Chapter 5 – Part 6

“Oh my, the two of you came together again today.”

“I don’t know if the Marquis wife is upset.”

“That’s right. If someone who doesn’t know sees it, they might misunderstand.”

Now it was common for people to playfully tease Marie and Arlen as they entered together.

Although Arlen showed a surprised reaction every time, she reacted differently than usual.

“If she is Lady Miles, she would want to marry her into her family. Everyone knows that.”

Unlike Arlen’s surprised reaction, Marie didn’t deny it.

“It seems like you want to take her if you can.”

“Probably because there is a big difference between her and Lady Ruby.”

As the days went by, Marie’s answers became more explicit. About Marquis Grit’s wife, about Lady Miles.

“It’s because you always like me. I’ll take it as a compliment.”

Arlen skillfully passed Marie’s close answer. Thanks to her, people became more curious but couldn’t ask more.

“Really? I thought you were going to be the Marquis’s wife.”

Then there was a voice that stepped in.

“Your Majesty, the Duke of Miles.”

Emperor Shannua and Duke Miles stepped into the group in conversation.

“I was thinking about what meaningful gifts I should give to my two favorite friends at their wedding, but it’s a shame.”

Shannua was talking playfully, but his eyes were as cold as ever.

As he came this way, he had his eyes focused on Arlen, as if he were waiting for an answer.

“That’s ridiculous.”

Duke Miles replied instead. The person at the center of the conversation, Shannua, still seemed to have no intention of removing his gaze from Arlen.

“It seems that she is worried because the Marquis has been a close family since they were children. Your Majesty knows, doesn’t he?”

“Oh, is that so? ”

The inquiring gaze was also directed at Arlen.

“Sure. As you know, the Marquis of Grit has been Lady Miles’s partner at every party even after his marriage. You’d think that Arlen had been very helpful, for she had been caring since she was a child.”

“But it’s not easy to be the partner of someone who is already married.”

Even if most of them were well-intentioned, they were reluctant to be engulfed in scandals. As a result, many people misunderstood the two longtime partners.

Duke Miles had planned to refute all the rumors this time. It was to show that neither Lord Grit nor Arlen had such intentions.

“Your Majesty, don’t you also cherish the Marquis of Grit? That is why you hold regular luncheon gatherings, and even when bad rumors spread, you still show unwavering trust in Marquis Grit.”

Duke Miles spoke passionately, hoping that the rumors surrounding his daughter wouldn’t spread further.

“That’s right.”

Only a simple answer from Shannua gave the Duke of Miles a small sigh of relief.

Marie was just sitting there, listening. She didn’t have the discretion to speak about matters that didn’t concern her in front of the emperor or the Duke of Miles.

“It was a joke.”

Shannua looked around with a smile. Only then did he turn his gaze away from Arlen, who still didn’t look at him.

People awkwardly followed his laughter.

“If the two were meant to be together, they would have been married a long time ago. Why complicate things like this.”

“….”

“It’s not a late realization of a painful love. I hope everyone has a good time.”

Shannua playfully said these words and walked away.

Arlen’s gaze finally turned to him after the emperor moved away.

***

As the emperor moved away, Kane cautiously leaned forward. Beside him, Sorvan sighed with relief at the emperor’s retreating figure.

“Long time, no see.”

Sorvan stared blankly at Kane, who was greeting him. He had been friends with Marquis Grit, and through him, he had come to know Sorvan. Sorvan wondered if it was still okay to maintain their friendship after what happened between them.

“Do you think nobles avoid being friends with those disliked by others? It must be challenging to survive in a noble society.”

Kane spoke as if he had read Sorvan’s expression.

“It means I don’t trust Marquis Grit that much.”

Embarrassed to reveal his true feelings, Sorvan added.

“It could be.”

Kane also somewhat acknowledged it. Eli Grit wasn’t particularly welcoming, and he wasn’t someone who explained a lot, so he understood the sentiments of those like Sorvan who changed their minds.

“Then, let’s pretend to have a short conversation.”

With that, Kane turned slightly towards Sorvan.

Occasionally, making eye contact with the emperor was truly uncomfortable.

Usually, nobles, when in his presence, subtly wanted to go near the emperor when their gaze reached him, thinking it must be good to be near him. Or some boldly asked if the emperor had something to say to them. It was a perplexing situation.

But Sorvan neither wanted to draw attention to himself in the emperor’s eyes nor seemed interested, so he hastily grabbed him.

“Dowager Grit doesn’t seem to have given up yet.”

Kane muttered, still looking at Marie and Arlen.

Although he had no interest at all, he had to admit Marquis Grit’s mother’s perseverance before marriage.

Now that he thought about it, Eli hadn’t been seen much in the capital lately. He wondered how the search for his wife was going and considered contacting Damon to find out.

“Are you busy these days?”

Kane quietly asked Sorvan to be by his side.

“I’m not.”

“Then, did you give up on fitting in with the nobility because it’s difficult?”

At Kane’s words, Sorvan stared at him as if he were asking what he meant.

“You’re not showing up at parties these days. I thought you gave up after going around.”

“Just taking a short break.”

But he looked slightly embarrassed.

It wasn’t easy to pretend everything was fine when being rejected in places where you were unwanted, so Kane accepted Sorvan’s expression, which indicated multiple meanings.

“I’ll go first.”

“Sure. Let’s say hello next time we see each other.”

With Kane’s farewell, Sorvan gave a nod and quickly left the hall.

“You can see a subtly arrogant side if you look closely. I wonder how he was a merchant.”

Kane whispered to himself while watching Sorvan walk away.

“He’s waiting.”

As soon as Sorvan left the hall, someone approached as if waiting for him.

“You can ride this.”

He pointed to the carriage.

***

Emily moved away from Marie on the pretext of meeting someone she knew when she entered the banquet hall. Eve didn’t seem very strange, either.

Emily subtly didn’t like how Marie treated Lady Miles as if she were her daughter-in-law. Moreover, Arlen, who seemed to like Marie’s treatment, was also strange in Emily’s eyes.

There were times when Arlen acted as if she had been the Marquis’s wife, even though it was limited to parties. Marie was satisfied when she saw Arlen like that.

Thinking about the reaction when she behaved similarly during the time of her younger sister, the starting point was clearly different.

Even if she yielded a hundred times, her mother never liked her younger sister from the beginning, and she could guess that she was happy with Arlen, pretending to take her sister’s place.

However, she couldn’t understand the heart of Lady Miles, who matched Marie’s rhythm.

“I don’t think my brother likes her either.”

Even if she liked him, he was already a married man.

“The Marquis and her wife are both doing well. They have improved tremendously since then.”

Emily recalled the short letter Leton had sent. It didn’t contain much, but she felt certain that her estranged brother was not there.

After learning her brother’s true feelings, Emily couldn’t help but see her mother’s actions as utterly pointless. It seemed pitiful to expend effort on something the person involved didn’t even want.

However, since her mother was someone who wouldn’t listen to reason, Emily could only sigh deeply.

Turning away from Marie and Arnel, Emily spotted a familiar face and immediately headed towards it.

“Palman, my dear.”

“Oh my! Lady Grit.”

“Lady Grit. Nice to meet you.”

Lady Gloria of the Obler Baroncy welcomed Emily more warmly than Palman did. Perhaps due to the awkward encounter involving a poorly explained letter last time, Palman seemed to keep her distance.

“Last time was quite awkward. I’ll make sure to return the letter. Oh, how about having a cup of tea at the mansion? Is it okay to give you the letter then?”

Emily expressed her gratitude, tightly holding Palman’s hands.

“Ah…”

“Of course, Lady Obler is welcome to join us too.”

Emily looked at Gloria with a kindly smile.

“Well, it’s an honor! I will definitely attend!”

Gloria replied with an ecstatic expression.

Emily directed the question to Palman, who hadn’t answered yet, as she was the one Emily wanted to express gratitude to.

“…Yes. It’s an honor.”

After hearing Palman’s answer, Emily released the hands she had been holding.

“But, Lady Grit, may I ask why you needed my letter that day?” Palman asked cautiously.

“Oh, there was a situation.”

It was also a ball with a lot of ears, and Emily explained it in a lump because she couldn’t explain the family situation.

“It’s certainly not something harmful to you, Lady Palman.”

What about my teacher?

Palman wanted to ask, but it seemed awkward to bring it up here. Moreover, Gloria was poking her to stop the conversation.

“Well, fortunately.”

Palman smiled with effort, and Emily also seemed relieved that she didn’t press further and smiled.