“Annette-sama… to suddenly come to my room and say such things.”
“Silence. Just because you’re the main wife, you think someone from a mere baronet family who married into our viscount family would dare offer me an opinion?”
Jared sighed. Annette seemed unchanged from his memories. She was likely energetic, for better or worse, but he wished Olivier hadn’t had to see her. Annette Daum was a woman with the ill-bred habits of nobility. She seemed to believe titles were everything, and would sometimes even speak down to her own father and grandfather. Despite this, she raised her children herself, but it had resulted in a son and daughter who inherited her way of thinking, leaving the Daum family in a state of constant distress.
Though smaller in scale compared to the Alway Ducal Family, disputes between the main wife and consorts existed in the Daum Barony as well. In some noble mansions, wives apparently got along famously with no hint of animosity, and Jared found that truly enviable.
“We have a guest, so please leave for now.”
“Are you ordering me?”
Karina showed her panic at Annette’s rude arrival in the room, right in front of Olivier. Annette, on the other hand, hadn’t noticed Olivier’s presence. She was yelling at Karina without even glancing at Jared, completely unaware of his fiancée standing next to him.
“Annette-sama, there really are guests, so please—”
“What? Is it that big of a deal just because Jared is here…?”
Annette snorted and finally looked towards Jared, but her eyes widened in surprise.
“O-Olivier Alway-sama?”
Beside Jared stood Olivier, smiling serenely. It was a smile Jared, her fiancé and someone who lived with her, had never seen before. The smile, devoid of emotion yet possessing a noble grace, was like that of ice – beautiful yet terrifying. Unaware of what Olivier was thinking, Jared next to her could only shrink back.
“Why are you here?”
“You—do you have some business with my fiancé?”
Olivier asked in a cold voice, her words directed at Annette, who voiced her question with a trembling voice. Hearing her voice, Jared remembered. When he first met Olivier at his grandfather’s mansion, she had spoken her words without hiding her displeasure or irritation, just as she was now. At the time, he had never imagined they would grow this close, and it felt like a lie that only a little over two months had passed. He tried to escape the oppressive aura emanating from his fiancée beside him.
“N-no! I just wanted to greet you as family.”
“Lies.”
Olivier cut her off, her gaze sharp as she looked at Annette, who was now trembling not just in voice but in body. For Annette, titles were absolute. That was why she behaved arrogantly in the Daum Barony, coming from a viscount family. Therefore, the presence of a young lady from the Ducal Family before her was simply terrifying. The positions of the Ducal Family and a viscount family were vastly different. In that sense, Jared, born into a newly established baronet family, was not Olivier’s equal. However, the position of Court Mage compensated for such a difference. But Annette was not a Court Mage, merely the third daughter of a viscount family with a short history compared to the Daum Barony. And now, she was a consort of the baronet family.
“I, well—”
“I am not interested in what you think or what you say. I have seen people like you far too much, and even if I said anything now, you still wouldn’t change, would you?”
For Olivier, arrogant people were not uncommon. Olivier herself was aware of her own arrogant side. Annette’s unceremonious entrance into the room, her inability to offer a proper greeting while demanding one, none of it mattered. This type of person lived as they pleased. They fawned over those above them but would click their tongues once they were gone. Engaging with them was a waste of time and troublesome. Her father’s consorts were similar, so dealing with them was easy for Olivier. However, there were some things she could not forgive.
“But—your attitude towards Jared is unforgivable.”
Annette visibly trembled at Olivier’s quiet anger. However, that tremor was not solely from fear.
“I don’t know how much of a person you are, but Jared is my precious fiancé. Whether you wish to direct malice at him or use him, I don’t care about your thoughts, but please do not cause him any unnecessary trouble.”
Annette’s face, as she received Olivier’s quiet but firm words, showed more humiliation than fear.
“Your reply?”
“I understand.”
“I can’t hear you. Please reply properly.”
“I-I understand!”
Jared could not see Annette’s face as she bowed deeply to Olivier. He couldn’t tell if his trembling father’s consort was dominated by fear or humiliation. But Olivier seemed to notice. And then, she pressed on.
“Lift your face. And apologize to Jared and your mother.”
“—That—”
“Oh? You can’t?”
Annette, lifting her head, contorted her face at Olivier’s demand. It was clear she had no intention of apologizing. Perhaps Annette could tolerate bowing to Olivier, a member of a family with a higher title. But Jared and Karina were different. It was evident she didn’t want to apologize, her thoughts being what they were. Karina, who had been watching the unfolding events with a pale face, was about to say something, but Olivier spoke first.
“You, who are from a mere viscount family, cannot hear the orders of me, a daughter of the Ducal Family?”
“—N-no, that is not true.”
“Then, apologize quickly.”
“Karina…”
“Karina-sama, shouldn’t it be? Now, say it again.”
“…Karina-sama, Jared-sama, I am truly sorry.”
Her face flushed with anger, Annette, unable to show her emotions in front of the young lady of the Ducal Family, spoke the words of apology as she was told.
“Frankly, insincere apologies are unpleasant. Moreover, I don’t even know what you are apologizing for. But fine. Now, disappear.”
“Y-yes. Excuse me.”
Despite apologizing, Annette received harsh words and glared at Olivier, who remained unfazed. Annette’s face contorted further with humiliation. She was undoubtedly spitting curses in her mind at the young lady of the Ducal Family. It was in bad taste that Olivier, having understood everything, was smiling; Jared felt a sliver of pity for his disliked consort.
Though it was her own fault, Annette, having tasted humiliation by Olivier, quickly left the room. As the door closed, the sound of her retreating footsteps could be heard. After a while, a strange cry and the sound of something breaking reached Jared’s ears.
“It’s been a while, so I feel refreshed.”
Olivier, having splendidly driven Annette away, wore an expression of accomplishment. The slight sparkle in her eyes was likely not his imagination. Seeing this unknown side of his fiancée,
—Ah, this is the kind of thing that leads to bad rumors.
Jared found himself thinking just that.
