Rose greeted the Princess with respect. Holding the hem of her dress, Rose’s hand trembled with tension.

There was excitement at meeting the Princess of the Empire, but she was also worried about whether she could safely escape the impending ‘assassination’ charge.

“I am Rose of House Serbiat. I greet Your Highness, the light of the Empire.”

The voice of the Princess reached Rose’s ears as she bowed.
“Raise your head.”

Once the princess’s permission was heard, Rose lifted her head and met her gaze.

Diana carefully examined Rose. The princess’s gaze towards Rose was incredibly intense.

“Nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Upon the princess’s words, the eyes of the surrounding nobles rolled round like marbles. They whispered to each other in low voices.

“It seems you have quite a deep connection with Duke Artem.”

“That’s right. Considering how the princess is introducing her… could it be that a wedding announcement is imminent?”

Rose, who had been ignored as a fallen aristocrat, might overturn the situation if she becomes the Duchess. The position of the Duchess was a powerful one that could shake the social circles.

Nobles were listening carefully to judge how the situation would unfold.

It was just a conversation about business, but it didn’t sound that way to their ears.

‘Did Duke Artem handle the business talk well.’

Rose shyly nodded her head.

A hand wearing thick leather gloves emerged in front of Rose. The princess was the one who first extended her hand for a handshake towards Rose.

‘I heard rumors, but… she really has her entire body wrapped up.’

The princess’s dress was so tight that it reached up to her chin. The back was not carved out at all, and she wore thick leather gloves over long sleeves.

Only her face was visible, showing her skin in some places.

‘She is so sensitive to the poison, yet she’s covering her entire body so excessively.’

Leather was particularly strong against poison, a perfect fabric to protect delicate skin.

“As it’s been a while since we met, we should raise a toast, don’t you think?”

The princess seemed oddly excited.

The prospect of drinking alcohol seemed thrilling.

In fact, the princess liked alcohol.

However, she found it difficult to even put alcohol near her mouth due to her pathological fear of poison.

Duke Artem brought specially brewed wine for the princess every year to allow her to enjoy wine.

It was to ensure that the princess could enjoy wine without worries.

Being able to drink alcohol was only once a year, on her birthday.

She decided it herself.

As the alcohol scent was quite strong, it was challenging for poison to be mixed in, making it the best option.

The princess gestured towards a maid. The maid carefully brought a splendid glass made from the horn of her exclusive unicorn.

A servant nearby received the wine brought by the Duke and, in front of everyone, opened the cork.

Rose swallowed dryly and looked at the Duke next to her.

‘I hope he prepared well.’

Feeling Rose’s anxious gaze, Duke Artem faintly smiled, reassuring her.

“Young lady, have a glass of wine. I’d like to have a chat together.”

“Yes, it’s my honor.”
The maid started with the princess, distributing the glasses one by one to Rose and Duke Artem in order. Unlike the princess’s glass, Rose and the duke’s glasses were very ordinary.

“It’s ice wine that you like.”

Upon the Duke’s words, Diana’s mouth curved upwards towards the sky. She seemed to be the princess again, wanting to taste it immediately.

The glasses of Diana, the Duke, and Rose clinked in the air with a clear sound.

While sipping wine, Rose alternately looked at Diana and Duke Artem.

Normally, Diana, who would have been the first to drink wine as the poison tester, refrained from doing so because it was wine brought directly by Duke Artem.

She trusted Duke Artem that much.

‘The princess won’t collapse, right? Duke Artem said not to worry.’

Even while swallowing the wine, Rose anxiously watched the princess.

Diana sipped the wine as if savoring it, then flashed a sly smile at Rose.

“Do you not usually drink wine?”

“Oh, no. I like it.”

Due to concerns about the princess collapsing, Rose found it hard to drink the wine smoothly, but Diana found Rose’s behavior strange.

The princess had already emptied her glass. Diana was unaffected, making Rose’s worry seem unnecessary.

‘Seems fine. That’s a relief.’

Finally feeling at ease, Rose gave a relieved smile to Duke Artem.

He, too, with a slightly wrinkled nose, indicated that there was no disruption in his plan involving Rose.

To quench her burning throat, Rose finally gulped down the wine.

Then, even before she could pass the wine to swallow it, the sound of glass shattering echoed.

Crash!

“Ah!”

In an instant, the surroundings became chaotic. People began to rush towards Rose with contemplative expressions.

Everything felt slow-motion.

The noise of people screaming from various places merged together like tangled tapes, and the faces of those rushing towards Rose were uniformly filled with shock.

No, actually, it would be more accurate to say they were running towards ‘those approaching Duke Artem’ rather than Rose.

Rose stared at Duke Artem with an expression of disbelief.

The Duke, who had just been smiling by her side, now convulsed weakly towards the ground.

With a dull sound, the Duke collapsed.

“Duke!!”

Rose threw away the glass she was holding and grabbed Duke Artem’s body in disbelief.