Chapter 32
As the crowd cleared out, the once-boisterous hall was now shrouded in silence.
Riette had intended to return home after handing Evan back his gloves, but he asked her to wait for a moment and disappeared, leaving her alone.
“Where did that guy go?”
Riette grumbled, glancing toward the door. Just then, as if summoned by her words, Evan opened the door and walked in.
In his hand was the gift box they had seen earlier in the carriage.
“So it really was mine!”
That rascal. How dare he try to trick me in such a cute way?
Still, realizing the gift was for her made Riette grin. Seeing her smile, Evan silently handed her the box.
“Yeah, it’s your present, Riette.”
“Then why did you lie earlier?”
Despite the question, Riette eagerly began tearing off the wrapping without hesitation. When she opened the box, a radiant dagger—the one she had seen in Evan’s room—was nestled inside.
“This is…!”
“The same one I bought not long ago.”
“I wanted this so badly—how did you know?”
“Every time you came into my room, that’s the first thing you looked at. How could I not notice?”
Hmm… did I really do that?
Her embarrassment only lasted a moment. Soon, Riette was all smiles again as she examined the dagger.
“Thanks. Oh, and this—”
Still distracted by the dagger, Riette belatedly remembered to return Evan’s gloves.
That’s when she noticed her hands—smudged and dirty with soot and dust.
Feeling a little self-conscious, she mumbled under her breath.
“…I should go wash up.”
But Evan simply smiled and accepted the gloves.
“Did you know something, Riette?”
“What?”
As she asked, Evan gently wiped the ash from her hands using his sleeve.
“I like you better like this—in a shirt and trousers, than all dressed up.”
“…”
“I like your hands, calloused from training, better than those soft and dainty ones.”
“…”
“And I prefer you, climbing trees with leather gloves, to women holding parasols with satin ones.”
Riette stared at Evan in a daze. It wasn’t just because it was Evan. The mere fact that someone said something like that to her touched her heart.
After cleaning off her hands, Evan brushed back her tousled hair that was sticking up messily.
“I even like the way you stubbornly fight to win.”
…Huh?
The warmth in her chest was suddenly doused with cold water.
‘Of course.’
Riette straightened her face before it could scrunch up and crossed her arms.
“I wasn’t struggling to win—I actually did win this time, okay?”
She spread out her palm toward Evan. For some reason, her five fingers looked exceptionally firm today.
“Fifty bonus points. Too bad, Evan. Looks like I’m the one who’s gonna be first this time.”
Riette teased, watching Evan for a reaction—but he just smiled quietly.
“Congratulations.”
That calm and unexpected response made Riette raise one eyebrow.
“That’s it?”
“Yeah. After all, this will be your last time winning first place.”
“You little—!”
In the end, it was Riette who fell for the provocation. And she immediately felt wronged.
Just earlier, her heart had warmed at the thought that someone understood her…
Glaring at Evan, she shouted,
“Give me back the warm fuzzy feelings I just had, you jerk!”
“Duke Meren.”
How many years had it been? While polishing the dagger Evan had given her at the dance party, Riette had drifted off into thought, but the sound of someone calling her name brought her back. An aide stood before her with a troubled expression.
“What is it?”
“His Majesty the Emperor has summoned you.”
Ah… so it’s come to this.
Riette tapped the desk with her fingers a couple of times before rising from her seat. The sharp screech of the chair being pushed back reflected her foul mood.
As she walked toward the Emperor’s office, she could feel people casting glances at her.
The only female duke in the empire, the first-ever woman to become a parliamentary member—those titles always drew attention wherever she went.
But today, those looks were not of admiration. Clearly, it was tied to the reason she was being summoned by the Emperor.
Bad news always seemed to travel fast. Just thinking about how she’d have to handle this mess gave her a headache.
At the Emperor’s office, the guards checked her face and opened the door. Inside, Emperor Leopold stood by the window, hands behind his back.
Sensing her presence, the Emperor slowly turned around and gestured for the attendants to leave.
Now alone, Riette gave a formal bow.
“Greetings, Your Majesty.”
“No need for formality when it’s just the two of us.”
The Emperor dropped into a gold-trimmed velvet sofa, rubbing his temples—a gesture that clearly showed his weariness.
“In times like this, formality is more important. What if people start saying you, too, are a spy because of me?”
Riette spoke with biting sarcasm as she sat across from him.
“I see you already know why I called you.”
“It would be hard not to know.”
Riette picked up the teapot on the table and poured herself a cup.
Outwardly, she held herself back, but inside, her emotions were boiling over like the steaming tea. Even without being told, she knew exactly why she had been summoned.
‘It must be because of that ridiculous spy rumor going around.’
The rumors started months ago during a parliamentary session. Riette, a staunch hardliner, had strongly supported the urgent issue of wheat imports. Though the wheat from the Haren Empire was expensive, she had no choice. It would take years to restore the eastern lands destroyed by the tsunami, and since that region was the empire’s primary wheat producer, their inability to harvest had led to mass starvation.
Of course, she wasn’t suggesting that they permanently import expensive wheat from Haren. In fact, she was also negotiating with the neighboring kingdom of Sorentia to import grains like potatoes.
But the parliamentary discussions from that day were twisted and distorted to extremes, spreading rapidly.
People began saying Riette Meren was pushing for expensive wheat imports in blind support of the Haren Empire.
From there, the slander escalated to this point:
‘Duke Meren is likely a planted spy from the Haren Empire. Why else would she advocate paying outrageous prices for wheat, the empire’s staple food?’
Anyone who truly knew Riette would’ve scoffed at such nonsense. But even the biggest lies can sound true when repeated by three or more mouths.
Then came the final nail: a recent diplomatic visit from a Haren imperial princess to the Truto Empire.
The princess, shy by nature, had requested Riette—a fellow woman—to show her around the imperial palace. Riette agreed without hesitation and gave her a warm tour.
But moderate nobles from Truto spread rumors that Riette had been seen in secret rendezvous with the Haren envoy.
And that rumor, too, eventually reached the Emperor’s ears.
“I have nothing to do with the Haren Empire.”
Riette’s crimson eyes gleamed with sincerity. The Emperor nodded.
“No need to explain. I know you better than anyone.”
“Then why call me here if you don’t need an explanation?”
Riette was extremely busy.
There was the wheat import issue, and she was also engaged in trade talks with other nations to bring in cheaper potatoes.
What’s worse, the moderate nobles had completely overlooked one key fact: the people starving to death were the lowest-class citizens. They assumed it wouldn’t matter much if their numbers thinned. But beyond ethical concerns, that was simply foolish.
A nation is like a tower. If the lowest foundation crumbles, everything else comes crashing down.
Cracks were already forming in that foundation.
Hungry commoners were rioting in the streets, and crime was spiking everywhere. If they didn’t address this crisis soon, the entire empire could be in danger.
That’s what made this all the more infuriating. She was already barely keeping up with solving real problems, and now they were accusing her of being a spy?
“What are you going to do from here?”
“I’ll have to start thinking about that now.”
She hadn’t expected the rumors to spiral this far and thus hadn’t prepared any countermeasures.
“You’ll need to act wisely.”
The Emperor’s eyes were filled with concern.
Leopold trusted Riette and held her in high regard, but he also acknowledged her flaws. Riette lacked the ability to diplomatically win people over.
Politics, after all, was simply a game of alliances—the more allies, the higher your chances of winning.
Riette did have allies. Many hardliner nobles, including the Emperor himself, supported her.
But she had always faced a significant obstacle: the faction that had opposed her from the very start of her political career.
The rise of a female duke had already shocked the empire. When she later became a parliamentary member, it stirred jealousy and resentment.
And the more successful she became, the more that jealousy grew.
Especially her efforts to uproot the old, corrupt aristocracy—they deeply antagonized the moderate nobles.
Of course, it had been the Emperor himself who empowered her to do so.
“The moderates probably think this is their big chance. They’ll keep fanning the flames.”
“I understand. I’ll make sure you have nothing to worry about.”
Despite not having a clear plan yet, Riette’s red eyes held no hesitation. Her usual composure eased the Emperor’s worries slightly, and he let out a weary smile.
“You’re remarkable. Nothing ever seems to bring you down.”
“I’ve gone through too much to get here. Something like this? It’s nothing.”
Riette thought back to the long, difficult road she’d taken.
Yes, she could admit she had chosen a harsh path instead of a paved one. But it was in her nature—what could she do?
As her heart calmed, she sipped the now lukewarm tea.
She had faced worse crises before. One particular memory surfaced—
‘There was a time, back in noble school, when I faced a crisis very much like this…’
She suddenly recalled the incident from her academy days—an event that almost prevented her from standing where she was now.
