“Lady Bayern, now that you seem to be feeling better, I think it’s time for me to leave.”

“What? You’re leaving already?”

Cier looked at Kylance with a look of regret. But Kylance gently pulled her hand away from his arm.

“I have urgent matters to attend to, so I must go.”

“Well, there’s nothing you can do about that. Your Highness, I’ll see you next time.”

“I suppose so.”

Kylance kissed the back of Cier’s hand, leaving a cold, distant goodbye. Then he left the party without a second glance at Ariel, completely ignoring her.

‘How far will you go to make me miserable?’

Ariel wanted to run after Kylance, to scream at him, to ask him what she had done to deserve such cruelty.

But she knew she no longer had the right to speak to him.

She had become the daughter of a family suspected of treason.

Ariel had endured every insult. Now she finally broke down under Kylance’s treatment.

“Cier. There are many eyes around, so it would be best to clarify the situation now.”

A refined voice echoed through the quiet party hall.

Ariel jumped and slowly lifted her eyes. Standing next to Cier, in the place where Kylance had just been, was the lady.

Melish Viasteus, the Duchess of Viasteus and cousin of the Emperor.

She had raised Kylance as her own child after he had lost his parents. She was also the one who had always been so hard on Ariel.

For some reason, the Duchess of Viasteus had always considered Ariel unworthy of Kylance as his wife.

Because of this, Ariel had always found it difficult to get along with the Duchess.

Of course, now that the engagement was over, there was no need to worry about the Duchess of Viasteus’ opinion. Yet her body reacted instinctively, as if it still remembered.

The tension in her body was obvious, despite her efforts to remain composed.

The Duchess met Ariel’s gaze briefly before turning back to Cier.

Cier lowered the corners of her eyes and replied.

“Ah… I see. I must have disturbed the party. I’m sorry, madam.”

“No, Cier. It’s the uninvited guest who has ruined the party, not you. It’s not your fault. But for the sake of the guests, it would be best to settle this now.”

The Duchess of Viasteus spoke to Cier with a smile – one that Ariel had never seen directed at her – and comforted her as if she were a niece-in-law. It was as if the Duchess was trying to free herself from some unnecessary attachment.

Ariel couldn’t help but laugh softly, bitterly. She could feel the Duchess’s eyes on her, but she didn’t care.

Thanks to the Duchess’s clear actions, Ariel felt her tension ease.

It was as if she had fully realised that she no longer had to worry about the Duchess’s judgement.

Regaining her composure, Ariel turned to the Duchess and smiled.

“You’re right, Duchess. It seems the party has already… turned into a disaster.”

Ariel looked around before she apologised to Cier.

“Cier, I’m sorry. I forgot that you don’t have much interest in art. Considering the circumstances… I hope you’ll understand. Next time I’ll bring something more to your taste.”

“YOU!”

Cier was startled by Ariel’s mocking tone. She screamed.

But there was nothing she could do. The Duchess of Viasteus had a firm grip on Cier’s wrist. She could not move.

The Duchess shielded Cier behind her, facing Ariel directly.

“Ariel.”

“Yes, Duchess.”

Despite the faint smile on the Duchess’s face, her voice was cold.

But unlike before, Ariel didn’t feel intimidated at all. She met the Duchess’s gaze without hesitation, noticing the slight twitch at the end of her brow.

But after a brief moment, the Duchess continued as if nothing had changed. 

“Perhaps it’s time to stop your tantrum and leave. No matter how difficult your situation may be, the more you act like this, the more your reputation will sink.” 

To think she was accusing Ariel of causing a scene. Who would hear those words? 

Ariel dropped her smile and opened her mouth, ready to respond. 

She wanted to tell the Duchess that she had never caused a scene, that her words were too harsh.

Of course, Ariel’s current position was hardly one where she could directly confront the Duchess of Viasteus, but she couldn’t just back down either. 

The Duchess, who had taken over the social scene in place of the frail Empress, had the power to control the narrative. If Ariel didn’t react now, she would certainly be blamed for causing the scene with Cier. 

The Duchess was more than capable of twisting the truth to her advantage. 

Ariel, already under suspicion of treason, was about to be divorced, and now there were rumours that the Marquis’s daughter had caused chaos at a party. This would not help the rebuilding of the Marquis’ family. 

With her mind made up, Ariel was about to speak when a low voice echoed through the room. 

“Cause a scene, you say…?” 

The man’s voice, tinged with a strange amusement, made Ariel momentarily forget the seemingly ordinary, but far from ordinary man. She turned her head to face him. 

He continued to speak, his expression one of feigned contemplation, as if muttering to himself.

“Is it just me, or has the meaning of ’cause a scene’ changed without me noticing? As far as I can see, the person who should be hearing that word isn’t over here, but over there.”

The man’s finger pointed at Ariel, then at Cier. 

More precisely, it pointed at the Duchess of Viasteus, who was protecting Cier behind her. 

In other words, this unknown man had just dared to point his finger at the Duchess of Viasteus, a member of the Imperial family. 

Even if his intention was to accuse Cier, the finger was still pointed at the Duchess. 

And the Duchess was openly protecting Cier. 

Ariel looked at the man in confusion, unable to fully comprehend the situation. 

In fact, she realised, she had no choice but to confront the Duchess now, as she had nowhere else to retreat to. But this man – he had no such reason to confront the Duchess. 

In fact, he seemed to lack any clear noble status or family background. 

For someone like him to so boldly confront the Duchess of Viasteus, of all people, was utterly baffling. 

Could he be… mad? 

It seemed unlikely, given how composed he seemed, but the situation was confusing enough to allow such wild thoughts to enter her mind. 

But the man, undeterred by the frozen atmosphere, continued to focus solely on the Duchess. 

The Duchess slowly turned her eyes towards him, and when their eyes met, the nobles in the room held their collective breath. 

Everyone had expected the Duchess to immediately scold the man, to demand that he be taken away for insulting her.

But to their surprise, the Duchess did no such thing. 

She merely furrowed her brow slightly, a faint hint of displeasure flashing for a brief moment before she returned to her usual composure. 

Something was… wrong. 

The Duchess of Viasteus was not one to tolerate insubordination. Did she know who this man was? 

If she did, if it was someone she couldn’t easily punish… then that meant the man’s status was quite high. 

No matter how hard Ariel racked her brain, she couldn’t remember seeing a man like him at any of the parties she’d attended. 

If he were a noble of high rank, she would have met him at least once. 

Who could he be? 

Just as Ariel’s eyes narrowed in confusion, the man spoke first. 

“It seems the Duchess has mistaken the meaning of ‘causing a scene’ for something else.” 

‘To think that this person would dare speak in such a manner! How could he be so bold!’

As the man continued to overstep his bounds, Cier tried to step forward and point an angry finger at him. But the Duchess quickly intervened, releasing Cier’s wrist with a swift movement. 

“You are right. It seems I was wrong for a moment. On second thought, Ariel didn’t really cause a scene…”

Her quick acceptance of the man’s words stunned the nobles, who were all taken aback. 

Except for Ariel. Of course, she wasn’t surprised by the Duchess’s reaction, but that didn’t mean she understood the situation. She simply believed that her assumption had been correct – that the Duchess knew who this man was. 

And, for whatever reason, this man had managed to save her reputation from further damage. 

The Duchess had just admitted her own error, admitted her previous misstep. 

Finally, the Duchess turned her eyes to Ariel. 

The icy, cold, black gaze – one that reminded Ariel of Kylance – made her instinctively jump. Just as she did, the Duchess’ lips curled into a smile that seemed completely out of place with the cold in her eyes. 

With that smile, the Duchess began to speak slowly.