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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: An Icy Reception
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Alone in the carriage, Serapina's shoulders trembled with rage.
‘How could Gregory do this to me?!’
She understood that he was on edge because of Lalitt.
After all, he'd practically lost the title of Viscount Ansi, and the fiefdom along with it.
Hadn't Serapina herself faced all sorts of difficulties in high society since her falling out with Lalitt?
The blow to Gregory had been far greater than to her, so she'd thought it was inevitable he might neglect her a little.
But.
‘Even so, how could he treat me with such contempt!’
An icy voice fell from Serapina's lips.
“Take me to the Gusto townhouse.”
* * *
And so she arrived at the townhouse of the County of Gusto.
Seeing Serapina's sudden appearance, the servants couldn't hide their bewildered expressions.
“Lady Lopes?”
“What brings you here…?”
And Serapina noticed the subtle change in the servants' attitude.
Normally, they would have been falling all over themselves to please her.
Now, though their expressions were polite on the surface, they were clearly keeping their distance from her.
Serapina consciously forced a smile to her lips.
“Where is Gregor?”
She deliberately used his nickname, flaunting her closeness to Gregory, the master of the townhouse.
But the servants still couldn't shake their hesitant demeanor.
“He, uh, has gone out.”
“Gregor… is out?”
*He must have known I was attending the Peony gathering today.*
*In the past, he would have naturally come to pick me up...*
‘Does this mean he prioritized something else over me?’
A fine crack appeared in Serapina's picture-perfect smile.
“He said he would be a little late today.”
“Then I'll wait inside.”
“What?”
Without waiting for a reply, Serapina strode into the townhouse.
Having come and gone as if it were her own home, she knew the layout of the mansion like the back of her hand.
“M-My lady! Lady Lopes!”
A flustered servant called out to her.
Ignoring them, Serapina slipped into the drawing room.
She settled comfortably on the sofa, tilted her head, and looked up at the servant.
“Yes?”
Serapina's smile deepened slightly.
It was her signature gentle smile, and yet.
It held a strange chill.
“Surely, you're not thinking of throwing me out?”
“…”
The servant, who had been staring at Serapina with a complicated gaze, finally shook their head and stepped back.
“…Of course not, my lady.”
Serapina spoke with the arrogance of a homeowner.
“I would like some warm tea. Is that possible?”
“Yes, right away.”
A short while later.
Refreshments and black tea were served on the table.
It was the brand of black tea Serapina usually enjoyed.
“…”
Only then did Serapina's heart soften a little.
At the very least, Gregory still kept refreshments and tea prepared for her in the townhouse.
That fact was a great comfort.
‘Still.’
As she enjoyed the aroma of the warm tea, Serapina's eyes sharpened.
‘I can't just let this go.’
She couldn't afford to lose Gregory too.
Absolutely not.
* * *
That evening.
Gregory, who returned late, widened his eyes in surprise.
“Sera, what are you doing here?”
“I just felt like we haven't spent any real time together lately.”
Serapina smiled prettily with her eyes.
“I stopped by to see you since it's been a while. Aren't you happy to see me?”
She expected Gregory to welcome her with open arms.
But Gregory's reaction was anything but enthusiastic.
“Why are you being so dramatic?”
“…What?”
At his unexpected response, Serapina blinked blankly.
“We just saw each other in the Gusto fiefdom.”
Gregory collapsed onto the sofa and wiped his face with an impatient hand.
“Since you're here, let me ask you one thing.”
“Ask me? What?”
“What do you think, Sera?”
Gregory hesitated for a moment before continuing with a sigh.
“…It's about Lalitt.”
*Lalitt again?*
A deep frown creased Serapina's brow.
“I thought Lalitt called off the engagement in a fit of anger, but she's surprisingly holding a grudge.”
Gregory glanced at Serapina.
“Still… there's no way Lalitt has forgotten me.”
“…That's.”
“She's just a little upset. She'll come back to me eventually, right? Right?”
Serapina didn't answer his urgent question.
No, she couldn't answer.
She could only stare at Gregory with an icy expression.
“Sera?”
Gregory called her name, his voice laced with suspicion.
“Ah.”
Finally snapping back to her senses, Serapina shot Gregory a playful glare.
“Gregor, I'm a little hurt.”
Serapina once again chided him with a coquettish charm.
“We haven't seen each other in so long, and all you want to talk about is Lalitt?”
“…”
Gregory looked at her with a distinctly calculating gaze.
There was a time when he would have fallen head over heels for Serapina's sweet words and affectionate glances.
But now.
‘Sera… is of no use to me whatsoever.’
Of course, it was true he had felt a sense of pride walking around with Serapina.
Along with Duchess Claudius, Serapina was the most prominent lady in high society.
She had a pretty face, lovely mannerisms, and a gentle way of speaking.
She was the type who naturally appealed to the opposite sex.
But that was all.
‘If things continue like this… I'll really end up with nothing.’
Unable to overcome his anxiety, Gregory ground his teeth.
Although the County of Gusto held a higher rank than the Viscounty of Ansi, Gregory was strictly a second son.
He could not inherit the title.
For someone like him to survive by any means necessary…
‘I have to hold on to Lalitt, no matter what it takes.’
But what was his reality?
The small but lucrative fiefdom of Ansi.
The title of Viscount Ansi.
…And Lalitt herself.
While he was distracted by Serapina, wasn't he in danger of losing it all?
Moreover, Lalitt had recently become dazzlingly beautiful, unlike before.
To the point that several young lords were secretly taking notice.
His stomach twisting, Gregory shot up from his seat.
“It's late, Sera.”
Serapina looked up at him with a bewildered face.
“Gregor?”
“You should go now. I'm tired and need to rest.”
Leaving Serapina in the drawing room, Gregory strode out.
“Gregor!”
Leaping to her feet, Serapina called out to him urgently.
But Gregory didn't even glance back.
“You, really…!”
Left alone, Serapina's face twisted into a hideous scowl.
* * *
It was nearly midnight when Serapina finally arrived in front of the shared townhouse where she was staying.
“…”
Serapina stared at the building with sunken eyes.
In truth, being able to afford a private townhouse in the capital was a privilege in itself.
One had to be wealthy enough to afford the capital's exorbitant land prices, a cost so immense that most nobles couldn't even dream of it.
So, when poorer nobles were forced to stay in the capital for extended periods, they typically used shared townhouses.
‘I'm so sick of it.’
Serapina was one of them.
Still, as it was a building where nobles resided together, it was kept clean and tidy.
But for her, who had just been in the luxurious townhouse of the County of Gusto, it was far from satisfactory.
This place, a long carriage ride from the center of the capital where the noble townhouses were concentrated.
‘When will I ever be able to escape this cheap, shared townhouse?’
Serapina's eyes grew sharp.
Lalitt.
Gregory.
Until now, with the help of those two, she had paraded herself as the most sought-after lady in high society.
But every time she set foot in this place, she was forced to feel it.
The difference between the lady of the hollow Barony of Lopes, which didn't even have a fist-sized plot of land…
…and the sole duchess of Claudius.
‘I hate it so much.’
Serapina ground her teeth and entered the townhouse.
Her deep green eyes, which the young lords of society never tired of praising as being 'like the finest emeralds,' were now sharp and glinting with a menacing killing intent.
Slam!
The door was violently shut with a rough hand.
Her surroundings fell silent.
