The reception room in Sinclair Palace was in an uproar, the likes of which it had never seen before.

“Those damned humans! Aristocrats are so spineless. Do you know how angry I was when I heard the news?”

“Right. I was so furious, I thought I would go mad. What a wretched scheme it was, really.”

“If only I hadn’t gotten a stomachache that day, I would have chased after them and turned everything upside down! Heavens, to think they would spread such a scandalous rumor out of a lack of gossip.”

“Lady Regers and I would have been enough to handle it. I was so disappointed to hear that you had a stomachache, my lady.”

Lady Regers and Perin were busy venting their pent-up emotions, even though the matter was already over.

Elaina smiled faintly, finding the two women’s fiery anger somewhat endearing despite the situation being resolved.

“Oh well, I’m glad it was resolved. If there was still no progress, I would have sent people or done whatever it took to catch and punish the one who started the rumor.”

“Well, that’s always possible, but the problem is that the rumor-starter is in the Imperial Palace.”

Lady Regers’ face turned subtly pale as she stared at Perin, who was casually spouting such irreverent words. She seemed to regard Perin as someone truly remarkable.

“Perin… is it alright to say such things… in front of Lady Elaina…?”

“Was it not okay?”

Perin widened her eyes and looked at Elaina.

“We’ve all become friends now. And even if we weren’t that close, the people of the Edenbell Empire would already know the truth.”

“That’s true, but…”

“Rather, pretending not to know despite being aware is deception. Don’t you agree, Lady Elaina?”

Deception…

Elaina wondered why Sinclair came to mind at Perin’s words, which could be seen as a rebuke in a way.

“I don’t mind. And as Perin said, the rumor has already spread among the aristocrats. Besides, we are very close.”

“Lady Elaina…”

Lady Regers was greatly moved by the sudden special treatment, her voice trembling as she murmured Elaina’s name.

Then, she suddenly grasped Elaina’s hand gently.

“I can no longer bear to see Lady Elaina being gossiped about by people. Don’t you agree, Perin?”

“I feel the same way.”

“You know there’s a gathering today, right? Lady Elaina. Lady Anneli must have sent a letter.”

…Ah.

Elaina finally remembered the letter Anneli had sent through a messenger.

She had been so preoccupied that she had forgotten about it.

“Judging by your face, it seems you had forgotten, my lady.”

“Well, that’s understandable. After going through such a difficult ordeal.”

Lady Regers continued with a sympathetic expression.

“Lady Elaina, Perin and I will assist you with your attire today. Of course, if that’s alright with you.”

“…You two will do it personally? But I feel so apologetic…”

“No! We really don’t mind.”

Perin, who had sat close to Elaina at some point, smiled at her kindly.

“Actually, Lady Regers and I discussed it earlier. We wondered how we could make people never dare to disrespect Lady Elaina.”

“We know Lady Elaina’s nature is truly excellent, but there are times when you need to appear unapproachable.”

Lady Regers spoke with a solemn expression that didn’t suit her at all.

“Exactly. And of course, we’ll try our best to match Lady Elaina’s taste. If you don’t like it, you can always call the maid again.”

With the two of them being so insistent, Elaina had no way to refuse them. Especially knowing that their offer stemmed from their affection for her.

In the end, Elaina slowly nodded and began heading to the dressing room in the Imperial Prince’s Palace with Judith’s guidance.

* * *

“As expected, there’s no dress that doesn’t suit you, Lady Elaina!”

“Is that so?”

“Yes! How can neutral colors and vivid colors both look so good on you? If I were Lady Elaina, I would change dresses twenty times a day.”

Lady Regers continued to speak while diligently selecting the next dress for Elaina to try on.

As Lady Regers chose a new dress, Perin skillfully helped Elaina change into it.

“This one is perfect. It’s just right!”

“Oh… If His Highness the Imperial Prince sees it, he’ll be amazed. Don’t you think, my lady?”

Fortunately, the dress they had finally chosen wasn’t too far from Elaina’s taste.

The dress was a light sky blue color that further emphasized her pitch-black hair down to her waist and her white skin. It wasn’t too revealing or overly restrictive, so it seemed comfortable to walk in.

“Now, shall we choose the accessories?”

…That wasn’t the end of it?

Regardless of Elaina’s expression, Lady Regers and Perin were too preoccupied with opening the jewelry box brought by Judith.

In fact, there weren’t that many options. The reason was simple. Elaina had no particular interest in dressing up.

The jewelry box only contained what she had worn on the day she became the Imperial Princess and what Sinclair had prepared in advance.

Sinclair had told her, “You can buy anything you want, anytime,” but given Elaina’s personality, that never happened.

“These earrings, right? Lady Regers. Don’t these match the dress better?”

Perin spoke while dangling a pair of long, sparkling diamond earrings.

“Oh my. Our Perin still has some inexperience. Since the dress itself has a slightly flowy feel, the earrings should be the opposite, fitting close to the ear for a simpler look. These pearls would be perfect.”

“How am I supposed to know that when I’ve only been on battlefields all my life? I can be clumsy.”

As Perin grumbled slightly, Lady Regers laughed.

“Anyway, the earrings are settled. As for the ring…”

Having handed the pearl earrings to Perin, Lady Regers scrutinized the jewelry box again.

“This one would be great.”

And what Lady Regers picked up was…

“It’s antique yet doesn’t clash with the dress color, and above all, the sapphire resembles Lady Elaina’s eyes.”

…It was the ring.

The one Ren had given her some time ago.

Although she had placed the old items brought from the Aswald family in a corner of the dressing room, it seemed Judith and Anna had meticulously organized them.

So Elaina never expected to face Ren’s ring again like this.

Elaina realized then. She hadn’t thought about Ren at all these days.

And that she had focused all her attention solely on Sinclair.

“Ah, that one…”

“Oh, do you not like it?”

To Perin’s question, Elaina didn’t know what answer to give.

Well, what should I say to best express my feelings?

That it’s a ring that keeps taking me back to the most painful time whenever I see it? That it’s a trace of my lingering attachment, which I couldn’t bring myself to throw away even after everything had already ended…

“Or does it have a special meaning…”

“No.”

And for some reason, Elaina answered in a much softer voice than usual.

“It’s just a ring.”

“…”

“An ordinary one. So it holds no meaning.”

Even as she answered like that, Elaina’s eyes, filled with the ring Ren had given her, had a slightly clouded color.

“Then it’s settled! Let’s wear this ring to today’s gathering.”

Without a chance to refuse, Lady Regers, who had already taken the ring, placed it directly on Elaina’s index finger.

“Oh my, this is something His Highness the Imperial Prince should be doing. I wonder if I’ll be disliked for it!”

“That could really happen.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. His Highness the Imperial Prince can be unexpectedly unforgiving. He was like that on the battlefield too.”

As she listened to Lady Regers’ brazenness and Perin’s serious voice, Elaina silently looked down at Ren’s ring, which she had worn on her finger again after a long time.

The large sapphire adorning the ring, which resembled Elaina’s eyes, was brightly illuminating her face, just as it had when she first received it.

As if trying to clearly show her that nothing had changed, then and now.

* * *

“It’s not particularly surprising news.”

At Sinclair’s unparalleled arrogant response, Duke Heswin laughed in disbelief, thinking it was just as he had expected.

As soon as Duke Heswin, who wanted to have a close discussion, arrived after receiving the letter, what Sinclair heard was that the Heswin Duchy and the Wilter County would side with Sinclair.

“In any case, I will do whatever I can to help Your Highness.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. I cannot make the same mistake as my grandfather’s time. Just as Your Highness said.”

“You seem to have a more brilliant mind than your grandfather. It’s quite fortunate for me.”

This time, Sinclair, who was sipping his tea, laughed.

And as he watched Sinclair, Heswin briefly became lost in thought.

…Now that the Heswin Duchy, the most powerful of the five families representing all the aristocrats of Edenbell, and the Wilter County, possessing the imperial bloodline, had sided with Sinclair, it was a fight with sufficient chances of winning.

He had already heard news of the Lundberry Grand Duchy and the Rockford Duchy. They had chosen Hister.

Anyway, their forces were not to be underestimated either. Hister still held the position of Crown Prince, which meant he could move the Imperial Palace’s soldiers at any time.

So, if they could receive additional help, they could ensure a bit more safety.

Duke Heswin, his thoughts reaching that point, moved his lips in a very cautious voice.

“…I heard that Duke Fredrick sought an audience with Your Highness.”

And in an instant, Sinclair’s face froze coldly.

As if Duke Fredrick was sitting right in front of him.