“Steward, what brings you here…”

“Schwartz?”

Diana was unable to properly reunite with the Schwartz steward due to the sudden interruption.

The commotion inside and outside the estate was excessive. Thump. Thump. Count Gordon descended with his large frame.

“What is all this?”

The steward repeated the same words with utmost politeness, showing no displeasure.

“These are gifts from Duke Schwartz to Lady Diana Beatus. His Grace asked me to convey that you should consider it an advance on the dowry.”

There was a word in the elderly man’s speech, as impressive as a knight, that grated.

Dowry? Gordon raised his neatly groomed red eyebrows.

“What does that mean?”

It was customary for the woman’s family to send the dowry to the man’s family. No, putting aside such trivial matters, the problem was the family before his eyes.

The Schwartz of the North. A family that never set foot in the central region.

“His Grace simply said it was an early gift for his daughter-in-law.”

“Ha, daughter-in-law?! What nonsense is this!”

His roar was so loud that Gordon’s voice leaked out beyond the walls. It was a disgraceful sight.

“The barbarians of the North have gone mad! Are they plotting to obstruct the marriage prospects of the Beatus family!”

Despite the insulting words, from the coachmen to the knights guarding the carriages full of treasures and riches, their expressions did not change.

They were the Duke of Schwartz’s personal guard unit, so to speak.

The experienced knights, all of middle age, simply thought, a pig is squealing. That’s all.

Among them, the most senior steward merely smiled quietly.

“We are not trying to obstruct the marriage, but to protect it. Count.”

“What?”

The thick, protruding veins expressed Gordon’s state of mind. Clearly, Diana had called him the steward.

How dare a mere steward address him without an honorific title? Him, who would soon become the ruler of the Beatus family.

“It seems the Schwartz dogs don’t even know proper titles.”

“It seems the Beatus foxes don’t even know the dignity of nobility.”

In fact, the steward who oversees Schwartz Castle is an honorary position without a fief, but he was granted the rank of count.

Therefore, in terms of rank alone, he could address Count Gordon familiarly without hesitation.

Moreover, in his youth, he had even been bestowed the title of knight by the emperor.

“Rude and vulgar. Take all those things away!”

“Uncle.”

A quiet voice interjected, captivating everyone present. The situation had escalated to the point where even Count Gordon’s relatives had all come out.

Everyone’s gaze turned to Diana.

“That’s enough. You are lowering the Beatus family’s standing. Right now.”

When his red eyes clashed with Diana’s calm pink eyes, they boiled with heat.

“What?”

“If you want to act as the family head, then behave like one. Lord Robert is also a central figure in the Schwartz family.”

When Diana added that he was like the right-hand man of His Grace the Duke of Schwartz, Robert showed a slightly surprised look behind his frameless glasses. How did she know? He had felt it before, but she was different from an ordinary noble lady. She was not ordinary.

“Show some respect. The Beatus family’s dignity comes from such small details. Uncle.”

Gordon was thinking in his mind how he would discipline this naive girl.

His thick hands, trembling from the effort to hold back from slapping her cheek, clenched tightly.

He was not foolish enough to discipline her in front of others.

Gordon’s relatives looked back and forth between Diana and Gordon, breaking out in a cold sweat. It seemed like an angry command would be issued at any moment.

“Throw all those things away.”

Unexpectedly, his voice was calm, and Diana’s head tilted slightly.

“I will handle it myself. Uncle.”

“You are the prince’s fiancée! Don’t act rashly.”

Gordon entered the mansion without even waiting for a response. His stomping footsteps resounded loudly, carrying his anger.

“Diana. What will you do about that?”

Gordon’s first wife asked. It seemed like she was eyeing the carriages greedily.

Her cousins and their spouses were already peeking and observing the carriages.

However, they did not dare to boldly open the doors without permission.

The imposing presence of the Schwartz knights guarding the wagons was considerable.

They lacked the courage to confront the knights.

“Why are you curious about that? Countess.”

“Diana, it’s disappointing to call me Countess. Call me Aunt.”

I will soon become the lady of the Beatus ducal family. Gordon’s first wife swallowed her words and her eyes shone with ambition.

Diana almost let out a hollow laugh at the obvious intentions.

“Butler.”

Snap. With a snap of her fingers, the Beatus family’s head butler, who had been absent, appeared silently and smoothly. It was a movement befitting a legendary first-class assassin during his active days.

“Yes, Young Lady. Did you call for me?”

Gordon’s wife made a displeased expression at the butler’s polite attitude.

There was a subtle difference in how he treated Diana compared to their family. Moreover, she was offended by Diana’s attitude of ignoring her.

“Diana. What kind of behavior is this in front of an adult?”

Diana’s gaze, which had been about to give an order to the butler, turned to Gordon’s first wife.

Flinch. She involuntarily felt intimidated by the cold gaze. Diana gracefully narrowed her eyes as if she had never been expressionless.

“Oh, you haven’t left yet? Madam. I’m going to be busy from now on…”

She trailed off, signaling her to get lost.

Understanding the implied meaning, Gordon’s first wife bit her lower lip while looking at the butler.

The head butler, who managed all affairs big and small in this mansion, was only looking at Diana with satisfaction.

“Butler.”

“Yes, Young Lady.”

“Properly categorize my gifts and add them to the family’s records.”

She gave the order while indifferently looking at Gordon’s relatives.

“Install double locks so that no one can touch them without my permission.”

It was also a command meant to be heard. A warning not to touch others’ belongings without permission.

“Who would dare to lay a hand on the treasures of the direct lineage? I will follow your orders.”

The butler’s additional words provoked Gordon’s relatives, but no one stepped forward.

“Lord Robert.”

The way she addressed him changed. Robert placed his right hand on his chest and bowed his head, showing a knight’s respect.

“Are you taking those carriages and horses with you?”

“No. They all belong to the Young Lady.”

“I see. Butler.”

“Yes, I will manage everything.”

The Beatus family’s head butler disappeared as quietly and smoothly as he had appeared to carry out the orders.

Gordon had told them to throw the gifts away, but there was no way she would discard the gifts that had been brought with difficulty from the North.

Diana, who had returned all the prince’s gifts, gladly accepted the gifts sent directly by the Duke of Schwartz.

It held great significance that the Duke had sent the steward. Moreover, he had personally sent someone who was nothing less than his confidant.

The Duke’s sincerity was conveyed, warming her heart. Diana smiled warmly.

“Would you mind waiting a moment? I need to send a thank-you letter to your father.”

The Duke of Schwartz sent a vast amount of treasures to the Beatus family. Moreover, it was to the youngest daughter of the Beatus family who had been hiding in the mansion.

Could there be another major issue like this? Why on earth did the Schwartz ducal family send gifts to the Beatus daughter?

That interesting fact quickly spread by word of mouth throughout the capital.

The incident swiftly reached the Schwartz mansion as well.

“Brother!”

Bang! The person who opened the door in a hurry without knocking was Felice Schwartz.

“Brother, this is not the time to be looking at documents!”

Rodrick, who was acting as the duke’s proxy in the office, continued to move his quill pen with his gaze fixed on the documents despite his younger brother’s urgent voice.

“Father has beaten you to it!”

Only then did he raise his blue eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“Father sent gifts to sister-in-law, and he even sent Robert to accompany them!”

It was said that the procession of carriages that arrived with the head butler had paralyzed the noble residential area.

Sending the Duke’s personal guard was an excessive measure. However, the implied meaning was clear.

Do not touch Diana Beatus.

After hearing the whole story, the corners of Rodrick’s lips curved up crookedly.

Felice grumbled without even looking at Rodrick’s expression.

“Father is really too much. It should have been you who sent the gifts first. But he intercepts it.”

Rodrick had also been preparing gifts after seeing the ones sent by the prince. He was just waiting for the right timing.

“Felice Schwartz.”

“Yes, what is it? Brother.”

“Prepare a carriage to carry the gifts.”

Beneath the sharp eyes, a small spark ignited in the blue eyes.

“We’re going with twice as much as His Grace the Duke.”

Two days later, not only the noble houses but the entire capital was in an uproar.

It was because all kinds of gems from the empire’s specialties to other kingdoms were heading to the Beatus mansion.

Once again, the recipient was the youngest daughter of the Beatus family. Diana Beatus.

What was even more surprising was the letter of proposal sent from the Schwartz family.

The other party was none other than the eldest son of the Schwartz family, who was called the God of War and had the fearsome nickname of the Black Reaper.

At a point less than a month before the New Year’s Festival, high society was abuzz with talk about the Beatus and Schwartz families.

However, in contrast to the noisy outside world, both families remained silent.

“What kind of behavior is this!”

Smack! The high-quality paper brushed against her cheek, leaving a red line.

Gordon, who had used the paper to cut Diana’s face with force, gnashed his teeth.

“It’s as you see.”

She picked up the paper that had fallen to the floor without changing her expression.

“It’s a letter of proposal.”

“Do you think I don’t know that? You are already as good as engaged to the prince.”

“Well. Isn’t that just your delusion, Uncle? I wonder if you even have a say in the imperial family. There’s nothing more disgraceful than talking to yourself.”

Slap− Gordon’s right hand, unable to hold back any longer, struck her cheek. Diana’s head turned from the impact of the palm larger than her face.

It was so forceful that a ringing sound reached her eardrums, causing tinnitus.

“……”

Gordon had already suffered a ridiculous incident at the social club. When he used the Beatus name without becoming the duke, there was an underlying atmosphere of disrespect.

He had been hiding it because it was an engagement with the good-for-nothing prince!

If he offered Diana as the imperial family wished, he would receive the family head’s seal. Becoming the duke was now within reach.

But then, to cause such a disturbance in the middle of it all!

“This is no different from a contract with His Majesty! You will never be able to escape the engagement with the prince, so keep that in mind.”

Unable to control his anger, Gordon raised his fist but restrained himself. She was a product. A product must not be damaged.

Gordon rang a bell and summoned the knights.

“Confine her to the discipline room! Do not give her even a sip of water until I command otherwise.”

It was called a discipline room, but it was actually a closed prison cell with walls on all sides and no windows.

Diana, being dragged away by the knights, looked miserable even at a glance.

“How nice. Diana. What will you do? The New Year’s Festival is just around the corner, so it will be difficult to get a dress. Ah, you won’t be able to attend the festival anyway. You’ll be locked up, after all.”

Zelony’s words, full of venom, pierced venomously, but Diana did not react.

Creak. Bang. The iron door closed. The iron door, with only a hole for monitoring, had a special device that would not open without the command of the one imprisoned.

Apart from the soldiers keeping watch, the surroundings were quiet. Sitting on the floor with a thud in the empty room, Diana, no, Jamie disguised as Diana, smiled bitterly with blood.

“Idiots.”

Ptooey− Spitting out blood-stained saliva, she laughed at the Gordon Count’s family, who couldn’t even reach the Beatus family’s toes.