CHAPTER 23

A woman who looked exactly like Carla stood up and greeted me as soon as she saw me. I knew right away—she was Carla’s younger sister. Her sharp eyes, tightly closed lips, and the uniform that looked like a knight’s suit suited her perfectly.

“I see. How long has it been?”

I asked, trying to test her. Honestly, I had no idea how long it had been since they last saw each other. I just wanted to remind her that they weren’t close anymore, to make her feel less suspicious of me.

“It’s been since I was preparing to be appointed to the temple, and you weren’t yet a Countess.”

The young viscountess answered smoothly. Unlike her rude letter, she was now speaking politely but without warmth.

‘Well, they haven’t seen each other in years.’

Thanks to that, I could answer a bit more sharply.

“If you had sent a message first, I could’ve welcomed you more properly.”

I smiled, pointing out her lack of manners. She just shrugged.

“Let’s call it a little sister’s mischief who missed her big sister.”

Whatever the truth was, I couldn’t scold her more if she said it was “just sisterly affection.” I lightly bit the inside of my lip.

‘Were they really not close? If she became a viscountess thanks to Carla, shouldn’t she at least be grateful?’

I didn’t know what kind of relationship they really had, so I stayed quiet. I sipped my tea while sitting across from her, and the silence started to feel heavy.

‘Is she waiting for me to say something? Maybe she wants me to bring up the King’s business first.’

I glanced at her, but she didn’t speak. Looking at her empty teacup, I called Bell.

“Bell, her cup is empty.”

“Oh, no need. I drank plenty while waiting. I’ve probably tried every tea in this house.”

She laughed brightly and waved her hand. True, since she had been waiting since dawn, she must’ve had enough tea to feel full. I nodded casually, and she spoke again.

“It wasn’t very good. The tea leaves weren’t high quality—you probably didn’t enjoy it either.”

I didn’t know why she cared so much about someone else’s tea. I looked at the teacup handle, then casually looked at her.

“Luckily, you won’t have to drink it again.”

“You’re being cold to your cute little sister.”

She laughed loudly as I frowned.

“Still not planning to visit our parents?”

Her dark eyes stared straight at me. Bell sensed the tension and quietly stepped back, closing the sitting room door behind her. Now it was just the two of us. The awkward silence felt suffocating.

‘Please, someone tell me what’s going on. All I know is that Carla cut ties with her family!’

I wanted to grab someone and ask for help, but that wasn’t an option. I lowered my gaze and thought hard. When in doubt, it’s best to answer a question with another question.

“Do they even want to see me?”

“Is that even a question? No one at the Duke’s estate has stopped missing you.”

But I shook my head. That couldn’t be true. Carla’s diary said her parents hated her marriage.

‘And they never sent even one letter.’

If they really missed her, they would’ve written. After two years with no word, now they suddenly want to see her?

“Father says he wants to see you.”

“I see.”

She sighed lightly. I was reminded again of how much she resembled Carla—not just in appearance, but also in speech.

“You don’t believe me, do you? I figured you wouldn’t.”

She shrugged, then looked down. She wasn’t an especially beautiful woman, yet she gave off a strange vibe. She looked like Carla, but her behavior was so different it made her feel like someone else.

She raised her head and looked directly into my eyes. Her playful expression disappeared, and now she looked like a young girl just past twenty.

“Mother wants to see you too. You know how worried she always is.”

Carla’s mother…

Mentioning “mom” was unfair. My own mom worried all the time—she called me every other day and even after fights, she’d ask if I’d eaten.

Carla’s mom must miss her a lot too. Even after a fight, family still thinks of each other. Maybe Carla just couldn’t bring herself to reach out first because of her pride. I nodded.

“I understand.”

The viscountess smiled brightly.

“I’ll send you an invitation soon.”

“A formal one.”

I added, and she let out a quiet laugh.

“Ah, sorry. I didn’t expect you to actually read my letter.”

I frowned. If I’d answered that letter carelessly while drunk, it could’ve been dangerous. I quickly fixed my expression like nothing had happened. If I didn’t say anything, she wouldn’t know.

“I heard you had a private talk with His Majesty.”

“Rumors travel fast. That was just two days ago.”

“As you know, if you sit in a teahouse in the capital for two hours, you can find out what dessert the royal family is eating that day.”

Her tone was like Carla’s, but sharper. And her speaking style was similar to Theodore’s.

Her behavior wasn’t too formal, but she still didn’t come off as careless—maybe because of her high status or her fancy outfit.

“I doubt you were sitting there just to learn about royal desserts.”

“Of course not.”

She leaned back on the sofa and crossed her legs confidently. She looked like a bossy CEO.

“An interesting business. I was surprised to hear that my refined sister plans to open a casino. Our family will be supporting it too.”

I raised an eyebrow. So she also wanted a piece of the King’s business?

“Oh my, you must be very busy, yet still interested in things like this…”

After mocking her, I suddenly worried I had said something weird. Does this world even have idioms like that?

‘What if she asks me what that means?’

But she just gave a small laugh. Maybe they had similar sayings in this world after all. Encouraged, I decided to speak more boldly.

“His Majesty never mentioned investors.”

“Oh, don’t misunderstand. The Duke’s family is simply offering land to help their eldest daughter. It will still be under your name.”

“Why?”

“Well, if anything happens on royal land, our family can’t step in. We’re just worried that the King, who locked up his own brother in a temple, might be using you too.”

Maybe there were no laws here about insulting royalty. Everyone seemed to complain about the King openly. I twitched my lips.

‘As if nothing bad could happen on the Duke’s land.’

She narrowed her eyes at my smirk.

“You don’t trust me?”

“Of course I do. It’s just… sudden.”

She uncrossed her legs, and just by that one move, she suddenly looked less like a proud noble and more like a graceful knight. Then, as if the talk was over, she stood up.

“Well, I’ve said everything I needed to. I’ll take my leave.”

“Oh? So soon?”

I tilted my head and smiled. Normally, I’d invite her to stay for lunch, but after dealing with her all morning, I was tired. I didn’t want to get a stomachache eating lunch with her. I planned to have Bell see her out.

“May I escort her instead?”

If I hadn’t heard Theodore’s voice just then, I would’ve said yes.

‘Whoa! You scared me!’

I turned around. Of course, he was standing there. I had no idea how long he’d been there, but I tried not to show my surprise.

“Ahem. Please do.”

“You’re still so elegant. Saying ‘please’ to your guard.”

The viscountess sneered but followed quietly. Before walking out the door, she looked back and said,

“So what are you planning to do?”

That ridiculous question made me stick out my tongue without thinking. Very un-Carla-like. I quickly pulled it back in, but she had already seen. Still, she didn’t seem to care—she just laughed and waved.

“I’m glad you’re still the same. May the great one watch over you!”

After the two of them left, I slumped on the sofa, exhausted. It felt like a storm had just passed.

Unlike with the King, I couldn’t control the conversation. Maybe this is the power of family.

“My lady! The Count asks you to join him for lunch!”

Liza happily shouted from the doorway. Behind her, Bell was scolding her.

‘Ugh… what a pain. But if I refuse, it’ll seem weird.’

One tiring thing was over, and now another had come. Carla probably would’ve happily had lunch with the Count, so I couldn’t really say no. I nodded.

“Tell him I’ll be there.”

“Yes!”

Liza’s footsteps were still loud and heavy. I stayed on the sofa, not even trying to move. Bell came over carefully and asked,

“Would you like me to fix your hair, my lady?”

“No…”

I shook my head from where I lay. Bell frowned slightly but quickly hid her expression.

‘If I had known, I would’ve asked the viscountess to stay for lunch. Watching the Count get upset would’ve been fun.’

It was the first time I felt truly annoyed that I couldn’t go back and change something. I stayed sprawled on the sofa until Theodore came to help me up.