Chapter 66
“Yes. I also need to come and see the reaction to the new ballroom for myself.”
Blaine replied in a businesslike tone.
The Emperor especially enjoyed seeing Blaine, usually so composed, flustered and surrounded by women.
It was as entertaining as watching valiant warriors duel on the battlefield.
“As you can see from the invitation, this event requires that you attend with a partner.”
“…I understand.”
Blaine had painfully experienced how inconvenient it was to attend social events without a partner, especially now that his business dealings involved nobles.
Even at twenty-nine, still single Blaine found that the nobles were eager to pair him up.
Since nobles attended social gatherings with their partners, anyone wishing to discuss business needed a companion to manage their spouse.
Last time, he had brought a female researcher from the company, but she couldn’t adapt to high society any better than he could, and eventually went home alone.
Since retiring from the battlefield, the Emperor, with little else to do, had taken to observing Blaine in awkward situations for amusement.
Blaine wanted to leave immediately.
As if by divine intervention, a servant appeared to deliver a message to the Emperor.
Blaine internally rejoiced.
“Y-Your Majesty! An unfortunate incident has occurred in the royal palace!”
The servant knelt and cautiously watched the Emperor’s reaction. “Unfortunate incident” seemed to spark more curiosity than concern in the Emperor, who urged the servant to continue.
“There has been a theft in the royal palace. The victim is Princess Angelina, and the thief attempted to steal her sapphire hair ornament.”
A theft?! In the royal palace, and the victim is Princess Angelina?!
The Emperor’s face contorted mercilessly with rising blood pressure.
Not long ago, intruders had entered his secret hideout, and royal guards had punished them severely—but now a theft in the palace? Who on earth would dare such a thing?!
“The culprit has been caught… but the thing is…”
The servant hesitated.
Among those who had dined with the Emperor earlier, if the culprit was present, the servant feared how shocked and angry the Emperor would be. Summoning every ounce of courage, he finally revealed the culprit’s name.
“Wh-what did you just say?”
When he cautiously opened his eyes, Blaine’s face was even more shocked than the Emperor’s at hearing the culprit’s name.
Helene had never imagined that Angelina’s invitation would follow so quickly.
After lunch with the Emperor, Angelina asked if Helene had any other appointments. Upon learning she had none, Angelina immediately invited her to a tea party.
Lunch with the Emperor, followed by tea with a princess—no noble could hope for a more splendid day.
Angelina excused herself briefly to change into a dress suitable for a tea party. She apparently deemed the dress she had worn for lunch with the Emperor inappropriate to wear again with a countess.
Helene thought how inconvenient the lives of nobles were, with so much significance placed on even minor details.
Helene sat on the sofa, waiting for Angelina.
Royal maids prepared a three-tier tray for tea time.
The bottom tier displayed savory items like lobster rolls and tuna tartare that looked mouthwatering at first glance. The second and third tiers contained colorful desserts. Watching them made the wait far from tedious.
“Countess Emeldia, have you been waiting long?”
Angelina appeared, now dressed in a bright yellow tweed dress.
A day to have tea with her favorite novel’s heroine—it was a rare, once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“What do you think? This is a new dress I bought—doesn’t it look like forsythia blooming on Lepia Mountain?”
Angelina twirled to show off her dress.
Though it might have seemed boastful on anyone else, her display was simply charming.
“Speaking of Lepia Mountain, I just remembered a picnic I had there recently!”
Sitting in a wing chair, Angelina recounted seeing a family of black rabbits on Lepia Mountain. She had never seen black rabbits in Herbient and spoke of it with exaggerated excitement.
Angelina had a talent for making even mundane stories captivating. Her charm drew in listeners completely.
Helene checked Angelina’s teacup.
It was already empty.
Tea time was nearing its end.
Helene hesitated.
She felt she had formed a certain rapport with Angelina, but leaving now seemed premature.
Apparently, Angelina felt the same way.
“Countess Emeldia, I hear you like card games?”
Angelina’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.
Helene had been asked that question twelve times that year.
It was a polite way of saying, “I hear you lost all of the Emeldia family fortune gambling—did you?”
Many nobles wanted to know if Helene had truly squandered the Emeldia fortune and exactly how much she lost. Angelina was one of them.
“Do you also like Kingdom?”
Angelina clapped her hands excitedly.
‘Kingdom.’
It was the most popular card game in the Hersen Empire.
The amount Helene lost playing Kingdom would have amounted to a third of the Emeldia fortune.
Kingdom required creating the highest-scoring combination from five types of cards—King, Queen, Wizard, Knight, and Jester. Strategy was important, but luck ultimately decided the winner based on the last card drawn.
Helene, unlucky by nature, was horrendous at Kingdom.
Yet she loved it dearly.
“Oh, n-no… I do like it, but my skills are terrible…”
“Really? No need to be modest. Why not play a game of Kingdom with me?”
In contrast, Angelina was highly skilled at Kingdom.
Though she excelled at everything, she was particularly lucky in the game.
The best cards always seemed to end up in her hand.
“Oh my! I’ve won again…”
With an innocent smile, she said this every time.
No one had ever beaten her at Kingdom—she was the heroine of this world, after all.
The outcome was obvious.
What was the point of beating Princess Angelina, the Empire’s princess and heroine?
Helene reminded herself that her goal was to build rapport with Angelina, not to compete in games.
Fortunately, she didn’t have to treat it as a formal reception game.
At Angelina’s gesture, Bella brought the Kingdom deck.
Despite Helene’s frequent visits to gambling houses, she was truly abysmal at Kingdom.
“Oh my, I’ve won again…”
Angelina said with her innocent smile.
Helene suffered an easy three-game losing streak.
Angelina gradually lost interest in Helene’s painfully poor performance.
Just then, Marisol, who had gone to the dressing room to fix her dress, appeared with a dark expression.
“P-Princess? Your sapphire hairpin has been missing since earlier…!!”
Marisol reported in a trembling voice.
Helene felt her heart sink.
This was a plot frequently seen in the Complete Plan.
Helene, the minor villain, wasn’t the only one envious of the perfect Princess Angelina. Many foolish people coveted what she had.
Among them was Hailey, who, if not for Liliana, would have been the head maid.
Hailey was the daughter of the powerful and influential Marquis Pierce of Lepia’s capital.
Soon, the Lepia-born maids began following Hailey even more than Angelina.
Gentle as she was, Angelina tolerated Hailey’s increasing arrogance daily.
So, Marisol, who adored and protected Angelina excessively, decided to teach such people a lesson.
She placed Angelina’s sapphire hairpin in Hailey’s bag.
Unlike in the original story, Hailey did not become head maid and seemed to get along well with Princess Angelina.
‘…Could it be?’
Helene narrowed her eyes.
At present, the real threat to Angelina was Liliana, not Hailey.
Could it be that Liliana, rather than Hailey, had become the target?
One more reason Helene wanted to meet Princess Angelina was to protect Liliana if she became a target.
“Is this true? Did you check the jewelry box carefully?”
“Yes, I’m certain. It didn’t match today’s outfit, so I placed it down… Someone clearly stole it.”
From Marisol’s decisive words, Helene realized the trap had been set.
Ultimately, Hailey would be blamed for theft, lose the chance to become head maid, and never enter the palace again.
Taking advantage of the maids’ search, Helene headed to the dressing room where the maids stored their belongings and bags.
