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“The duke has come to the townhouse?”
“Yes, he came as my guardian.”
“Oh my, really?!” The lady exclaimed, blushing and covering her mouth with both hands. “I’m sorry. Actually, it was a dream of mine to meet the heroes.”
Then the other ladies chimed in.
“Me too.”
“Oh, actually, me too…”
All the ladies had expressions as if they were daydreaming.
“The duke is the hero who conquered the five Demon Lords.”
“Isn’t he incredibly cool?”
Placing their hands over their chests or clasping their flushed cheeks with excitement, each lady added their own words.
“If I were to encounter the Duke, I might just faint from ecstasy.”
“Faint? I might even forget how to breathe!”
Faint?
Forget how to breathe?
I frowned, forgetting that I was even trying to help Young Lady Ghiberti recover from this.
But then.
“Pr-Princess,” Lady Ghiberti spoke up in a somewhat exaggerated voice. “Would you like to try some of these cucumber sandwiches? They are very good.”
So much for pretending to think of me.
I guess she doesn’t like it when the conversation is directed at me.
The fact that she’s trying to interject herself into the conversation.
‘It’s fine, really. But at least you should have some awareness, shouldn’t you?’
Of all the tea foods, why cucumber sandwiches? I hate cucumbers, you know!
Anyway, with just this small gesture, I can see how easily the Lady has been playing ‘queen’ at this tea time.
Even I, with a higher status than her, am treated so thoughtlessly. How would she treat the other ladies?
But I generously nodded my head.
“Thank you, I’ll enjoy it.”
Now that I’d stolen enough of the ladies’ attention, I thought I’d give my host, Lady Ghiberti, a little boost.
Honestly, I don’t care if she’s offended or not, per se, but…….
‘There’s also the former Duke here today, so you have to be careful.’
Lady Ghiberti was the granddaughter of the former Duke. Could it be that the old duke might harbor ill feelings towards me because his granddaughter had been neglected?
With that calculation, I gently said a few words to Lady Ghiberti.
“The floral decorations on this table are really beautiful.”
“Oh, really? It’s rewarding to see the maids’ hard work paying off.”
Lady Ghiberti raised her nose as if she had accomplished something.
Well, at least she seems to be feeling a little better.
I thought that the tea party would continue peacefully like this, but…
‘Oh, no.’
I became somewhat embarrassed.
She must have felt the same way, because the teatime topics of conversation kept revolving around me.
I put my hand on my conscience and mentally said, ‘it was never my intention.’
The success of the business I lead is the reason behind the explosive popularity among the children.
“Speaking of the Duke of Orleans, I’ve just finished reading his biography,” one of the ladies broke into the conversation with excitement.
“Oh, yes, that one. Isn’t it very funny?”
“Yes. Especially that determined look on the duke’s face when he slays the five demons!”
“Phew, that’s so cool…….”
I tried my best to pretend I hadn’t heard the ladies’ chatter.
That’s because the part where Siegfried defeats the five demons was all embellished…….
At that time, I was locked in a room in the Demon Castle. How could I have witnessed the slaying of the five demon lords?
Then.
One of the ladies asked a question of the whole gathering.
“By the way, ladies, have you collected all the stickers yet?”
“No, not yet…….”
“Especially since I haven’t seen any stickers of the three heroes. Are these really there?”
Just then, the other lady spoke up.
“Oh, I have a Cesar sticker!”
Instantly, all the ladies turned their heads, their eyes filled with envy, looking at the lady who spoke.
“Really?”
“Yes, and recently……”
The lady raised her shoulders and put her hand into her bag. Carefully, as if afraid it might get scratched, she placed a small sticker book on the table.
“I received a sticker book too!”
“A sticker book?”
“I wanted one too!”
The ladies immediately became engrossed in looking at the stickers on the pages.
Even Lady Ghiberti, squinted at the sticker book and looked at it with a sidelong glance.
Especially when they saw the sticker of Cesar, the ladies’ expressions turned so envious that they seemed about to faint.
“I’m going to ask them to buy me the complete collection for this New Year.”
“But New Year is still far away, isn’t it?”
“That’s what I’m saying. Why does time go by so slowly?”
The ladies burst into laughter like little birds, enjoying their cheerful conversation.
I looked at them with a sense of gratitude.
Thank you, dear customers. Thanks to all of you, my personal funds have become more abundant…
However, amidst the harmonious atmosphere, there was one person who seemed rather down.
It was none other than Lady Ghiberti.
“…….”
Lady Ghiberti, with a face full of resentment, pursed her lips for a while before calling out to one lady in an irritated voice.
“Young Lady Ilmaz.”
At the call, one of the ladies looked up, startled.
Ilmaz had a gentle face and a petite figure that seemed to be weak. For some reason, it reminded me of a tiny herbivore.
“Yes, yes!”
“What’s wrong? Aren’t you going to drink the tea?”
Lady Ghiberti nudged the teacup with her chin and spoke in a commanding tone.
“Do you know how expensive this tea is? It’s probably the first-time young lady Ilmaz has tasted such a high-quality tea.”
“…….”
At those words, Lady Ilmaz flushed with shame.
However, she couldn’t even muster a word of protest against the lady’s coercive comments. She simply answered cautiously, treading lightly.
“Um, the tea is still too hot for me to drink. I’ll drink it when it cools down a bit…….”
Upon hearing that, Lady Ghiberti raised an eyebrow.
“Are you talking back to me?”
“Oh, no, not at all.”
“That’s what I thought. Is it not the case that you’re implying I can’t even brew the tea at the right temperature?”
Then, Lady Ilmaz fell into contemplation.
“That’s not true. I just can’t drink hot liquids very well. It’s the truth.”
At least to my eyes, it didn’t seem like a lie. That was because Lady Ilmaz hadn’t touched the tea at all since earlier.
More precisely, after taking a sip of the tea and being taken aback, she put the teacup back down.
However, her continuous fidgeting with the teacup gave the impression that she was waiting for the tea to cool down to an appropriate temperature.
“No matter what, isn’t it too much to disregard people’s sincerity like this?” Lady Ghiberti spoke up again, with a haughty expression. “I’m truly disappointed. It seems all the effort I put into caring for you was in vain.”
“….”
What’s this? Isn’t she just venting her frustrations?
Observing the situation, I narrowed my eyes.
Frankly, it was obvious why Lady Ghiberti was behaving like this.
She wanted to be the queen of teatime, and she was offended that I had suddenly monopolized the ladies’ attention.
However, she couldn’t openly confront me. Not to mention the weaknesses I’ve exposed earlier, and my status as a princess.
So, she probably targeted Lady Ilmaz for no reason.
Lady Ilmaz had an obviously meek personality, and she had the lowest status among the attendees of today’s tea party.
‘How silly.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
Meanwhile, lady Ilmaz reached out her hand toward the trembling teacup.
And then…
“Aah!”
An urgent scream echoed through the room.
In her haste, the teacup shook, causing the tea to overflow.
Lady Ilmaz looked down at her lap with a bewildered expression. The tea had left dark brown stains on her chest.
Fortunately, the fabric of the autumn dress was thick, so it didn’t appear to have caused any burns.
“….”
Still, it was inevitable that Lady Ilmaz’s expression darkened. Dresses worn for formal occasions were quite expensive.
Even though it’s not a formal party dress, it’s still a lot of work for most families to find a dress that suits them.
Plus.
‘Lady Ghiberti said that earlier.’
I glanced at Lady Ghiberti out of the corner of my eye.
‘Do you know how expensive this tea is? It’s probably the first time young lady Ilmaz has tasted such a high-quality tea.’
…she said that so pointedly.
Usually when you insult someone, you consider hitting them where it hurts the most.
Presumably Lady Ilmaz’s financial situation doesn’t allow her to recklessly splash tea on expensive dresses.