When the door opened, what she saw were young ladies pouring in all at once.
Apparently not realizing Edith was there, they each came in looking for a place to rest, their constant chatter filling the space.
Edith tensed, worried that a situation similar to the one with the noblewomen before might unfold again, but they simply talked at length about how wonderful today’s banquet was.
Then the conversation shifted to Aisha, Lisellon, and Luzbel.
According to Verina, it had been a hot topic, and it seemed it still was ongoing.
Eventually, the noise became so loud that it seemed impossible to rest properly, so Edith carefully stepped outside.
“Hm? Why did you come out?”
The Duchess, who had been returning with a glass of water, encountered Edith.
“Ah. New guests came in.”
“Is that so?”
“And after resting briefly, I feel fine now.”
“…That’s a relief.”
“Yes.”
She hadn’t actually been physically tired, only troubled in mind.
In any case, since this was an event that wouldn’t come again soon, she wanted to enjoy it fully without worrying about Luzbel and Jeron.
However, the Duchess, still clearly worried, accompanied Edith around the hall while making sure she didn’t overexert herself, and after some time—
“His Majesty the Emperor, Her Majesty the Empress, and His Highness the Crown Prince are entering!”
At last, the final main figures had arrived.
Curious about what the Emperor and Crown Prince of this world looked like, Edith directed a gaze full of anticipation toward them.
They were usually described as extremely handsome, so she had some expectations.
“…Eh.”
But upon seeing the Imperial Family revealed, Edith couldn’t help but let out a disappointed sigh.
Because they were ugly.
It wasn’t that Edith’s eyes were mistaken; judging by how others reacted, although there was still the reverence expected toward the Imperial Family, the young ladies’ reactions were noticeably different from when Luzbel or Lisellon had appeared.
Still, although she was somewhat disappointed by the Crown Prince’s appearance, which fell short of expectations, she decided to be satisfied since her brothers were handsome.
Then, a thought suddenly occurred to her—would she someday get married too?
Edith had lived as a vegetable for twelve years and had only now awakened. Even if marriage wasn’t forced immediately, it was certain that someday it would happen.
Just in case, she decided she should look around to see if there were any other handsome men.
Having transmigrated into a romance-fantasy world, she didn’t want to marry an ugly man.
She also didn’t want someone incompetent, nor a playboy.
“…”
Edith realized anew that her standards were quite high.
Above all else, whether she loved that person would be the most important thing, but if she were told to marry someone whose face she didn’t even know, she would rather run away from home.
Having personally witnessed the victim of a political marriage up close, she no longer wanted to be forced into one.
In any case, after the Imperial Family entered, the banquet truly began.
Theo, as if he had been waiting for this moment, approached Edith with a bright expression.
“Your body? Are you alright?”
“I am alright. I was not really that tired earlier either.”
“But can you dance?”
“Of course.”
Even if she truly was exhausted, it felt like she wouldn’t be able to say she couldn’t dance.
Because anyone could see it clearly—the face of someone who was looking forward to the first dance.
As expected.
“Then would you dance one song with me?”
The moment she said she was fine, Theo extended his hand with an expectant gaze, and Edith willingly took it.
“It would be my honor.”
***
Edith didn’t know it, but the young ladies were extremely envious of her.
Even when she had frequented the salon, they had been curious about what kind of person she was, but seeing her like this in person, it was even more than they had imagined.
Everyone was desperate to be associated with her.
Even when Ellos personally entered as her partner, the young ladies had to doubt their own eyes.
That sentiment reached its peak when Theo smiled and extended his hand to ask Edith for the first dance.
“I have never seen Lord Theo smile before.”
“And what about Lord Ellos?”
“Ha, why is my brother like that…?”
Some even lamented while comparing their own brothers to those two.
“This is also the first time I have seen those two stay at a banquet this long.”
“That is right. Even at banquets they absolutely had to attend, they would only greet briefly and leave.”
The young ladies whispered among themselves, talking for quite a while about how the two young lords were behaving so unusually today.
“I could not believe it even when she was coming to the salon.”
Still, they didn’t dare speak carelessly.
Because there was no one who didn’t know what fate had befallen the noblewomen who had spoken behind Edith’s back.
Whatever they thought inwardly was their freedom, but at least outwardly, they could only express envy.
“She dances well too.”
Edith, who had clearly been declared unable to walk and confined to that strange wheeled chair, was now dancing gracefully.
“…Wow…”
Her bright pink hair sparkled beneath the chandelier, giving her an exceptional presence.
“She is beautiful…”
At the very least, it was certain that no one could criticize Edith’s appearance.
She displayed superior genes, perfectly blending the beauty of the Duke and Duchess.
The young nobles who had been sneaking glances at Edith earlier were now staring at her on the dance floor as if enchanted.
“Grrr…”
But they couldn’t stare for long.
Because they felt the Duke’s murderous glare upon them.
And there was also Ellos, the youngest Knight Commander and a man of considerable skill.
“Ahem.”
The young nobles belatedly cleared their throats and hurried away from their spots.
The young ladies who were already completely captivated by House Capanteni thought even that was impressive.
***
After finishing her first dance, Edith rested briefly, then danced once each with the Duke and Ellos.
After three dances, her legs felt like they could no longer endure, but fortunately, no one approached her, allowing her to rest properly.
Even while resting, she chatted for quite a while with the young ladies who approached her without turning them away, but when even that became exhausting, Edith quietly slipped out into the rear garden.
The terrace was already filled with others.
Since everyone seemed busy, she didn’t say anything and came alone to the Imperial Palace’s rear garden.
There, in the garden, Edith encountered an unexpected person.
‘Huh, isn’t that round and cute back of the head Jeron’s?’
She was about to approach excitedly, but upon closer look, Jeron wasn’t alone.
Beside him was a woman wearing a lavish dress, and she was pouring out words one-sidedly.
That dress was the same one Aisha had been wearing earlier.
Startled, Edith hid her body behind the wall and eavesdropped on their conversation. She knew she shouldn’t listen, but her body reacted instinctively.
“Why do you still call me Mom? More than anything, I have never thought of you as my son. So don’t call me that anywhere. Understood?”
“…”
“Ha, you really are horribly ugly.”
It seemed Jeron had called Aisha Mom.
And that must have pressed Aisha’s trigger, because she was now spewing cruel words at a child much younger than herself.
“But… you are my mom…”
Jeron spoke firmly even while crying, but it had no effect on Aisha.
“You really can’t understand what people are saying, can you? Who do you think is your mother?”
“…”
He tried to hold back his tears, but his eyes were already brimming with moisture. Unable to bear it any longer, Edith was about to step forward, but Aisha acted faster.
“Don’t ever call me that again, and don’t pretend to know me. It’s disgusting.”
She glared coldly at Jeron with eyes filled with contempt, disgust, and all kinds of dreadful emotions, then turned her back on him and walked away.
“Hic…”
The moment Aisha left, Jeron collapsed, lowering his head as tears of sorrow fell one by one.
From Jeron’s perspective, everything must have felt like a bolt from the blue.
He had tried and tried not to grow attached, but Aisha had been the one who approached him first, and the one who promised not to abandon him—only to abandon him anyway.
“…”
What should she do?
Should she just pretend not to know?
But Jeron, who had been staggering, suddenly missed his step on the bridge and fell straight into the pond with a splash.
“Kyaa! Jeri!”
Edith screamed and threw herself into the pond without hesitation.
Even if it wasn’t a deep pond, that only applied to adults, not to Jeron, who had just turned seven.
He didn’t even try to struggle, simply letting his body sink into the water as if he intended to die.
Without realizing it, Edith felt her chest tighten and quickly reached out her hand toward him.
Jeron, who had been staring at Edith with faintly opened eyes, seemed to realize she wasn’t the person he had hoped for, and tightly shut his eyes.
***
Barely managing to pull Jeron into her arms, Edith stood on her own two legs and examined his condition as he coughed violently.
“A-Are you alright?”
Edith asked in a trembling voice. She had rescued him quickly, and he was conscious. It didn’t seem like he had swallowed much water.
“Cough.”
“Ah, f-first, we need to get out of the pond…”
“Cough.”
“…Ah. Umm.”
She wanted to get out, but her legs chose this moment to fail her.
Just standing while holding him was already difficult, and her legs trembled violently.
It seemed that even though he was just a child, supporting his weight while standing on her still fragile legs was too much strain.
In the end, unable to even get out of the pond, Edith remained standing there and simply held Jeron tightly while checking his condition.
“Edith!”
But then—
Ellos, who seemed to have come looking for her after she disappeared without saying a word, came running over.
He looked quite shocked to find Edith looking like a drenched mouse while holding a child.
“Brother!”
Edith quickly handed the child in her arms to Ellos first.
Holding the child, Ellos immediately checked Edith’s condition.
“You… are you alright?”
“Y-yes…”
She wasn’t alright.
Even after handing Jeron over, Edith still couldn’t move, her legs trembling violently.
Sensing something was wrong, Ellos quickly set the child down on the ground and lifted Edith up.
Her thin, frail legs were trembling pitifully.
