One of the ladies gathered at the marquis’s table spoke up.

“I heard that the Lisianthus princess is also attending the social gathering today?”

The ladies reacted favorably to this.

Though it was awkward to bring it up first for propriety’s sake, they were more interested in the ‘Lisianthus princess’ than anyone else.

“That’s right. The temple sent an official letter. Saying that the princess is indeed the duke’s biological daughter.”

“It seems you received that letter too? I was so surprised when I suddenly got a letter at dawn.”

The noble families invited by the Marchioness of Hyacinth today were mostly those close to central power.

As such, most of them received the temple’s official letter directly.

After briefly discussing that, Viscountess Sien carefully brought up the topic.

“Being a biological daughter, I suppose it means… that?”

Though there was no clear subject, the ladies immediately understood what ‘that’ meant.

Some ladies who valued propriety cleared their throats and picked up their teacups.

Although illegitimate children were prevalent, from the perspective of noble ladies, a husband’s child born out of wedlock was an unwelcome existence.

Some noble ladies, especially those whose family background was higher than their husband’s, even had major property disputes over such issues.

The biggest problem was when the legitimate child was only a daughter, but the illegitimate child happened to be a son.

Of course, the Lisianthus ducal family was a bit different from these issues.

At the table where silence had briefly fallen, someone smiled meaningfully and said.

“But it’s quite unfortunate for Viscount Delphinium.”

“Oh my. Why for Viscount Delphinium?”

“You didn’t know?”

The noblewoman who first spoke up made an expression as if to say, ‘Oh my goodness.’

“Viscount Delphinium is the duke’s younger brother. If there had been no heir to the Lisianthus duchy, one of the viscount’s sons would probably have received the title of duke.”

“Ah.”

The lady who had just asked the question let out a sigh. Those who already knew this fact were just listening to the conversation with interest.

“Well, what can you do even if it’s unfortunate? If it’s not the child of the late duchess, there might be some room for dispute, but in any case, His Grace would want to pass on his territory and title to his own bloodline.”

“That’s not necessarily true, is it?”

“What do you mean it’s not necessarily true?”

The lady who suddenly found herself the target of curious gazes flinched.

She continued speaking with a slightly timid expression.

“I mean, His Grace might want to pass on the family name to a male heir. There are cases where even if there’s a daughter, a nephew is adopted as the heir…”

“Hmm. That’s a fair point.”

Indeed, such a culture was still established in the kingdom. The law allowing women to inherit titles had changed only very recently, influenced by the empire.

“If it were the late duchess’s child, I’m sure His Grace would want to pass on the family name to that child without a doubt.”

“Indeed. His Grace was famous for loving his wife very much. He didn’t even remarry for six years after her passing.”

The topic shifted back to the Duke of Lisianthus’s devotion.

Most of the noble ladies gathered here were not much different in age from him or Elodie. As a result, most of them were eyewitnesses to the couple’s romance when they were young.

“The duchess was such a wonderful person, this incident makes me think of her again.”

“That’s true. To think that even His Grace…”

Moreover, most of them liked Elodie.

While it’s true that Luke was the most outstanding catch after the prince in terms of status, he was so single-minded that there was no room for jealousy.

Besides, wasn’t Elodie’s status just as noble? The ducal couple was, so to speak, the popular couple of high society.

While briefly talking about the two of them from the past, Viscountess Rubiniere chimed in with a subtle tone.

“But from what I’ve heard, it seems His Grace wasn’t exactly single-minded.”

“What?”

At Viscountess Rubiniere’s words, the other ladies’ eyes widened like startled rabbits.

The Duke of Lisianthus wasn’t a single-minded, devoted man?

“Did you hear something?”

“Well, actually…”

The viscountess deliberately paused for a moment. Being fond of gossip, she greatly enjoyed this moment of attention directed at her.

Finally, when the ladies’ curiosity had sufficiently grown, Viscountess Rubiniere spoke again.

“This is information I heard separately, but they say the person who brought the princess is actually the former duchess’s lady-in-waiting.”

“What?”

“By lady-in-waiting, do you mean that pretty-looking baroness?”

“What was her name again?”

Since Aria Hilton rarely attended social gatherings, she wasn’t well-known despite her striking appearance.

Viscountess Rubiniere spoke with a slightly emphasized tone.

“Aria Hilton. She was quiet and shy, but the duchess was quite fond of that young lady, wasn’t she?”

“Ah, yes. I remember now.”

“But what’s the problem with a lady-in-waiting bringing the child… Oh!”

Someone who was about to question thoughtlessly drew in a sharp breath.

“Oh my. You don’t mean the princess who’s coming this time is…?”

“Well, it’s just speculation for now.”

At Viscountess Rubiniere’s words, the table became abuzz. This commotion was possible because neither the hostess, Marchioness of Hyacinth, nor the Lisianthus princess were present yet.

“Goodness. Then the princess could be the daughter of the duke’s lady-in-waiting?”

“Hmm, that’s a bit concerning. I didn’t think His Grace was that kind of person.”

“Come on, that can’t be. There might have been some misunderstanding. For example… what if the princess is really the late duchess’s child?”

Although rumors had spread quietly that the ducal couple’s child was stillborn seven years ago, there was still a possibility.

What if the child had been lost due to some ‘unfortunate incident’ by someone?

Just as the noble ladies were discussing this and that, at that moment.

“Wow, the flowers are pretty.”

“Be careful not to fall.”

“I’m already seven years old, so I won’t fall like a little child.”

The sound of a woman and a child chatting amiably could be heard.

The young voice was closer to that of a girl than a boy. The gazes of the ladies, who had been engrossed in conversation, turned.

And they saw.

“There are noble ladies over there. Shall we greet them first, then go to the playroom where your friends are?”

“Yes!”

A girl with pink hair and deep pink eyes, her cheeks flushed, holding the hand of a blonde woman.

The ladies’ mouths fell open. Most of them clearly remembered the former duchess, Elodie.

The exact same sentence formed in their minds.

‘She looks exactly like the duchess!’

Especially the ladies who had seen Elodie since childhood due to interactions between families when she was still a countess’s daughter were even more shocked. Their complexions turned as white as paper.

It couldn’t be helped.

Even from a distance, the girl was proudly proving herself to be the biological daughter of the former duchess. They realized why the duke had bothered to do a paternity test.

The princess didn’t resemble the duke at all, no matter how you looked at her!

‘No… at this point, did she give birth alone?’

It was to the extent of suspecting whether the deceased duchess had split and given birth alone. Viscountess Rubiniere, who had been gossiping about illegitimate children just moments ago, was left speechless.

Meanwhile, the two were approaching closer to the table.

Aria was the first to greet them.

“Hello, ladies. I am Aria of the Hilton baronial family, serving as the guardian of the Lisianthus princess. Although it would be proper to greet each of you personally, I ask for your generous understanding as I am with a child.”

She bowed her head slightly with a very polite greeting.

Aria Hilton’s etiquette was extremely noble and elegant, but there was a somewhat cheerful atmosphere. Rather than a noblewoman approaching her thirties, she had a bright attitude more like a young lady in her late teens or early twenties.

Normally, they would have been interested in a new face appearing at a social gathering. However, the presence of the small girl standing next to her was too strong for that.

The girl, wearing a white shirt, red dress, and black shoes, looked about five or six years old.

The girl greeted them with clear pronunciation.

“Hello, ladies. I am Bonita Lisianthus.”

The fortunate thing was that over the past few days, Bonita’s cheeks had gained a little flesh, so she no longer looked pitifully skinny.

Though still thin, Bonita now looked more like a cute child rather than a pitiful one.

The ladies’ cheeks flushed.

‘To think I said such things about this young child!’

‘Goodness. To think she really is the former duchess’s daughter.’

‘She looks not much different in age from my Maya.’

They inwardly regretted their earlier gossip that wasn’t quite gossip.

As they were also mothers of children around Bonita’s age, seeing Bonita in person made them ashamed of their earlier behavior.

Of course, this was the same for Viscountess Rubiniere, who had led the conversation. Thinking of her own daughter, she cleared her throat and began to speak.

“Ahem, um. Bonita…”

“Oh my.”

At that moment, the Marchioness of Hyacinth appeared.

She raised her fan with an elegant gesture, looking towards Bonita, Aria, and the table where the noble ladies were gathered.

“I’m a bit late. It’s because my sons were causing such a fuss, so please forgive me generously.”

“Not at all, Marchioness! I just arrived myself.”

Hazel’s eyes twitched at Aria’s cheerful response.

Her gaze soon turned to Bonita standing next to her.

Hazel smiled slightly.

“We meet again. I couldn’t introduce myself last time because of my son, right? I am Hazel of the Hyacinth marquis family.”

“I’m Bonita!”

“Yes, that’s a pretty name.”

Hazel unconsciously reached out to pat Bonita’s head, then hesitated.