Chapter 5

“Is that woman sitting over there really the Duchess of Winderton?”

“She certainly is beautiful. I heard she’s the youngest daughter the Duke of Scarlett cherished so dearly…”

Today was the day of the party welcoming the new Duchess of Winderton.

Those attending the party were either vassal families of House Winderton or nobles who had ties with the Duke.

“So what, she’s still the daughter of House Scarlett.”

In other words, there wasn’t a single noble here who truly welcomed me.

They made brief remarks about my appearance, then soon began to regard me with cold eyes.

Already, rumors had spread throughout Lubotel, the Winderton domain, that I was the duchess who hadn’t even spent her wedding night properly.

“Look over there, the Duke isn’t even glancing at her.”

“Oh dear, how pitiful…”

The voices of the ladies pitying me echoed painfully in my ears.

Of course, since it was all true, I couldn’t refute a thing.

Beside me was a seat meant for Edward, but it sat empty.

Edward, its rightful owner, was chatting with his vassals far away.

At a banquet celebrating a newlywed duke and duchess, the couple ignoring each other was a bad look.

‘Thanks to this, I think I’ve received a lifetime’s worth of pity all at once…’

Though I was the guest of honor, I sat bored in my chair, eating only the fruit Betty had brought me, unable to receive even a simple congratulation.

I wished I could feel only boredom or only discomfort, but I felt both at once.

‘I should just leave.’

I realized that staying in the banquet hall would only make things harder for me.

The party would go on without me, so I thought it would be fine to leave now and stood up from my seat.

“Are you leaving already?”

If not for Edward’s voice suddenly appearing by my side, I would have already left the hall.

He was the kind of man who only showed up when he wasn’t needed.

“Is there any reason for me to stay?”

With all the vassals and other nobles watching, he wouldn’t dare to sneer at me here.

“It’s a party held for you, so of course you should stay.”

Today, his way of tormenting me was to keep me trapped in the banquet hall.

“I think everyone would enjoy the party more if I weren’t here. Should I still stay?”

“As expected from Scarlett blood—so willful, just like the rest.”

It was the one thing I hated hearing most.

Just hearing it made my heart pound and my blood run cold.

“What… what did you say?”

“I said you’re all the same. The childish Emperor who gives foolish orders, the Duke he favors, and you, coming to Winderton Castle the moment you had the chance. You’re all the same kind.”

It was horrible.

So this is how it feels to be lumped in with the people I despise the most.

“Think whatever you like. No matter what I say, you’ll only see things your own way, won’t you?”

Even if I said the people I hate most are the Scarletts, he would never believe me.

To Edward, I would look just like everyone else from Scarlett.

“Sigh…”

The thought of leaving the banquet hall disappeared.

If I walked out now, it would only give those who hated me an excuse to talk behind my back.

‘Fine, it’s better to endure.’

When I sat back down and looked around the hall, I saw nobles with obvious looks of disappointment.

They must have been waiting for me to leave so they could start gossiping.

Seeing those faces, I felt like I’d made the right choice.

“Are you not leaving?”

“No, I won’t. Like you said, I am the guest of honor at this party.”

The party didn’t end until long after midnight.

After it was over, Edward moved to another room to talk with his vassals, and I returned to my bedroom with Betty.

“My lady, you must be tired. Please get some rest.”

“Yeah…”

After changing into comfortable clothes, Betty helped me into bed and tucked me in.

“Sleep well, my lady.”

“You too, Betty.”

After Betty left and the bedroom grew dark, I closed my eyes tightly.

‘That’s right. You got through another day, Lirie.’

**

Strangely, I woke up early.

When I looked at the clock on the nightstand, I saw it was still the early hours of the morning.

I pressed the call bell a few times, but no one came, so it seemed everyone was still asleep.

Grabbing my unsteady legs, I got out of bed and left the bedroom, seeing the brightening halls of Winderton Castle.

My mouth felt dry, and I was thirsty, so I started walking to get some water.

“Is no one around…?”

Rubbing my eyes, which still weren’t open properly, I filled a large cup with water and headed back.

On my way back, I noticed a room with its light on.

A sense of foreboding filled my whole body, warning me not to go, but my curiosity was stronger, so I cautiously made my way toward the lit room.

‘Huh…?’

Peeking through the slightly open door, I saw the maids gathered inside.

So they really did ignore my call.

If it had been Edward who pressed the call bell, this never would have happened. It was because it was me—they ignored it.

My head throbbed from early in the morning, but I tried to let it go and was about to return to my bedroom.

“How long do we have to keep waiting on that woman?”

“That’s what I’m saying! Did you see how she acts with us? Just because she’s the lady of the house…”

At the harsh gossip stabbing into my ears as I was about to leave, my eyes flew open and any remaining sleep vanished.

I knew they didn’t acknowledge me, but I hadn’t realized it was this bad.

It was a forced marriage by the Emperor’s command, so I hadn’t expected the servants’ loyalty.

All I wanted was for the staff to do their basic duties toward the lady of the house, but if they couldn’t even manage that, they must really despise me.

If I kept listening, I’d only end up hurt, so I decided to go back.

Just as I was about to turn away, I heard a name from the maids that stopped me in my tracks.

“Lady Sasha is so pitiful!”

“That’s right… Honestly, if it weren’t for that woman from House Scarlett, our lady of the house would have been Lady Sasha.”

I couldn’t bear to listen to their gossip any longer, but that unfamiliar name—Sasha—caught me.

Sasha.

It was unmistakably a woman’s name.

From the way the maids spoke and acted, she seemed like someone they looked up to.

Since they said she would have been the lady of the house if it weren’t for me, it seemed that Edward had been in marriage talks with her.

“But won’t they get divorced soon?”

“I mean, with the Emperor’s command, they’ll stay married for a while, but… Lady Sasha is the only woman His Grace keeps by his side.”

Even as I listened to the maids, I couldn’t understand.

Could Edward really be in love with someone?

In the short time I’d known him, Edward never seemed like a man suited to feelings like love.

He was cold, like love was just a trivial emotion to be dismissed, so it didn’t fit that a man like him had a woman he loved.

‘Who in the world is this woman named Sasha…’

The more I heard about this Sasha, the more curious I became.

Maybe she was smarter than me. Maybe she was wise, compassionate, and truly understood Edward’s heart.

Whatever the case, she was probably better than I was. That must be why Edward let her stay by his side.

‘Of all the reasons Edward hates me, one of them must be that woman named Sasha.’

I felt a pang of sadness.

If we hadn’t met like this, maybe we could have had a better relationship—just that tiny hope used to get me through, but it was always impossible.

‘If I hadn’t married Edward, he would have married Sasha. There never could have been a good relationship between us.’

My heart throbbed.

I told myself it was just because I’d heard something so upsetting first thing in the morning.

The maids, not knowing I was listening, talked about Edward and Sasha and wished for a new mistress.

As I listened to their words, I wondered.

‘What does a woman named Sasha mean to Edward?’

How does Edward feel about Sasha? What kind of relationship do they have?

A thousand thoughts swirled in my head.

The only woman Edward keeps by his side, the one the Winderton servants trust and follow.

For the staff of the house to place such trust in someone other than their own mistress, she couldn’t be just anybody.

As I kept thinking about their relationship, I could only come to one conclusion.

But I didn’t want to admit it. No matter how much I tried to deny it, listening to the maids made it impossible.

‘Edward has a lover…’

A man who didn’t suit the word love at all, having a lover—it made me feel wretched.