RGBR 09

CHAPTER 09

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens’s intention was obvious. She was indirectly asking why Elener had taken so long.

Elener wanted to laugh out loud.

This woman really does think I’m stupid.

Elener deliberately put on a pitiful expression, sighed deeply, and slightly lifted her dress to reveal her foot.

She had already changed from her slippers back into shoes before coming here, so the blood from her wound had seeped into the bandage.

The noblewomen who saw the wound all gasped in surprise and covered their mouths.

“Oh my! What happened to your foot?”

“Exactly! It’s such a delicate foot. What if it leaves a scar?”

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens was just as surprised.

She had heard from the maid that Elener had been injured, but she had not expected the wound to be this bad.

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen, who had not spared Elener a glance all this time, turned her cold gaze toward the Grand Duchess of Raiwens.

If her daughter had been injured, wasn’t it only natural for her to be informed first, as her mother?

And yet the Grand Duchess of Frihosen had known nothing about it until Elener showed her foot.

Surely the maids of the Raiwens Grand Duke’s residence were capable of handling even something like this?

They simply had not stepped forward because they were following their mistress’s wishes.

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen’s eyes sharpened as she looked at the Grand Duchess of Raiwens.

“I have heard many times about how beautiful the gardens of the Raiwens Grand Duke’s residence are. I was even told that there are flowers there that cannot be found even in the Kingdom of Seilo, which is famous for its beautiful flowers. I was so eager to see the gardens that I walked rather quickly, only to step on a piece of broken glass.”

“Oh my.”

“Now that I think about it, how beautiful must the flowers in the Raiwens Grand Duke’s gardens be? It’s understandable that the Grand Duke’s daughter might have been so captivated that she lost herself in the scenery.”

“Indeed.”

One by one, the noblewomen began agreeing with Elener.

Elener paused for a moment, then let out another deep sigh before continuing.

“Whew. This is all my own fault. But the wound isn’t as deep as it looks, so please don’t worry. Thanks to Her Highness’s consideration, a physician has already examined it.”

The noblewomen’s gazes shifted toward the Grand Duchess of Raiwens, who was seated in the place of honor.

“Her Highness called for a physician?”

“When did that happen? We had no idea…”

The noblewomen exchanged glances, their faces filled with distrust.

No matter how much she disliked the Grand Duchess of Frihosen, how could she handle her daughter’s injury without even informing her mother?

Since such behavior was completely unreasonable, the noblewomen’s gazes toward the Grand Duchess of Raiwens grew cold.

As though embarrassed that she had caused such a commotion, Elener lowered her gaze.

The others exchanged meaningful glances with those they were close to.

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens, who could not possibly have failed to notice the atmosphere, felt the corners of her smiling lips tremble slightly.

How could I have made such a stupid mistake?

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens regretted it inwardly.

Her reason for calling Elener here had been simple.

She had merely wanted to corner Elener in front of the woman she detested—the Grand Duchess of Frihosen.

But she had never imagined that she would be the one put in an awkward position.

She had believed the maid’s report that the injury was minor and had called for a physician without telling anyone because she did not want to disrupt the gathering.

She had never expected Elener to point out her mistake in front of everyone.

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens gritted her teeth.

Then the Grand Duchess of Frihosen gave a derisive snort and set down the cup she had been holding.

Clink!

The sharp sound instantly drew everyone’s attention toward her.

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen’s delicate brows furrowed.

“My daughter was injured. Why am I only hearing about it now, Grand Duchess of Raiwens? I believe I deserve to know what happened.”

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens forced the corners of her lips upward.

“Please don’t worry. Grand Duchess, I’m also trying to find out what happened. I’ve just sent a maid to—”

“Isn’t the Raiwens Grand Duke’s residence under the authority of the Grand Duchess of Raiwens? I suppose one has to ask the maids in order to properly understand such an important matter.”

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen spoke calmly.

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens’s eyes narrowed.

“…Grand Duchess of Frihosen. What exactly are you trying to say?”

“I’m questioning your competence. What else would I mean?”

“…Grand Duchess, that is going too far—”

“That’s enough. I have no desire to speak with you any further. Elener. Let’s go.”

With that, the Grand Duchess of Frihosen deliberately rose from her seat.

Elener, who had been keeping her head lowered and silently observing the situation, was inwardly startled by her mother’s actions.

The Grand Duchess normally did not care much about what other people said to her.

Even when surrounded by many people, she rarely spoke of her own accord unless someone addressed her first.

And yet, that very mother had stepped forward for Elener.

Elener’s heart grew warm.

She lowered her eyes to hide the tears that were beginning to well up.

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens clenched her fists when she noticed the strange looks the others were giving her.

To humiliate me in front of all these people…

It was no different from openly picking a fight.

She ground her teeth.

So this was her true intention. Acting like such a docile cat all this time, only to wait for an opportunity like this.

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen, having risen from her seat, looked toward the noblewomen and gave them a slight bow.

“It has been a long time since we last met, so I apologize for leaving first.”

“Please don’t say that, Your Highness.”

“Yes. Your daughter has been injured, so of course you should return with her.”

“Exactly. Please don’t worry about anything here and return with Lady Elener, Your Highness. Lady Elener, make sure you get plenty of rest when you return.”

Elener smiled and bowed after identifying the woman who had spoken to her so kindly.

“Thank you, Countess Fiodell.”

“Oh my. Grand Duke’s daughter, you know who I am? I had been away for a long time and only recently returned to the capital, so I thought everyone had forgotten me.”

Countess Fiodell looked at Elener with a mischievous smile.

Elener quietly smiled back.

The Fiodell family was one of the royalist families trusted by the Emperor.

Around this time, Countess Fiodell had returned after mourning the death of her mother, whom she had personally nursed through her illness.

Count Fiodell had been one of those who opposed Joshua’s succession to the imperial throne.

At the time, there had been no particular flaw in the First Prince that could justify opposing him.

But in the end, it was Joshua who ascended the imperial throne.

After becoming Emperor, he gradually eliminated those who had opposed him.

Count Fiodell was one of them.

In her previous life, those who had been hostile to Joshua could, in other words, be considered allies of Elener now.

Naturally, she had every reason to respond to them favorably.

Elener lifted the corners of her lips.

“I heard that Lady Fiodell recently graduated from the Imperial Academy with excellent grades. I recognized you because Lady Evelyn’s face in the weekly magazine resembled yours.”

At the mention of her daughter, Countess Fiodell’s face brightened.

“I’m a little embarrassed that Your Grace saw the news about my daughter.”

“Why would you be embarrassed? I heard that the Imperial Department of Magic recently acquired a magical device invented by Lady Fiodell. Doesn’t that mean that your daughter’s magical abilities are truly exceptional?”

“You knew about that too? Well, I suppose my daughter is rather clever, just like her mother. Ho ho.”

Countess Fiodell beamed as she spoke, and it was obvious at a glance that she had taken a liking to Elener.

The other noblewomen nearby exchanged glances and began looking at Elener differently.

The Grand Duke’s daughter they had known had always seemed to want to avoid attention wherever she went, hiding among the crowd.

To them, seeing her initiate a conversation with someone else like this was truly unexpected.

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen wore an expression that showed no interest in what any of the noblewomen might be thinking.

However, she silently stared at several women who were giving Elener unfriendly looks.

Under her fierce gaze, they had no choice but to turn their heads away.

Elener reached out and lightly took the Grand Duchess of Frihosen’s hand.

She could feel her mother looking at her, but Elener calmly said,

“Mother, just a moment. Her Highness, the Grand Duchess of Raiwens, is the host of today’s Rirangttli. We should at least say goodbye before we leave.”

The Grand Duchess of Frihosen stared at Elener for a moment before giving a small nod.

It was her agreement.

Elener smiled brightly and stood before the Grand Duchess of Raiwens.

Then, deliberately, she smiled even more brightly at the Grand Duchess of Raiwens, who was glaring at her with deep disgust.

The Grand Duchess’s expression gradually cracked.

“Your Highness, my mother and I will be taking our leave now. And please don’t worry about the wound on my foot. It really is only a minor injury. Since the maid did not examine my wound closely, she naturally must have thought it was only a small one.”

“…Are you saying that because you’re afraid I’ll punish the maid for failing to report the situation properly?”

Elener’s eyes widened.

“No. Of course not. That’s a misunderstanding. I know very well how wise Your Highness is. I’m only saying this because I wouldn’t want someone who knows nothing about what happened to put the maid in a difficult position.”

“You certainly think a great deal about your servants, Lady Elener.”

“You’re the same, aren’t you, Your Highness? You cherish your servants as though they were family.”

“…Let’s say I do.”

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens pressed her lips tightly together.

She looked at Elener with displeasure.

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens did not have a particularly good temperament.

The Grand Duke of Raiwens’s notorious history with women was already well known.

Whenever his name appeared in various weekly magazines because of another woman, the Grand Duchess of Raiwens would always vent her anger on the maids.

Elener had only learned about this after becoming Empress.

The older brother of a maid who had been beaten to death by the Grand Duchess of Raiwens had unexpectedly become one of Joshua’s most loyal followers, and that was how Elener came to know about it.

And if her memory was correct, the dead maid’s name had probably been Jane.

The Grand Duchess of Raiwens’s answer was essentially a promise not to lay a hand on Jane.

Elener felt relieved.

As Elener cheerfully said her farewells to the noblewomen, the expression on the Grand Duchess of Raiwens’s face grew even colder.