Chapter 29
The maids exchanged glances.
“Respects his character? That reckless Duke’s character?”
“‘The drive to punish physically’…? That just means he’s violent, doesn’t it?”
“‘Doesn’t hold back feedback to incompetent subordinates’? Isn’t that just like crushing them like mice?”
As their eyes flitted through the air, Erzea fixed her wide eyes on Freesia.
‘This girl… she’s only saying what’s true.’
She was more perceptive than she appeared.
Still, Erzea decided to run the verification she had intended, just in case.
“Hrm, I see. Your abilities are admirable, so I’d like to offer you a good opportunity.”
Freesia’s eyes went wide.
Erzea asked like a fisherman dangling bait.
“This week, there will be a meeting of the Baek Eun social club. How would you like to attend?”
The Baek Eun social club consisted of the most prominent figures in the Jade Empire’s social scene.
If Freesia were truly a social climber, her eyes would have lit up at the suggestion.
But the Baek Eun social club was a place full of cunning old snakes who could pick apart a naive young socialite without breaking a sweat.
‘If I throw her in there, she’ll reveal her true colors herself.’
Freesia stared blankly.
“The Baek Eun social club… you mean that?”
“Yes. It’s a gathering of the Empire’s top elite.”
Erzea shook the bait a little more vigorously.
“They hold weekly social gatherings. Sometimes they last overnight for one or two nights, filled with conversation. You may even perform in front of people, singing or dancing, displaying your artistic talents.”
“…Yes?”
Freesia’s complexion suddenly worsened.
“Don’t worry that you won’t know anyone. Each week, everyone takes turns introducing themselves for five minutes.”
Freesia went pale as if she had a severe allergic reaction.
“Do I… absolutely have to attend?”
“…?”
“If it is by Her Majesty the Empress’s command, I shall comply.”
She lowered her head and answered gravely, with a face like a cow being led to the slaughter.
‘What’s going on?’
Erzea was momentarily taken aback.
For a young lady like Freesia, this should have been a huge opportunity—but she reacted as if being punished.
‘Does she have no interest in rising in social circles at all?’
Her modest appearance didn’t scream social ambition, and neither did her behavior.
It didn’t seem that she had approached Kaien with ulterior motives.
If anything, it was rather…
‘She truly became his secretary out of genuine respect for Kaien…’
Erzea cleared all prejudices from her mind and gazed quietly at Freesia.
“If you truly dislike it, very well. Forget the social club entirely.”
“Thank you!”
Freesia’s face brightened as if she had taken a digestive aid.
“One last thing. You said Duke Kreutz is your role model—was that sincere?”
“Yes.”
Freesia nodded firmly.
“I will learn diligently by his side and someday! I want to become someone like him.”
Her eyes sparkled as if envisioning the star she admired.
Erzea quietly felt certain.
‘This girl… she is sincere.’
At the same time, a warm feeling spread through her chest.
Kaien had always been a lonely child.
Being the illegitimate child of the Imperial family with extraordinary talent was itself a misfortune.
Though politically she could not openly intervene, Erzea had watched Kaien suffer through countless political machinations since infancy, always feeling pity for him.
She had hoped that Kaien would have someone who recognized his true worth.
Perhaps that hope had already come true.
Erzea, still staring quietly at Freesia, spoke.
“You are Freesia Violet, yes?”
“Yes, Your Majesty the Empress.”
“There will be many storms along your path ahead. Therefore, just once…”
Erzea’s deep gaze met Freesia’s.
“I shall grant you whatever request you wish, within the limits of what I can provide.”
“…!”
Freesia’s eyes widened.
Erzea quickly added, as if to justify herself:
“This is solely to support the Mage Tower, an institution vital to the Empire.”
“Yes! I will remember that.”
Freesia nodded vigorously and smiled brightly.
“Your grace is as vast as the ocean. Thank you so much, Your Majesty the Empress!”
Erzea smiled subtly behind her fan.
‘Polite and sincere.’
Unlike most young nobles these days, she had no pretense.
As Erzea’s fan concealed her soft smile, Freesia, as if lost in thought, hesitated before speaking carefully.
“Your Majesty, if I may be so bold… may I submit my request immediately?”
“Hmm?”
Erzea’s eyes glimmered with interest.
“What request is so urgent that it comes to mind at once?”
“It is…”
Freesia hesitated slightly, then spoke slowly and politely.
Erzea’s eyes widened gradually.
A short while later…
“Truly, thank you, Your Majesty the Empress!”
Freesia bowed deeply with a joyful expression before leaving the audience chamber.
Watching the attendants tidy the space she left, Erzea smiled meaningfully.
‘So she would make such a request…’
Contrary to her timid appearance, she was bold and forward-thinking.
Erzea quietly asked her chief maid.
“Margaret, what do you think of that girl?”
“Yes. She seems to be a very positive young lady.”
To be able to frame that reckless Duke in such a flattering way indicated remarkable positivity.
Erzea nodded, a faintly pleased smile on her lips.
“Yes. I find myself somewhat fond of her too. …Bring me her report again.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Margaret promptly handed over Freesia’s report.
As Erzea flipped through it, her eyes froze on a particular passage.
[She particularly likes handsome, wealthy men, but everyone has their own tastes. Such a person is called a flower… or a snake?]
Erzea realized why the report had unsettled her from the start.
‘It’s as if it implies our Kaien is only about looks and money.’
Reading carefully again, she found peer testimony 3 the most troubling.
Pretending to be kind, it affirmed all previous testimony, while even branding Freesia as a “gold-digger” type.
But the Freesia before her was completely different from what the witnesses described.
Erzea murmured the witness’s name.
‘Lorena Belmont…’
This year’s academy “top beauty”?
Being chosen as the academy’s top beauty was every female student’s dream.
The graduate chosen would debut at the Founding Festival in the Imperial Palace, introduced by the Empress herself. Even commoners could receive this honor.
A literal life-changing opportunity.
‘When introducing this year’s top beauty, I’ll need to investigate more and carefully plan my words.’
Erzea’s eyes gleamed sharply.
“Phew!”
As the carriage left the Imperial Palace, I exhaled a breath I’d been holding.
I thought I’d die from the tension!
Relief only lasted a moment. Recalling my conversation with the Empress, a huge question mark loomed in my mind.
‘What was that about? Why did she summon me?’
Once, the Imperial Court was divided between the Crown Prince faction and Kaien faction.
Although the Crown Prince personally trusted Kaien like a brother… still.
I wondered if the Empress’s summons had been politically motivated.
‘I imagined all sorts of terrifying scenarios—being forced to spy on the Mage Tower or something.’
But in reality, the Empress only asked a few ordinary questions and then let me go.
[Don’t overthink it, benefactor! From Her Majesty the Empress’s last expression while looking at you, I read 59% satisfaction and 22% admiration!]
Pipi… really.
The Empress isn’t some rural grandmother. There’s no way she looked at me like that.
