Chapter 22
“Well, that’s true.”
At Belia’s question, the young ladies nodded.
“And he’s handsome, too.”
Belia reignited the briefly subdued atmosphere.
“Really?”
“Of course!”
“I thought he was very handsome!”
“Who?”
“The Master of the Magic Tower who came to the banquet!”
“Ah, right! I saw him too!”
Belia flinched slightly at the mention of the Magic Tower’s master.
“He really was good-looking. I was honestly shocked.”
“Exactly. But why did he come to the Empire back then?”
“Who knows?”
“I heard it was at the Crown Prince’s invitation?” Lady Saroni lowered her voice.
“Really?!”
“Yes. It’s a secret, but apparently the Crown Prince and the Tower Master are quite close.”
“How do you know that, Lady Saroni?”
“Our family has always been close to the imperial family. That’s how I heard.”
Belia nodded.
Given that Lady Saroni was a relative of the current Empress and known to be quite favored by the Emperor, her words likely weren’t unfounded.
She recalled her previous encounter with the Crown Prince—he had indeed addressed the Tower Master in a very familiar way.
“Do you know how the two of them became close?” Belia asked.
Lady Saroni tilted her head.
“Hmm, I’m not sure. Maybe they just saw each other often for official matters? Anyway, I heard the Tower Master will be visiting the Empire again soon.”
“Really?”
Belia leaned forward.
“When?”
“Well, there’s that academy event hosted by the imperial family, right? The academic conference, the fencing competition—celebrating the academy’s 100th anniversary. I heard a rumor the Tower Master will be attending….”
‘This is my chance!’
She remembered the letter she had fiddled with every night without fail:
[I’ll come find you.]
She had stared at it so often after waking from nightmares that she felt she could recite the cursive handwriting by heart.
‘An academy event….’
The thought of possibly seeing Carlton again made her heart race.
If she saw him, she might be able to find clues about the memories that had been confusing her.
“Is everyone here?”
Belia was pulled from her thoughts by a gentle voice.
The young ladies stood when they identified the speaker.
At the center was the host, Lady Doltan, followed by Ladies Deliver, Meiri, and Pio.
“Thank you all for accepting the invitation.”
Her elegant movements were befitting of a noble hostess.
Lady Doltan slightly bowed and then flinched as she looked over the guests.
Normally, the young ladies would swarm around her like bees to flowers—but today was different.
They were all gathered around Belia Arfedi instead.
‘Belia Arfedi.’
The hostess glanced at Belia with an unreadable look before turning her head.
“Shall we sit?”
And so, the tea party began.
* * *
“Lady Berre’s dress looks quite unique.”
“Aren’t the patterns and lace just lovely?”
“Lady Belia really has an eye for style….”
“She is Lady of the Year, after all.”
Belia smiled as she stirred sugar into her tea.
The other young ladies watched the ongoing battle of wits without saying a word.
Ladies Deliver, Mei, and Pio were busy criticizing the young ladies who had been standing with Belia when Lady Doltan entered, but Belia handled them with effortless grace.
After more than ten rounds of back-and-forth, Lady Deliver, unable to crack Belia’s elegant smile, had no choice but to give up—for now.
As the trio went quiet, the other ladies resumed chatting in small groups.
Watching the fuming trio, Belia leaned toward Songbr and whispered,
“What’s their problem?”
“Haha, who knows.”
Songbr scratched her cheek and looked at Belia with renewed amazement.
She had felt it at the previous banquet too—Belia spoke like a seasoned noblewoman of the social world.
“But you…”
“Oh, Lady Songbr!”
Another young lady called out, cutting Songbr off.
“Yes?”
“Are you and Young Master Pauline… dating?”
“W-what?!”
Songbr’s face turned red.
“Right? I saw you two walking together in the capital recently!”
“Really?”
As all eyes turned to her, Songbr quickly waved her hands.
“No! Not yet….”
“Oho, not yet?!”
“If it’s not yet, that means it’s about to happen, doesn’t it?”
Songbr was flustered. It was the first time other young ladies had shown this much interest in her.
“Oh my, you two look great together!”
“Yes! And now that I think about it, Lady Songbr’s dress at the banquet suited her beautifully!”
Even though it was a match between a baron’s daughter and a duke’s heir, the smiles on their faces held no resentment.
Belia nodded, knowing exactly why these ladies—who had approached her from the start of the tea party—were doing this.
They clearly didn’t like Lady Doltan, so they gathered around Belia instead and were now trying to win favor with Songbr, Belia’s known friend.
For Songbr, who had always been quiet and withdrawn at social events like banquets and parties, having other noblewomen willing to talk with her was a welcome change.
“So you’ve already made such progress? I’m hurt! You didn’t tell me!”
“No! I was going to tell you today….”
As Belia teased Songbr with a smile, the other ladies eagerly joined the conversation.
The atmosphere was just starting to warm up—until another voice cut in.
“Oh really? So Young Master Pauline is seeing Lady Songbr?”
At Lady Deliver’s words, the conversation stopped cold.
“Is that true, Lady Songbr?”
Though she asked kindly, the expression on her face clearly said, “A mere baron’s daughter?”
Songbr, recognizing the undertone, fell silent.
That’s when Belia spoke.
“Why do you ask, Lady Deliver?”
“No reason. Ah, Lady Canaria is close to Duke Pauline’s wife, isn’t she? Isn’t that right, Lady?”
At her words, Lady Doltan flinched and nodded.
“Oh my, then Lady should tell the Duchess this wonderful news. She’s always worried because her son is so shy. It must be a relief to see him getting close to another young lady.”
Songbr’s face darkened.
“Oh, and Lady Songbr, your dress today is lovely.”
“Pardon?”
“Not as nice as the one from the last banquet, but still lovely. Oh, that reminds me—I heard your mother, Baroness Songbr, was in debt to House Doltan… so the family has finally recovered? That’s good to hear!”
The entire tea party froze.
Bringing up such a scandal was clearly an attempt to ruin Lady Songbr’s reputation in society.
Under the table, Songbr’s hand was trembling.
“T-that’s…”
“That was rude, Lady.”
Belia took Songbr’s hand.
“Rude? I’m only concerned for the barony.”
Faced with such obvious hostility, Belia paused in thought.
She glanced at the young lady beside her—the doll-like Lady Doltan. Did she agree with this?
Belia knew exactly why Lady Deliver was so smug.
Angry had taken care of all her dresses and accessories recently, and he’d become practically her loyal informant, relaying every piece of gossip from the capital.
Among those reports were things about Lady Doltan too.
“Oh, how thoughtful of you to worry. But there’s actually something I’ve been meaning to ask the Lady…”
“What is it?”
Though Belia looked at Lady Doltan, it was again Lady Deliver who answered.
Belia took a sip of tea.
She hadn’t wanted to stoop to this level—but the cold hand she held made her angry.
“What does the Crown Prince like?”
Lady Doltan flinched.
“Why would you ask that?”
Lady Deliver’s gaze sharpened.
“I had the honor of a fine meal with him recently and wanted to repay the favor.”
“The Crown Prince isn’t someone just anyone can meet whenever they wish.”
“Of course. But I’ve received another invitation from him today, so we’ve arranged to meet again.”
“What…?”
Lady Deliver’s face stiffened.
Lady Doltan’s face went pale.
Reactions came from the other ladies as well.
Many noblewomen had dined with the Crown Prince—but none had ever been invited a second time.
Lady Doltan may have had multiple meals with him, but everyone knew those had been arranged through her family’s power.
Belia recalled the golden invitation she had received that morning.
She had intended to go quietly—but now she felt like making her visit as public as possible.
Still, the princess concerned her.
“That young lady… she’s more pitiful than you think.”
As Angry’s words echoed in her mind, Belia took another sip of tea.
