Chapter 20

Should he have paid more attention to Marlena? But it was too late.

“Oscar, did you know? I don’t think the inheritance was sudden.”

Viscount Ram’s casual remark finally shattered Oscar’s composed gentleman facade.

If only he had known, he wouldn’t have acted like this!

At the very least, he wouldn’t have put himself in a position to pay alimony, no matter what happened.

However, it’s not appropriate to yell at a friend who’s making a frustrating noise.

He was dealing with a Viscount, and they were in the Luces Club. Losing composure here could be disastrous.

But admitting that he didn’t know would be too much of a blow to his pride.

He answered his friend’s pressing for answers with as little wavering as possible.

“I knew. I already knew everything.”

But it was a stiff response, devoid of comfort and ease.

Instead of the shattered gentleman’s mask, Oscar now wore a facade of pride on his face as he walked away slowly.

“You don’t look the same as you used to, Countess Balthus.”

“Well, I’m the head of the family now, so I’ve grown up.”

“I didn’t mean it in that way. Ho, ho, ho, Countess Balthus.”

“I’m kidding.”

Marlena, who hadn’t shown any signs of nervousness despite attending her first regular club meeting, was now chatting with the members of the Luces Club in a relaxed manner, even mixing in humor.

“Countess Balthus.”

Suddenly, Oscar found himself in front of Marlena.

It was fortunate that his gentlemanly demeanor returned.

The Luces Club members, witnessing the ex-husband talking to his former wife, were taken aback and stepped away from the two.

The air around them was eerily silent; everyone was watching this extraordinary encounter.

Oscar didn’t miss the disgust in Marlena’s eyes.

‘It’s you who’s disgusting.’

Perhaps retracting the assessment of her stupidity was necessary. But she was cunning.

Oscar smirked. He put on an air of nonchalance as he spoke.

“Why is everyone in such a mood? I, for one, am not at all uncomfortable. I have no ill will toward Countess Balthus. I just wanted to say hello.”

“Oh…….”

Marlena drew out an exclamation at Oscar’s words.

“I see.”

The answer was so simple. There was a sneer in it, like she knew it wasn’t true.

Oscar thought to himself, ‘Don’t get swept away.’ He sipped his champagne and smiled.

“So I guess you’re off to the south now.”

At that, Marlena smirked.

“No, according to the late count’s will, I’ll be staying in the capital. After all, a countess’s domain is in the capital.”

“Do you have any plans in the capital?”

Oscar, once again sipping champagne, smiled wryly.

Unless Marlena is going to create a new faction in the capital, there’s no point in staying there. She’d be better off heading back to her estate and tending to her orange farm.

But how could she start a new faction now?

Today’s hospitality is based on people’s curiosity, and the moment the novelty wears off, they will lose interest in her.

Even within the Luces Club, there was a hierarchy, and life in the capital would be different depending on where you were in this tightly knit circle.

He doubts Marlena had thought through exactly what she would do in the capital.

She must have been preoccupied with divorce and inheritance.

However, the moment she stutters or fails to answer properly, people will feel somewhat disappointed in Marlena.

People demand perfection, even in the most extreme situations.

“Do you have any tricks you’d like to unfold?”

Oscar asked again. The game was on.

A moment of floundering would be enough to convince people that, “Oh, this is Marlena, the unprepared one.”

“Well, my plans…”

Marlena’s eyes widened. As Oscar expected, she hadn’t prepared that far.

Just as Oscar was about to offer a comforting remark and begin the customary pleasantries…

Marlena didn’t give him a chance to do that, and answered sharply.

“Is theater.”

* * *
I blurted out the words, letting the tension drain out of me for a moment, and smiled broadly.

I knew better than anyone that a timid response would plummet my worth, and I didn’t walk into the lounge of the Luces Club with that kind of resolve.

Lies wouldn’t work. So, honesty was the only option.

What I do best, and what I know best.

“I heard there’s a theater in the capital assets of Count Balthus. I’m thinking of investing there.”

People gasped in amazement. They must have been surprised by my answer because they forgot to keep their dignity.

I spoke boldly.

“I want to dedicate myself to the theater business.”

Oscar’s point was sharp. He’s an asshole.

I know.

The capital is a graceful jungle, a place where you can fight tooth and nail, but if you don’t have a weapon of your own, you’ll be killed in an instant.

That weapon must be so sharp.

If you come at it with a dull knife, you’ll be crushed by the aristocracy’s tradition and foundation.

The Balthus family had been absent from the capital for 17 years.

I may have inherited the title of a venerable family, but I am an upstart noble.

Oscar, who challenged me, said this with his eyes.

‘Go down south and take care of the orange farms. Don’t bother me.’

I refused. The plantations in the South were well established enough to run without me.

And while running an orange farm would be fun and fulfilling, I can’t pass up the chance to do something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.

‘What do you think about my answer? Are you satisfied? ‘

I spoke to Oscar with my eyes and smiled.

It must have been a blow to Oscar to say that I would be entering the theater business.

You had no idea what I was plotting behind your back, did you? You were fooled by my acting skills, right? You are arrogant and think you are smart.

Oscar, who had been maintaining his gentlemanly demeanor in the presence of other prominent nobles, stiffened for a moment.

“Ah, my theater will have its own personality, different from yours, and in fact, I don’t even know the secrets of your business.”

I tore my gaze away from Oscar and looked around, smiling broadly.

“When I was the Duke’s wife, I didn’t touch my husband’s business in the slightest, and His Grace the Duke of Crestwell values tradition.”

After laughing at the story of him chopping off my limbs as a duchess, I drove a wedge.

“He really was a ‘good husband,’ wasn’t he?”

I can see people exchanging glances at the hostility in my voice.

Did Marlena Crestwell really love Oscar to the end? Wasn’t she the one who fell out of love with him first?

I plant seeds of doubt in people’s minds. I’m satisfied with just the tiniest sprouts of doubt, at least for now.

The Duke of Crestwell, who lives and dies by his reputation, must be fretting over that alone.

In fact, right now, he’s speechless.

“So, the theater in Sandro District will be entirely decorated by my abilities alone.”

It wasn’t just Oscar who fell silent. The room became quiet. It was evident that no one dared to speak rashly.

My words were a declaration of war against Oscar.

Reckless declaration of war.

The capital’s performance business is virtually monopolized by Crestwell Grand Theater.

The story of how the theater got so big was famous.

‘Princess Who Never Smiles’—Idvina.

She was severely depressed and sarcastic for no reason, constantly sinking into the abyss of her mind, until Kieran Crestwell’s performance made her laugh.

How pleased His Majesty must have been to see his precious daughter smile again.

His Majesty took a keen interest in the theater business and supported the creation of a new show that would make Idvina laugh again.

Idvina nursed her health back to health by attending the plays Kieran produced and directed every day.

With a princess in town, people naturally flocked to the Crestwell Theater to see her. So did the nobility.

Actors, desperate for patronage, also began to flock to the theater.

And so the cycle continued, and the theater gained the strong position it has today.

If my remarks sound like nothing more than hubris and cowardice in such circumstances, I understand.

Jacob Hennessy, one of the capital’s most celebrated playwrights, is also the theater’s full-time playwright.

Dahlia Portman, a sensational director and playwright, is also affiliated with the Crestwell Theater.

‘As it is, I have no rival.’

The objective evaluation of her remarks made Oscar break out in a cold sweat.

Once the shock of the freshness of my words wore off, Oscar seemed to come to the same conclusion.