As the grand entrance of the ckwood ducal estate loomed closer, Alicia''s anxiety intensified with each passing moment.


    Her mind was awash with anxious imaginings. What if she truly became nothing more than the subject of ridicule and returned home humiliated? Yet, despite her apprehensions, the carriage she rode in moved silently past the imposing gates of the ckwood estate. All she could do was attempt to calm her pounding heart.


    ‘It’s... huge.’


    The first impression that struck her upon entering the estate grounds was the sheer size of the ckwood mansion. Alicia had never considered the Rowid Barony’s manor to be particrly small, but faced with the grandeur of a true ducal residence, she was utterly overwhelmed.


    The mansion stood much taller than the one she had lived in her entire life, and its courtyard was so vast that she couldn’t help but wonder how many servants it would take to maintain a ce of this scale. And then, there was the question of the person who had invited her here—Miss Rosewood. What sort of individual could she possibly be?


    -Gulp.@@novelbin@@


    Alicia swallowed dryly in an attempt to steady her nerves as she carefully stepped out of the carriage. Fortunately, the first person she saw upon disembarking was someone she already recognized.


    “M-Marianne?”


    “…Alicia? Don’t tell me you’re…?”


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