Tucking her hair behind her ear, she smiled slightly.

Look at Shailyn’s elegant face!

With her natural beauty and the solid support of the Duke of Diart, she didn’t appear as unsophisticated as the young lady suggested.

The young lady seemed to notice this too, as her lips twisted slightly.

“You must have felt good. I’ve passed the stage of boasting about such things long ago.”

She stepped closer and placed her hand on my shoulder.

Her nails were neatly trimmed, adorned with flashy rings and bracelets.

“But do you know something?”

The young lady whispered as if sharing a secret.

“When people see a well-groomed pedigree dog, they find it cute and feel proud of its owner.”

“……”

“But they look down on a dog brought from the countryside, seeing it as dirty. The owner feels embarrassed, and the party host is displeased.”

She gripped my shoulder tightly and added quietly.

“A dirty mongrel spoils the water.”

Ah, I see.

I think I understand why she suddenly picked a fight with me.

‘She’s upset because I’m getting attention at her party.’

If I were Deborah, having the Young Lady of Diart attend would elevate the party’s status.

But I’m just a count’s daughter with only half of Diart’s blood.

I don’t possess any special abilities, nor was I known in the capital before.

To the young lady, I seemed like an eyesore, lowering the party’s prestige.

“A perceptive dog would sit quietly in a corner to avoid embarrassing its owner, staying out of others’ eyes.”

Her red lips curved into a smile, subtly telling me to disappear quietly.

After saying something that could hurt someone, her expression finally shifted, her eyes narrowing slightly.

I looked directly into her arrogant red eyes.

Having listened this far, I figured I could say my piece now.

“Why should a dog be blamed? It’s the people with discriminatory views who are at fault.”

“……What?”

The smile vanished from her pretty face.

Treating someone like a mongrel and then getting upset over this?

I placed my hand on her shoulder and leaned toward her.

“When I see such people, I wonder how little they have to boast about to divide and classify based on trivial standards.”

“……”

“Aren’t they just pathetic? What do you think, young lady?”

My provocation made the young lady’s brow furrow. Her expression faltered, eyes turning sharp.

“How dare you speak to me like this—”

Just as she opened her mouth to retort,

“There are all kinds of people in the world, and they have various thoughts.”

The platinum blonde, who had been silently observing, suddenly interjected.

With a serene face, he followed up with unexpected words.

“As a servant of the gods, I wish to express my agreement with Lady Sharofe’s thoughts, loving everyone equally.”

“……Really?”

You’re taking my side here? Not your partner, the young lady?

‘I thought you’d ignore me like last time…’

Feeling a bit conflicted, I looked at him as he placed his hand over his chest and smiled brightly.

“Of course, the gods do not discriminate against any lamb.”

His softly curving eyes and gentle voice blended together.

His face was truly a divine gift to humanity, beautiful as it was.

“……Raviel.”

The young lady turned her head sharply to glare at him, her eyes sharp.

The platinum blonde calmly placed the young lady’s hand on his arm.

“Shall we go, Johanna? Many are waiting for our greetings.”

“You…”

“There are many eyes watching.”

At his words, the young lady bit her lip and reluctantly took a step.

She turned away without even a farewell. Instead, the platinum blonde gave me a nod.

‘…What was that?’

He winked slightly, leaving me a bit flustered.

It seemed like he deliberately took the young lady away to help me.

As I stood there puzzled, someone lightly tapped my shoulder.

“Sister, what are you doing?”

It was Deborah, who had disappeared for a while.

“Huh? Oh, I was just resting. Where did you go?”

“I met someone I knew and had a chat. Are you done dancing?”

I shook my head, saying I planned to dance more.

After that, I danced with blond men until my calves were sore, but none gave me the feeling of ‘this is the male lead!’

In the end, the party at Duke Celsior’s residence concluded without any significant gains.

What I did gain were insights into why Deborah disliked the young lady of Celsior and a successful mission.

— Ding!

【Third Mission Clear!

Thanks to today’s party, your name will start to spread in high society~!

Like a romance novel heroine, let’s make your name known, shall we? (ง*`˘´*)ง

This mission’s reward comes in two parts!

One is a hint about the male protagonist, and the other is a ‘Chance Usage Ticket.’

Hint: Among the people you met at the party today, there are multiple male protagonists.

Chance Usage Ticket: Use this when a difficult problem arises during a mission for assistance.】

The hint wasn’t too surprising. There were so many blondes that I figured there might be a male lead among them.

Is that why they gave two rewards?

Anyway, since there were at least two male leads, I couldn’t just sit idly by.

* * *

After that day.

I started sending letters to the blondes I saw at the party, one by one.

The content was all the same.

I’m Shailyn Sharofe, let’s become friends!

I needed to determine if they were the male lead.

Deborah looked at me with disbelief every day as I wrote tirelessly.

“Sister, why are you so eager to keep in touch with those young men…?”

“Didn’t you hear from Grandfather? I came to the capital to find a husband, Deborah.”

I need to meet my 5 billion lottery ticket again.

Deborah, perhaps genuinely unaware, widened her eyes and exclaimed.

“What? You’re already thinking about marriage at your age!”

“I’m nineteen.”

“That’s too early! Why not take it slow? I’ll take good care of you.”

Though her words were kind, I wanted to return to my original world as soon as possible.

Who would want to stay in a game world forever?

‘No matter how kind and pretty they are, they’re just game characters.’

Of course, I hid these thoughts and placated Deborah, who was whining.

After handing the letters to a maid to be sent, I headed to the garden to enjoy tea time with Deborah.

“Deborah, I have something to ask.”

“What is it?”

“Is it true you postponed joining the Magic Tower?”

I wanted to ask earlier but had been too busy preparing for the party.

Deborah hesitated, looking as if she’d been ambushed, before nodding slowly.

“……Yes.”

“Why? You wanted to join.”

I couldn’t understand why she was giving up after working so hard to pass the entrance exam.

After hesitating for a while, Deborah finally spoke.

“If I join the Magic Tower without permission, Dad will… blame you. I don’t want you to suffer because of me anymore.”

Her unexpected answer surprised me a little.

Well, I did pay for her and helped her escape to take the exam…

‘The Duke would blame me.’

Deborah, looking somewhat downcast, continued fiddling with her fingers.

“Honestly, at first, I was upset because I thought Dad brought you here. But after spending time with you, I realized Dad…”

She couldn’t finish her sentence and fell silent.

But I had a feeling I knew what she was going to say.

‘Deborah noticed that the Duke doesn’t particularly like me.’

Still, it didn’t matter to me.

I didn’t come here to be loved, and it’s a relief they haven’t kicked me out.

I conveyed these sentiments to Deborah in a more palatable way.

“Don’t worry about me and do what you want. It’s true I encouraged you, so if the Duke blames me, I’ll just have to accept it.”

“But… I still don’t have the confidence to persuade Dad.”

“Don’t try to persuade him. Just be honest about your feelings and intentions. But don’t get angry or speak harshly.”

I advised, recalling their tense father-daughter arguments.

Deborah nodded hesitantly, lacking confidence.

“Lady Shailyn, you have a visitor.”

Paul approached us with unexpected news.

“Sister, did you have an appointment?”

“No? Who’s the guest?”

Confused, I asked, and Paul revealed the visitor’s name.

“…What? Is that true? Where are they now?”

Stunned by the unexpected identity, I immediately went to meet the person.