That day, my second brother, Doulian, had a suspiciously happy expression.

“Brother. Did something good happen?”

“Pudding.”

Seeing his constant smile, I suspected he had won a large sum of money in his gambling endeavors.

But what Doulian said next was beyond my imagination.

“So, it’s fine. Can you guess what I discovered today?”

“Well…”

“Hehehe.”

Why is he like this…

Doulian, who had been laughing strangely for a while, finally noticed my cold gaze and raised his voice in excitement.

“I never thought the person I suspected to be Prince Ivernum was the real deal, not some funny imposter! Today, I’ve caught a big fish!”

“Prince Ivernum… Wasn’t there only one duke in the Ivernum family?”

“Oh, well. Of course, the rumors are nonsense. But still, this insignificant mutt possesses some very useful information.”

Rubbing his palms together eagerly, Doulian continued.

“It seems the illegitimate son of the late duke managed to uncover the family’s secret.”

“The secret of the Ivernum family?”

“Yes! Can you believe it? Our great dragon slayer had a weakness after all!”

Excited by his own thoughts, Doulian, who had despised Ivernum for a long time, turned back to me with a puzzled expression.

“Pudding, now it’s your turn to contribute.”

“Me…?”

“Yes, it’s for the sake of our family. Naturally, you should be grateful!”

‘What? They didn’t even consider my cooperation and just assumed I would be included?’

At that moment, I was already falling out of favor with the wacky family. Even though I tried to appear timid, my second brother didn’t notice.

No, perhaps he just didn’t care.

While I was grinding my teeth in frustration and on the verge of tears, Doulian, already lost in his own plans, muttered with a self-serving intention.

“That monster weakens on the night of the dragon… This is top-notch information. With this, my position within the Second Prince’s faction will be even more secure… No, Pudding, you will create a medicine to exploit it, and I will personally confront him…”

“…?”

“Indeed. I want to witness that proud face of his in person. It must be quite amusing! Hahahaha!”

Doulian’s eyes sparkled as he burst into a wild and passionate laughter that he could no longer contain.

As I coldly observed my brother, a thought crossed my mind.

‘Stupid Doulian.’

This could be used.

‘I’ll do the exact opposite of what you desire.’

***

Concluding the flashback, I finished explaining to the duke.

“So, my older brother got to know the Prince Ivernum impersonator at the gambling house and realized that this impersonator had a weak connection to the real duke. He brought him directly to our family to uncover their secrets.”

I glanced at the duke while narrating the story, being careful with the designations as much as possible.

The reason for selling Ivernum’s secret was the illegitimate son, who had been sent away by the family after the previous duke’s death.

From the duke’s perspective, selling out family members connected by blood was no different from betraying his own family.

‘Are you okay? In case you get hurt…’

He was a duke who must have witnessed all kinds of things, be it battles, politics, or family feuds. But I couldn’t help but worry that his family affairs might be different.

Fortunately or unfortunately, after hearing all the explanations, the duke only uttered one word.

“Is that so?”

“Yes…”

Why did I feel embarrassed and clasp my hands together? The duke’s gaze seemed to linger on my fingertips as if it were annoying. I quickly changed the subject.

“Hmm! So, what is your response to my proposal?”

“Proposal?”

“Yes. Can you give me a favorable answer? About our marriage…”

“Ah.”

Though it was embarrassing to bring up this topic again, it was crucial to address it.

However, the duke didn’t immediately understand and asked again, only realizing the significance of my words when I mentioned “marriage.”

‘No, this person! That was a line I delivered with genuine sentiment!’

Proposing lines are not easy to spit out, even if it’s just a temporary contract marriage.

While internally grumbling about it, I was met with the duke’s unreadable expression, just like the first time we met, as he opened his mouth.

“Why is the young lady making such an offer to me?”

His face remained as cold as ice.

His serious expression, now somewhat familiar, signaled that he was taking my offer seriously.

“I knew that Sinkere wanted to exploit my weakness.”

That’s right. My family and the Ivernum family are politically at odds.

To be precise, our family was even willing to walk over Ivernum’s corpse to achieve its goals.

“I’m curious as to why the young lady is trying to pretend to be affiliated with such a family.”

The duke’s sharp gaze turned towards me.

Gulp.

The tension rose, and it felt like I was suffocating under the weight of his gaze, as if he could see through me completely.

Reviewing the duke’s question, I pondered why I was at odds with my family.

He might find it strange as well.

‘Because to the outside world, I am known as the beloved youngest daughter of the Count.’

I realized that this moment would be a significant turning point.

Under the pressure, my breathing quickened instantly.

With a calm voice that deliberately controlled my breath, I spoke again.

“That’s a reasonable question.”

“…?”

“Because, in the eyes of others, I will be seen as the most beloved youngest daughter of our family.”

“In the eyes of others?”

In response to the duke’s question, which had pinpointed the questionable aspect, I answered with a surge of anger, thinking of the savage family.

“What family would willingly send their beloved daughter to a widower forty years older? His child is even closer in age to me than him!”

“…What?”

Crack!

In the heat of the moment, I forgot how angry I was, and I was startled.

Under the duke’s hand, the wooden handle, now distorted and shattered into fragments, could be seen scattered across the polished floor.