CH 39

A concert was held every evening at the Rose Palace of the Imperial Palace.

It was one of the lowest social places, so nobility without a base could rent a house nearby to attend the concert.

If only the minor nobles were participating, that was not the case.

“I’m going to die of a headache.”

The lady who was doing administrative work in the imperial palace was elegantly annoyed. Another lady clashed.

“Have you tried the new medicinal herbs? It couldn’t be more suitable for stress headaches. He said the apprentice was a sorcerer, so I think he’s better than that.”

“I’m going to put up with the concert today and go on vacation tomorrow.”

Of course, those who worked in the Imperial Palace were all elite.

The higher the position, the more they came from a good school and the more stressful their job was. It was a natural result of having a lot of responsibility.

Stressed elites used to cheer themselves up by attending concerts. Therefore, it was a natural result for the concert to become a meeting place for all kinds of aristocratic groups.

Rumors circulating in the social world always started at the Imperial Palace concert.

“Why did Countess Fox make that choice? I thought she was a woman of honor.” 

The attendees focused on talking about one thing rather than music.

It was the story of the letter from Blake to Count Fox.

“According to the newspaper, there was a family strife, but … Anyway. In the Duchy of Upus live savages whom no one dares to associate. How could Countess Fox entrust herself to such a place?

What if she gets eaten?”

This story was arguably the biggest gossip of the year.

“From what I’ve heard, the truth is that the Duke and Countess Fox had contact….”

“Oh my gosh, how shameless….”

Everything started as Blake had planned.

The nobility had a lot to say about the fate of Lily, a once-popular icon.

“There is more than one insider testimony that they saw the divorce papers that she left behind. At this point, shouldn’t we be called Miss Hedwick, not Countess Fox, as a courtesy?”

Rumors swelled like a snowball.

From the rumors that Count Fox wielded violence against her every night, stories of Lily fleeing through her monstrous obscenity…….

Or that Lily made eye contact with the duchy’s master.

Count Fox said she was missing even after he saw Lily’s divorce papers, leading to speculation that he had done the shameful act of distributing missing flyers on a massive scale.

Surprisingly, all of this was about half correct.

Because reality was sometimes more frightening than rumors.

“Oh my gosh, d*mn it.”

Count Fox was unable to leave the house, let alone concerts.

He was a vain man who devoted his time to bragging about Lily.

Socialites weren’t initially attracted to him, but to meet Lily, they had to go through him. Thanks to this, he enjoyed a popularity beyond his means.

“Who will talk to me now?”

Count Fox was well aware of that. He didn’t know how to deal with this situation.

“Who would talk to me?”

“Master…”

The butler made an opinion as he watched the Count wander through the house anxiously. 

“Right now, the urgent task is to bring the madam.”

“Who doesn’t know that, you punk! It’s impossible because that savage man doesn’t give Lily up!”

In any case, he had to stop things from going the worst.

Count Fox said again.

“The documents that Lily left behind…… Are you sure it’s burned? The divorce paper.”

“I also made sure there was no ash left after putting it in the fireplace.”

“Yes. Like that… . I don’t know if some cheap employee was talking about the divorce papers anonymously, but that’s not proof.”

He couldn’t raise his head to anyone if the public even found out that the divorce papers really existed.

Eventually, he went to visit Lily’s parents, the Marquis and Marchioness of Hedwick.

‘Can they give me some advice?’

The Hedwick family had a long history, having served as a senator for generations. Moreover, the current Marquis overcame many enemies and was called the devil of politics.

“Count Fox is here.”

Count Fox’s butler knocked on the Marquis’ door. After loudly announcing the Count’s visit, a maid came out.

“What’s going on?”

“I’m sorry for the sudden visit, but my master wants to see the Marquis and his wife for a moment.”

“We don’t accept any guests right now. Please go back.”

However, the Marquis’s couple suddenly turned into closed-minded people.

Count Fox held the door in urgency. His rumors had spread to the servants, and the maid of the Marquis’s residence, who knew the circumstances, had no choice but to speak.

“Then please wait on the first floor. I will tell the Master.”

At last Count Fox met the Marquis, but it was not what he expected.

The marquis couple was very upset.

“Marquis… ”

“Are you here? I was expecting it to come sooner.”

The Marquis and his wife were very oppressive people.

Originally, Lily could marry someone more powerful than Count Fox, so they pretended not to care.

Count Fox also knew that fact, so he lived his life keeping an eye on the couple.

Count Fox thought.

‘I thought you were going to be furious again today.’

They must have been very angry at the fact that Count Fox had not been able to handle Lily properly. But today, they had an appearance of dead old people.

Did the rumors circulating about Lily make them this way?

The scandal intensively harassed Count Fox, but did not make the daily life of the Marquis and his wife any easier.

They like to be overbearing with authority as a weapon.

Count Fox was very puzzled, but he couldn’t ask. Instead, he handed them his greeting.

“I’m sorry I haven’t been able to visit you, Marquis HedwicK, Marchioness Hedwick. I apologize for the sudden visit.”

“I know you are busy, so don’t worry too much.”

The Marquis responded with a weak tone.

Fox obviously noticed they were hiding something, but pretended not to know.

“I want to ask for advice. You probably heard the rumors.”

“How exactly did my daughter disappear?”

Count Fox explained without mentioning the divorce papers.

“One day when I came home from work, Lily was gone. That’s all. I put up missing flyers and it was only after a long time that I was informed that she was in the winter castle, but…… I couldn’t talk to her. Duke Upus is blocking all passages.”

He was reluctant to lie about the divorce papers, but what about it? Annihilation was enough to say that it has definitely disappeared by burning.

Young and short-minded, he was not a match for the Marquis couple.

The couple also loved Count Fox, but they didn’t have time to worry about it right now, so they gave him some advice.

“Sue the Duke for confinement and kidnapping. My committee mates will help to get to court quickly.”

“Then will I be able to bring Lily back?”

The Marquis wanted to hurry up and send Count Fox back. He did his best to reassure him and inform him of various countermeasures, saying that everything will be fine.

“Then I will go.”

Thanks to this, Count Fox could leave the door with hope.

Eventually, only the Hedwicks were left in the parlor.

The Marquis approached the curtained window. Through the purple curtains, he watched Count Fox’s carriage leave.

He said with a dark expression.

“Oh my gosh, that’s unbelievable. Why did Lily even go to the Duchy, honey? Perhaps….” 

“Stop. Don’t speculate.”

However, the Marquis kept feeling anxious.

“We just have to be careful.”

“Lily, doesn’t she remember her childhood? Lily had never brought up the story of the boy she used to play with.”

“Obviously she wouldn’t have remembered Blake Upus, so why did she go there?”

In fact, it didn’t matter if Lily remembered her childhood.

What they were most concerned about was something else.

“… Did you notice that too?”

“If that was the case, would the current Duke of Upus have accepted Lily? I don’t know.” 

“Let’s not come forward just in case. We can only hope that the stupid Fox gets it right.”

Cursing the opponent was the same for Count Fox. The Count stamped his feet in the carriage going back to his house. 

“D*mn marquis couple. The old foxes always leave me alone… .” 

Amid the doubts, the relationship only deepened.

***

“Finally, the complaint has arrived!”

Excited cheers filled the peaceful winter castle.

“Our Master has been sued! Sue!”

“The complaint has finally arrived?”

The maid took the complaint from the Imperial Palace and handed it to Blake.

“Congratulations on being sued, Master!”

“You have worked hard. Master!”

“Good for you!”

In praise and encouragement, Blake’s expression was strange.

That was what he was hoping for, but hearing such words made him feel strange.

****

*They are happy being sue