“Ariana!”
As we entered the reception room, three musicians hurriedly stood up.
Master Louis of the Lopez Orchestra, violinist Ruben, and cellist Lorelai.
“How’s your practice going?”
I looked back at the three of them as I sat down.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been paying attention lately.”
“What are you talking about?”
Cellist Lorelai waved her hand.
“I know you’re busy. And more than anything, you’re in such a... passionate love with the Duke.”
As she said that, her eyes sparkled as if she was desperate to hear the details of my story with Dante.
“Everything is going smoothly, so please trust us and leave it to us, Ariana.”
Orchestra Master Louis said in a serious tone.
I smiled and looked at each of the three of them one by one.
The already beautiful reception room of the Duke’s mansion seemed even brighter when the three of them were sitting there.
Louis, Ruben, and Lorelai.
The three of them were the star stars of the Lopez Opera House in the future before they died.
Louis had a tall, cool, yet handsome face and his own charisma, while Ruben was a cute boy like an angel.
Lorelai was especially popular with female fans for her own loveliness and friendliness.
I twisted the futures of the three people who were sure to succeed by taking them away from the Lopez House with my own hands.
I will take full responsibility for those whose futures I changed.
I was determined to give even greater glory to the members who believed in me and followed me.
I smiled brightly and said,
“I feel relieved when you say that. But I guess some parts require my opinion, right?”
“Actually, there is a part of the violin part that I would like to ask for your interpretation...!”
It was the moment when Louis cautiously spoke.
Knock, knock.
As we entered the reception room, three musicians hurriedly stood up.
Master Louis of the Lopez Orchestra, violinist Ruben, and cellist Lorelai.
“How’s your practice going?”
I looked back at the three of them as I sat down.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been paying attention lately.”
“What are you talking about?”
Cellist Lorelai waved her hand.
“I know you’re busy. And more than anything, you’re in such a... passionate love with the Duke.”
As she said that, her eyes sparkled as if she was desperate to hear the details of my story with Dante.
“Everything is going smoothly, so please trust us and leave it to us, Ariana.”
Orchestra Master Louis said in a serious tone.
I smiled and looked at each of the three of them one by one.
The already beautiful reception room of the Duke’s mansion seemed even brighter when the three of them were sitting there.
Louis, Ruben, and Lorelai.
The three of them were the star stars of the Lopez Opera House in the future before they died.
Louis had a tall, cool, yet handsome face and his own charisma, while Ruben was a cute boy like an angel.
Lorelai was especially popular with female fans for her own loveliness and friendliness.
I twisted the futures of the three people who were sure to succeed by taking them away from the Lopez House with my own hands.
I will take full responsibility for those whose futures I changed.
I was determined to give even greater glory to the members who believed in me and followed me.
I smiled brightly and said,
“I feel relieved when you say that. But I guess some parts require my opinion, right?”
“Actually, there is a part of the violin part that I would like to ask for your interpretation...!”
It was the moment when Louis cautiously spoke.
Knock, knock.
A polite knock was heard.
“Excuse me, Lady Ariana.”
“What is it?”
The servant who opened the door and came in spoke up unexpectedly.
“Her Highness’s carriage is coming in now.”
I could hear Ruben and Lorelai gasping for breath.
Princess.
I nodded with a small sigh at the word.
No one in the kingdom didn’t know how intense her first love fever was for Dante.
“His Excellency the Duke...”
“He is still out. Should I send a message to the Master?”
“Um, no.”
I said as I stood up.
“Her Highness the Princess is the one who came to see me, so I don’t think it’s necessary to bother the Duke. The three of you. I’m sorry, but could you wait until I see Her Highness the Princess?”
“Of course, Lady Ariana.”
“Of course!”
Ruben nodded quickly with a very tense face. He seemed very surprised at the word Princess.
I looked at Ruben and smiled apologetically.
“And Mr. Ruben.”
“Yes?”
“Can you please join me in speaking with Her Highness the Princess? Please.”
“Yes, yes?”
Ruben’s mouth slowly opened.
“P, p, p? I don’t know anything and I’m not good at speaking, so I’ll just ruin the mood...?”
Ruben trembled like an aspen tree as if he thought I was asking him to be the Princess’s conversation partner. I quickly added an explanation.
“Oh, no. I’m sorry. I didn’t say it clearly. I didn’t want you to talk... I wanted you to play the violin.”
Ruben’s eyes widened.
The elegant and beautiful interior decoration.
The violinist playing sweet music. The elegant and beautiful hostess.
Everything about the VIP room was perfect.
Princess Katarina let out a sharp sneer behind her fan.
Despite the unexpected visit, her hospitality was impeccable.
Katarina glanced briefly at the woman acting as hostess.
This woman was Ariana Lopez. She was the main character of the scandal that recently overturned the system.
In contrast to the scandal that was so outrageous, Ariana's facial features were delicately beautiful.
Just looking at her face, she seemed like a noble lady who would never be involved in such scandals.
"Welcome, Your Highness. It is an honor to meet you."
"Are you the owner of this house?"
Instead of answering, Katarina asked a pointed question.
“You’re just a guest, so why are you sitting there acting like a hostess?”
It was ridiculous that a woman who had been another man’s fiancĂ©e until recently was shamelessly taking the seat that should have been occupied by the hostess of the Duke’s house.
‘Because of you, Dante was caught up in a fatal scandal.’
Having a womanizer and lusting after a woman who was already engaged were two completely different things.
Ariana brought Dante into the latter realm, damaging his honor.
“I know this is not my place, but I have been granted permission to act as host when His Excellency the Duke is away.”
Katarina’s eyes widened slightly.
Dante wouldn’t hand over such authority to a woman he was just dating.
Not unless they were engaged.
“Hah, what is that? Are you saying you've made a promise of marriage?”
Ariana closed her mouth instead of answering. As if she was shy.
Katarina laughed sharply at the gesture that was almost like an affirmation.
“Hah...!”
Yes, Katarina, who had already unfurled her fan, shook it busily.
'You're already engaged?'
When on earth did things get this far?
Ariana Lopez's very existence was a sudden bolt from the blue.
How surprised Katarina had been when she suddenly appeared, covered her cloak, and kissed Dante in paradise.
There were many rumors that Dante had a woman, but he had never shown her so openly. Katarina immediately sent someone to see her, but Dante caught her right away, so she couldn't take any follow-up measures.
But who would have thought that in that short time, they had already developed into a marriage promise!
Ariana slowly opened her mouth, looking at Katarina, who had become quiet for a moment in embarrassment.
"I also know that I have many shortcomings. The position of the mistress of such an honorable mansion would suit a woman with much higher standards and refinement than me. Like..."
Ariana winked at Katarina and quietly lowered her gaze.
"Like Your Highness."
"..."
Katarina was momentarily speechless.
She didn’t know that she would suddenly be praised here.
‘...Huh. So sophisticated?’
However, there was no way that the Princess, who had been dominating the social circle since her debut, would not have noticed such a trick.
She snorted, but Ariana continued.
Her refreshing emerald gaze gently touched the Princess’s dress.
“I apologize if it is rude to ask you this, but the dress you are wearing today is really beautiful. I think that Your Highness’s high level of taste is clearly evident. The pattern in particular is very...”
Ariana suddenly closed her mouth and bit her lower lip after saying that.
The thing that irritates people the most is when they stop talking. Katarina couldn’t hold it in any longer and urged her on.
“What? Why are you stopping? Please finish.”
“Ah. I thought the pattern was too beautiful and sophisticated... I am sorry. Did I dare to criticize Your Highness’s outfit too much?”
Ha.
Katarina, who had given a short snort, fanned herself busily.
Complimenting the beauty of a dress was the most basic of social skills to win favor.
It was embarrassing to even call it sophisticated.
...However, there was something special about the dress Katarina had worn today.
“Just in case, don’t think about looking for a similar dress in another costume shop.”
Katarina pointedly retorted and slightly raised her head.
“This is my own dress, with the pattern I personally drew on it.”
"...Is that really so?”
Ariana’s mouth slightly opened.
The lady, who had always been known for her perfect manners, seemed to be quite surprised at her expression.
Huh.
Katarina snorted inwardly.
‘You’re not blind to the truth.’
Well, that’s right. She couldn’t help but be more discerning when she saw a face like that every time she looked in the mirror.
Katarina was sensitive to beautiful things.
She also loved them that much.
Some even whispered that Katarina fell for Dante because of his looks... It was absurd for her to treat him like a woman who only looked at his face, but perhaps it wasn’t completely wrong.
“Excuse me, Lady Ariana.”
“What is it?”
The servant who opened the door and came in spoke up unexpectedly.
“Her Highness’s carriage is coming in now.”
I could hear Ruben and Lorelai gasping for breath.
Princess.
I nodded with a small sigh at the word.
No one in the kingdom didn’t know how intense her first love fever was for Dante.
“His Excellency the Duke...”
“He is still out. Should I send a message to the Master?”
“Um, no.”
I said as I stood up.
“Her Highness the Princess is the one who came to see me, so I don’t think it’s necessary to bother the Duke. The three of you. I’m sorry, but could you wait until I see Her Highness the Princess?”
“Of course, Lady Ariana.”
“Of course!”
Ruben nodded quickly with a very tense face. He seemed very surprised at the word Princess.
I looked at Ruben and smiled apologetically.
“And Mr. Ruben.”
“Yes?”
“Can you please join me in speaking with Her Highness the Princess? Please.”
“Yes, yes?”
Ruben’s mouth slowly opened.
“P, p, p? I don’t know anything and I’m not good at speaking, so I’ll just ruin the mood...?”
Ruben trembled like an aspen tree as if he thought I was asking him to be the Princess’s conversation partner. I quickly added an explanation.
“Oh, no. I’m sorry. I didn’t say it clearly. I didn’t want you to talk... I wanted you to play the violin.”
Ruben’s eyes widened.
***
The elegant and beautiful interior decoration.
The violinist playing sweet music. The elegant and beautiful hostess.
Everything about the VIP room was perfect.
Princess Katarina let out a sharp sneer behind her fan.
Despite the unexpected visit, her hospitality was impeccable.
Katarina glanced briefly at the woman acting as hostess.
This woman was Ariana Lopez. She was the main character of the scandal that recently overturned the system.
In contrast to the scandal that was so outrageous, Ariana's facial features were delicately beautiful.
Just looking at her face, she seemed like a noble lady who would never be involved in such scandals.
"Welcome, Your Highness. It is an honor to meet you."
"Are you the owner of this house?"
Instead of answering, Katarina asked a pointed question.
“You’re just a guest, so why are you sitting there acting like a hostess?”
It was ridiculous that a woman who had been another man’s fiancĂ©e until recently was shamelessly taking the seat that should have been occupied by the hostess of the Duke’s house.
‘Because of you, Dante was caught up in a fatal scandal.’
Having a womanizer and lusting after a woman who was already engaged were two completely different things.
Ariana brought Dante into the latter realm, damaging his honor.
“I know this is not my place, but I have been granted permission to act as host when His Excellency the Duke is away.”
Katarina’s eyes widened slightly.
Dante wouldn’t hand over such authority to a woman he was just dating.
Not unless they were engaged.
“Hah, what is that? Are you saying you've made a promise of marriage?”
Ariana closed her mouth instead of answering. As if she was shy.
Katarina laughed sharply at the gesture that was almost like an affirmation.
“Hah...!”
Yes, Katarina, who had already unfurled her fan, shook it busily.
'You're already engaged?'
When on earth did things get this far?
Ariana Lopez's very existence was a sudden bolt from the blue.
How surprised Katarina had been when she suddenly appeared, covered her cloak, and kissed Dante in paradise.
There were many rumors that Dante had a woman, but he had never shown her so openly. Katarina immediately sent someone to see her, but Dante caught her right away, so she couldn't take any follow-up measures.
But who would have thought that in that short time, they had already developed into a marriage promise!
Ariana slowly opened her mouth, looking at Katarina, who had become quiet for a moment in embarrassment.
"I also know that I have many shortcomings. The position of the mistress of such an honorable mansion would suit a woman with much higher standards and refinement than me. Like..."
Ariana winked at Katarina and quietly lowered her gaze.
"Like Your Highness."
"..."
Katarina was momentarily speechless.
She didn’t know that she would suddenly be praised here.
‘...Huh. So sophisticated?’
However, there was no way that the Princess, who had been dominating the social circle since her debut, would not have noticed such a trick.
She snorted, but Ariana continued.
Her refreshing emerald gaze gently touched the Princess’s dress.
“I apologize if it is rude to ask you this, but the dress you are wearing today is really beautiful. I think that Your Highness’s high level of taste is clearly evident. The pattern in particular is very...”
Ariana suddenly closed her mouth and bit her lower lip after saying that.
The thing that irritates people the most is when they stop talking. Katarina couldn’t hold it in any longer and urged her on.
“What? Why are you stopping? Please finish.”
“Ah. I thought the pattern was too beautiful and sophisticated... I am sorry. Did I dare to criticize Your Highness’s outfit too much?”
Ha.
Katarina, who had given a short snort, fanned herself busily.
Complimenting the beauty of a dress was the most basic of social skills to win favor.
It was embarrassing to even call it sophisticated.
...However, there was something special about the dress Katarina had worn today.
“Just in case, don’t think about looking for a similar dress in another costume shop.”
Katarina pointedly retorted and slightly raised her head.
“This is my own dress, with the pattern I personally drew on it.”
"...Is that really so?”
Ariana’s mouth slightly opened.
The lady, who had always been known for her perfect manners, seemed to be quite surprised at her expression.
Huh.
Katarina snorted inwardly.
‘You’re not blind to the truth.’
Well, that’s right. She couldn’t help but be more discerning when she saw a face like that every time she looked in the mirror.
Katarina was sensitive to beautiful things.
She also loved them that much.
Some even whispered that Katarina fell for Dante because of his looks... It was absurd for her to treat him like a woman who only looked at his face, but perhaps it wasn’t completely wrong.
“I thought the painting style looked familiar, so I tried it just in case... It really was Your Highness’s work.”
‘Painting style?’
Katarina’s eyebrows flinched.
“...Do you know anything about my painting style?”
“Yes? Of course.”
Ariana’s eyes widened as if she had heard something obvious.
“I was very impressed by the work you exhibited at the last Foundation Festival. I also have Her Highness’s catalog.”
“W-the catalog?!”
Katarina’s voice rose, momentarily losing her dignity.
A catalog?
That was her graduation work from the Ende Royal Academy of Fine Arts.
Katarina was a talented person who graduated second in the Ende Academy of Fine Arts art department.
However, that was only an achievement at the academy; in this empire, a woman’s outstanding drawing skills were treated as nothing more than a useful trait.
But who would have thought that someone in this distant empire had that catalog!
“W-Why do you have such an old item?! Throw it away right now!”
‘Painting style?’
Katarina’s eyebrows flinched.
“...Do you know anything about my painting style?”
“Yes? Of course.”
Ariana’s eyes widened as if she had heard something obvious.
“I was very impressed by the work you exhibited at the last Foundation Festival. I also have Her Highness’s catalog.”
“W-the catalog?!”
Katarina’s voice rose, momentarily losing her dignity.
A catalog?
That was her graduation work from the Ende Royal Academy of Fine Arts.
Katarina was a talented person who graduated second in the Ende Academy of Fine Arts art department.
However, that was only an achievement at the academy; in this empire, a woman’s outstanding drawing skills were treated as nothing more than a useful trait.
But who would have thought that someone in this distant empire had that catalog!
“W-Why do you have such an old item?! Throw it away right now!”
Support Novellate!
Not the the typical attack the woman when you’re afraid to attack the man move, Princess 🙄
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