After the tea time, Aidel’s tired footsteps headed towards the imperial garden.

She should have returned to the banquet hall, but it was impossible in this state. She needed time to collect herself.

Perhaps it was because she hadn’t engaged in social activities for a while. Aidel was unfamiliar with the speech of noble women whose outsides and insides differed.

It was difficult enough to understand their way of speaking and converse with them, but what made it even harder for her was the obvious hostility directed at her.

They smiled as they spat out words like needles hidden in soft cloth. Even if they didn’t openly show it on the surface, there was sharp hostility contained within.

Feeling the naked contempt in their eyes, she felt as if she had returned to the harmony of Fluor.

‘Am I….’

Still an unwelcome presence?

The loneliness she always had to swallow alone soon enveloped her surroundings.

In the gazebo of the imperial garden, Aidel sat on a chair and blankly stared at the sky. Her expression became as hazy as the moonlight with a faint halo.

It was then. A neatly folded handkerchief was handed to her.

“Ah….”

Aidel took a soft breath and looked at the person who handed her the handkerchief. Under the dark moonlight, she couldn’t distinguish who it was with her blurred vision.

“Are you alright?”

A gentle voice full of warmth reached her ears.

Plop. As soon as she heard that voice, tears fell along with the clear appearance of a man’s face full of surprise and concern.

“Prince Rainien…?”

“What happened?”

He looked at her face worriedly, holding the handkerchief and not knowing what to do. It seemed he wanted to wipe away the tears flowing on her white cheeks himself, but couldn’t do so for fear of being impolite.

“…Thank you.”

Aidel received the handkerchief and hurriedly wiped away the tears on her cheeks.

“It’s nothing. Something just got in my eye.”

“Are you really alright?”

“Of course. I’ve worried you unnecessarily.”

Aidel tried to smile nonchalantly as she gently closed her moist eyes.

Rainien swallowed the words that lingered in his mouth as he watched her.

In fact, he had been in the imperial garden before her. While taking a walk, he had spotted Aidel walking through the garden.

‘Lady Aidel…?’

She, who had gone for tea time, looked extremely tired for some reason. He approached her as he saw her moving with heavy, powerless steps.

Lost in deep thought, Aidel continued to stare vacantly at the distant sky even as he approached. As her eyes, immersed in melancholy, gradually turned red, he unconsciously held out his handkerchief.

Only then did she notice him. And then she skillfully hid the sorrow she had been swallowing alone.

‘What kind of person are you?’

Even after learning her identity as the Grand Duchess… his confusion grew as he saw the inexplicable darkness hidden in her inner self.

The confused feelings turned into a desire to know her better and get closer.

‘Even though I know she’s the Grand Duchess of Ellios….’

He couldn’t deny the attraction he felt towards her.

‘Even if we can’t be more than friends….’

He wanted to share thoughts with her by her side, get to know each other, and someday even soothe the inexplicable sadness she hid.

To do that, he needed to approach her sincerely as well. Even if he couldn’t reveal his feelings beyond friendship towards her.

“I’d like to introduce myself again. My name is Rainien Viel de Lisandro. I’m the 3rd prince of the Lisandro Empire, and I came to study abroad at the Imperial University of Jupiter. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier.”

“I didn’t tell you the details of my status either. I’m sorry if I surprised you. Though it may sound like an excuse, I wanted us to have an equal relationship since we first met at the Imperial University.”

“Now that we know each other’s status, has that relationship changed? Are we no longer friends who share thoughts together at the Imperial University?”

“No, of course not!”

“Then please continue to see me as Rainien, not the prince of Lisandro. I too want to treat you as my first friend I made here, before the Grand Duchess of Ellios.”

“Prince Rainien….”

“Please call me Rainien.”

“…Alright. I’ll call you Lord Rainien.”

Rainien nodded with a bright smile at Aidel’s agreement. Aidel’s expression also softened at the first defined relationship of friendship.

“Do you know how happy I was to have a friend like you, Lady Aidel, who shares my thoughts, when I came to study abroad alone in a foreign land? That’s why I couldn’t reveal my status. I was afraid you might feel uncomfortable with our relationship because of my status.”

“I see. Actually, I had guessed you were a nobleman. I just didn’t know you were a prince of a neighboring empire.”

“I had heard that the Grand Duchess of Ellios was in the same faculty, but I couldn’t imagine it would be you. If I had known, I should have read the newspapers more often.”

“It seems you prefer reading books to newspapers, Lord Rainien. I enjoyed reading the book you recommended last time. The one about changing social perceptions of women.”

“Actually, after reading that book, I thought of you, Lady Aidel.”

“Now that you know I’m the Grand Duchess of Ellios… is that thought still valid?”

Aidel asked Rainien, recalling the hostility she felt from the noble women during tea time.

As expected, the sense of privilege among noble women was solid. Even if one argued that future society would change to focus on ability rather than status, and that women too should expand their social sphere of activity… it seemed these ideas wouldn’t reach them.

Moreover, she was currently not a commoner but the Grand Duchess, the highest-ranking noble. Was leading the change in women’s social roles not permitted in her position?

Aidel felt her convictions wavering after the tea time. Rainien, who had been watching her wavering eyes for a while, asked in return.

“Did you enter the Imperial University as the Grand Duchess, Lady Aidel?”

“What? No. I had decided to enter the Imperial University before becoming the Grand Duchess.”

“That’s right. You are Aidel before being the Grand Duchess. I see you as a woman carving out her own path. Whether you are the Grand Duchess or not, my thoughts about you won’t change in the future.”

‘Aidel before being the Grand Duchess….’

Aidel’s eyes widened as if she had realized something. It was she herself who was unconsciously restricting herself under the status of Grand Duchess.

‘Don’t waver. Just move forward according to my convictions.’

Aidel clasped her hands tightly as if steeling her resolve.

That’s right. Entering the Imperial University and wanting to go out into society was the path she had chosen for herself even before becoming the Grand Duchess.

As Rainien said, she just needed to walk her path steadily and show that it was the right one. Even if it was a rugged path that no one had walked before and wasn’t smoothed out yet.

“Thank you, Lord Rainien.”

Aidel, who had shaken off her worries thanks to Rainien who had awakened her, smiled brightly all over her face. Her heart swelled at the sight of a friend who saw her as she was.

It was pure support without conditions or expectations, something she had never received from anyone before. Aidel felt warmth spreading through her arms, legs, and even her heart.

“It’s nothing.”

Rainien too broke into a wide smile seeing Aidel return to her usual self.

“We should return to the banquet hall now.”

“Let’s go together.”

Rainien escorted Aidel as they headed towards the banquet hall.

.

.

.

People’s gazes turned to the two as they entered the banquet hall. The sight of the Grand Duchess with a prince from a neighboring country aroused curiosity.

‘Look over there! The Grand Duchess and the 3rd prince of Lisandro are together.’

‘I heard they were in the same faculty at the Imperial University! It seems they’ve already built a rapport!’

The unmarried noble ladies who had been eyeing Rainien frowned. They wanted to talk to the prince from the neighboring empire, but were displeased by the Grand Duchess occupying his side.

The sight of Aidel and Rainien together also caught Roselyn’s eye. Roselyn’s eyes narrowed as she watched the two.

“The Grand Duchess’s abilities are truly outstanding.”

The daughter of Count Rifenser next to Roselyn sneered with a mocking glance.

“…Indeed.”

Clearly, when Aidel left the tea room, her face had been noticeably darkened. The pre-prepared play of the tea time had been perfect. As expected, her elder sister had become isolated and withered like a flower arrangement.

‘But she’s regained her vitality?’

A faint smile lingered on Aidel’s much brighter face. Roselyn chewed on the inside of her lip at the sight of her sister rising again even after being trampled.

Roselyn’s fierce gaze turned to Rainien beside Aidel. That man must have helped Aidel regain her spirits.

‘Not the Grand Duke, but a prince of Lisandro…’

Roselyn’s mind began to spin rapidly.

‘If played right, this could make for an interesting picture.’

Originally, the social world was a place where even brief eye contact between a man and woman could give rise to secret rumors. Being together like that was enough to spark imagination about their relationship.

It was fortunate that her naive elder sister, unfamiliar with social activities, had voluntarily recruited a new actor for the new play.

‘Let’s see. This play needs another lead actor.’

Her eyes, glittering cunningly, began to scan the banquet hall in search of someone.

‘Perfect, he’s coming this way!’

As soon as she saw two men entering the banquet hall, Roselyn began walking towards them.

“Your Majesty the Emperor.”

Roselyn stopped in front of Pascal and Caeron.

“Lady Roselyn?”

“I’ve been waiting for Your Majesty to arrive.”

Roselyn smiled coyly as she batted her eyes charmingly. She blushed shyly and spoke timidly.

“I wanted to have the first dance with Your Majesty.”

“A dance, you say? Very well. You are my partner for tonight, after all.”

Pascal was inwardly displeased, but he couldn’t ignore the partner designated by the House of Nobles. It was an unwritten rule to dance the first song with the assigned partner at the ball.

“Your Grace the Grand Duke should dance with Her Grace the Grand Duchess as well.”

Caeron looked at Roselyn at her sudden suggestion. Flinching slightly at the Grand Duke’s indifferent and chilly gaze, Roselyn averted her eyes and began looking around.

“By the way, where is Her Grace the Grand Duchess? She went somewhere after the tea time, so I thought she had gone to you, Your Grace.”

Caeron raised an eyebrow at Roselyn’s question about Aidel’s whereabouts. After Aidel went for tea time with the noble ladies, Caeron too had left shortly after to have a private audience with Pascal. He had just returned to the banquet hall after the audience ended.

“What do you mean, where did the Grand Duchess go?”

The Grand Duchess was unfamiliar with the palace structure, having only visited a few times. Worried that she might have gotten lost, Caeron frowned and asked Roselyn.

“Well…”

Roselyn, who had been turning her head this way and that as if looking for Aidel, exclaimed loudly as if she had discovered something.

“Oh my! There she is!”