Rosaline stood on the balcony with her arms tightly crossed over her chest. The evening breeze lifted the loose strands of her hair, but it did little to calm the irritation written across her face.

"Mother, you told me the Duke kept a mistress," she complained sharply. "You said he drinks every day and neglects his duties."

She turned her head toward the garden below, clearly frustrated.

"But when I went there, I saw nothing of that sort," she continued. "There was no mistress."

Her voice grew more bitter.

"In fact, the Duke took Eilika away on a honeymoon."

Rosaline abruptly turned on her heels and faced her mother.

"Eilika is now the Duchess," she said, her tone filled with resentment. "Everyone must show her respect wherever she goes. I could have been in that position."

Inside the room, Susan sat near a table with a large ledger open in front of her. She flipped through the pages slowly, her eyes scanning the columns of numbers as if Rosaline’s frustration was of little concern to her.

"Huh?" Susan chuckled lightly, lowering the ledger for a moment to glance at her daughter. "Why would you ever marry a widower?"

She shook her head as if the thought itself amused her.

"Besides, the Duke already had a child. Raising someone else’s son is hardly an appealing life. Don’t you know how much I suffer because I need to take of Eilika?"

Her attention returned to the ledger again.

"The expenses have been unusually high this month," she muttered while running her finger down the list of figures. "Your father’s business has not been performing well either."

She let out a small sigh before closing the book halfway.

"I hope Eilika returns soon," Susan added thoughtfully. "With her position as Duchess, she might bring some fortune to this family."

Rosaline frowned deeply at her mother’s words. The calm way Susan spoke about Eilika irritated her even more.

In a sudden motion, she stepped forward and snatched the ledger from her mother’s hands.

"Mother, Eilika is not going to help us," she said sharply. "Not after everything we did to her."

She dropped the ledger onto the table with a dull thud and folded her arms again. "Mark my words," she continued bitterly. "She will never extend her hand toward this family."

Rosaline began pacing across the room, her frustration growing with every step.

"If it had been me who married the Duke," she added, "things would have been very different."

She stopped and turned toward Susan again.

"I would have immediately sent the Duke’s son to a boarding school. He must already be four or five years old by now. That would have solved half the problem."

Her lips tightened as she imagined the life she believed should have been hers.

"Today, I would have been the Duchess of Varos," she said, the envy in her voice only grew.

Susan, however, remained far calmer than her daughter. She leaned back slightly in her chair and shook her head.

"The Dowager Duchess specifically asked for Eilika’s hand," she explained patiently. "According to her, Eilika has always been good with children."

"To them, Eilika is nothing more than someone suitable to care for the Duke’s son," she added casually. "Almost like a caretaker."

Rosaline narrowed her eyes. "Then explain something to me," she said slowly. "If she was meant to be nothing more than a caretaker, why did Duke Damian take her on a honeymoon?"

She looked out toward the balcony again, clearly disturbed by the thought.

"They have grown closer," she muttered under her breath. "That face of hers... somehow it managed to sway the Duke’s heart."

"That does not matter," Susan said dismissively, waving her hand as if the matter were already settled. A satisfied smile appeared on her face as she closed the ledger and placed it aside. "You are already receiving proposals from some of the best families in Varos."

She looked at her daughter with confidence.

"There are many well-off households interested in forming an alliance with us. We will make sure you marry into a prosperous family."

Rosaline listened without interrupting, though her expression remained unchanged.

Susan continued, pleased with her own plans.

"A respectable marriage will solve most of our concerns. Once you are settled in a wealthy household, our family’s position will also improve."

But Rosaline slowly shook her head. Her mother’s words clearly did not interest her. Inside her mind, a very different thought had already taken root.

’I will have Damian for myself. Unlike Eilika, I can give him everything he truly desires. And when the time comes,’ she continued silently, ’I will make sure Eilika is pushed out of his life.’

A faint smile appeared on her lips as the plan formed quietly in her mind.

~~~~

Damian walked across the gravel path beside the garden, his hands clasped behind his back. Maurice walked a step behind him, matching his pace as they moved through the grounds.

"Did you tell Eilika everything?" he asked without turning around. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Maurice understood immediately what he meant.

"No," he replied calmly. "You specifically asked me not to reveal the whole truth."

Damian gave a faint nod as they continued walking.

"However," Maurice added after a moment, "I did encourage the Duchess to make an effort."

Damian stopped walking and turned his head slightly toward him.

"Since you have refused to make that effort yourself," Maurice continued respectfully, "someone must take the first step. I believe Her Grace will try," he said with confidence. "And if she does... I am certain she will eventually win your heart."

A faint chuckle escaped Damian as his attention shifted toward the open field beside the cottage.

In the fading light of the evening, Eilika’s laughter drifted through the air. She was standing among the boys, holding a string tightly as a bright kite danced high above them in the sky. The children ran around her excitedly, shouting and pointing whenever the kite dipped or rose higher.

Even the maids had given up trying to keep them calm and simply watched the cheerful chaos from the side.

Eilika’s face glowed with joy as she guided Roman’s hands over the string, teaching him how to control the kite against the evening breeze.

Damian stood still, watching the scene. There was something strangely peaceful about the sight.

Maurice followed the direction of his gaze before looking back at the Duke.

"The Duchess is someone you will never find again even if you spend your life searching," Maurice said thoughtfully.

Damian did not respond.

"She is rare," Maurice continued. "Thoughtful, kind, and clear-headed. People like her are one in millions."

Then he added with a small smile, "You should take her out tomorrow. A proper outing... perhaps a small date."

Damian let out a soft breath.

"We are leaving for the undercover mission tomorrow," he reminded him. "Maurice, I will be gone for several days. I do not have the luxury of time to think about dates."

Yet even as he said those words, his eyes remained fixed on Eilika.

She had just managed to lift the kite higher into the sky, and the boys around her cheered loudly. Her radiant smile seemed to brighten the entire field and somewhere his own heart too of which he was unaware.