Chapter 88
‘Has she changed or something?’
Isabelle couldn’t believe Reina’s transformation even though she was seeing it with her own eyes.
She had assumed that Reina would suffer in the harsh north.
Yet there she was, exuding the unique ease that came from being a cherished young lady.
For a woman married to a man as unyielding as stone, who knew nothing but monsters, she appeared far too happy.
Then someone subtly spoke up.
“I heard the Duke rented out the entire dress shop—is that true? It’s so famous that it takes forever to get a reservation, you know?”
The voice carried obvious envy and a probing tone. In contrast, Reina responded with utter simplicity.
“I only found out later myself. He just needed some clothes for me to wear in the meantime.”
As if such things were perfectly ordinary.
Sensing that, one of the young ladies blushed and asked,
“So the Duke took the lead and brought you there?”
“Something like that.”
Reina cupped her flushed cheeks in embarrassment.
Seeing her shy demeanor, the others let out soft exclamations and made a fuss.
After that, questions about the Duke of Crencia poured in, as if they’d all been waiting.
Not only did Reina blend into the gathering effortlessly, but she was steering it.
And Isabelle found the situation uncomfortable.
‘She’s acting like the absolute protagonist.’
The center of these gatherings had always been Isabelle.
Having to watch Reina, who had appeared out of nowhere, take control made her insides burn with frustration.
Isabelle gulped down her cold tea.
“Oh, right—how’s the north? It must be incredibly cold, huh?”
“The weather there is unimaginable in Lunin. Snow just keeps falling.”
In Lunin, it didn’t snow even in winter. At most, it rained.
“I’ve never seen snow before. What’s it like?”
“When the whole world turns white, it’s incredibly beautiful. Especially shaved ice made from snow with syrup on top—it’s truly magical.”
“Oh my, I can’t even imagine what it tastes like?”
“It’s similar to regular shaved ice, but fluffier and softer…”
It was while they were half-listening to Reina’s explanation of snowflake shaved ice.
Wendy, who had been sitting there sullenly, suddenly tossed out a barbed remark.
“It’s just ice, anyway. What’s so special about it?”
“…”
“How desperate for something to brag about are you, going on about snow? You can see it if you just go to the upper regions in winter.”
The faces of the young ladies who had been chiming in about never having seen snow flushed red. Reina clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘She’s the same as ever.’
Was she oblivious, or just stupid?
She’d probably meant to attack her, but in the end, her words struck the young ladies who had agreed with her all at once.
Reina couldn’t understand why she’d been so terrified of that in the past. She responded calmly.
“Lady Grey is right. If you shave some ice, it tastes roughly the same.”
Then the other young ladies jumped in to defend her.
“Come on, the texture must be different, though.”
“Why are you embarrassing her like that, Wendy?”
“No, I…”
“It’s fine. Lady Grey probably said it because she doesn’t know. She didn’t mean any harm, right?”
When Reina cut her off mid-sentence, Wendy’s face turned beet red with anger.
By addressing her so formally as ‘Lady Grey,’ it made Wendy seem like the rude one, using casual speech when they weren’t even close.
In the end, Wendy had no choice but to shut her mouth, gaining nothing.
“If there’s a chance next time, I’ll let you all try it. The chef who came with me knows the recipe.”
“Oh goodness, I’d love to taste it.”
No one seemed to care that Wendy had been embarrassed. Wendy glanced wistfully at Isabelle, but she ignored her too.
‘What a fool.’
Wendy was loyal, but she had so many foolish traits that made her exhausting to deal with.
Just look at her now—she’d attempted a petty provocation and ended up humiliated instead.
Getting involved would only lead to more fatigue. They didn’t even have that deep a friendship to begin with.
After all, when her dress had caught fire, wasn’t Wendy the first to back away?
Then Isabelle’s marriage came up as a topic.
“Come to think of it, Princess Isabelle will soon be a new bride. Several people saw Sir Eric’s flashy proposal last time.”
“Has the rumor spread that far already?”
“Of course. For a while, everyone was buzzing about your proposal story. Apparently, several people saw jewels streaming into the palace.”
“How romantic.”
“The wedding will be at the palace, right? It’s going to be so beautiful!”
“So when are the invitations coming out?”
Everyone showed signs of envy. Satisfied with this, Isabelle signaled her maids with a glance.
“Actually, I was planning to hand out the invitations anyway.”
The waiting maids distributed them. The gold-gilded invitations looked expensive at a single glance.
“Goodness, a May bride. When the summer roses are at their most beautiful.”
“You all are getting them specially early.”
As Isabelle smiled like a victor, Reina checked her invitation.
Upon confirming Eric Vincent’s name, she swallowed a sigh inwardly.
‘It’s just like the past.’
Reina knew Isabelle’s future.
Eric Vincent was known for his gentle demeanor, but he had a nasty habit with his hands.
His tyranny at home only came to light after Isabelle was beaten to death.
Until then, she had shown no signs of it.
‘You poor thing, too.’
It was probably her pride.
She couldn’t admit that her husband, praised as a gentleman outside, was actually no better than a tyrant at home.
That would be a scandal beyond mere rumors.
She’d chosen death by her husband’s abuse over divorce and the finger-pointing that came with it.
She wouldn’t have wanted to be seen as a pitiful woman living under constant beatings.
From her expression, it seemed she still didn’t know about Eric Vincent’s violent nature.
Even if Reina warned her, she’d likely dismiss it as petty jealousy.
Reina chose to keep her mouth shut.
Even if she did warn her, Isabelle wouldn’t listen anyway.
Meanwhile, Isabelle, basking in everyone’s envy, noticed that Reina’s expression was different from the others.
Everyone else envied her marriage, but not her.
It felt like she was being looked at with pity, which was infuriating.
“Congratulations, Isabelle. I hope you live well.”
To Reina’s dry well-wishes, Isabelle shrugged.
“Thanks. You’ll come, right?”
“I will. I’m planning to stay in the capital for a while anyway.”
“Oh my, you’re staying in the capital? So the situation in the north really is stable—it’s true.”
“Yes. The monster population isn’t spreading as easily as we thought. We got lucky.”
“That’s impressive. So the rumor that the Crencia Knights are the strongest ever is true!”
“It’s good you’ll be staying longer. Let’s interact more often from now on.”
“Come to think of it, the arena is opening this week—want to go together? Princess, you still have tickets left, right?”
Everyone was desperate to draw Reina into the group.
Reina showed interest when the arena was mentioned. After all, that was part of why she’d come here.
“I’ve never been to the arena.”
Isabelle said,
“I have tickets left, but… are you sure? You might be shocked if it’s your first time.”
“It should be less scary than monsters.”
“…Well, obviously.”
Isabelle wore a weary expression at the comparison to monsters. After spending a year in the north, she sure knew how to make chilling jokes.
“Then I’ll prepare two for you, so come with the Duke.”
“Okay.”
Reina smiled brightly and swiftly pocketed the tickets.
Even though Isabelle had deliberately mentioned the Duke.
Her naturally affirmative response left Isabelle feeling oddly displeased.
It was as if the Duke of Crencia never opposed anything she wanted to do.
‘This is annoying.’
Isabelle felt a strange sense of defeat and secretly clutched the hem of her dress.
