Caroline’s steps towards the office came to an abrupt halt.

“Janssen? What brings you to the third floor?”

It was rare for Janssen, who mainly frequented the office and worked on the first and second floors, to come up to the third floor.

“Ah, I was on my way to deliver something to the Grand Duchess on His Highness’s orders.”

“Jeremiah sent something for Karina? What is it?”

“It’s jewelry to wear at the banquet.”

“Are you saying Jeremiah told you to give jewelry to Karina?”

“Yes.”

Caroline glanced at the item Janssen was holding with startled eyes.

“…”

It was clearly an expensive jewelry box.

‘Surely not.’

Caroline suddenly felt uneasy.

“Well then, I’ll be going.”

“Wait a moment.”

Caroline stopped Janssen as he was about to pass by with a nod.

“I’ll take it to her.”

“Pardon? You, Your Highness?”

Caroline stood firmly in front of him with a bright smile.

“I was just about to go see Karina anyway.”

Saying this, Caroline signaled to her attendant standing nearby.

The attendant quickly snatched the necklace box Janssen was holding.

“Now hurry along, you must be incredibly busy with the charity event preparations.”

“Ah, but…”

Janssen hesitated with a troubled expression.

“Does it matter who delivers it? Besides, wouldn’t it be better to have someone there to look at women’s jewelry together?”

“Ah, I suppose you’re right. Understood.”

Janssen nodded, agreeing with Caroline’s words.

It was true that he was extremely busy with preparations for the upcoming charity event.

As Janssen went down to the first floor, Caroline snorted and opened the jewelry box.

“Oh my goodness.”

Caroline’s eyes widened.

Inside the box were a necklace with shimmering emeralds, along with matching earrings and a hair ornament, each exuding its own presence.

An exclamation of surprise and admiration escaped her lips.

“It’s so beautiful!”

As exquisite and beautiful as the jewelry was, Caroline was extremely displeased.

She couldn’t accept the fact that Karina would possess such things.

‘How could they possibly give this to that Karina girl, unless they’ve gone mad?’

Caroline’s eyes narrowed.

‘It would be like pearls before swine anyway.’

Caroline couldn’t bear to see this necklace end up like that.

‘After all, this is Master Paulo’s masterpiece of a lifetime. Who else but me could it suit?’

The haughty Caroline sincerely believed this.

Caroline closed the jewelry box again.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The attendant silently followed behind Caroline as she made her way to her room.

[This is the timeline separator]

“Time really flies.”

Mikhail exclaimed as he looked at the procession of carriages visible outside the window.

“The regular northern meeting combined with… um… what did you call it again?”

“A charity event to assess the status of northern support projects in conjunction with the regular meeting.”

Karina answered Mikhail’s question.

“That’s right. When you put it that way, I thought it would be an extremely quiet and solemn gathering.”

Mikhail continued with a daunted expression.

“Looking at it now, it seems the scale of this charity event rivals that of the capital’s banquets, doesn’t it?”

Hearing this, Karina looked at the many people visible through the window and said,

“Of course, we deliberately prepared it so that many people could gather. But…”

Karina looked at Mikhail and asked,

“How do you know about the scale of the capital’s banquets? Have you been to one?”

“Ah…”

Mikhail answered with an awkward smile.

“Well… I happened to stay in the capital during the time of a banquet. I heard a lot of talk from the capital’s people about how grand and splendid the banquets at the Imperial Palace were.”

‘So he imagined it based on what he heard people outside the palace saying about the Imperial banquets.’

Karina chuckled.

It must have been the chatter of those who couldn’t attend the banquets, longing for the Imperial Palace events.

It was obvious that he had heard greatly exaggerated accounts compared to reality.

But Karina didn’t bother to shatter his imagination.

“I’ll take you to the capital’s New Year’s Festival soon. You can see and confirm it for yourself then.”

When the new year comes, a grand New Year’s Festival is held in the capital to pray for the prosperity and stability of the Empire.

All nobles of the Empire were required to attend the Imperial New Year’s Festival.

Jeremiah, who stayed in the north, was no exception.

So when the time came, Karina would have to go to the capital with him.

The New Year’s Festival would be Karina’s first official event in the capital as the Grand Duchess.

“Pardon?”

But Mikhail’s expression was ambiguous upon hearing Karina’s words.

“No, there’s really no need for that.”

Mikhail politely declined, averting his eyes.

‘Is he intimidated by the thought of the Imperial New Year’s Festival?’

She thought that perhaps the very idea of participating in such a major national event as a non-noble might be burdensome.

But if she divorced and left the Grand Duke’s household, Mikhail would also lose his job and become a wanderer again.

Before that happened, she wanted to do something to help him, as he had taken on the role of her bodyguard.

Simply attending a national event like the New Year’s Festival and making his face known to the nobility would be a great benefit for a magician like him.

But there was no need to make that decision right now.

‘I can bring it up again when the time comes.’

Karina turned her gaze to the mirror in front of her.

Having finished her preparations and adornments for today’s event, Karina made a final check.

Today, Karina wore a dress with a clean design in soft pastel tones.

While it didn’t have many beads or decorations, it used high-quality silk material. The thin lace covering her collarbone and neck enhanced its elegance.

Above the hem of the skirt, a sheer fabric that shimmered gently like waves when it caught the light was layered, giving it an antique feel rather than a plain appearance.

Karina’s red hair was curled with a heated curling iron and then let down naturally.

A small flower-shaped hair ornament was attached to the side of her hair.

“You look incredibly beautiful today.”

Mikhail complimented.

“Thank you. You look handsome too.”

As Mikhail was Karina’s bodyguard, he was neatly dressed in knight’s attire instead of formal banquet clothes.

“You didn’t like it at first, but now you wear it well.”

At Karina’s words, Mikhail grinned good-naturedly.

“I got used to it as I kept wearing it.”

“That’s good. By the way.”

Karina asked with a serious expression.

“Have you memorized all the nobles’ names and faces I gave you?”

“Yes. I’ve memorized them all as you asked, but…”

Mikhail scratched his chin and trailed off.

“Why? Are you already confused?”

“No, it’s not that. I still don’t quite understand why you wanted me to memorize this.”

Despite Mikhail’s question, Karina only repeated that it was a necessary task without giving a clear answer.

“Take this.”

Karina handed him a single white calla lily.

“…A flower?”

“When you finish the task I’ve given you, put this flower in the vase on the corner table near the entrance of the venue.”

“…Ah, so that’s what you’re giving it to me for.”

Mikhail’s expression, which had brightened upon receiving the flower, returned to a sullen look.

“Just do as I say for now. It’s an extremely important matter to me, so you can’t make any mistakes. Understood?”

“Don’t worry. It’s not a difficult task after all.”

Knock knock.

At that moment, there was a knock at the door.

“Grand Duchess, it’s time for you to go downstairs.”

A maid came in to inform them that it was time.

“Alright.”

Karina, slightly nervous, took a deep breath and left the room with Mikhail.

[This is the timeline separator]

Karina and Mikhail went down to the central hall, which had been prepared as the event venue.

The sound of many people gathering and chattering could be heard from outside.

Just before entering the venue.

Jeremiah, who had been waiting for Karina in front of the hall doors, raised his head when he saw her.

“You’re here.”

“Yes.”

Karina had to enter the venue with Jeremiah.

They needed to show that the Grand Duke and Duchess were still going strong, making up for what happened at the last banquet.

As she had already anticipated this, she didn’t particularly mind that part.

“Shall we go in?”

However, Jeremiah didn’t budge even when Karina suggested entering.

“What’s wrong?”

Karina looked up at Jeremiah with a puzzled gaze.

“…”

Jeremiah silently stared at the area around Karina’s neck.

Then he muttered quietly.

“…The necklace.”

‘Necklace?’

“…You’re not wearing it.”

At those words, Karina looked down at her chest.

Today, Karina was wearing a necklace with red rubies densely set along a thin chain.

‘Did he think it was just a decoration on the dress because it’s so thin?’

“I am wearing one. This is a necklace.”

Karina tapped the ruby necklace and looked up at him again.

But Jeremiah only furrowed his brow without saying anything.

‘What’s this about?’

Karina slightly furrowed her brow.

“…”

Jeremiah, who had been staring at Karina with his mouth firmly shut, turned his gaze.

He noticed Mikhail standing behind Karina and spoke.

“Have the guard magician wait outside the venue during the charity event.”

“…Pardon?”

Karina asked back in confusion at the sudden change of topic.

“Why does he have to do that?”

“There’s no need for a guard inside the banquet hall when I’m here.”

“…”

She wanted to refuse and say no, but she had already given Mikhail a task to do beforehand.

Given the situation, she thought it might be better to let Mikhail act freely on his own.

“Alright.”

Karina agreed readily.

When she looked at Mikhail, he was not hiding his displeased expression.

Nevertheless, when he received her eye signal, he nodded in understanding and stepped back.

‘I hope Mikhail does well.’

Karina watched Mikhail’s retreating figure with worried eyes.

Jeremiah extended his arm in front of her.

His eyes indicated that she should hurry and take his arm, as it was time to enter.

“…”

Although it was the natural course of action for entering, she couldn’t hide her reluctant expression.

Karina tried to minimize the area of contact.

And she linked arms with him, touching only as much as was absolutely necessary.

The doors opened, and they entered the central hall together.

As soon as they went inside, everyone’s attention immediately turned to Karina and Jeremiah.

On one side, representatives of the vassals, various field experts, business professionals, support project personnel, and many others were already waiting to greet Jeremiah.

‘This is overwhelming.’

Karina nearly showed a daunted expression as soon as she saw the large crowd.

‘I just need to endure this for a short while, as it’s just for show anyway.’

Karina had to remain by Jeremiah’s side for a while without moving.

Karina made an effort to smooth out her expression and lift the corners of her mouth.

As soon as Karina and Jeremiah took their seats, people crowded densely around them.

“We greet Your Grace the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess.”

“You both look so splendid and beautiful today.”

“The venue seems to have brightened with your presence.”

Karina mechanically received the continuous greetings and flattering praises.

At that moment, an elderly couple with white hair approached where Jeremiah was sitting.

‘Ah!’

Karina immediately realized who they were.