“The Duke and Duchess of House Leontheim shall now enter!”
With Cedric’s escort, Iris stepped into the banquet hall—and was immediately struck by the unfamiliar atmosphere.
Everyone’s eyes are on me.
Some even stared in open awe as if beholding a celestial being descending from the heavens.
“So that’s the one he married…”
“She’s so beautiful… how did those rumors even spread?”
Uncomfortable under the rain of gazes, Iris gripped Cedric’s hand tightly.
The palace steward approached them, bowing in accordance with proper court etiquette before speaking in a lowered voice.
“His Majesty awaits you both. Please follow me.”
“No.”
Cedric’s voice cut like a blade through the air.
“I’ll go alone.”
“B-but His Majesty…”
“Then go ahead and inform him yourself.”
Such a response could be seen as outright insolence before the Emperor.
But Cedric was the Duke of Leontheim, one of the empire’s most powerful cultivators. The steward could not overrule him.
“…Understood. This way, please.”
As the steward reluctantly nodded, Cedric turned to Iris, concern shadowing his face.
“It seems I must leave you for a while. I’ll return as swiftly as I can… Will you be alright?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be waiting.”
Still troubled, Cedric gave a solemn nod.
“I promise—I’ll return as fast as possible.”
“There’s no need to push yourself.”
“I must.”
Even as he turned and walked away, he kept glancing back at Iris.
Likewise, Iris watched until he vanished from sight—then slowly shifted her gaze to the room.
The nobles were already beginning to gather around her.
“Greetings, Duchess of Leontheim. It seems this is our first time meeting at such an event.”
“Indeed. What an honor it is to finally greet you.”
Though the sudden attention was overwhelming, Iris responded with composed grace and courtesy.
“If I may ask… what has kept you from attending past gatherings?”
As conversations flowed around her—
A steward’s voice pierced through the harmonious music of the banquet hall.
“Count Valentine and his children shall now enter!”
Count Valentine entered proudly with his children in tow, striding into the hall with stately presence.
As soon as they arrived, their eyes were drawn to the heart of the gathering—
Where Iris stood.
Iris?
In a place of honor, bathed in attention, and looking utterly unfamiliar.
The family froze at the entrance, unable to take their eyes off her.
Their expressions were ones of pure shock.
That’s Iris?
Yes, it was the same Iris they knew—
And yet, entirely different.
Dressed in a refined indigo gown with pearls adorning her like moonlight on still water, she stood among the crowd like an ethereal jade beauty.
Her presence was like an ink wash painting in the midst of garish colored scrolls.
Was Iris… always someone who belonged in a place like this?
The Iris they knew had never appeared so radiant, so composed, or so effortlessly dignified.
Then who was the Iris from our household?
No matter how much they stared in disbelief, the truth before them did not shift.
Among them, Orchid felt a tremor in her heart, as if caught in the eye of a spiritual storm.
What if the only thing I didn’t know… wasn’t just her appearance?
She recalled the incident among the sword disciples.
The countless things Iris had done—roles Orchid had never imagined.
I always thought of Iris as simply existing… someone whose presence I never questioned.
By blood alone, she had assumed Iris would always remain with them—unchanged, regardless of what she did.
But was that assumption wrong?
Orchid’s rigid worldview, long propped up by prejudice, now began to waver.
Forced to clean up Lilliana’s messes herself lately, the absence of Iris had become painfully evident.
I thought blood alone would keep us together. That nothing would change.
She recalled Iris’s constantly exhausted expression.
She always seemed worn out… yet she kept going.
A memory of a picture-perfect Valentine household arose in Orchid’s mind—
One where Iris was the invisible support.
Could it be… the Valentine family needed Iris more than we ever realized?
Lilliana’s gaze was fixed on the white peony corsage tied into Iris’s soft lilac hair.
A rare item—one even her own fiancé, Aster, had said was impossible to acquire.
How did she…?
And it wasn’t just the corsage.
Rather than pinning it to her clothes like everyone else, Iris had adorned it in her hair—
A bold and elegant choice. Not earth-shattering, but quietly brilliant.
And yet… all around her, people looked at Iris with admiration and envy.
“She’s the only one I’ve seen wear a peony corsage like that—so unique and beautiful.”
“I wish I’d thought of doing it like that. It’s gorgeous.”
“Especially with that soft lilac hair, it looks like a blossom blooming between strands of cloud. Truly stunning.”
The words whispered behind her stirred Liliana’s fury.
“That gaze was always mine.”
That place—the center of the social circle’s spotlight—had once belonged to Liliana, the undisputed flower of the cultivation world’s elite gatherings.
It had always been that way, without exception.
Wherever Liliana attended, she was the main focus, the envy of all.
But the shifting reality tightened its grip on Liliana’s grieving heart.
“Since when did Sister Iris start coveting what was mine?”
Looking back, it seemed that Iris’s schemes had begun ever since Liliana had been unjustly dragged before the Inspectors for tax evasion.
It was all a ploy, crafted to steal Liliana’s rightful place!
“Compared to before, don’t you think the Valentine Count family’s influence is strangely diminished?”
Sensitive to every word, Liliana immediately caught the disparaging comparisons.
“Miss Liliana, the flower of the social circle, isn’t even wearing a peony corsage.”
“Probably because of that tax evasion scandal. But even so, her appearance is too plain.”
Liliana whipped her head around to find the source of the whispers.
But the noblewomen whispering discreetly turned away, pretending not to notice. From elsewhere, similar murmurs arose.
“Too plain compared to before. No matter the circumstances, she can’t really be called the flower of the social circle...”
“She’s no different from the other noble maidens.”
Shock clouded Liliana’s gray eyes.
“Plain? Me?”
The star of every party, she had never heard such words before.
“This is all because of Astaire and Brother.”
Her hand clenched tightly on the frilled edge of her dress in frustration.
“That’s why I insisted I should wear the White Peony Corsage from the Hill Guild. Why didn’t they listen to me?”
Those other noble maidens wearing the white peony corsage didn’t even register in Liliana’s eyes now.
Even though it was a limited edition, a few maidens here had managed to acquire it.
The real problem was the dresses.
Blonde with gray eyes, Liliana was still dazzling and lovely, but she wasn’t wearing a gown that could accentuate her beauty properly.
In fact, among the noble maidens, she looked much like any other.
Especially since several wore similar frilled dresses, she appeared merely an ordinary pretty maiden.
Liliana tugged on Orchid’s sleeve.
“Brother, what am I supposed to do now?”
“Huh?”
Orchid, just waking from a daze, asked slowly.
“Liliana, what’s wrong?”
“Have you not heard what people are saying? They say I’m plain. And everyone...”
Her gaze landed on Iris.
“How can I be plain?”
Yet, the irritating truth that stoked her anger was that even Liliana had to admit Iris shone brighter than anyone.
“They’re probably just saying Iris is the Duchess of Leontheim since she’s new here.”
“Maybe so, Brother?”
Liliana asked in a melancholy voice, and Orchid nodded.
“Yes. Liliana, you’re beautiful enough.”
Still, Liliana looked at Orchid with uncertainty. Though the words were familiar, the tone seemed lacking.
“Then why does Brother look at Sister Iris so differently?”
He seemed surprised, unable to take his eyes off Iris.
But Liliana never spoke those words aloud.
She felt that saying them would only deepen this hollow feeling.
Quietly glaring at Iris, Kaidrich slowly spoke.
“That Iris...”
His face was filled with disgust.
“She ignores her family’s calls and lives lavishly like that?”
He resented how such a trivial person as Iris had captured everyone’s attention.
But more than that, it was the insolent attitude of refusing family’s worried calls and living extravagantly with others that grated on him.
“I knew she’d be like this. I taught her over and over, but...”
He couldn’t bear that terrible behavior.
“That one—!”
As Kaidrich’s voice hardened, ready to storm off, Orchid stopped him.
“Father, calm down. Iris must have her reasons.”
At that moment, Iris briefly glanced toward the Valentine Count family.
Orchid was certain Iris had seen her family.
“They’ll come to us soon.”
In any case, Iris couldn’t avoid her family at this grand banquet.
Orchid tried to reason with Kaidrich.
“Father, there’s no need for you to act. Stirring up attention won’t help.”
“That’s true.”
Kaidrich remained silent after hearing Orchid’s words.
“Unlike you two who are so composed, Iris is arrogant beyond measure. She must think she’s changed just because she got married.”
Seeing Iris like that reminded him of his father-in-law, Marquis Clerrington, and anger surged.
“Don’t be too angry, Father.”
Liliana softly rubbed her cheek against her father’s arm, whispering sweetly.
“We can’t let just one older sister ruin the mood for the whole clan. It’s the Sacred Festival, and Lily’s birthday is still ahead.”
“That’s right. For our sweet Lily’s sake, this father shall endure.”
Iris, meanwhile, had turned her gaze away, conversing calmly with other noble cultivators as if her own clan didn’t even exist.
Her bearing made it clear—her kin no longer held a place in her heart.
As time passed, Orchid sank deeper into shock.
But the greater the shock, the stronger her resolve grew.
She’ll come around eventually.
Orchid resented Iris for ignoring the family, yes—but she believed it was only temporary.
If I just give her a little more attention, like before… things will return to normal.
Because right now—they
needed
Iris.
Looking toward their father, Orchid spoke.
“It seems Iris is truly angry with us.”
“So what?”
Watching his expression harden, Orchid forced a smile.
“She’s probably waiting for us to approach her first. Let’s take that step—for now.”
Her grey eyes lingered on Iris, now radiant like a jade lotus in full bloom.
There is no such thing as an irreversible fate.
If only Iris returned to how she once was—
Then the Valentine clan Orchid loved could return to the way it had been.
Chapter 59