Chapter 29.

The Grand Duchess Faints

Today’s tea party was attended not only by Grand Duchess Riona, but also by Countess Marshal of House Alhemitz and Countess Volan of House Palmania.

The two women smiled while concealing sharp thorns beneath their expressions.

“Has your face gotten a little fuller, Essika?”

“So it seems. I heard you had been locked away in your room and hardly coming out, so I was worried.”

“Thank you for your concern, Countess.”

The maids were filling the two countesses’ teacups.

“Mmm, the tea smells wonderful. As expected, Klaus’s black tea is the finest quality.”

Marshal lavished praise on the tea, while Volan subtly flattered the Grand Duchess.

“The Grand Duchess is so thorough in managing the maids. No wonder the hospitality here is so generous.”

Riona’s lips parted.

“My daughter-in-law prepared everything today.”

“…Ah.”

Marshal and Volan exchanged chilly smiles and cast a sidelong glance at Essika.

Their eyes were filled with blatant hostility toward her.

Essika was a vulgar daughter-in-law from a vulgar family, an embarrassment that should never have been brought out into society.

By putting her daughter-in-law down in front of them, Riona was displaying her own authority within the ducal household.

It was also a way of boasting that no matter how wealthy the daughter of a family might be, she was still nothing special when she entered Klaus.

The abuse had intensified after Riona hired the two countesses as her instructors for Essika.

Of course, the two women had suffered a harsh defeat at Essika’s hands back in Alhemitz before…

But they believed that with Riona present, Essika would not dare move.

“Have you heard that the young lady of the Grand Ducal House of Hainz is looking for a husband?”

“Can you guess who immediately came to mind when I heard that, Grand Duchess?”

Riona leisurely waved her fan as she listened to her friends’ conversation.

Volan clapped her hands and exaggeratedly exclaimed,

“It would have been perfect if Duke Kallian Klaus weren’t already married.”

Essika’s hand twitched as she lifted her teacup.

“If His Grace were unmarried, the Grand Ducal House would have sent a marriage proposal directly to Klaus, wouldn’t they? For the House of Hainz, a family of Klaus’s standing would be exactly the right match.”

Essika laughed inwardly.

These women always exaggerated their praise of Kallian to please Riona.

“Essika, you should consider yourself incredibly lucky. My goodness, to have found a husband like Duke Kallian!”

Volan spoke as though she were genuinely disappointed that Kallian could not marry the daughter of a grand ducal family.

Riona drank her tea with a deep smile.

Yes. Someone like you could never match the standing of our family.

And then Essika spoke.

“It seems the news from the House of Hainz reached you rather late.”

The corner of Riona’s eyebrow twitched.

Countess Volan noticed Riona’s expression and quickly admonished Essika as though questioning her.

“By ‘late,’ do you mean you already knew about it?”

Essika elegantly placed her teacup down.

“Yes. I received a letter saying that a matchmaker had even approached my second elder brother.”

At those words, Volan and Marshal’s eyes widened.

Riona’s eyebrows stiffened as she stared at Essika.

A moment later, the corner of Riona’s lips twitched as she spoke as though it were absurd.

“The House of Hainz sent a matchmaker to your family? To the Brigitte family, which is merely your maiden family?”

The difference in status between a grand ducal house and a baronial family was enormous.

“Say something that makes sense. You’re embarrassing me in front of my guests.”

At Riona’s sharp voice, Volan and Marshal exchanged glances before snickering.

“I heard your daughter-in-law suffered a head injury before. Perhaps she hasn’t fully recovered yet, Grand Duchess.”

Riona waved her fan and answered.

“Ever since she fell by herself and struck her head against a rock, she’s been behaving strangely and saying things that don’t make sense. Please understand.”

“You must be terribly worried. My goodness, it’s such a shame about the young lady of the Grand Ducal House…”

Before Marshal could finish, Essika spoke.

“The House of Hainz is very interested in maritime trade. Sitting behind a desk and merely going through documents simply because one is a noble is an old-fashioned practice.”

“So you’re saying that ridiculous thing again…”

“If you don’t believe me, you can verify it yourselves. My brother refused, but the actual letter from the matchmaker should still remain at Brigitte. Unlike those hollow families whose only thing worth boasting about is a single noble title…”

Essika smiled sweetly.

“The House of Hainz is a prestigious family wise and intelligent enough to embrace the future.”

The corners of Riona’s eyebrows trembled at Essika’s words.

Essika was speaking in circles.

She was essentially saying that the people sitting here boasting about their noble titles were neither wise nor intelligent.

But she had phrased it so skillfully that if Riona became angry…

It would be no different from insulting the House of Hainz herself.

“There must be a reason the House of Hainz is trusted so greatly by His Imperial Majesty. Don’t you think so, Mother?”

Volan and Marshal also rolled their eyes, having lost their chance to gang up on Essika and scold her.

If the Grand Ducal House really sent a matchmaker, just how wealthy is the Brigitte family?

They were probably thinking something along those lines.

At one point, Essika had been nothing more than the unsuitable daughter-in-law of a vulgar merchant family in the countryside.

Yet the composure of the Essika now sitting before them with a cold smile was no different from that of a young lady from any noble family.

“…I see.”

Riona’s grip tightened around her teacup.

“In fact… my second elder brother said he wanted to become related to the House of Hainz through my marriage rather than his own, but apparently the timing wasn’t right.”

Those words finally pushed Riona past her limit.

“Are you saying you should have married the Grand Duke instead of Kallian?”

As the atmosphere froze, Essika covered her mouth in surprise.

“Oh my. Surely not. I only said that because I thought the ladies were disappointed that the House of Hainz and His Grace had failed to form a connection…”

Volan and Marshal flinched beneath Essika’s pointed gaze.

“I was simply saying that the feeling is mutual. After all, the House of Hainz is a family anyone would want to become related to.”

Under the table, Riona’s clenched fist trembled.

How dare she openly provoke me like this.

Essika had never been this vicious before.

Whenever someone bullied her, Essika’s usual pattern had been to respond emotionally, ruin her own dignity, make herself look foolish, and eventually beg for forgiveness.

I don’t know where she learned this behavior, but I need to put that woman in her place.

Unlike the easily manageable Essika of the past, the woman before her now did not even change her expression.

She simply returned every attack in the manner of the nobility.

“She has completely turned into a witch. She must have grown poisonous, because she isn’t easy to push around anymore.”

It was exactly as Yuri had reported.

No matter how much you struggle, you little girl, you can never defeat me. Poor Essika.

Riona elegantly raised her hand and picked up a peanut cookie from the plate.

The power within House Klaus ultimately came from Duke Kallian Klaus, her son, who was wrapped around her little finger.

Therefore, no matter how much the unsuitable Duchess Essika struggled, she could never defeat Kallian’s mother.

Crunch.

The most straightforward way for Riona to maintain her son’s loyalty was through pity.

Riona elegantly bit into the cookie.

Then she leisurely chewed it.

Kallian stared at the scenery of the flower garden for a long time.

He could see a tea table piled high with lavish refreshments and four women.

Among them, there was only one person his eyes kept finding.

Essika Klaus.

Whenever the wind blew, Essika’s beautiful silver hair swayed gently.

Had her blue eyes always been that clear?

“…”

She was smiling sweetly as she served refreshments to the Grand Duchess and her friends.

Beneath her neatly arranged eyebrows, her blue eyes seemed to sparkle whenever she smiled.

Kallian stared blankly at her for a while before finally touching his forehead.

“What am I doing?”

Kallian had definitely been angry with Essika Klaus.

In fact, saying that he had been furious would have been more accurate.

Yet here he was, absentmindedly watching her drink tea, secretly observing her like this.

Kallian’s expression hardened.

He felt that he should not be standing there any longer.

He turned around and headed back toward the mansion, but he could still feel his heart beating faster and faster.

As though he had just finished swordsmanship training on the practice grounds.

Kallian took a deep breath and composed himself.

Then, at some point, he spotted a familiar white horse standing in front of the mansion.

The imperial crest was embroidered onto its golden saddle.

Recognizing the owner of the horse, Kallian’s brow furrowed slightly.

“It seems His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived. I will go ahead and make the preparations.”

Hans quickly hurried away, while Kallian reluctantly followed.

He was already troubled enough, and now the Crown Prince had apparently come again to inspect the supplies for the war.

A man with an oppressive, icy aura, whose very appearance seemed to carry the scent of blood.

Crown Prince Lesban Deon Lucain was standing before the mansion.

Kallian stopped in front of him and calmly bowed, showing the proper respect due to a member of the imperial family.

When he lowered his gaze, he saw the heavy sword that Lesban always wore at his waist.

“I greet the Little Sun of Turesia.”

Lesban gave a slight nod with an expressionless face.

“The weather is nice.”

A noble and powerful man.

And someone who was an absolute headache to deal with.

Just as Kallian was about to escort Lesban inside, the screams of servants suddenly rang out from the flower garden he had just left.

“Grand Duchess!”

“The Grand Duchess has collapsed!”

“Doctor! Hurry and call a doctor!”