The Virtually Exiled Duke’s Daughter Is Troubled When Her Fiancé in a Neighboring Country Says, "I Will Never Love You" - Episode 58

The informants hired by Swallow could only gather rumors from commoners living in the Mammut Kingdom.

That was why Marquis Sisley decided to organize his thoughts and relay them to Riold. What happened afterward would be entirely up to the Second Prince’s judgment.

If Riold read the marquis’s letter and dismissed it as mere paranoia, that would be fine. But if the prince found it concerning, the royal family had the means to send skilled spies to infiltrate and extract information directly from the upper echelons of the neighboring country.

The marquis had hoped Riold would simply laugh it off as unnecessary worry. When no response came for a month, he assumed that was the case—only for a reply to arrive just as he had convinced himself otherwise. It was ironic.

Inside the envelope were two copies of reports from the spies and a separate page containing Riold’s personal thoughts after reading them.

The report contained the following details:

### ◇

Among the nobles of the Mammut Kingdom, there was a man particularly fond of gossip. He had been invited to the party where the infamous engagement annulment had taken place.

The host of the party was the son of a general, who was now in charge of guarding the detached palace where Aaron resided.

The spy sent by Riold managed to befriend this noble, plying him with expensive alcohol and putting him in a good mood.

Interestingly, this noble had no particular ties with the general’s family. Though Prince Aaron was the guest of honor, the party wasn’t grand enough to include every noble in the kingdom. Even so, the noble boasted that his invitation must have meant he had impressed the general’s family.

The spy flattered him, saying, “Of course! That must be the case!” and kept pouring him more drinks—until the noble spilled everything he knew.

“Now that I think about it, it was like watching a top-tier stage play.”

“A play? Ah, I’ve heard that romance novels about engagement annulments are popular among women these days.”

“Exactly! If you turned it into a play, it would look just like that scene. Just between us…”

The man smirked and lowered his voice.

“I suspect that Lady Deborah Mauzy knew about the script of that performance from the start.”

“Huh?”

Feigning surprise and confusion, the spy gave the noble an expectant look. Without realizing he had taken the bait, the noble continued excitedly.

“That duchess’s daughter is an incredible actress. She played the role of a classic arrogant villainess from a novel perfectly. There’s no way she could have performed that well unless she had coordinated it with Prince Aaron in advance.”

“Arrogant and condescending? But I’ve heard that Lady Deborah is known as the kindhearted saint who willingly became a hostage for the sake of peace.”

“No, no, I saw it with my own eyes. She’s an exceptional beauty, but the way she smiled coldly and retorted to that foolish prince and his retainers was chilling. And yet, in the end, she gracefully accepted the annulment and walked away. It was all so perfectly scripted.”

Prince Aaron and Lady Deborah’s performance was so convincing that not only this noble but every guest at the party had been completely fooled.

The noble later shared the story with his family that very night, and by the next day, he had spread it to his acquaintances.

However, when the royal family later announced that “Prince Aaron had deliberately acted foolish due to an incurable illness,” the noble felt utterly humiliated.

“Even if her arrogance was just an act, the idea that she’s some purehearted saint isn’t true either. She’s simply a proud woman. If she couldn’t become the crown princess, then any other marriage would be beneath her. So, she chose the best way to protect her reputation.”

The report on Deborah’s engagement annulment ended there, followed by an additional piece of news.

That summer, a cold wave had struck the Mammut Kingdom, severely affecting its agriculture. The damage to the Mauzy Duchy, which controlled a significant share of the country’s crops, was said to be immense.

### ◇

Riold’s response was brief.

*”In the end, the spy’s findings are no different from common gossip among the populace. The only new claim is that Lady Deborah Mauzy is an excellent actress, but I don’t find that credible. However, continue monitoring her actions. We will also keep gathering intelligence on the neighboring kingdom as necessary.”*

Marquis Sisley had come to the same conclusion as Riold.

When Deborah had answered Riold’s questions in the past, she had been exposed as someone with no interest in theater. If that were true, how could she have performed such a convincing act in front of an audience?

If she truly possessed such acting talent, then back when she first arrived at the Sisley estate, she would have acted more naturally, rather than behaving in a way that raised suspicion.

For example, the first time she moved Lady Lauren’s heart was when she sorrowfully reacted to a novel about an engagement annulment. That had seemed like a natural reaction.

However, according to Shelly, even before that, Deborah had been struggling to dress herself and care for her hair, constantly failing in her attempts. If these two things hadn’t happened simultaneously, the theory that she was merely acting would have been more believable. But as it stood, he had to reject that notion.

Yet, there was still one issue. A contradiction.

“……”

Gary Sisley fell into deep thought.

If, as he and the Second Prince suspected, Deborah was a poor actress, then her behavior at the Mammut Kingdom’s engagement annulment must have been genuine.

An arrogant, haughty, and cold duchess’s daughter—was that her true self?

No, that wasn’t right. At least, he wanted to believe it wasn’t.

At first, she had been as cold as a doll, but recently, she had begun to show more human emotions, even an occasional childlike innocence. Gary wanted to believe that this change was thanks to Magdala’s final words to her before she passed away.

*(So, in the end… have I also been ensnared by Lady Deborah?)*

He let out a small, ironic smirk.

No, that couldn’t be it.

If it were just her beauty, he wouldn’t have been so drawn in. And if it were all part of some cunning strategy, it would have been far too reckless.