The day had arrived for Betty’s visit, marking the completion of the opera. As I always did for guests, I personally went to greet her when she was expected to arrive. Of course, as the lady of the house, I couldn’t go alone, so the butler, housekeeper, and a few other staff members lined up behind me to wait for Betty’s arrival.

“Betty, welcome!”

“…Your Grace.”

Betty looked a bit uneasy, bowing deeply, almost to the floor. I instinctively reached out to steady her.

“Why are you speaking so formally?”

I swear I had no intention of intimidating Betty. I only wanted to treat her like any other friend. But faced with the grandeur of the Keppel estate and the formal staff, she seemed a little overwhelmed, glancing down and saying in a timid voice,

“I… I didn’t expect such a warm welcome…”

Seeing this, I dismissed the staff and, linking arms with Betty, guided her to the drawing room myself. She sat gingerly on a chair by the tea table, looking around in awe.

“Wow… It feels like I’m in the royal palace.”

It is the largest estate in the capital, aside from the palace. I gestured for Vanon, who approached to serve us, to leave the room, and I poured the tea myself. Jane also understood my intention and retreated with the butler. Now alone in the drawing room, Betty seemed to relax a little.

“Oh, I brought this for you.”

She handed me the finished score of the opera *The Vanished Duchess*. Realizing it would take a couple of hours to thoroughly examine it, I skimmed through it and placed it on the table.

“Do I just contact the director once I’ve reviewed it?”

“Oh, yes, uh, yes… I mean, yes.”

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Betty, try to relax.”

“I’d like to, but… you look so different. I’m not used to it.”

“Too beautiful, is that it?”

“Um… yes…”

I’d meant it as a joke, but her earnest nod caught me off guard. Yet she seemed captivated by the array of colorful desserts on the three-tiered tray, so I placed a macaron from the top tier on her plate.

“Oh, isn’t this supposed to be eaten from the bottom?”

“It’s just us here, so it doesn’t matter. Eat as much as you like, and let me know if you want more.”

With a sparkle of anticipation, Betty took a bite of the macaron, her eyes widening in delight.

“It’s delicious!”

Then she quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

“Sorry…”

“It’s fine.”

Betty looked mortified, as if showing her mouthful was some grave offense. There was no one here she needed to impress, so I wondered why she was so tense. Her nervousness was contagious. Unsure what to talk about, I remembered a party Betty had missed.

“You said you were busy that day. Did everything go well?”

“Oh? Yes… Yes.”

“Was it the opera keeping you busy?”

“Yes? Well, not exactly…”

Something felt off, but I didn’t want to pry, so I smiled.

“It would’ve been nice if you’d been there. Please join us next time.”

It was just a polite remark, but Betty’s face fell. Sensing she had something on her mind, I waited quietly. After a moment, in a shaky voice, she spoke.

“Um… next time, could I be invited as a singer?”

“Huh?”

“Liv—Your Grace. I appreciate being considered a friend, but… it’s a bit overwhelming.”

I was taken aback by her sudden confession. She seemed uncomfortable, shifting in her seat and clasping her hands.

“I’m sorry to say this, but I just don’t have the courage to be the Duchess’s friend.”

Was this what it felt like to be rejected? I didn’t know how to respond, so I simply stared at her in silence. Betty glanced up at me before looking down again.

“If you invited me as a singer, I’d have surely attended. It’d be a good career move and a great opportunity. But as a friend… I just feel lacking, like I’m not worthy to be the Duchess’s friend.”

“Not worthy…”

I tried to reassure her, but she continued before I could speak.

“If I’d gone, I would have been a laughingstock.”

“Betty, that’s not true. Greta was there, and Isabella, the actress. We also had the owner of Red Pub and the local old apothecary…”

“Honestly, we were never that close as friends, were we?”

I was at a loss for words. But I couldn’t be upset; Betty was visibly on the verge of tears.

“The truth is… I knew. I knew Tina and Jules were deliberately trying to push you away. I pretended not to notice because I didn’t want to be bothered by it.”

“…”

“I had a good idea why Juliana left, too, but I didn’t want to stir things up, so I kept quiet.”

I couldn’t fathom why Betty was suddenly confessing all this. It felt like a strange kind of confession, and with teary eyes, she went on.

“At first, I helped them out of pity, but later, I just left them alone because I thought they’d be a nuisance if I didn’t. I let them stay because it was convenient for me.

When I became a prima donna, I figured they wouldn’t be able to bother me anymore. Even when I found out you were the ‘Red Lips,’ all I thought was how I could benefit from it.

I thought pretending to be close to you would make it easier to gain fame. When I missed out on the concert in the square, I was jealous and wished you’d fail. And when I learned you were a duchess, I thought the world was so unfair.”

As Betty’s emotions overwhelmed her, she finally broke down in tears. In disbelief, I asked her,
“Why are you telling me this? You don’t have to say any of this.”

Sniffling, she replied, “Isn’t it foolish? Here I am, failing to use the Duchess to my advantage. From the start, I was only thinking about how I could use you. And now that people think I only became a prima donna because of the Duchess’s influence, it infuriates me.”

I sighed, swallowing my mixed feelings along with a sip of tea.

“I was set to become a prima donna even before I knew you were a Duchess.”

That’s true. Betty had already been set to play the leading role of the “The Vanished Duchess” before my true identity was revealed. But once I appeared and it became known that we were friends, rumors started circulating that she’d secured the prima donna role because of my backing as the Duchess. Isn’t life ironic?

“So, do you feel wronged?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think that’s my fault?”

Betty hesitated for a long time before burying her face in her hands.

“…No.”

“Then why are you taking it out on me?”

Ignoring the now-sobbing Betty, I spread a thick layer of jam and cream onto a scone. The sweetness helped ease my irritation a bit. Part of me felt sorry for Betty, trapped under the weight of these unjust accusations, but another part of me found her audacity—that she could openly admit she’d intended to use me—simply astonishing.

“So, you skipped the party because you didn’t want people saying you only got the role because of the Duchess’s backing?”

“I, I just….”

“Alright. Congratulations on finally reclaiming your pride as an artist. So, you’re asking me not to act too friendly with you anymore to avoid misunderstandings?”

Betty muttered softly, “I’m sorry.”

“If you’d been more skilled from the start, no one would have doubted you.”

Betty looked up at me, shocked, as if she hadn’t expected me to speak so bluntly. I continued calmly, “People doubt you because, to them, it looks like you got the lead without quite having the skill to back it up.”

“B-But I’m working hard, too.”

“Sure. But first, decide what you want to be: a successful opera singer or a commercial performer. Frankly, as it stands now, you’re neither. When the other cast members were practicing tirelessly, you looked more like you were just chasing fame.”

“…”

“Do you think the other performers didn’t notice? That I wouldn’t see that you were trying to use me?”

Betty looked at me with confused eyes. “If you knew, why…did you still call me a friend?”

I sighed. Many people might feel humiliated or resentful over being pitied, but I wasn’t one of them.

“Because you did show pity for me back then, and I saw that you cared enough to give me a job when I was struggling. When I collapsed, you were genuinely concerned. And you valued opportunities for others as well as for yourself. Like when you told me it was nearly unheard of for commercial singers to be invited to the plaza concert—that if I declined, other singers might lose the chance.”

If Betty hadn’t said that to me, I’d have simply escaped the situation. The Plaza Concert was an event organized by the Emperor, one that artists couldn’t dream of turning down. I’d realized it would be almost an act of defiance if I didn’t perform. Though someone as high up as Cade might not have been bothered, there were plenty of others eager to show loyalty to the Emperor.

“Betty, one day you’ll regret this. You’ll realize what a good friend you’ve lost and feel a deep sense of remorse. And I’ll make sure to pay you back for this. When the time comes, you’ll be sorry.”

With that petty retort, I immediately wrote to the director. I gave permission for the opera to proceed with the condition that someone else take over the role of the Duchess.

The reason? Miss Bethany, cast as the Duchess, was simply *too* beautiful. I even made sure the reason for her replacement would slip to the press.

If she so desperately wanted fame, then she could finally experience what it was like to be a public figure. The director processed everything in record time, and soon a headline appeared in the paper:

“The Girl Who Was Cut for Being Too Beautiful.”

I’d given Betty exactly what she wanted. The press had cleared up the misunderstanding about her securing the role through our relationship, and she’d even gained notoriety from a dramatic headline. The more successful the opera, the more famous Betty would become. Whether she proved herself afterward would be up to her.

This was the only gift I could offer Betty. Frankly, I’d assumed she’d resent me for it. But in the end, not long after, Betty ended up proving herself and, surprisingly, sent me a letter of thanks.