Chapter 93
Lucas met her gaze and gave a slight nod in greeting.
Lucy felt nervous inside, worried he might come over to acknowledge her.
“I came to this party today as Lucy Diallo. If Lord Lucas, not knowing the situation, accidentally mentions the name Rayford, it would be troublesome.”
Fortunately, her worries were unfounded. He shifted his gaze back to the people around him.
“Didn’t you hear me? I told you to stop right there! Leave immediately before I drag you out by force!”
Just as Lucy sighed in relief and turned to go, Jessica’s sharp voice rang out from behind.
When Jessica approached, Lucy spoke nonchalantly in a tone full of feigned pity.
“Really, how cruel. A sister throwing her own sibling out of her birthday party? That would make quite the spectacle! I don’t care since my reputation can’t sink any lower, but wouldn’t you be the one in trouble?”
At Lucy’s words, Jessica trembled with rage.
“So, where is the viscount? I was thinking of leaving quietly, but since my dear sister is so desperate to chase me out, I’ve changed my mind.”
Lucy pretended to look around for Viscount Yorogo, making Jessica’s face twist as she clutched her dress tightly.
Rumors had already spread far and wide throughout the capital’s society—that Lucy had run away in the night with a man.
It had been impossible to contain the gossip, thanks to Duke Vallon spreading it everywhere.
Naturally, Lucy’s scandal became a huge stain on House Diallo, and even now Jessica was constantly plagued by whispers about having such a disgraceful younger sister.
And now, the very sister at the center of those rumors had the audacity to appear openly—and worse, Jessica might have to introduce her to her husband.
That was the last thing Jessica wanted to happen.
But her wishes shattered instantly.
“My dear, what are you doing over here?”
Her husband, Viscount Yorogo, happened to notice Jessica and approached warmly.
“The hostess of the party can’t be absent for so long. Come, see who has arrived to celebrate your birthday! His Grace, the Grand Duke of Cretan, has come in person!”
Jessica’s eyes widened at the words Grand Duke of Cretan.
“Th-the Grand Duke of Cretan?”
She had sent an invitation upon hearing he was in the capital, but never imagined he would actually come.
It was her first time seeing him this close, and she was thrilled—but the joy was soured by the fact that Lucy was standing right beside her.
“Viscountess Yorogo, happy birthday.”
Lucas bowed politely and kissed the back of Jessica’s hand.
“Th-thank you so much for gracing my party with your presence, Your Grace.”
Jessica blushed shyly.
“Your Grace, I am Lucy Diallo, Viscountess Yorogo’s younger sister.”
Not missing the chance, Lucy quickly introduced herself.
“Ah, so the viscountess has a sister. A pleasure to meet you.”
Lucas then took Lucy’s hand and lightly kissed it as well.
“Lucy Diallo? If she’s your sister, then she must be the one who…”
Viscount Yorogo looked back and forth between the two women in surprise.
Jessica shut her eyes tightly. This was the very nightmare she had most dreaded, and she couldn’t even think of an excuse.
“My lord viscount, forgive me for the late greeting. I had been gravely ill and went away to recuperate, but I’ve only just returned.”
Lucy bowed politely.
“I see. Away for convalescence… I have heard much about you. And indeed, you are as beautiful as the rumors say!”
Although he clearly didn’t believe her story about convalescence, the viscount still seemed quite taken aback by Lucy’s sudden appearance.
Lucy glanced around. Jessica’s expression was stiff, unable to hide her embarrassment.
Meanwhile, more and more people began to notice Lucy and whisper.
“Isn’t that Lucy Diallo? I’m not seeing things, right?”
“Didn’t she elope with a man? Could it be she was abandoned and came back?”
“And who’s that man beside her? He looks foreign. Maybe he’s the one she supposedly ran away with?”
Shan, whose ears were sharper than most, frowned at the growing murmurs.
At that moment, Lucas looked around at the crowd, then extended his hand toward Lucy.
“It seems the party is well underway, yet there is still no music. Lady Diallo, what do you say? Would you honor me with the first dance?”
Even though he knew Shan was standing right beside her as her partner, Lucas deliberately asked Lucy to dance.
At his words, Viscount Yorogo quickly gestured to the musicians, who began to play.
As the music filled the hall, the crowd’s attention dispersed, and people began moving to the dance floor.
Lucy felt conflicted about Lucas’s invitation, but it would be rude to refuse.
She glanced once at Shan before placing her hand into Lucas’s.
“To share the first dance with Your Grace—it is an honor.”
Lucy smiled brightly, then looked toward Jessica, who was glaring daggers at her, biting her lip in fury.
“How did you end up here, Lord Lucas?”
As the dance began, Lucy asked softly.
“I cannot reveal the details, but I am here on a mission entrusted to me by His Majesty the Emperor.”
Lucas leaned closer, whispering into her ear.
Of course, it was a complete lie.
He had simply heard that Lucy would be attending Jessica’s birthday party with Shan as her escort.
“The thought of Lucy dancing with that man Shan at a party… I cannot bear it.”
He hadn’t needed to think further. He came straight to the party.
Joanna flipped through a tall stack of party invitations before standing up in irritation.
“With the Founding Festival so near, if only he could achieve some impressive accomplishment by then!”
She clicked her tongue, thinking of Edwin.
Lucy Diallo. That foolish man had even skipped an important meeting where he might have been named commander of the Imperial Knights—all because he was obsessed with searching for her.
As if that weren’t enough, he had wasted nearly a year wallowing in despair. And even after coming to his senses, he had yet to produce any meaningful results.
“Lucy Diallo… it’s fortunate that woman died, but what on earth happened back then to make him such a fool?”
Only much later did she discover the truth: Edwin had been directly involved in Lucy’s so-called death.
“Well, at least he seems to have regained his senses. But if he remains this incompetent…”
Joanna sighed. In truth, Edwin’s incompetence hardly mattered.
What she needed was not his ability but his status as the Fourth Prince, favored by the Emperor.
Even so, lately she had grown increasingly uneasy.
The Empire had been suffering a long drought, and it was becoming harder for the common people to survive. A great famine was clearly looming.
Joanna, who foresaw the situation earlier than most, believed this crisis could be turned into an opportunity for Edwin’s comeback.
And just then, a supposed miracle crop emerged from the Navid Trading Company—“Ops.”
She kept a close eye on the new foods made from Ops that were beginning to spread in the market, and attempted to secure an exclusive contract. But every attempt ended in failure.
No matter how hard she searched, she could not even once meet the actual merchant lord who ran the company.
Even after spending a fortune to commission the Information Guild, they only shook their heads.
“It is beyond our capability to track them. Each delivery contract is sent only by post, and the origin of those letters changes every time.”
Worse still, only the processed foods made from Ops were distributed publicly—the crop itself was never sold.
While Joanna fretted alone, her plans crumbled.
Somehow, Duke Marcel Paul Miller, the Imperial Chancellor, had secured an exclusive contract with the Navid Trading Company to supply Ops directly to the Imperial Court.
“In that case, I must change the plan.”
With that thought, Joanna began carefully sifting through the invitations again.
