At the height of the harsh winter, when the ground was frozen solid and no one dared dig, the sudden news of the Duchess of Fraser’s death shocked everyone. People were bewildered and struggled to make sense of what had happened.

Those gathered in the Countess of Lapir’s drawing room, where they usually enjoyed their regular tea, sat for a long time in stunned silence, unable to speak. It was the Countess of Lapir who finally broke the silence.

“Isn’t this… too sudden?”

“Indeed. She had no known illnesses, and I understand she had been seeing some ladies recently.”

“Do they know what happened?”

As no one had an answer, tea time ended abruptly. Even after several days had passed, the Duchess of Fraser’s death remained the subject of much speculation.

“What exactly happened to her?”

“Ha. The Duchess of Fraser really was a capable person.”

“Do you know what happened before?”

The person who caught everyone’s attention was the heir to a family of national founders. His question stemmed from the close relationship between his family and the Fraser family.

He hesitated for a moment, but soon spoke. The Fraser family had given implicit permission for the news to be passed on, as it had been ruled an accident.

“…It can be said that it was a very unfortunate accident.”

The unexpectedly calm revelation shocked everyone once again. The once happy Duchess, known for her good fortune, had tragically died after accidentally ingesting poison.

Even those who had been free to criticise Dalia as they saw fit were left speechless by her unfortunate death.

But the unusually quiet funeral and the rumours about the noblewoman who had offered the tea and then disappeared without a trace began to silence people one by one. Soon there was no more talk of the Duchess of Fraser’s death.

Of course, many of the families of the realm continued to engage in a silent rivalry for the now vacant position of Duchess, but with a single word from Curtis Fraser, that too came to an end.

“I have no intention of remarrying.

With these words, no one dared present a grown-up daughter or a child who hadn’t reached the right age.

Curtis never raised his voice or became angry and treated everyone equally, so no one ever mistook the Duchess of Fraser for a kind or generous soul.

Everyone also knew that he did not like to change his mind or repeat himself. Still, no one gave up hope that the seat beside him might one day be filled.

After the harsh winter of Dalia Fraser’s death, spring came with new buds. The Lunar Festival of the Year passed quietly, though not without conversation. Count Romand attended with his illegitimate daughter.

“Irvelyn Romand.”

Her pale face glowed in the moonlight, and her simple black dress only seemed to accentuate her sad aura and innocent appearance.

Although she wasn’t quite ready, Irvelyn’s decent manners and calm demeanour made her the centre of attention that day.

People admired her beauty and couldn’t help but smile at the gentle way she spoke. But that was as far as it went.

Irvelyn, who had spent the past year perfecting her ‘charm’ and impressing those around her, still hadn’t met the one person she really wanted to see – Curtis Fraser.

The Duke of Fraser did not attend the Moon Banquet. News of his absence only emerged after the event, disappointing Irvelyn, who had eagerly awaited his presence, and everyone else who had hoped to win his favour.

They were left to stare at the giant moon like dogs chasing chickens. Trying to hide the venom in her eyes, Irvelyn lowered her gaze, though she wasn’t completely empty-handed.

“Miss Romand, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Yoris Diharman.”

Yoris, heir to the Diharman family – a family of national founders – had fallen for her at first sight.

Yoris, one of the most sought-after bachelors in the Empire, became the alternative many sought in place of the absent Curtis. But the victory of the day still belonged to Irvelyn.

“Yes, good day, Mr Diharman.”

“Haha. If you call me that, my father might notice. Just call me Yoris.”

“Ah… well, I’m not aware of that…”

Of course Irvelyn pretended to hesitate, looked around and put some distance between herself and him. This only made Yoris more intrigued, as he chose to watch her from a distance rather than approach her directly.

With the power of the moon and the charm she had honed, she quickly caught the attention of a prominent man in the Empire, but she still wasn’t completely satisfied.

After the Moon Banquet, which felt empty and hollow, Irvelyn chewed nervously on her worries, even biting her nails.

“My plan fell apart from the start!”

When Irvelyn heard the news of the Duchess of Fraser’s death, she felt a fleeting sense of triumph. It didn’t matter if the Duchess was there or not. There was no difficulty in getting the Duke of Fraser’s attention, and in fact it was easier without her.

So Irvelyn worked even harder to refine her “magic” – the so-called “love” she had perfected.

“What is this? I can’t even get a glimpse of the Duke of Fraser!”

The two palms must meet to make a sound, and if he can’t even see her, how can he ever fall in love with her?

“I must meet him, no matter what.”

Although Irvelyn continued to appear in various places to establish her position, she never even saw the tip of Curtis’s hair.

Curtis had never been one to attend social functions unless they were national affairs, but after Dalia’s death he stopped attending any public functions, even national ones.

In the end, Irvelyn was forced to partially abandon her role as the “illegitimate child with a dark past, but who is incredibly beautiful and virtuous” and had to adapt to a new strategy.

“Excuse me, madam.”

“Yes, Miss Romand?”

“Is the Duke of Fraser in seclusion?”

“Oh dear, ho ho ho. It seems Miss Romand is interested in the Duke of Fraser?”

“Ah, it’s not quite like that…”

“Oh, there’s no need to be embarrassed. Hmm. The Duke of Fraser only attends public functions that are absolutely necessary. Ho ho. And the families he deals with on business have already been decided.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Don’t be too disappointed. He still has no intention of remarrying, but if that changes…”

“That’s not what I meant.”

Irvelyn’s firm words made the lady jump.

“Anyway, there are already established families.”

Irvelyn looked directly at the lady and used her charm, causing the lady to nod blankly.

“Yes, there are several families that have had long standing relationships with the Fraser family.”

“Is Diharman one of them?”

Irvelyn asked, remembering Yoris, who had sent her letters and small gifts since the Moon Banquet.

Yoris had a decent position, reputation and future power, but he wasn’t exactly to Irvelyn’s taste. She had only had a casual relationship with him. However, it seemed that an opportunity had arisen where he could be useful, so wasn’t that fortunate?

“Of course. The Diharman family is a very distinguished family of national founders. Besides…”

As Irvelyn’s magic forced the lady to speak words she shouldn’t have, Irvelyn felt as if she had found a way through an endless maze. But it was not the right way.

Yes, there was contact with the family, but it was always with the head of the family…

When she had asked in a letter, “Can you meet the Duke of Fraser?”, the answer had been “No”.

“Ahhh!”

Bang! Bang, bang, bang!

In a fit of frustration and anger, Irvelyn tore up the letter, wreaking havoc on the surrounding area. After a while she stopped and took a deep breath.

“Ha, ha. So this is what it meant?”

Was it really so difficult to make a man who supposedly had no feelings love her? Was that what it really meant?

Even meeting him was so difficult!

Irvelyn, unsure of what to do, continued to struggle as the not-so-hot summer passed, followed by a winter that was less cold than the year before.

Still, she had not seen even a glimpse of Curtis, and her magic remained stagnant. As a result, she failed to use her charm to attract someone powerful enough to arrange a meeting with the Duke of Fraser, and her grand ambitions came to a complete halt.

“Curtis! Curtis Fraser!”

Irvelyn’s obsession with Curtis only deepened, even though she had never met him.