Chapter 82………………………………….
As Ivelina entered the room, Arsen, who had been sitting on the bed waiting for her, sprang up from his seat.
“Ivelina.”
“Arsen.”
Arsen studied her face closely.
Her eyes were fine, and there was no sign that she had been crying—but it was also possible she had suppressed it with magic.
Ivelina tilted her head at his serious expression, then burst out laughing.
“I didn’t cry. Really.”
“Oh, was it obvious?”
“Very much so.”
Ivelina walked lightly over and plopped down beside him.
Arsen sat back down as well.
After a moment of silence, Ivelina spoke.
“I tore up the letter right in front of the knight. I also told him to wake up from his delusions, whatever he was thinking.”
“Well done.”
Arsen answered immediately after she finished speaking.
Ivelina widened her eyes and looked at him.
“Are you serious?”
“Of course. Very well done.”
She said with a bewildered expression,
“I thought… you’d at least say it was improper etiquette.”
“Was there ever any etiquette to observe toward those who aren’t even human?”
Arsen said, laughing lowly.
Ivelina’s expression turned slightly bitter.
“To think he sent a letter the very day the prophecy was reinterpreted… I didn’t read it, but I could guess what it said.”
It was probably an insincere apology letter.
That made Ivelina even more reluctant to read it.
By now, the knight had probably returned to the ducal household and delivered her message.
Her pride had been trampled this much, so there was no way he would contact her again.
But that was her mistake.
Not long after, someone knocked urgently at the door.
Arsen frowned, stood, and opened it.
It was Noah.
“What is it?”
Arsen looked at Noah with cold eyes, as if daring him to speak only if it was truly important.
Noah swallowed hard and turned his gaze to Ivelina.
Feeling uneasy, she slowly stood.
Noah hesitated before speaking.
“Duke Lotsfeldt has arrived. He wishes to see the Grand Duchess, and he—”
Before Noah could finish, Ivelina ran out of the room and hurried downstairs, biting her lips hard enough to draw blood.
It was noisy downstairs.
Ivelina, breathing heavily, walked slowly toward the source of the commotion.
“Why haven’t you called Ivelina here immediately? I have something to say!”
“The butler has gone to her, so she’ll be down soon. Please wait in the parlor—”
“How dare you lay a hand on me!”
The duke didn’t move an inch, and Berry stomped his feet in frustration, ultimately grabbing his arm.
The duke shouted and pushed Berry aside, raising his hand.
Berry instinctively squeezed her eyes shut—but no pain came.
When she opened them slowly, she saw Ivelina holding the duke’s arm.
“Grand Duchess!”
“Berry, go back. I’ll handle this.”
At Ivelina’s cold voice, Berry hesitated, then bowed quickly and retreated inside.
The duke tried to put force into shaking off Ivelina’s grip, but Arsen suddenly appeared and grabbed his arm.
“…Quite a bold face you have.”
The duke’s face turned red at Arsen’s words.
Ivelina slowly released the duke’s arm, but Arsen held firm.
No matter how much the duke struggled, Arsen remained as still as a tree.
Ivelina, watching the duke with an unreadable expression, finally spoke.
“Arsen, let go of the duke’s arm.”
“As you wish.”
As soon as she spoke, Arsen released the duke’s arm.
The duke staggered backward but managed to catch his balance, breathing heavily.
The wrist that had been held by Arsen was bright red.
Embarrassed at being overpowered by someone much younger, the duke hastily covered his wrist with his sleeve.
Ivelina didn’t tell the duke to go to the parlor. She simply stood and watched.
The duke cleared his throat and spoke first.
“Ivelina, I want to talk to you alone.”
“…Ivelina?”
Ivelina muttered quietly.
With a cold expression, she looked at him and said,
“Who gave you permission to call me by my name?”
“What?”
“I am the Grand Duchess of Lotsfeldt. You are not someone I allow to speak informally or address me by my name.”
The duke gritted his teeth.
There was no argument to be made; her words were correct.
But he was not willing to admit his mistake easily.
Forcing a stiff smile, he said,
“Why must family speak so formally?”
He reached out to grab Ivelina’s arm.
Before he could, Arsen grabbed his wrist firmly.
“Do not touch her.”
“Ugh…”
“It’s unpleasant.”
Ivelina and the duke’s eyes met.
She was staring at him like he was a bug.
The duke’s pupils shook violently.
Biting his lip, he suddenly dropped to his knees.
Ivelina froze, eyes wide, and stepped back.
“I, I am truly sorry. I have committed a grave sin.”
“….”
“If I could turn back time… I would go back to when you were born. I am truly sorry.”
The duke clenched his fists.
He could endure this humiliation if it meant bringing Ivelina back to the mansion.
Slowly raising his head, he looked at Ivelina.
“So… could you return to the mansion, even now, so I can atone for my sins?”
Ivelina, silently watching him, slowly sat down.
Then she carefully took his hand.
Arsen flinched but did not move.
At Ivelina’s gentle gesture, the duke’s expression brightened.
Being starved for family affection, he was easily moved by even the smallest tenderness.
A smile spread across the duke’s lips at the thought that the family’s former glory was nearly restored.
But it was brief.
Ivelina spoke softly.
“Father.”
“Ah, yes! I’ve prepared your room, and if you want, we can make new dresses and jewelry—”
“Didn’t you hear the knight’s message?”
The duke froze at her unexpected words.
Her gentle smile had suddenly turned cold.
“I told you to wake up from your delusions.”
“You… you—!”
“I will never go back to that hell, even if I die and come back to life.”
Ivelina stood abruptly.
“Leave. If you don’t, I will call the knight. You wouldn’t want me to witness the disgrace of you being dragged out, would you?”
The duke trembled.
Ivelina added one final, sharp remark.
“Thank you for your insincere apology.”
She spun on her heel.
Arsen naturally wrapped his arm around her shoulder and followed.
When Noah approached, Arsen instructed,
“Block everything related to the Lotsfeldt ducal family. Remove ‘that’ from the door as well.”
“Yes, Grand Duchess!”
Noah bowed and hurried away.
From behind, the duke called her name, but Ivelina did not look back even once.
The next day, Ivelina received a huge stack of letters.
All of them were invitations to tea parties.
She stared, mouth agape, at the pile on a silver tray.
“All… of these letters are for me?”
“Yes, Grand Duchess!”
As she checked each one, she saw her name on every envelope.
Then one envelope, unusually ornate, caught her eye.
“What’s this?”
She muttered and examined it.
It was from the Marquess of Reherot.
Curious because of its elaborate design, she wondered what it contained.
“Berry, could you give me a paper knife?”
“I can do it! You might cut your fingers!”
Berry neatly cut the wax seal with the knife and handed it to her.
Ivelina smiled faintly and opened the letter slowly.
But it was not a tea party invitation.
“This… is a proposal!”
Even looking again, it was clearly a marriage proposal.
Sending a proposal to someone already married? She had to be crazy.
Ivelina hurriedly returned the letter to the envelope and gave it to Berry.
“Burn this.”
“Pardon? Ah, yes! Understood!”
Berry quickly tucked the letter into his pocket.
Ivelina felt a pang of unease.
What if not all the letters were tea party invitations?
Some could be proposals, like the one she had just found.
There were too many letters for her to sort alone, so she reluctantly asked Berry for help.
“Berry, could you pick out the ones addressed to family names instead of personal names? There’s too many for me to handle alone.”
“Yes, Grand Duchess.”
So Ivelina and Berry diligently sorted through the letters.
Ivelina hoped it would end soon, but reality was cruel.
Her hands were soon full of letters.
Berry’s hands were too.
Since some might still be tea party invitations, Ivelina decided to open them one by one.
But every single one was a crazy proposal.
“Completely insane.”
Ivelina shook her head.
“Berry, burn everything we’ve picked out. Leave no trace.”
“Yes, Grand Duchess.”
She handed Berry the stack of letters.
One letter slipped under the bed in the process—but neither Ivelina nor Berry noticed.
Berry went outside to burn the letters while Ivelina collapsed onto the bed.
Now, she had to read each letter and send a reply.
Even if she couldn’t attend, etiquette demanded a polite refusal.
Ivelina still planned to attend at least one event.
“I’ll focus on the ones sent by people who attended the wedding.”
After sorting carefully, she sent her reply to the Marchioness of Monterri, confirming her attendance at the tea party.
