20. God Has Not Abandoned Me Yet

Her impression was much colder and sharper than Judy had expected. Especially, the raised eyes and the gaze full of caution toward others made Judy tense up a little.

Still, as Countess Yumelia smiled politely at them, Judy also showed her manners.

“Thank you for inviting us, Countess Yumelia.”

“I should thank you more for accepting such a sudden invitation.”

“Oh, just a moment.”

Judy gestured, and the maid behind her came forward and handed her flowers.

“I thought it would be rude to come empty-handed after being invited, so I prepared these.”

They were lush, beautiful tulips. Upon seeing them, Countess Yumelia’s eyes widened and Judy noticed she was sinking into complex emotions.

Because she recognized the mix of happiness, sadness, and longing in Countess Yumelia, Judy waited quietly. Only after a while did Countess Yumelia finally reach out and take the tulips.

“They are beautiful flowers.”

Judy sensed the slight tremble in her voice and realized that Countess Yumelia had safely taken one step into the plan she had prepared. As Countess Yumelia leaned toward the tulips to smell them, her face relaxed.

“Oh, everyone who received invitations has arrived. I’ll take you inside.”

Yumelia, holding the tulips, personally led them to the parlor. As Judy followed, she looked around the decorated house. As rumored, the mansion was decorated in purple. Elegant, luxurious, and mysterious, the majority of the space was purple, and Judy slowly blended into the atmosphere as they arrived at the parlor.

The waiting servants opened the door, and Judy entered with Theo.

“Welcome, Young Duke Crawford.”

“Nice to meet you for the first time, Lady Asilly Leroni.”

Some stood up to greet them, while others simply stayed in their seats with indifferent expressions. It was clear that their lukewarm attitude was more about Judy’s presence than Theo’s. Still, they were careful not to upset Theo, watching him closely.

“There are some I’m meeting for the first time, and some I’ve seen at social gatherings. I’m here today thanks to Countess Yumelia’s invitation. I’m happy to spend this time together.”

Judy announced her arrival confidently, without shrinking back. She headed for the two empty seats. Sitting was a little scary, but she couldn’t stand the whole time, so she perched carefully, avoiding letting her sore backside touch the chair. She didn’t know how long she could keep this posture, but for now, she focused on the gathering.

She carefully observed the nobles around her: royalty, nobles in banking, art and literature, knights, advisors, chief justices, treasury families, and more. Truly, Countess Yumelia’s invitation had gathered nobles from all walks of life.

“Oh! I recently bought a magnificent horse from the south. I’d like to show it off and have a men’s talk—how about it?”

Count Rovalya, Yumelia’s husband, asked openly. His acting was so awkward that Judy could easily guess he was in on it with his wife and all the noblewomen present.

“Shall we?”

“I was curious about the horse you bought, especially since southern horses are said to be very expensive.”

“I think I heard about it too. Let’s go see it.”

Everyone stood up as if they had been waiting, except for Theo.

He leaned back on the sofa, showing no interest in the men getting up, and quietly watched only Judy.

“Are you not going, Young Duke Crawford?”

“I’ll stay here. I’m not really interested.”

Judy quietly shook her head at Theo’s lack of tact, thinking he should join the others.

“Go with them, Theo. See the horse.”

I’ll be fine alone.

She conveyed the rest with a blink. Theo seemed to understand and stood up, casting a big shadow with his sturdy build that made the ladies’ eyes widen.

He was bigger than most Imperial Knights, and among the men in the room, none could match his physique.

“Talk among yourselves. I’ll be back soon.”

He spoke kindly to Judy and gave a warning glance to the other noble ladies. The men all left together, leaving only the noblewomen, who disliked Judy, in the parlor.

As soon as the door closed, they all sat up straighter and glanced at Judy.

“I’m not good at indirect speech.”

A noblewoman, well established in art and literature, spoke up. She had seemed particularly cold toward Judy since entering the room.

“I attended your engagement, you know, Lady Asilly.”

“Did you? Thank you for coming, even though you must have been busy.”

Even with Judy’s sincere thanks, the noblewoman’s smile didn’t soften.

“Thinking about the commotion that happened that day… It’s really embarrassing…”

Who knows what she imagined, but she fanned herself and looked around for agreement. Her scheme worked; everyone nodded in sympathy.

“What I want to say is this: I hope you won’t use the Crawford Dukedom’s name to get too close to other nobles.”

She spoke sharply. Judy had expected this, so she wasn’t fazed. She was just thirsty after the long journey, so she poured water into her empty glass and took a sip, smiling calmly.

“I believe you could easily misunderstand. Especially if you didn’t see it yourself and only heard from others.”

What?

The noblewoman didn’t say it aloud, but her neat eyebrows furrowed.

“That’s how rumors work. People see a bit, add their own ideas, and speak as if it’s fact. Did you see the commotion yourself that day?”

The noblewoman was momentarily lost for words and looked away. Another noblewoman sitting beside her spoke up.

“In fact, Lady Leroni, you have caused trouble more than just that day.”

She couldn’t refute it—she hadn’t been Asilly for long…

“I’ll speak since I ‘saw it myself,’ as Lady Leroni said. Lady Leroni, you slapped my maid for no reason, so I scolded you, and you did something to me.”

“…….”

What did she do? If it was Asilly…

“Don’t pretend you don’t remember. When I walked by, you stuck your foot out and made me fall, so I spent weeks in bed with a broken bone!”

The noblewoman shouted, recalling the incident. The more Judy learned about Asilly, the more disgusting she seemed.

All the emotions aimed at Judy were full of contempt. Judy had to defend herself and restore her image here. She racked her brain, but nothing came to mind, so she decided to act humble.

“I’m sorry. But that’s also a misunderstanding. At that time… a bug crawled under my skirt… I was trying to shake it out quietly so no one would be startled, and it happened like that. It was bad timing.”

“…….”

Judy shrugged her shoulders and even teared up.

“I should have visited and apologized sooner… I’m really sorry.”

“Hah… You shouldn’t lie so much. Who would believe that? I can’t stay here. Sorry, I’ll leave first.”

The noblewoman, unable to take it anymore, stood up to leave. Because of the long sofa, she had to pass in front of several other ladies, but suddenly she cried out, “Ah!” and fell forward.

At that moment, something flashed through Judy’s mind.

God… has not abandoned me.