Iris sighed again today at the sight of the letter and gift that had arrived for her.

The sender was none other than Oscar Vandermir. Since the hunting festival, he had been unilaterally contacting Iris as if possessed.

No matter how politely she expressed her refusal in letters and returned the gifts, it was of no use.

“A man is naturally more attracted to a difficult woman than an easy one.

So I don’t mind that the young lady keeps rejecting me haughtily. Rather, it reassures me that she’s not the type to meet just any man.

But be careful, as constantly making a man anxious and yearning can backfire.

Of course, I find everything you do utterly adorable, so don’t worry about it.”

Such nonsense was all that came back in his long-winded replies.

It was fortunate that Oscar usually stayed in the Vandermir duchy, so there was no chance of meeting. If he had been in the capital, he would have surely come to bother her every day.

‘Just how long is he going to keep this up?’

Iris’s expression was very dark as she looked down at Oscar’s letter, which contained a confession asking to date seriously with marriage in mind.

Who on earth said they wanted to marry him?

Oscar’s behavior of persistently pursuing her while completely ignoring her own wishes was truly uncomfortable, but she couldn’t confide in anyone about it.

Because he was her sister’s husband’s older brother. One wrong word could potentially escalate into an issue between families.

And above all, Iris… was afraid.

She was terribly anxious about how people would react if it became known that Oscar was courting her.

While it wasn’t common for sisters to marry brothers from the same family, it wasn’t taboo either. Perhaps both families would think it was a good match and try to marry Oscar and her.

‘It would be nice to become family with Ari, but… I don’t want to marry just for that reason. We’re already family anyway.’

Iris was satisfied with her current life. She had a harmonious family, good friends, and could do whatever she wanted.

It was a happy enough life without marriage.

But no matter how much she expressed her contentment, those around her wouldn’t leave her be.

Iris rested her chin on her hand and lowered her eyes. Deep worry clouded her fresh green eyes.

‘…Do I really have to get married?’

Even though her younger sister had married before her, Iris didn’t feel anxious.

She simply had no desire to marry at all.

It was strange. It wasn’t as if she had rejected marriage due to having a firm dream since childhood like Arasila…

Rather, she had followed the standard bridal education that noble families gave their daughters.

She learned embroidery to become a virtuous noblewoman, learned how to support a husband, and learned elegant hobbies like playing instruments.

Though she was already fully prepared, the thought of actually marrying someone didn’t appeal to her.

However, no one understood these feelings of hers, and Iris had never once voiced her true thoughts.

After all, such thoughts didn’t suit the thoughtful eldest daughter of Duke Hugo’s family, known for being an intelligent and virtuous noble lady.

‘Even if I did speak up, who would understand my feelings and take them seriously?’

Even she found it strange that she suddenly felt averse after living just fine while receiving bridal education, so others would surely feel the same.

Everyone would think she had fallen into strange ideas out of anxiety about missing her prime marriage age.

“Hah…”

As Iris let out another deep sigh, unable to hold it in, someone knocked on the door.

The Duchess poked her head through the slightly open door.

“Iris, are you busy?”

“No, Mother. What is it?”

Iris quickly flipped over Oscar’s letter as she stood up. Her maid discreetly tucked the letter into her own pocket.

“I wanted to have a word with you.”

“Yes, please come in.”

Iris guided her mother in with a gentle smile.

The look-alike mother and daughter sat facing each other.

“What did you want to talk about?”

“Well, I happened to run into Madam Kelly a few days ago. She asked me if you were seeing any young nobleman. If not, she said she’d like to introduce a very fine young man.”

“Ah… Is that so?”

Iris’s smile faded slightly. But the Duchess didn’t notice and continued with what she had prepared to say.

“What do you think, Iris? She said the young man she wants to introduce is the eldest son of Count Roberts. I hear he has a good reputation and is a promising scholar with a bright future. Rumor has it that many noble ladies have their eye on him as a potential son-in-law.”

The Duchess looked at her daughter with expectant eyes. After unexpectedly marrying off her second daughter, she had been eager to find a good match for her eldest daughter as well.

The fact that Iris was entering the last stage of marriageable age also played a part.

Feeling strong pressure from her mother’s words and actions, Iris managed a strained smile.

“Mother, I’m not ready for marriage yet…”

“Oh, my dear! Who said to get married right away? Even Arasila had a secret romance before getting married. You can date and if it works out, you get married. If not, then you don’t.”

Though she said that, it was rare for a noble lady of marriageable age to break up with someone she was dating.

Especially for a lady of Iris’s precarious age, even dating for just a year before breaking up would be a significant blow.

Still, she didn’t want to meet any man at all rather than be forced into marriage, but unfortunately, Iris was the obedient and well-behaved eldest daughter who listened well to her parents.

She couldn’t selfishly ignore what her parents wanted for her, even while knowing what it was.

“…Alright. I’ll meet him once.”

When Iris finally gave an affirmative answer, the Duchess smiled brightly. She gently patted her daughter’s hand.

“That’s right, that’s right. You’ve thought well. If you meet him and don’t like him, we can find another groom. The important thing is to meet a good person. What’s wrong with marrying a little later?”

In fact, the Duchess Hugo was quite liberal in raising her daughters.

Being a rare case of true love marriage herself, she didn’t force arranged marriages on her children from a young age like other families.

It wasn’t for nothing that the arranged marriage with the Vandermir ducal family, which had been decided long ago, was kept secret.

It was deliberately concealed and postponed in accordance with the Duke and Duchess’s wish to let their daughters marry men of their own choosing as much as possible.

While the Duchess left with a much brighter face, the shadow over Iris’s face only deepened.

“Are you alright, my lady?”

“Of course I’m fine. Anyway, I should prepare to meet the young Lord Roberts.”

Iris forced a smile at her maid who was looking at her with concern. If she pretended to be fine in front of her family, she couldn’t do any less for her maid.

Two days later.

Iris met the young Lord Roberts at a quiet restaurant in a bustling area.

“Pleased to meet you. I’m Eric Roberts.”

“I’m Iris Hugo. Nice to meet you.”

Eric had a gentle impression befitting a scholar. His speech was soft, and consideration showed in even his small gestures.

Thanks to this, Iris was able to spend a moderately pleasant time with him. It was such a comfortable meeting that her inner nervousness seemed unnecessary.

Perhaps that’s why. While Iris felt that Eric was a good person, she didn’t feel like she wanted to meet him again.

But the other party seemed to feel differently, as Eric hesitantly asked near the end of the meal:

“May I set up another appointment?”

“Ah…”

As Iris couldn’t answer immediately and made a troubled expression, Eric said in a somewhat firm voice:

“Shouldn’t you meet a person at least three times before making a decision? That would also be better for convincing your parents.”

It was a statement that struck at Iris’s weakness, pushed by her mother’s expectations.

Still, as Iris hesitated to give a positive response, a familiar form of address suddenly came from behind.

“Lady Vandermir, you know!”

‘Our Ari?’

Iris reflexively turned around. Two young ladies sitting two tables away were enthusiastically chattering about her sister.

Even from what little she heard, it was clearly not anything good, and Iris faintly furrowed her brow.

“Um, Lady Hugo.”

“Alright.”

“…Pardon?”

“Let’s meet again, young lord. But if you’ll excuse me, may we part ways right now?”

Eric nodded in a daze. Iris immediately stood up and quietly approached the two ladies’ table.

As she got closer, what they were discussing became clearer.

“The magic airship business, you know. I hear Lady Vandermir didn’t actually do anything? They say it was her juniors who made the airship, and it was entirely Lord Vandermir who made the business successful.”

“Is that really true?”

“Yes, I heard it clearly from Lady Cooper. They say the Lady is using her husband to gain benefits…”

“Who did you hear that from?”

The chattering ladies froze, their mouths snapping shut. Where they turned their heads, Iris was standing with a gentle smile.

“La-Lady Hugo, how…”

“My lady, we were just—”

Cutting off the ladies’ desperate attempts to explain, Iris sweetly requested:

“Please tell me the details as well. I’m very curious to hear who is saying what about my sister.”

“But…”

After stammering for a while, the two finally succumbed to the gentle pressure and spilled all the rumors circulating in high society recently.

After hearing everything, Iris immediately went to find Arasila.

These days, leaving work early had become a rule in Arasila’s laboratory.

It was like a compensation for the constant overtime they’d put in while making the airship.

Arasila was enjoying the luxury of returning home in broad daylight when she was greeted by Iris.

“What brings you here without notice, sister?”

“Ari, can we talk for a moment?”

“Sure, of course.”

Perceiving Iris’s expression, which seemed normal at first glance but was subtly tense, Arasila sat down across from her with slight nervousness.

Audrey brought refreshments to the reception room without being asked.

After calmly taking a sip of tea, Iris slowly opened her mouth.

“It seems Lady White is spreading strange rumors about you.”

The ladies who had confided in Iris about the rumors said they heard it from Lady Cooper, but she immediately figured out who was really behind it.

It was quite well-known that Lady Cooper and Nora White were close, and there was no reason for Lady Cooper to act so maliciously in the first place.

Unlike Nora of House White, who had once had an unrequited love for Demian Vandermir and whose family was in competition with House Hugo.

“The rumors from last time also seemed to come from Lady White’s side. Did you know?”