When Princess Helena left the banquet hall, the nobles who had been insulting Selina also hurried out.

Eric too left to escort Ingrid, naturally leaving few people in the lounge.

Selina frowned at Morgan Patel, who remained in the lounge and was looking disapprovingly at her and the Grand Duke.

‘Why is he still here? He needs to leave so I can ask His Highness what happened. I won’t be able to sleep tonight if I don’t know.’

Morgan, unaware of Selina’s thoughts, said, “Lady Arsen. You remain disrespectful to the end.”

Will exhaled with exasperation and said, “I see now that Young Master Patel is quite the coward.”

“What did you say?”

“You direct such words only at the vulnerable Lady Arsen, not at Grand Duke who stated they were alone. That appears cowardly to me.”

“No, I…”

“Have I been disrespectful?”

“That’s not what I meant…”

“If I’ve misunderstood you, Young Master Patel, perhaps you’d like to step outside and explain in the manner of men?”

As Will made a gesture as if to throw down his gloves, Morgan quickly responded, “I… I apologize.”

A duel with Will Chase, famous for his swordsmanship?

Morgan, who had never properly held a sword, immediately backed down.

“Ah… Well, I must return to the ballroom, so let’s discuss this matter later, Lady. Your Highness.”

With only those words, Morgan left.

Three people remained in the lounge.

“I’ll go check on the situation in the ballroom. If anyone asks, there were three of us here.”

“But—”

Before she could finish, Will had vanished.

“Did my sudden intervention startle you?”

Selina froze when Zenus addressed her in the situation where they were suddenly alone.

“I only wanted to help as you seemed troubled.”

Selina looked up at Zenus and thought, ‘How can the voice of the Grand Duke, rumored to know nothing but war, sound so pleasant? And his gaze has been so intense since earlier…’

“Lady?”

Perhaps anxious at Selina’s silence, he stepped closer and said, “If you’re concerned about your reputation, I’ll take responsibility. I just heard you’ll soon break off your engagement. Once that’s settled, if you marry me…”

“Pardon?”

Selina, who had been quietly listening, entranced by Zenus’s voice, suddenly came to her senses and asked, “Your Highness, are you proposing marriage to me?”

“I wouldn’t have mentioned us being alone earlier without such resolve.”

Zenus’s straight brow furrowed slightly.

“A man and woman being alone together without a marriage promise is a great stain on a noble lady’s honor. I may have spent a long time on the battlefield, but I’m not ignorant of such matters.”

Zenus lowered his head to look directly into Selina’s eyes and said, “Since I made you say such things in front of others, I’ll take full responsibility.”

‘No, no, this isn’t right.’

Selina stepped back and closed her eyes, trying to regain her composure.

This was the first time she had faced Zenus like this since childhood.

Back when Zenus stayed at the imperial palace before departing for the battlefield.

When he didn’t yet use the surname Justia. She had only encountered him while playing with Eric at the imperial palace.

‘That was over ten years ago. After that, I was busy at the academy. When I came to the capital at 14, I couldn’t attend the victory celebration before my debutante.’

The victory celebration after Selina’s debutante was the one three months ago with the fountain incident.

‘Even then, I was too busy escaping to properly greet him. We’re not close enough for him to lie for me like this. Much less to talk about marriage.’

As Selina was trying to figure out why Zenus was acting this way, she began calculating in another direction.

‘This situation isn’t bad. With His Highness’s help, I escaped today’s crisis, and I’ll get three exclusive rights from the Crown Prince.’

Zenus Justia was the only Grand Duke in the Sepaia Empire and had tremendous influence on surrounding empires.

Naturally, he would be a marriage partner who could greatly benefit her family’s business.

‘And I could become the wife of the second most powerful man after the future emperor. Grand Duchess. A good position. How could such a good position suddenly fall to me? Why?’

As Selina was frantically thinking, a shadow fell over her again.

“Shall I send a marriage proposal to Count Arsen’s household tomorrow?”

Selina couldn’t gather her thoughts with Zenus pushing forward before her calculations were complete.

‘Why are such chaotic things happening today?’

She had nearly become a traitor to the empire, and now she was about to become the Grand Duchess of the empire, the object of everyone’s envy and jealousy.

‘Calm down. Don’t fall for that handsome face.’

Selina stepped back and tried to respond calmly.

“Your Highness.”

Zenus looked at her with deep, inscrutable eyes.

“I…”

※※※

Returning to the count’s residence, an exhausted Selina gave instructions.

“I’m tired. Nora, help me change, and Cassie, check the bath water.”

The Arsen family was wealthy from running a large trading company.

However, Selina couldn’t live like a treasured flower of this wealthy family.

She lived in the east wing, formerly used as a guest house.

Only Count Arsen, Selina, minimal servants, two maids, and the head butler were allowed entry.

Even these entry restrictions had only been established in recent years.

“Miss, your bath is ready.”

Soaking in the warm water, Selina closed her eyes briefly.

She recalled what had just happened and laughed self-deprecatingly.

‘Those people who openly rejoiced at my engagement crisis. What would they say if I told them I received a marriage proposal from the Grand Duke today? Would they even believe me?’

Those people.

The main reason Selina had to separate her living space was the current family structure of the Arsen household.

When Selina was seven, exactly one year after her mother passed away, Count Arsen married a commoner woman with a child, despite opposition.

That person was Flora, the current Countess Arsen and Selina’s stepmother.

“Selina, this is your new mother from today. She’ll take care of you while I’m away.”

“Count, I’ll make sure to take good care of her in your absence. Don’t worry.”

Clinging to Flora’s skirt was Brandon, Selina’s stepbrother who was two years older than her.

As time passed, Brandon grew taller and bigger, and together with his mother Flora, tried to drive Selina out of the family.

He openly claimed that as the eldest son of the household, he would naturally be the next head of the Arsen family.

‘Without a drop of family bl＊＊d, what nonsense.’

Though she wanted to drive out Flora and Brandon who spoke such absurdities, her half-brother Sebastian always held her back.

Sebastian, nine years younger than Selina, was Flora’s son who looked exactly like Count Arsen.

“Miss, let’s finish up now.”

“Alright.”

After her bath, Selina dried her long hair and sat at her desk to write in her diary.

As she reached for her diary, her hand paused and opened a red velvet box on the desk.

Inside was an elegant quill pen inscribed with “35th Class of Sepaia Academy, Valedictorian Graduate.”

Selina carefully stroked the tip of the quill.

‘I worked so hard to receive this.’

To avoid direct confrontation with those people, Selina decided to enter the academy at age ten.

Academy scholar.

This was still a descriptor invariably attached to Selina Arsen in high society.

While this might be a proud title for some, it had a slightly different meaning for Selina.

‘I learned a lot there. Thanks to that, I haven’t given up yet. I will inherit the Arsen countship. I will never let things go as they wish.’

Selina’s eyes shone with determination.

※※※

Sepaia’s noble families can be broadly divided into two categories.

One consists of military families that raise soldiers and go directly to the battlefield, while the other consists of political families that remain in the empire and influence politics.

The Arsen family belonged to the political category. They moved goods, took profits, and used those profits to interact with other families.

So Selina didn’t need to go to the academy.

The empire’s only academy was, strictly speaking, a place to build foundations for military families.

Naturally, more male students gathered there, and the few female students were mostly ladies from military families.

Entering there, and even receiving a scholarship, was greatly influenced by one word from Eric.

“Do you really have to live in that mansion? Why do you have to see the people who bully you every day? Can’t you just live elsewhere?”

When Count Arsen was away from the mansion on business, Flora and Brandon’s bullying began.

They wouldn’t feed her properly, threw away her treasured possessions, and physically abused her where it wouldn’t show.

But Selina never told her father about this.

Seeing her not mentioning her hardships even to him, her childhood friend, Eric said, “I’m going to the academy as a representative of the imperial family. The academy has dormitories, so let’s go together. You can learn how to defeat all those who bully you and then return.”

In truth, Eric said this because he didn’t want to go to the academy alone, but his words had a positive impact on Selina.

That she didn’t have to curl up alone. That there was a way to grow somewhere other than home.

Realizing this, Selina told Count Arsen she wanted to go to the academy.

“No.”

Count Arsen naturally opposed.

“You’re still too young. If word spreads that a ten-year-old girl has left her family to live at the academy, it won’t help your reputation. Rather, making an early debut in society to establish your position would be…”

“Count, just let her go. This is the first time I’ve seen Selina so enthusiastic about doing something. Since she wants to do it herself, she’ll probably learn something useful for the family. Isn’t that right, Selina?”

Flora supported Selina’s wishes for the first time.

She readily accepted when the girl who had been an eyesore said she would leave this house first.

“But…”

The academy required a minimum of four years. Naturally, failing would require retaking courses, extending the time to graduation.

“I can’t pay your tuition forever. It’s not possible.”

He opposed citing tuition costs, but in truth, Count Arsen was greatly concerned about his only daughter leaving his protection to live alone at the academy.

It’s true he had grown somewhat distant from his daughter since remarrying Flora, but to Count Arsen, Selina was his beloved daughter whom he cherished and loved more than anyone.

With the new family member Sebastian also born, he thought living together was the answer to somehow make the family harmonious.

Unfortunately, this was Count Arsen’s thought alone.

From the moment Flora had marked this family as belonging to her son, the option of coexisting with Selina had disappeared for her.

Young Selina implicitly knew this.

“You only need to pay for two years of tuition.”

It was ridiculous that the wealthy Arsen family would worry about money, but Selina spoke confidently.

“I’ll manage the rest with scholarships somehow.”

Eric worried about her plan when he heard it.

“If people hear that the daughter of the wealthy Arsen family is using the scholarship system, they’ll criticize you. It would be like taking someone else’s opportunity.”

To this, Selina replied as if it wasn’t something to worry about.

“The Arsen family’s money isn’t mine yet. I can endure people’s gossip. And I’ll proudly show that I have the skills to enter the scholarship program.”

With such determination insisting on attending the academy, Count Arsen couldn’t break Selina’s resolve.

Finally, Selina was admitted to the academy.

“How unusual that you and I agree. Yes, if living together doesn’t work, living apart is also an answer. Still, I’ll try to ask the Count to pay for all four years of tuition.”

When Flora spoke as if she’s doing her a favor when they were alone, Selina’s eyes flashed coldly as she replied, “Two years of tuition is enough. I’ll receive support for two years as a scholarship student.”

“You’re still young and don’t understand, but there’s something called people’s eyes in this world. The daughter of our Arsen family being an academy scholarship student? What would they think of our family?”

“They’ll think there are circumstances preventing payment of full tuition. That’s much better. So don’t talk about paying my tuition as if you’re giving me charity. Even if all this family’s money is in your hands, I have no intention of begging.”

After speaking proudly, Selina was about to brush past Flora when she turned back and said, “And speak correctly. ‘Our family’? Anyone listening would think you were my mother.”

With a face reddened by anger, Flora shouted loudly at Selina’s retreating back.

“Fine, then do as you please! We’ll see how long you can hold out like this!”

So Selina went to the academy.

And during her academy life, the tuition sent from the family was only for one year.

She didn’t need to ask whose doing it was.

So even when she returned home twice a year, she deliberately avoided bringing up tuition.

“I’ll just pay for a year…”

“No need. I’ll handle it myself.”

Eric extended his hand again, but Selina immediately refused.

Her tone was light, as if she had expected this.

Selina had worked hard from her first year in preparation for this.

During the semester, she did office work for academy instructors, and during vacations, she helped with miscellaneous tasks at the Arsen trading company.

By becoming friendly with instructors through office work, Selina gained tips for studying each subject.

By helping with trading company tasks, she learned practical skills essential for managing family affairs in the future.

As her grades improved, more students requested tutoring from her.

The result of three and a half years of hard work was early graduation as valedictorian.

※※※

Though it was a bit harder than others thought, academy life was enjoyable.

She couldn’t focus solely on studies with full family support, but she learned and gained much in return.

Rather, the harsher reality unfolded after her debut in society.

‘I will never forget.’

Selina thought as she put the box containing the quill pen back in its place.

Though she graduated as valedictorian, the gazes upon her were not kind.

Going to the academy despite her parents’ opposition.

Taking someone else’s opportunity by becoming a scholarship student at the academy.

All of these followed Selina like great flaws from the moment of her society debut.

That’s why Morgan Patel always acted as if his engagement to Selina was a great loss to him.

If not for the joint trade deal, and thus not being engaged to him…

If she hadn’t accepted the villainess role, no one would have stepped forward to get engaged to Selina.

“The one who benefited most from this joint trade is Selina. Didn’t it solve her fiancé problem too?”

Remembering Flora laughing as she said this in front of the Patel family, Selina clenched her fist.

‘What did she say after the engagement? That a woman’s life ends when she marries and leaves? Just wait. I’ll become the head of the family and live proudly enjoying what’s mine in this house.’

Looking at the main building of the mansion illuminated by moonlight through the window, Selina made a vow.

‘That place is mine. I won’t give it to anyone. Especially not to Flora and Brandon.’

Quietly burning with determination, Selina was no longer the 10-year-old child who endured everything and curled up in silence.

She had grown into a strong person with clear goals, willing to do anything to achieve them.