While they were dining without a single noise, Irene was surprised.

She thought that a woman who couldn’t even mention her family name would have terrible table manners.

Diana was elegantly cutting the meat without clashing the tableware.

Her perfect posture, as if she had popped out of an etiquette textbook, made Irene feel strangely twisted.

“Father.”

Clang. The knife fell, hitting the plate. Gasp. Irene, who swallowed her breath, hurriedly bowed her head to the duke.

“I’m, I’m sorry.”

The duke glanced at Irene and shifted his gaze to Diana.

He was a duke who had no interest even in his own son. But the duke’s reaction was different to Diana’s words. He nodded as if telling her to go ahead and speak.

“It’s just that, do you know where your eldest son is right now?”

“Cough.”

Irene almost spat out the salad she was eating. Oh my, young lady! The servants were in an uproar, but the two nobles and Diana showed little reaction.

‘Eldest son? Is that how you refer to that lunatic? Right now?!’

He was a man that even the duke had disowned as his child. But what was surprising was that the duke was accepting everything Diana said.

“Aren’t you in contact with him?”

“I’m not receiving anything at all? He’s not sending anything to me either. Do you not know, Father?”

“Ahaha, sister-in-law. Father and elder brother have never been in contact in the first place.”

Felice, who abruptly intervened, acted friendly. The duke’s eyebrows twitched, but he affirmed those words without much comment.

“Then where on earth is he. This man.”

At Diana’s muttering, Felice smiled and spoke as if comforting Diana.

“He’ll come soon. Don’t worry. Sister-in-law. With a beauty like you at home, would he have strayed?”

Irene looked at Felice in surprise. Although he always smiled with a kind face, he never made such empty words.

Moreover, Diana brushed off Felice’s words as if they were nothing. Irene didn’t like that either. The things she had never received, Diana was receiving as if they were a given.

“Ah, Father. Can I continue to keep the warehouse key?”

“Sure.”

“That key is also together with the keys to the other warehouses, so feel free to explore. Sister-in-law. You’ll become the lady of our family anyway. You can keep them as much as you want.”

What are you saying?! Fire spewed from Irene’s eyes. I’m the one who will become the lady!

Irene, who had clenched her fists, gradually felt something strange as the meal progressed.

She was supposed to ostracize that woman, but she was gradually being ostracized herself. By the time she fully realized it, the meal was already over.

When she looked across with vacant eyes, her eyes met Diana’s.

Chuckle− How naive. Under Diana’s gaze looking down on people, Irene’s pretentious expression was stripped away.

[This is the timeline separator]

Diana, returning to her room, chuckled as she looked at Irene like a hissing cat. No matter how much she bared her claws, it wasn’t even stinging at that level.

‘Should I find out what tricks she used?’

It wasn’t a common occurrence for everyone to show one-sided favor to one person, nor was it common to show one-sided hostility.

Unless one was a fool, one could immediately tell. That the servants who praised Irene enjoyed it.

Hostility was familiar, but it seemed better to deal with it before Rodrick arrived, as it was bothersome.

No, but where on earth is this man? The messenger had already come to say that the conflict at the northern border had been resolved. This means he has strayed.

Diana, who was pursing her lips sullenly, discovered Daren waiting in front of her guest room.

“Oh, Sir Daren? Is it your shift now?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Sir Daren is on duty alone? Ah, does that mean Sir Daren does the work of more than two people?”

“……Yes, that’s right.”

Daren answered slowly as if embarrassed. He was a diligent man, just as much as his decent appearance. Diana looked at him with satisfaction.

The knights who had been escorting her with a sloppy and delinquent attitude bowed to Daren.

“We’ll be going then. Take care.”

“Take care.”

“Sure.”

Of course, the knights left without a single word of greeting to Diana.

Daren frowned at the sight, but couldn’t make a big deal out of it because Diana was there.

After the knights disappeared, Diana, who had been staring at their backs, asked.

“Those guys, which unit do they belong to?”

“They are the senior knights of the 2nd Knight Order.”

“They’re not directly under Rodrick, right?”

“Our unit has all been taken out by the commander.”

Ah, right. That was the case. That’s why she was surprised when Daren remained.

It would be more convenient to have an adjutant when working. She was touched that he left a figure who was like his right-hand man by her side.

It felt like Rodrick’s consideration for her. Her heart became warm.

“Sir Daren.”

“Yes.”

First, let’s confirm. Diana approached Daren without a word.

Daren took a step back as she got too close. But Diana grabbed his arm, and he couldn’t back away any further.

Leaving a distance that a single fist could pass through, Diana’s pink eyes moved busily.

Daren broke out in a cold sweat at the gaze staring intently at him.

“Um. This.”

If the commander finds out, it’ll be big trouble! Daren swallowed his words. The perceived distance felt too close, as if their breaths would touch.

“Ah, sorry. Was it unpleasant?”

“No, that’s not it.”

Daren stammered, unlike himself.

“I just wanted to confirm something. Sir Daren, have you been irritated or upset with me lately?”

“No.”

At the firm answer, Diana stepped back and smiled.

“Is that so?”

Certainly, she felt nothing from Daren. She had checked up close just in case. The ominous energy she had faintly felt from the maids and court ladies was absent.

Then, where should we start?

Diana, lost in thought, didn’t know. What kind of scandal would occur between them.

It took no time for a rumor, vulgar and dirty, to spread.

The rumor that started under the surface didn’t rise above the water right away, but the malice toward Diana only continued to pile up visibly.

[This is the timeline separator]

It was a dark night. The hour when the servants were finishing their last tasks of the day. There was a shadow moving secretly.

“How can our lady Irene be beautiful even when sleeping.”

“Her heart is as kind as her face. She said she would share accessories with us.”

“She’s the one who lets us breathe in this terrifying ducal house. We need to do better for her.”

It was an area with a different space and floor from Diana’s. Diana, who had come to Irene’s bedroom, had infiltrated while concealing all traces of her presence.

Her infiltration skills were so outstanding that even knights with good intuition couldn’t detect her. It was possible because she had undergone tedious training in a family that produced assassins.

An ominous energy was thick in Irene’s bedroom, but nothing particularly unusual could be found.

There were just noticeably many servants who praised Irene, that’s all.

It was a world where magic existed. Diana thought Irene was directly using some wordless power to control people, but she couldn’t find any anomalies.

Surely the malice toward her also seemed like Irene’s doing. There was a lot of ominous energy and circulating words, but there was no physical evidence. Should I observe a bit more?

She didn’t know. The fact that magic was cast on the jewel box hidden under the bed, obscuring her eyes. She failed to discover the existence of the stone tablet right in front of her nose.

Diana, who had been watching the quietly sleeping Irene, left the bedroom without a sound.

[This is the timeline separator]

Rodrick, who had been to the northwest region with a small number of people, passed by the knights waiting at the entrance of the Schwartz estate with indifference.

The elite knights following Rodrick looked terrible, but they remained silent as it was a common occurrence.

“His Grace was looking for you.”

“Why.”

“Where are you? He ordered to locate your position.”

Are you crazy? Rodrick’s murderous eyes seemed to say that. Has he gone senile? He’s doing things he hasn’t done before.

The duke’s agent had already secretly visited and reported not only his location but also the affairs of the border area. Diana was looking for him, so he had hurriedly come.

The duke even issued orders for show. In the eyes of others, it would seem as if the duke had moved at her single word.

He understood her intention to solidify her position, but it was unlike the duke. Has he really gone senile?

Regardless, Rodrick just went on his way. Enduring with paralysis grass was also reaching its limit now.

Normally, he would have had to slaughter magic beasts or at least mountain beasts to suppress his boiling blood, but one more option had emerged.

Diana. He just needed to hold her in his arms.

As he entered the castle gate leading a group of sturdy knights, the sound of a horn trumpet resonated.

They were all riding purebred warhorses, exuding a threatening atmosphere just like their lord.

“Welcome, Commander.”

The first to greet them was the head butler. No matter how much he was called a discarded child and a lunatic beast, the head butler and the servants were lined up to welcome him.

Of course, the feelings of the servants, except for the head butler, were a different matter.

The horse that stopped in front of the head butler snorted and pranced. Tap tap. Rodrick patted the neck below the mane with his black-gloved hand, soothing it.

The black horse, gigantic compared to the other warhorses befitting the leader, quickly became docile at its master’s touch. Rodrick dismounted from the saddle with a flourish.

Under the sunlight shattering and scattering the sporadically falling sleet, his figure sparkled like fish scales.

Intense features. His good looks were buried under a suffocating savagery that resided in his blue eyes.

A precarious instability, as if it could explode at any moment, met with beauty, creating a decadent atmosphere.

“Ah……”

For a moment, Diana was captivated by Rodrick’s appearance. Perhaps even her heart.

Thump− Her heart was shocked as if someone had hit it hard. Diana couldn’t speak for a moment. Clutching her trembling, beating heart, Diana ran.

“Rodrick!”

Refusing the thick fur offered by Felice, she ran toward him. She didn’t care about the gazes of others.

She had to fully embrace the man who had said he would become hers.

She ran with all her might and hugged his neck.

“Rodrick!”

Rodrick, who hadn’t expected to receive such an enthusiastic welcome, was surprised and slightly widened his eyes, then soon smiled and closed his eyes.

As the warm warmth filled his arms, his heart became calm. As his boiling blood gradually subsided, he hugged her tightly in return.

“……”

“Rodrick……”

Haa. Indeed, my remedy. The speed and amount at which mana filled his empty body was on a different level.

When she buried her face in his thick neck, his deep bodily scent emanated. The cool and refreshing scent gave a sense of stability.

Diana inhaled that scent to the fullest and absorbed the curse. Rain falls moistly on the parched land. No, it pours down enough to quench the thirst. It felt like a well that had been showing its bottom was gradually filling up.

“I missed you.”

“……”

“Why did you come so late?”

“……”

“You strayed, right? You probably didn’t even see the letters I sent?”

Rodrick, who had been embracing her, wanted to stop Diana’s chattering mouth. No, he might want even more contact. He wanted to get rid of this tingling sensation that dominated his whole body.

Rodrick’s thoughts were paralyzed by Diana, who was far more effective than the paralysis grass. The words naturally flowed out.

“Diana.”

A languidly relaxed voice pleasantly closed in on her ears.

“Hm? What is it?”

She slightly separated and faced his face. Was there something he wanted to say?

“Can I kiss you?”

That single line. That alluring single line struck Diana’s heart once again.