Chapter 68

Under the moonlight, Isabella saw the woman's face faintly revealed and shuddered. It was the young Countess Bartolini, known for her virtue and loyalty. Her name before marriage was Clemente de Contarini, the elder sister of Ottavio de Contarini. From her disheveled eyes and flushed skin, it was clear that the Countess Bartolini had also drunk quite a bit. As the scandalous couple became more engrossed in their affair, they were finally discovered by someone other than Isabella.

"Who's there!"

"Oh my goodness!"

The shout came from a noble couple who were taking a walk. They screamed upon seeing the Marquis Campa and the Countess Bartolini.

"......!"

"!"

The couple on the bench froze. In particular, the Countess Bartolini, despite her intoxication, was so startled that she grabbed her mask with her hand and pushed the Marquis Campa away with great force. She jumped up and started running in the opposite direction of the noise, which happened to be where Isabella was standing.

The Countess Bartolini, wearing a light brown dress, met Isabella's eyes for a moment. The woman's eyes were filled with deep embarrassment. At that moment, an idea struck Isabella.

'This is it......!'

The moment their eyes met was fleeting. She pushed Isabella aside and quickly ran deeper into the garden. The Marquis Campa, who had been pushed, fell off the bench with a thud. People started to gather from the direction of the shouting noble couple.

- "What's going on here?"

- "How could such a scandalous act happen at a masquerade ball......!"

- "But isn't that the Marquis Campa?"

Everyone was as shocked as Isabella.

- "Who is the woman he was with?"

- "Did you see her face?"

- "What a shame!"

- "She must be crazy!"

Isabella put her hand into her handbag. Inside was the fleur-de-lis bracelet of Ariadne that she had picked up earlier. Taking advantage of the chaos, Isabella subtly rolled the bracelet into the open space. The red ruby remained in the handbag, but the green topaz bracelet rolled about two feet (approximately one meter) away from the Marquis Campa and stopped in the grass.

Isabella shouted loudly.

"Look at that! It's a woman's bracelet!"

Isabella's shout had a good effect. People immediately focused on the patch of grass she pointed to, where a gemstone bracelet, the same color as the grass but far more sparkling than any plant, lay.

The noble couple who first discovered the garden rendezvous, the Count and Countess Dapia, with the Countess quickly running inside to pick up the green topaz bracelet. She held it up and cried out excitedly.

"It must belong to the woman he was with!"

People immediately gathered to examine the bracelet. The open space became noisy, and a crowd of about a dozen people quickly formed. The Marquis Campa was in a state of complete intoxication. He had fallen off the bench when the woman pushed him, and now he lay on the ground, snoring with his disheveled trousers.

A gentleman, unable to bear it, pulled the Marquis Campa's cloak to cover his entire body. Among the people who kept gathering, some recognized the bracelet.

- "This looks like a Collecioni accessory from this season, doesn't it?"

- "Yes, yes, I think I saw it in the catalog. It's the fleur-de-lis design."

'Good, they're getting close to the answer.'

But the pace was slower than expected. Isabella, pretending not to know, decided to give the ignorant crowd a little more help. She feigned disinterest and subtly added a comment.

"Hardly anyone bought it. The Collecioni fleur-de-lis jewelry. I wanted to buy it, but someone had already claimed it, so they stopped selling it."

It seemed that a few others had similar experiences. People started to murmur, saying, "Me too, me too."

"If that's the case, we just need to find the woman wearing the new Collecioni accessory this season!"

People's curiosity was ignited. If the description was that specific, they could certainly find her. Moreover, the woman who had fled was wearing a deep yellow dress.

A woman in a deep yellow dress, wearing a new Collecioni accessory. People began to loudly discuss who had worn the new Collecioni accessory that day.

- "I think the Marquis and Marchioness were wearing the fleur-de-lis decorations today!"

- "No, that's not a Collecioni accessory; it's an Alpheto. The details are different."

- "The woman who fled was wearing a deep yellow dress, right? The Marchioness is wearing a red dress today."

While the discussion was in full swing, a figure appeared from the direction of the Queen's palace. It was Ariadne, who had come to see if the Dauphine Valois had been found.

Seeing the crowd, Ariadne hesitated for a moment.

"Look at that!"

At someone's shout, all eyes turned to Ariadne. She was wearing a deep golden dress and a Volto mask with a fleur-de-lis pattern. Upon closer inspection, the Volto mask had a fleur-de-lis gold decoration, and a green topaz necklace with a fleur-de-lis pattern was attached to the mask.

Anyone could see that it was clearly a set with the green topaz bracelet found on the ground. Isabella secretly clenched her fist.

'Done!'

If I can't have it, neither can you. See how your reputation is ruined. How dare you even think of looking at the prince.

Ariadne, entering the open space, was quite surprised by the people's overtly suspicious gazes. However, instead of shrinking or speaking hastily, she waited for someone to approach her and ask what was going on. Among the people who were whispering, the noblewoman who had first picked up the bracelet took the lead. She held the bracelet out and asked.

"Is this bracelet yours, my lady?"

Ariadne immediately recognized it as her bracelet. She had just realized she had lost it, but the material of the shining gemstones and the intricate patterns were unmistakably hers.

But something was off. The noblewoman's eyes were strangely gleaming. If she admitted it was hers, it seemed there would be more to the story.

"Why do you ask?"

Ariadne carefully answered, making sure not to look at her wrist. Fortunately, her face was hidden by the mask, so her expression was not visible to others.

However, someone in the crowd pointed at her and shouted.

"Look at the necklace on her mask! It's the same fleur-de-lis pattern!"

This shout started a murmur.

- "The necklace is also a green topaz, so it must be the same!"

- "The dress color is the same too. I saw it clearly; it was a deep golden color!"

- "That woman must be the Marquis Campa's mistress!"

Hearing this, Ariadne finally understood what was happening. She knew of the Marquis Campa's reputation. On the ground in the open space lay a middle-aged man, clearly drunk. He must be the Marquis Campa. Despite the cloak covering him, his disheveled appearance was evident.

It seemed that a woman who looked like her had been enjoying a secret rendezvous with the Marquis Campa and had fled when they were discovered.

Ariadne shook her head and answered.

"There seems to be a misunderstanding. I just arrived here. If I were really the Marquis Campa's mistress, why would I come back after running away into the garden?"

Isabella bit her tongue to suppress the urge to shout, "To retrieve your precious bracelet!"

She had just received a stern warning from Cardinal de Mare not to harm her sister's reputation. It had happened once at the debutante ball and again at the hunting competition, though unjustly. If it happened again, it would be the third time. Cardinal de Mare would not let Isabella off easily.

Despite the temptation, Isabella was not a one-day villain. To live well and eat well forever, she needed to be careful.

The crowd murmured.

'Someone, say something!'

Frustrated, Isabella bit her thumbnail. But she trusted the crowd's base curiosity and laziness. Although there was a delay, once the crowd had a bite, they wouldn't let go until a solid counter-argument was presented.

People dislike changing their minds once they are convinced. No matter how much Ariadne tried, she wouldn't be able to escape without a sacrifice.

"Prove it, my lady. Anyone can provide circumstantial evidence."

Sure enough, someone made the first distorted suggestion. The proper way to counter an accusation is to place the burden of proof on the accuser.

But such a seemingly innocent and casual suggestion was accepted by the crowd without much thought.

- "That's true. If she didn't do it, she can just bring proof."

- "She looks suspicious. Why hasn't she taken off her mask yet?"

Ariadne was indeed considering fleeing into the bushes if necessary. She was completely covered, even to her fingertips, so no one would know who she was.

As Ariadne was assessing her escape route, she noticed Isabella standing in the corner, biting her thumbnail.

"......!"

"......"

The half-sisters' eyes met in the air. The moment she saw Isabella, Ariadne realized why her bracelet had been found here. It was Isabella's doing.

The bracelet could have fallen from the carriage or been stolen from home, but it was undoubtedly due to Isabella's scheme. Isabella knew Ariadne's outfit and mask for the evening.

'If I run away now, Isabella will definitely reveal who I am.'

Isabella smiled meaningfully at Ariadne, clearly waiting for her to leave. As the two sisters stood in a standoff, more people gathered. Among them was Isabella's friend, the Countess Leonati, who didn't care about the consequences.

She immediately recognized Isabella and approached her. The two whispered to each other and giggled. Countess Leonati, Leticia, approached the woman in the golden dress with a Volto mask, looking triumphant and excited.

"Second de Mare? What a coincidence to meet you here!"