Having been worried about Yuria lacking a mother and being unfamiliar with social circle gossip, Duke Seigan was finally convinced by these persuasive words that hit his exact concerns.

“Please introduce me to Baroness Whipft.”

“You’ve made a wise decision. The day when Lady Seigan becomes not just the Rose of the West but the Rose of Peiren is not far off. Trust me!”

***

One evening at a charity party.

Someone spoke next to Leah.

“Don’t you think Lady Seigan is getting strange?”

Leah, who was conquering the party’s dessert corner, turned her head. A brown-haired lady picking up a macaron beside her spoke pointedly.

“These days, it seems like she’s trying to copy Lady Piert more and more.”

“Right? I’m not the only one who felt that way?”

Another lady next to them chimed in.

“She used to tie her hair in a ponytail, but now she’s changed to wearing it loose like Lady Piert. That style suits Lady Piert so much better.”

“Really?”

Leah tilted her head and briefly looked at Lady Yuria Seigan in the distance. Her style did seem to have changed.

The brown-haired lady who spoke first raised her voice slightly.

“It’s not just the hairstyle. Look at Lady Seigan’s dress. It’s clearly imitating the Peirlily dress!”

The Peirlily dress.

It was a style that became trendy because Leah often wore it.

‘I have to cover my neck or I’ll get cold!’

Being physically weak and sensitive to cold, she always wore dresses that covered up to her neck. Instead, the dress emphasized the flowing lines of her figure, and used a bright, clear blue fabric that matched Leah’s eyes to reduce the stuffy feeling.

‘The dress is definitely that style. Though she modified it slightly and changed the color.’

Instead of blue, it used rose-colored fabric for a bright atmosphere, and while keeping the neck, it had a deep V-cut at the chest to emphasize a vibrant sexy feeling.

“Anyone can see she’s copying Lady Piert!”

“Does she have no pride as a lady? How can she do that?”

One of the angry ladies fumed.

“And do you know what the men are saying when they gather?”

‘Lady Seigan is truly like a freshly blooming rose.’

‘Honestly, lilies are somewhat, how should I say, old-fashioned, aren’t they?’

‘Indeed. That Peirlily dress trend has gone on too long. Shouldn’t a dress show off a woman’s beauty?’

‘You’re right. Everyone being all covered up… it was getting tiresome.’

The ladies became irritated upon learning of the noblemen’s conversations.

“They used to say she had the ultimate pure beauty! That she was Peiren’s lily!”

“It was so good when Lady Piert made the Peirlily dress trendy. Before that, we always had to wear low-cut dresses, but thanks to her, we could avoid exposure when we didn’t want to.”

“That’s right. It’s because someone of Lady Piert’s status could do it that we also benefited.”

That dress was just something I wore because I got cold…?

Leah blinked.

‘Everyone was secretly struggling.’

She felt her heart, which had closed off to social circles after the incident with Lady Jerinne, opening up a little.

Come to think of it, these were just ladies in their late teens to early twenties.

These young ladies, always treated as flowers of society at such a young age, didn’t even have the freedom to decide their own exposure.

“It’s fine.”

Leah said in a voice that had unconsciously softened.

“Trends come and go. I’ll keep wearing things like the Peirlily dress a lot, so you ladies use me as an excuse and wear what you want.”

The ladies looked at her with sparkling eyes.

“Lady Piert… can I call you sister?”

“Lady Darogteur, aren’t you older than her?”

“If someone’s cool, they’re all sisters! We’re only a year apart anyway!”

Among the squabbling ladies, one lady spoke glumly.

“Lady Piert is trying so hard for us… but Lady Seigan is ruining everything.”

“Right. How can she be so different when she’s a lady too.”

Leah glanced toward Lady Yuria Seigan. Baron Durford, who seemed to have gotten even more plump since she last saw him, was sticking close to her and making advances.

‘She must be having her own struggles too.’

Seeing Baron Durford constantly staring at her cleavage while talking to her, Leah felt sorry for Lady Seigan.

The ladies who followed Leah’s gaze to Lady Yuria all frowned.

“Ugh, Baron Durford is at it again.”

“Disgusting… look at those eyes.”

Leah muttered.

“If she can’t shake him off when he’s clinging like that, similar types will keep bothering her.”

To be safe in social circles, one couldn’t appear easy to take advantage of. Especially in a position like a young lady who received everyone’s attention.

The other ladies shook their heads and turned away.

“She’ll be fine. She’s Lady Seigan after all.”

“Right. Why worry about someone of her background? The Seigan ducal family will handle it.”

I guess that’s true? They are the Seigan ducal family, called the rulers of the west.

‘I should worry about myself.’

Leah nodded.

***

Meanwhile, Baron Durford confided his troubles to Lord Trow. He was struggling because Lady Yuria Seigan kept avoiding him.

“My lord, please help me. How can I gain Lady Yuria Seigan’s favor?”

As if such a method could exist?

It was good that he took the bait so readily, but he was an irritating fellow in many ways. Lord Trow suppressed his true feelings and stared steadily at the baron.

“Well…”

He pretended to hesitate while rubbing his chin. Then after glancing at the baron again, he shook his head slightly and wavered.

“What is it?”

“Well… hmm.”

“Don’t be like that. Tell me everything, alright?”

“I feel awkward saying this but.”

Lord Trow sighed and said.

“An innocent lady from a good family like Lady Seigan won’t easily trust you, Baron.”

It was a comment meant to inflame Baron Durford, who couldn’t resist young, beautiful ladies from good families.

As expected, the baron snorted and pleaded even more earnestly.

“That’s why I’m consulting with you, isn’t it? With Peirlily too, you and I…”

“Shh.”

Lord Trow quickly looked around and lowered his voice.

“I’m telling you this because you’re so insistent, but Lady Yuria Seigan isn’t the first lady you’ve courted.”

Baron Durford flinched at being called out. Lord Trow delivered another factual blow.

“The whole capital was in an uproar when you were courting Peirlily too.”

“Uh, umm.”

“If you really want to gain Lady Seigan’s favor, you need to make her believe this time is different.”

It was an enticing suggestion. It made sense too.

“That’s true, but how?”

“You have to show it.”

To the baron’s questioning look, Lord Trow said.

“Your sincerity, your feelings for Lady Seigan.”

The baron stared at him with his mouth hanging open, completely focused on his words. Lord Trow advised.

“Show overwhelming support for Lady Seigan that will firmly establish that everything before meant nothing, that she is your true love now.”

“Overwhelming support?”

“Yes. You know that Lady Yuria Seigan has started being called Peirose, right?”

“O-Of course I knew that!”

Baron Durford nodded vigorously.

Satisfied with his response, Lord Trow put strength in his voice.

“You’re an expert at events, aren’t you? Show everyone that Peirose is no less than Peirlily… no, that she’s even better.”

***

Early morning, in the capital’s busy district.

“Oh my goodness, what’s all this?”

An employee about to open their shop door stepped back in surprise.

The entire shopping street, just beginning to open for business, was overflowing with bright red roses.

“My word! It looks like they’re trying to cover the whole street with roses!”

“Who would do such a thing…?”

This was the first time seeing such a sight since the fan clubs had brought lilies for Peirlily’s birthday recently.

The roses filling the street were all fresh, as if they had been poured out all at once.

As the still weak morning sunlight shone down on the street, the dawn dew on the rose petals sparkled like diamonds placed on red velvet. Someone had filled the street with roses during the night.

‘Who could it be?’

Just as people’s curiosity reached its peak, the information was released.

“They say these are red roses that Baron Durford is offering to the Rose of Peiren!”

People looked at each other.

“The Rose of Peiren?”

“Not the Lily of Peiren?”

“Come on, if it was for Peirlily, they would have used lilies. These are roses.”

“So who’s this rose?”

“I heard it’s that red-haired lady who just debuted?”

The rumors spread quickly.

They said Baron Durford had fallen for a newly debuted lady and covered the capital’s streets with roses, that the lady was Lady Yuria Seigan, the princess of the west, that the baron had called her the Rose of Peiren.

“So Lady Yuria Seigan is Peirose?”

The social circles also eagerly latched onto this interesting event.

“Well, since Lady Leah Piert is Peirlily, it makes sense for Lady Yuria Seigan to be Peirose.”

“Peirlily and Peirose. The Lily and Rose of Peiren, that’s quite grand.”

“I’d like to see the two ladies together.”

“Won’t they avoid each other since they’d be compared?”

The social circles immediately became bustling. Various rumors were released and spread like wildfire.

Even Leah occasionally heard things like ‘which do you prefer between Peirose and Peirlily?’

“…Again?”

After hearing such comments for the fourth time just today at the party she was attending, she sighed.

‘Must endure. Must endure and not roast those mouths.’

She recited this mantra internally while looking for a place to get some air with a cool drink. She planned to cool off somewhere without people before her patience ran out completely.

“Phew…”

Having claimed an empty terrace, Leah leaned against the cold marble railing.

‘I wish Helix would come back soon.’

She naturally missed him. It would be nice if he would just appear now and scold her worriedly, saying ‘Leah, why are you out here alone in the cold?’ while taking her hand.

Then all the unpleasant things from today would seem to wash away completely.

‘Helix. When are you coming back?’

Would that be north? Leaning on the terrace railing, Leah looked up at the sky.

Just then, she heard voices from below.

“…so about Baron Durford.”