The Useless Duchess' Second Chance

In The Way to The Palace

Since early in the morning, Ariana had woken up to be dressed up for Crown Prince Emilio's birthday. In previous years, Ariana had always been the most busy girl because she prepared many gifts for her fiancé. But this time, Ariana didn't even bother to look at the gifts that James had carefully chosen. She gave gifts only as a formality. Because the truth is, Ariana tried to no longer have the slightest concern for her ex-fiancé.

When Ariana looked at her reflection in the mirror, the girl finally understood why her grandfather had to order new clothes for this birthday party. Unlike the beautiful dress that Ariana usually wears to visit parties, the girl is wearing a beautiful dress with a pant now. Ariana could already imagine how big the commotion would be because of her arrival. But that's what she expected. The more people who find her crazy and unreasonable, the better it will be for Ariana.

After all, it's time to remind them again, that the Alison family is a strong family because of the sword skills possessed by their family members.

“Aria, we have to leave now.”

From the outside, her grandfather entered in military clothes that became the pride of the Alison family. In his old age, Duke Andrew still looks dashing when he wears these formal clothes. Ariana smiled proudly when she saw her grandfather, who's so cool. This is her family, they still have their pride even if someone tries to erode their strength.

“Grandpa, thanks for the clothes.”

Ariana thanked her as her feet stepped to approach her grandfather. Duke Andrew nodded slightly in response to Ariana's words. “I can see the power of the Alison family when you wear this outfit,” he said honestly. Ariana's impression of meekness changed drastically to strong and dashing when Ariana wore that outfit. Presently, she was probably just a twelve-year-old girl. But with her bold appearance, Duke Andrew is sure not many people will dare to disturb his granddaughter at the big party later.

“Don't make trouble there, Aria. There's a big chance that King Alexius will also be at the party,” Duke Andrew informed her. Ariana readily agreed to the arrangement. After all, the goal wasn't that boring party. When she had the chance, Ariana would sneak out, and searching for the hidden castle like the one in her dreams.

“I'll be fine, Grandpa. I'm just a sick girl, after all. What kind of trouble can a girl like me get into?”

Duke Andrew flicked Ariana's forehead lightly. “Grandpa feels that you've changed a lot since the accident,” Duke Andrew said as his eyes fell on Ariana with an inexplicable expression. That gaze certainly did not escape Ariana's attention. The little girl smiled, as she looked at her grandfather with the innocent smile of a child.

“Humans have to change and adapt to circumstances in order to survive. That's what I've learned from my studies, Grandpa.”

Ariana spoke in a cheerful tone, even though her heart wasn't as pure as the expression she showed in front of her grandfather. Her life in the palace makes Ariana no longer able to act naively. Even if right now she was just a little girl who still had everything, the betrayal she had received was enough to make her heart tainted as dark as night.

Now, apart from maintaining the honor of the family and repaying the kindness of those who were kind to her in the past, Ariana no longer cared about what other people thought of herself.

Since the two of them had finished preparing, Duke Andrew led Ariana to join him in the horse carriage. Because Ariana was still too young to ride alone, she had to be content with being carried by her grandfather to get on the carriage. Ariana was quite surprised to see James already inside as soon as she entered the horse carriage. Because with his status as a butler, that man would usually guard the residence when Duke Andrew and Ariana had to leave at the same time.

“James is coming to look after you in that party. He certainly can't come with us to the crown prince's palace. But he's still more than capable of protecting you, if he follows us to the capital.”

Seeing his granddaughter's confused expression, Duke Andrew immediately took the initiative to explain the purpose of bringing James. The butler also lowered his head slightly, as he also joined in on the conversation with Ariana.

“I promise to protect you well, Lady Ariana,” he said with a slight smile. Ariana now understands why James was invited to join them on their journey. Now that they couldn't stand out too much by bringing so many knights, bringing James, who was the strongest of all the people in the Alison residence, was the most appropriate choice.

“I'll be under your care, James,” Ariana said. The butler smiled so sincerely when he saw Ariana had a moment of thought before she finally replied. Compared to the girl who used to ask questions without knowing the place, Ariana had clearly changed a lot since her accident.

“You can leave it to me, Lady Aria,” James replied seriously.

Even though Alison's territory was adjacent to Helga's territory, which was the capital of the Sigmund Kingdom, they still left early to avoid being late for the important party. When Ariana turned to look out of the carriage, she was struck by the bustling streets of the Alison area. Even though the girl shouldn't have seen such a sight in a month, the future Ariana was trapped in a secluded castle for so many years. The girl had forgotten how busy the streets were in Alison's territory, and she really liked what she saw right now.

At Alison, almost everyone has a smile on their face. There is no difference between those who wear expensive clothes or not at that place. The knights were also seen regularly patrolling the place. A prosperous and peaceful place. The Alison family had actually managed to protect such a place for hundreds of years.

Ariana's sparkling gaze did not forget Andrew's attention. The man chuckled when he saw a cute side from his granddaughter. “Since you've been declared good enough to leave the residence from now on, Grandpa won't forbid you if you want to go outside to understand life outside the residence. After all, no one will bother you in Alison's territory. Not to mention that anyone can't just cause trouble in this place,” he informed.

Ariana turned her gaze to look at her grandfather. Seeing Ariana, who was a little confused about what he means with his words, Andrew immediately added his words for the girl.

“As a noble, we must be able to understand how people work to make new policies. That includes knowing how ordinary people live. Don't let our policies make people who are not entitled to speak in public, suffer because of our decisions.”

It was only after they entered the capital's territory that Ariana finally understood what her grandfather meant. Unlike the Alison region which is famously prosperous without any social inequality, in the capital, Ariana can still witness the social gap among the nobility and the common people. In the dark corners of the alley, there are still families or small children hiding from the streets who seem prosperous. Those who are trapped because they cannot find work or pay taxes, are forced to not have a home and are increasingly trampled on in their lives.

Meanwhile, the nobles could proudly display their wealth by wearing luxurious goods and bringing many servants on their journey. Their horse carriages are also stunning and dazzling. Even though Alison's territory didn't allow such unfair treatment, as a noble, Ariana still couldn't help but feeling ashamed of living comfortably when people were still suffering around her.

Not to mention in her past life, Ariana who had lost her power was forced to return the title given to her and hand over Alison's territory to be managed by the kingdom. Ariana heard that Alison's territory, which was known to be prosperous, fell into poverty and chaos after being taken over by other nobles. Her family's hard work was ruined because of her stupidity. Ariana couldn't imagine how miserable the people at Alison were because of her decision at that time.

“In the future, Alison's estate will be part of your responsibility. Grandpa is sure by now you understand what you must do if you become the future head of the Alison family. Keep one thing in mind every time you want to make a decision while carrying your family name. A noble's mistake will be the beginning of the destruction of the people in their territory.”

Ariana's thoughts were broken again when Duke Andrew continued his speech. This time, Ariana will no longer take the same path. For the sake of her people, who have been tormented by her past stupidity, Ariana will study hard and is determined to manage Alison's territory as good as she can.

She would not let anyone take away the smiles of the people living in Alison territory. The prosperity that her family has guarded for generations, Ariana promises that she will protect it with all of her might.

“I understand, Grandpa.”

For starters, Ariana might be able to observe the problems that exist in the capital city as a learning material about where the fault lies in managing an area. As her grandfather said, Ariana must also be able to understand the way people live from various status. She must not make the same mistake, with what those nobles did in their territory.

While Ariana was busy thinking, the girl was completely unaware that the horse carriage that was carrying her was slowly starting to enter the palace grounds. The carriage followed the road to the castle belonging to Crown Prince Emilio. It was only when the carriage finally stopped that Ariana regained her senses and stared in a daze at the maid from the palace who opened the door of the horse carriage that Ariana was riding in.

With her grandfather's help to get off from the high carriage, Ariana finally gets back on her feet in the palace of the crown prince she hates the most.