The Ugly Wife of the Shady Duke

Grace felt her mouth go dry, wondering if she should intensify her diet even further.

Just then, a woman spoke up.

“There’s actually a good medicine for weight loss.”

“Oh my, really? I need it too.”

“Me too, me too.”

The Lady Charles looked worried at the mention of medicine.

“Wouldn’t medicine be bad for the body?”

“Don’t worry! I’ve been introduced to this medicine, and they say it has no side effects.”

‘It sounds Suspicious….’

Grace thought that openly opposing it here would only provoke resistance, so she kept her mouth shut.

‘There’s no such thing as a medicine without side effects.’

Even medicine that is good for you can strain the liver if taken continuously. Grace wondered briefly if this world operated under different laws from Earth, but decided that wasn’t the case.

‘Magic exists, and the pace of development is different, but life is somewhat similar. People live essentially the same way.”

And human desires were the same as well. Grace swallowed hard.

“I only just got it myself this time. I heard it’s incredibly popular.”

“Oh really, is it from ‘that place’?”

“Yes, it’s from ‘that place’!”

Everyone burst into laughter mentioning “that place.” Grace sat there with a clueless expression, not knowing what “that place” was.

“Excuse me, but where is that place?”

“Oh my, Madam, you don’t know? It’s a trading company that sells all kinds of beauty products. They even sell things that ‘Siren’s Song’ doesn’t carry.”

“It’s called ‘Eternal Blossom,’ and it’s operated very secretly, so there’s no physical store. But their each item is so exceptional that every lady wants to encounter their merchants.”

‘Is this the first time I’m hearing of this place?’

Grace racked her brain but couldn’t recall any mention of ‘Eternal Blossom’ in the original work. If it was such a coveted organization, it seemed likely that it would have been mentioned.

‘After possessing inside this novel, why am I encountering so many settings that weren’t there before?’

“Shall I introduce it to you as well, Duchess? Normally, it’s not something you can just get immediately, but being from the Felton ducal family, you might have access right away.”

“I-I see.”

The conversation about ‘Eternal Blossom’ continued for a while. Many boasted about how they had stocked up on many products from there in preparation for this party.

Then, suddenly, a familiar topic reached Grace’s ears.

“They say if you consistently apply this cream, you can get skin as white as the Saintess.”

“Oh, I bought it too and saw some effects.”

“It didn’t work for me at all. Maybe it’s not suitable for my skin.”

“……”

As she listened quietly to the conversation, Lady Charles, thinking Grace was not able to join in, cautiously approached her.

“Madam, why don’t you try one too? I have a few items, and one of them is good for the skin.”

Despite her makeup, Grace’s freckles were faintly visible. Concerned yet trying not to offend, Lady Charles whispered cautiously.

“I think you look charming, of course, but just in case, would you like to try it?”

“…”

“It’s one of the flagship products from that company.”

Grace was about to refuse, but the mention of a flagship product made her nod.

‘Maybe I can learn something from seeing it.’

Whether it’s an element not remembered from the original work, or truly something that wasn’t in the original, she might uncover some information later.

Thinking she should ask Sireni about it, Grace immediately passed the cream she received from the Lady to Sally.

‘Now that I think about it, they kept mentioning the Saintess when talking about this product…?’

Grace rubbed her wrist and looked around as she mulled over her words. She was here because she needed these people for future developments.

She needed to alter Aria’s course from the original story. This was necessary for Aria, but frankly, it was more for Grace to move forward more confidently.

‘If Aria makes more friends, events with Benjamin won’t be the only things happening, and then I won’t have to harbor strange suspicions.’

Grace knew the current Benjamin didn’t harbor unusual feelings for Aria, but there was always a ‘what if.’

She recalled Benjamin’s last words in the original work spoken to Aria, which were quite heart-wrenching.

‘So, for now…’

Before she knew it, the conversation about the ‘Eternal Blossom’ company had shifted to discussing the beauty of Aria, the saintess.

In this world, Aria was considered the ultimate beauty and an object of envy. The extras in the story repeatedly praised her appearance.

Moreover, according to Grace’s direct observations, Aria had a rather limited social circle in society, practically having no close friends.

For now, everyone envied Aria for her title as a Saintess and her beautiful appearance. After all, few disliked beauty.

‘But with the incident that will occur at the upcoming party, things might change.’

The upcoming party was intended to celebrate the full recovery from the western contamination and to announce the empire’s robustness. However, it also indirectly addressed the strike of the textile workshops.

This was marked by an embroidery competition among all the young ladies of the noble families. For this party, everyone had showcased their embroidery skills using fabrics owned by their families or purchased from small workshops.

Of course, that was just the official purpose. Competitions targeting ladies were rare, so this was an opportunity to create one such event.

‘Usually, it’s the empress who organizes such events, but with no empress in the current imperial family, it’s even more so of an opportunity.’

It was about time for official documents regarding this to be circulated, and it was not strange for Grace to know this, being the Duchess.

First, she needed to completely eliminate the seeds of this conflict.

“Speaking of which,”

Everyone’s attention was captivated as Grace began speaking with a cautious gesture and hesitation.

“I haven’t mentioned this because it’s still quite under wraps, but since you are all new friends, I wanted to share it.”

Though rumors had painted the Duchess Felton as an incompetent person, the Grace they actually saw did not fit that inept and unfortunate image, and those present were very curious about what kind of news she might have access to first being from the Felton duchy.

Among them, a few had heard rumors that the Felton family had recently discovered a new gemstone.

‘Is it about the gemstone?’

‘If it were about that, she would have brought it as a gift for the Lady Charles.’

‘Maybe it’s something about a magical artifact.’

The fact that it was an unrevealed piece of news certainly promised to be an interesting topic. Those who secretly loved the gossip of the social circles eagerly awaited what Grace was about to disclose.

“I’ve heard that the Imperial Court is planning to host a showcase where ladies can display their embroidery skills at the imperial banquet. It’s not confirmed yet though.”

“Oh my!”

The announcement sparked excitement among some of the ladies present. The social scene was opulent, but it was usually dominated by men. Despite being called the flowers of social gatherings, men were often at the center of accomplishments. Therefore, even something as seemingly modest as an embroidery contest was a welcome opportunity for many.

“I need to get some fabric soon.”

“Me too. It should be high-quality fabric. Speaking of which, that workshop…”

Having access to such information beforehand was advantageous. Embroidery was a labor-intensive craft; anything rushed would clearly show. The same people who were just discussing beauty quickly switched to excited chatter about what patterns they would embroider.

Grace’s mention of the embroidery contest was not just to help them.

‘If it goes according to the original story, even if these people embroider dragons, Aria would still win the competition.’

Aria’s embroidery skills were not outstanding. Unlike other well-educated ladies, she was a commoner from a rural estate and hadn’t studied such crafts even after becoming a saintess. Thus, even without a close look, her embroidery was mediocre.

Yet, she was the winner of that contest. The reason was her ‘sincerity’—something the others supposedly lacked.

‘What, do the people here really lack sincerity?’

Those with exceptional skills and craftsmanship would have also worked hard to showcase their talents, but being disregarded obviously wouldn’t make them view Aria favorably.

Of course, such nuances were not explicitly described in the original work. Aria’s surroundings were always filled with people who adored her.

Now that Grace was not just a reader but a participant in this world, she could understand the feelings of others.

‘No matter how skilled, the result ultimately boils down to biased judgments. Therefore, it’s better to make it known that this goes beyond regular evaluation from the start.’

And by drawing Aria into this faction in the process, Grace could diminish her own presence.

‘Right now, my presence is too prominent.’

If Aria joined, she would gain a foothold, and with the saintess as a new member, attention would be divided.

The saintess had never interacted with anyone in social circles before.

‘And as the person who connected Aria, I’ll be able to leave a good impression.’

However, for this plan, she did not need too many people. In fact, having many people could give rise to various emotions and thoughts, and rumors might spread.

‘Then the best person to seek help from would surely be Lady Charles.’