Sylvia carried herself with absolute confidence.

It was as if she didn’t care at all about the cruel things people said about her.

She spoke about them so lightly, things that Ariadne would have hated even to remember.

“Don’t take it so seriously, Lady Ambrose. I care far more about how I see myself than about whatever others choose to gossip about.”

Then, brightening, she added warmly.

“So let’s talk about you instead. I’m much more curious about what kind of person you are.”

Her tone sparkled with genuine cheer.

“People say all sorts of things about you, you know. I’ve heard what your brothers say as well, but I prefer to meet people myself and form my own impressions.”

She smiled again, softly and sweetly.

“There’s also something I’d like to ask you later.”

That smile was overwhelming.

Ariadne felt as though her quiet attempt to steer the conversation away from herself had been instantly seen through and exposed.

It made her feel shy and foolish.

The Sylvia Delphina Aristar sitting before her was nothing like the rumors suggested. She wasn’t an idle princess, drifting aimlessly through the palace, detached from the world. In fact, she was the exact opposite: calm, confident, unshaken, and disarmingly honest.

Above all, she seemed completely unconcerned about anyone else’s judgement. She simply existed as she was — without apology, without fear.

In that moment, Ariadne suddenly understood how Heidel, who had sworn he would never marry because of his ambitions, could have changed his mind.

A soft, gentle smile touched Ariadne’s lips.

“As you can see, I’m not impressive or extraordinary in any way.”

She spoke honestly, about the Ariadne Peyton she believed herself to be.

“I don’t like extravagant things, and I prefer quiet places over noisy ones. I’ve always been on the quiet side, even though… lately I’ve changed a little.”

She let out a soft breath.

“And I promise, I’m nowhere near as extraordinary as my brothers say.”

But she still lifted her gaze, steady and sincere.

“But if you find me acceptable, then I’ll come whenever you want to meet. I’ll come as often as you like until you have all the information you want about me.”

Ariadne had never been able to see herself clearly.

Years of constant comparison — to her siblings, to expectations and to her husband — had formed habits that she had not yet fully overcome.

She was improving little by little, but even so—

— she had never learned how to present herself honestly. She had never seen anyone around her model that kind of openness, not even at home.

Her mother was direct in social settings, but that was a different kind of confidence.

So Ariadne offered Sylvia the only thing she could: time.

A chance to see Sylvia for who she really was and judge for herself.

Sylvia’s face lit up with pure delight.

“Thank you, Lady Ambrose. And truly, anytime works for you?”

“Yes, of course. Anytime.”

As a duchess, Ariadne didn’t have any duties, and her schedule was never particularly busy. She rarely attended parties, even when invited.

Rejecting a princess — especially this one — was illogical. All she needed to do was prepare somewhere for Sylvia to visit comfortably.

Sylvia looked as if she might leap from her seat.

“Thank you so much! I’ll be sure to contact you in advance.”

“Whatever is most convenient for you. Truly, anytime is fine with me.”

Once again, Sylvia looked at the young lamb in front of her. Her eyes glinted with a dangerous intensity that made everyone feel uneasy.

“Well then, since it came up…”

With the sweetest, most fragrant smile she could muster, she said.

“Lady Ambrose. Would you be willing to be a bridesmaid at my wedding?”

It was an utterly unreasonable request, one dropped with the nonchalance of a casual favor.

***

“Here it is.”

Around the same time, Kieron arrived at the place where Ariadne was, accompanied by Derrick.

As Ariadne had said she would be spending the day with Jay, Derrick asked the maids who usually attended to her.

Jay’s excitement after the outing had been impossible to miss, and the maids knew exactly where she had taken Ariadne.

It hadn’t taken much effort to find out.

To save time, the two men rode there on horseback.

This was because the duke had insisted on ‘confirming’ whether his wife was having an affair.

Derrick let out a long, weary sigh as he watched his master glare grimly at the restaurant where she was probably inside.

“Must you really do this, Your Grace?”

“We’re already here, Derrick. Saying that now is pointless.”

“Please don’t flip tables just because you don’t like what you see. Understood?”

“I’m not the impulsive brat I used to be.”

Kieron answered in a level tone.

“If I intended to flip anything, I’d have done it long ago. I’m just here to observe. So relax.”

Observe, he said.

Yet from head to toe, he was practically armored. Or rather, he had dressed up.

Quite intentionally.

He was wearing formal attire that he rarely wore. Usually, he wore simple shirts and trousers, unless he had business at the palace. Compared to his usual indifference towards his appearance, he looked meticulously put together today.

Derrick almost burst into laughter.

How could a man be so oblivious to feelings that were painfully obvious to everyone except himself?

He held his tongue and simply followed behind.

No explanation would make Kieron understand, he would have to realize it for himself.

They stepped inside quietly.

“Welcome. A table for two?”

Before the server could show them to their table, Derrick politely explained that they had companions and would go up themselves.

Meanwhile, Kieron scanned the faces on the ground floor.

“Second floor. She’s up there.”

Once he muttered that, Derrick quickly sent the server away, saying they would go on their own.

“Should you need anything, please ring the bell on the table.”

The waiter bowed and stepped aside.  Although the restaurant itself wasn’t particularly high-end, the staff all seemed impressively well-trained.

Derrick briefly considered sending his household staff here to observe one day. He followed Kieron up to the second floor, moving quietly so as not to draw attention.

There, near the window, they found her.

Ariadne was seated with her companions, laughing, eating, and enjoying the as though the weight of the world had finally lifted from her shoulders.

Kieron’s breath caught in his throat.

“…Isn’t that the young master of House Peyton?”

“And beside him… that looks like Princess Sylvia.”

What they saw was completely unexpected.

Ariadne had only said she was going out with Jay, yet here she was, in the same restaurant, having bumped into her brother and his fiancée.

Scanning the room, they spotted Jay and Martin seated not far away at a table covered with dishes.

The pair glanced over at Ariadne every now and then, blissfully unaware that the Duke and Derrick were watching them from above.

“What will you do now, Your Grace?”

Derrick stepped back out of sight, lowering his voice.

They had come all this way to investigate the possibility of an affair, but there was no affair, no strange man, and no suspicious behavior whatsoever.

Lady Ariadne was not the type to scheme or stage an elaborate deception. It was far more likely that she had simply run into her brother and the princess by chance.

Which meant there was nothing to blame her for. Or so Derrick believed.

Kieron, however, appeared to have other ideas.

“What else? If possible, it’s best to find a loose end to pull.”

“…A loose end, Your Grace? The man she’s meeting is her brother.”

“I know. Which is why”—he frowned—“if something concerns my wife, then etiquette or common sense hardly matters. I should at least know what they’re discussing.”

He muttered it clearly and irritably.

They were the kind of brothers who would burn down the world for her, which made them seem suspicious to Kieron.

He almost suspected them of encouraging an affair.

Derrick nearly choked.

“Your Grace. No matter how worried older brothers are about their sister’s marriage, what kind of brothers would ever push her toward such a thing?”

This was especially true of the brothers of the famously upright House Peyton.

Derrick hurriedly pulled the duke towards the landing, out of view, wondering if he had finally lost his mind.

“We should return to the manor. If you’re seen here, this will escalate far beyond control.”

“And what exactly is supposed to escalate? Everything already seems quite escalated to me.”

“Your Grace, you know better than anyone that the lady is not that kind of person.”

“And how many people in this world truly know anyone?”

Derrick hesitated, genuinely concerned because his stubbornness was completely out of character.

Was he simply oblivious to his own feelings, or was there something else going on?

To Derrick, Kieron looked unsettlingly like a man consumed by jealous suspicion. Yet until now, he had never displayed the slightest hint of emotion towards his wife.

Why now?

Whatever the reason, Derrick knew they couldn’t stay. The longer the duke watched, the more twisted his thoughts would become.

“Your Grace, we should leave. You won’t learn anything more by staying. Are you going to eavesdrop on their conversation?”

Kieron sighed heavily and nodded.

Approaching their table would be risky — if their eyes met, everything would spin out of control.

“Yes. Fine. Let’s go. We can think outside.”

With clear reluctance, he cast one last glance at the table where Ariadne was now sitting, out of sight. It was a glance colored by something he refused to name, even to himself.

Then he turned away and descended the stairs.

When the two men reached the ground floor, the staff, who had been moving around, paused and looked in their direction. Among them was the server who had tried to show them to a table earlier.

“It seems we were mistaken. Thank you for your assistance.”

Derrick offered a polite bow, his expression perfectly composed.

Only then did the staff disperse again, returning to their duties as though nothing unusual had happened.

The two stepped outside and began walking towards the stables.

“Isn’t that Jade Derayan?”

Kieron’s eyes narrowed sharply.

Standing directly in front of him was someone who absolutely should not have been there.