As Long As You Are Happy

“I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

The Duke of Winfried whispered from behind her. 

“I know what you’re worrying over. But you still don’t know whether they will gossip about me or not.”

“…..”

“If you approach people with preconceived notions, you will never truly get to know them.”

“Still.”

Irina hesitated. It was clear from her expression that she had a lot to say. Rogan smiled.

“So, Miss Irina has also heard the rumours about me.”

When he said that, Irina raised her head. A vague sense of guilt crept up to her. 

People this kind should not exist. 

“Am I like the rumours you’ve heard?”

She shook her head. Her golden hair fluttered as she did. 

After humming for a while in the silence, Irina nodded with a determined expression.

“Alright. I’ll be right back…”

Clenching her fists, Irina stared at Rogan. 

“If they try to tell me about the rumours of you, I shall correct any misunderstandings for you.”

“How dependable.”

She did not seem to believe him but Rogan meant it. 

After letting out a short sigh, Irina walked forward. 

Irina awkwardly interjected the group of young ladies and noble wives. Those who stared at Irina greeted her with a smile. 

“…..”

Rogan watched her from afar. 

If someone had not approached him for conversation, he might have continued staring at her till no end. 

“Pardon me, Rogan.”

He barely managed to take his eyes off her when he heard his name and turned his head around to find a man standing behind him. The man had blinding golden eyes which stood out against his tanned brown skin. 

It was Kaal Frederick, one of Rogan Winfried’s few friends. 

“Long time no see.”

Kaal smiled, flashing his white teeth, before lightly clapping Rogan’s shoulders.

“I never expected to see you in the capital.”

“It really has been a long time. How long has it been?”

“I left on ship about two years ago and had just returned so this must be our first time meeting for a little more than that.”

“So, were you at sea for the whole two years? I guess that’s the life of a navy officer for you.”

“We were at war, what else could I do?”

Kaal slightly shrugged his shoulders. 

He then placed his arm around Rogan’s shoulders. 

“But who’s that?”

“Who?”

“The young lady you came with.”

Kaal glanced at Irina before whispering smoothly. 

“I’ve never seen her around in society before? If I had, I’m sure I would have remembered a woman as beautiful as her.”

“Stop being so vulgar.”

“Vulgar?”

The man winked at Rogan. 

“Weren’t you supposed to say romantic?”

“…..”

Rogan did not respond. He merely looked back at his friend in disgust. 

“Alright, alright.”

Removing the arm he had wrapped around Rogan’s shoulders, Kaal took a step back. 

“But still, who is she? You know, there was a whole commotion when you arrived? I heard that you even escorted her to admire the paintings?”

“She is the young lady of the County of Leonid.”

“Aha!”

Kaal snapped his fingers. 

“So that’s who she is!”

Staring at Irina who was in the midst of conversation with another, Kaal looked her up and down. 

“I had heard about her. She really does look like them.”

It might have been a long time ago but Kaal did recall meeting the Count and Countess of Leonid before in the Winfried Duchy. 

“Do you remember the couple? Though I was a mere child when we met, how could I forget them?”

As though he was recalling the count and countess whom he had met a long time ago, Kaal giggled. 

“Are the two doing well? Since she had travelled all the way to the capital, they must have accompanied her as well. Where are they? I should introduce myself.”

“… They couldn’t come.”

“Huh?”

“Count Azen Leonid and Countess Leira Leonid were killed in battle.”

The smile quickly faded from Kaal’s face.

“… When?”

“During the battle for Payden.”

As soon as he heard that it was the battle of Payden, Kaal pursed his lips as though he was well aware. 

“That was a difficult battle to win.”

Letting out a short sigh, Kaal shook his hair. 

“A long and painful one.”

To the point the short ponytail he had tied at the end of his hair swayed beneath his movements. 

“It is a mystery why death takes the good so young.”

“…..”

Rogan did not reply. He merely pressed his lips together and lowered his head. 

“So that is why Lady Leonid attended in your company.”

As if understanding their entire situation now, Kaal nodded. Sweeping his hair back, he glanced at Rogan.

“I thought you had finally managed to find a fiancee who was not Miss Florence.”

“Seine is not my fiancee.”

“Weren’t the two of you attached at your hips?”

“That did happen a couple of times when we were younger.”

Seine was born such a late child that she had been much younger than most of her cousins, much less her only blood-related brother.

It was for that reason, when Seine visited the Winfried Duchy, she clung onto Rogan who had not been much older than her. 

Just before Kaal could continue.

Did she even visit often enough for it to be considered a couple of times? The Duchess of Winfried was wary of children visiting their estate too often. 

“Geez, there was a lot of talk between the two of you after those visits.”

As if he was letting Rogan’s protests pass from one ear to the next, Kaal continued. 

“You never corrected Miss Florence even though she continued to openly brag about how she was soon to be the Duke of Winfried’s fiancee.”

“…..”

“Am I wrong?”

Kaal was right. 

Rogan had merely watched as Seine insinuated to her circle that she would become Rogan’s fiancee in the future. 

“About that.”

Just as he was about to say something, Rogan opted to keep his mouth shut instead.

Kaal glanced at his hesitating friend. 

“That was why I could only assume that she was your fiancee since you had escorted her here.”

“I am merely here as her escort and nothing more.”

“Oh you, you cannot take such things so lightly.”

Turning his body, Kaal stared at his friend. 

“You’ve been smiling ever since you arrived.”

“What?”

“Even when others tried to talk to her, you pushed them away smoothly, did you not?”

Did he do that?

When he reflected on what happened a while ago, it did seem like the case. 

Earlier, there were two that approached Lady Leonid out of curiosity when they noticed her walking down the hallway.

But that was only because he wanted Lady Leonid to be able to admire the paintings without any distractions. 

“You didn’t realise?”

Kaal scoffed before letting out a small chuckle. 

“I’m just saying that I’ve never seen you this tactless.”

“Was I that tactless?”

Frowning, Rogan gave a brief reply. At the other end of Rogan’s gaze, he spotted Irina fiddling with her fingers while frozen in place. 

It was not a bad mix of people but she must have been feeling awkward because they were all strangers to her. 

It was clear from a glance that she was exhausted.

Again, again and again. She was biting her lips. 

Rogan’s eyes narrowed. 

She had been biting them since earlier but now, he could see her licking blood off her pitiful lips as she had bitten down on them too hard. 

“Pardon me.”

“Huh? Hey!”

Ignoring Kaal’s calls, Rogan immediately stepped away. 

“Pardon my intrusion but may I interrupt your conversation?”

“…..!”

The ladies who had been merrily chatting away were now shocked and startled. 

“Oh, what a surprise, your grace, the Duke of Winfried.”

Out of everyone there, the most senior wife was also the quickest to plaster a smile on her face. 

“Of course, you may. We would always welcome you, your grace. I was planning on greeting you soon but I would never expect for you to approach us like this first.”

The wife greeted him with grace. 

“I am Lady Liberty Larkbird of the Larkbird County”

The wife then naturally nudged the woman standing next to her forward, towards the duke. 

“And this is my daughter, Lady Sandy Larkbird. This may be shameless of me to say so myself but she plays the piano extremely well.”

After water started flowing out of the dam, the ones who had been frozen in place began to step forward one after the other. 

“Your grace, I am Baron Isvin. This is my younger sister, Lily…”

“I am Count Samuel. I have been dealing mostly in the cotton business. Ah! And this is my wife and my daughter, Milia Samuel.”

“Your grace, I am–”

When he had first interrupted them, they had been so shocked they were frozen stiff in their places. 

But now they were rushing towards him like moths to a flame just to have a word in. 

Rogan smiled with only the corners of his lips raised. 

It was only after he had, more or less, received all the greetings he could in the room, Rogan opened his mouth to speak. 

“I’d like to introduce Lady Leonid to my good friend, Frederick, so could I have her from you for a moment?’

“Ah.”

The flapping of fans only hastened. 

At worst, there was now a glint of disappointment in the eyes of those who had lost the chance to form a connection with the Winfried Duchy.

“And I had just gotten close to Lady Leonid, what a shame.”

“My thoughts, exactly.”

However, there was a regret they could not dare to express. 

The fact that they lacked the connections and status to form a relationship with the duke. Instead, they could only lament their regrets in this way.

“Don’t you think so too, Lady Leonid? We were just having a wonderful time discussing the artist, Daniker.”

“That might be the case but–”

Another young lady slipped her arms, clad in white gloves long enough to cover her elbows, into Irina’s.

“I understand you must obey the duke’s commands but I don’t want to send you off like this, my lady…”

“Please.”

“Oh my.”

No one could say anything in protest if he were to just snatch her away from them.

Thinking that it wasn’t bad to see this polite side of the duke, the spectators had a slight smile on their faces. 

“The admiral had even told me that he was planning on setting sail again. So, I would like to introduce the young lady to him before he leaves.”

“Oh dear.”

This time, their voices sounded genuinely surprised. 

The first to make noise asked with widened eyes. 

“But it hasn’t been long since the admiral has returned? I recall that he’s only been back for a few weeks.”

“Because there is still unrest in the coasts along the borders of Frederick. It is possible remnants of the war are hiding there.”

“To think there are still remnants, how terrifying.”

“If someone as capable as the admiral will be dealing with it, I’m sure we will hear good news soon.”

“If that’s what you say, your grace, there’s nothing we can do. The admiral even said he was planning on setting sail again.”

Shaking her head, the young lady removed her arms from Irina. 

“Instead, I will be waiting for your reply to my letter, Lady Leonid. Because you’re someone I’d like to remain close with.”

The lady glanced at Irina. Rogan was also staring at Irina. In any case, Irina seemed to be pondering over something as she was on the receiving end of two gazes. 

“Yes, it is a promise. Lady Weiler.”

She nodded immediately. The lady she addressed as Lady Weiler smiled brightly at the sight.