At the Yale estate, the household was preparing for the duchess's birthday. Everyone was dressed in their finest, and the second daughter, Eleanor Yale, made her entrance, radiating pure confidence.
Eleanor thought to herself that Cecil would surely attend, wondering whether he might finally notice her. A servant gently reminded Eleanor that she used to despise Cecil, asking whether she had had a change of heart, since he had once been the sworn enemy of the Yale family.
Eleanor smirked and replied that back when her sister married Cecil, he had been nothing but an obscure minor prince, but now he had become the most powerful heir to the throne. She shamelessly declared that Cecil should have married her from the very start, so she was simply reclaiming what was rightfully hers. Eleanor felt confident that it did not matter that her father and her brother backed the second prince. As long as she played sweet, Cecil would listen to her every word.
A timid maid relayed a rumour that the prince was supporting a country woman with a child, and had even gifted her all the precious jewellery sent as foreign tribute. Hearing this, Eleanor slammed her hand furiously on the table, rattling the teacups. She glared, demanding that the maid repeat what she had just said, her expression twisted with rage.
Back at the clinic, the bird flew in carrying another letter. Little Odell read it and panicked, misunderstanding that Theodore's father was courting another woman. Frantic with worry, she thought that this was terrible and that she had to resolve the misunderstanding immediately.
Her mother told her to stay home and behave with Ina, since she had to go to the duke's estate. After her mother left, the girl remembered that the letter had mentioned Theodore's father would also be at the duke's estate. So she hatched a plan to secretly follow her mother and act as her little sidekick. On the surface, the girl smiled brightly and reassured her mother that she would stay home and behave, not going anywhere.
Disguised as a servant, the mother arrived at the duke's estate, telling herself that she just needed to treat the young lady quickly and then leave right away, hoping everything would go smoothly. The steward led her to Lady Mary's chambers, and Gina told herself that everything should be fine as long as the prince stayed busy entertaining the other noble ladies. She followed quietly among the line of servants, while out in the bustling banquet hall everyone chatted merrily.
Little Odell hid beneath a table, overwhelmed by the crowd, scanning around for her mother. Suddenly she spotted a tower of delicious pastries on the table, and her hungry stomach won out. So she decided to sneak a small bite before going to find her mother.
In another corner, the nobles buzzed with excitement at the sight of a beautiful woman, asking each other whether that was Lady Maria of House Ael. Maria made her entrance in a stunning red gown, prompting a nobleman to exclaim his admiration and eagerly request a dance with her.
Meanwhile, Cecil was raising a toast with an elderly nobleman, expressing his honour at their partnership, and the man responded with equal graciousness. Sipping a glass of red wine, her gaze cold and sharp, Eleanor smiled wickedly, thinking to herself how ridiculous it was that anyone would think themselves more deserving of the prince than she was, since that position rightfully belonged to her.
Meanwhile, the pink-haired little girl wandered through the extravagant party, her face scrunched up from the overpowering perfume that made her little nose itch, longing to find somewhere fresh to breathe. Distracted by her search for a way out, she accidentally bumped into a noblewoman standing nearby, startling them both.
Eleanor shrieked upon seeing her gorgeous gown stained. She glared down at the child with contempt, scolding her, demanding to know where this shabby little brat had come from to cause such a scene. Staring at the wine stain spreading across her precious dress, Eleanor panicked, realising that this had been a birthday gift from her brother the year before, worn for the very first time. Now it was ruined. So she decided to let the other nobles handle the matter for her.
The crowd began whispering their condemnation, insisting that the child had upset Lady Eleanor and demanding that her mother be brought out to apologise, leaving the terrified child curling up in fear, stammering that her mother was not there.
Seeing the situation working in her favour, Eleanor resorted to a false accusation, pretending to gasp in shock that her precious bracelet, a gift from her brother, had also vanished, even though she insisted she had just been wearing it moments ago. Hearing this, everyone around them immediately turned suspicious eyes on the child, confidently declaring that she could not possibly be a noble, but must be some little thief who had snuck in.
Overwhelmed with panic, the girl turned and bolted, her only thought to find her mother and be safe again. But before she got far, a large hand roughly seized her small arm, a man's voice booming, demanding that she hand over the bracelet immediately. The aggressive man accused the girl of deliberately bumping into Lady Eleanor in order to steal from her, threatening to hand her over to the guards, while the girl shook her head frantically, denying it through tears. Terrified and helpless, tears streaming down her round little face, the girl could only sob and call for her mother in vain amid the crowd of strangers.
Suddenly a deep, commanding voice rang out, ordering the child released, and everyone froze, turning in shock to see who had spoken.
Cecil appeared, radiating overwhelming authority, declaring sternly that this child was his own, not some suspicious petty thief. He gently scooped her up into his arms, tenderly asking whether she was hurt, while the crowd around them buzzed with recognition that this was young Master Theodore's father. Cecil turned to Eleanor with a cold gaze, offering to compensate for the ruined dress, leaving her so stunned that she could not utter a word upon realising that this was the crown prince.
Holding the trembling child close, Cecil gently soothed her, calming her down after the terrifying ordeal. Feeling the warmth of the small life in his arms, Cecil found himself wondering, almost without thinking, why he felt such a strange, tender affection for this child who was not even his own by blood.
Just then a respectful attendant presented a box of gleaming jewels to Eleanor as a generous gesture of compensation. Eleanor flushed bright red, stammering in disbelief that Prince Cecil himself would personally offer her compensation, wild fantasies already beginning to take root in her mind. However, Cecil swiftly crushed that fantasy with one sharp question, demanding to know whether she truly intended to make a small child pay for such a trivial matter, leaving Eleanor flustered and scrambling to insist that she had not meant it that way.
Suddenly the child in Cecil's arms spoke up in his defence, plainly calling him father and pointing straight at Eleanor, accusing her of lying. Cecil's eyes widened in astonishment, staring down at the child who had just called him by that tender name. The girl gasped and clapped a hand over her mouth, realising that she had accidentally used the habit she had picked up while playing the role of Theodore.
Meanwhile, in a quiet hallway, Gina, wrapped tightly in her cloak, hurried along, telling herself that she needed to leave quickly before the commotion from the party gave her away. Suddenly she froze at the sight of the scene unfolding in the main hall. She stared in disbelief, wondering why on earth her daughter and Cecil were together, a situation she never could have anticipated.
Spotting her mother's familiar figure, the girl squealed with joy, calling out, "Mama!" and reaching her arms out towards her. The girl slipped out of Cecil's arms and rushed straight into her mother's embrace, the two of them holding each other tightly. Eleanor stood behind them, watching the pair with a suspicious, scrutinising gaze, while Cecil followed close behind.
Gina thought to herself how dangerous this situation was. With Eleanor present as well, she knew she had to find a way to hide her face before being recognised.
Cecil looked directly at the woman before him and gasped out the name Gina. Eleanor quickly cut in, coyly inviting him to dance to the next song to pull his attention back to her. But Cecil harshly shoved her hand away, coldly warning her not to touch him. Eleanor stood frozen, unable to believe the prince's blunt, humiliating rejection.
Ignoring Eleanor's embarrassment entirely, Cecil walked away, leaving her behind with wild speculation swirling about the identity of that woman and her connection to the rumours of the country girl. Gritting her teeth in fury, Eleanor ordered her servants to immediately investigate the background of that woman and her child.