Nobles, well-dressed as if they had been waiting for this day, lined up to enter.

Although it seemed like a simple banquet, it was more important than anything for the nobles.

Many young men and women even exchanged glances at the banquet, and for those already married, it was a place for mischief.

It was a basic rule to dress as beautifully and splendidly as possible.

Nobles entering the banquet hall quickly scanned with their eyes to see who had attended, while engaging in conversations with others.

“Is it true that the Wellington Viscount from the north is coming today?”

“Yes, I heard that too, but who knows if it’s true…”

The topic of the banquet quickly changed to whether Cascus would appear or not.

Many nobles didn’t welcome his arrival due to his ominous reputation.
Moreover, Duke Cascus Wellington had never attended a royal palace banquet even once until now.

A moment later.

Everyone’s attention was drawn to a pair of men and women.

The noisy conversations gradually subsided.

People couldn’t even breathe, as if they had made a promise.

“…….”

“…….”

A handsome man with midnight-black hair that resembled the night sky and a tall stature.

He overwhelmed everyone with his mere presence.

The blue eyes beneath thick eyebrows were as cold as ice, and the well-fitted uniform on his broad shoulders and thick torso made the hearts of all women flutter.

The ladies in the banquet hall all opened their mouths with the same expression as they stared at him.

But they were not the only ones surprised.

He wasn’t alone.

There was another woman next to him.

A woman with long, glossy silver hair and a slender figure, wearing a sky-blue dress that subtly revealed her body shape, walked in hand in hand with the handsome man.

Tap, tap.

The sound of clear heels touching the floor echoed in the banquet hall.

Her straight collarbone showed under her long neck like a swan.

Cascus and Artia.

They truly made a well-matched pair.

They were emitting an overwhelming aura, more than anyone else who had dressed up and attended the banquet.

Artia found an empty seat and asked the woman sitting there, “Can I sit here?”

The lady across from her widened her eyes and nodded.

“Yes, of course.”

No one knew that she was Artia, the illegitimate child of the Harad family.

They just thought of her as a strange woman invited to the banquet.

During the moment when they wondered which noble family’s lady she might be.

One by one, the eyes of the noblewomen who grasped the situation shook violently.

As they realized the situation, the eyes of the noblewomen who had caught on to the incident were shaking fiercely.

Many of the male nobles who had already received him knew Cascus.

So, they naturally recognized the person beside him as his wife.

“Wait. Does that mean…?”

“I can’t believe it…”

Noblewomen who saw Cascus for the first time covered their mouths with their hands and stared at him.

Contrary to the strange rumors of the ‘barbarian from the north,’ he was very refined.

Moreover, nobility overflowed from head to toe.

“In another sense, he’s a barbarian, right? A barbarian who stole my heart…”

“Hush, be quiet.”

“The Duke of Wellington and his wife, right?”

“Unbelievable.”

“Does such a person really exist?”

The women whispered to each other in low voices, holding their hands to their mouths.

Even those nobles who had seen Cascus a few years ago couldn’t help but admire him more as they looked at him, more handsome than before.

But they didn’t express it outwardly.

They just cleared their throats, rolling their eyes uncomfortably.

“…….”

Meanwhile, Madrid, the Countess of Harad, narrowed her eyes uncomfortably.

But there were too many eyes watching, so she had to relax her expression quickly.

As it was a gathering after a long time, she couldn’t welcome them with an uncomfortable expression.

En and Jay were equally shocked amid the situation.
They exchanged glances with each other, unable to close their mouths.

“That… it’s him, right?”

“…….,”

Jay couldn’t respond to En’s words.

Artia originally possessed outstanding beauty.

This fact was well known to En and Jay.

Therefore, Artia was more tormented.

She was whipped despite her beautiful body, and she was beaten with harsh words.

There were even more severe times of torment.

En and Jay subjected her to severe mental abuse, and Artia cried every day.

That was the joy of life.

But after Artia was sent to the North, such small pleasures disappeared.

However, now the prey appeared before them again.

En and Jay recalled the memories of that time, and a smile crept onto their faces.

“He’s probably shaking with fear inside, right?”

“I know. Look at how proudly he stands. He came all dressed up so vulgarly.”

Cascus sat next to Artia.

For some reason, most of the men in the banquet hall coughed for no reason upon Cascus’s arrival.

“Ahem.”

“Cough…”

Did they realize that their positions were narrowing with Cascus’s appearance?

Noble gentlemen sitting nearby got up, lifting their buttocks from the chairs.

And they withdrew from their seats as if they had something to do outside.

Being close to Cascus would naturally invite comparison.

“Who is that woman?”

A chubby man sitting at a table, drinking a cocktail, stared at Artia and said.

His wife, who was next to him, whispered to him with a lowered voice.

“Why, she’s from that place. She married into the Harad family, which is said to have married Wellington from the North.”

“Oh, that bastard?”

Whack.

The lady hit her husband’s side, telling him to be more discreet.

As a result, some of his cocktail spilled from his mouth.

Artia glanced around and spoke to the lady sitting across from her.

“The atmosphere at the banquet is really nice.”

The lady awkwardly smiled.

“Haha, yes.”

Before coming here, Cascus received something like an order from Artia.

“Your Excellency, we have to behave like the lovely couple we are. If we separate, it’ll be as if we’re dying. Just like that.”

There are many eyes watching in the palace.

If Artia does not arouse any suspicion while staying in the palace, she can extend her stay.

Already, there were rumors circulating in the social circles about the Duke and Duchess of Wellington, calling them the ‘show-window couple.’

As everyone knows, Artia and Cascus had a political marriage that neither of them wanted.

So, as Cascus and Artia stay longer in the palace, someone might suspect that they have different motives.

Perhaps in the royal palace, a Duke and Duchess who had a political marriage might be suspected of having a political purpose for being in the palace now.

If people start to doubt and be wary, it will be challenging to investigate dark magic.
If there is even a slight suspicion, rumors tend to be exaggerated and inflated. Therefore, Artia devised the best way to calm their speculations. Cascus also judged that Artia’s words made sense. So, as Artia instructed, here in the palace banquet hall, in front of numerous imperial nobles’ eyes, Cascus affectionately stroked her head as if he adored it, pressing his body close.