It was a relief that things weren’t awkward with Kishin. However, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had spent more time talking to Dernic than to him. Was that a good thing or a bad thing?
Claisey couldn’t find an answer even as she returned to her room. The only thing she realized upon opening the door was that she had forgotten where she’d left the tattered bouquet.
However, the moment she opened the door, all those thoughts vanished instantly.
“Meren?”
Meren was sitting on the drawing-room sofa, arms crossed and huffing.
“Why are you here?”
Claisey checked the wall clock and asked with a sour expression. Anna, the maid who had followed her in, tipped her off.
“She seems to have come in the middle of the night, saying she had something to tell you, Miss. Knowing you weren’t here, she’s just been waiting.”
The door to the drawing room was never locked, but Claisey kept her bedroom door firmly bolted. Because of that, it seemed Meren couldn’t get inside and was just sitting there, fuming.
“It’s late. Why come over? You should be sleeping.”
Claisey spoke with an admonishing tone as she opened her bedroom door and stepped inside.
“Where did you go?”
Meren ignored the comment and asked straight away.
“Oh my, Miss Meren. You seem stricter than the mistress!”
Anna joked lightly, but no one laughed. Claisey handed her outer garment to Anna and replied dryly.
“I just went to get some fresh air. I couldn’t even eat properly because I was busy arguing with you.”
“So you *did* eat something.”
“Um. Yes.”
“With whom?”
Anna brought a bathrobe and pajamas, holding one in each arm, and shook them at Claisey. Claisey pointed to the bathrobe. Anna nodded and quickly ducked into the bathroom to avoid the fray.
“Why aren’t you answering? Who did you eat with?”
Meren asked again, stepping closer to Claisey.
“Just… someone.”
Claisey made an excuse.
“Did you eat with Sir Kishin?”
Meren asked sharply, plucking a petal from Claisey’s elbow. It was a petal that had fallen from the tattered bouquet.
*Use that brain to study instead of just obsessing over ruining my marriage!* Claisey grumbled internally. As she took off her gloves, a brilliant idea occurred to her.
“I ate with Dernic.”
Claisey twisted the truth cunningly.
Meren’s top priority was sabotaging Claisey’s courtship. Claisey was going to use that against her.
If she said this, wouldn’t Meren’s interest immediately shift to Dernic? Besides, what Claisey had just said technically wasn’t a lie.
“With Sir Dernic?”
Perhaps because it was such an unexpected answer, Meren asked in a disgruntled voice. Claisey took the petal Meren was holding and placed it on the desk.
“Yes. I ran into him by chance when I went to return his bouquet.”
*That part is actually true, too!*
However, Meren didn’t easily shed her suspicion.
“Aunt, you’re lying, right? Even if you did run into him, why would you eat with Sir Dernic?”
“This is already the second time we’ve eaten together, you know?”
“!”
Claisey felt, albeit slightly, that she finally understood why Meren found it so fun to keep interfering with her courtships. Seeing Meren, who was always so spiteful, wearing a truly surprised expression was honestly a little amusing.
“The second time? How?”
Claisey was about to spill everything, but she bit her tongue just in time.
*No, that won’t do. Meren is too sharp. If I tell her everything, she’ll find it suspicious. I usually hate it when she interrogates me like this.*
“Do I have to tell you everything?”
Claisey deliberately replied in her usual blunt tone. Meren’s eyes narrowed.
“That’s not it, but… you’re just so naive, Aunt.”
“You describe me as a ‘master of romance’ in front of others, yet suddenly I’m naive? You’re a funny one.”
“I’m doing this because I’m worried about you! You’re like an immature mother to me!”
Inside the bathroom, Anna knocked on the door with a thud.
“Miss, shall I add the bath powder?”
It was perfect timing. Otherwise, Claisey would have snapped, ‘Why on earth would I be your mother?’ and that would have been the starting point for another proper fight.
“Yes!”
Claisey shouted to Anna, then, pretending to hesitate for a moment, she said to Meren:
“Dernic considers your eldest sister his benefactor. That’s what we talked about.”
*If I say it like this, she’ll believe I really did meet with him.*
Meren furrowed her brows.
“He told me that, too.”
“Really? Then it must be true. Why didn’t I know? Haven’t you heard anything from your eldest sister about Dernic?”
“I haven’t.”
Seeing Meren’s sour expression, Claisey almost started humming.
“I see. Oh, and Dernic was asking about your eldest sister’s mementos.”
“Mementos?”
“Yes. So I told him that you received most of them.”
From then on, Claisey continued to spin tales, praising Dernic as if she were genuinely interested in him.
At first, it had started simply to divert Meren’s interest. But as time went on, Claisey kept talking about him because she found Meren’s reactions so fascinating.
***
This effort of Claisey’s bore fruit the next day.
Around eleven in the morning, Dernic sent someone to Meren. The message was that he had something important to ask and wanted to meet her for lunch.
Normally, Meren would have played hard to get. She knew she possessed an appearance loved by everyone, and she knew that the more coldly she acted, the more desperate her suitors became. But today, Meren agreed immediately.
“Where did he ask to meet?”
This was all thanks to Claisey’s enthusiastic talk about Dernic yesterday.
After setting the place and time, Meren went out of her way to visit Claisey’s room just to boast about it.
“Aunt, Sir Dernic sent someone to me. He wants to have lunch.”
Claisey was lying on the sofa reading a book, but she covered her face with it to hide her smile.
“Is that so? I suppose he wants to talk about the mementos.”
Claisey replied in a tone higher than usual, on purpose.
“I suppose so. I’ll have to eat lunch separately today.”
Meren boasted brightly and headed out into the hallway.
Once the door closed, Claisey pushed aside the book and rolled around on the sofa, laughing.
*I used such a great strategy this time! Meren’s interest is completely diverted from Kishin! I should keep doing this in the future!*
However, when she calmed down and tried to read her book again, she felt it was a pity to just let it go at that.
*How many years have I suffered at Meren’s hands?*
After the terrifying rumors spread that Claisey had killed her eldest sister, families of similar standing to the Kalasi Count never even considered a political marriage with her.
But that was the mindset of the parents. Among the young men, there were a few who ignored the scary rumors and approached Claisey. Of course, it never led to a marriage approved by the families, but Claisey hadn’t even reached that stage. Even the few who had approached her with courage were all driven away by Meren.
Meren approached weak-willed men with an angelic smile and played on her own “pitiful” situation to the soft-hearted. To the clever ones, she engaged them with a bright personality and witty remarks. Meren’s arrows always hit the mark.
*I won’t act exactly like Meren for the rest of my life. But… I should interfere a few times, too!*
Claisey checked the clock. It was almost time for Meren’s appointment.
Filled with excitement, she grabbed her hat, gloves, and cape, ran into the hallway, and bounded down the stairs in one go. When she ran to the garden where the carriage was kept, she saw the coachman slowly bringing it around just in time.
“Are you coming too, Miss?”
“Yes. I’m worried about sending her off alone.”
Claisey lied and climbed into the carriage first.
For a brief moment, a thought crossed her mind: *Is it really okay to do this?* As she had pretended to be interested in Dernic, she realized she was only teasing Meren. But once she made up her mind to interfere, she felt a flicker of unease. Wasn’t winning people over Meren’s specialty?
Claisey was naturally a people-person, but after the false rumors spread, she had only associated with close friends outside of her family. Consequently, while her friendships with those few had deepened, her polished conversational skills—the kind acquired in high society—were clearly lacking. Could someone like her really go up against Meren, an expert in interpersonal relationships?
This concern vanished the moment Meren stepped into the carriage and wore a look of pure horror.
“Why is Aunt here?!”
*Oh, I can handle her. I absolutely can. I raised her, after all!*
“I’m your guardian, aren’t I? I was worried about letting you meet a strange man all by yourself. Let’s go together.”
As Claisey beamed, Meren immediately shouted in disgust.
“No!”
Claisey pretended not to notice, swinging the carriage door wide open and tapping the seat in front of her.
“Hurry up and sit. It’s cold.”