As soon as that thought occurred to her, her heart sank.

‘…No, is it okay to say such things with that face?’

If she develops arrhythmia because of this, will he take responsibility?

Yvette swallowed the words that had risen to her throat and met Noel’s eyes.

“I’m honored that Duke Averon himself is worried about me.”

Yvette spoke more playfully on purpose to hide her bewilderment.

However, contrary to her intention, Noel’s reaction wasn’t very good.

“…Not Duke, but Noel.”

Noel corrected the title with a frown.

Yvette opened her eyes in confusion.

“Why? You are the Duke, aren’t you?”

“I don’t want to hear that title from you too.”

Noel said firmly.

As he looked quite serious, Yvette nodded, though puzzled.

“Alright then. I’ll just call you Noel.”

Only after hearing her confirmation did Noel regain his smile.

“…Were there any people bothering you while I was away?”

“Who would dare to mess with Duke Averon’s fiancée, knowing what trouble it might bring?”

Most of those attending the alumni meeting were of noble birth.

And even if they weren’t nobles, almost no one would be unaware of the fact that she was Noel’s fiancée.

“Well, that’s true.”

Noel, readily agreeing, offered his arm to Yvette.

“Shall we head back? It’s getting cold.”

Yvette, taking his arm, casually continued the conversation.

“I don’t really feel cold. Are you particularly sensitive to cold, Noel?”

Noel nodded as he slowly matched his pace with hers.

“That’s why I don’t particularly like winter.”

The day of the Averon tragedy was also a cold winter day.

Perhaps that’s why. When it gets cold, his mood tends to sink more than usual.

“…If you’re too cold, let me know. I’ll give you my clothes if needed.”

Yvette carefully spoke, recalling the same fact.

She too was aware of the Averon tragedy.

It was impossible not to know. It was an event that occupied a significant portion of the original story.

“As if your clothes would fit me.”

Noel chuckled and glanced at Yvette.

“Why don’t you take care of yourself first? Don’t collapse like last time.”

“…Even without you saying it, I know how to take care of myself.”

Yvette muttered, lightly glaring at Noel.

How long had they walked like that?

Just as they were about to enter the party venue, someone hurriedly blocked their path.

“Um, excuse me!”

‘…A student?’

Momentarily surprised by the sudden appearance, Yvette looked at the person with wide eyes.

She saw two students wearing the academy uniform.

One was a female student with silver bob-cut hair reaching her chin and black eyes, while the other was a male student with dull blonde hair and purple eyes.

They both seemed to have just run, breathing heavily.

“I’m really sorry for suddenly approaching you. But I thought if not now, there wouldn’t be another chance.”

The silver-haired female student spoke, biting her lip nervously.

Judging by her fidgeting, she seemed quite self-conscious.

“…You’re the young lady of the Theron Marquis family.”

At that moment, Noel spoke indifferently.

Unlike the flustered Yvette, he seemed quite familiar with such situations.

‘The young lady of the Theron Marquis family?’

Yvette looked at the female student in front of her with wide eyes.

Now that she heard it, she could see that the girl indeed resembled the Marchioness Theron in many ways.

“Yes, that’s right! I’m Shapel Theron. It’s an honor to meet the two most famous people in the empire.”

The girl who introduced herself as Shapel nodded with a bright smile.

The dimples that appeared on her cheeks when she smiled were quite charming.

“Nice to meet you, Lady Theron.”

Yvette, belatedly greeting her, smiled awkwardly.

Come to think of it, she remembered hearing something from Marchioness Theron.

‘She said she was my fan, didn’t she?’

More accurately, she would be a fan of the real Yvette Blanche.

‘Seeing that she even has fans, it seems she was really famous in the past.’

Yvette knew nothing about Yvette Blanche’s past.

Even the fact that she was a Ruhen graduate, she learned from others.

‘I hope she’s not disappointed in me.’

She was a bit worried, but fortunately, Shapel didn’t seem to notice anything strange about her.

“You’re my senior by quite a bit, so please speak comfortably. If possible, I’d prefer if you called me just Shapel, rather than Lady Theron.”

As Shapel spoke with a beaming smile, the male student standing with her snorted.

Unlike the excited Shapel, he had a face full of strange discontent.

“You never let anyone else call you by name, but you’re putting on airs in front of your idol.”

As he spoke sarcastically, Shapel elbowed him in the side with all her might.

“Terry, don’t say unnecessary things in front of the Count.”

“What. It’s not like I said anything wrong.”

“Shut up. Say one more word and I’ll sew that mouth shut.”

Yvette blinked slowly, watching the two bicker in somewhat intense tones.

As she was pondering whether to intervene or not, at that moment.

“…What’s this? Why are you all here?”

“Why? We came to greet you too!”

“That’s right. It wouldn’t be fair if only Shapel got to greet you.”

A group of students who had approached unnoticed surrounded Yvette and Noel.

It seemed they had been waiting for an opportunity, and seeing Shapel, they gained courage.

“Hello, Your Grace! I’m Anna Lerorian. I’ve heard a lot about you from my parents.”

“Me too, Your Grace! I was so excited when I heard you were coming to the alumni meeting today!”

Most of the students who approached them appeared to be young girls in their early to mid-teens.

Perhaps because of this, they particularly crowded around Noel.

Noel stared expressionlessly at the female students surrounding him.

His gaze was so cold that even Yvette, watching from the side, felt uncomfortable.

“By the way, who is the person next to you? I don’t seem to recognize her face.”

The female student who had introduced herself as Anna Lerorian earlier pointed at Yvette with her eyes.

Then other female students whispered in low voices.

“That person is the Duke’s fiancée. She was in the newspaper recently.”

“Ah, right. They said she would be coming too, didn’t they?”

“I was surprised when I heard the Duke was engaged. Don’t they look quite good together?”

“Well, I’m not so sure about that.”

Girls. I can hear everything you’re saying.

Yvette looked around at the female students with cloudy eyes.

‘This is also a scene I’ve seen a lot in novels.’

She had thought there might be a situation like this at some point, but she didn’t expect it to be with young female students.

‘Well, I can sort of understand how they feel.’

Since they weren’t trying to harm her, she decided to let it go with a generous heart.

However, the situation unfolded differently from her expectations.

“Hey, do you all know who Count Blanche is before you say such things?”

Shapel, who had been quietly observing her peers whispering, opened her mouth.

The female students couldn’t readily answer and just exchanged glances among themselves.

Shapel clicked her tongue as if she had expected this and continued speaking confidently.

“Count Blanche is practically a legend in our department. Not only did she rank first for three consecutive years, but she also graduated as the youngest in the entire academy from a department where failing is common!”

…Wait a minute. This is news to me too. Yvette, suddenly learning about her past, looked at Shapel in bewilderment.

‘First for three consecutive years, and the youngest graduate?’

For an extra character with barely any screen time, isn’t this setting a bit too much?