Delphine greeted with her habitual courtesy, then gracefully approached the table placed in the center.

One gentleman, who had been sitting awkwardly, abruptly stood up from his seat.

Then, smiling at her, he spoke first.

“It’s been a while since you’ve visited, my lady.”

As if on cue, people who had been eyeing each other began to greet her one by one.

“Hmm…”

Of course, not everyone welcomed her warmly.

A young noblewoman, who remained seated while sipping her tea, opened her mouth with a strange expression.

“…Our club operates on a recommendation system. Of course, the qualification is that one must be a central noble.”

It was Baroness Herth. Famous for being a hardcore conservative.

As the saying goes, like husband, like wife, Baron Herth, sitting next to her, quickly followed up on his wife’s words.

“So, strictly speaking, Miss Pembrook… no, Mrs. Pryde, hasn’t her club access been revoked?”

Everyone in the empire knew that she had become Marchioness Pryde.

Yet, deliberately mentioning the surname Pembrook was a subtle reference to Count Pembrook’s act of treason.

At those words, not only the people gathered at the table but everyone in the reception room turned their gaze to Delphine.

“Ahem. Well… This is troublesome.”

“It’s ambiguous. Since there’s no precedent…”

Watching people who were just eyeing each other without taking the initiative, Delphine raised the corners of her mouth in a slight smile.

“Well. I’m not sure what you mean.”

Then she added in a light tone.

“It seems that the back part of the club guidelines that Baron and Baroness Herth read was missing.”

“What do you…”

“There’s a clause stating that once recommended and joined, as long as one’s noble title isn’t revoked, that qualification continues.”

Delphine responded kindly while maintaining a gentle smile.

It meant that she was still a central noble, and even if no longer Count Pembrook’s daughter, she was now Marchioness Pryde.

Considering just that fact, her status was higher than anyone else present here.

Moreover, Pryde, that man, was said to be the captain of the Emperor’s guard.

So she held the closest connection to the Emperor, who had absolute power.

“Oh my. How discourteous to keep the lady standing. What rudeness is this, Lord Herth!”

“If you don’t mind, please sit here, my lady.”

Then the people gathered at the table called out, vying with each other.

A faint sense of defeat crossed the faces of Baron and Baroness Herth.

Meanwhile, Delphine, maintaining her dignified and elegant attitude, sat in the chair offered by a gentleman.

“Oh my. That necklace, I haven’t seen it before…”

“Yes. I recently received it as a gift from him.”

As Delphine answered kindly, the gazes around her changed once more.

If she was currently receiving the favor of ‘that’ Lord Pryde, the calculations would change again.

Looking at their smiling faces behind masks, Delphine inwardly swallowed a sneer.

“Have you been well, Lady Pryde? I couldn’t even greet you due to the busy circumstances.”

“Yes. Thanks to your concern, I’ve been…”

After a brief exchange of meaningless small talk about the weather and recent happenings.

People who had been gauging each other’s mood soon began to bring up various topics in earnest.

“Well, I’m too scared to go out to the 2nd district after sunset these days.”

“What on earth is the capital defense force doing?”

It seemed the biggest topic of conversation these days was the series of horrific murders occurring in the 2nd district.

“Well, I have some information I’ve heard. It seems it’s not easy to catch the culprit.”

The eyes of those seated at the table focused on the man who spoke.

“Then are all those rumors true? I hear there was even someone killed in a room with all doors locked!”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Oh my goodness!”

‘Are they talking about that newspaper article from back then?’

Delphine recalled the article she had read the day after her wedding.

Being confined to the mansion, this was the first time Delphine had heard such detailed news.

The man who seemed to be well-informed lowered his voice secretively and continued.

“There are many suspicious points about this case. …No corpse has been found in its complete form.”

“Complete form? What does that mean exactly?”

“The eyeballs.”

“Pardon?”

“There’s one commonality in the corpses killed by that person, or those people. The point is that both eyeballs are missing.”

At those words, a noblewoman who had been fluttering her fan dramatically overreacted.

“Ah, oh my! How dreadful!”

“Don’t worry, my lady. Our 1st district is safe.”

“Besides, winter is coming soon. No matter what devilish methods those criminals use, they can’t overcome the winter blizzard.”

“Above all, we have Lord Pryde.”

At those words, people glanced at Delphine.

Finally, the opportunity had come.

An opportunity to delve into the identity of that suspicious man.

However, hiding her true intentions, Delphine just calmly smiled and said.

“…But my husband mainly manages the 3rd district.”

“Ah, that’s right these days. It’s the most threatening issue to His Majesty’s safety recently.”

“I hear that in the 3rd district, people already have fits just hearing Lord Pryde’s name.”

“Those vile and vulgar commoners should be threatened to that extent, haha!”

Everyone gathered at the table burst into laughter.

Delphine followed with a small smile, looking slightly uncomfortable.

She never got used to the pride and sense of superiority of the central nobles living in the 1st district.

“But when it comes to threats to His Majesty and the Imperial Palace, and by extension this 1st district, doesn’t he appear out of nowhere to handle anything?”

The exaggerated praise continued.

Clearly flattery, judging by the occasional glances at Delphine.

Then Baroness Herth, who had been sitting silently until now, suddenly exclaimed.

“That’s right, that’s right. His Majesty’s trust was tremendous. ‘For a while’, that is.”

“Ah, well, recently it’s a bit…”

At her words, people looked at Delphine with troubled expressions.

Only Baron Herth, not minding his wife’s mood, shouted in a loud voice.

“He forced through a marriage that His Majesty so strongly opposed, so it’s understandable to incur his wrath. Isn’t that right!”

No one hastily agreed with those words.

Then the baron, whose pride was hurt, shouted again.

“Rejecting all those virtuous and ‘qualified’ women bestowed by His Majesty!”

It was clearly meant to offend her, but Delphine was too surprised by this news she was hearing for the first time to even feel upset.

‘The Emperor’s relationship with him has soured? Because of me?’

When she asked why he married her, he said it was because of her beauty.

So she thought he had simply obtained her like a spoil of war from suppressing the rebellion…

Was that not the case?

When Delphine showed no reaction, others began to add comments one by one.

“…I heard that His Majesty was greatly angered again just three days ago.”

“There was quite a commotion in the audience chamber.”

“What could have happened?”

Curious gazes turned to Delphine. Their eyes seemed to ask if she knew anything.

But even though it was about her husband, this was news to her as well.

‘Three days ago?’

That was when…

She had begged him for permission to go out.

Could it be because of that?

“My lady?”

“Ah.”

Delphine quickly snapped out of her thoughts and smiled.

But these cunning foxes wouldn’t have missed that momentary lapse.

“…It seems Lord Pryde isn’t one to discuss work matters at home?”

The noblewoman who had made a fuss about the murder cases asked, fluttering her fan.

Seizing the opportunity, Baron Herth continued that line of thought.

“Of course not. To discuss such matters with his wife…”

The atmosphere at the table suddenly grew heavy.

A woman married to the man who killed her father.

That was too great a flaw to be easily covered even by Pryde’s glorious name.

However, Delphine inwardly cheered at how naturally the topic had shifted.

Of course, her melancholic expression as she lowered her eyelashes betrayed none of this.

“…Yes. I suppose my husband worries that I might get hurt.”

Delphine said, pretending to be sad as she slightly lowered her head.

“I really… knew nothing.”

The men around her quickly offered words of comfort.

“Of course, of course.”

“It’s natural that you didn’t know, my lady. In fact, no one knew until the very day!”

No one… knew?

Delphine, still keeping her head down, secretly lit up her eyes.

“Is… that so?”

“Of course. The Count attended the palace party right up until the day before, didn’t he?”

“Besides, his finances weren’t in a state to recruit private soldiers while paying bribes.”

No matter how secretive this social club was, the rebellion wasn’t a topic to be discussed for long.

People who had offered appropriate comfort quickly brought up other subjects.

“By the way, the movements in the 3rd District continue to be concerning, don’t they?”

“If the factories stop, the price of tea leaves will skyrocket again…”

The sound of people’s conversations faded in her ears.

Delphine was lost in thought for a moment.

So others hadn’t noticed any signs of rebellion either.

It was still strange.

Her father, who had tried so hard to enter the imperial court using her and bribes, committing treason?

But unfortunately, this topic had to end here.

If she pressed further, others might become suspicious.

Delphine stayed a while longer, then rose from her seat, using the approaching evening as an excuse.

“Then, I’ll take my leave now.”

“Oh my, already…”

People sent her affectionate smiles, but they didn’t try to keep her or invite her to their tea parties.

It meant they still wanted to gauge her value a bit more.

Delphine, who hadn’t expected her social standing to be reversed in just one day, left without regret.

As she was walking towards the wall with the owl statue…

“Excuse me, my lady. Just a moment.”

Someone called out to her urgently from behind.