Chapter 5 – Part 2

Since that day, Raphael has been curious about Kristin’s situation.

A few days ago, at the Begonia Café, Kristin had invited other ladies to her home.

He had looked into Kristin’s background, and this had never happened before.

But why?

Why did she suddenly invite the noble ladies?

Raphael arrived at Kristin’s mansion shortly after one in the afternoon.

However, he was concerned about being seen in a carriage other than his own, so he deliberately chose a different carriage to arrive in.

As the carriages of the other young ladies lined up at the gates of Edith’s mansion, Raphael stood on a street corner where they could not see him, spying through a telescope on the young ladies enjoying the party in the garden.

The coachman, suspicious of the man peering inward through his small black binoculars, spoke cautiously.

“Excuse me, Your Grace, but aren’t you going inside?”

“Shh, keep quiet. I didn’t come here simply to enjoy the party. I came to check if my lady is alright.”

“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to call her out?”

“If she finds out I’m here, she will likely show her displeasure. I just came to see her face for a moment.”

Raphael had a rough idea of how strange he must appear to the coachman. The Duke, second in power only to the Emperor, might seem obsessed with a single young lady.

Watching from a distance with a telescope didn’t seem to suit him. Despite this, he wanted to confirm what was happening with Kristin. He wanted to understand why she was avoiding him and behaving differently than before.

And so, after watching for a while, Raphael stopped watching as Kristin went inside with the noble ladies, his gaze drawn to something wordlessly.

A small pond and an evergreen tree in the center of the estate.

It was the place Kristin had once spoken of. It was barely a pond at all, just stagnant water that didn’t even support fish, but she had said she loved these two spaces.

She had memories of her mother, but when she felt stifled in the mansion, she would slowly wander around, longing for the man she would soon marry.

“It’s such a dream to be married to the Duke, but if it’s a dream, I don’t want to wake up.”

Kristin Edith spoke with a lovely gaze, conveying her sincere feelings.

As Raphael recalled the Kristin of his memories, he compared her to the present Kristin.

He realized that she was very different.

“Something must have happened to Kristin. I used to think of her as just a plaything, but why do I keep worrying about her? Is this what it feels like to be rejected by someone?”

“Pardon, Your Grace?”

Raphael was overcome with an indescribable emotion.

He felt uncomfortable as if something was tightening around his heart. Unable to stand it any longer, the Duke turned to the coachman and spoke up.

“Coachman, we are returning to Rodney’s mansion.”

“Ah, yes. Understood, Your Grace.”

Raphael glanced at the mansion Kristin had entered, then climbed into the carriage.

‘It’s filthy, irritating, and unpleasant. If seeing Kristin keeps making me feel this way, maybe I should give up. But if my life is connected to Kristin’s…’

Raphael fell deep in thought.

* * *

Less than a week after Kristin’s tea party with Isabella, Venice, and Ellen, rumors of her spread throughout the Union Empire.

“Kristin Edith has become a strange person.”

“She’s not in her right mind.”

“She’s a noble lady, but she wants to live like a commoner.”

“Kristin is someone we can’t associate with.”

“She’s pitiful and sad, but a lady we can’t keep close.”

These were the kinds of rumors circulating, and Kristin knew who had likely spread them.

However, she had anticipated that there would be gossip about her. A single tea party wouldn’t have been enough to change the long-standing perception of her as anything but peculiar.

If she could play the foolish young lady as much as possible, she could inflate the rumors to give herself a loophole and make them look down on her even more, so that no matter what she did, she wouldn’t be suspected at all.

It was all part of a deliberate strategy to ensure she could seek her revenge without drawing suspicion.

She needed to evade everyone’s scrutiny.

‘They’re probably laughing at me right now,’ she thought.

But Kristin was the only one who knew what would happen within the empire over the next year. Unaware of this fact, Rose, her stepmother, heard the rumors and spoke to Kristin as she came downstairs for breakfast.

“Kristin.”

“Yes, Mother.”

Rose’s face was plastered with a smile.

Perhaps Rose found pleasure in the gossip about her stepdaughter, as she delicately clasped her hands together before handing Kristin a cup of warm tea and speaking again.

“Here, this will warm you up. I’ve heard something, you see. The young ladies who visited a few days ago seem to have spread some strange rumors. Why on earth did you invite them?”

“To reveal that our dear sister isn’t in her right mind? Clever move.”

Elena’s sarcastic remark followed.

Kristin accepted the cup from Rose and took a gentle sip.

‘I knew they would spread the rumors. Well, then there shouldn’t be any problem with buying the mine.’

Kristin’s heart grew impatient.

Since Raphael had purchased the mine less than a month after the wedding, she too had to hurry.

She had already spoken to her father, Viscount Vernon, and once she met the mine owner, she could proceed with the purchase immediately.

Since she hadn’t been able to visit the Oakley region for a few days, she needed to go today. There was one more thing she had to remember – the name of the mine owner who had put his mine up for sale.

But what was the name again?

The name of the mine owner.

Kristin tried to recall it, but the memory wouldn’t come to her.

All she knew was that Raphael had purchased a mine in the Oakley region.

Therefore, she needed to go to the real estate office in Oakley and inquire about the mine where the diamonds were hidden.

Kristin sighed lightly with concern.

Would she be able to find it?

Why could she only remember the Oakley region and nothing else about it?

“Sigh—”

“It’s understandable to sigh. But enough is enough. Stop disgracing our family and don’t hold any more parties for those young ladies. At the very least, you should have asked for my opinion before inviting them.”

“…….”

Kristin didn’t respond to Rose’s words. To be precise, she wasn’t listening to what Rose was saying. Whatever she said, it was always something harmful. Kristin didn’t want to waste her time on such words.

“Aren’t you going to answer? Are you even listening to me?”

As Rose approached Kristin, raising her voice angrily, Viscount Vernon came back from his morning stroll and entered the mansion.

“Oh, My Lord! You’re back from your morning walk.”

Seeing the Viscount’s appearance, Rose greeted him warmly and whispered in a low voice to Kristin.
“We’ll talk later, Kristin.”

“What a pity. Our mother seems angry. I would be, too. Even if she’s not your real mother, how could you throw a tea party without consulting her? And that maid of yours, Lenci, is so loyal. She’d probably play dead if you asked her to, right?”

Kristin responded to Elena’s mocking with a subtle smile. Resting her face in her hands, she leaned in closer and spoke softly.

“You know what, Elena?”

“What?”

“You don’t have anyone like Lenci, do you? Do you even have anyone who truly belongs to you?”

“What did you say? Who do you think you are, lecturing me?”

“Elena, at least I’m better off than you, don’t you think?”

Elena’s face flushed with anger at Kristin’s calm retort. Kristin maintained her composed demeanor, which only infuriated Elena further.

“You arrogant—”

Before Elena could finish, Kristin stood up, her gaze unwavering.

“I’m not interested in arguing with you, Elena. Unlike you, I have more important things to deal with.”

Elena’s eyes widened with disbelief and rage, but she couldn’t find the words to respond.

“What are you two talking about?”

Viscount Vernon asked as he pulled out a chair and sat down. Elena quickly changed her expression and responded brightly.

“I was just worried because sister didn’t look well. Father, how was your morning walk?”

“Actually,” he began, “I went to the bank today.”

At the mention of the bank, both Elena and Rose turned their attention to him. Kristin also looked at her father, concerned.

“Why did you go to the bank suddenly, My Lord?” Rose inquired.

“Well, Kristin, after we finish our meal, come up to my study. I think we need to discuss that information you told me about before.”

Kristin felt concerned at her father’s words.

What if she was told that there wasn’t enough money to buy it?

What if he told her that they couldn’t afford to buy the mine? What if he said the information about the mine wasn’t trustworthy and refused to proceed?

Her face grew pale as she nervously set down her teacup, her hand trembling slightly.

“Yes, Father. I understand.”

Rose, observing the exchange between Kristin and the Viscount, signaled one of the servants. As the servant approached, handing over a note in an attempt to uncover their secret.