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“Yes, it is.”

“That’s good.”

Yelena smiled, satisfied. Her pink eyes twinkled with a certain determination.

“Shall we go inside?”

***

Only half of Yelena’s worries were right.

As she had predicted, upon joining the party, her husband drew a lot of attention.

“That person is none other than the rumored…”

“No wonder he’s wearing a mask here…”

She was also right that the attention wasn’t very positive.

But…

“Could that be the duchess next to him, by any chance?”

“The attendant definitely introduced them as the ducal couple, right?”

“Oh my goodness!”

“Such a beautiful woman lived in the kingdom?”

“She’s more beautiful than Miss Jessica Averyn, who’s known as the kingdom’s flower…”

“Look at her hair, silver as snow. How does she take care of it?”

“Oh my, her skin is…”

The attention was on Yelena more than it was on her husband. It was Yelena who became the center of attention, not her husband.

Yelena stood to the side of the banquet hall and blinked, flustered.

‘Am I really that beautiful?’

She was often told that she was pretty and beautiful in her daily life. She was aware that her beauty was above average.

But this level of reaction…

‘This isn’t my first time attending a party either.’

She didn’t attend parties often, but Yelena did make appearances at such events every few months. She’d draw attention at those events too, but it was never to this extent.

[Tsk, tsk, I can never know humans’ standard for praising looks.]

Yelena ignored the Holy Sword’s sarcastic remarks and gauged Kaywhin’s mood. She felt more or less at ease because her husband wasn’t the one everyone was gossiping about.

But unlike Yelena, her husband didn’t seem to be in a good mood.

‘Well, he is still garnering attention after all, it’s just less than me…’

“Are you feeling very uncomfortable?” Yelena asked, concerned.

“…Yes, more than I thought I’d be.”

“Like I thought, we shouldn’t have…”

“I don’t like how so many people are looking at you.”

“Hm?”

“There are too many people staring at you and talking about your appearance.”

“…”

“I don’t feel particularly happy about it.”

Yelena blinked.

‘Is he jealous right now?’ Yelena thought to herself. The corners of her lips twitched.

Ah, wait. She couldn’t smile right now. Her husband really appeared to be in a bad mood.

‘I can’t laugh.’

Yelena, just barely holding back her laughter, opened her mouth.

“I see. Then, shall we move somewhere where we won’t be seen…”

“Yelena!” a voice shouted.

Without even looking, Yelena knew whom that voice belonged to, since he wasn’t a stranger. He was family.

“Edward.”

“Never thought I’d see you here… Ah, Duke Mayhard. Long time no see. How have you been?”

“Long time no see, Sir Edward. I have been well.”

Edward and Kaywhin shook hands. It was quite a tender sight compared to how they were at the ducal castle.

“Would you look at that?” Yelena chuckled at the two, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Then, she asked, “What about Liliana and Father?”

“They aren’t here. I’m here by myself to represent our family.”

“Well, I can see why Father wouldn’t be here… But Liliana usually comes to these kinds of things, doesn’t she?”

Liliana didn’t enjoy parties, but she valued the connections she could make at them. Thus, she diligently attended banquets, both big and small. She usually wasn’t absent from any.

“This is a party hosted by the royal palace, on top of that…”

“She isn’t at the capital right now.”

“Hm?”

“She went to the Black Tower.”

“What?” Yelena raised her voice without realizing. Then, she remembered where she was, and lowered it again. “What do you mean by that? Why… did she go to the Black Tower?”

The image of Liliana gazing at Sidrion came to Yelena’s mind.

Edward shrugged.

“She must have been frustrated because the analysis of the gem powder wasn’t bearing any results.”

Then, he sighed.

“She’s never said anything about it, but… I think she still has nightmares about what happened that day in the dressing room.”

“…Ah.”

“I feel at ease since you look okay. You are okay, right?”

“Mhm, I’m okay. Don’t worry.”

Yelena lowered her eyes sadly. Her older sister was still suffering as a result of that incident. She couldn’t have predicted that.

‘I should pay her a visit soon.’

At that very moment, an elegant voice chimed in and grabbed Yelena’s attention.

“My eyes are feasting on all the beautiful men and women at this party.”