Chapter 1.4

“Thanks, huh… You should behave properly, then.”  

But the moment she heard his sarcastic tone, her gratitude instantly vanished.  

“Pardon? What do you mean…?”  

“Do you know what kind of rumors are circulating about you?”  

His gaze, full of disdain, slowly swept over her entire body.  

It was completely different from the lewd gaze Young Master Morton had just shown her. It was more like the contemptuous gaze one would direct at a woman in a vulgar dress.  

The cold gaze gave her goosebumps all over, but Erika tried to act calm and asked politely.  

“It’s my first time attending society, so I haven’t heard. If it’s not too much trouble, could you tell me?”  

She doubted it was anything good, but since the rumors were about her, she felt she needed to know.  

“The illegitimate child of House Dunmoa. And a woman who came out herself to sell her body for the Dunmoa family.”  

The moment she heard those insulting words, Erika’s face turned red and her body trembled. Covering her exposed chest, she barely managed to open her mouth, enduring the wave of shame.  

“You don’t actually believe that, do you?”  

“Well. I don’t care whether it’s true or not, it’s none of my business. Still, seeing how you were about to have a secret meeting with another man just now, it could be true.”  

Grand Duke Hartwig withdrew his unpleasant gaze and shrugged, showing an attitude of complete indifference. His attitude only fueled Erika’s anger.  

“A secret meeting? You saw with your own eyes how Young Master Morton tried to act rudely toward me—how could you say such a thing?”  

If he didn’t care, he could have just not told her about the rumors, but instead, the Grand Duke had purposely made her feel miserable.  

This wasn’t indifference—he clearly harbored ill feelings toward her. The gratitude she had felt earlier melted away in an instant.  

“Even if you rejected that scoundrel, who’s to say you wouldn’t do the same with another man?”  

“That’s not possible…”  

She was about to refute him politely, but he, as if he had no need to hear her answer, just gave a slight nod and started walking toward the banquet hall, his face still showing complete disinterest.  

His controlled movements, dignified demeanor—his every action was the epitome of a graceful nobleman.  

Having been so openly looked down upon by him, Erika felt utterly insignificant.  

Compared to him, it was true that her existence in the Empire was trivial, so Erika bit her lower lip, trying to suppress the anger that welled up inside her.  

Grand Duke Hartwig was the Empire’s hero and known as the strongest sword. Thanks to Grand Duke Hartwig, who could defeat all enemies with a single blow no matter how many invaded, the Empire’s peace was maintained, so perhaps it was only natural for him to be arrogant.  

That’s why she was even angrier. No matter how great a man he was, he had no reason to judge, look down on, or shame someone just because of the clothes they’d been forced to wear.  

It’s not like she wanted to wear this dress—wasn’t he being too much?  

Even though it was their first conversation, Erika could already tell that Grand Duke Hartwig, who judged people by appearances, was a terrible person.  

She was upset, but there was nothing she could do. That was her reality, and he had merely reminded her of it.  

It wasn’t as though she’d ever have any business with him in the future anyway.  

When Erika, fuming, returned to the banquet hall, she saw Baron Dunmoa waiting for her with a stern expression. It seemed that, at today’s banquet, her search for a groom had failed.  

“Who told you to behave so rudely? Why do you think I spent all that money teaching you all sorts of things? It was all to arrange your marriage. So you must not forget your role. Do you understand?”  

All the way back to House Dunmoa, Baron Dunmoa’s nagging continued, but Erika didn’t hear a word of it. What hurt her far more than his words were the lewd stares of the men, the look of contempt from Grand Duke Hartwig, and the fact that she hadn’t been able to meet Charlotte.

* * *

“What did you do?”  

“What do you mean?”  

A week after attending the banquet, Eva suddenly burst in and grabbed Erika by the hair, shaking her violently.  

Erika, who had been embroidering a handkerchief, dropped everything she was holding as she was dragged away.  

Knowing that resisting would only make Eva angrier, Erika had no choice but to endure Eva’s outburst without knowing the reason.  

“Who do you think you are? How dare you act out of line? Did you think your vulgar outfit would get you anywhere?”  

Erika’s neatly braided hair became more and more tangled, but Eva showed no intention of letting go until her anger subsided.  

“Please tell me the reason. Why are you doing this to me?”  

“Enough! If you act up just one more time, I won’t let it go. He was just momentarily mistaken!”  

Erika wondered if, even after her debutante, there was a young nobleman at the subsequent banquets who had taken a liking to her, but Eva, instead of giving her the answer she wanted, only spoke in riddles.  

“That’s enough. That’s enough now. She knows her place now, so keep your dignity.”  

It was the Baroness of Dunmoa who tried to stop Eva’s actions. She wasn’t trying to help Erika. She simply wanted to calm her daughter, who was causing a scene more than usual.  

Even so, Eva showed no sign of calming down despite the Baroness’s intervention.  

“There’s no way I could meet a man from a better family than you anyway. Who would like someone like me, an illegitimate child?”  

When even the Baroness couldn’t stop her, Erika chose to calm Eva down by belittling herself.  

“Oh, so you do know your place.”  

Only then did Eva let go of Erika’s hair, her anger finally subsiding.  

“You! You should meet someone suitable for your status—don’t you dare get greedy. If you cross me just one more time, I won’t let it go.”  

After vaguely revealing the reason for her anger, Eva and the Baroness left the room. After they left, Erika mulled over Eva’s words.  

‘Meet someone suitable for your status’… Oh, could it be that someone belatedly said they liked me?  

The kind of man who would propose would have to be one of the men she danced with. But among those men, there wasn’t a single one whom Eva would be jealous of. They were all men who had uttered vulgar words and cast unpleasant glances.  

To think Eva would be so angry over proposals from such unremarkable men… Then just what kind of man was I supposed to meet? Did I have to marry someone who would even please Eva?  

There was a limit to how much Erika could endure the ridicule and contempt she received every time she was forced to wear a revealing dress. Eva’s actions only added fuel to the dissatisfaction that had been slowly building in Erika’s heart.

Was there really any reason for her to keep being dragged along by her father’s opinions? Even if she followed their wishes, she wouldn’t be able to meet Charlotte, and her future would be bleak—so was there any need to obey them?

The moment that question arose, a sense of rebellion grew inside her, and that rebelliousness soon turned into a conviction that she couldn’t just stay still any longer. An event occurred that completely shook her heart.

* * *

Today, too, Erika was forced to come to the banquet by her father. Without even knowing why Eva had thrown a tantrum, her search for a husband was still ongoing.

She usually didn’t want to attend, but today Erika felt an even stronger desire to skip the banquet. Even her footsteps felt heavy.

The reason was that today’s banquet happened to be the victory celebration for Grand Duke Hartwig. 

She had to wear a dress that exposed her chest again, so she was afraid she’d once more be met with looks of contempt. She didn’t expect to talk to him, but ever since Grand Duke Hartwig had denied her very worth, even seeing his face was uncomfortable.

“What are you doing? Why aren’t you coming quickly?”

When she kept hesitating even after getting out of the carriage, Baron Dunmoa, his face full of anger, forcibly dragged Erika into the banquet hall. 

Inside, surrounded by many people, was Grand Duke Hartwig, and at that moment, Erika had the illusion that she met the emerald eyes behind his mask. 

Her head naturally lowered. Just recalling what he’d said last time made all the hairs on her body stand up and her scalp tingle.

She tried to convince herself that their eyes hadn’t met, and was about to walk toward a corner when— 

“Oh my, I just made eye contact with Grand Duke Hartwig. Isn’t this a signal that he wants to talk to me?” 

“I felt it too. Go on, greet him quickly.” 

Eva started making a fuss, saying she’d made eye contact with Grand Duke Hartwig, and the Baroness next to her also agreed. 

No way. Was it not just my imagination? 

Seeing that they, too, had felt Grand Duke Hartwig’s gaze, Erika realized it hadn’t been her imagination.