Did he notice Rozé’s feelings? Lowering his gaze with a faint smile, Nervan breathed out softly and continued with a confrontational tone.

“Using business as an excuse to seduce the Duke, wasn’t that your plan? Attract the Duke’s attention with the fanciful script of a department store business, intending to take the Duke’s place as the Duchess.”

Nervan continued with sharp words, looking at Rozé, who blinked with a bewildered expression.

“It’s outrageous to associate yourself with the fallen family and the Duke, a noble, not to mention that you shouldn’t be in such a relationship.”
He spoke distinctly, emphasizing each word.

Rozé was dumbfounded by his words.

‘Could it be… This person. Was there a misunderstanding that I had feelings for the Duke all this time? Is that why he disliked me?’

Now she understood the meaning behind the word “parasite” he used before.

It seemed that there was a strong misunderstanding that her business was just an excuse to be with the Duke.

She couldn’t pinpoint where exactly she misled him.

She hadn’t particularly treated the Duke well.

Except when discussing business, they rarely met, and only occasionally during meals.

Rozé had never taken a walk with the Duke.

Where did she give him the wrong impression?

‘If he came to see me like this after keeping quiet for so long… He probably heard about what happened at the palace.’

The incident where she openly declared her admiration for the Duke in front of many people.

Since the Duke’s knights were also present at the palace banquet.

Rozé thought that she needed to clear up his misunderstanding.

As she would be in the mansion with Nervan for a while, dispelling unnecessary misunderstandings would be better.

However, before Rozé could say anything, Nervan added a word.

“You should know your subject of being rejected by a man and getting divorced.”

Rozé, who had tried to ease the atmosphere, lost her words at Nervan’s statement.

His words were too absurd and incomprehensible.

Rozé slowly closed her mouth, looking at Nervan with sunken eyes, speechless.

In the sharpened gaze of Rozé, Nervan thought.

‘Is he finally revealing his true colors?’

He thought Rozé would now reveal her true intentions, thinking, ‘The Duke is now mine, so I can stop caring.’

However, Rozé’s attitude deviated from Nervan’s expectations.

“Did you divorce because you were not loved? Is quietly closing your mouth and living, only staring at Eric’s back like a fool, the right way to live?”

The heated voice echoed through the garden. The servants nearby suddenly opened their eyes wide at Rozé’s voice.

“Oh my, what happened? Why is she so excited?”

“I don’t know. I’m so curious about what she’s talking about.”

A few servants sneaked towards the garden. Then they leaned in to eavesdrop on Rozé and Nervan’s conversation.

The voice flowing into their erect ears was not Rozé or Nervan’s voice but the maid’s voice.

“What is this?”

She grabbed the ears of the servants.

“Ah, ah! It hurts!”

Ignoring the servants’ groaning voices, the maid, holding their ears, walked confidently.

The maid stopped her steps only when she came so far that she couldn’t hear Rozé and Nervan’s voices anymore.

“Oh, stop it! I made a mistake!”
With a sharp gaze, she looked at the servants and belatedly released her grip.

“So you’ve had enough to eat! Want to be fired right away?”

“N-no, it’s not that. There was a sudden loud noise, and we were wondering if something happened.”

“Tsk, at least make your excuses sound plausible.”

Even the well-behaved chamberlain in her presence could be dismissed in the Duke’s residence.

Since the Duke was suspicious, except for a few trustworthy individuals, he frequently changed chamberlains without warning.

The one who suffered each time was the housemaid.

She had to educate new people every time.

If they were useful, they stayed, and when they became familiar, they disappeared, making training new recruits exhausting.

The chamberlains in front of her were the ones who had just finished their education, and she couldn’t afford to lose them.

“Did you hear the conversation between the butler and the lady?”

“Ah, no! I didn’t hear anything. I just heard Lady Rozé’s voice getting angry about ‘divorce.'”

The maid sighed in relief at their words.

“So you heard nothing, right?”

“Yes…”

“Ugh!”

The housemaid grabbed the heads of the chamberlains one by one.

“Ouch!”

“It hurts!”

She glared at the chamberlains with watery eyes.

“Don’t do such things again! Since you’re generally good, I’ll let it go just this once!”

The chamberlains nodded at her words and quickly entered the mansion.

Staring at the direction of the garden where Nervan and Rozé were, she muttered to herself.

“It probably wasn’t anything important, so it should be fine…”

Since they couldn’t overhear anything, she wanted to turn a blind eye to this.

She glanced back at the garden as she returned to the mansion.

In the garden, Rozé and Nervan were still facing each other.

The twilight dyed with a vermilion color had gradually descended.

The chilly air passed through the two sitting under the burning sunset.

Rozé’s voice aimed at Nervan was extremely sharp.

“What’s my subject?”

Although it was brief, Rozé’s gaze wavered.

Nervan didn’t miss that look in Rozé’s sharp eyes.

However, her expression, wounded as it seemed, was irritating.

It was annoying that she made such a face over a topic that was merely chasing after a man without any real significance.

On the other hand, Rozé was equally displeased.

“Do you know so much about me? Who are you to judge my worth?”

She lashed out at a subject who knew nothing about her, criticizing her in this manner.

Since Nervan took the offensive first, there was no need for Rozé to treat him kindly.

She opened her mouth with the intention of breaking Nervan’s prejudice.