IGBD 51

Chapter 51

Ah, my head hurts.

Sereret pressed her throbbing temples with her fingers.

For an hour now, she had been in a meeting with the butler and Madam Lindsay over the date of the party.

Setting the date for the very first party after marriage was proving to be no easy matter.

This day overlapped with another event, that day was right after some family’s party so it was inappropriate… all she heard were reasons why it was difficult. Sereret felt like she might as well just hold the party today and get it over with.

“How about the 9th? It’s tight, but still possible.”

The butler shook his head.

“That’s the day the Salon Exhibition begins. Best to avoid it.”

“Then why not push it to the next month?”

Exhausted, Sereret wanted to just postpone it entirely.

“No. That would be far too late,” Madam Lindsay said firmly.

Sereret sighed and nodded. Though Lindsay seemed to nitpick about everything, this time she was right.

It was an unspoken rule of high society to host a party within two months of marriage. Just as important as one’s debut into society was the first party hosted by the new mistress of the house.

It was the very first opportunity to demonstrate one’s abilities as hostess, and so it required utmost effort. A successful first party would also bolster the family’s prestige, so careless preparation was out of the question.

The three bent their heads together once more, trying to settle on a date.

“This day would be best…”

Sereret muttered wistfully.

But it was a date she had already excluded—Yuan had an important meeting scheduled then.

“His Grace is busy that day…” the butler trailed off with equal regret.

Even Madam Lindsay didn’t say anything, but her expression made it clear she also found it a pity that day couldn’t be chosen.

“Busy? Doesn’t seem like I will be.”

A voice came from the doorway.

Sereret’s head snapped toward it. There stood Yuan, leaning casually against the doorframe, one hand in his pocket.

“When did you get here?” she asked, eyes widening.

“When exactly is this day I’m supposed to be so busy?” Yuan strode toward the sofa and asked the butler.

“The 17th, Your Grace,” the butler replied.

Yuan sat down beside Sereret, frowning slightly.

“I was told it’s an important meeting.”

“Important for them, not for me. …Call Derek.”

He spoke to Sereret, then told the butler to summon his aide.

“Yes, Your Grace.” The butler hurried out of the tea room.

A few moments later he returned with the aide. Yuan instructed him to reschedule the meeting.

The aide simply nodded and obeyed, without protest. Just as Yuan said, it must have been important only for the other side.

“Now, the date problem is solved?”

“Yes, thanks to Your Grace.”

“Good. Do you still need me?” Yuan asked Sereret.

“No. From here on, it’s my responsibility.” She shook her head.

“Then, carry on.”

Yuan tapped her cheek lightly with a finger and walked out of the tea room. There was a playful glint in his gesture and expression—something rarely seen, and strangely unfamiliar.

The butler and Madam Lindsay looked bewildered; it was their first time seeing their master act so teasingly. Sereret cleared her throat at their expressions and said,

“Let’s start with the guest list.”

“Yes, milady.”

They pulled themselves together and refocused on preparations.

Even deciding whom to invite was no easy matter.

Should invitations be limited strictly to nobles, or should they also extend to the middle class connected to Yuan’s business?

Sereret insisted they include the middle class, while Madam Lindsay argued that for the sake of the family’s prestige, only nobles should be invited.

“If we invite them as well, the number of guests will be too large.” Madam Lindsay frowned.

“Then we reduce the number of nobles,” Sereret replied.

“Reduce the nobles? The Frektuster family is not like those empty-titled noble houses.”

“Those ‘empty-titled nobles’—you mean the Inohater family, perhaps?”

At Lindsay’s familiar insinuating tone, Sereret’s face darkened.

In her past life, she hadn’t understood what Lindsay meant and had let the insult pass. Not anymore. How dare a mere head housekeeper…

“…”

Lindsay flinched. She didn’t deny it, whether because she couldn’t lie or simply didn’t feel the need.

“Why so silent? Does that mean you admit it?”

“Hm, I never said such a thing.” Lindsay straightened her voice and answered at last.

“Even if one comes from an empty-titled provincial family, one still knows what is important and what is not.”

“…”

Sereret stared her down, and Lindsay looked away.

“The Frektuster family is indeed unlike those other noble houses. So let me ask you, Madam Lindsay—why should we invite such families at all?”

Many houses barely clung to their noble title. By Lindsay’s own standards, they too were “empty nobles.”

With a serious expression, Sereret questioned why the Frektuster family, far above such households, should demean itself by inviting them under the guise of prestige.

“…”

Lindsay said nothing. Whether she could not answer or simply refused, Sereret doubted she would get a reply.

“Think of practical benefit. Only by being shrewd will you be recognized as head housekeeper of House Frektuster.”

Her commanding tone bore down on Lindsay.

The words were harsh—even Sereret felt so as she said them, and a bitter smile touched her lips.

In her previous life, Yuan had told her something similar:

“Can’t you even manage the invitations properly? You should have thought of practical benefit. At this rate, you’ll never be acknowledged as mistress of House Frektuster.”

She could still hear his voice in her ear.

Back then, she had yielded to Lindsay’s opinion that only nobles should be invited. Intimidated by talk of “empty nobles,” she lost confidence and backed down, even though she believed they should include middle-class business partners.

The invitations went out as Lindsay wished. Later, when Yuan checked the guest list, he gave Sereret a look of disappointment.

Though it felt unfair, Sereret had accepted Lindsay’s opinion and thus apologized to Yuan.

Disheartened, she made mistake after mistake during the party, becoming a laughingstock. From the start, her first party had been a disaster.

“His Grace will never approve of this,” Lindsay said now, her face flushed red and blue.

“Then we’ll ask His Grace directly. That’s enough for today.”

Sereret rose from her seat.

Only Yuan’s word could end this cleanly. She didn’t want to waste more emotion clashing with Lindsay.

Leaving the tea room with a weary face, she let out a small sigh.

First party or not, she wanted nothing to do with any of it. All she wanted was to get through the year, divorce Yuan as soon as possible, and walk away with money.

But to secure her share of the estate properly, she had to play the role of duchess flawlessly for the year—without a single blemish.

No avoiding a party, no ruining it and dragging down House Frektuster’s reputation. Until divorce, she had to appear the perfect, pitiable duchess.

“I’m so tired.”

Shaking her head, Sereret went upstairs to her room.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

“Hehe.”

Lydia, busy with her embroidery, burst into laughter.

She had been in good spirits lately. The rumors trickling out of House Frektuster delighted her.

“No trace of it, they say. Looks like they never spent their wedding night.”

The day after Yuan and Sereret’s marriage, Anita had brought this news, and Lydia had been elated.

Since then, word had spread that the couple never shared the same bedroom. What a relief!

Of course. There’s no way Yuan would embrace such a worthless woman.

Lydia trusted Yuan’s taste.

He was not the sort of man to touch anyone beneath his dignity.

“Poor Sereret. To never even feel her husband’s touch…”

With a pitiful look, Lydia feigned sympathy.

Surely Yuan had lost affection for Sereret after the ring incident. She might have been pleased to trap Lydia, but she didn’t know Yuan at all.

He hated nothing more than seeing Lydia cry. He cherished her that much. By making her weep, Sereret had fallen out of his favor.

“Sereret really is pitiable.”

Now, everyone who mattered knew the couple hadn’t spent their wedding night. Some even speculated that the Duke of Frektuster still hadn’t forgotten Lady Elliot.

Some pitied Sereret, but many secretly took pleasure in her humiliation. After all, Yuan was far too remarkable a man for a provincial nobody like her.

Thanks to the rumors, even the wedding ring scandal had been recast as a tale of Lydia and Yuan’s thwarted love. All because Sereret had tried to spite her.

“Still haven’t found that girl?”

Lydia’s smile vanished in an instant.

“I need to show what happens to those who betray me.”

The maid Anne, whom she had sent on an errand, had vanished without a trace. Surely Sereret had hidden the foolish girl away.

How dare she betray me… Lydia shook her head in disbelief. Just then, Anita entered.

“Your Highness.”

She carried a box in her hands.

“What’s that?”

“The medicine you requested. Nunuki has finished it.”

“Really?”

Lydia’s face lit up at her words.

She quickly opened the box. Inside were two black bottles.

“A year’s worth.”

“Deliver it immediately. Make sure the duchess takes it every single day without fail.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

As she gave the order, Lydia’s lips curved into a satisfied smile.