“Where could be safer than a party venue filled only with people of confirmed status? And since everyone knows I’m with you, no one will approach me.”

“That has nothing to do with it. I just don’t want to be apart from you.”

“If you came here as a duke, you should act like one. Don’t whine like a child.”

Her voice was too soft for others to hear. Alois looked bewildered at being scolded by the whispering Olivia. But this time, Olivia couldn’t back down. There were quite a few people hovering around Alois, watching her carefully.

Even with her limited awareness, she could tell there were conversations that could only happen if she stepped away.

“A person who is too obsessed with their lover isn’t attractive.”

She spoke firmly, like a strict teacher. Alois, who was supposed to heed her words, only thought she looked ‘like an angry squirrel.’ Nevertheless, unable to overcome her opinion, he finally let her go on the condition that she would absolutely not leave the party venue.

Trying to escape people’s attention, Olivia fled to the edge of the ballroom with a glass of champagne. Her tense body finally relaxed a little. She slowly looked around, sipping the champagne, which had a better aroma than expected.

“Everyone is impressive.”

People adorned with splendid clothes and jewels were smiling happily under the bright chandelier light. While it looked like the happiest scene from the outside, actually being part of it wasn’t as pleasant as she had imagined.

‘My feet hurt and the clothes are uncomfortable.’

Moreover, the indirect way of speaking without clearly stating one’s meaning didn’t suit Olivia at all. Having to analyze and interpret each word to find the hidden meaning—she somewhat understood why Alois had described it as the epitome of inefficient time-wasting.

The only thing she liked was that the abundantly provided food was all interesting and delicious. As her tension eased, the alcohol she had been sipping suddenly hit her. Cupping her flushed cheeks with both hands in the warm air, Olivia quietly sighed.

‘I want to lean against something.’

If there was nowhere to sit, she at least wanted to lean. Looking around, she saw no one leaning against the walls.

‘I suppose it’s not proper etiquette? It would also ruin the dress. But my back might break first……”

Thinking she might not be seen behind a large pillar, Olivia searched for a suitable spot. Fortunately, the pillars in the corner of the party venue were dimly lit, with no one nearby.

‘There.’

There was even a large window right behind it with thick curtains—a double advantage for hiding. Olivia gradually approached the pillar, avoiding people’s attention, and quickly hid behind it. Although having a window right in front of her was slightly concerning, the curtains half-covered it, preventing others from seeing her, making it bearable enough.

‘I’ll survive.’

She hadn’t realized maintaining proper posture would be so difficult. Thinking she would rest for a while before returning to Alois, she quietly stretched, but unfortunately, she saw a group of young ladies cautiously approaching her direction.

‘Oh, no.’

Due to the window angle, Olivia could see them, but they couldn’t discover her—a perfect structure. Ultimately, a standoff developed that only Olivia was aware of, with just one pillar between them.

“I didn’t expect the duke to suddenly appear with a lover.”

‘Oh, this is bad.’

The young ladies’ topic of conversation happened to be the Duke of Schraien. Now it would be problematic if they discovered her presence before they left. No excuse about having arrived first would help. The moment they realized she was there, she would become someone who had eavesdropped on their conversation.

Olivia desperately prayed they would leave without saying anything.

“I know. Not only was it surprising how normal he looked despite being called a monster, but how could he even have a lover? Has the curse been lifted?”

“From what I’ve heard, that’s not the case. This is still just a rumor, but they say the duke’s ability to function normally now is connected to the person who’s his lover.”

“Which family’s lady could she be? I’ve never seen her face before……”

“I’ve heard she might just be a commoner, but surely that can’t be true?”

It was a laughable situation, secretly overhearing gossip about herself. Still, the young ladies’ conversation wasn’t as harsh as she had imagined. They all sighed at the suggestion that Olivia might be a commoner, but even she thought that was understandable. At least there were no explicit insults afterward.

“Seeing how he brought her to such an official social gathering, I suppose the engagement has already progressed?”

“I would think so. It’s rather disappointing in many ways.”

“Yes, he wasn’t as scary as I thought, and his every action was dignified. I suppose the nickname ‘Monster Duke’ will disappear now.”

“That’s why it’s more disappointing? Of course they make a perfect picture together, but this is a ducal marriage we’re talking about, and there’s absolutely nothing to gain from it.”

“Or could she perhaps be his mistress? It’s not something to boast about, but keeping a commoner as a lover isn’t exactly unprecedented.”

“If that were the case, I don’t think he would have brought her here……”

As they continued discussing whether there might still be a chance to contact the family if she were just a mistress, one of the young ladies in the group cut off the conversation, making no effort to hide her discomfort.

“If a cursed duke has fallen in love, they must be extremely close to each other, so do we really need to gossip about it? It’s not like our families are that closely connected to the ducal house.”

“That’s true, but for the duke to meet a common commoner is rather disappointing in many ways……”

“If you found it so disappointing, it would have been nice if you had tried to create a connection with the duke earlier….. It’s an eternal truth that the brave win the one they love. Do we who avoided him out of fear, calling him a monster, have any right to comment?”

“……”

Wow. Olivia silently admired her. The bright voice quickly silenced the other young ladies. This wasn’t just expressing an honest opinion. It was the speech pattern of someone who knew her opponents couldn’t challenge her even if she directly crushed their opinions.

“In the end, whatever the method, that woman must know something we don’t about how to captivate a cursed duke, so she essentially holds the Monster Duke’s reins. Let’s not risk danger by adding unnecessary comments. Hehe. The world is truly full of interesting things.”

“But……”

“Besides, isn’t it true that they make an undeniably good match?”

Olivia turned her head slightly to check the reflection of the speaker in the window.

The woman covering her mouth and laughing elegantly exuded a unique arrogance and confidence in her actions and expressions. It was an aura similar to yet slightly different from Alois’s.

Her neatly styled black hair and eyes of the same color gave her a strangely sharp image even with a slight smile. Thanks to her tall height, looking down at others suited her terribly well.

“N-now that I think about it, Lady Viola seems right.”

The young ladies who had first spoken about Alois and Olivia glanced at each other. Soon they all laughed awkwardly as if nothing had happened and changed the subject. The young lady called Viola quietly smiled with one corner of her mouth raised, then glanced at the window. Then she winked.

‘Huh?’

Olivia thought her heart would stop. Despite being at an angle where she shouldn’t be visible from their side, she felt as if her eyes met Viola’s in the window reflection. But whether it was just her imagination, the young ladies didn’t look toward Olivia’s location even after a long time, and eventually they headed back to the main space to rejoin the party.

“I survived. Haah, I’m exhausted.”

After the people moved away, Olivia finally emerged from behind the pillar with a more subdued expression than usual, absently fidgeting with the curtain. She needed to return soon, but first she needed a moment to calm her troubled mind. It wasn’t something to be angry about, and they hadn’t said anything particularly insulting.

Besides, even if it might have been a one-sided misunderstanding, someone had taken her side. Yet strangely, her dampened mood wouldn’t lift.

‘Right. As that person said, we love each other and make a good match, so we should just continue our beautiful relationship. Yes.’

She rambled excuses to her reflection in the window that she couldn’t confess to anyone else, until she calmed down.

‘And anyway, Alois will be with me for the rest of his life.’

Olivia, who had been trying to act nonchalant, suddenly bit her lip at the frightening thought that had crossed her mind.

“I’m crazy. Get a grip.”

She lightly patted both her cheeks with her hands to collect herself. For a moment, she had almost gloated over the fact that she was the only one who could solve Alois’s curse. Even if it was just a fleeting thought born from upset feelings, it was too terrible even as a mistake.

‘She essentially holds the Monster Duke’s reins.’

That single sentence had pierced her heart like an arrow. She wondered if that was how others saw her—and perhaps, deep down, how she had viewed herself.

Holding someone’s misfortune as leverage against them….. Disappointed in her own base desires, Olivia headed back to Alois with an even more exhausted body than before.

* * *