“Kay Brant Green? Truly, the Count Green? The Guardian of the Holy Relic?”
Britney’s eyes widened.
The earlier mention of Rishi and “your father” vanished from her mind the moment she heard the name Kay Brant Green.
“It’s true, my lady. He arrived a moment ago and is currently in the drawing room with the Duke.”
“What did he come for?”
“I eavesdropped slightly, and he entered the drawing room mentioning something about the Duke’s daughter… Though his voice was low, I couldn’t hear clearly…”
“The Duke’s daughter? Me? It must be about me, right?”
“Of course, my lady. Who else could it be?”
Britney’s face flushed a rosy pink.
Kay was currently the most popular man in high society.
Because the family of the Guardian of the Holy Relic was under the protection of the Holy Kingdom, even the Emperor could not treat them lightly. Even with the title of Count, he held power equal to a Duke.
But the family status was secondary. What mattered was Kay’s appearance.
He was, quite literally, beautiful. With broad shoulders, a slim waist, great height, and long legs, he was often described as a statue crafted by the gods at their very best.
His unkempt, jet-black hair and the cool, grayish-blue eyes nestled beneath dark brows were so breathtaking that one felt breathless just from his presence.
His red lips, beneath a perfectly shaped nose, were moist and alluring, leading countless women to imagine those lips tracing their own skin.
Young ladies of noble houses wished to become his wife, and noblewomen drooled at the thought of making him their lover.
However, unlike his decadent appearance, the Count of the Holy Kingdom was disciplined, and he had never once been involved in a scandal with a woman.
“Actually, you know… when I went to that party the other day, Count Green asked me to dance, and we danced together.”
It was true that they had danced, but Kay had not asked her.
Britney had approached him cautiously to ask for the dance, and since it was not proper etiquette for a gentleman to refuse a lady’s request, Kay had simply obliged.
But in Britney’s memory, the event was embellished into a version where Kay had desperately begged her for a dance.
“We spoke quite a bit while dancing then…”
“That must be it, my lady. He must have fallen for you then.”
The maid was quick to say exactly what Britney wanted to hear.
“That must be it, right?”
“Of course. You are so beautiful, my lady. On top of that, your dancing skills are outstanding. What man wouldn’t fall for you?”
“What if he asks me to marry him?”
“How do you feel, my lady? Do you like Count Green?”
“I’m not sure.”
*In reality, I’m dying to have him.*
“That was the first time we’d ever spoken, after all… But since he’s come all the way here, I should meet him properly and talk a little more.”
“This is no time to be just standing here. You must hurry and change your dress.”
“That’s right, that’s right. I must.”
As if she had forgotten the very existence of Rishi, Britney left the room with her maid and the maids who had been tending to Rishi.
Rishi picked up the discarded corset, stared at it for a moment, and tossed it aside.
Without giving a glance to the dress she was supposed to wear to impress Alford, she picked up the clothes she had been wearing, which she had taken off and draped over a chair.
It was a worn-out dress, slightly better than what the maids wore.
After putting it on, Rishi stood in front of the mirror.
The hair she had fixed and styled to match the dress didn’t suit the simple gown.
Rishi pulled the pins from her hair, one by one.
Her silver hair, tinged with a reddish hue that made it look pink, tumbled down, brushing against the nape of her neck.
Rishi roughly combed through her tangled hair with her fingers and smiled softly.
Her reflection looked better than it ever had.
+++
Duke Glovern Witlow looked at Kay with a troubled expression.
“That child?”
“‘That child,’ you say? When you speak of your eldest daughter, Britney, you call her ‘our daughter,’ but it seems Iris is not considered your daughter.”
Flowing slowly, as if he knew the inner workings of the Witlow household, Kay’s words made Glovern gulp dryly.
When Kay had said, “I have come to forge a bond with the Witlow family,” Glovern had assumed he was speaking of a military or economic alliance.
“I heard the Duke’s daughter is so beautiful…”
When Kay had dropped that hint, Glovern naturally thought he meant Britney.
It was because Britney, having attended a party recently, had talked her ears off about how Count Green had asked her to dance.
Though it held the name of a Duchy, the Witlow house was on a path of decline, and Kay of the Green house—the Guardian of the Holy Relic—was a man highly coveted.
However, having heard that he had no interest in anything other than finding holy relics, Glovern hadn’t even dared to try.
When such a man came of his own volition and mentioned a daughter, he had thought it an opportunity.
“I wish to spend my life with Iris.”
That was until Kay spoke those words.
He hadn’t dreamed in his wildest imagination that Kay had come for Iris.
Iris was kept hidden under the pretense that she was a “daughter too fragile and precious to show to the world,” and she had never even been sent to a party.
She had been shown only to men who could become the Witlow family’s financial lifeline, and through their mouths, Iris became known as the “Flower of the Witlow Duchy.”
Even though everyone was curious about Iris, by not letting her debut in society, the number of men aching to see her grew.
Thus, Iris’s value had risen, and as Alford had mentioned a mine in Lavent, he was scheduled to sign a contract with him today.
But instead of the expected Alford, Kay had arrived out of the blue, demanding Iris.
It was an impossible situation.
“Ah, well… um… since the eldest daughter hasn’t married yet…”
At the excuse he barely managed to squeeze out, Kay’s lips twisted upward.
At that cold smile, Glovern gulped again.
“Who cares about such things these days? You know as well as I do that the Count of Lordburn and the Marquis of Prunta married off their second or youngest daughters first. Even the 3rd and 5th Princes of the Gavizar Empire married before the Crown Prince.”
Kay said slowly.
“Perhaps, Duke, you think that I, Kay Brant Green, am insufficient to be a son-in-law to the Witlow family?”
“H-how could that be? How could that possibly be? That’s not it, Count Green. It’s just… our Iris is very shy and delicate… I don’t think she has the heart to marry yet. As you know, she is even afraid of stepping into high society.”
“Ho, is that so?”
Kay raised the corners of his lips.
Glovern realized for the first time that a smile without any warmth in the eyes could be truly terrifying.
“Hearing that makes me covet her even more.”
*This is a disaster.*
Glovern quickly turned his gears to find another reason.
“As you know, love marriages are in fashion these days. Our Iris has said time and again that she wishes for a love marriage…”
“There is a gold mine in Benote.”
Kay cut off Glovern’s words.
At the mention of the Benote gold mine, Glovern’s ears pricked up.
The Benote gold mine, owned by the Green family, was one of the top five mines, rich in gold and where dozens of large diamonds had been discovered.
It was a mine so large that comparing it to the gold mine in Lavent that Alford had promised felt embarrassing.
“I intended to offer the Benote gold mine as a dowry…”
*Gulp.*
Glovern swallowed hard.
“But since Lady Iris desires a love marriage, it seems that is a pity.”
Kay rose as if he had no further business.
“W-w-wait, Count!”
Now, it was Glovern who was desperate.
This was exactly the moment he had raised Iris for.
The Benote gold mine. And the prestige of the Green family on top of that.
As his wife had said, he was glad he had raised Iris instead of killing her.
“Is there anything left to discuss?”
Kay, having given up on Iris, was ice-cold.
Glovern was anxious that Kay might just leave.
“F-first, please, just sit down, Count. Isn’t it the first time we’ve seen each other in a long while?”
“Hmm.”
“Besides… come to think of it, since our Iris said she was shy and afraid of dating, I was the one who decided…”
“I recall having said that marrying a man wouldn’t be such a bad idea. So…… please, have a seat. Won’t you?”
Glovern gestured toward the sofa as he spoke.
Kay sat on the sofa slowly and crossed his legs.
Even though a mere boy much younger than him was acting impolitely, Glovern did not feel angry.
Glovern’s mind was entirely filled with the ‘Benote Gold Mine.’
“So… you are offering the Benote Gold Mine as a dowry.”
“Like this.”
Kay took a document out from his coat.
“I have even prepared the paperwork. The Duke only needs to sign it.”
“I, I see.”
Glovern’s eyes gleamed with greed as he looked at the document.
“If that is the case…… uh…… it seems the Count Green will cherish our Iris dearly, so……”
Knock, knock—
A knock interrupted Glovern.
Glovern, who was on the verge of a crucial moment, felt irritation rising at the interruption.
“Who is it!”
“Father, it’s me.”
Hearing Britney’s voice, Glovern’s thoughts shifted.
Indeed, it seemed a waste to hand over the position of the Countess Green to someone like Iris.
Since Kay, who was like a block of wood, had even asked Britney to dance, perhaps his heart would change if he saw Britney again?
“Come in.”
He replied without asking Kay.
The door opened, and Britney, dressed even more gorgeously than usual, stepped inside with a light gait.
Britney had her dazzling blonde hair tied up loosely with a few strands falling down, and she wore a pink dress that exposed her shoulders, looking elegant rather than risqué.
A necklace with a small pendant highlighted her slender neckline.
Britney was as pretty as a doll.
Britney held her skirt slightly, bent her knees gently, and greeted Kay.
“It’s been a while, Count Green.”
“I see.”
“I haven’t seen you since the last party.”
“I see.”
Glovern glanced at Kay’s expression.
However, he could not read any emotion from Kay’s expressionless face.
“F-first, sit down, Brin.”
“Yes, Father.”
Britney sat gracefully beside Glovern.
Kay’s gaze remained cold.
“Now that I think of it, I heard you asked our Britney to dance at the last party……. I heard you were a truly beautiful couple, Count Green.”
“Ho-oh.”
Kay narrowed his eyes.
“Is that so? Who said that?”
“Yes? Ah, that is……”
Naturally, he had heard it from Britney.
“You danced with me back then, Count. Don’t you remember?”
Britney asked brightly.
Looking at Britney, Kay replied nonchalantly.
“Miss Britney must have a very poor memory.”
“Yes?”
“It was not I who asked for a dance back then, but Miss Britney. You desperately begged me to dance with you just once. Ah, did you also add the word ‘please’ at the end?”
Britney’s face turned red.
Given Britney’s personality, she should have shouted or made a scene, but since the other party was the Count of the Green family, she couldn’t.
Britney gripped her skirt tightly and gasped.
She wished her father would step in at a time like this, but Glovern was restless, only watching Kay’s reaction.
Knock, knock—
Breaking the heavy and awkward atmosphere, another knock sounded.
The door opened even before they gave an answer from inside.
Standing behind the door was Rishi.
‘Iris, just where do you think you are…’
A place to vent her anger had arrived.
She thought she would pretend to take Rishi out and leave the room to vent her anger on her.
Britney jumped up with that thought, but Kay, who stood up before her, walked toward Iris with long strides.
Rishi, wearing a shabby dress unfitting for this place, held both hands neatly in front of her and watched as Kay walked up to her.
As if it were only natural.
Stopping in front of Rishi, Kay placed his palm on his stomach and bowed politely.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Iris. And I implore you. Please marry me, I beg of you.”