Chapter 18. The Hottest Commodity in Society

What is she doing there?

Enoch silently stood and slowly looked her up and down.

Gone was her plain and rustic attire; she was dressed so well that she could pass for a lady of a noble family. But, well… he didn’t like it. Such a flashy dress and accessories didn’t suit her. If it were up to him, he wouldn’t have dressed her like that.

‘Whoever’s work this is, it should be thrown straight into the trash.’

Enoch downed the champagne he was holding and handed the empty glass to a server, then began to stride purposefully towards the woman. His steps showed no hesitation.

“Hey! Where are you going?”

A flustered Warren Norbert followed him closely, adding an explanation of the situation that Enoch was unaware of.

“From what I gather, Marquis Anderson was planning to marry that woman. The woman had no idea. It seems her stepmother, Baroness Lopez, was pushing the marriage behind her back.”

Enoch’s steps halted abruptly upon hearing this. He briefly looked back at Warren, then turned his gaze back to the woman. And to the ‘Baroness Lopez’ standing next to her.

Baroness Lopez.

Stepmother?

One of Enoch’s eyebrows arched like a seagull’s wing.

“She wasn’t a maid?”

“What?”

Ignoring Warren’s confused response, Enoch chuckled lowly. Ellenore… He repeated the name in his mind. She had a demure face, but contrary to her appearance, she was a cunning woman.

So she pretended to be a maid and deceived me.

Even though she was a noble lady.

“Interesting.”

“…What are you suddenly talking about? Have you gone mad? Oh, right, you were always mad…”

“So, Baroness Lopez is a second wife?”

“Didn’t you know? It’s quite a famous story… After the former baroness died, that woman entered the household the very next day and remarried within a month. People whispered that Baron Lopez was out of his mind. They said it was crazy to marry a woman who already had two daughters from a previous marriage.”

“How did the former Baroness die?”

“Well, that…”

Warren glanced around and then leaned in close to Enoch, lowering his voice.

“She was a woman from Katar. The former baroness, I mean. Not fully Katarian, but a Freuden mix, I heard. There were always stories about Katarian women easily going mad…”

“……”

“Seems the former baroness couldn’t escape that madness and committed suicide.”

Hmm, Enoch let out a short hum, stroking his chin as he stared at Ellenore. Now that he thought about it, she had a peculiar background. Her biological mother was a mixed-blood Katarian…

And she seemed to have an unfriendly stepmother and stepsisters. Considering the stepmother was trying to marry her off to an old man like Anderson, she must have hated her stepdaughter intensely.

It was, indeed, a household environment comparable to the protagonists of romance novels that Penelope liked. Though reality was never like a novel.

The woman would probably be unable to avoid marrying Marquis Anderson in the end.

Unless she became his maid or mistress, but would she lower her pride and come to him? She was standing there with a resolute look, even amidst the humiliation.

‘Well… whatever happens, it’s none of my business.’

Yes, it’s none of my business… but…

Why do I feel so irritated?

Like when some trash dared to covet what was mine.

Enoch’s eyes, which were glaring at Anderson, suddenly gleamed with a cold light. His lips curved into a smile, but it was far from warm. Warren, startled by his sudden change, cautiously stepped back. He knew from experience that it was best to stay away when this madman was provoked by something.

Enoch walked towards Ellenore with fluid, graceful steps.

Ellenore, Elena, Ellen…

He rolled the names quietly in his mouth. It was a name that suited a soft, low tone rather than a high, loud one. In other words, it didn’t match the sharp, cheap high tone of the woman who became the baroness by remarriage.

“What are you doing here?”

Enoch approached Ellenore from behind and gently grasped her shoulders with both hands. His voice, asking softly, was unbelievably tender. And the voice that followed as he called her name.

“Ellen.”

In an instant, the surroundings fell silent as if submerged underwater.

Not even the smallest noise could be heard in the stillness. In that space where miraculously everyone held their breath, the woman with watercolor-like hues slowly turned to face him.

Her water-colored eyes were filled with his image. Long, dense eyelashes trembled, and her pale lips moved slightly. Enoch, who had naturally turned her to face him, placed his hand lovingly on her waist as if she were his lover.

Seeing the woman stunned by the sudden situation, Enoch’s lips curved into a crooked smile, and his eyes, resembling the summer sun, slightly narrowed. He tilted his head slightly and spoke in a honeyed voice.

“I’ve been looking for you.”

Then Enoch’s other hand cupped Ellenore’s cheek.

Someone’s gasp of astonishment spread like a wave through the large party hall. The guests watched the situation with shocked expressions. What had been a mere laughingstock of a commotion turned into an intriguing scandal that gossip lovers would enjoy, thanks to the sudden involvement of Grand Duke Bayern.

A few people recognized Ellenore and whispered. That’s the woman who danced with Grand Duke Bayern at the Spring Ball!

The word spread like wind through a reed field, and soon most of the people in the hall knew who Ellenore was. By then, the situation had drastically changed.

“So, that young lady is…”

The only woman who received a dance invitation from Enoch Bayern at the Spring Ball.

The woman whom Enoch Bayern was calling by name affectionately and acting lovingly towards at this party.

Judging by the situation, she might even be receiving courtship from Grand Duke Bayern.

Or perhaps, they were already lovers.

“This, what is…”

Marquis Anderson muttered in a visibly flustered tone. Like a herbivore in front of a predator, he staggered back with a pale face, feeling a sense of fear towards Enoch.

The Marquis Anderson was not the only one taken aback. At this moment, the most shocked person was undoubtedly Margot. She watched the situation unfold as if she were in a dream.

Ellen, with whom?

Enoch Bayern?

A bitter laugh escaped from Margot’s twisted lips. It was absurd… truly absurd. How could someone like Ellen be with Grand Duke Bayern?

There had to be some kind of mistake. Yes, they must have mistaken Ellen for another woman… Otherwise, it was absolutely impossible. Because, after all—

“P-Pardon me, Your Highness Grand Duke Bayern.”

Margot’s trembling voice pierced through the commotion in the party hall. Her eyes, seemingly dazed by shock, roved around Enoch’s chin, unable to meet his gaze.

“I heard that…”

Margot was almost gasping for breath. Enoch’s cold eyes, looking down at her, held a hint of disgust, but Margot seemed too overwhelmed to notice. In the end, she made the worst mistake she would never have made under normal circumstances.

“I heard that Your Highness is engaged to Iris of the Philoan family…”

The moment those words left her mouth, the party hall became noisy again, but for a different reason. Everyone was now focused on verifying the truth of what they had just heard.

“Iris? The daughter of Marquis Philoan?”

“Indeed, if it’s her, she would match well with His Highness…”

“Did Marquis Philoan ever mention such a thing?”

“Even if it’s true, it would have been discussed privately…”

Guests cast glances at Margot as if to say, ‘Wasn’t that a reckless thing to say?’ and at Ellenore, wondering, ‘Then what is the relationship between that lady and the Grand Duke?’

As time passed with no answers to these questions, Enoch, who had been silently watching Margot, let out a low laugh.

No, it was a sound far from a laugh… more like a threat.

“Just now.”

His voice, cold as ice, silenced the commotion in the hall.

“Baroness Lopez has provided me with valuable information that I was unaware of.”

“…Pardon…?”

Margot’s mind went blank as she dumbly repeated the words. She was overwhelmed by an immense sense of pressure that left her unable to think.

The man glaring at her as if he was about to tear her apart was undoubtedly someone she could not handle.

Her head buzzed, and the noise echoed in her ears. Fragments of thoughts she couldn’t grasp overflowed in her mind.

Did Iris lie to me? No, that can’t be. It’s not that… there’s something I don’t know. That’s why it was a secret. So I shouldn’t have spoken recklessly…

“…Ah…”

She had made a mistake.

A terrible mistake.

It felt as if all the blood was draining from her body. She couldn’t think of a way to resolve this situation. She had no idea what excuse to make. She could only feel her whole body trembling as her lips moved soundlessly.

Margot’s vision wavered as if there was an earthquake, distorting and spinning like an abstract painting.

In the end, to protect her sanity, her subconscious chose to—

“…Stepmother!”

—faint.

The unconscious Baroness Lopez was carried away by the Lopez family servant who had rushed over after hearing the news, and Ellenore Lopez also disappeared in a carriage soon after.

Enoch Bayern vanished like a ghost, and even when people asked his close friend Warren Norbert, the only answer they received was, ‘I don’t know.’

So, what remained were suspicions, and more suspicions…

“But one thing is certain.”

“What is it?”

“The daughter of Baron Lopez. Ah, she must be the legitimate daughter of the Lopez family. That lady is…”

The young lady from the Ilons family, who loved gossip, opened her fan and laughed.

“She is the hottest gossip topic in this social season.”

Regardless of the full story, since she had caught the attention of Enoch Bayern.

Everyone nodded in agreement, realizing it was true.

***

About three hours had passed since I returned from the ball.

I heard from a maid that my stepmother, who had been unconscious, had finally regained consciousness.

It was two more hours after that when I was summoned by my father.

“You’re here. Sit down.”

“Yes.”

My father, Baron Lopez, as always, skipped unnecessary words and got straight to the point.

“Ellenore, I won’t beat around the bush.”

At that moment, a strong sense of foreboding hit me.

Sure enough, my father delivered the final blow.

“Marry Marquis Anderson.”

…I knew it would come to this.