Violet never wanted this.

Her hands trembled as she clutched her dress.

The one fortunate thing was that after days of endless tears, she had somehow developed a resilience that made these insulting remarks more bearable.

The mockery would eventually fade with time, so Violet endured the situation by pretending not to hear them, suppressing her anger.

Thankfully, the brief conversation ended as the time for dancing approached.

The young ladies began accepting dance requests from gentlemen and gradually moved to the dance floor.

Usually, at least one or two men would ask Violet to dance out of courtesy, but today no one approached her. Once again feeling miserable, she had to stand alone watching others.

After several songs passed without any dance invitations, Violet, still standing awkwardly by herself, headed toward the dessert table.

She tried to comfort her dampened spirits by eating desserts, but her appetite had vanished, making even her favorite treats taste bland.

As she put down her dessert plate and prepared to move elsewhere, she caught sight of Leon and his wife dancing intimately in the distance.

They looked incredibly happy together, but merely seeing the couple made Violet’s heart feel like it was being torn apart.

That place beside him could have been hers….

“Leon…” she murmured his name softly with a voice full of regret.

While gazing at them with eyes filled with longing, her gaze met Leon’s. Though she had no intention of acknowledging him, she felt a suffocating tightness in her chest when she sensed him deliberately avoiding her eyes.

His behavior was understandable, and Violet had long since given up on him, but that didn’t prevent the bitter feeling that welled up inside her.

‘I’m sorry. I couldn’t forget you, so I wanted to forget through another woman.’

The words Leon had spoken right before his marriage kept echoing in her mind.

What was the point of dwelling on the past?

The thought that she would have done anything to hold onto him had she known her engagement would be broken consumed her mind, but Violet shook her head from side to side.

What use was it now to pine for a former lover who had left her side of his own accord?

No matter how much she tried to comfort herself, Violet couldn’t bear to remain in the same space as Leon, so she stepped out onto the terrace.

The shadowy area, untouched by moonlight, was typically a meeting place for lovers, so no one would pay attention to Violet. She thought the cool air might help calm her troubled mind.

The occasional moans from various corners bothered her, so Violet headed to a secluded spot and sat on a bench there.

Even gazing at the distant full moon didn’t improve her gloomy mood, causing her to sigh repeatedly. Rather than feeling this dejected, it might be better to return to the mansion early.

Just as she stood up to find the Count and Countess, she heard her name mentioned in a conversation from afar.

Oh? Her? Who was talking about her?

Violet perked up her long ears. Despite the considerable distance, her excellent hearing allowed her to hear them clearly, right beside her.

“It’s too much how Duke Queensberry suddenly broke off the engagement. At this point, it seems he never intended to marry Lady Mori in the first place.”

If he never planned to marry her, why did he propose? 

With her mind full of questions, she held her breath and focused on the men’s conversation.

“That snake! The more I think about it, the more infuriating it is. Of all choices, he picked a lady he could string along!”

“I suppose he found our pressure to marry quite disagreeable.”

“His arrogant attitude will soon end. The Fox lady said she could definitely win the Duke’s heart, so all we need to do is wait and trust her.”

“Yes, let’s put our faith in the Fox lady.”

What? He didn’t leave because she hadn’t experienced her heat cycle, but because he wanted to avoid marriage pressure?

Realizing that one of the mocking speculations about her was correct, Violet felt her heart sink. Simultaneously, her clenched fists trembled without her realizing it.

The satisfied men returned to the gathering, preventing Violet from hearing the rest of their conversation, but what she’d heard was enough. She now understood that he had proposed with the intention of using her from the beginning, knowing she would eventually be discarded.

The men’s laughter dispersed into the air, but their conversation remained in Violet’s heart, piercing her heart like sharp thorns.

As she headed back to the gathering with a heavy heart, she heard her name mentioned in another conversation. Apparently, her broken engagement with the Snake Duke was the hottest topic at the gathering, making her name come up frequently.

With a displeased expression, Violet held her breath and focused on the conversation.

“Lady Mori is also attending. Aren’t you worried? There were rumors that you two used to date.”

“Oh, that’s just a thing of the past.”

“You seem very relaxed about it.”

“Of course. The fact that he chose me instead of Lady Mori means his feelings for her were only that deep. So her shortcomings that led to the broken engagement with Duke Queensberry have nothing to do with us. Our marriage is happy now.”

“Lady Mori is somewhat lacking, isn’t she?”

“Being abandoned by two men says it all.”

From eavesdropping, Violet could tell one of the women speaking was Lady Evercorn.

She only knew that she had married Leon, but they weren’t acquainted. They certainly weren’t close enough to disparage her like this.

She had already taken Leon, there was no need to speak like this!

Though she had no right to be angry while secretly listening, Violet couldn’t tolerate such harsh gossip and stepped out in front of them, breathing heavily.

“Oh my! Lady Mori.”

The ladies conversing with Lady Evercorn seemed to have some conscience, looking uncomfortable in Violet’s presence.

But not Leon’s wife. With a bold attitude, she gave Violet a look suggesting she had no business eavesdropping.

“What brings you here? Surely you weren’t doing something so ill-mannered as eavesdropping on our conversation?”

She clearly had no intention of apologizing for her disparaging remarks.

“Isn’t it more ill-mannered to tear someone down behind their back?” Violet refused to back down.

“Tear down? That’s too harsh. I was merely observing the situation objectively as your senior. It’s a fact that Leon is my husband now. What can I do about that?”

Originally a baronet’s daughter, Lady Evercorn’s arrogance had skyrocketed after becoming the daughter-in-law of the Rabbit clan leader. Her attitude of lording her higher status over Violet was truly appalling.

“Would you all excuse us for a moment? I’d like to speak with her alone.”

Seeing that nothing pleasant would come of this, Violet asked the surrounding ladies for privacy.

“S-sure. Take your time talking.”

They left, leaving only Violet and Lady Evercorn.

“I have nothing particular to say. What’s this about?”

When they were alone, Lady Evercorn feigned ignorance. Her attitude was so absurd that Violet’s voice became heated.

“Apologize to me right now.”

“Apologize? Why should I apologize when I only spoke the truth?”

Lady Evercorn touched her temple with her index finger and tilted her head slightly, maintaining an innocent expression suggesting she had done nothing wrong.

Had Leon fallen for that act?

It might look pretty to him, but to Violet, it appeared detestable.

“You might think it’s just casual conversation, but you’ve damaged my reputation. So apologize.”

“If the truth hurt your feelings, then I apologize.”

“Apologize properly. Is that how you show remorse?”

“Well, what do you want me to do? It’s not like I’m wrong. Did you think a man would be sincere with a woman who hasn’t experienced her heat cycle? I might as well tell you now, Leon was seeing me before he broke things off with you, and we had already completed our imprinting before you got engaged to Duke Queensberry.”

They had completed their imprinting before the engagement?

Violet had only wanted an apology, but shocking words flowed from Lady Evercorn’s mouth.

Lady Evercorn, intoxicated with the triumph of stealing another woman’s man, shrugged her shoulders proudly.

“Oh my, you didn’t know? You weren’t under the illusion that my husband stepped back because he truly loved you, were you? He was just acting because he didn’t want to be seen as a bad man. Ohohoho.”

Lady Evercorn’s mocking laughter continued to echo in Violet’s ears.

Suddenly, she recalled how Leon’s visits had decreased. He had claimed to be busy, but it seemed he was meeting Lady Evercorn.

Was he two-timing? What happened to his pure love!

Leon’s heart had left long ago, but only Violet had been unaware.

Why did he string her along instead of just breaking up? If he found someone he loved, why didn’t he say so!

At that moment, a feeling of betrayal surged up, and a fiery pit rose in Violet’s throat, instantly depleting her patience.

No longer seeing any value in continuing the conversation, Violet didn’t even want an apology from Lady Evercorn anymore and immediately gave her a warning.

“You’ll regret your disrespect toward me.”

“I only spoke the truth. Surely you’re not so petty? Besides, what power do you have?”