“Oh my, look at that hair that looks like crafted melted silver. So beautiful……”

“This time Duke Frey built a new villa in the south for Miss Arthe, didn’t he?”

“Oh my, the south. Indeed, befitting the daughter whom His Grace cherishes.”

The fervent interest from before her society debut, the glamorous backing of being the empire’s only ducal family, the dazzling beauty that had been veiled but was the subject of rumors—

The nobles at the banquet who had rushed over like moths to confirm the truth of the rumors now tried to build even a little friendship with the lady.

And rightly so, it was a perfect debutante ball.

Of course.

“Lady of the Frey ducal house, Arthe van Frey. It is an honor, and again an honor, to debut at this empire’s banquet today!”

Though she was somewhat rigid due to her obsession with etiquette…… well, people can’t be perfect.

Anyway, the gossips praised her to their heart’s content, saying she was the incarnation of a goddess, that a new star of society had appeared, satisfied with her appearance that met their expectations.

Arthe, who had been tormented by Mel since dawn, was on the verge of facial paralysis from dealing with numerous nobles who approached to build friendships and rejecting young lords who applied for dances while dreaming of becoming the next duke.

“Haa…… This is really no ordinary matter.”

Though she had expected it, the debutante ball was not easy.

The noble ladies of society seemed to hide knives behind their smiles, and it wasn’t easy for Arthe, who had only received impractical education, to counter them.

Exhausted from dealing with them, Arthe sighed and looked out the window.

Her reflection was visible in the window.

Her silver hair was neatly pinned up and decorated with a sapphire-adorned headband, and her distinct features were enhanced with pearl earrings for elegance.

“I should give Mel a reward.”

Thinking of Mel, who had acted since dawn as if perfectly adorning Arthe was her lifelong wish, Arthe smiled for the first time since coming to the banquet hall.

Then, Arthe’s eyes, who was catching her breath in a corner while hiding her tired expression, saw Emperor Antu II and Empress Mariposa sitting at the head table receiving audiences.

Arthe brought champagne to her mouth while carefully looking at the emperor and empress.

Empress Mariposa was caring for Antu II, whose health was poor due to long illness, with an extremely affectionate and benevolent appearance.

“Her Majesty the empress is beautiful today as well.”

“Really, it’s hard to believe she’s forty.”

At the ladies’ exclamations, Arthe also nodded and glanced at Empress Mariposa.

Empress Mariposa.

Appearance beautiful enough to catch the previous emperor’s eye and become a princess at once despite being from a humble family.

Kind nature, said to have shed tears while embracing dirty beggar children.

She was truly called the incarnation of an angel, the blessing of the Sable Empire.

Her perfect appearance, which even inspired awe, contrasted starkly with the sickly and frail appearance of Antu II, making the two seem even more disparate.

With that appearance—like she’d been born an empress, no, almost like an emperor—Arthe had been staring at the empress in a daze for quite some time.

“Oh right, Prince Cardi, who went to the academy, couldn’t return this time either?”

The voices of noble ladies pierced through her thoughts.

“We were enjoying the eye candy. What a shame.”

“The eyes are quite enjoyable though……”

At one noble lady’s genuinely regretful words, small laughter erupted among the surrounding noble ladies.

Among the ladies who had lowered their voices in earnest, faint mockery was circulating.

“Seeing that he’s banned from attending banquets again this time, it seems His Highness the Prince doesn’t think about improving his academy grades at all?”

“Well. There are rumors that he just needs to bribe the academy professors and he’ll graduate.”

“Oh my, so the story about Her Majesty the empress giving bribes to professors from her private funds was true? No wonder social gatherings have been a bit stingy lately.”

“Is that all? Actually, just last year’s incident……”

“Shh! Madam, it would be better not to mention that incident. Her Majesty the empress was quite displeased about that matter.”

“Ahem, oh my…… If only he had even half of half of her looks……”

Cardi de Sable.

It was about Prince Cardi, the only prince to inherit the throne.

“……Is the prince really that stupid?”

It was when Arthe, who had just seen the perfect empress, muttered with a face that couldn’t believe it.

Dong- Dong-

The bell announcing midnight was ringing, breaking through her thoughts.

It was the bell announcing that midnight had passed and the founding day of the Sable Empire had begun.

Soon after, Emperor Antu II struggled to rise.

With that, all music and nobles’ conversations stopped.

“It is a glorious three hundredth anniversary.”

Antu II opened his mouth with a deeply sunken voice, and Duke Frey was firmly guarding Antu II’s side.

It was a position that only the founding contributor—the Frey family, who had made great contributions during the founding of the Sable Empire—was allowed to guard.

“Today’s founding commemorative wine is special wine prepared by Duke Frey, the eternal friend of the imperial family, for his daughter’s debutante ball. I hope everyone will enjoy it gladly.”

As soon as the emperor’s words fell, imperial attendants began circulating the banquet hall carrying trays with wine glasses.

Arthe also put down the glass she was holding and received a glass.

It was red wine with a deep red color reminiscent of pomegranate.

‘Father prepared something like this for me too.’

Arthe tilted the wine glass and savored the aroma.

Compared to the wine usually consumed at the Frey ducal house, its aroma and color were somewhat deeper, but she only guessed that they had served wine of a special vintage unlike usual.

Subsequently, the duke took out wine wrapped in high-quality velvet from the tray and opened the cork.

The deep red wine passed through the air and swirled into the wine glass.

Then, the emperor raised his glass and shouted.

“May there be eternal peace in the empire!”

“May there be eternal peace!”

Pop!

With a loud sound, champagne burst.

The nobles cheered and drank wine, and music began to play—a fast-tempo variation of the founding commemorative song.

That’s when it happened.

Crash!

A sharp sound was heard, as if someone had dropped a glass.

It was something that often happened due to nobles who were drunk to their limit, so everyone was about to dismiss it as a simple mishap.

“Kyaah!”

At someone’s scream, the atmosphere instantly became chaotic.

And at that moment, Arthe dropped the wine glass she was about to drink.

Because Viscount Bert, who was next to her, collapsed and pushed her.

“……Viscount Bert?”

The moment Arthe shook the collapsed Viscount Bert in confusion, the viscount coughed and vomited blood.

“Vi-viscount! Someone, please call a physician!”

Shocked, Arthe hurriedly knelt and shook Viscount Bert’s shoulders vigorously.

He didn’t move at all.

Arthe urgently screamed and called for a physician, but no one approached her.

‘How can no one be coming?’

Arthe felt shock and anger as she raised her head. And she was engulfed in even greater terror.

The peaceful banquet hall had already turned into a scene of chaos.

Some had collapsed while dropping their glasses, some were screaming. And.

“Your Majesty!”

At Empress Mariposa’s scream that overturned everything, Arthe covered her mouth.

The empress was shaking the emperor with urgent screams, and the emperor’s face, which had been bowed, was vividly revealed under the lighting.

“Kyaah!”

Subsequently, screams burst out from people throughout the banquet hall who discovered the emperor’s appearance.

The same color as the wine that had reminded them of red pomegranates. What was flowing from the emperor’s lips was clearly fresh blood.

“His Majesty has vomited blood! Quickly, a physician……”

“Count Ant here isn’t breathing!”

“Marchioness Ozet! Come to your senses!”

In the banquet hall filled with screams and chaos, when Empress Mariposa wailed while shaking the emperor’s body, the glass that had been precariously held in the emperor’s hand fell to the banquet hall floor with a loud shattering sound.

“His, His Majesty isn’t breathing! Your Majesty!”

Empress Mariposa had collapsed in front of the emperor and was wailing like a beast.

Arthe screamed and covered her mouth.

‘His Majesty the emperor has collapsed!’

Arthe wasn’t the only one shocked.

“Treason, this is clearly treason!”

“How could such a terrible thing……”

People who screamed in terror and then fainted, the clamor of excited nobles.

Amid all those situations, Arthe was finally able to meet Duke Frey.

“Arthe! I’m truly relieved that you’re safe.”

Duke Frey, who was relieved as soon as he saw Arthe, hurriedly spoke to Arthe.

“Father will sort out the situation, so return to the territory with the knight order.”

“Yes! Father, please take care of yourself as well.”

Going out with the knight commander who had come to escort her, Arthe gazed at the devastation of the banquet hall with anxious eyes.

All the sudden events felt unreal like a dream.

A woman faintly entered Arthe’s eyes.

For some reason, that woman caught her eye and she blinked with difficulty.

After blinking several times, what lay at the end of Arthe’s gaze when her focus finally returned was Empress Mariposa.

The empress was supported, surrounded by numerous court officials.

The pitiful empress who had lost her precious husband overnight.

The empress’s voice calling out Antu II’s name as if her breath would stop, red eyes shedding countless tears with a bewildered gaze.

However, for some reason, a small smile hung on the empress’s lips.

Arthe widened her blurry eyes and tried to focus.

The empress was certainly smiling.

***

Duke Frey did not return until dawn the next day.

What woke Arthe, who had finally fallen asleep after trembling with anxiety, were armed imperial soldiers.

“Criminal Frey family, immediately obey the empress’s command!”

At the hands of soldiers who stormed into the mansion, Arthe was dragged out into the midst of angry crowds without knowing why and was pelted with stones.

Overnight, the Frey ducal house had become traitors.

Imperial soldiers stormed into the ducal house claiming to investigate the incident, and surprisingly, documents containing evidence of corruption and evidence of importing large quantities of poison were discovered in the duke’s study.

Eventually, even from the mouth of the butler who had held out with his mouth firmly shut, a confession burst out that Duke Frey had directly plotted the scheme.

Thus, the Frey ducal house collapsed miserably with the stigma of being the worst traitor in the empire’s history, less than two weeks after the incident occurred.

However, only one person.

Only Arthe, the last heir of the ducal house, had been locked in an underground prison for two weeks without knowing what was happening.

When she thought she would rather die in the confusion of not knowing what was true, someone finally visited her.

“Oh my, what a mess……”

The empress, Mariposa.

Arthe forced her powerless legs to rise and prostrated herself at the empress’s feet.