03 

Elsia’s eyes widened in shock, but the servant ignored her reaction and looked at Richel, scratching his head.  

“The dresses I ordered will arrive soon. Move them carefully to my dressing room so they don’t get dirty.”  

“Yes, understood.”  

Only after Olive, the servant, left did Richel turn to Elsia with a satisfied smile, as if to say she had been right.  

“So, what do you think? Do you believe me now? Those two were experimental subjects I managed to find in advance. When the color of the gem changed, I asked about their compatibility, and they said their bodies communicated perfectly.”  

“….”  

Richel had shown her proof, but Elsia still didn’t want to accept that the necklace revealed physical compatibility.  

“If you still don’t believe me, should I call them in and let you hear for yourself? Want to check?”  

Noticing Elsia’s lingering doubts, Richel made an embarrassing suggestion. At her words, Elsia’s face gradually turned red.  

“No. There’s no need for that.”  

Elsia had no choice but to believe Richel’s confident words, and at the same time, she felt bitter.  

‘So Richel’s necklace was real….’  

Now, she had no choice but to trust Richel’s words.  

Seeing it with her own eyes left Elsia confused, and the curiosity she had tried to suppress only grew stronger.  

‘What’s so important about compatibility?’  

Normally, Elsia could suppress her curiosity, even when she learned something that might add excitement to her boring life.  

But after seeing the color change and hearing Richel’s explanation, it felt like her patience was at its limit.  

It was as if something deep inside was urging Elsia not to hold back.  

‘I can’t just let this go.’  

Suddenly, Elsia didn’t want to get married without ever knowing the joy of perfect compatibility.  

If she married, she would have to spend her whole life with Mars, and now her life felt pitiful if she had to live without knowing that happiness.  

“The necklace isn’t one hundred percent accurate, right? Isn’t that what you said?”  

Suppressing her curiosity as hard as she could, Elsia wanted to deny reality and asked Richel again. It was her last effort to reject the misfortune her future seemed to promise.  

If she admitted Richel’s words, her feelings toward Mars would only grow more negative, and she couldn’t let that happen.  

“It’s almost always right. Or do you want to test it yourself? What about suggesting to Lord Mars that you check your compatibility together?”  

Judging by Richel’s expression, it seemed she was half-joking. But her suggestion made something flash quickly through Elsia’s mind.  

That’s right. There was always the option to check directly.  

“You’re right. Checking directly isn’t a bad idea. But rather than with Lord Mars, it’d be better to find a man whose gem changes color and experience it with him.”  

In the end, Elsia’s patience ran out, and her heart was filled with curiosity about compatibility.  

Elsia thought it would be better to spend time with a man who matched her than to waste more time with Mars, who didn’t.  

“Are you serious?”  

Richel was startled and asked. Apparently, her suggestion to experience it directly had been a joke.  

Normally, Elsia would have been scared and run away, but this time, she didn’t avoid it and wanted to experience it herself, which surprised Richel.  

“Now that I know Lord Mars and I aren’t compatible, I don’t think I can get married like this. I want to find a man whose gem changes color and check if we really match first. What if I’m not satisfied? Only after I feel that we don’t match can I dream of a happy family with Lord Mars.”  

“Wouldn’t it be better not to know from the start? If you really match, you might never forget that body for the rest of your life. If you meet someone who matches and then meet someone who doesn’t, you’ll always be dissatisfied. Are you sure? Think again. Everyone else lives well even if they don’t match. Right?”  

Richel, who had been encouraging her, was now trying to stop Elsia as if she’d never done so.  

The more Richel tried to stop her, the more something inside Elsia burned. Being told not to do it only made her want it more.  

“No. I think secretly experiencing it wouldn’t be so bad.”  

“What will you do if Earl Portman finds out?”  

Richel asked with worried eyes.  

“He’ll only meet me for a day and then it’ll be over. So Father won’t find out.”  

Since Elsia’s childhood injury, Earl Portman had restricted her actions.  

He’d quietly forbid her from going out alone, interfere with her friends, and so on—all for her sake.  

Elsia understood her father’s worries and usually obeyed him, but sometimes she felt a contradictory urge to break the rules.  

And that necklace and Richel had stirred up those feelings.  

She didn’t have the courage to break off the engagement, but she wanted to rebel in secret from her father.  

Honestly, it had always felt suffocating. Life as planned was comfortable but also boring and stifling.  

So, this time, Elsia decided to pursue her first and last rebellion.  

But there were some problems. She couldn’t go alone, so she needed to pick a discreet bodyguard and pay him hush money.  

And most importantly, she needed an alibi to fool her father.  

“You know I can’t go out freely, right? Can you help me, Richel?”  

So Elsia had to ask Richel for help. If she stayed out overnight to meet Richel, her father would understand.  

“Are you serious?”  

Richel asked again with surprised eyes. Elsia nodded vigorously.  

“Oh my, the naive young lady is finally waking up to the world.”  

Richel smiled, surprised but amused.  

“Who encouraged me in the first place?”  

“Me?”  

Richel denied it, as if she hadn’t. She kept teasing Elsia by encouraging and then withdrawing.  

When Elsia kept staring at her, Richel finally nodded.  

“Alright.”  

Richel accepted Elsia’s proposal.  

She would create an alibi and help Elsia find a man with matching compatibility.  

“I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing.”  

Even after agreeing to help, Richel still tilted her head.  

She wasn’t sure if helping Elsia would be good or bad for her, so Richel lacked confidence in her decision.  

“I’ll take all the responsibility. Just help me.”  

“Fine, since it’s come to this, let’s enjoy a little rebellion before marriage together!”  

In the end, Richel gave in and fully supported Elsia’s plan.  

* * *

Elsia put on the mask Richel handed her and followed her into a building. It must have been a secret place, as there were stairs leading down to the basement.  

“It’s dark, be careful.”  

Going down pitch-black stairs in a voluminous dress was no easy task.  

Elsia carefully followed Richel so she wouldn’t fall.  

At the end of the stairs was a small light, and in front of it were two doorkeepers.  

When Richel handed them a piece of paper, they opened the door to let Richel and Elsia inside.  

“Let’s go in, Elsia.”  

Richel took Elsia’s hand and led her inside.  

As soon as she stepped in, Elsia’s eyes went wide like a rabbit’s. She had never imagined such a spacious and lavish area hidden underground.  

Under a grand, ornate chandelier, every spot touched by the light sparkled gold, as if sprinkled with gold dust.  

They had entered a secret club of the night. It was a space where masked couples could hide their faces and do many things.  

On one side, there were casinos, slave auctions, and all sorts of illegal activities happening openly, while on another side, there was a banquet similar to those she usually attended, but in a different style.  

Instead of gentle music, intense, fast-paced music played, and instead of people waltzing gracefully, she saw people shaking their bodies wildly.  

Elsia couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She’d never imagined such a secret place could exist within the imperial palace.  

“There’s a place like this…. Richel, how did you find out?”  

“You’re the only one who doesn’t know, Elsia. Everyone who needs to know already knows. You’re just unaware because you’re a good daughter who never disobeys the Earl.”  

Elsia rubbed her eyes in disbelief and looked around again.  

At the usual balls she attended, people behaved properly and with restraint, but not here.  

It was full of lawless people. Judging by their clothes, they were nobles or wealthy merchants.  

There were people staggering drunk, people fighting, people dancing in ways never seen in society…. There were a few decent people, but most were behaving badly.  

In the distance, a green-haired man was dancing n*ked, and a purple-haired man had women on both sides, doing strange things.  

A red-haired man in the center was flirting with every woman who came near. Even Elsia, seeing them for the first time, thought they must be regulars.  

She frowned without realizing it.  

“Surprised by what you’re seeing for the first time? Can you handle it? Should we just go back?”  

Richel noticed Elsia’s shock and asked with worried eyes.  

“No, I’m fine.”  

Elsia looked at the others besides the lawless ones.  

Not everyone was strange. There were people who attended out of curiosity after hearing rumors, and people looking for lovers, like Richel and Elsia.  

They glanced around, checking out others, and frowned at the rude behavior of some.  

“Just this once. Out of all these people, there might really be someone who matches me. I can’t just leave after coming all this way.”  

Elsia felt certain that among the many people here, there would be someone compatible with her. So she didn’t want to go home right away.  

“Alright.”  

Richel seemed to give up persuading Elsia, took two glasses from a passing servant, and handed one to Elsia.  

“What’s this for?”  

It was a glass of champagne.  

Elsia sniffed it and frowned.  

She knew Richel was aware she didn’t drink well, so it was strange for Richel to hand her alcohol.  

“Look around. Everyone’s holding a glass, right?”  

At Richel’s words, Elsia looked around and saw many people shaking their glasses.  

“If you see someone you like, just raise your glass and shake it a little. It’s a signal that you want to talk. If the other person is interested, they’ll shake their glass back.”  

Elsia nodded and took the glass.  

“Take your glass and go to the center.”  

Following Richel’s instructions, Elsia squeezed through the crowd to the center, glass in hand.  

Since she was rebelling in secret from her parents, her heart seemed to beat twice as fast as usual.  

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Elsia was startled.  

The color of Richel’s necklace had turned white.