Ariadne bit her lip. Her most obvious escape route was blocked.
People began to murmur.
“Is that woman the second daughter of Cardinal de Mare? The one who defeated the apostle of Asereto?”
“Wasn’t she renowned for her theology? Would such a devout lady do such a thing?”
“How can we know what’s in people’s hearts! Even in the monastery, just as we forget, there’s trouble among the clergy!”
Someone demanded of Ariadne.
“Take off your mask!”
It was a completely illogical request. No one present had seen the face of the mysterious runaway woman.
Taking off Ariadne’s mask could not help discover the Count of Campa’s lover. However, people added their two cents, half out of curiosity, half to affirm their collective superiority.
“That’s right, take off the mask!”
“Let’s see your face!”
“Why can’t you take off the mask? Are you embarrassed?”
A plausible reason was appended later.
“When the mistress removes her mask, her makeup will be wiped off. No doubt her face is a mess, so she can’t remove it.”
Ariadne had no intention of taking off her mask here.
Removing the mask itself wasn’t difficult. However, if you give in to even the most trivial demands of the public, they tend to ask for more and more.
To a sheep that has succumbed, the public can be far crueler than the sum of its individual members. If you lose momentum, your downfall is swift.
Ariadne held her head high and responded.
“It’s true that I am Ariadne de Mare, but I am neither the lover of Count Campa nor do I have anything to prove to you all. I am, in fact, very displeased by this ridiculous misunderstanding.”
Ariadne spoke only the truth, but regardless, someone bristled at her haughty attitude. That anger quickly spread to the others.
“A misunderstanding? There’s overflowing evidence, how can it be a misunderstanding?”
“What about the bracelet? Why aren’t you taking off the mask?”
People were about to erupt.
“It’s not a misunderstanding. It’s a slander.”
The one who answered the crowd’s question was not Ariadne, but a baritone male voice. It was Prince Alfonso, who had completed his voice change and was now a fullgrown adult.
Alfonso had been wandering the garden in distress ever since Ariadne left him coldly in the garden.
He told himself he was looking for Lariesa, but in fact, the person he was desperately seeking was Ariadne.
He wandered in search of the woman in the golden dress, hoping all the while that she had black rather than brown hair, and healthy glowing skin rather than pale, dry white skin.
During his search, a commotion arose. When he rushed to the scene, he found the woman he most wanted to see.
The moment he saw her, he had to admit that he was not looking for the Grand Duchess Lariesa. He didn’t feel like wandering in the garden any longer. His destination was right in front of him.
However, the woman he was looking for was attracting attention for an unsavory reason.
Considering diplomatic relations, Prince Alfonso should never have mentioned that he was with Ariadne here. Alfonso was a person who took his duties and responsibilities seriously.
But his mouth moved on its own.
“Miss de Mare was with me all the time…”
He was shocked that Ariadne was subject to an incredible slander and was in danger. He didn’t just verbally defend her, but he rushed to the center of the square and stood next to Ariadne.
Alfonso instinctively shielded her in his arms, hiding her from people’s eyes. In the meantime, the crowd continued to gather.
Holding Ariadne in his arms, Alfonso raised his voice and shouted to the crowd.
“There’s nothing to see here. Miss de Mare was with me all the time. To say that this dignified lady was Count Campa’s mistress is a falsehood that seriously damages her honor.”
Alfonso’s words were met with a polite rebuttal from a noble.
“Your Highness, Prince Alfonso, aren’t you aware of all the ins and outs of Lady de Mare?”
The crowd desired a scapegoat.
“Yes, they didn’t come together, they came separately.”
“How can she prove an alibi for the entire masquerade if she wasn’t continuously by his side?”
Alfonso raised the tone and pressed on.
“Lady de Mare was with me throughout the masquerade, from beginning to end!”
Alfonso didn’t persuade, he commanded. The dignity befitting a future sovereign emanated from him.
“Her actions are confirmed, so let’s stop discussing this. Everyone disperse. And someone call a servant to clean up the person lying on the floor.”
Just as the crowd, now almost reaching 100, was about to leave, thinking the interesting spectacle was over.
“She was with me, your Highness, with me.”
Another lady in a golden dress appeared from the bushes. Like Ariadne, she was wearing a Volto mask. It was the Grand Duchess Lariessa of Juniper.
She looked disheveled from wandering around in the bushes. Lariessa seemed to be having trouble breathing and had her Volto mask loosely hanging around her neck.
“Who is that woman?”
“Didn’t an ambassador come from the Kingdom of Gallico? Isn’t she the Grand Duchess?”
“No wonder she speaks our language awkwardly.”
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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