Before the hunt
"Miss, my name is Carel."
He has no surname, so he appears to be a commoner knight.
As soon as the boy finished speaking, he took Tiffany's left hand and tried to kiss it.
Tiffany pinched his chin, her smile deepening, but her words were merciless: "I don't like hand kisses, so don't do it next time."
A hand reached out, and Lisa handed her a handkerchief. Tiff took the handkerchief and wiped the fingers that had just pinched Carrier.
The boy lowered his eyes. "Yes, Miss."
Tiffany glanced at him. "Alright, since it was sent by Father, you may stay. All of you, leave."
The steward led the servants out.
"He's still very useful," Tiffany thought as she returned to the sofa and sipped her herbal tea.
Magic Tower
Hicks had just returned from Duke Ferrand's mansion. He knew that he had been meeting with Ferrand too frequently lately, and that he was doing it on purpose. Tiffany was so smart that she would definitely be suspicious if he targeted her for no reason. She might find it inexplicable the first few times, but if it happened a few more times, she would start to doubt his origins.
But what he didn't know was that the real leader of that organization was Tiffany; he only knew that Tiffany used that organization as an excuse to storm the palace.
This time he's partnered with that organization, and he'll see what Tiffany does.
After seeing Hicks off, a glint flashed in Duke Ferrand's eyes. He sat back on the sofa, crossed his legs, took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and summoned his subordinates.
"Has the Stryker family been completely silent lately?" He took a drag of his cigarette.
“Yes, Your Grace.” The subordinate paused for a moment and then continued, “Not only that, but Tiffany’s side is also completely silent right now.”
Duke Ferrand exhaled a smoke ring and squinted. This wasn't like Tiffany's usual behavior. He knew better than anyone what Tiffany, who held the title of "model noblewoman," was really like.
She was ruthless and merciless. Now that so much time had passed and she still hadn't made a move, she arranged for someone to go to Tiff's side and report on Tiff's whereabouts.
“Go tell Luke to provoke Tiff at the hunting festival.”
If Tiffany gets angry after Luke's provocation, it would be different from her usual behavior in front of others; if she doesn't get angry or argue back, the family's prestige would be in jeopardy.
—————
Tiffany had been recovering from her injury for almost a month, so on the surface, her injury should have healed by now.
Tiff sat in the carriage, dressed in riding attire; this month was the time for the nobles to go on a collective hunt.
This time, Tiffany's prey is the fourth prince, Viato.
When Tiff got out of the car at the hunting area, before her feet even touched the ground, a sweet, cloying voice came from ahead, "Sister~".
The girl had her hair in pigtails, a round face, and a sweet appearance. She held up her skirt and blinked her dark eyes at Tiffany. If she had a tail, it would probably be wagging.
She is Tiff's cousin, Alice Strickley, who is two years younger than Tiff.
"Sis, why are you so late?" The girl naturally took Tiff's arm, her golden ponytail swaying as she bounced around.
Before she could answer, the girl asked again, "Why are you wearing riding clothes? Weren't you injured? Why are you still hunting?"
“It’s been a month.” Tiff looked at her. “My injury has long since healed. But you, I’ve been so good to you, and you haven’t come to see me even once.”
Upon hearing this, Alice rolled her eyes guiltily and retorted softly, "I... I was busy, wasn't I?"
Looking at her vivid expression, Tiffany was momentarily lost in thought. She thought of that person again, something she had never done before. It seemed the mist was having a significant impact on her. She should find time to visit Margaret.
"Whoosh!" An arrow flew towards Tiff from who-knows-where, just a hair's breadth from piercing her eye, but she caught it and glanced in the direction it came from.
Her smile vanished when she saw the red hair.
The red-haired man laughed and said, "Tiff, I'm so sorry, I just wanted to practice my archery skills. Don't be angry." The people around him echoed his sentiment.
His eyes were filled with blatant malice, and he looked at Tiffany with a disdainful smile.
“Rook! How dare you!” Alice glared at him.
Luke Ferrand, son of the Duke of Ferrand.
“How could that be?” Tiffany smiled and walked over, standing in front of him. “After all, I also want to practice my archery.” With that, she grabbed his collar, twirled the arrow in her hand, raised it, and, to everyone’s surprise, pierced his eye.
"Ah!!!" Luke rolled on the ground in pain, covering his eyes with his hands. Everyone stood there stunned, as if they were seeing Tiff for the first time. Tiff was still holding the arrow in her hand, blood dripping from the shaft onto the ground. She ignored Luke. She didn't move, and no one else dared to move either, until Tiff threw the bloody arrow into the quiver.
He said to Luke's guards, "What are you all standing there for? Take your young master to get treatment. If you wait any longer, he might really go blind."
The commanding tone snapped everyone back to reality, as if the matter had nothing to do with her. Luke's guards led him away, and among them, Luke's little follower, whether genuinely stupid or harboring some other motive, immediately stood up, pointed at Tiffany, and stammered, "You, you..."
Before he could finish speaking, he saw Tiffany's gaze and his tone softened.
"Watch your fingers."
With just that one sentence, the lackey sat down, his face pale.
Dope stayed close to Tiffany, never leaving her side. When she saw blood splattered on the back of her hand, she handed her a handkerchief.
Tiff took it, wiped her hands with her head down, and said slowly, "Is it because I'm usually too good-tempered that you think I'm easy to bully, or is it because Duke Ferrand has recently gained the King's favor that you think the Ferrand family is about to become one of the three great families?"
“That’s why I dare to do this.” Tiff looked at the people who had previously echoed her. “Have you all forgotten that I am of the Strych bloodline and the heir of the Strych family?”
“I don’t want this to happen again. This is a warning,” Tiff said, turning and leaving.
She always had a smile on her face, and usually looked like a pure white flower. But even so, no one dared to offend her. No one knew what had gotten into Luke today. Most of the people who had been warned were now harboring some resentment towards Luke, completely forgetting that they had ended up in this situation because they had also been agreeing with her.
Previously, because of Tiffany's birth and her position in the top ten of the rankings, no one dared to offend her. Now that someone has done such a thing, the consequences have deterred other potential rivals, and no one dares to do it anymore.
Tiff returned to Alice's side, saw Alice's mouth wide open in an exaggerated way, chuckled, and raised her hand to close it.
"Sis! You're so amazing!" Alice looked at her with admiration, then hugged her arm and rubbed her face against her sleeve.
Tiff struggled slightly, but finding she couldn't break free, she let her go.
—————
"Rook!" Duke Ferrand was startled to see Rook being carried over on a stretcher, covered in blood, and ran to Rook's side.
By this time, Luke had fainted from the pain. Duke Ferrand, seeing the blood streaming from Luke's eyes, trembled with rage. He slapped Luke's guard across the face, and as if that wasn't enough, he kicked him in the stomach.
"Who did this?!"
The guard clutched his stomach, cold sweat beading on his forehead. "It's Duchess Tiffany."
"Tiff!" Duke Ferrand called out Tiff's name through gritted teeth.
Duke Ferrand was furious. He had considered all sorts of possibilities, but he never expected Tiffany to do this. Was this Tiffany's way of retaliating against him? The murderous intent in his eyes toward Tiffany grew stronger.
Tiff and Alice stood together, watching the nobles enter one after another.
Tiff kept smiling until someone came in, but she stopped smiling when she saw him walking towards her.
"Hello, Miss Tiffany." The middle-aged man in front of him bowed, showing no displeasure even though Tiffany's expression was blank.
"Greetings, Duke Ferrand." Seeing the man's demeanor, Tiffany greeted him in return.
The man smiled and greeted Alice again. After finishing, he looked at Tiffany and said, "Miss Tiffany, I came for Luke."
"I'm really sorry, but Luke was too arrogant. He acted like this just because I recently gained His Majesty the King's favor. Gouging out his eyes was a lesson for him and it was for his own good. We don't dare to aspire to the position of the three major families."
Upon hearing Duke Ferrand's humble words, several nobles began to discuss whether Tiffany was being too arrogant. Just a few words had jeopardized the image Tiffany had cultivated for seventeen years.
“Duke Ferrand, you are wrong.” Tiffany stared at him. “I gouged out his eye because his arrow almost went into mine, not because I was jealous of the King’s favor towards you. But I did do it for his own good. After all, I am a member of the Strych family. If I do nothing to your son, then you will be the one who suffers at tomorrow’s meeting.”
"As for the positions of the three major families, you really can't hope for them, because you're not worthy."
“I’m so concerned for Luke, even at the cost of my own reputation, and you, you start by saying this, trying to make everyone think I’m too domineering. I don’t think you’re worthy of that,” Tiff said bluntly.
Those nobles who initially called Tiffany arrogant immediately changed their tune, saying that Ferrand was truly cunning.
Duke Ferrand's little scheme was exposed, and his face darkened. But when his gaze fell on Doppel, he smiled again and said:
"You look just like your mother."
Dope frowned and looked at him, her face expressionless, only her trembling fingertips betraying her anger.
Duke Ferrand looked at her trembling fingertips and then at Tiffany with a smug expression. "Goodbye, Miss Tiffany."
Tiffany took Dope’s trembling hand and patted it reassuringly.
"Sister, what does he mean? Has he met Duopei's mother? Did he kidnap Duopei's mother to threaten her?"
Tiff didn't answer, and Alice wisely refrained from asking further.
Dope stared blankly at the hand that Tiff was holding.
Her mother became pregnant after being deceived by Ferrand and raised her alone; they were very happy together.
One day, she returned from playing outside and couldn't find her mother anywhere. She searched everywhere but eventually found her body in the woods. She didn't know who killed her mother; she only knew that the person was powerful and influential.
So she came to the capital. On the way there, she had suffered a lot. It just so happened that Samuel Academy was recruiting students. She didn't know how talented she was, but she still went up to take the test. She thought that if she was really a genius, then she could take her revenge even faster.
She was indeed a genius, but she had no talent for magic, only for swordsmanship. She improved her strength while searching for that person.
She rose little by little from the bottom of the rankings until she was number one. Although she was a genius, it was not easy to reach the top spot, after all, this academy was full of geniuses.
She found some clues and kept searching until she discovered it was the Duke of Ferrand.
He was thirteen years old at the time and planned to take the knighthood exam when he turned sixteen, join the Ferran family's knightly order, and then avenge his mother.
At fourteen, some people looked down on commoners, so she used her first place to deflate their arrogance. After beating them all up, she noticed eleven-year-old Tiff staring at her. She was clearly a noblewoman. She intended to ignore her until Tiff said, "I can help you get revenge."
She asked Tiffany what she meant, and Tiffany said that she certainly couldn't take revenge on her own. Did you think Ferrand hadn't discovered you?
She knew everything came at a price, and asked Tiff how she could be helped. Tiff offered to let her take the knighthood exam to enter the Duke of Strych's mansion and strive to become Tiff's personal knight, while she could use the power of the Duke's mansion to take revenge.
She felt it was too simple to just be Tiffany's personal knight. Tiffany said, "Then after you get your revenge, you'll be my knight forever." She agreed, saying that as long as she didn't die, she would always stay by her side.
She later entered the Stryker Duke's mansion and, within a year, became Tiff's personal knight.
Six years had passed, and this was the first time Dope had formally met the Duke of Ferrand.
She met her mother's killer, her biological father.
Thinking of this, she came back to her senses.
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