Two months quickly passed by and Hendrick's sixteenth birthday party finally started. It was a duchy-wide celebration that lasted several days. The preparation was grand and boasted of Valyenor's overflowing wealth.
Stella was enlightened to how truly rich and prominent their family was. A lot of guests arrived every single day, along with their daughters. But no room shortage ever occurred as the Valyenor castle remained spacious.
The duchy also had a lot of high-class inns and restaurants for those who would opt to stay outside the residence and explore what the duchy had to offer instead.
Nobles far and wide were gathered due to the rumor that Hendrick, the heir of Duke Henry of Valyenor would be choosing a bride on his sixteenth birthday.
The rumor was further spread and assumed as truth when all dukes from all the duchies of the empire received an invitation to attend Hendrick's sixteenth birthday.
Every duke's daughter of marriageable age close to Hendrick's also received an invitation from Duchess Amelia. Daughters from other prominent figures were also invited.
As such, even uninvited nobles set out to Valyenor in the guise of visiting the duchy using whatever valid reason they could use.
They brought along their most beautiful daughters close to Hendrick's age in hopes of setting up an encounter with him. It was because Duke Henry was said to have made Hendrick roam the duchy capital every single day as part of his training.
It was simply a massive opportunity that the nobles could not ignore. Being able to set foot in Valyenor itself was worth the journey.
Marrying the next duke of Valyenor was a great boost to one's social standing in the noble hierarchy. Whoever was lucky to be fancied by Hendrick would be elevating her duchy's status and bringing honor and wealth to her family.
Their family would also get a lot of chances to get to know Valyenor's secrets to its continuous successes and increasing its wealth.
It was an extremely important role. Thus, nobles brought with them their most educated and reliable daughters. It was marriage. But it was also an espionage mission. Not that they aimed to ruin Valyenor, but to at least have a glimpse of their secrets and apply it to their own duchies if possible.
Noble ladies were educated that once they were married, they belong to their husband and wherever he was from. They had to prioritize and obey their new family. But of course, something else was taught behind the scenes.
They were marrying for the sake of their homeland and family and thus they should never forget where they hailed from. They were to share the benefits and useful information to where they come from.
Of course, there were ladies from rich and powerful families who could afford to marry for love. And thus they were in Valyenor to check if Hendrick was to their fancy.
But according to the faces of the ladies that the Valyenor family received and greeted, Stella could tell that everyone was charmed by Hendrick. He had the right to be confident that he could charm any lady out there.
Side-glances were also given to Zafir, who would also turn sixteen in a few months. Zafir was also good-looking. He was just an adopted son, but he was also not a bad option. They needed all the connections they could have with Valyenor.
Stella was also given a lot of stares and she could tell that the nobles were calculating her age.
Some nobles who did not have a son close to her age made disappointed faces while others obviously thought of sending their older children to still pursue her in the future.
Hendrick was always quick to notice and react. He dragged all the attention back to himself and hid Stella behind his back. Zafir also drew closer to her in case something happened.
'Oh my, they are both so reliable!'
Stella was grateful to the two since she honestly did not like the stares people were giving her. It made her uncomfortable. She felt like she was some kind of product being sold in the market.
Day after day, more and more guests arrived. And to Stella's shock, one of the guests that arrived with her family was someone she recognized. Someone, she was not yet supposed to meet. . .
Alina Brixven. The protagonist of the novel she had read. Her future best friend. And Prince Aiden's fated empress.
Stella gulped and unconsciously took a step backward. They were not yet supposed to meet. And Stella honestly did not want to meet the other cause of her future pain, suffering, and death in that world.
"What's wrong Stella?" Hendrick asked.
"Are you not feeling well?" Duchess Amelia worried
"Should I bring you to the doctor?" Zafir offered.
Everyone in the family hovered over Stella. Only Duke Henry remained silent and kept looking at the guests.
"It's alright. I just felt a bit faint. I am fine now," Stella reassured them. They did not seem to believe her but let it go for now and welcomed the guests.
And there she stood. A girl with blonde hair and blue eyes and a smile that makes the heart flutter.
Alina smiled gracefully and elegantly greeted everyone. She was also still a ten-year-old girl but she was unshaken and did not misbehave when the Valyenor family did not greet her family immediately due to Stella.
Like a grown lady with perfect poise and elegance, Alina calmly observed her surroundings. She was wearing a colorful dress that emphasized her beauty and made her glow up even more despite her already bright aura.
Alina already behaved like a perfect lady despite her age but despite that, she still looked so cute and adorable, especially with her bright eyes and cheerful smile. And she was surrounded by her family, the Brixvens, that looked warm and loving.
'How could I ever compare to that?!' Stella thought in defeat. Just seeing Alina for the first time already crushed her confidence.
After the meet and greet with the Brixven family, Duke Henry declared that they would greet the other guests the next day since they still had a lot of matters to attend to. But Stella knew that it was because of her. She felt guilty for ruining everyone's schedule.
'This is all because she suddenly popped up. Why is Alina already appearing when Stella was supposed to meet her at a tea party at the Empire's capital after she had turned sixteen. It was six years too early.'
"Stella, did you know that girl from a while ago?" Hendrick inquired once only their family remained.
"Eh? No, of course not. I have never been outside the duchy before. How could I know her?" Stella panicked.
"You seemed to recognize her," Duchess Amelia pointed out.
Stella looked around. Everyone was looking at her. They would notice if she continued lying. She took a deep breath.
"This is the first time I personally met her. But I have seen her in my dreams before. So I was quite shocked that I am seeing her now," she said half the truth.
"Dreams?" Duke Henry slightly tilted his head.
"Yes, Father."
"What does she particularly do in your dream?" Hendrick pressed on. He was obviously asking if Alina was a good or a bad person in her dreams.
Stella had a feeling that she had to tread carefully or the story might just end before it even started. Hendrick looked like he might send assassins to eliminate Alina once Stella said that she was someone she disliked or hated.
"She does a lot of things but I almost always forget everything once I wake up," she half-lied.
"You often dream about her?" the Duchess blinked. She looked worried.
"It's nothing to worry about, Mother. I think she is a good person," Stella assured the duchess.
'It's not like I could tell them that I often lose sleep thinking about my bleak future because of her and Prince Aiden. I often think of a way not to ever meet or encounter them ever again, but here they are in our duchy. How could I forget that she was also the daughter of a reputable family? Of course, an invitation was also sent to them!'
Stella thought that perhaps she should have told them not to send any invites to Alina and her family. But that would surely make them suspicious of how she knew the Brixvens when she was just always in their very own duchy and had not yet tried going out.
She was sure that the whole family would only worry and think that she was sick again if she told them the truth that she was Yeong-ja, a woman in her twenties from another world.
Duchess Amelia and her brother Hendrick would probably cry their heart out blaming themselves for not properly taking care of Stella such that she would even go as far as denying being a member of the family.
And what if they no longer treated her so lovingly once they knew she was not the real Stella? What if they shunned her away? How would she survive in that world?
She froze in trepidation as she felt the whole family eyeing her. Duke Henry's eyes were especially the scariest. Did they finally catch her? Were her lies far too obvious?