Chapter 61

Recently, Duchess Royden had been in a particularly good mood.

Her son, Aivert—who, from childhood, had always been the very embodiment of Royden, yet had once declared he would never walk the Royden path—had finally changed his mind and stepped into that path.

Of course, if he truly hadn’t wanted to be the family head, she had been ready to appoint someone else.  

The Royden family had never been one to cling blindly to bloodlines.

Still, she’d had her hands full trying to quiet the outcry from within the family—those who claimed that Aivert not becoming the next head would be a loss for all of Royden.

But then, he’d changed his mind and taken up the mantle, and things had settled swiftly within the house.  

A problem that had troubled her for years had vanished just like that.

Now, to top it off, he was head over heels in love, sharing joyful news day after day.

‘Now all that’s left is the wedding.’

She thought this with a smile that never left her face, day after day.

Some might worry the two were already nearing the age of twenty-five, but she didn’t mind.

She had no time for superstitions claiming that being unmarried past twenty-five meant you were “flawed” or “cursed by the gods of love.”  

Anyone who believed such nonsense wasn’t welcome near her in the first place.

They would marry when they wanted to.

Until then, she would support them with all her heart.

But then—

“I hear the Young Lady of Count Syveric’s house has been quite active lately.”

“Indeed.”

Saying someone’s name in such a roundabout way usually meant nothing good was coming next.

Sure enough, whispers from the corner floated clearly to the Duchess’s ears.

“Disrupting the established order like that—perhaps it’s her bloodline. She’s certainly no true noble…”

When the Duchess drew near, those speaking clammed up immediately.

“Oh ho ho! So I received a bouquet of flowers!”

“My goodness!”

Their raised voices, pretending to have been speaking of something else all along, were pitifully transparent.

Sigh… When my daughter-in-law becomes Duchess Royden, she’ll have to step into this pit of snakes called the social circle.

She’ll probably be willing, even thrive in it—but still, people can get hurt.

That’s why the current Duchess had resolved to shoulder the burdens of Royden’s social obligations for as long as she could.

Of course, only if the new mistress of the house agreed.

“Madam, you don’t look well,” said the countess beside her—a woman she’d often spoken with at gatherings.

“I’m fine, really.”

The Duchess raised her fan to hide her face.  

Her expression must’ve slipped as she thought about the hardships her future daughter-in-law might face.

But then—

“You don’t need to pretend. Something’s clearly bothering you… I heard about the reason the wedding is being delayed.”

‘What reason?’

The Duchess looked at her, puzzled.

Whatever expression she made, the Countess gently shook her head.

“Such a shame…”

She looked so genuinely distressed it was almost theatrical.

At last, the Duchess spoke.

“They’re just busy. That’s all.”

If the children wanted to postpone the wedding because of work, who was she to argue?

Even if there were other reasons—was it anyone else’s business?

But the Countess looked hesitant.

“Well… yes, but still…”

Her expression said there was something more.

At that moment, another noblewoman joined in.

“Perhaps the Duchess hasn’t heard yet?”

“Surely not.”

‘Is there something I don’t know?’  

The odds that these ladies knew something she didn’t were laughably slim.

As the central figure of House Royden, she had access to every kind of information from every layer of society.

If she wanted to, she could know her children’s every move.

But the ladies before her exchanged nervous glances and said:

“…We heard they had a fight.”

‘What nonsense is this?’

The Duchess tilted her head.

“A fight?”

“It’s already all over the social circles.”

Thinking she was simply pretending not to know, one woman whispered behind her fan with a troubled expression.

“They fought… over another man, apparently…”

The Duchess was stunned

‘A man? My future daughter-in-law?’

If that were true, she would’ve heard it long ago.

No—more importantly, Rodella wasn’t that kind of person.

“Apparently, a merchant visiting the Knights saw her with another man.”

“There are tons of men in the Order. Isn’t it normal for them to be around?”

A sharper noblewoman said what the Duchess was thinking.

But another replied,

“They say the man with her clearly wasn’t a knight.”

At that, the well-informed Duchess immediately figured it out.

‘Ah. The mage who made the shackles.’

‘They’re blowing that out of proportion now?’

“Ah.”

Suddenly, she felt a rush of heat up the back of her neck.

She staggered, and the ladies around her gasped.

“Madam!”

“Oh dear, she must be in such shock…”

It wasn’t shock—it was fury that made her faint.

But her body had no intention of letting her clarify.

—Thud.

“Madam!”

“Please, stay with us!”

“Is there a doctor? Someone get a doctor!”

The social gathering fell into chaos, unaware that Duchess Royden had fainted from sheer rage.

***

“…What?”

“…Excuse me?”

News of the Duchess’s collapse reached the Azure Knights quickly.

The bearer of that news was Latine, who’d heard it while returning from business at the palace and rushed back by horse.

“Luckily, it doesn’t seem serious. Probably just exhaustion.”

Though Latine’s words brought some relief, Rodella and Aivert still decided to wrap up only the most urgent work and head straight to the imperial hospital.

But they weren’t the first to visit.

Even though the Roydens weren’t overly active in society, the hospital staff was stunned by the number of bouquets arriving.

They weren’t signed, but each was decorated with flowers the Duchess loved.

Naturally, Latine came to visit too—not just because the Vice-Commander’s mother had collapsed, but also because it was becoming known that he’d had ties to the previous Duke of Royden.

It was also one of the reasons why people weren’t too puzzled when Aivert Royden, who wasn’t naturally inclined to be on good terms with the Red Knights, specifically knocked on the door of the Azure Knights.

But the stream of visitors didn’t stop there.

Someone else had donned a heavy robe and was preparing to visit quietly.

“Normally, I’d be more relaxed about this.”

Clucking her tongue as the carriage rolled through the twilight, none other than Chancellor Ameris was seated inside.

Wearing a robe, she looked just like one of Royden’s household staff.  

The carriage had been sent discreetly from the Royden estate after she expressed her desire to visit.

Royden was seen as a neutral house, so open contact with the Chancellor had to be handled carefully.

On the way, Ameris listened to the situation from a Royden servant.

“The Duchess isn’t someone who’d collapse from baseless slander.”

“…They say it was from anger.”

The servant looked sheepish as he answered.

Ameris couldn’t help but laugh.

“She must’ve been furious.”

But she wasn’t the only one who would be.

Her casually drifting gaze turned upward, toward the star-strewn sky.

If someone tried to bring down House Royden with this kind of slander, they’d have to answer to someone else’s wrath too.

She was thinking of Aivert.

‘Would it just be anger? He must be burning with frustration.’

Ameris smiled faintly and sadly.

Thinking of Aivert, who looked at Rodella with love in his eyes—and of Rodella, who still saw him as just a friend.

But soon, she would witness something different.