“What do you mean by that? Because of Rosebelia.”

My face was burning from all the stares. As I tried to look straight ahead nonchalantly, I saw Cayden flaring up.

“Schultz, you should speak clearly. The way you put it makes it sound like elder sister was the cause. It’s not because of elder sister, but because I coveted sparring with her despite my lacking skills.”

“Sparring?”

“Cayden, you stay quiet.”

Olivia urgently tried to grab his arm, but she couldn’t stop Cayden. Without hesitation, Cayden shook off Olivia’s hand and approached Herman to explain.

“Actually, I wanted to spar with elder sister, so I went to see Schultz. I thought Schultz, who had been observing elder sister’s swordsmanship for a long time, would be able to judge most accurately whether I had the skills to spar with her or not.”

“Is what Cayden saying true?”

“Yes, it’s true. I judged that with the young master’s current skills, he wouldn’t be able to spar with Lady Rosebelia, and when I told him honestly, he asked me for separate intensive training.”

“So you’re saying Cayden got hurt while doing intensive training to gain the skills to spar with Rosebelia.”

Herman nodded as he spoke. I slowly shifted my gaze to examine the expressions of those gathered in the main hall. Most seemed to be nodding in agreement. Only two people were exceptions.

“Yes. The young master is a very intelligent person. If he had felt that my training was strange in any way, he would have quit first. No one forced the young master to train.”

“Father, if anything, Schultz tried to stop me every time, but I wanted even more intensive training. That’s how I got hurt.”

“As you know, my training methods are not easy, and it’s also my fault that the young master was injured during training. Since the madam seems deeply concerned, I think it would be better if I don’t get involved in the young master’s training from now on.”

As Schultz and Cayden continued speaking, I could see Olivia’s face turning pale. Margaret leaned in as if to say something, but Olivia turned her head away as if she didn’t want to hear it.

“It’s common to get hurt while training in swordsmanship. Cayden, you’re not a young child anymore, so it would be good for you to choose your swordsmanship instructor as you wish.”

“Herman!”

Olivia cried out in a sharp voice.

Pretending to be the kind mistress of the house, yet unable to control her emotions like that.

At times like this, it would be better to act like she’s in shock and faint.

“I prefer training with Schultz.”

“Olivia, I understand your concern for Cayden, but don’t you think it’s right for the next head of the Winters family to choose his own swordsmanship instructor? Besides, the fact that he voluntarily took on harsh training shows his determination is not bad.”

“Thank you, Father.”

The crux of the matter was clearly conveyed, Cayden was able to continue training with Schultz as he wished, and Olivia’s expectation that Schultz would slander me was thwarted.

It was a perfect ending that couldn’t have been better.

I gave a quick eye greeting to Schultz, who was standing with a relieved expression, and turned away gracefully. Taking advantage of the confusion still in the main hall, I went up to the second floor, and Anne followed behind me as if she had been waiting.

“Young lady, is this enough?”

“What do you mean, enough?”

“You could have just told Sir Schultz to be honest. That he received instructions from the madam to slander you…”

“There’s no evidence. If I’m not careful, it could look like I’m slandering Mother in return.”

“Oh, surely not.”

I entered the room, leaving Anne tilting her head behind me. I immediately leaned back on the sofa and gestured for Anne to sit down.

“How many people in this mansion do you think trust me as absolutely as you do?”

Anne rolled her eyes for a moment before closing her mouth.

“Let’s say Schultz had said there that he received instructions from Mother to slander me. Someone might believe Schultz’s words. But with only Schultz’s words as evidence, would Mother have admitted it willingly? She would have certainly claimed innocence, and probably reminded everyone at the scene how close Schultz and I usually were.”

Olivia doesn’t seem to be quick-witted, so Margaret would likely whisper hints to her from the side.

“Then…”

“Since Mother and Schultz have no notable connection, as Mother drives the atmosphere, there would certainly be people who suspect that I slandered Mother. In that situation, whose words do you think Father would trust more?”

In the end, it was Herman who made the judgments in this household. It’s obvious that Herman trusts Olivia more than me.

“My thinking was shallow.”

“If there were many people who trusted me like you do, I would have wanted to reveal all the truth.”

As they say, to catch a tiger, you must enter the tiger’s den.

It’s not that I hadn’t thought about turning the tables on Olivia while she was off guard. But considering Herman’s usual attitude of doting on Olivia, it was more likely to backfire, so I chose the safer path.

“I believe in you no matter what, young lady. I’ll be on your side until I die.”

It was an unwavering voice. As if conveying Anne’s sincerity towards Rosebelia in its entirety.

“Really? That’s reassuring.”

“So you can trust me too, young lady. I will never betray you.”

Anne added with a rather solemn face. I forced a smile to the corners of my mouth.

“…Thank you.”

*

“How did this happen? You said you had recruited Schultz.”

“It was my oversight, madam. I didn’t expect him to suddenly change his attitude.”

Margaret answered while watching Olivia’s reaction. They had obtained information that Schultz’s mother’s condition, whom he was taking care of, had worsened, and approached him saying the Riley family would provide medicine.

Was it a mistake to hastily consider his not refusing as acceptance, knowing his upright nature? Even the person secretly monitoring Schultz had said he hadn’t contacted anyone else.

‘I thought he had made up his mind to side with the madam when he readily responded to the summons to the main building.’

“I almost made a fool of myself.”

“Calm down, madam. It seems he couldn’t betray Lady Rosebelia after all.”

Olivia snorted. To keep faith with Rosebelia over his sick family.

“What’s that loyalty worth anyway.”

“At least he didn’t mention you, madam, so that’s fortunate…”

Before Margaret could finish speaking, Olivia burst into laughter. She waved her hand as if it was a ridiculous notion and asked.

“If he had mentioned me? Would anyone have believed it?”

“That may be true, but… I told you this was dangerous.”

“If everything had gone according to plan, we could have properly smeared Rosebelia’s face. As you said, no one would have thought that Schultz, who is close to Rosebelia, would slander her. Wouldn’t everyone have considered it the truth?”

I was trying to make her ashamed to set foot in this mansion.

Olivia grumbled in a low voice.

This incident was just the beginning anyway. Olivia’s plan was to gradually lower Rosebelia’s reputation, making her willingly leave this mansion on her own.

“Madam, calm down. It’s not all over yet.”

“Right, that matter is progressing without a hitch, isn’t it?”

Margaret nodded firmly, as if to assure that this matter at least could be trusted.

“Of course. You don’t need to worry.”

*

Peaceful days continued for a while. It was thanks to staying in the dormitory constantly after wrapping up the Schultz incident.

Trying to recruit Schultz to slander me was probably just the beginning. Olivia would have tried to constantly corner Rosebelia in similar ways.

Rosebelia must have felt disillusioned at some point too.

Perhaps it even influenced Rosebelia’s decision to exile herself to a foreign country.

Lost in thought as I walked, I raised my head at the sound of hurried footsteps.

“Lady Rosebelia!”

The one who stopped in front of me, catching his breath, was one of the servants of the marquis’s residence.

“What brings you here?”

“The madam… is waiting for you in the plaza.”

“What? Where in the plaza is Mother waiting?”

“At ‘Sweets Avenue’ at 17 Main Street.”

I had seen Sweets Avenue in Rosebelia’s memories. It was a place Rosebelia often visited when she went to the plaza because it had many sweet desserts.

I had been thinking I should visit there sometime.

“Mother is waiting for me there?”

“Yes. She said she would wait until you arrive.”

She’ll wait until I arrive? This is quite a novel method.

If I refuse after she sent a servant to call me, word would quickly spread among the marquis’s household staff.

“Tell Mother I’ll be right there.”

“Understood, young lady.”

I took Emily out from the knights’ stable and headed to the dessert cafe where Olivia was said to be waiting. I hurried, but Olivia was nowhere to be seen.

What’s this, she said she’d wait until I came, but she’s already gone?

Leaving the crowded first floor behind, I went up to the second floor. I looked around the relatively quiet second floor, but still no sign of Olivia.

I was about to turn back after checking the outdoor terrace.

“Rosebelia, over here!”

A man waved at me from the second-floor terrace.

Isn’t that man a senior from the White Knights?

What was his name again? Ernoa Diaz, was it?

His notable feature was that he stubbornly maintained his front hair long enough to cover one cheek. And that the eye hidden by that hair was a red odd-eye.

“Senior, what brings you here?”

I tilted my head and slowly approached the man.

“Sit down first.”

As I sat in the chair, Ernoa pushed a dessert in front of me and asked.

“You haven’t heard anything?”

“About what?”

“The Winters family has proposed a marriage alliance to our Diaz family.”

“Winters… you mean my family?”

A marriage alliance? What is this now…

“Yes, the subjects of the political marriage are you and me.”

A laugh escaped me. Since marriage talks wouldn’t happen overnight, it must have been planned in advance.

Did I let my guard down too much after the Schultz incident was resolved smoothly?

“Um, senior.”

“Of course, I didn’t come here intending to marry you.”

“…Then?”

“I don’t really want to get married, but I couldn’t go against my mother’s wishes, so I had no choice but to come out.”

“I hadn’t heard anything about this meeting in the first place. Mother suddenly called me out, but I didn’t expect to have this kind of conversation with you, senior. I have no intention of getting married right now either.”

There were far more important issues ahead of me. Just thinking of the faces marked by sad endings made a corner of my heart sink.

“I see. Then shall we go back and settle this marriage talk between us?”

He nodded with a knowing look and asked.

“Yes, that’s fine.”

What’s this? It gets settled this easily?

If Olivia had proposed the marriage, she must have thought it was a family worthy of being realized.

“…Actually, the reason I came here is because I was curious about something from you.”

“From me?”

I smiled at the corners of my mouth as if to say ask anything. Ernoa slowly raised his gaze to meet mine.

“Where did Rosebelia go?”

It was a calm voice as if asking about casual daily life. Only after blinking a couple of times did I realize that his words were strange somehow.

Where did Rosebelia go? I am Rosebelia, what is he talking about?

“Pardon? What did you just…”

Just then, a gust of wind blew. Ernoa’s long hair fluttered, revealing his odd-eye. For a moment, I thought his distinctly red eye seemed to be piercing through me.

“The original Rosebelia in that body. I’ve been curious all along where she went.”