to a formal dinner.

There was no way food would go down properly in this uncomfortable setting.

The Queen, His Majesty the King, and even Lady Elenia. At this dinner gathering with everyone present, Whitney nibbled without knowing where the food was going.

Violet put meat in her mouth with a relaxed expression. Karl and Cheston also seemed accustomed to this uncomfortable situation, appearing unbothered.

‘This is so uncomfortable.’

It felt like the food wouldn’t digest. She nervously sipped wine while watching for cues. There must have been a reason for the sudden invitation, but the King didn’t open his mouth.

“I heard the young lady is going to the ducal residence in a few days.”

“Yes, I plan to attend a family meeting. Since I’ve come of age, I need to reclaim the position of family head.”

“I’ve heard that the Duchess of Orleans won’t hand over the position. Do you think you can reclaim it?”

“I believe I can reclaim my rightful place. You’ll see the results, so there’s no need to worry. I’m not reckless enough to rush into something I can’t win.”

The King nodded with a hearty laugh. Seemingly pleased with Whitney’s answer, he looked at her fondly.

“Your Majesty. We received a letter from the Kingdom of Petontra regarding Princess Violet and Karl’s engagement ceremony. Everyone is waiting.”

“Ah, yes. The two of them need to hold an engagement ceremony. Princess, is there anything you want?”

“I have no wishes as long as peace is maintained between the two kingdoms.”

Violet smiled sweetly, clasping her hands together. Karl took her hand and met her eyes. Just a few days ago she had been mentioning Cheston, but that was nowhere to be seen now. She held hands with her fiance Karl, looking at him with affectionate eyes.

‘She must have spoken well to Her Majesty the Queen right away.’

Whitney became increasingly scared of this place. She could no longer distinguish what was sincere and what was false. It would be most comfortable to only believe what she saw. However, perhaps because she had seen and heard too much, their actions only seemed fake to her.

“By the way, is it alright that Cheston and the young lady haven’t held an engagement ceremony?”

She immediately looked at Cheston at this unexpected topic. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and answered.

“You don’t need to worry about us. There’s no one interested in my engagement anyway, and everyone is looking forward to my brother and the princess’s ceremony. Just seeing how well the two of them match makes me happy.”

“If you say so, that’s fine, but does the young lady agree?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I feel the same as His Highness Cheston. Everyone already knows, so I don’t think we need a separate engagement ceremony. If we hold consecutive ceremonies, it will be on the lips of the people.”

The royal family would likely be criticized for wasting taxes. While an engagement ceremony for Karl, the legitimate heir, might be understandable, if they held one for Cheston as well, not only the dissatisfied nobles but even the common people might protest.

It was better not to create such a situation in the first place. Nevertheless, the King seemed regretful as he stared for a moment at the engagement ring on Whitney’s finger.

“Elenia. What do you think? Aren’t you disappointed not to see your son’s engagement ceremony?”

“…Your Majesty. Being able to stay here is enough for me. Please think of Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Karl before me and Cheston. Please endure for the sake of the royal family’s dignity.”

“Hmm. If even you insist, I have no choice. Then we’ll only hold Princess Violet and Karl’s engagement ceremony soon. I should send a letter to Petontra.”

The King chewed his meat while staring intently at the Queen. She smiled with crinkled eyes, gripping her wine glass tightly. Witnessing the Queen’s hand turn pale white, Whitney swallowed hard.

She set down her utensils as she watched those calmly eating in this space of suffocating confrontation. She felt like she was sitting on pins and needles, out of place.

Glancing at Cheston, she saw him still cutting his meat and continuing to eat. Whitney suddenly realized that Cheston too was a member of the royal family. Seeing him calmly cutting meat with a dignified, expressionless face even in this situation felt unfamiliar.