For the past two weeks, her fiancé—no, soon-to-be ex-fiancé—looked at Selina with eyes that seemed to say he had expected something like this would happen eventually.

She glared at Eric in frustration.

‘All this happened because of that guy.’

Selina felt wronged.

She wasn’t truly a villainess.

Though she stood to gain exclusive rights, she would have refused from the start if she thought it would truly harm Ingrid.

She had agreed to help the baron’s daughter find happiness with the childish but sincere Crown Prince who loved her.

Selina had planned to formally apologize to Ingrid once Eric and Ingrid became engaged.

She believed the kind-hearted Ingrid, who never returned her apologetic gifts, would understand everything.

While Selina played the villainess, Ingrid’s gentleness and purity stood out, gradually starting a trend in society to see the person rather than their family background.

Eric’s strategy was somewhat brilliant as it showcased how deeply he cherished Ingrid to both the imperial family and high society.

Though Selina became a villainess, she thought it acceptable to temporarily sacrifice her reputation if it helped overcome the high wall of status differences.

But now she found herself accused of causing an incident that affected diplomatic relations between empires.

The victim was the second princess of Furon, and Selina certainly had no alibi for when the dress was torn.

Crown Prince Eric, who could resolve everything, seemed determined not to step forward.

“If you have nothing more to say than that you didn’t do it, perhaps we should inform His Majesty and investigate the truth.”

“To not even offer an apology in this situation is truly remarkable.”

Despite such comments, Selina merely bit her lip.

‘Apologize…… I absolutely cannot.’

This wouldn’t end simply as the crime of ruining one imperial dress.

The Arsen family owned an international merchant guild and was about to enter a joint venture with the Patel family.

If Selina apologized to escape the immediate crisis, she would be admitting guilt, and if rumors spread, it would affect the guild.

As the only legitimate daughter of Count Arsen, Selina had even agreed to an advantageous engagement to avoid being overshadowed by her stepmother, stepbrother, and half-brother.

If this incident escalated, she might even be asked to step down as acting head of the family.

‘I absolutely cannot allow that.’

She needed some way to escape this situation.

“Lady, couldn’t you just tell us where you were and what you were doing at that time?”

By this point, Princess Helena spoke to Selina as if pitying her.

“I…… was with someone else.”

“Who? Multiple people? If they’re not here, bring them to testify.”

“Ah, that……”

Eric frantically signaled with his eyes that this was absolutely forbidden.

“Your Highness, is there…… something wrong with your eyes?”

Ingrid, watching from the side, commented. Ahem, Eric cleared his throat and said:

“How…… uncomfortable for my eyes to witness such an unfortunate incident. Perhaps we should remove that dress first?”

But Princess Helena sharply objected:

“No. This is evidence of a crime. After Lady Selina tells us who she was with and we secure that person’s testimony, then we’ll decide whether to remove it or not.”

‘She won’t even let us destroy the evidence.’

Eric ran his hand over his face.

‘How did it come to this.’

He knew what he was doing wasn’t rational, but it was necessary for this relationship to work.

Recently, they had secretly gone on several dates, and people had begun saying they were the most well-matched couple in high society when standing together.

With the goal in sight, he couldn’t back down now.

‘I’m sorry, comrade. You’ll have to find your own way out. I’ll definitely give you the exclusive rights no matter what.’

Seeing Eric subtly turn away, Selina closed her eyes in despair.

‘That jerk…… He’s planning to bail.’

Never had she felt the aptness of Eric’s nickname, “the Lucky Crown Prince,” more keenly than now.

Others took the blows meant for him, others did all the work while he, as Crown Prince, claimed the merit.

That was the nature of his position as the one and only Crown Prince recognized by the Emperor as the next in line.

Thanks to this, Eric could comfortably focus solely on his first love.

‘While framing others for crimes, no less.’

Looking at Selina’s self-deprecating smile, Young Lord Patel asked with obvious displeasure:

“Who were you with? If you’re so confident, bring them here.”

‘As if it’s not a lie anyway.’

She could almost hear the unspoken accusation.

“The person I was with……”

All eyes focused on her. Selina spoke as if giving up:

“I cannot reveal their name.”

“Are you joking right now?”

“Does this seem like a trivial matter to you?”

“This warrants an imperial court trial!”

Amid the heightened tensions, someone entered the lounge.

“His Grace the Grand Duke has arrived.”

It was Zenus Justia, the only Grand Duke of the Sepaia Empire.

Though the same age as Crown Prince Eric and his cousin, he was already a war veteran of five campaigns.

The hero of Sepaia who inherited the mysterious dragon power said to be passed down only to those of imperial bloodline.

Zenus, who claimed victory every time he took the field, was now revered by all citizens of the Empire as a god of war.

“I pay my respects to the small sun of the Empire, Your Highness Crown Prince Eric.”

Will Chase, Zenus’s adjutant and childhood friend, greeted alongside him. He smoothly continued:

“The Grand Duke wonders what conversation was taking place.”

Will often conveyed Zenus’s intentions on his behalf, as the Grand Duke was extremely taciturn and disliked appearing before people.

“The Grand Duke would surely be surprised to hear this.”

“Her Highness Princess Helena of Furon, the guest of honor at this banquet……”

Everyone rushed to explain what had happened in the lounge.

Both Zenus and Will had often headed back to the battlefield as soon as they returned to the capital due to the frequent wars between Autumn and Sepaia.

With so few opportunities to see them and talk face to face, everyone eagerly tried to add at least one more word to the conversation.

‘What should I do.’

Selina, separated from the heated crowd, pondered how to resolve the situation.

Suddenly, she felt a steady gaze upon her. When she carefully looked in that direction, her eyes met Zenus’s.

The red eyes of one who possessed the dragon’s power were undoubtedly directed at Selina.

‘Does His Grace suspect me too? Just from hearing their words?’

Selina had immediately lowered her head when their eyes met, but now she cautiously raised it again.

Zenus was still looking at her.

As if no one else in the lounge existed except Selina.

‘That’s not the look of someone suspecting me as the culprit. Rather……’

Selina shook her head, dismissing her momentary absurd thought.

‘What am I imagining? That he might have feelings for me? And in this situation, no less. I need to find a way out of this predicament.’

Before Selina could devise a plan, the explanations around her concluded.

“We believe the culprit is obviously Lady Arsen, who caused an incident recently as well.”

“She’s the only one who can’t properly explain where she was and what she was doing at that time.”

“All she says is that she didn’t do it.”

Morgan, who had declared his intention to break their engagement, pressed her:

“So who were you with? Why can’t you say? Surely you’re not now claiming that was a lie?”

Nodding at Morgan’s words, Princess Helena said:

“Lady Arsen, if you don’t explain properly, everyone will think you did it.”

She couldn’t reveal the truth, nor could she admit to and apologize for something she hadn’t done.

Though it might seem brazen, Selina could only repeat what she had said before:

“As I mentioned earlier, I was with someone else. But who that person is……”

“With me.”

A pleasant baritone voice resonated deeply.

Everyone present was startled and looked at the speaker.

The voice was neither particularly loud nor soft, yet everyone in the room could hear it.

‘What did he just say? With me?’

Selina also looked at Zenus with half-belief.

Despite the flood of stares, Zenus’s eyes remained fixed solely on Selina.

“You could have just said you were with me. You’ve suffered unnecessarily over something so simple.”

The nobles began to murmur.

“Is…… is it true?”

“She was with His Grace the Grand Duke?”

“Impossible.”

“But His Grace isn’t one to make up stories.”

Morgan, who had been aggressively questioning Selina, asked with agitation:

“Is this true? If so, why didn’t you simply say you were with His Grace in front of everyone?”

“Th-that’s right. Why didn’t she say so when pressed so hard……”

Selina was just as confused by this sudden development.

‘Why is His Grace telling such a lie?’

This was the first time Selina had faced Zenus Justia since she was five years old.

After Zenus inherited the mysterious power obtained through the pact between the Sepaia imperial family and the dragons, he had to go to the battlefield every time he returned to the capital.

‘I heard he’s someone who cares about nothing but war.’

Sepaia Empire and Autumn Empire.

The war between these two empires, which had continued since ancient times, was gradually turning in Sepaia’s favor thanks to the dragon’s blessing bestowed upon the Sepaia imperial family.

The person who contributed most significantly to this was Zenus’s deceased mother and the current Emperor’s elder sister, Princess Christa.

The citizens of the Empire respected, cherished, and looked up to Zenus, the war hero who continued to bring victory to Sepaia across generations.

The imperial family kept the nature of this power and what abilities each successor gained strictly secret.

The reason was that they never knew when information might leak to enemy spies and be used against them.

However, there were two characteristics that all citizens knew:

The successor gained combat abilities that transcended human limits.

The successor would die young if they did not marry their destined partner.

Because of this, romantic tales about the successor and their partner spread like legends and became the object of everyone’s admiration.

The ladies couldn’t hide their envy and jealousy at the suggestion that Selina had been alone with such a person.

Even the young lords wondered how such a lady could have been with the Grand Duke, their hero.

‘I don’t know why, but this is an opportunity. An opportunity I absolutely cannot miss.’

Selina decided to go along with it.

“Well…… that’s……”

Though she felt somewhat guilty about lying in front of everyone, she calmed herself and said:

“It seemed better to remain silent for the sake of His Grace’s honor.”

Looking at Morgan’s thoroughly distorted face, Selina continued:

“Though it’s true that the young lord and I agreed to break our engagement, we haven’t yet exchanged the tokens of dissolution. Wouldn’t it damage His Grace’s honor if it became known that he was alone with someone like me?”

The nobles nodded at this reasonable explanation.

“Indeed, it would reflect poorly on His Grace.”

“Lady Arsen showed good judgment there.”

“Lady.”

Having somehow moved closer without notice, Zenus’s voice came from right beside her. Selina looked up in surprise as he continued:

“In the future, speak up immediately to avoid such unjust situations. I wouldn’t want you to be wronged.”

“Th-thank you, Your Grace.”

Ingrid, standing quietly beside Eric, asked Selina:

“Honestly, I find this situation hard to believe. Were you really with His Grace the Grand Duke? Aren’t you meeting for the first time today? Why were just the two of you together? Wasn’t even Young Lord Chase with you?”

“Ah…… yes, at that time, I had something to discuss privately with His Grace……”

“That’s exactly what I’m curious about. Is it possible His Grace is lying out of pity for you? After all, His Grace is a benevolent person who loves all citizens of Sepaia.”

At those words, Will examined Ingrid carefully before asking:

“May I ask which family’s daughter you are……”

Ingrid answered with slight shyness:

“I am Ingrid, third daughter of Baron Hazel.”

“Lady Hazel, forgive my rudeness on our first meeting.”

Will’s gaze instantly sharpened.

“Listening to you, it seems you’re insisting Lady Arsen must be the culprit.”

Ingrid visibly flustered at this remark.

“Th-that’s absurd. When did I……”

“Lady Arsen and His Grace have both stated they were together. It’s strange that you insist on knowing what they discussed before you’ll believe them.”

Other nobles nodded in agreement.

“True, everyone else accepted just that explanation.”

“What more needs to be said?”

“Since when……”

Will bent down to meet the eyes of the slightly shorter Ingrid Hazel intimidatingly.

“When did we become obligated to report our every move to you?”

“Will Chase!”

Eric immediately intervened upon seeing Ingrid’s frightened appearance.

“This isn’t the military. You shouldn’t show such an intimidating attitude toward a noble lady!”

After this sharp rebuke, he immediately turned to Ingrid, examining her with concern:

“Lady, are you alright? Perhaps you should move somewhere to rest?”

“I-I’ve been too presumptuous today. I think I should return home now.”

With those words, Ingrid began shedding tears again.

Selina sighed at the sight.

‘Nothing has been resolved.’

Thinking this, she looked at Eric, who was patting Ingrid’s shoulder as she buried her face in his chest, sending Selina signals for help.

‘Looks like I’ll have to clean up after him again.’

“Um…… Your Highness Princess Helena. While finding the culprit is important, the banquet isn’t over yet, and you need something to wear. If you’ll tell me your measurements, I’ll quickly prepare something for you. Would a traditional Sepaia dress be acceptable?”

At this question, as if she had been waiting, the lady-in-waiting beside the princess promptly listed the princess’s measurements and the colors and patterns that would suit Her Highness.

Though it was quite lengthy, Selina memorized everything on the spot, borrowed paper and pen to write it down, and asked a servant to deliver it to the Arsen residence.

The Arsen merchant guild was quite large and had Sepaia traditional dresses among its goods.

Though ready-made clothes would be of lower quality than a designer’s custom outfit, she judged that having one altered to fit as closely as possible would be better than borrowing someone else’s dress.

Princess Helena was very pleased with the new dress that arrived promptly.

“This seems to suit me better than the dress I saw initially. Thank you, Lady Arsen.”

Seeing the delighted Princess Helena, the nobles who had gathered to watch understood that this incident had passed without further issue.

※※※

After crying her heart out, Ingrid left the lounge with the Crown Prince and went home before the dress even arrived.

Eric expressed disappointment that she was leaving so early but provided an imperial carriage and earnestly instructed the coachman to take good care of her.

Leaning her crying-exhausted body against the plush carriage backrest, Ingrid quietly gritted her teeth.

‘What kind of relationship do those two really have?’

She was extremely surprised to see Zenus declare first that Selina had been with him.

‘I know that woman was with the Crown Prince.’

The culprit who tore Princess Helena’s dress was Ingrid.

She had planned the incident knowing that neither Selina nor Eric could explain themselves in front of people.

‘I was finally going to make her a villainess known throughout the Empire. And none other than Grand Duke Justia resolved it. Was he protecting that woman? Or stepping in on behalf of the Crown Prince?’

Either way, showing such a fierce side in front of many people today was Ingrid’s mistake.

Ingrid composed herself. To achieve the future she desired, she quietly resolved to be more careful with her actions going forward.