In his hand was a letter with sophisticated patterns drawn on it.

“What is this?”

“Invitation from the palace.”

“An invitation?”

Laura quickly unfolded the letter and read it.

“His Majesty ordered me to bring the madam.”

“Me? … Why?”

Laura’s eyes widened.

“There is a rumor that the phoenix you brought at Duke Tormaite’s party was real.”

In response to Killian’s answer, Laura was bewildered.

“What does that have to do with His Majesty’s order?”

Of course, there would be rumors.

If the nobles who called themselves the Empire’s insiders were there and they opened their mouths, rumors would quickly spread like wildfire.

It was only a matter of time before it reached the Emperor’s ears.

“His Majesty is curious about how my wife recognized the real one.”

“If he’s heard the rumors, doesn’t he already know?”

“He wants to hear it directly.”

“……”

Laura secretly wiped her chest.

‘Phew, did I commit another illegal act without knowing it?’

Killian spoke with such a heavy voice that she became worried.

“But what is this invitation?”

“Commemorative banquet for Saint Maria Lucendorf and Saint Nicholas Lucendorf’s fest day…. held at the palace.”

“It’s an annual event hosted by the palace. We couldn’t hold it for two years due to the war with Phaede.”

If it was an event hosted by the palace, it was something that the Emperor paid the most attention to, and she was looking forward to how grand it would be.

One of the good things about her reincarnation was that she had experienced many interesting things.

When she was in Phaede, she lived in a laboratory with her nose in a magic book.

There were piles of work assigned by the King of Phaede, and she had no time to spare because she also had to research the Elixir secretly.

But what about now?

There was no one to push her around, and she had plenty of time to research Elixir.

To her, who had lived her life building walls against the outside world, the various parties and events held in the Empire were unmatched in their entertainment value.

She was now extremely curious about what would happen this time.

As she examined the invitation with sparkling eyes, a small question arose.

“Saint Maria Lucendorf and Saint Nicholas Lucendorf?”

She looked up at Killian, who was standing there nonchalantly.

“Members of the Lucendorf family.”

He said as if he knew her curiosity.

“That’s impressive! Have they caused some kind of holy miracle?”

“Uh, that’s…”

He was about to answer when Simon, the butler, called out from the entrance to the garden.

“Your Grace? Are you here?”

Killian quickly approached him.

“What’s going on?”

“Lord Carter has arrived. He said he came to find you because you didn’t come even after waiting.”

“I see.”

Killian narrowed his eyes slightly. He looked annoyed, as if he didn’t realize how quickly time was passing.

As he was about to leave the garden with the butler, he suddenly stopped and turned around to look at Laura, who was standing quietly.

“Oh, I forgot I had promised to meet with Lord Carter.”

“Yes, please go see him.”

Laura softly pursed her lips.

He just looked at her without moving.

‘What? Do you have something else to say?’

Laura tilted her head slightly and looked up at him.

“…I’ll tell you later.”

Killian muttered sullenly, his jaw set, and he stalked out of the garden in a blast of cold air.

“Did something unpleasant happen…?”

Laura muttered seriously.

“Man, I can’t stand it anymore.”

Oracle, who had been wandering around, looked at Laura and thumped his chest.

* * *

Murmurs.

The maids fluttered around Laura like sparrows, chattering away.

“You look beautiful, madam!”

“Your appearance is getting better and better. Every time I see you, I can’t help but admire you!”

Today, there is a commemorative banquet for Saint Maria Lucendorf and Saint Nicholas Lucendorf at the palace.

The maids checked Laura’s dress one last time, smoothing out any wrinkles and dusting off any specks of dirt.

“Good job, everyone.”

Laura spun around in front of the mirror.

Her dress, embroidered with silver thread, billowed out in all its glory, shimmering brightly.

The high-collared top with its wrapped neckline, leaving her arms bare to ease the stuffiness, and a thin lace fabric draped over her shoulders and down her back like a cloak.

“What is this?”

One of the maids scrutinized Laura’s hair.

“What’s wrong?”

Melissa approached the maid.

“Look at this. It seems like something is stuck in the madam’s hair. It’s glittering in the light…”

The maid hesitated, unsure of whether to touch Laura’s hair to see what it was.

“Hmm.”

Melissa narrowed her eyes.

Laura’s wavy dark gray hair flowed down to her lower back. The glossy and elastic strands sparkled like silver dust whenever they caught the light.

Of course, it could have been because of the hair accessory – an elegant silver chain that beautifully decorated her hair.

“Madam, I’m sorry to ask, but may I touch your hair?”

“Sure.”

When Laura agreed readily, Melissa gently touched her hair.

There was nothing on her hands.

“That’s strange.”

“Why is that?”

“Did you put something in your hair?”

“No.”

“It’s really strange. There’s nothing on it, but your hair is sparkling like it’s covered in silver powder.”

“It’s probably just the light reflecting off of the hair accessory. If the inspection is over, please leave.”

“But it’s always so shiny…”

“Tsk tsk, why are you making such a big deal out of a little shine? Leave now.”

“Yes.”

Melissa took a step back, still looking puzzled.

Laura watched Melissa and the maids through the mirror and smiled to herself.

‘It’s not that something got stuck in my hair, it’s just the way my hair naturally is.’

In fact, she had only recently discovered this.

Isabella Lucendorf was different from Laura in many ways.

But there was one similarity between them.

That was the color of their hair and eyes.

Both had black hair and amethyst eyes.

The color was similar, but the intensity and texture were different.

Isabella had plain black hair, while Laura had sparkling black hair. It was as if, in Melissa’s words, she had sprinkled silver dust.

Also, Isabella’s eyes had a somewhat dull purple color, while Laura’s eyes were mysterious and subtle.

So the two were similar but not quite the same.

And then, a few days ago, things began to change.

‘It’s strange. I never thought my hair would change back to the way it used to be.’

Laura’s hair had changed from Isabella’s ordinary black to Laura’s lively black.

But she couldn’t reveal this fact.

‘For now, let’s just say that I became healthier after eating and sleeping well.’

Laura had organized her thoughts when she was about to speak out loud.

“Your Grace.”

The maids bowed their heads to greet Killian.

They exchanged glances noisily with each other as they remained in their bowing positions.

It was very unusual for His Grace to visit the powder room, which was the Madam’s private space.

No, it was the first time since the two got married.

“Honey…”

Instead of approaching Killian with a smile, Laura stopped in her tracks.

“Beautiful.”

Still standing at the entrance to the powder room, he stared at Laura silently.

“……”

Laura looked at him absentmindedly.

She wanted to say something complimentary too, but no words came out of her mouth.

The silver suit he was wearing fit his well-proportioned and slender physique perfectly.

The ribbon tied elegantly around the shirt collar and spread out dazzlingly accentuated his splendid appearance.

It was a sophisticated, aristocratic, yet dangerous look.

It was when she was gazing into his eyes, completely lost in thought.

Thump, thump.

“It’s so romantic.”

“I’m so exciting I could die!”

“You too?”

“You too? Let’s die together!”

The maids who had been watching the couple like a picture of a noble couple whispered to each other loudly.

Laura was suddenly embarrassed.

“You’re also…handsome.”

“Thank you.”

Killian seemed to be unaware that the maids were watching them.

He didn’t even seem to hear what they were saying.

As he only looked at Laura without turning his gaze towards them, it was as if she was the only one in the world.

“Shall we leave now?”

Wanting to escape from this awkward situation, Laura walked briskly towards the entrance.

But Killian did not move from his position. He didn’t seem to have any intention of getting out of her way.

“Honey?”

She stopped in front of him and called out to him with a puzzled expression.

He opened his mouth belatedly after staring at her for a while.

“Take it.”

He revealed his arm, which he had been holding behind his back, and held out something.

Laura blinked and looked at the velvet box.

It was definitely something, judging by its shape or size…

“Oh my, oh my!”

As if they had the same thought as her, the maids’ excited voices sounded like the trumpets of angels.

A rectangular velvet box.

Laura stared at it blankly and then raised her head.

Killian waited quietly for her to ask him what was inside the box.

His eyes are half-closed with an arrogant expression. His closely-knit eyelashes made it impossible to read his expression.

But there was one thing she knew.

He wasn’t going to tell her what it was first.

So she asked him.

“What is this?”

Click.

Instead of answering, he opened the box.

When he lifted the lid of the box, a dazzling piece of jewelry was laid out on the soft cloth.

“A necklace and…earrings?”

A necklace with small, transparent diamonds connected to a pink diamond in the center.

Earrings with pink diamonds hanging like water droplets, just like the necklace.

The jewels were so expensive that her eyes almost popped out.

Even among the maids who checked the contents of the velvet box, there were admiring sounds.

“Why did you give this to me…?”

“Wife requested it.”

“……”

“I can’t wear it.”

He held out the box as if to say, ‘do whatever you want, whether you accept it or not, since I don’t need it.’

Despite that, his attitude of recommending the box was quite forceful. It seemed like trouble would arise if she didn’t accept it.

Laura took the box he offered in a daze.

“Thank you…”

“I guess it’s better if I put it on for you.”

He took the box and walked away.

Laura, who had received it and then had it taken away, blinked and watched his actions.

“Simon.”

When Killian called, Simon the butler appeared from behind him, as if he had been there all along.

Killian handed the velvet box to Simon, who cautiously accepted it.

Killian first took out the necklace and approached Laura.

“Oh, the necklace…”

Laura felt both captivated by the sparkling pink diamond and perplexed.

“It will suit the madam well.”

He made a polite remark with an indifferent face.

Of course, the pink diamond necklace would suit her as if it were her own.

Besides, it would be a perfect accent to her silver sparkling dress.

But there was a reason why she couldn’t wear the pink diamond necklace. That reason was…

“You’re already wearing a necklace.”