Chapter 4 Part 1

The news 65c21b1b83 that the da706a88b0 Imperial Family f29f635e2f had sent bc3781c0e0 an invitation 9a682ed9a6 to Irina ce8c37abe3 spread quickly 40e9faacec within the 690247fe85 family. The Lehman family, who 8b68e492b6 had been depressed for 89de16c0f5 a while, was elated 665eeb99b8 by the unexpected invitation 4b08a9b207 from the Imperial Family.d23c7ea2a2e53e2c

The servants were overjoyed, 5572fb9e92 each believing that the 041d2e8e08 Emperor had granted an 3bdf773499 opportunity to get rid 5a0480ad35 of the humiliation that baf68c804f had been directed at 765d084a1e the Lehman family. Among them, the b4d85dd6bb most excited was 0fee9255ed definitely Olga.223037354aa1431f

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“Miss, miss. Wouldn’t you need a new dress? Should I inform Madam Resa that you’ll be visiting her salon?”c498a3eb7e9d3702

Olga asked in 7613d7701c a lively voice, 50a983d54a genuinely happy that 0826742104 Irina had been eacd2234f1 invited to the 213af353cf Imperial Palace.a5b807165e02c587

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This was understandable. Ever since Irina’s father, Thomas Lehman, had been arrested, dark rumors about the downfall of the family had been circulating. As soon as he got out of that situation, the imperial family’s invitation felt like the greatest blessing after such a difficult time.55eab693010fc745

Irina was even more frustrated because she knew how Olga felt. However, she had no choice but to go along with Olga’s enthusiasm, as she couldn’t reveal the truth. 228d940b77b44707

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Otherwise, Olga would be suspicious and worried about Irina’s reaction to the invitation from the Imperial Family.0adaeabe294488ee

“Yes, please do that.”ff8bc8292c98a1ad

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“Yes! I’ll make arrangements with Madam Resa and let you know the details.”1f525af982c658c1

Even with Irina’s weak response, Olga remained cheerful. She probably thought Irina was just tired, so she didn’t seem to notice anything unusual.912dfc309282f288

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In fact, Irina didn’t bother to correct her because it was better for Olga to think that way. 903f44f792f54310

It wasn’t long after Olga left the room. Someone knocked on the door. Irina looked toward the door thinking that since Olga had just left, she couldn’t have knocked on the door.edce202ee27012fd

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“Who is it?”7dd740072b8a75ff

“…It’s me, Irina. Can I come in?”505c05513f96f3dd

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“Of course!”5a99aa4a371ee350

The weak 9b8992248c voice belonged c8edaeb043 to her d15203e7b3 father, Thomas 4c26300493 Lehman. Irina jumped up 596c068bef from the sofa 9998887125 in worry.81eb45194decee1b

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Just then, 351edd0ce9 the door ef98839613 opened, and 1e3c2517ea Thomas Lehman 6eb4464a3b appeared. He looked even a5887c90c2 more worn out 0e9bb55e6b and exhausted than 52b34d3eb0 when Irina had 4abe54c268 seen him in 92d2507887 the punishment hall.114df6453aa07b2e

“Father! Are you alright? What’s going on?”79deeeb78c0357dc

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“Olga said that the Imperial Family sent you an invitation.” 41d424baaf197b63

“…….”af1855434e3167f3

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Instead of responding to Irina’s question about whether he was okay, Thomas Lehman spoke about the invitation from the imperial family. 4a7f87973bd41f7f

It was b65fd821b6 only then 6d3dcc9510 that Irina 8bddb06f45 realized that 08b10f26d8 her father 3e9d3de904 looked so b9362a0e19 haggard after e09fe54c1a hearing the 01d212359c news of d944842aa1 the imperial 6dc333d2bd invitation.28c48f38bf0f7387

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As expected, her e3270dbc52 father must have d788655940 known something about 7fb1b9bf7d the imperial family’s, ba26eafaa7 or rather, Emperor f66e7166e8 Knezh’s, schemes. Irina spoke with a5d72e1d8a certainty.8c84445782305fa5

“Father, what did Emperor Knezh say to you? What on earth did the Imperial Family tell you?”de96ce9c740b451b

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“…I’m sorry.”75f88da4656268bb

“You have nothing to apologize for. That wicked emperor must have…!”98b8cd8d60d8f0e8

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“Shhh, lower your voice.”956ee2278e904c1c

He cautioned her as 6d63976577 he scanned the room. Despite coming alone, without 579b009cec any servants following him, e3566709d5 and confirming that no 8e1325febb one else was nearby, 6bb23d6fc2 he remained uneasy.9184c01621220f24

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Irina understood that, with her father’s warning, she could no longer criticize the Emperor. But it was clear now that her father knew the truth about the Emperor.4466dd3aa26b7d17

“Please, tell me, Father. What did he say to you?”59d11824f8592bf3

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“…. … Actually, the imperial family has made several proposals for your marriage.”ab28164ad621b72f

“What?”de18ea2a5a8ecda1

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Irina opened her eyes 5d1dae6537 at the unexpected words. At that, 5af035c046 Thomas Lehman dca6bb0ba5 let out 457163c916 a long 69e731e6c8 sigh.30c5eecf47c8e4c2

The sight 11e20e2bef of her 5e3a62152c father looking 4997747244 so weak ff44729b4b and on 3c93da641a the verge b15b5719ea of collapse b541fa4f06 filled Irina b00a04c794 with pain. Therefore, she was not 9b44ffa4e0 surprised by the unexpected a142290126 news about marriage proposals 4d776c5414 from the imperial family.9f256b61931a73c7

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“But each time, I rejected them.”3f3af0d9be39b01f

As he calmly continued, 87ef0e8560 Irina stared at her 40bf4e1ccc father, seeing regret and bd8620ffd4 sorrow in his face. Surprisingly, Irina felt a5f430607f relieved.246d0b9714728f88

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If her father 276bd18935 had accepted the 365f129e3a proposal and she 2a6ef0ad1a had ended up 066260208d marrying someone as bc0310c6ba greedy and cruel a20af369a2 as Emperor Knezh, 5361cd9f18 it would have eda46f9589 been a truly 41d5cb2cf7 hopeless situation.c3b78e79fae1a2ba

“Your mother doesn’t know about this. It was my decision alone, so don’t blame her.”b1fb28178a93a13f

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Thomas quickly added, whether or not he knew Irina’s feelings. At his words, Irina shook her head.f93e3be9cbc48a31

“You know I wouldn’t blame my mother. And I won’t blame you either, Father. I don’t want to marry him. I’m actually grateful to you for rejecting that proposal and saving me from marrying such a man.”c38ea0b7e5eb0fa0

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“…Is that really how you feel?”17d663c30707a581

“Yes. I really do… I don’t want to marry such a person.”19cf4762d4b3581b

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Irina responded firmly. Only then did 6e8f8fda85 Thomas Lehman let e962b23676 out a sigh ebcf251c95 of  relief. Watching this, Irina had 842318fd9d a question.11f85691d2ec3a66

“But Father, why did you refuse the marriage proposal?”315e02d0117e69a2

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It was natural for 6a499beaa9 any noble family to efa44cb3d8 want to have a b4a71c0817 relationship with the imperial a3177fc055 family. But why 95ed047537 had her beead5d166 father refused 9544cba91b the proposal 6b2ab704a3 that would 1267cc0c88 have forged 1860e995c6 the strongest a59c6f8fc8 bond with 8d99be8e5a the imperial 7151412ce6 family?8a7ed0fb8dbcc5a8

“Well, obviously…” d7eaee55dc73226d

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Thomas Lehman trailed off. Then, after looking around 234876e55f to confirm there was 095d19f228 no one nearby, he 0239c835ec continued.05cbac09d3b8575a

“Which father would want his daughter to marry a man of such a cruel temperament?”0aad1cc24d629284

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“But… if I marry him, our family would be connected to the imperial family.”23f5866a59ae90a7

Irina said these f944e394a1 words, though she 89ba3495c5 didn’t truly mean f3b5d1467d them, feeling both 6765247b27 grateful and conflicted f38b97f4c8 by her father’s 44fa62749b concern. Thomas Lehman’s eyes 09562a5c19 widened, and he debbdab7b2 raised his voice.c210575ce38bfd22

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“Because of such a reason, I couldn’t send you, whom I’ve raised with so much love, to such a bastard! What do you think of me when you say such things!”8a6cf8ca751fb324

“……”c4f74368d75722a4

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“……”f6ffca27ecbe00e1

There was silence 0f7c08d76e between the two. Irina looked fbab41c1b8 at her 60bf9b7110 father with 3c592b155e wide eyes, 1f3c40c42a surprised. Thomas Lehman, realizing what dfc891f870 he had just said, b056f88d88 awkwardly opened his mouth 5c66e556ea again.99df7d2459bcfe6c

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“Ah, no, I… I take back calling him a bastard…. Pretend you didn’t hear that.”bdfb37e52f56b130

“…Haha.”6e5c7e6773e24c48

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“Don’t laugh.”1b446db7f47c8784

“Hahahaha.”5b1608ceb0ccf419

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Irina couldn’t help but f4ddc4aeb1 laugh at her father’s 0b9d5ff882 flustered reaction. 6e2516416582551b

It was a 029f31aed4 rare sight to eca8a8269a see her father, 7cdbce1edb usually dignified and 511221730e calm, acting this 43e9a39a22 way. And yet, 4363e369bc she didn’t 1d6533a8f2 mind. It felt familiar and 0e35174a80 affectionate, making her feel 48f2cee5dc good.dd5a883c76f295fc

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“Oh no, don’t laugh.”7c9edba74713e373

“Thank you, Father. I’m really happy that you care for me and think about me so much.”134d1cfe20e51882

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“……”736e9a2203fbbd8c

“If you had accepted that marriage proposal, I would have been despairing.”3622aa129ee92964

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“But by refusing it, I put the family and you in danger.”523286f5c3941443

Thomas Lehman responded grimly. He too couldn’t fbac1aef2a have imagined such 00126457e4 an outcome. 057ff2d1f892ade8

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Who would 9548c7edec have thought cf0a8d1a49 that because da72029729 of rejecting ca454b89f0 a marriage 0f7e0d44b1 proposal, he b25c7065ba would use b983765f56 such an 3aaffc9292 absurd rumor 4fff7c935e as an 4b291d4ea6 excuse to f6facf294f destroy the b4fea752d9 family?51f3118829d970ce

“What did he say to you? Didn’t he ask you to marry him? Didn’t he threaten to harm you if you didn’t marry him?”2ea953d1922f6b51

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“……He didn’t say anything to me.”cb2362ae710ff1a9

“Really?”eb62698c5cee67d3

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“Yes. Really.”d93614d8b90be47b

Despite her a45e2a02e8 father’s repeated b50d784569 questioning, Irina 08bc94ea44 lied again. She didn’t want to f4d80c5590 worry her father. Even though it 931aa33016 was a lie 3be6cf1e99 that would be 7af5318735 exposed soon, she 93dbcb1d9e just wanted to 1bd1f64bb9 reassure him for 746a2cfdc6 now.5d9c533bd73f27b3

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“I’m worried about why he invited you to the banquet. There’s definitely something behind it.”3fef553a51640d17

“……”428c86ce00b25bbc

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Irina felt ccee3963a3 the same fdac42570d way. 79a33e0f0289ae24

There was no 8b849e87ca way that snake-like 9480f03b3a man had held 3533133397 the banquet to 8c5fd42359 restore the Lehman e2d904e8c6 family’s honor. He must have b10218290e some hidden agenda, a46dfb6a16 and that plan 1f2a80ae5d would likely cause 498c67ecfb trouble for her. 2d6aa86ccd43afe5

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Honestly, she was 29068a88dc afraid that, in f185d84b56 the presence of f554c26ab4 all the other 519c93201c nobles , he e7aac033f4 might publicly propose  a3393b1c86 marriage to her. d1004a9c1aef643e

While she 7ee2de5446 had firmly 28fa6e7587 rejected the 11873e5404 idea of df58537904 becoming the 919b60c98d Empress in ea2ad6a1d5 front of 95f64837a5 Emperor Knezh 8845df85de and his 860f93e18a escorts, things 44dd62fcc8 would be 48ebdccda3 different at 0c0b9526ce a banquet 02e644501b with all 40ec0fc892 the nobles f4bd28c7c5 present. 1a0e85e310b7ef80

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If she refused the Emperor’s marriage proposal in such a place, she would end up publicly humiliating the Emperor. In that case, knowing his personality, there was no way he would leave her alone.3958db060fb9b40a

“I hope nothing bad happens.”182a4df8b1ed8990

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Thomas Lehman muttered 28248287ba with a sigh. Irina wholeheartedly agreed with 89e57a5cdf his words and sighed 7977ca9c96 heavily.e3e6ba9c08f08acb

It was the ab5424003b afternoon of the 1a32174812 next day when 812c70f46e they arrived at 2ce3e6df58 Madam Resa’s salon. Madam Resa 3ae7f875e0 was the 85cc4bad26 most famous c2690d0ff6 dressmaker in 908ceb86e7 the capital, 213c7e9085 with many 68c5a03670 noblewomen as 656ec1bc18 her regular 321ec3a60f customers. Irina was e548aed9b9 one of 5ed6c4d87b them.c972b2e9f5f71dad

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Irina, who ed2f049256 didn’t want 38681cc3f9 to attend ba8b4533f4 the imperial d72c71fc98 banquet, didn’t 6632c5c3d8 care if 07d69f94be she wore b6ca8deed7 a dress 8052f844aa from Madam 7ea6b6a8cb Resa or a98840826b one of 3b0089e531 the many d1e19d221b dresses she 7f97dba14f had at 834d58fd63 home.cffbb4f1933fb43c

But Olga 6725565132 thought otherwise. She insisted d2ca37686b that Irina eea754e977 must wear 7a2e86d927 a dress 2a6903f17d from Madam 9ffcbfc69f Resa for ad3aca1cf7 the imperial 487dc473fb banquet.d029e33a490a783a

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Because Madam Resa’s 7e30a646b1 dresses were so e047590bae popular, it wasn’t 1b1bb4fba6 easy to get c2a088b800 an appointment at fe9bfecb69 her shop. However, the fact 8d11775a5d that Olga had c2539bb731 managed to make 56f187ab7d a reservation the da9925648b very next day 1ea3c7850c meant she must d43d0f8ea2 have paid extra 16edfdd20f for it.99e072b8d12f6f4d

While Irina understood ac8d5be53c Olga’s desire to c0e7924166 dress her in 2276613811 Madam Resa’s dress, 694d50fe62 she also felt 9cfeb06631 uncomfortable about it.0a4f5617b732b301

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“Lady Irina, it seems like you’ve lost some weight.”1a55dcabc42585a7

Madam Resa, who was 088c0bb2a5 skillfully measuring Irina’s waist 0dda5745c2 with a tape measure, 1634fdd2ed spoke in a shrill d5dbb79546 voice. Irina thought it made 30eca2ee1b sense. She had been troubled 8cece1bbfc by those d*mn rumors 56ed677d86 recently.add8571222f45d8e

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“I’ll make the dress size a little smaller than the last time.”25ce1a902201c3da

“Okay, Madam Resa.”7b7f6d1a34a970b2

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“Madam Resa, has my young lady lost a lot of weight? I’m sure it’s because I haven’t been taking good care of her. She had no excess fat to begin with, so where could she lose weight…”c186c3ccba9c8fd6

Irina responded lightly, e6aae01025 but Olga was 314a252eab on the verge f26b9f2f72 of tears. Irina shook her 3875cb0248 head lightly as 0288be0daf she saw Olga, 2a9e48f815 who was not 05c9a93fe1 only sad about fd296d5f2e the fact that 2d86085317 Irina had lost dd8ec1b441 weight, but also 1acb7dd91a blaming herself.699acd3fd9604205

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“No, Olga. It’s not your fault. It’s just… There have been a lot of things going on lately. I’ll gain the weight back soon, so don’t worry too much.”72c5c482fe79165e

“Still…”0678806ac93f6878

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Olga’s pouting lips were so cute that Irina couldn’t help but smile. 4a48b857fed4984c