Episode 30
Just when I was silently patting myself on the back for my amazing acting in front of Navien, the ladies suddenly all started talking at once—as if they’d been waiting for this moment.
“Navien, didn’t you say you’ve known Lady Cowet since childhood?”
“Oh, really? You two must be close.”
“I just met her today, but she’s so fun to be around!”
“Yes, she’s so witty. Hohoho.”
Wait, what?! Why would they say that?
I had only said two sentences! Were they really that funny and impressive?
Maybe the stiff, boring lives of nobles make them laugh at even small jokes. But more importantly, all the effort I put into acting properly in front of Navien had just been ruined.
“Eh? Lady Eil… I mean, Lady Cowet?”
As expected, Navien looked surprised but tried not to show it in front of the others. Instead, she just stared at me wide-eyed, as if saying, “What’s wrong with you?”
She’s such an honest girl—her face shows exactly how she feels.
I couldn’t meet her gaze, so I quietly looked away.
If Navien remembered the original Eilene, then she was like Adrien—someone I needed to be extra careful around. I had hoped to relax and enjoy this tea party, but I might’ve messed that up, thanks to the other ladies spilling everything.
After Navien arrived, the conversation returned to political topics. Just as I was starting to feel bored again, something finally caught my attention—the recent noble council meeting.
“I heard something interesting,” Rey said, lowering her voice so others wouldn’t overhear.
“They say Viscount Terami got scolded badly. His Majesty was very angry.”
“Oh my, really?”
“He must’ve done something terrible.”
At first, the mood seemed to support the emperor.
But to me, it sounded like a warning. Why would Rey bring this up here unless it had a deeper meaning?
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. So I decided to ask directly, just in case she was holding something back. She might feel pressured to speak if I, the emperor’s fiancée, asked.
“His Majesty, you say? What exactly did he do?”
As expected, Rey couldn’t avoid answering me truthfully.
“They say he slapped Viscount Terami across the face. And he ordered a huge increase in tribute payments.”
“Oh my goodness!”
“Good heavens!”
The ladies were all shocked, some raising their hands, others shrinking back in disbelief.
For people who value grace and elegance, hearing about violence happening at a council meeting was hard to believe.
But I wasn’t surprised at all. My face just darkened, and my expression turned serious.
That’s because I knew the truth: the emperor’s personality was already rotten, and he was only getting worse.
Sensing that I might know something, Helena asked,
“How is His Majesty doing these days?”
The moment she spoke, all eyes turned to me. The other ladies fell silent, watching my lips closely.
It was obvious. Helena had volunteered to ask the hard question.
As the host of the tea party, she had taken the role of “spokesperson.” I was certain this was the real reason I’d been invited today.
“There’s nothing out of the ordinary. He’s just been really tired lately from all the work he has to do.”
“Oh dear, I see.”
“You must be such a big help to him, Lady Cowet.”
They nodded with concerned expressions.
They were showing sympathy and encouraging me to be there for him—as a way of gently suggesting that I should help calm him down. That’s how nobles make their wishes known, indirectly.
In truth, the emperor hadn’t even called for me recently, so I knew nothing about what was going on. I made up a safe answer, but it turned out I was the one getting information from them.
Still, as someone who had read the original story, I had a guess.
The emperor was starting to turn dark.
But what confused me was the timing.
Kyle is turning dark already? Isn’t that too early?
In the original, it only happened gradually—when things started getting really intense between him and the Grand Duke. This felt premature.
The high-level ladies’ tea time ended there. Helena left to take care of hosting duties, and the others headed down to the garden to mingle with more people.
As I was about to leave the terrace and walk down the hall, Navien caught up and linked her arm with mine.
“Eilene, it’s been a while.”
“Navien.”
She smiled sweetly, her voice gentle.
Navien clearly had a naturally affectionate personality. Her casual tone and relaxed way of speaking showed that we were quite close.
“You really have changed, haven’t you? My brother told me, but I didn’t believe it.”
“He did?”
“Yeah. You used to never go to things like tea parties. I was so surprised to see you here today!”
Even someone as dense as Adrien had noticed the difference. I was glad he’d at least mentioned something to Navien ahead of time.
“And also… I heard about what happened. That must’ve been so hard.”
Suddenly, her bright tone turned sad. She gently wrapped her arm around my shoulders—trying to comfort me after the kidnapping incident. She had a lot of empathy.
“I’m okay. I’ve been trying to stay cheerful, and it’s actually been kind of fun.”
“You really do look healthier! That’s great. Then let’s go to tea parties together from now on!”
Navien’s leafy green hair bounced as she smiled like sunshine.
Luckily, just like her brother, she didn’t seem like the type to overthink things. Their light, happy personalities were a blessing to me.
After that, we walked around the garden together, enjoying the food. As expected from Helena’s ambitious family, everything was fancy and delicious. At first, Navien seemed surprised by how much I ate, but we soon hit it off and had fun eating together.
“Try this one, Eilene! It’s so soft—just like a cloud!”
“Wow, you’re right. It melts in your mouth.”
The dessert she gave me reminded me of cotton candy from my past life. We kept feeding pieces to each other, giggling when it stuck to our lips and we had to lick it off.
“Ahem. I am Baron Cloth-Wrap!”
“Pwahahaha! That’s hilarious!”
I stuck a piece of cotton candy under my nose like a mustache and pretended to be a nobleman. Navien burst out laughing.
We ran around so much that the others in the garden started to ignore us like we were part of the background. At first, people were curious, but as they got distracted, I started overhearing bits of gossip again—this time about the emperor.
“Did you hear about Viscount Terami?”
“Of course. Everyone in the capital knows by now.”
“I was so shocked when I heard. My heart dropped.”
The noble ladies shivered just from hearing the story.
It might seem like they were overreacting, but it was understandable. The trauma left behind by the former emperor still lingered.
Unlike his father, Kyle had always kept a gentle image. This kind of incident was completely new for him. But even so… a son often resembles his father. That saying exists for a reason.
Even Navien, who was sipping her juice, seemed bothered by what the other ladies were saying. She leaned close and lowered her voice.
“Why would His Majesty do something like that? It reminds me so much of the late emperor…”
She frowned, her voice full of worry.
“He must’ve been really angry that day… right?”
She was trying hard to believe it was just a one-time thing.
But I could already guess what everyone here was feeling. They were scared that another cruel ruler was rising.
Sadly, it was true. But I couldn’t lie and give them false hope. At the same time, I couldn’t admit the truth either. So I stayed silent.
As the sun began to set, the tea party wound down. The noble ladies left one by one in their family carriages. Navien and I said goodbye, promising to meet again.
“I’ll invite you to tea at our house next time!”
“Sure. Let me know.”
Navien waved enthusiastically from her carriage as it rolled away.
I got into mine and began heading back home, lost in thought.
Right now, the emperor wasn’t winning against the Grand Duke. In fact, it was more like he was losing badly.
In the original story, the emperor always had the upper hand. He had the main character’s plot armor, and everything worked out for him. Nothing could stand in his way.
But now, things were the exact opposite. Everything kept going wrong.
And I knew why—it was because I was standing like a wall next to the Grand Duke, helping him every step of the way.
Since I was on the Grand Duke’s side, making everything easier for him, the emperor’s plans were all falling apart. Judging by how he was taking his anger out on the nobles, I must’ve really gotten on his nerves.
I had wondered why he hadn’t gotten rid of me yet. Maybe he was simply too overwhelmed to bother.
Either way, the worse the emperor looked, the better it was for the Grand Duke. When the current ruler loses favor, people naturally start hoping for the next in line.
Until now, the Grand Duke had always been seen as the villain—someone people disliked.
But now… maybe that could start to change?
For the first time, I felt a little hopeful.
