Chapter 5. Beautiful Younger Sister 

The puppy, much smaller than the others born in the same litter and unable to follow even simple commands well, was sold off cheaply by the Viscount to someone else.

And since that day, Elise blatantly called Ael ‘Rida.’

As if to say, “What’s the difference between you and that dog?”

“Enough, just bring me some water and fruit.”

Elise brushed past Ael, waving her hand dismissively. Ael found Elise’s attitude puzzling.

Normally, Elise would have been annoyed, complaining that her sleep was disturbed because of Ael. But now she just passed by. Ael realized.

Elise was in a very good mood today.

Ael carried a tray into the living room. Elise was lying on the long sofa, looking at the invitation Jenna had brought.

Only when Ael placed the plate of neatly sliced fruit on the table did Elise sit up.

She hummed a rare tune as she put the fruit Ael brought into her mouth.

Like the Viscountess, Elise usually frowned for several hours after waking up.

During such times, Ael would have to endure all sorts of complaints just by being in her sight, but today there was no word. She was even humming instead of yelling, despite Ael being right in front of her.

Then Elise spoke.

“Do you know what happened at the banquet yesterday?”

Eager to boast, Elise spoke before Ael could even ask.

“What happened…?”

When Ael asked, Elise smiled broadly, as if taking her time on purpose. It was a fresh smile that could make anyone smile along.

But Ael couldn’t. Elise’s face was mixed with blatant contempt and mockery toward her.

“Yesterday, Lord Rakeas danced the first dance with me at the banquet.”

“……!”

Ael’s eyes widened in surprise at those words. Elise smiled even more broadly, as if she expected that reaction.

“If it’s Lord Rakeas…”

“Yes. He’s the current king’s brother, who received the title of Grand Duke two years ago. He asked my partner for permission and then politely asked if I would dance the first dance with him.”

Elise clasped her hands tightly, her face filled with excitement as if recalling that moment.

Rakeas was currently a popular figure in the Kingdom of Denertum, someone everyone wanted to converse with.

First of all, his innate status was noble, and his glamorous appearance inherited from the late queen drew the attention of socialite women.

That alone was enough to look down on everyone from the pinnacle of the social world. However, a year ago, his fiancée, who was about to come of age, fell ill and passed away.

Someone’s tragedy often becomes someone else’s joy.

When he returned to the social scene after three months of mourning his fiancée, women gave him even deeper gazes than before.

Most men in the social world marry before the age of 25. The Grand Duke, due to the age difference with his fiancée, waited for her to come of age, and thus turned 27 this year. This meant he needed to hurry with marriage.

Naturally, nobles with unmarried daughters began to envision their daughters becoming the Grand Duchess.

Viscount Aradis and his wife were no exception.

〈How well our Elise would match standing next to the Grand Duke.〉

When Ael heard her father’s voice full of love and pride through the door, she nodded.

Elise, who inherited her stepmother’s beauty, was the most beautiful person in the world in Ael’s eyes.

Her glossy blonde hair looked like it was carefully woven from sunlight mixed with honey and gold, and her bright blue eyes seemed to contain the clearest autumn sky.

Her small, delicate features, slender arms and legs, and a body with a voluptuous yet slender curve. A beautiful voice, a gentle way of speaking. And above all, there was something people praised even more.

〈Miss Elise is a woman who knows how to respect gentlemen.〉

〈Indeed. Young women nowadays don’t know humility and casually talk about business or state affairs, which is embarrassing to witness.〉

Whenever she heard such praise, Elise would show a surprised expression as if she had never imagined doing such an arrogant thing.

Beside such an Elise, Ael couldn’t lift her head. The young women people talked about were all referring to her.

People alternated glances between Ael and Elise, showing ambiguous smiles. Even without words, Ael could read their thoughts. How could the half-sisters be so different? And why is one so…

Recalling the cold stares directed at her, Ael shivered.

She wanted to return to her room immediately, but she couldn’t leave until Elise told her to.

Ael had to continue listening to what happened at yesterday’s banquet.

That the Grand Duke continued to talk with Elise after the first dance, that he even got introduced to Elise’s friends, and what other banquets they decided to attend next.

While Elise was happily talking, her gaze suddenly turned sharp.

“Speaking of which, Rid, are you even trying for marriage?”

“…What?”

“Mother said yesterday. She worries that it would look bad to others if you’re still at home when I get married.”

“……”

Ael hung her head low. Ultimately, it meant she was a blemish because she was still unmarried at home.

“So she said she would take you to the next banquet. It seems she’s determined to marry you off within this year, no matter what.”

“But the dowry…”

“Oh, the dowry. She said she’ll just give up on it. As long as she can maintain the minimum dignity, she’ll approve your marriage as soon as a proposal comes in.”

“……”

Ael couldn’t say anything.

In Denertum, when a woman marries, the groom’s family pays a large sum called a dowry to the bride’s family.

Also known as a token of appreciation, this money is meant to honor the parents’ efforts in raising the bride.

Naturally, if the amount is unsatisfactory, the bride’s parents can refuse the marriage.

Since Ael came of age, the Viscount couple had tried to marry her off immediately. Of course, the purpose was the token of appreciation.

Even though the Viscount of Aradis was a noble family in name only, men from lower-ranked families would still want to marry.

Viscount Aradis had no intention of passing the viscountcy to Ael, so it would just be marrying ‘the daughter of a Viscount,’ but Viscount Aradis thought that alone would be an honor for the other party.

‘Besides, shouldn’t I recover some of the money I spent when I brought her mother here?’

To the Viscount, Ael was the most significant loss-making investment. To recover that loss, he needed to reclaim the past losses from the man who would take Ael.

Moreover, he planned to receive enough to prepare the best for Elise’s debut in the social world.

When Ael first debuted in the social scene, her clumsy appearance still seemed acceptable to some men, as marriage proposals came in.

Viscount Aradis immediately sent replies to them, stating the amount of dowry he desired.

Before long, people in the social world whispered and snickered at Ael whenever they saw her.

They spoke loudly enough for her to hear, mentioning the amount of dowry Viscount Aradis demanded from the suitors.

When Ael heard the amount, she was so shocked that she dropped her fan.

〈100,000 guilders…?〉

It was an absurd amount.

Even for a marriage among great nobles, such an amount was not easily demanded. What kind of madman would pay such a sum to marry the daughter of a nobility without power?

Especially when the title wasn’t even being passed down.

Eventually, no more proposals came, and Ael became the laughingstock of the social world.

When Viscount Aradis decided he should lower the dowry, another incident occurred. An argument arose between Ael and an old noble who had been a professor at the Academy.

It couldn’t even be called an argument. It was a one-sided verbal assault from the old noble toward Ael.

The cause was trivial. Next to Ael, the old noble and a few other nobles started discussing matters related to the Empire.

As the old noble explained the trade between the Empire and other countries to the other nobles, Ael, listening nearby, realized there was a significant error in his explanation.

So, when their conversation paused for a moment, she cautiously and politely questioned the old noble, saying there seemed to be a part that was a bit different from what she remembered.

At that moment, the old noble threw the wine glass he was holding next to Ael and shouted angrily.

〈Are you saying I’m wrong! A girl who hasn’t even learned properly is questioning me, a professor at the Academy!〉

Later, Ael found out that the old noble was notorious for his bad temper even at the Academy.

He was someone who believed he was always right and took any doubt about him as a personal attack.

With the glass lying shattered next to her and the relentless yelling, there was nothing Ael, who had just debuted in the social world, could do.