Chapter 29

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter Title: Chapter 29

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter 29

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“What?”

“Don’t get too excited, Nils. In my opinion, you don’t seem smart enough to even qualify for heir training. You’ll probably give up after a few months and hand it over to Ivonne.”

“You bastard...!”

Nils grabbed Iona by the collar, his eyes blazing with fury.

Iona sized up how much his dentures might cost, then felt a twinge of pity for him having to live without teeth, and simply turned her gaze toward the servants.

Only then, apparently conscious of the onlookers, did Nils release Iona’s collar.

He glared at Iona and enunciated each word clearly.

“You should consider yourself lucky.”

Nils turned on his heel and stormed out of the dining room.

Ivonne, who had watched the argument between the two, hurriedly followed her brother. She didn’t forget to shoot a sharp glare at Iona along the way.

Iona gave a lazy wave goodbye to the departing Nils and Ivonne.

Having diverted her enemies’ attention elsewhere, it was now time to begin the real roundup.

While Nils was preoccupied with his belated heir training, Iona was punching the clock at social gatherings in the capital every single day.

She accepted invitations without discrimination—from middle-aged noble ladies or gentlemen, to young ladies and lords her age, and even from venerable elders.

As a natural consequence, the nature of these gatherings was wildly varied and unpredictable.

“Lady Iona, have you given any thought to participating in the equestrian competition this second half of the year? Our group could finally produce a winner!”

The equestrian club suggested she enter the competition,

“I’m so thrilled you accepted my invitation, Lady Iona. Ever since you rescued me from that predicament on Blanche Street last time, I’ve been dying to see you again.”

a lady who invited Iona for tea harbored an inexplicable fondness for her,

“I thought you weren’t into opera, but it turns out you are. To predict the ending so precisely... What? You’ve already seen it? Impossible—this opera had its premiere tonight.”

and she nearly got caught out on her foreknowledge while watching an opera.

“Oh my, Lady Iona. Hmm... For your first time embroidering, hmm. It’s quite an impressive piece. Especially this wild boar—it really conveys all the joys and sorrows of living as a beast in the wild. That twisted expression is just... What? A lion?”

Embroidery class was a bit iffy, but...

The first drink can’t fill you up.

She’d received compliments anyway, so it was safe to say she had some talent.

Once she filled in the blanks at the next gathering, it might even look respectable.

She planned to give the finished handkerchief to Duke Leroy. She’d been inwardly bothered by the fact that she’d never gifted her husband anything handmade in her previous life.

Even if he refuses it saying he doesn’t like it... well, nothing to be done.

There was no need to worry about his reaction before it was even finished.

Iona hadn’t even caught a glimpse of Duke Leroy’s face in the past week.

It made her prior notice to Yonas feel pointless.

Any other woman might have felt slighted, but Iona brushed it off, figuring he must have other business. She already knew he was extremely busy at this time.

He’s probably searching for his old fiancée.

His response to the imperial summons was mere cover to begin with—the real reason he’d come to the capital was to find his former fiancée.

Around this time, there had been reports of sightings of Viviana, the only daughter of the Schmidt Count family, in the vicinity.

In the end, Duke Leroy failed to find Viviana, but right now was still the height of his search.

Yes, he must be terribly busy tracking down his fiancée’s whereabouts...

“It’s been a while.”

So why had he suddenly appeared right in front of her?

Iona looked up at Duke Leroy with a dumbfounded expression.

Wondering if it was a dream, she squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again, but he was still standing there.

She’d rushed out upon hearing the duke had come to visit, thinking it must be some mistake, but it wasn’t.

Iona opened her mouth, her face full of bewilderment.

“I didn’t know you were coming today.”

“Weren’t you planning to attend the ball at the Ritter Count family’s estate tonight?”

“That’s true, but...”

“You were the one who said it would be troublesome if we missed each other due to someone else’s interference.”

That didn’t mean showing up at her house unannounced without any prior notice.

The servants trailing behind him were even carrying armfuls of unidentified boxes.

She didn’t want to overstep, but given the atmosphere, they seemed like gifts for her.

“...Come up to my room for now. I’m not ready yet.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Iona let him into the house.

She couldn’t very well leave a partner who’d shown up uninvited standing outside indefinitely.

There was still plenty of time before the ball started, so she planned to at least offer him tea.

It was fortunate that Hayden and his children were out.

That cozy family outing she’d never been included in felt especially welcome today.

The servants Duke Leroy had brought delivered the gifts to Iona’s dressing room and left.

Marsha, who had rushed over upon hearing the news late, opened the boxes and couldn’t hide her delight.

“Miss, look at this. Rubies the exact color of your eyes. And this lustrous silk—how divine!”

She seemed to be exaggerating a bit with the gift-giver right there, but it was true that every item in the boxes was top-quality.

The dress made with generous silk, carpet shoes adorned with large natural gemstones, and matching jewelry all gleamed under the lights.

As Iona watched Marsha carefully take out the dress, she suddenly asked,

“How did you know my size?”

“It seems he borrowed your measurements from the salon you use.”

Money really can buy anything.

Iona was inwardly impressed.

It was a world she couldn’t even imagine, where you could order clothes without knowing the size.

At least it was a relief that her bodily secrets hadn’t been directly relayed to him.

“These look quite expensive.”

Iona said to Duke Leroy in a probing tone. He kept his mouth shut and didn’t respond.

In the end, Iona’s wording became more direct.

“You didn’t have to go to such lengths with gifts. I have plenty of clothes.”

“If you felt that strongly, you shouldn’t have let me in. I was starting to suspect you were hiding your status from me.”

Duke Leroy said indifferently as he glanced around the room.

And it wasn’t wrong—the number of dresses hanging here was noticeably sparse at first glance.

Even accounting for her late start in social activities, it was clearly insufficient.

Iona replied with an awkward expression.

“I receive a decent salary. I just don’t have much interest in spending a fortune on clothes and makeup.”

“That’s a relief. No need to waste money on fields you’re not interested in, right?”

“There’s even less need for the duke to cover those expenses on my behalf.”

“Unlike you, it’s not a significant expenditure for me.”

Was he saying it wasn’t a waste to spend money on her, or that spending on clothes wasn’t a waste? It was hard to tell.

Iona stared suspiciously at the skirt hem sparkling suspiciously with what might be gold thread woven in, then finally nodded with a dubious look.

It would be rude to refuse a carefully prepared gift just because it felt burdensome. Besides, he couldn’t exactly use them himself if she returned them.

“...Then I’ll gratefully accept them.”

The moment her permission came, Marsha began organizing the gifts as if she’d been waiting.

As Iona watched the scene with a vague sense of Is this really okay?, she felt a gaze pouring down on her from the side.

It wasn’t her imagination—when she turned her head, her eyes met his.

He asked,

“May I ask one impertinent question?”