The Black Swan in a Sea of White
After that, peaceful days continued without incident.
Canna savored the tranquility that had finally arrived after so long. She took occasional outings with Lucy or spent time conducting research in her laboratory.
Then an invitation arrived.
To think a day would come when I receive an invitation too.
The sender was Lady Leila Everdin, daughter of Count Everdin. She had enclosed a short letter with the card.
Dear Duchess Addis,
You are cordially invited to a tea party themed around forging new friendships. Please bring a close friend to introduce to the other young ladies. I hope to become good friends with you moving forward, so I sincerely ask that you attend.
Dress Code: Black
— Leila Everdin
The theme is making new friends?
Each guest would bring someone dear to them and introduce that person to the other young ladies. Leila had written that she wished to form a friendship with Canna and hoped she would come.
Most importantly—
“The dress code is black, Lea. What do you think?”
“How unusual. Could it be a new trend?”
“It might be. Or it might not.”
“Pardon?”
“Does it matter? It’s fine. Prepare it for me.”
“Understood.”
“Commission it from El Andwa.”
El Andwa.
The designer every noblewoman coveted had now become Canna’s exclusive dressmaker.
Of course, it had not come for free.
I heard she demanded an astronomical price from Callen.
Rumors claimed she had received an entire estate in the provinces, a private resort, and some even whispered that she had become Callen’s mistress.
Rumors always grow larger than the truth.
What was certain was that Callen had paid her a fortune large enough that she no longer needed to design for any other nobles.
Canna found that version of Callen utterly amusing.
The same man who had once treated her like a lowly maid.
The same man who had locked her in the basement for days on end and gifted her the threat of death had changed so completely.
No matter how heavy his guilt, this is excessive. He’s acting like something has possessed him.
She didn’t know what had possessed him, but while he remained under its spell, she intended to extract every possible benefit.
He’ll be quite useful until I decide to throw him away.
Canna smiled in satisfaction.
“Also, I should visit Her Highness Amelia after so long. Prepare my things.”
She could check on the progress of her skin condition and enjoy a comfortable chat at the same time.
Canna rose from her seat.
A few days later, Canna attended the tea party.
“Welcome, Duchess Addis. Thank you for accepting my invitation.”
Leila Everdin approached with a bright smile. But her eyes soon widened in surprise.
“Oh my? Did you not know the dress code was pure white?”
It was exactly as she said. Every noble young lady in the hall wore a pristine white dress.
Among the flock of snow-white swans, Canna alone stood out in black—like the single black swan.
Yet Canna responded with perfect composure.
“The invitation clearly stated black.”
“Oh dear, that can’t be right. The dress code for today is pure white.”
When Leila feigned innocence, Canna held out the invitation she had brought. The young lady read it carefully, then put on an apologetic expression.
“Goodness. What shall we do? It seems one of my maids made an error.”
“A maid?”
“Yes. There is a maid specifically assigned to write the invitations. She must have accidentally written black.”
“How very strange.”
Canna glanced around the room.
“Is it possible for such a mistake to occur only on my invitation?”
“I will reprimand her severely, so I hope you can forgive us with a generous heart, Duchess.”
At that, the nearby marquess’s daughter let out a tinkling laugh and joined in.
“Exactly, Duchess Addis. It’s hardly a grave error, is it?”
Her words acted as a signal. One by one, the noble young ladies swarmed forward like ants drawn to sugar.
“Black looks wonderful on you.”
“Indeed. White would never have suited you.”
“It’s a color that matches you perfectly. There’s no need to feel upset.”
Canna suppressed a hollow laugh and listened silently as the barbs continued. Then—
“What is all this noise?”
The voice was familiar. The young ladies who had tightly encircled Canna parted, and a woman stepped forward.
It was Princess Lilienne.
“We greet Your Highness.”
“Oh, Duchess.”
Lilienne flicked open her fan as if startled.
“A black dress, I see.”
So it was you.
Canna instantly understood that Lilienne was the one who had orchestrated the entire affair.
“What is going on? Why is only Duchess Addis wearing black?”
“It appears my maid made a mistake, Your Highness.”
“Then discipline her at once.”
Lilienne’s voice was sharp as she rebuked Leila.
“If there is anyone in the empire who does not know how ominous black is, speak now. Black represents disaster and misfortune. It is a symbol of calamity that must never be approached, yet someone conveyed a dress code of that very color.”
On the surface it sounded as though she were defending Canna, but every word was a vicious kick meant to tear her down.
As expected, delight bloomed across Leila’s face and those of the surrounding young ladies.
“Her Highness is absolutely right. The mere sight of black makes me nauseous… I can only imagine how devastated the Duchess must feel wearing such a color.”
“Ah, if it were me, I might want to die.”
“I would rather walk around naked than have black anywhere on my body.”
Laughter and mockery rained down without end.
“By the way, did the Duchess come alone?”
Lilienne tilted her head with feigned curiosity.
“You do know the purpose of this gathering, yes? It is a party for introducing new connections to one another.”
“That’s right, Duchess. You must have brought a friend as well?”
Leila pressed eagerly. Though she had clearly seen Canna enter alone, she pretended to scan the room.
“Please introduce us to your close friend, Duchess.”
“Yes, I’m terribly curious.”
“You didn’t truly come by yourself, did you?”
“That would be impossible. She is the mistress of a ducal house—how could she be a lonely soul without even one friend?”
Canna knew full well that the true purpose of this tea party was not friendship. It had been arranged from the start to dismantle and humiliate her.
She stared straight at Lilienne.
You really do work hard at this, don’t you?
Canna could understand her motives. Lilienne was simply doing what was necessary for her own future.
Of course. To Lilienne, my position must look unbearably tempting.
The title of Duchess Addis.
Recent rumors claimed Canna had grown close to Sylvien.
Perhaps that was why Lilienne was so determined to tarnish her in any way possible.
Well, this is simply how things are in high society.
The social world was a battlefield for noblewomen. A war where tongues, connections, and dresses served as weapons.
From Lilienne’s perspective, Canna was an enemy, and attacking one’s enemy was only natural.
Yet Canna found the whole thing tiresome. She felt not the slightest attachment to the position of “Duchess Addis,” so it failed to ignite even a spark of competitive spirit.
She was already fighting desperately just to survive—did she truly have to navigate these petty psychological skirmishes as well?
That was why she had prepared something to end it all in a single stroke, but…
“Oh my? Duchess, why have you been silent this whole time?”
At Lilienne’s question, the surrounding young ladies burst into laughter.
“Don’t tell me you really don’t have a friend to bring?”
Kyahaha! Kyahaha! Ahahaha!
The shrill laughter battered Canna’s ears.
“Poor Duchess. Though I suppose it makes sense. Who would want to be friends with—”
It was then.
“Her Highness Princess Amelia Isaberg has arrived!”
The entire room froze in an instant. As everyone snapped their mouths shut, the sharp click of heels echoed clearly through the silence.
“Did the Everdin girl invite her?”
Lilienne’s fierce gaze stabbed toward Leila.
“N-no, I… I didn’t…”
Leila stammered, voice trembling. Of course she hadn’t—she had never sent an invitation to Amelia!
“Canna.”
Amelia approached with a radiant smile. The young ladies surrounding Canna instinctively retreated, as though she were a sacred talisman driving away evil.
“Sorry I’m late.”
“Your Highness, you’ve come.”
Canna greeted her warmly. She spared a quick glance at the utterly stunned Leila and Lilienne, who was barely maintaining her composure.
They never imagined I would invite Amelia.
Until now, Amelia had lived in seclusion to hide her skin disease. They would never have expected her to appear at a social event like this.
“But…”
Amelia scanned the room and frowned deeply.
“What exactly is going on here?”
Everyone was dressed in pure white.
“Didn’t the invitation say the dress code was black?”
“Ah, well, you see…”
Canna gazed at Lady Leila Everdin with a sorrowful expression.
“I believe that is a question best directed to Lady Leila Everdin.”
“Lady Leila Everdin?”
Amelia’s gaze slowly shifted toward Leila.