Sophia didn’t go to bed until after the sun had risen, and she didn’t wake up until evening.

As she sat in a daze, a maid entered and said, “The Duchess would like to have tea with you, Lady Sophia.”

Sophia gave a faint smile and replied, “Tell her I’m not feeling well. I’ll see her another time.”

The maid looked at Sophia in shock. Sophia returned to bed and pulled the blanket over herself.

‘Even if I vented my anger, the Duchess wouldn’t even flinch. What could I even say?’

Since she hadn’t figured out what to say, there was no need to meet with the Duchess just yet. Sophia sluggishly finished her preparations and ate dinner.

“I can’t be that depressed if I’m hungry.”

The maid who brought her meal glanced at her cautiously.

‘The servants probably know by now. I think I see pity in her eyes.’

Sophia wasn’t concerned about how disastrously her debutante had gone. What worried her more was the aftermath. She was anxious about how Prince Robert would respond.

She knew that the Duchess, Philip, and Isabelle had already dismissed her. Isabelle, in particular, had only looked at Sophia once during the entire debutante.

‘She didn’t even make eye contact during dinner.’

As a daughter of a baron, Sophia thought it might be understandable that a duke’s daughter would ignore her, even if it wasn’t entirely acceptable.

‘Not ‘understandable’ at all! She knew exactly why I was here, so she ignored me on purpose. It all started when they treated me like I didn’t even exist, talking about ‘guests’ as if I wasn’t there. That should’ve been the first sign.’

Sophia let out a self-deprecating laugh. Thinking about how Prince Robert might react only led to more self-blame, and suspicions about the strange occurrences at the Wiscombe estate kept surfacing, making her feel even worse.

She began to wonder if distancing herself from the Wiscombe family had been a mistake. Mocking herself, Sophia muttered:

“I should have clung annoyingly to the relatives and family members of Wiscombe who were starting to avoid me. Why did I bother with my pride?”

Just as they didn’t want her around, she convinced herself she didn’t need them either. Even though she was poor, she had always prided herself on being independent and not relying on others.

That was Ariel’s pride—the pride of a family that had nothing but survived through sheer willpower.

“I don’t need any of them! None!”

But Sophia began to doubt if it was really pride or just her inferiority complex.

‘Was it all just a defensive reaction born from insecurity?’

Still, she forced herself to go to bed. She was angry with herself and with the Wiscombe family, but she wasn’t going to let it affect her health.

As she closed her eyes, she thought, ‘At least the debutante is over. Once I return to Ariel, I won’t have to worry about anything related to it anymore.’

But that was a huge misconception.

***

The next morning, after getting up early and finishing her preparations, Sophia went for a walk in the garden. She didn’t want to visit the Finega family too early, as it might be seen as rude, so she wandered to pass the time.

After being cooped up in her room for days, she needed fresh air.

From another entrance to the garden, she saw Philip Wiscombe approaching her. It was clear he had been waiting for her, as his expression showed faint concern.

“I haven’t seen you for a few days. I was worried,” he said softly.

Sophia sneered and replied, “As you know, Philip, I’ve been avoiding the Duke’s family. You understand, don’t you?”

Philip quickly erased his concerned expression and responded lightly, “I see. Fair enough.”

“That’s better. No need to pretend now that you don’t need anything from me,” she continued. “It’s not like you have to keep up appearances anymore.”

“Right. So, are you planning to leave the Wiscombe estate now?”

“No. I’ll stay until the agreed date. After all, you’ve used me so well that a little more of my time won’t hurt. Who knows when I’ll get another chance to be in the capital? I’ll stick it out as long as I can.”

Sophia brushed past Philip. As she walked away, he called out.

“Sophia!”

She turned to face him, and Philip said, “I’ll try to minimize the damage done to you.”

Sophia scoffed, “Damage? What damage? The rumors? The pity? The mockery? Or are you talking about Prince Robert? Do you think he’ll listen to his friend who deceived him? It doesn’t matter if Robert gets hurt or ends the friendship—either way, he can’t retaliate against Wiscombe. And you, Philip, are hardly in a position to influence him now. So, please, don’t pretend you’re doing me any favors.”

With that, Sophia turned and walked away, leaving Philip standing there, staring after her in silence.

As she walked, Sophia mulled over what Philip had said about “minimizing the damage.” She wasn’t the target from the start; she was just a tool.

‘The real target was Prince Robert.’

Was Prince Robert the kind of person who would take his anger out on Sophia, as Philip had implied?

‘It would almost be better if he came to confront me. Ariel wouldn’t be able to handle it. Taking Ariel from my father would be too cruel.’

Sophia sighed.

“All because of this debutante.”

She had come to Isabelle’s debutante, going against the objections of her father and brother, in the hope of easing their worries. Now, she’d only added to them.

Sophia stood in the garden, looking up at the Wiscombe estate. From this close, it appeared even more imposing.

Living so far from the capital, she had never realized how powerful the Wiscombe family was. Her father and brother had warned her, but she hadn’t listened.

‘Mother’s sister? Now I understand why my parents never talked about the Wiscombe family. It’s not about shyness—it’s about people. What’s so special about being a duke’s daughter? Well, it must be something if princes are flocking around them. Even if I can’t bring down the Wiscombe family, I’ll have to take a bite out of them.’

Sophia stopped glaring at the estate and noticed the servants moving about, cleaning the garden. She was plotting a small, quiet revenge in her mind. Picking a flower from the garden, she tossed it to the ground.

Then, feeling a twinge of guilt, she bent down to pick it up again.

“Might as well take it to my room.”

She sighed, thinking, ‘If I could just fix this timid, overly cautious side of myself, revenge would be easy.’

But Sophia suspected that fixing her personality might be harder than getting revenge on Wiscombe.

“How did something as simple as a free debutante lead to all of this? Will Robert blame me? Will he be angry?”

If Robert thought logically, he would know it wasn’t Sophia’s fault.

‘If he thinks logically.’

But could a wounded man be logical? Thinking back on their conversations after the escort, Sophia wasn’t sure if Robert had really been hurt by what happened.

‘He seemed more hurt after meeting Philip Wiscombe.’

The fact that Robert had left her behind afterward was an incredibly rude gesture—far worse than using informal language with her.

‘Maybe Philip deliberately provoked Robert.’

After her walk, Sophia received word that the Duchess of Wiscombe wanted to see her again. She made her way to the same drawing room where she had waited on her first day at the estate.

***

The fact that the Duchess was waiting for her in person was unexpected. She seemed to blend in perfectly with the drawing room’s elegance.

Sophia had assumed the Duchess would make her wait, as she had on the first day, only to throw some money at her and dismiss her.

That’s why the Duchess’s apparent show of consideration left Sophia feeling suspicious.

‘What, she’s waiting for me, and I think of it as a sign of sincerity? Pathetic. She must have something else to use me for.’

Sophia couldn’t help but doubt the sudden shift in behavior. As she sat down, the Duchess smiled and spoke.

“You look better than I expected. I was worried when I heard you’d been locked in your room for days.”

“I haven’t even figured out what’s happening yet. If I cry, I’ll do it once I know the whole story.”

The Duchess raised an eyebrow and stared at Sophia, who, unfazed, picked up her teacup and continued.

“This won’t end just like this, will it? If it were something as simple as me being embarrassed, you wouldn’t be waiting for me here.”

“Is it such a big deal for an aunt to have tea with her niece?”

Sophia responded with a bitter smile.

“I’ve been staying here for a month, and this is the first time we’ve had tea together. I’m not saying I’m offended. I’m just saying that if you have something to say, let’s not waste time.”

The Duchess put down her cup and looked Sophia up and down.

“You’re not as clueless as I thought.”

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