55 - I Got Engaged to a Blind Duke
Engaged to the Blind Duke Chapter 55
"Wow! Your Grace, did you just say diamond?"
Surenne opened her purple eyes wide.
The emperor of her homeland, the Sanders Empire, had melted gold to build a golden palace.
But diamond? Making a carriage out of something several times more expensive than gold.
"The diamond mine would go bankrupt."
Butler Sebas stroked his beard, trying hard to maintain his composure.
"That's insane."
Jeromian spat out his honest impression directly.
"Can you do it?"
The Duke, as if he didn't care about the reactions of the three, asked Surenne again.
"If it's made of diamond, it would be very sturdy and sparkling. Wow, I've never even thought of that. Handsome alchemist, what do you call this?"
Surenne's eyes sparkled as if she found it amusing.
"Money. Wast. Ing."
Jeromian kindly smiled and slowly explained to Surenne.
"Your Grace is really good at wasting money."
Surenne sincerely admired and praised the Duke.
"Surenne, that's not something you say."
Butler Sebas, his face pale, tried to stop her.
"Why? I'm someone who gives good compliments."
Butler Sebas let out a deep sigh.
Olive's absence was keenly felt. Originally, it was Olive's role to rein in Jeromian and Surenne, who were acting so recklessly.
"Zero. Research a method where you can see outside from inside the carriage, but the inside can't be seen from outside."
Gerald, who had kept his head fixed towards Surenne the entire time, spoke to Jeromian for the first time.
"Why on earth do you need such a strange carriage?"
"For my fiancée."
"Wooow. Money wasting, love wasting."
Surenne, with an admiring face, gave the Duke two big thumbs up.
"Surenneee!"
Butler Sebas hurriedly covered her mouth.
"That's right. Double wasting."
Jeromian looked at Surenne as if she did well.
A slight smile appeared and then disappeared on Gerald's indifferent face.
\ \ \
Flap flap. Numerous birds carrying secret notes soared powerfully into the sky.
The places where the birds arrived fastest were the imperial palace and the various ducal houses, except for the western one.
A hawk landed on the shoulder of the Southern Duke, who was hunting in the forest.
While the hawk preened its feathers, the Duke untied the note knotted to its leg.
The Western Duke, who caused that commotion in the south, is getting engaged?
A cold smile formed on the lips of the Southern Duke as he crumpled the note tightly in his hand.
Meanwhile, the Eastern Duke remained bedridden due to illness.
Instead, a white-haired woman in the Duke's office read the note and slowly stroked her teacup with an enigmatic smile.
And in the Northern Duke's laboratory, aide John entered.
The Northern Duke jumped up as soon as he saw the note John presented.
"Well, well. It seems I have no choice but to contact my son."
"Even without that excuse, you always contact him, don't you?"
Aide John pointed out the behavior of the Northern Duke, who was a fool for his son.
"What nonsense? It's been two whole days. And since something important has happened, of course I should contact him."
The Northern Duke quickly left the laboratory, contrary to his solemn expression.
Finally, the Emperor of the Empire received the news of the Western Duke's engagement in his office.
"The Western Duke is getting engaged."
"Yes, Your Imperial Majesty."
The old Head Chamberlain, having finished his report, quietly awaited the Emperor's command.
"Interesting. What does the Head Chamberlain think?"
"I suspect the death of the Countess might have been the cause."
"Tsk. The Countess was a useful piece, but I thought too simply......"
The Emperor tapped the desk as he organized his thoughts.
"The Western Duke and the Countess had never met even once after the Countess married."
"That's right."
"The Countess only had one son. With no nephew to inherit the ducal title, I think thoughts of succession became more pressing."
The Head Chamberlain cautiously continued his opinion.
"Tsk tsk. That's the worst possible situation. It would be best if the Western Duke died without an heir. Look into that fiancée."
"Yes, Your Imperial Majesty."
The Head Chamberlain bowed deeply and answered before leaving the room.
The Emperor, left alone in the office, tapped his desk and sank into thought.
After that, the nobles who saw the information brought by the scattered birds couldn't hide their astonishment.
\ \ \
The news of the Western Duke's engagement and party struck the Western social circles.
Whenever the Western nobles gathered, they chattered about the Duke and his fiancée.
The fiancée's status. The fiancée's appearance.
The nobles who had visited the jeweler gained information from Yorelli's chatter that the Duke cherished his fiancée and that the fiancée was full of aegyo (charming, cute behavior).
They said the Duke had known his fiancée for a long time. They said the Duke offered up an entire jewelry store for his fiancée. They said the Duke was so smitten with his fiancée he couldn't distinguish between public and private affairs.
The inflated rumors even spread to the absurd story that 'The Duke is so blinded by love for a low-ranking Baron's daughter.'
The topics of the young ladies enjoying a tea party in the greenhouse were also entirely about the Western Duke's engagement and party.
"I thought His Grace the Duke would never marry."
A young lady with a round appearance pouted with a sullen face, clearly showing her disappointment. She was usually one of the Duke's admirers.
"Oh my, what are you talking about? Considering His Grace the Duke's age, it's already quite late."
The young lady next to her, taking a sip of tea, chided her.
"I know. I know, but still. He's our eternal Duke. Isn't that right? Lady Susan."
Susan, who was hosting the tea party, quietly drank her tea before setting down her cup.
Her blonde hair shimmered even more brilliantly under the sunlight pouring through the greenhouse window.
Everyone was guessing that the young lady rumored to have secretly entered the Western Duke's bedroom might be Susan. And no wonder, as Susan's one-sided love for the Duke was famous. But unless she revealed the truth herself, it was just a baseless rumor.
"So now, he will become His Grace the Duke belonging to one person, not us......"
At Susan's calm tone, everyone looked at her in surprise.
Those who knew Susan's fiery temper expected her to cry, shout, and make a scene.
Secretly, some had gathered hoping to see just that.
"But has anyone here seen that fiancée?"
Amanda, who had been quietly sitting as if uncomfortable with the topic, looked around and asked.
Wherever she was, she had to be the center of attention. But everyone was fervently discussing the Western Duke's engagement.
Then, even if she had to bring the central figure of that topic into it, she needed to get attention.
"No."
"I heard she's a Baron's daughter. They say she rarely attended young ladies' gatherings before."
The eight ladies invited to Susan's tea party were central figures in Western high society.
If they didn't know, then nobody did.
Amanda, who had met her most recently, smiled with satisfaction. Of course, it wasn't a pleasant meeting, but the young ladies here didn't know that fact.
"Actually, I recently......"
"I know."
Christine, sitting at the very end of the tea party, cut off Amanda mid-sentence.
Amanda shot Christine a displeased look. She only invited her because she tried so hard to fit in, even offering jewelry.
She didn't know when to join in and when to step back.
"Christine, do you know about that fiancée?"
"Yes. I've heard of her."
"So you haven't met her. I, a few days ago......"
As Amanda tried to add boastfully, Christine interrupted again.
"My fiancé told me he heard that woman is exceptionally skilled at seducing men to gain benefits."
The impact of Christine's words was immense.
Even Amanda, whose words were cut off, was too shocked to get angry.
Susan, who had been calmly drinking her tea, deliberately set her cup down with a clatter. The young ladies' gazes turned to her.
"Lady Christine. Could you tell us that story in more detail?"
Susan's green eyes gleamed sharply.
