16.His Precious Item

They said he sent me a letter. I remembered that the news that Richton had retrieved it was the last whereabouts of the letter.

Being next to Richton was a lot more boring than I thought. Half of the conversation was their impressions about the banquet hall, and the other half was talking behind people’s backs. And endless praise for Richton, which comes out every now and then. I just stood next to him like a doll.

“I can imagine how beautiful you look just by listening to your voice.”

Regretful words towards my veil also exploded from time to time. I felt sorry about it, but what should I do? The face under the veil was not like Helen of Troy, but a vulgar maid with a face as pale as a corpse.

(P/R: Like Helen of Troy is someone beautiful enough to cause the downfall of a country.)

“Your Excellency, I need to talk to you for a moment….”

“All right. Princess, may I leave for a while?”

At the expected question, I nodded my head with a bright smile.

“Of course. It’s splendid and boisterous around here, so I’ll be able to amuse myself alone.”

“If there’s a problem, feel free to call me anytime.”

After embracing him lightly, he left with an old nobleman. When Richton disappeared, my surroundings became empty as if an invisible wall had been erected.

Of course, contrary to the reduced interest, the sneaky glances toward me remained. It was a new world where I didn’t know a single person. Richton said it doesn’t matter what I do here. Then…

“Sorry, but may I ask who that red-haired woman is?”

When I approached carefully and spoke, the ladies, who gathered in a circle and had been busy laughing for a while, looked up. Beautiful and elegant flowers. Even though they were all humans alike, they had a very different atmosphere from Ingord’s employees.

The ladies stared in the direction I was pointing at with an unfavorable gaze. There stood a woman with red hair as red as a blazing fire that made her exude a unique presence. I smiled brighter to lessen the sense of being out of place as my face above my lips was covered.

“Because she’s a woman with a different atmosphere from this place. Based on her appearance, rather than a foreigner…..”

The ladies’ eyes were full of vigilance, but fortunately, they did not turn their backs on me coldly.

“I can’t open my mouth thoughtlessly because I don’t want to be rude. It was because the lady that my father adored had such an atmosphere. From the strikingly luxurious single-colored dress to the feathers in the hat that could almost reach the ceiling.”

It wasn’t much of a lie, but the cold atmosphere softened a little.

“Oh my, I didn’t know anything. Perhaps I shouldn’t have said that…”

“She’s Countess Jasmine.”

“His Majesty’s mistress. She also came from a very vulgar back alley.”

(Jas: …….)

She was a woman who perfectly matched the description from the list of banquet attendees that Richton gave me, and the person I expected was right.

Madam Jasmine nervously pushed away the servant beside her without knowing they were stealing a glance on her. I asked without taking my eyes off her.

“Is that perhaps the Emperor’s child…?”

If I remember correctly, Countess Jasmine didn’t have any child of the emperor. I also didn’t know if that was the child of Marquis Crohertz, the host of this banquet.

I remembered a family that collapsed under the guise of a curse. How did it turn out? Was it revealed to be because of the large spot on their nape that has been passed down from generation to generation of the Crohertz family?

“Everyone kept their mouths shut, but I think that will happen eventually. I heard he kept her in bed all day long and didn’t want to let go, so why don’t they still have a baby?”

“Why on earth would you like a vulgar woman who knows nothing about etiquette?”

“Busy burping in front of the table or busy laughing frivolously at the banquet hall. How dirty I felt whenever I saw the food in that mouth.”

The ladies, who were looking around, slowly lowered their voices. The intensity of the fluttering fans was much stronger than before.

“Hmm. Well, there are stories like that.”

“As always, it won’t last a month. Then only the child in the womb will be unhappy.”

Having said all that she had to say, she now had to save her face. Still, the awkward atmosphere was somewhat quiet. Looking closely at their expressions, she murmured in a small voice. Of course, it was meant to be heard.

“Hmm… it’s a little different from what I expected. I think I’ve seen her with Marquis Crohertz.”

“What?”

“No, I’m not sure. I was busy looking around on my way to Grenferg. When I think of the man and woman I saw back then, the Marquis and the Countess would come to mind.”

The ladies, whose eyes were wide open with their mouths covered with fans, glanced at each other. The atmosphere was like asking someone to come forward and ask if it was real. It’s a made-up story, so it was difficult to dig deeper. I pretended to change the subject and asked a question I really wanted to ask.

“I heard His Highness Wilhelm is so incredible, but she must be a thorn in his side in many ways.”

One of the ladies looked around her before opening her mouth in a low voice. She should refrain from saying it, if it was a dangerous thing to say, but she whispered kindly and carefully.

“His Highness doesn’t care much, but his closest aides were different. The imperial court is already in a fierce battle for succession…”

That wouldn’t happen. Even if she gave birth, it wouldn’t be the emperor’s child.

“But there’s no one who can match him in terms of mind and ability.”

“That’s right. His Highness Wilhelm will become the emperor. I’m not sure, but my husband said so.”

“The most important thing is that he has a perfect face.”

“Oh ho ho! Yes, that’s the most important thing!”

(TL: WHat?)

A broad daylight sun shone on the faces of the ladies as they mentioned Wilhelm’s appearance.

“By the way, something similar happened to Kale before…”

The women with their ears pricked up turned their heads towards me. It was simply a remark to catch their attention. In the end, I was forced to create a scandal that didn’t even exist to satisfy their desire.

As the atmosphere of the hall heightened, the wine glasses handed over by the ladies also increased. In no time, they were busy chatting and laughing merrily as if they’ve known each other for 10 years.

The private lives of the nobles which no one wanted to know constantly bursted out like a never-drying springwater stream.

Then as I was standing behind the table while watching a card game, a tall man hit me on the shoulder and passed by, making my mind in a daze as I tried to find my original spot.

“Ah.”

“Oh my god, are you all right? Do they have no manners? Why did they walk away without apologizing?”

“Maybe he got dumped by his lover.”

While the ladies tolerated the man’s fault, I bent down and picked up the item that had fallen. It was an old but well-managed pressed flower pendant. I looked around because it seemed to belong to the man, but the owner of the pendant had already gone far away..

“Excuse me for a moment. “

I never thought it would be this tiring to move one step at a time. I felt dizzy after being buried in alcohol, drugs, and sweet desserts. I left my seat and followed the man to get to my senses.

Unlike the glamorous and noisy hall, silence filled the long hallway. It was cold and dark enough to bring chills to my body.

Maybe it was because I was under the chandelier for a long time, the path before my eyes was especially dark and gloomy.

“Have you thought about the offer I gave you last night?”

I stopped walking at the sudden voice and turned around. In front of the window where the moonlight fell, the man, who hit my shoulder and walked away, was there.

‘Ha.’

The blood flowing all over my body cooled down in an instant. I never thought I’d fall for an obvious trick. The man waiting for me was none other than Prince Wilhelm.

“If anyone hears you, they would think we have that kind of close relationship at night. And I really don’t know what you’re talking about. I think you dropped something, so I came here to return it to you.”

I smiled and showed a pendant adorned with a red peony.

“This is yours, right?”

“Yes, that’s right. Thank you. It’s a precious item and I almost lost it forever.”

He was more brazen than I thought. Raising his body leaning against the window frame, Wilhelm took the pendant from me.

It was a light movement, but his eyes were still fixed on my veil. His gaze was rather low that I felt we made eye contact through the fabric.

“Be careful next time. You shouldn’t be careless with precious things. Then I’ll get going.”

“I don’t know if you’re aware, but Princess Beatrice died of hemophilia 10 years ago.”

I knew it would be like this. Yes, I should have ignored wherever the pendant fell from the beginning.

No. If the problem was that I followed him to get to my senses, I should not have drunk whatever they gave me in the hall in the first place. As I stood still with my back half-turned, he continued to speak.

“…I knew. So, you can’t tell how surprised I was when the princess appeared in Malta in person.”

Richton was a meticulous man. He wouldn’t give me the name of the woman who was already dead. With that in mind, it was difficult to determine whether Wilhilm’s remarks were true or false.

“Maybe it’s because you’re the successor to a great nation, you’re very rude in our first meeting. What kind of answer do you want me to give you? That the Beatrice in front of you is a moving corpse? Or fake?”

“Princess.”

“Is everyone like this in the empire? Isn’t it rude of a stranger to pretend to know someone and turn a healthy person into a corpse?!”

“Shut up. “

At first, I thought Wilhelm cursed at me. However, unlike the harsh tone that was like sandpaper in my ear, his face was still serious. Not long after, a cold piece of metal came rushing in under my neck. Just like last night.

“How dare you throw a fit in front of him without fear? Hold that cunning tongue of yours and know your place.”

It was a voice boiling with enraged emotions. I quietly shut my mouth just as the person who suddenly appeared wished. Wilhelm’s face was stiff and rigid as I faced him from the front.

“Cain. Put away your sword.”

“How can I do that? Damn it. You’re too complacent, Master. It’s only been a day, have you already forgotten? This woman put a sword on Jen’s back..!”

“The princess has already denied it. If you behave more disrespectfully here, you’ll have to pay what you deserve.”

Cain. I remembered who it was. He was an escort knight who swore loyalty to Wilhelm. Cain’s breath grew increasingly rough as he held a sword against my neck.

There’s no way that righteous and upright Wilhelm would threaten me in a place like this. For that matter, what happened last night hung over my mind, but the threat to me was lifted despite the tension.

Similar scenes often appeared in the novel. Because of their excessive loyalty to Wilhelm, one or two vassals would act on their own accord.

Cain was one of them, too. Maybe it was because I got used to Ingord’s master-slave relationship, I didn’t like the way he behaved without Wilhelm’s permission.

“I had no idea I would be treated like this after coming all the way from a distant country. I feel very uncomfortable right now. Can’t I just go back?”

When it’s this dangerous, one should feign innocence till the end. But my opponent was not as accommodating as I wished.

“I fully understand how uncomfortable it must have been for the princess, but this is a matter directly related to national safety. Once the princess’ identity is confirmed, I’ll step down immediately.”

That’s bullshit. Last night, he stealthily broke into my bedroom to persuade me. It was obvious that his ulterior motive was to drag me away.

“That’s just…”

I quietly lowered my tongue that stopped in the air. I couldn’t ask the prince if he’s already on the move.

If I asked that, wouldn’t everything we had done so far be in vain? However, it was difficult to guess what kind of situation I would avoid if I were dragged like this.

I felt a cold sweat running down my back. I had to go to Richton right now. The situation had come too far for me to finish it myself. I turned around in a hurry.

“Where are you…!”

But it also failed in no time. Cain grabbed my arm as I tried to escape.

I met Cain’s fierce gaze under the fluttering veil. It was such a harsh grip that could crush the muscles in my arm.

“…Agrane?”

At the same time, I heard Wilhelm’s voice as if his soul had left him.

***