After inspecting all the gifts, I returned everything except those sent by Philip and Laila, along with a thank-you letter.

It seemed appropriate to accept Philip’s gratitude as I had cleared the family’s debt.

Laila’s gift was also sincere, so I decided to reciprocate with a return gift.

However, there was no reason to accept the rest of the gifts.

After completing all the preparations, the capital that arrived buzzed with festival vibes.

The reason was not only because it was the king’s birthday celebration week, but also because Marboro’s status as the official prince of the Cigarette Kingdom had been officially announced.
People welcomed Marboro warmly, especially among those who supported him were mostly commoners.

After hearing the lively rumors, I could guess.

It seemed that expectations were high for the son who inherited the lineage, given his mother was a very warm and kind queen.

“Well, Marboro is a saint. Even though he’s a male lead.”

Moreover, it appeared that Laila had captured people’s hearts in the short time. Wherever she went, the number of people supporting her seemed to increase exponentially.

“Now, I just need to go with the flow over there.”

Now, I just had to survive.

With that determination, I got on the carriage. On the facing seat was Mild, who had slightly swept her hair to the side and sat neatly.

Dressed in a blue evening gown, she was scheduled to escort me today.

Her emotional state had been quite cloudy to me since the day the gift attack started until this morning.

It was understandable.

She had generously given me a dress that day, and perhaps to mock her sincerity, I received a flood of similar gifts.

At that time, she concealed her hasty, gloomy expression and organized the complicated situation with the employees.

Afterwards, it seemed like she didn’t expect anything. A faint sense of depression, which hadn’t been visible for a while, reappeared.

Quietly observing her, I felt that even if I wore a dress, she didn’t seem to expect any progress in our relationship.

“All the gifted dresses are pretty, so it’s better to boost Mild’s morale.”

So, when I came out wearing the dress Mild had given, I could see a significant change in Mild’s mood.

Since then, she hadn’t been able to look me straight in the eye. However, she seemed very happy.

Although I pretended not to notice her embarrassment, Mild’s eyes welled up with tears the moment she saw me.

“Cute.”

I instinctively covered my face with a fan, hiding the smile that naturally came to my face.

The carriage soon arrived at the party venue of the royal palace. Receiving Mild’s sincere escort, I entered the party venue.

Inside the party venue, the elegant waltz music and the joyful sounds of people chatting could be heard.

The knights, dressed in ceremonial attire, guarding the entrance to the party venue, declared our entrance after confirming the invitation I presented.

“The representative of DS Boutique, Lady Ellen Bourbon Lenoir, and Mild K. Irgov of the Bourbon Kingdom are here!”

I felt the crowd’s cheering gradually diminishing as I passed through a short corridor, heading into the party venue.

For a moment, a dazzling large chandelier of golden light blinded my eyes.

I waited for my eyes to adjust to the bright light, creating shadows on my face with the fan.

Under the glamorous circular ceiling, and below the gentle semicircular staircase, a spacious party venue unfolded. Well-dressed nobles turned to look at me one by one.

As I observed the scene, the original work came to mind. In the original work, this moment was described in detail.
It wasn’t mentioned how Ellen got hold of the invitation, but she entered the royal palace party with the escort of her subordinate, Mild K.

“Lady Ellen Bourbon Lenoir and Mild K. Irgov of the Bourbon Kingdom are here!”

With the announcement from the knights, Ellen stood beneath the splendid circular golden ceiling, on the gentle semicircular marble staircase.

Although dressed lavishly, it was a somewhat worn-out dress.

As soon as she saw Laila, she provocatively lifted one side of her lips, painted red like blood.

“A prince’s fiancée? After making me like this, how dare you?”

When Ellen unfolded her black pearl feather fan, covering her face with a face full of hostility, Laila felt not only the relentless fate tied to her former mother-in-law but also a sense of terror.

Laila had tried to avoid Ellen as much as possible, but the accident was inevitable.

Ellen took advantage of the opportunity, drugged Laila’s drink with a hallucinogenic substance, leading Laila to go outside and fall into the lake.

Of course, Marboro promptly rescued Laila, preventing a major accident from happening.

From the protagonist’s perspective, it was fortunate, but not for Ellen.

In this scene, when Marboro hardened his heart, thinking it wasn’t about his stepmother anymore but for the sake of his beloved Laila, considering gathering evidence to condemn Ellen to death.

The moment I recalled all this, shivers ran down my spine.

“Ugh! This is the exact point where the dead flag is confirmed.”

It won’t do. I must avoid Philip, Laila, and Marboro as much as possible. Since there are so many people, as long as I hide well, I won’t be noticeable.

With that determination, I strolled through the party venue. The more I looked around, the more I admired.

The party at Philip’s mansion was dazzling, but perhaps because of the overwhelming difference in the number of people, the palace party felt entirely different in every aspect.

Then, I realized that people were still glancing at me, murmuring.

From what I overheard, it seemed they found me beautiful. The dress was lovely, and the diamond necklace was even more splendid. There were also mentions of my business.

It felt burdensome to hear unfamiliar people discussing me and my story.

“It’s fortunate to have a fan.”

I opened the fan wide. The black pearl feathers were rich and swayed softly. It was the same fan as in the original work.

“…Just my luck.”

I had chosen it to match today’s dress and atmosphere.

Silently swallowing a sigh, I half-covered my face with the fan and diligently looked for Hughac’s eyes.

Then, my gaze naturally turned towards the vacant throne.

There were a few who looked like princes, Enok, Daelina. Right beside them were Marboro and Laila, elegantly dressed, and Philip.

Seeing Philip after almost two weeks, he still looked handsome, but he seemed a bit more aloof than before, and the look in his eyes toward me seemed a bit melancholic.