TEOGDA Chapter 13
by Layana“But the dinner invitation will need my mother’s approval.”
“I’ll send an invitation to House Rosebird. If your guardian refuses, I’ll respect that. Though I doubt that will happen.”
Kaithan smiled faintly.
Indeed, who would dare refuse the Grand Duke’s invitation?
Raina fidgeted with her fingers for no reason.
Meanwhile, Kaithan’s carriage arrived at the Rosebird estate.
“Thank you for bringing me home, Your Grace.”
As Raina was about to disembark, Kaithan reached out to assist her.
But instead of taking his hand, Raina firmly held her skirt with both hands and hopped down from the carriage on her own.
“Farewell, Your Grace.”
Raina bowed her head, and Kaithan smiled slightly.
“Well then, Lady Raina, I’ll see you soon.”
As Kaithan departed, Raina finally felt at ease.
He wasn’t threatening or overbearing, yet being near him always made her tense — and she couldn’t quite understand why.
Silence filled the house as she entered.
“Mother? Bella?”
Neither Charlotte nor Bella was anywhere to be seen.
Strange.
They hadn’t been at the Debutante Ball, and now they weren’t home either.
In the bedroom, only her drunken father snored in his sleep.
‘Nothing I can do.’
Raina decided to go to her room and change.
The fitted dress, which she wore for the first time, was difficult to take off alone.
She carefully removed it, worried she might damage it — and that effort alone left her exhausted.
Finally free of the dress, Raina collapsed onto the bed from sheer fatigue.
‘I need to wash up…’
But she didn’t have the energy to move.
‘Too much happened today…’
She had sung at Laorde, faced a harrowing incident, managed to attend the Debutante Ball, and even had a conversation with Terrier.
And above all, she had met Kaithan.
His black eyes reminded her of a direwolf — eyes that looked like they could devour her in one bite. Just thinking about it made her tense again.
‘What should I do about the dinner invitation?’
The thought of seeing him again left her frozen.
‘Whatever, it’ll work out somehow. It’s just one meal, after all.’
Despite actively pursuing marriage with Terrier, Raina’s mind was filled only with thoughts of Kaithan — and with that, she drifted into sleep.
* * *
Charlotte hurriedly climbed the stairs of the inn, clutching medicine in her hand.
But her mind was filled with entirely different thoughts.
‘What’s going on between Grand Duke Kaithan and Raina?’
No matter how she tried to make sense of it, it didn’t add up.
It was surprising enough they had met at all, but to hear the Grand Duke had paid for Raina’s dress and even shared a carriage with her — it was impossible not to be bothered.
‘Raina actually participated in the Debutante Ball?’
Charlotte had done everything she could to prevent Raina from attending.
As Raina turned twenty, William had repeatedly asked about her debut into society.
Each time, Charlotte had delayed it under the pretense of Raina being passionate about cultivating yucho plants.
In House Rosebird, Raina provided a significant portion of the household’s income.
And now, if she started singing at Laorde, that income would only increase.
Charlotte had no intention of pairing her with some lowly noble and losing her golden goose.
‘What in the world happened?’
Trying to calm her turbulent thoughts, Charlotte opened the door to where Bella was resting.
“Haa…”
Bella lay in bed, burning up with fever.
“Oh, my baby…”
Bella’s flushed face twisted in discomfort.
“Bella, you’ll feel better soon. Let’s take your medicine.”
Charlotte gently lifted Bella’s waist and offered her water and the medicine.
Bella, with half-lidded eyes, shook her head.
“I don’t want it…”
“You have to take it.”
Charlotte spoke firmly and brought the medicine to Bella’s lips.
“Where’s Raina?”
Bella asked desperately.
“Give me the one Raina made.”
The suppressant had a bitter, astringent taste.
But the potions Raina made were at least bearable.
Being a dominant, Bella had relied on those potions when her condition was difficult to manage early on.
“We don’t have any right now. I barely managed to get this one, so take it.”
Reluctantly, Bella accepted the medicine from Charlotte.
As she opened the bottle, a foul smell wafted out.
“Ugh, I can’t drink this.”
“You have to. Hold your breath and drink it all.”
“…Okay.”
Bella closed her eyes tightly and drank the potion in one go.
“Ugh…”
“You did well. Now drink some water.”
After finishing the water, Bella collapsed back onto the bed.
“You’ll feel better in a little while.”
Bella nodded weakly.
Thankfully, by dawn, the fever caused by her heat began to subside thanks to the medicine.
“Mother, what happened with the Debutante Ball?”
Bella, now somewhat lucid, spoke in a trembling voice.
“I… I ruined everything, didn’t I?”
Her blue eyes filled with tears.
“Ruined?!”
“I made such a disgrace of myself. Who would ever consider me a bride now?”
“My darling…”
“What do I do? Grand Duke Kaithan will never look at me again.”
“Bella, for now, just focus on getting better.”
“This is all your fault, Mother.”
Bella glared at Charlotte with resentment.
“What are you talking about?”
“This only happened because you told me to release pheromones! Who does that to a man the first time they meet?!”
“That’s…”
Charlotte had no defense.
She hadn’t expected Grand Duke Kaithan to suppress Bella’s pheromones so swiftly — and trigger her heat on top of that.
He wasn’t just dominant — he was an extreme dominant.
Charlotte had only heard of such people in rumors; this was the first time she had met one in person.
A Grand Duke and an extreme dominant — no wonder he was so desirable.
“Bella, I’m sure His Grace was just startled because it was his first time too. But wait and see — you made a strong impression, so there will be another chance when you meet again.”
“Do you really think so?”
“Of course. Trust me. Your mother will figure something out, so don’t worry and just believe in me, alright?”
“…Okay.”
Bella sniffled and nodded, then fell asleep, completely exhausted.
The next morning, the streets were abuzz with rumors about the Debutante Ball.
Charlotte learned two important facts.
Grand Duke Kaithan had asked Raina for his first dance.
And Raina had refused him.
‘What in the world happened?’
The only good news was that the scandal surrounding Bella had been completely forgotten, as all attention focused on that shocking event.
With Bella now awake, Charlotte quickly set out for House Rosebird.
* * *
After that, numerous invitations and inquiries flooded House Rosebird.
Everyone was talking about Raina, and William was grinning from ear to ear.
“Charlotte, thank you for taking such good care of Raina. You really prepared everything well, didn’t you? People are singing her praises everywhere.”
William, in high spirits since morning, laughed heartily as he spoke to Charlotte.
“Of course! Raina is practically like my own daughter.”
“Charlotte, thank you.”
William hugged Charlotte tightly around the waist.
“And don’t be shocked — Grand Duke Kaithan himself sent an invitation to Raina.”
“…Truly?”
“So, don’t respond to any other invitations. Haha, our Raina is finally being recognized for her true worth. Honestly, Raina’s kind, beautiful, and a talented singer — she doesn’t lack a single thing.”
William, who had never shown much interest in Raina before, now started listing all her virtues.
Charlotte’s gaze sharpened at the sight.
It seemed William had completely forgotten that Bella had also debuted on the same day.
“We can’t just marry our precious Raina off to anyone, right? Only someone like Grand Duke Kaithan would be worthy. Don’t you agree?”
“Dear, as great as that sounds, do you really think His Grace would consider Raina as a potential bride? I’m worried this might all just be empty excitement.”
Charlotte pouted slightly.
“Nonsense. He only asked Raina for a dance that night! And our Raina cleverly turned him down. That’s how you spark a man’s interest — play a little hard to get.”
William chuckled, clearly pleased.
“But dear, about Raina…”
“What about her?”
“You’re so fond of her now, I’m unsure if I should tell you this or not… But I suppose I must.”