Chapter 31
Chapter 31
“It’s all right. In fact, I had a wonderful time. I have something I’d like to say to you about that, actually.”
“What is it?”
“Serving tea to others is a joy for me. I hope you’ll allow me to continue having cheerful and relaxing teatimes with the knights.”
Though her words were phrased with aristocratic subtlety, there was no way Belladonna could miss the meaning behind them.
Of course, in the hierarchy, the lady of the house stood above even the commander of the knights under the family’s banner. However, right now, the young madam was issuing a gentle but unmistakable order—not to disregard the knightly culture or the commander’s authority, but with kindness and tact.
Belladonna inwardly admired her manner of speech and consideration. It was impressive that the lady of Battenberg herself was attentive even to the ordinary knights.
“If the Duchess herself says so, how could I object? I won’t punish anyone for having tea with you from now on. Please enjoy your teatimes freely and comfortably.”
“Thank you for your consideration, Commander.”
Chloe smiled brightly, and seeing her expression, Belladonna felt a warm smile come to his own lips.
The reason he had called Chloe out today wasn’t just to offer an apology. If that were the case, a brief conversation at the training grounds would have sufficed.
He had been curious. Curious about the Duchess who had been the talk of the knights for weeks—the new lady of House Battenberg to whom he had dedicated decades of loyalty.
The Chloe he met was elegant and polite. Courteous without being obsequious, and carrying the dignity befitting a duchess.
‘I heard the Duchess had some sort of personality flaw… but she doesn’t seem that way at all. It must have been slander.’
With his years of experience and intuition as a commander, he prided himself on being a good judge of character and he trusted his own eyes.
And the Duchess pleased him greatly. While he couldn’t yet assess her abilities, her composed manner and the way she had easily won the knights’ favor suggested she would make an excellent mistress of the house.
Chloe and Belladonna continued chatting comfortably, and with each passing moment, his favorable impression of her solidified into certainty.
That day, Chloe was treated with the utmost respect by the knights and returned to the ducal residence after an enjoyable time.
After she left, Belladonna debated whether he should report the incident to the Duke of Battenberg.
Normally, such things should indeed be reported. After all, it wasn’t common for the lady of the house to visit the knights.
But…
‘Don’t bother reporting every minor matter about the Duchess to me.’
The Duke’s earlier words lingered in his mind.
This wasn’t a routine event, but neither was it something so serious. The visit itself had been for personal, not official, reasons.
‘He said not to report small matters, so I suppose it’s better not to.’
In the end, Belladonna decided to keep it to himself.
From that day on, rumors spread like wildfire through the ducal residence that Chloe was on friendly terms with the knights.
“Did you hear? The madam is apparently very close with the knights. They say they’re like best friends.”
“The knights would fetch the stars if the madam asked them to.”
“There’s no refusing the madam’s orders. What if we get scolded by the knights?”
The servants were stirred. The knights were figures of awe and reverence. The thought that such formidable figures were backing the madam made them nervous—and curious, wondering what hidden charms or strengths she might have.
Regardless, one thing was clear: opposing Chloe was no longer an option.
Meanwhile, the returning Lady Coleen was dumbfounded. She had expected at least Chloe, or at the very least, one of the maids, to have come down with smallpox by now, but everyone was perfectly fine. What’s more, rumors about Chloe’s camaraderie with the knights had boosted her reputation even more.
Coleen only learned what had happened after hearing the full story from the ever-clueless Marie.
“It was almost a disaster, Lady Coleen! The frozen pond you mentioned turned out to be incredibly dangerous. But luckily, the madam, Nina, and I happened to run into a knight who warned us. So we went to the knights’ compound for a picnic instead.”
That was when Coleen realized her plan had failed… again.
Even though the outing to the knights’ grounds had been pleasant, Chloe had no intention of letting the incident slide.
Ideally, Lady Coleen would be punished severely. But Chloe still lacked both the authority to discipline the staff and solid evidence tying Coleen to the event.
Instead, she interrogated Marie.
Chloe had hoped Marie would confess that it was Lady Coleen who had told her about the frozen pond, but whatever threats or promises had been made, Marie wouldn’t say it. She simply wept and admitted fault in general.
Seeing the young girl—barely in her mid-teens—crying, Chloe, with her naturally soft heart, felt a pang of sympathy. But she also knew this was a good opportunity to remove Marie. She remembered how Marie had actively tormented her. And that she still showed no signs of true remorse.
‘Nina, when you act like that, what am I supposed to do? Could you stop trying so hard to be the madam’s favorite?’
‘I’m sorry, Marie.’
‘Anyway, it’s not like you’re any better. We both did bad things to her. So stop trying to win her over on your own.’
Chloe had overheard Marie scolding Nina, and that was when the last shreds of hope she’d had for the girl collapsed entirely.
Marie wasn’t someone who deserved trust or to remain by her side. She needed to be let go—and the sooner, the better. Chloe resolved herself.
In the end, she held Marie accountable for the incident and sent her home. She hoped to never see her again.
That same day, after dinner and their usual teatime, Chloe was having a conversation with Alphonse when he suddenly said something surprising.
“A ball?”
Alphonse nodded as he finished his tea and lit a cigar.
“Yes.”
He gave a brief answer, but for some reason, his lips tingled with anticipation. Then, he said something he would never have uttered before.
“If you don’t wish to attend, you don’t have to.”
In truth, it would be troublesome if she didn’t go. The ball was hosted by a recently important business partner. In such cases, it was proper etiquette for a married couple to attend together.
In the past, Alphonse would have taken her without question. Whether she wanted to or not didn’t matter—if she had to go, she had to go.
But today felt different. For some reason, he wanted to let her stay home if she didn’t want to go.
But Chloe’s reaction was the opposite. She shook her head and leaned toward him.
“No! I want to go. I’m really curious.”
‘Curious,’ huh…
Alphonse was momentarily puzzled. As far as he knew, Chloe had attended balls before, she had even gone with him after they married. So the word ‘curious’ felt oddly out of place.
It didn’t really matter either way. Alphonse, watching Chloe’s eyes sparkle with curiosity, was reminded of their previous visit to the Fortnum family.
He inhaled deeply from his cigarette, exhaled the smoke, and said, “In that case, I’ll take it that you’re coming with me.”
***
Alphonse informed the host of the ball, Count Harrods, of their attendance through his butler.
News that the Duke and Duchess of Battenberg would be attending a ball for the first time in ages quickly spread through noble society.
“I heard the two of them really don’t get along.”
“They say the madam is terribly plain.”
The strange pairing and their relationship were already a well-known topic among the aristocracy. It was only natural that the perfect groom material, Alphonse Battenberg, and the pitiful laughingstock, Chloe Battenberg, were seen as mismatched as wearing clogs with a glamorous ballroom gown.
Many eagerly anticipated just how coldly Alphonse, who had once turned away even the most celebrated beauties of the Empire, would treat Chloe. Some of those eagerly watching were women who had once courted Alphonse and been rejected, now jealous of Chloe.
Curiosity and speculation about the couple’s relationship at Count Harrods’ ball spread like smoke through the air. Everyone attending was determined to see the Battenberg couple with their own eyes.
And so, the day of the ball arrived.
