# 64
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Bernoit Foucier.
Like Edith Clarke, this name had stuck in her mind from her previous life because of its great fame.
The designer, who sought sublime elegance and restrained beauty, later emerged as a new star in Florence.
'I was pregnant with Baby at the time, right?'
The princess of the kingdom, who was difficult to please, chose a dress for her debut, which everyone rejected and described as “strange.”
The tailor, full of ambition but trembling at the purchase of a silk roll, had suddenly become a figure who could not be met even with great wealth.
'The timing was perfect.'
Had Damien Baptiste been a little late in offering the contract, he would have had to pay a much larger sum to sign them.
Both Ariana and Damian knew very well that this contract was due to her message.
Ariana smiled as if she knew nothing.
"Congratulations, Mr. Batiste. You've made a good deal."
Damian smiled slyly, thinking.
'As I expected, you won't tell me how you knew the exact investment target.'
Well, with that annoying red-haired watcher, the Duchess won't give away her secrets easily.
In the end, to learn the secret of her amazing insight or to get additional help...
'I have to do what you want, don't I, ma'am?'
Damian raised the tea cup with a sly smile.
“So I came to show off shamelessly, but the Duke is absent. I didn’t expect him to go to the capital.”
"Tell me first, please. The good stories can be heard again when the Duke returns."
“Thanks, ma’am. But actually, there are people who advised me on this investment, so I intended to share part of the profits as a token of thanks.”
“Well, it's thanks to you, but these people will definitely be happy.”
“I hope so... I have put the profits in a bank in my country, but I better ask how you prefer to receive them, right?”
“The Central Bank of Florence is safe.”
Ariana was stunned by her secret.
'How bold of him to reveal that.'
This way, even in front of Roger, the conversation wouldn't be considered suspicious.
It was also a question to test her.
If she said now, 'Since I'm from Cremisa, I'll prefer an imperial account,' it would seem like I'm amassing a secret fortune without my husband's knowledge.'
As a lady of any palace would, budget small for luxury.
But Ariana smiled softly.
“Everyone will thank you for thinking so. But since you did the work, you should do what suits you.”
“Hmm, if I do as you say, it will be much easier for me.”
Damian was still smiling confidently, but his left eyebrow rose slightly.
As if he wanted to ask.
'You seem more settled here than I saw you last time, but do you really intend to go to Dobris?'
Ariana just smiled at this suggestive expression.
It was easy to guess why he looked like that.
On the surface, this meeting seemed better than their meetings in the palace or the cruise ship.
At that time, all the escorts looked polite, but which one of them was sincerely following Ariana?
With the exception of Emily, the maids mocked Ariana behind closed doors, calling her “less than a mistress.”
'But what now?'
Everyone was worried that Ariana might actually have captured Kenneth's heart, and they tried to take Emily's duties away from her.
[Well, the senior maids were saying that I was greedy. Oh, my God! When were they happy that the job went to a stupid country girl?]
Emily was recently complaining while she was fixing Ariana's hair.
Emily never showed that she was tired, but she was almost taking over Ariana's service alone.
When people from the hotel or the Ducal Palace deliberately praised Ariana loudly, Emily would add in a complaining tone:
[Ma'am hasn't changed, so why does it take so long for everyone to see that?]
Ariana hasn't changed much, neither then nor now.
But now, everyone was cautiously trying to treat her kindly. But it was like a thin layer of sugar.
'It can break easily with any crack.'
When it is broken, all that will remain is ruins that were worse than nothing.
"my lady?"
"… Yes."
But then, Ariana realized that she was straying in front of her guest.
It was clear that she seemed absent.
She touched her forehead and smiled indifferently.
“I'm sorry, I felt dizzy for a moment.”
"Are you well?"
“Yes, it is because of the sun, so don’t worry.”
Ariana raised the tea cup again, smiling softly.
“The Empire’s weather is very changeable, but at least here it is sunny and warm.”
“Sure, it's nice compared to Plentia.”
"But when a storm comes, it sweeps everything away. It's hard to remember the good days."
“So, I'm starting to get tired of the Empire's weather.”
Ariana stared at her reflection in the tea.
The earrings sparkled like a flash on the water. It didn't appear pink due to the color of the tea, but it was just as bright.
The man's moody voice, which had been tantalizingly affectionate before he left, kept echoing in her ears.
“My heart’s desire”
He probably meant that he wanted to give her the earrings he liked.
‘Such ambiguous words mean nothing.’
And Kenneth, you wished me dead, and said I would just be a governess for your heir.
He never made up for his previous remarks with kindness.
Putting a watch on me is not something a husband who truly trusts me would do.
'Not in my previous life, nor in this one.'
Ariana drank the tea quietly to the end.
When I placed the cup on the saucer, I was relieved that the earrings were no longer visible.
Ariana smiled softly and nodded.
“Time has flown by.”
That was the signal to get up, and Damian wasn't going to miss it.
Roger and the escorts moved based on Ariana's words.
With that, Ariana had to go back to the Place Hotel, and Damian had to go to his separate residence.
But Damien's servant quickly approached Roger and asked in faltering imperial language.
“Excuse me, Mr. Engels, can I ask you something?”
"Yes?"
“In fact, we have yet to find a good temporary driver here, so do you know anyone…?”
While Roger was talking about a drivers' guild that could be found for a short time in the area, Damien whispered to Ariana in Dobris.
"my lady."
Ariana was inwardly surprised but maintained a calm expression and listened.
The man was sure she was speaking Dobris and whispered quickly.
“If you really intend to go to the kingdom, I will help you.”
“But, in return, you will only share your wisdom with me, right?”
Ariana swallowed and nodded briefly.
His whisper was mixed with Roger and the servant's conversation, so the others did not hear him.
As she watched Damian and his escort leave, Ariana held her cold hands.
Her period was about to come.
* * *
When Kenneth arrived at Lintia, a light rain was falling.
In contrast to the south, where the sun was abundant until the beginning of autumn, he felt a strange, humid air.
Even when he arrived at the palace, the feeling of strangeness persisted.
“Hello, Sir Duke.”
The faces of those who received him did not differ.
It was not the first or second time he had traveled alone for business after his recovery.
But as soon as he arrived, an embarrassed apologetic voice echoed in his mind.
[Welcome back, Kenneth. I'm sorry, I should have come out to greet you earlier-]
Ariana from those days, who used to follow him with small, quick steps even when he coldly ignored her.
Kenneth shook his head as he remembered those moments.
'This is a serious illness.'