The relatives left by dusk. Only then, they could murmur a few words of apology since some of them knew the purpose behind Rubica serving tea.

‘She’s not an innocent girl at all, and we have no way to make requests to her.’

They gained nothing since, similarly to the duke, the duchess was a difficult opponent. Moreover, just like Rubica had aimed for, they gave up on coming to her with their vague hopes.

“Ann, could you call Khanna tomorrow?”

Rubica asked Ann after saying goodbye to the last visitor.

“Madam Khanna?”

“Yes.”

Ann almost pointed out Rubica had summoned Khanna only a while ago, but she didn’t. She had ordered some thin and sexy nightdress from Khanna without Rubica knowing.

‘Good. I will have her bring them tomorrow.’

Fate was helping Ann. More accurately, it was helping Claymore’s future line of succession.

“Okay then, I will send a message to her.”

“Oh, and…”

Rubica wondered how she should explain what she had in mind. However, she couldn’t just openly ask which noble ladies were interested in fashion.

“Could you tell me about the ladies I should befriend?”

“Ladies you should befriend?”

Ann widened her eyes as she had been thinking about it lately. Rubica was doing good as the duchess, but she had no connection in society. All the other ladies had grown up together as friends. They frequently invited each other and asked how they were doing through letters. Moreover, they were quite close.

Ann was worried Rubica might be alone when she went to the capital.

“Yes, I want to invite them and have a tea party, just like I did today…”

“Tea party?”

Carl, who was giving orders to the servants, replied with Ann. Rubica was surprised that he could hear her as he was quite far away.

“Your Grace!”

He looked deeply moved. Actually, he didn’t want to serve tea to those relatives earlier today. Tea was precious. It wasn’t meant to be shared with such uninvited guests. However, as he served tea and explained its uses, he enjoyed himself more and more. Of course, he found a few rude people, who frowned at the taste of the tea, very irritating, but some did know how to appreciate it like Elise.

Rubica found his reaction a little too much, so she looked at Ann instead, but she was surprised again. Ann was looking at her with sparkling eyes as well.

“I have been wondering how you could befriend the other ladies before the society season comes, but… oh, you are so smart.”

It looked like Rubica was failing to be the evil duchess yet again. She couldn’t bring herself to confess she just wanted to wear something pretty.

***

“Madam Khanna.”

Khanna was on her way to the sewing room when a maid called her, and she could tell the woman had been sent by Ann.

“Here it is.”

She took out a box from her bag, and the maid quickly left with it. Inside the box was the masterpiece she made with all her might, and she was sure both Ann and the duke would like it.

‘But why is it needed when the duchess is already pregnant?’

Well, there were some couples whose love got even hotter after the wife got pregnant. Judging from the duke and the duchess’ famous love, it was more than likely, but Ann was carrying out a plan without Rubica knowing about it. It was quite suspicious.

-Even if you find out or hear about the nobles’ private life, just forget about it. That is how people like us survive.

Khanna recalled what her late husband, who had a heavy mouth, had said sometimes. He used to avoid talking about his clients, he wouldn’t even mention much to his own wife.

‘I shouldn’t wonder about it.’

Khanna made up her mind and stood in front of the door of the sewing room. Now wasn’t the time for such curiosity. The duchess had called her again in less than a week, so she was worried if she had made a mistake or missed something.

“Your Grace, Madam Khanna is here.”

“Quick, let her in.”

The door was opened and Rubica greeted Khanna with a warm smile. She had her pretty brown hair braided up and decorated with feathers and wildflowers from the garden. Khanna was impressed. She had never even thought of putting wildflowers on the hair. She was learning something new every time she met Rubica and thought even the most fashionable designers in the capital wasn’t as creative as Rubica.

‘And compared to that, I still have a long way to go. The use of color and placement of laces, I’m not good at all at that to call myself a designer.’

If she were to make an excuse, it would be that she had been far from the dress-making business for too long. Her husband had asked her to work with him sometimes, thinking her talent was too good to be neglected, but she refused. She had her own reasons for that, but now she regretted it.

“Your Grace, you look beautiful today.”

However, she chose to curtsey with a smile to Rubica rather than feeling sad about her past. There was nothing she could do about her past, but she could change the present and the future.

“No, I’m not beautiful.”

“But everyone in the dukedom is talking about you right now. So many are asking me if the duchess, who won the duke’s heart, is really that pretty.”

Some people had been half in doubt when the rumor first spread. However, almost everyone now believed it thanks to the duke’s recent changes.

“When they ask me that, I always say you are extremely beautiful.”

“But then, they will be disappointed to see me in person…”

Although Rubica said that, she seemed to be flattered. Of course, anyone who saw her for the first time would say she was extremely ordinary. However, Khanna believed her power of making people feel comfortable and her mysterious auburn eyes, that sometimes sparkled in red, couldn’t be more special.

“Why did you want to see me today? You just ordered some dresses a few days ago… did you forget to order something?”

Khanna asked after a maid moved her bag to the table and left the room. She had gotten better at dealing with customers. She warmed the mood and then carefully asked why she had been called.

“Oh, no.”

Khanna was worried as she sat down on the chair Rubica pointed at. As she didn’t know what it was about, she was afraid to ask first.

“Khanna, about the dress we designed that day…”

“That royal blue dress?”

“Yes. You remember.”

“Of course.”

It was such a unique design and quite hard to forget. That night, Khanna’s eldest daughter had exclaimed at seeing the sketch. When Khanna showed her Rubica’s knot, she said it was so pretty and asked if she could use it on her hair if it wasn’t going to be decorated on a dress.

“Could you make it?”

“What? But…”

Khanna couldn’t just say, ‘But it cannot be worn anyway,’ when looking at Rubica’s sparkling eyes.

“Um, how should I explain this? I’m going to have a tea party.”

“Tea party? What is… tea?”

Khanna was a little confused. To start with, she didn’t even know what tea was. Tea was imported across desert and ocean, so only a few had even heard of it.

“Oh, how should I explain…”

-It is some type of rare dried leaves from a faraway land across the desert.

Rubica recalled what Carl had said. Although he had been quite serious, her thoughts were like, ‘What? Dried leaves? It’s not like I’m a cow.’ Explaining it as Carl did was only going to make Khanna even more confused.

“It is an extremely rare ingredient from across the desert. It is brewed like coffee, but it is much more expensive and harder to get.”

“Oh, I see.”

Khanna nodded, but she still seemed to not get it. Of course. It was something she had never even heard of, so she couldn’t understand right away. Plus, coffee was a drink that was enjoyed commonly, so it wasn’t that expensive. Rubica, therefore, decided to put it more realistically.

“A lump of tea the size of my fist is worth one gold bar.”

“What?

On the other hand, five carriages loaded with coffee would be worth a little less than one gold bar. Khanna was shocked to hear a drink could be that expensive.

Comparing to gold always worked the best. It was better than explaining about the tea’s scent, flavor, and effect like Carl liked to.

“It is an extremely special drink.”

“I see. Then a tea party is about drinking tea together?”

“Yes, but it is very different from drinking coffee.”

Actually, coffee didn’t have a good reputation. It was a drink which men had at coffee houses before the sun came up after having fun all night. The only women who could go in those coffee houses were prostitutes. That was why although coffee was drunk often, it was a little embarrassing to openly say one enjoyed it.