The news that the Duchess Monde was officially banned from the imperial palace was a tragedy for the House of Monde, which relied on social climbing to scrape together funds for their mounting debts. To everyone else, however, it was merely a headline that brilliantly decorated the social gossip columns.
What a fascinating story! My goodness, ever since the announcement that Grand Duke Lyussenford and Lady Ostain were to be married, one interesting event after another has been unfolding!
The marriage itself was already intriguing, but then the Duchess Monde—who had been clinging to the couple—ignored Lady Ostain’s greeting in the morning, only to be banned from the imperial palace by evening! The high society of Krain, while pretending to modestly conceal their tawdry voyeurism, hosted even more events to hunt for the latest news. Hosting events brought people together, and where people gathered, new stories naturally followed. Who could say no to that?
“From what I hear, the Duchess Monde had already gone to find Grand Duke Lyussenford beforehand to have a go at him. Is that true?”
Pretentious gentlemen, despite knowing everything already, feigned ignorance just to keep the rumors circulating.
“Who doesn’t know that? Her voice was so loud, it reportedly echoed through the corridors of the imperial palace. It was so noisy that there’s no way His Majesty the Emperor could have missed it.”
Ladies who acted elegant busily poured fuel on the fire and fanned the flames. It was a common sight in Krain high society.
“Well, the House of Monde must be strapped for cash. They have no way to pay their debts without Lyussenford, and now that they’ve even stripped their castle bare to sell off building materials, only for the marriage to fly out the window, how could they see anything straight?”
“Still, to ignore the greeting of a lady young enough to be her daughter? Is that even talkable? Where on earth did she lose her manners? She should be ashamed.”
Elderly matrons and gentlemen shook their heads, adding their own opinions more explicitly. Being of an age where they could use their seniority as a shield, they were able to speak more bluntly. The more crotchety they were, the more direct their words became.
“It’s a marriage commanded by His Majesty the Emperor, yet… they can’t protest to His Majesty, and Grand Duke Lyussenford is a soldier who doesn’t listen to reason, so they go for the easy target, Lady Ostain, isn’t that it?”
“They’ve been living beyond their means despite being buried in debt, and now they can’t even distinguish between a mere duke and a member of the imperial family.”
Words grow sharp after only a few turns. This was the reason the House of Ostain remained entirely silent. Since others were saying it for them, there was no need for them to even mention the Duchess Monde.
The Emperor had set the order, and high society naturally followed the Emperor’s command. Thus, the House of Monde was inevitably forced to shrink away.
“What is the meaning of this, Mother!”
Beatrice Lavalle, the flower of high society, exploded in rage at the Duchess Monde.
“Do you have no sense? You should have done it where no one could see! How could you do that in front of people!”
“A pillar was blocking the view, so I didn’t know anyone was there! Do you think I would have done it if I had known? Of all things, why did that girl, Sinere, have to be there!”
They had been caught red-handed by the Countess Sinere and two of the Empress’s ladies-in-waiting. As a friend of the Empress, her head lady-in-waiting, and someone who took care of Grand Duke Lyussenford, the Duchess Monde had leveraged these roles to wield considerable influence within the imperial palace. That influence was her lifeline. The money Beatrice swept up from high society was also immense.
However, debt aside, the two of them lived only for the glamour of society, and their spending was so extravagant that money went out as fast as it came in. The rate at which their debts were being cleared was painfully slow.
“Oh, stop it! I’m already losing my mind, and you’re making it worse!”
“How can I go out when you’ve brought such disgrace upon us! Do you have any idea how important high society is?”
“Do you think I don’t know that?”
Shouts echoed through the Monde townhouse, which they had forcibly bought in Krain. The maids stayed far away from the drawing room.
“How dare you look down on your mother? Do you think you would have made it this far if it weren’t for me?”
Beatrice rolled her eyes, looking as if her mother’s shouting was driving her insane.
“What have you done, Mother! Everything was achieved by me crawling through the mud and suffering!”
“Look at the way she talks!”
“If you were going to be so loud, you should have gone to Peon and behaved! You should have at least offered him congratulations on his marriage!”
“Why don’t you do it, then!”
In truth, due to her personality, Beatrice could never bring herself to offer congratulations. No matter how little she viewed Peon as a man, it was a matter of pride. But now that things had turned out this way, she simply blamed her mother. Blaming others was an easy thing anyone could do.
“I birthed you beautifully and gave you everything, and now you think you did it all yourself and act so cocky? How dare you be so insolent! Is that how I taught you?”
“It’s a fact that you acted stupidly! Do you know what they’re saying outside? They’re laughing at the Duchess Monde, asking how she dared to treat Lady Ostain that way! If you act like that, what do I become in front of that girl!”
Kaella! Honestly, even Beatrice had felt dizzy when the marriage announcement was made. It felt as if the Emperor was telling her to “know her place.” To have Peon paired with Kaella De Chasseur, a snot-nosed girl who had chased after Peon for ages despite her higher status—when the three of them were together, Kaella was a laughingstock, but outside, everyone saw Beatrice as Peon’s mistress. She didn’t want to be that. Her dreams were set higher. She had clawed her way up this far, but ever since Peon’s marriage announcement, she didn’t like the way things were rolling at all.
“Do you know how important it is for us to have access to the imperial palace? We’ve been barred for three months already, and do you think you’ll be able to keep your position as the Empress’s head lady-in-waiting after those three months are up?”
“Who says anyone is taking that away? I’m the head lady-in-waiting, which is why it only ended with a three-month suspension. And don’t make such a fuss. I can go anywhere except the imperial palace.”
“Don’t say such stupid things! What’s the point of going anywhere else if I can’t go to the imperial palace?”
The Duchess Monde was able to differentiate herself from other nobles because of her special privilege to approach the Empress, whom the Emperor rarely let anyone see. But now that the Empress had collapsed and they were banned from the palace, the losses were massive.
“This girl truly has no respect for her mother! Were you born alone and raised alone? Huh?”
“Mother, you’ve made a mess of things, why can’t you see the situation! Everyone is laughing at us now, and next, they’ll be busy raving about how luxurious the wedding dress of that girl, Kaella, will be!”
They would lose the spotlight. Attention—Beatrice, who had lived on that alone, had always satisfied her desires by ignoring and looking down on Kaella. It was truly annoying when a dim-witted sort—who sat quietly, embroidered, read books, and mindlessly devoted herself to Peon—suddenly emerged in such a way. Because there was no way to change one’s status.
Regardless of her feelings for Peon, Beatrice decided to make her pay for this properly. Kaella had always been someone she could crush, someone who couldn’t even make a sound when stepped on, so she shouldn’t dare to get ahead just because she was marrying her long-desired crush.
･ ｡ﾟ✧: *. ꕥ .* :✧ﾟ. ･
“I cannot begin to fathom how much you are suffering because of this, but all I can say is that you should pay it no mind.”
Adeo took off his spectacles and opened his arms to his daughter. Kaella embraced her father calmly.
“I am fine, Father.”
“No, no, that is not right. To ignore a greeting face-to-face—that is simply unacceptable. It is insulting, and you must never forget it.”
But the father and daughter knew that, for the sake of status, honor, and face, it was better in every way to ignore such an inferior person. Even if Kaella were to meet the Duchess Monde again, she would smile and offer a greeting just the same. That was the way of the gentle House of Chasseur.
What could she do? To Kaella, the fact that the Emperor himself had intervened was heavier and more significant than the fact that the Duchess Monde had ignored her. There was no hole in this marriage through which she could escape. Grand Duke Lyussenford probably felt the same.
“She is a person not worth paying attention to.”
Quite a ruthless statement came from the mouth of Adeo, who was reputed to have a mild temperament. That was the very reason he had survived in the brutal world of high society with such a mild persona.
“Looking at how she treats you, a girl young enough to be her daughter, it seems impossible to deal with her using common sense. So, pay her no mind. His Majesty the Emperor has taken such great care of you, after all.”
It wasn’t so much that he was grateful to the Emperor, but rather a comment that it was fortunate for Kaella that things had turned out that way.
“Yes. It is a relief that I won’t have to see her.”
“Honestly, it would be a lie to say I wasn’t bothered. They are, after all, a family with a long history with the man who will be your husband.”
Adeo thought it was for the better that the gossiping Duchess Monde and the House of Lavalle were kept out of sight. If Beatrice, who had latched onto the imperial family because of Peon, stole the spotlight even at Kaella’s wedding, Kaella would be deeply hurt.
“Now that things are this way, let’s focus on the wedding preparations. It is a once-in-a-lifetime wedding, after all. I will do my best.”
But Kaella had no interest in the wedding preparations. Whether others called it a once-in-a-lifetime event or not, it held no special meaning for her. So, she was just shrugging it off with, “Anything is fine,” or “Yes.”
If decorating her path to death could reduce or eliminate the pain when the time came, she would have done her absolute best, but as it wasn’t, she had no interest.
“Don’t overexert yourself, Father.”
“You are so modest that it is a flaw. How can you have no greed?”
That was because she had already tried to put together a wedding by struggling to make ends meet with the pittance the Emperor gave her after he had taken everything else. It was different now, but she knew well that no matter how much she prepared, they would not welcome her in Lyussenford.
“What would you like as a wedding gift? If there is something you want, I shall grant it. Tell me anything.”
Kaella smiled. She did not need gifts that would be of no use. She muttered as she arranged flowers in a vase that had been empty in the study.
“You just need to be healthy, Father.”
At that answer, Adeo wore a look as if the world were collapsing.
“My goodness. My daughter’s sense of humor is so old-fashioned. Kaella! Isn’t that something out of *Morals For Children By Hekerkos*? While we are on the subject, where is that book? I must burn it. It is the most useless book in the world.”
Because the harsh cold of Lyussenford had eradicated even her sense of humor, Kaella smiled ambiguously.
“Be greedy, Kaella. It is only once! I want to give you everything I can. Actually, I want to give you a fine manor as well. What use is my health? Your happiness is what is important.”
Adeo pulled his daughter, whom he had been separated from for a while, into his arms and patted her back.
“They say Lyussenford is cold and harsh, but I believe you will go and adapt. The Grand Duke will support you steadily. If it is cold, come out for a while to the manor I gave you. Yes. That would be best.”
“I told you, it’s fine.”
However, no matter how much Kaella tried to dissuade him, Adeo would not stay still. Father aside, it was Grand Duke Lyussenford who was being so proactive that it not only surprised Kaella but also made her fearful.
Since they were starting by abruptly setting the wedding date, the schedule was tight. Dress craftsmen, lawyers to coordinate the marriage contract, and imperial administrators to deliver opinions on the scale of the wedding were traveling between the Grand Duke of Lyussenford’s residence, the House of Ostain, and the imperial palace several times a day.
“It is because you are so uninterested.”
“I am checking every single document.”
“Even so, how can you not even offer an opinion on the dress? The Grand Duke sent a mountain of fabrics, saying to ensure that even the veils you wear are lacking in nothing.”
Indeed. Why is he like that? Peon was pouring massive amounts of funds into this marriage, to the point where she had the useless worry of whether the Lyussenford finances were actually fine. It was unlike the man who always prioritized military funds above all else.
‘No, perhaps this is a new facet of him that I never knew.’
Throughout her married life, despite being the Grand Duchess, she had received glares suggesting she might be a spy for the Emperor. Getting involved in the household management was also incredibly difficult. But Peon had great popularity among his own people. He was kind to people—no, even to his war horses, the dogs raised in the castle, and the stray cats roaming about. Kaella, who had been treated worse than a stray cat, could not understand it.
‘Is it because my father is still alive?’
Is it because the title of Lady Ostain protects her that Peon shows her appropriate respect? Even so, Kaella remained the Emperor’s niece, so why? She couldn’t know. Because she couldn’t know, she became increasingly anxious.
“Of course, the wedding attire is not something the groom should interfere with, but it shouldn’t be lacking in anything. Yet you say you won’t even wear a single jewel?”
“Yes, clean and neat silk is sufficient even without decorations, Father.”
As Kaella answered vacantly, she continued to think. Is this all a trap? Peon’s current behavior was flawless, without a single spot to criticize. He was acting exactly by the book. Where had the Grand Duke of Lyussenford gone, the man everyone was frustrated with because he didn’t know how to yield appropriately? He was acting like a completely different person…
“Kaella?”
*Clatter.* The vase slipped from her hands and fell, shattering. The shards of porcelain scraped across the floor as they rolled.
“My goodness. Are you alright? You didn’t get hurt?”
Adeo was startled and pulled Kaella away from where the broken vase had been.
“I’m fine.”
Kaella muttered with wide eyes, staring at the broken vase. She heard her father calling for a maid from afar. For a moment, a chilling fear overwhelmed her, but Kaella muttered to herself several times that she was fine.
It is fine. Didn’t she always have a last resort? In any case, even if she struggled to understand or tried to survive, nothing would change. It is fine.
“I am fine.”
Kaella clasped her trembling hands together. Feeling fear ultimately meant she wanted to live. She knew it, but today, once again, she gave up. If she wanted to die comfortably, she had to go through with this marriage. Somewhere the Emperor’s gaze couldn’t reach, she would at least be able to die without pain.
･ ｡ﾟ✧: *. ꕥ .* :✧ﾟ. ･
“Please take good care of our Peon, Kaella. As you know, he is a child with so many wounds.”
However, dying quickly and comfortably was not easy either. For one thing, she had to deal appropriately with people who were meddlesome before the wedding.
For example, Beatrice Lavalle, who met her by chance in a place where everyone could see and smiled kindly, saying, “I know the man you are to marry better than you do.”
Kaella looked at Beatrice—a beauty often compared to full moons, summer roses, and fresh gardens—with an indifferent face.
She had died once and woken up, yet some had changed like different people, while others had not changed at all.
“I thought the Duchess Monde was speaking. Perhaps it is because you resemble the Duchess so much.”
Who said Kaella couldn’t change either? She brought up the one who had wronged her greatly and looked at Beatrice, then at her husband’s love, with a smile. What was wrong with openly disliking someone she would never beat in her life? Even if she were nice to Beatrice Lavalle, Grand Duke Lyussenford wouldn’t look back at Kaella, nor would he respect her.
In any case, even if ugly, dim-witted Kaella were to do something stupid and mean again, well, what of it?