At that moment, Lord Joseph, who had been standing beside me until then, smiled softly.

“It’s unfortunate what happened to Lady Baden, but I’m grateful that the gift for the Duchess was delivered successfully.”

As I was about to rebuke Lord Joseph for talking nonsense, Madame Petrika also nodded in agreement.

“Oh, of course! I heard that the Duchess was about to place an order but changed her mind, and then she even took out a check. She asked us in detail if we remembered what kind of design she was thinking of ordering, it was quite troublesome, ohoho.”

No matter how I heard it, it sounded like she had gone out of her way to purchase it with the intention of deceiving and provoking me.

“Then she earnestly requested that it be sent to the Duke’s residence as soon as it was completed. But since she didn’t mention it separately to the Duchess, I suppose it was meant to be a surprise gift!”

The fact that she deliberately had it sent to the Daiern mansion made it feel even more malicious.

“To be honest, until then, I thought Lady Baden was on bad terms with the Duchess. Was Lady Baden a bit mean to you before? But now that Lady Baden has prepared such a precious gift for the Duchess. I thought she must have wanted to apologize.”

Ha. Apology, my foot.

That’s definitely not it.

‘If she wanted to apologize, she would have done it long ago.’

Not with something like this.

The reason I dislike Lady Baden is not something else.

There was this incident. It was right after I had miscarried my second child due to falling down the stairs.

For days, I couldn’t snap out of the shock, and she insisted on comforting me by inviting me to an evening banquet attended by numerous noble ladies.

‘She served bright red tomato soup right in front of me. With visible chunks of mashed tomatoes.’

I almost had a seizure, but I took a deep breath.

Since it hadn’t been long since my miscarriage, I tried to think that I had become oversensitive.

But the moment I met her eyes, which were smiling behind her covered mouth, I realized it wasn’t my imagination.

Moreover, that wasn’t the end of her mischief.

A servant deliberately spilled the soup on me, pretending it was an accident.

The warm, sticky lumps of partially mashed tomato sauce pooled between my legs before dripping onto the floor beneath the chair.

She must have been very curious about what associations I would make and how I would react at that moment.

She might have hoped I would cry, or perhaps collapse and start retching.

What did I do, you ask?

I didn’t cry. I didn’t retch either.

As if nothing was wrong, I stubbornly, forcefully ate all of that disgusting food.

‘And after that, I did give her a hard time in social circles.’

I mocked and ridiculed her every word.

Especially regarding the color of her clothes, I openly criticized her.

It was childish and petty, but that was exactly her level.

Education at one’s own level usually works well.

‘In reality, how infuriated she must have been, it was almost gratifying.’

As a result, rumors spread in social circles that Lady Baden and I were not on good terms.

Of course, most of the noble ladies took my side.

Other noble ladies who had been invited to Lady Baden’s banquet at the time also mentioned the incident and turned their backs on her.

That’s usually how the taste of power is.

But even after going through all that, Lady Baden never apologized to me.

She did ask when I was going to have my next child, though.

‘There’s no way someone like that would give an apology gift.’

Indeed, there’s no explanation other than it being meant as mockery…

“Anyway, I made it specifically to fit the Duchess perfectly, so I hope you’ll be pleased to use it.”

With that, she even wrapped the Starry Night Rain muffler around me.

Hmm. Looking in the mirror like that, I can’t deny that it does suit me well.

Moreover, with Lord Joseph and Madame Petrika unanimously saying it was made for me, I’m somewhat tempted.

No, I should calm down. It would be better to hear at least two or three more opinions.

Knock knock. The timely sound of knocking announced the arrival of Kardiel, Sergei, and Master Jepett.

They had come to seek opinions on various matters that needed to be coordinated as the issue of enrollment in the Academy was being handed over to Sergei.

As soon as the three entered the office, they burst into admiration upon seeing me.

“That muffler is the one you were hesitant to purchase last time, isn’t it?”

“It suits you well, Duchess.”

“It’s time for winter preparations. It’s beautifully not excessive at all.”

Indeed, that is true. But I can’t just claim it as my own so readily.

Feeling embarrassed, I explained the situation to the three of them.

“Actually, Lady Baden commissioned its creation. But it was sent to the Daiern mansion…”

The three’s responses were unanimous.

“Lady Baden isn’t without her own residence, so why would she deliberately send it to Daiern?”

“If that’s the case, it seems she intended it as a gift for the Duchess.”

“It appears she at least had the courtesy to give a gift to the person who provided her with a room.”

“…”

For a moment, I suspected they might have coordinated their responses, but that couldn’t be the case.

In fact, it didn’t seem polite to return something that everyone believed to be a gift.

Thus, I gained justification and accepted the Starry Night Rain muffler.

There were many things to take care of in the afternoon.

First, it was time to finally write a rejection letter to Prince Raphael’s marriage proposal.

After all, Lord Joseph would soon be introduced as my fiancé.

I also needed to create an opportunity to have an audience with His Majesty the Emperor.

The issue with Wilhelm York Baden could potentially harm Daiern in a roundabout way, so it was necessary social activity for Kardiel’s future.

Next…

My hand froze as I examined the invitation to a social gathering.

A familiar name was written on the envelope’s sender location.

Baron Nergal Ernst Landgritz.

…It’s a letter from my brother.

For a moment, I recalled what had happened then. What Leopold Hose had done to me in the weapons shop.

‘Were you trying to set me up with someone like that again?’

I had been planning to not let it slide if I met him again.

Curious about what kind of words he might have uttered this time, I roughly opened the envelope and checked the letter.

It was an invitation to tea time.

The content was extremely peaceful, suggesting we spend some cozy time together as a family after a long while.

However, I couldn’t help but sneer at the invitation that professed such ordinary familial affection.

Because I had never once been on good terms with that fellow Nergal as siblings.

‘With that background, you dare speak of family to me?’

It’s obvious. He must have other thoughts.

For instance, whether to get his hands on Daiern, or to increase his own influence…

‘Planning to use me.’

And it wasn’t long before it was proven that my thoughts were not wrong.

Prince Raphael came to see me.

“Your Grace, the Regent. Actually, I received a tea time invitation from Baron Landgritz. I came wondering if Your Grace was also aware of this fact. Is it appropriate for me to attend as well?”

Only then did I understand. What that fellow Nergal was thinking.

I suppose the Imperial family looks like a bigger prize than the Daiern ducal family.

After an eventful November, December finally descended upon the Imperial capital.

I headed to my old home for the first time in a long while, holding Nergal’s invitation.

The Baron Landgritz’s mansion in the Imperial capital.

The mansion, with the first snow that fell a few days ago piled up softly, now has a white roof instead of its original blue color.

Unlike the Daiern mansion, this five-story building without a garden or walls is quite full of memories for me.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve seen this sight.’

Once, I spent all four seasons in this Imperial capital mansion, preparing to inherit the Baron Landgritz family.

My grandfather, the previous Baron Landgritz, and Master Rogier were my family and mentors.

If grandfather hadn’t suddenly passed away, the owner of this mansion now would be me, not my elder brother Nergal.

Lieselotte Karin Landgritz.

“Welcome, Duchess Daiern.”

An unfamiliar butler I’d never seen before greeted me.

There is nothing familiar to me in this house anymore.

Perhaps only the golden shield engraved with the Landgritz family crest at the entrance of the mansion?

A ship and a raven hanging from scales. That is the crest of the Landgritz barony.

A raven, scales, and the sea.

‘It’s a strange combination, indeed.’

There’s a reason for this.

In fact, strictly speaking, the current Landgritz baronial lineage is not nobility.

A long time ago, a man who crossed the sea by ship married the baron’s daughter, and that became the current Landgritz baronial lineage, or so I heard?

So, to the raven that was originally the symbol of the barony, the ship and scales symbolizing the man who crossed the sea were combined to form that crest.

‘Come to think of it, grandfather left me a strange story before he passed away.’

What was it? That the founder of our family was a magician in the ‘Age of Magic’, before the ‘Age of Glory’?