Chapter 162 - Live to Sienna Pt.162

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Under the leadership of Empress Arya, a dining table was arranged for Sienna, Bluebell, and Madame Kitroll, a teacher of royal etiquette.

Sienna had doubts about what Arya had in mind to arrange the occasion, but had no justification to refuse. It was a place to comfort Bluebell, who could not meet anyone outside due to etiquette education.

“I should have adjusted your clothes.”

Hain was the most excited person about the sudden invitation to a meal. When she was told that the imperial women would gather for a meal, Hain rolled up her sleeves. Today was a day of fierce fighting, in which she had to show off her skills.

Empress Arya, who was boasting beauty beyond her age, Bluebell, nicknamed the fairy goddess, and Kitroll, who has long held the position of the royal court’s etiquette teacher, showed off their elegance. Hain was obliged to make sure that Sienna was not pushed out among these prominent women.

But her face, looking through Sienna’s wardrobe, was filled with disappointment. It was because there were no clothes to wear because of Sienna who did not care for other people’s approval.

“So you shouldn’t miss the appointment with the tailor. You don’t have any clothes to wear.”

Sienna shrugged at her grumbling.

“It’s not even a banquet for high-ranking aristocrats. It’s just a table.”

When Sienna shook off Hain’s concern, Hain put her face in front of her master’s face and said,

“How can it be just a table?! They just didn’t pull out swords, but it’s like a battle of the knights. Just as knights use sharp swords to remind them of their presence, at a meal like this, ladies attack each other with fancy dresses and makeup.”

“What attacks… oh my, if I wear that to the meal, I would not be able to take a sip of water, let alone a meal.”

Sienna was sick and tired of seeing the dress Hain had taken out.

“But tightening your waist is still the trend.”

Sienna was sick and tired of the dress, which seemed unlikely to fit either of her arms, let alone her waist. It was a costume that she could never wear without a corset, but she really hated it.

“Then what do we do? All the other dresses here were worn once.”

“Why can’t I wear what I wore before?”

“Your Majesty! You mean that? If your Majesty wears this dress again, others will laugh at you.”

“It’s all right.”

“Your Majesty may be fine, but I’m not. Those little bitches will laugh at me. Even though they don’t even belong to the imperial family!”

Hain said angrily.

She seemed to still have a bad relationship with the maids of Bluebell. In addition to serving different empresses, most of Bluebell’s maids were brought from the Ferrer family, not from the imperial family, so they were outsiders among the maids.

In the past, maids belonging to the imperial family were clearly divided into Arya’s and non-Arya’s, but during that meantime, Bluebell’s clan have formed. Bluebell had a better relationship with Arya than Sienna, so Hain heard that Bluebell’s maids were closer to the maids of Arya.

Although Hain boasted that most of the maids, who belonged to the non-Arya group, turned over to Sienna’s side, Sienna couldn’t really feel it. She just felt sad about the current state of the palace, where there were not only the battles between the emperor and aristocrats in the highest positions but also those who work in the low places.

“I don’t want Hain to be laughed at, either, but the clothes are too much. It’s too tight for a meal.”

“That’s true. You’d have to eat, so…”

She looked at this dress and other dresses with a dead face. But looking around wouldn’t make clothes that weren’t there. She looked into Sienna’s face and said, “If it doesn’t work out, I’ll have to face it. I’ll give you a massage first!”

Sienna managed to restrain Hain who was rushing in right away. Sienna was so ticklish that it was hard for others to massage her body.

Hain said she cannot massage Sienna with her ticklishness, and ordered Shaylin to put a bowl of hot water under Sienna’s feet and let her soak her feet. The reason was that hot water foot baths helped reduce swelling and make your skin look brighter.

“Empress Arya fills her bathtub with an anetol oil and kemilia oil, which are as expensive as jewelry, and then orders her maids to give her a massage every day. It’s not easy to maintain a beautiful appearance.”

“Well, yeah, she is pretty.”

Although the sound of Arya’s name made Sienna cringe, she still had to acknowledge her beauty. But Arya’s excessive luxury also bothered Sienna.

Currently, the empire was not in a good financial state. Arya used the state funds as if it were her own allowance, and even the previous emperors led indulgent lives using the empire’s finances, so the current financial condition of the empire was at rock bottom.

For this reason, it was difficult to secure funds for the waterway project, which was necessary to establish a stable farming foundation or pay compensation to the bereaved families of soldiers who died in the war. Sienna was abhorrent of Arya’s continued behavior even in these times.

When Sienna answered in an annoyed voice, Hain felt this was the time, so she convinced Sienna.

“Look, you really don’t want to be belittled by the Empress, do you? So wear it even if it’s uncomfortable. It’s the best dress you’ve ever had.”

“Even then, I hate corsets!”

After Sienna’s fierce defiance, the two eventually reached an agreement in a dress that revealed quite a lot of shoulders and breasts. Wearing a wrinkled red dress, Sienna headed for the empress’ palace where Bluebell was staying. The red hair gently scattered over her fair-skinned shoulders.

‘You always have to meet the person you never want to see.’

Sienna faced Empress Arya in front of Bluebell’s Palace. Next to her was Madame Kitroll, who was in charge of etiquette education. When Sienna saw Arya, she felt her mouth stiffening, but she didn’t want to be rude in front of Madame Kitroll, so she forced herself to smile and greet her.

“Your Majesty the Empress. And Madame Kitroll is here, too. How have you been?”

Sienna spoke to Kitroll immediately after she had given Arya the least bit of courtesy. It was an act of contempt for Arya, but it was not enough to point it out as a problem.

Kitroll welcomed Sienna with pleasure.

“It’s been a really long time. You haven’t been out for a while, have you been sick?”

When Carl and Bluebell were about to marry, Sienna did not do as much outside activity as possible. It was because at that time, she wasn’t sure about how Carl felt about her and thought of leaving him. Sienna thought it was not polite to act more in the spotlight than Bluebell, because she was the one who will leave, and the one who will be the true empress was Bluebell.

Of course, she didn’t intend to keep her head down now that she knew how Carl felt about her.

“No, it’s just that I didn’t have anything special to do. As you can see, I’m very healthy.”

“It’s clear that Sienna is healthy. Her grip is so powerful that I thought she could easily cut off a weak woman’s neck. Hahaha, this is just a joke.”

Arya’s eyes were not smiling at all, even though she said it was a joke.

“Does my arm look that big? I’ll have to work on it.”

“No, you’re really beautiful right now.”

“I wasn’t just kidding.”

Sienna glared fiercely at Arya, who followed Kitroll’s response. Arya also glared back at Sienna without losing. As the atmosphere between the two was about to become tense, fortunately, the timely doorman opened the door.

“Welcome.”

Bluebell greeted them with a bright face. For a moment, too, she had an unpleasant look on her face as if she had touched something uncomfortable as her gaze touched Sienna. It was because of the story she heard from Arya about Sienna the other day.

“Empress Bluebell, I’m glad to see you again following yesterday’s meeting. Just as flowers bloom after water, it seems like your beauty shines over time.”

“Thank you.”

Arya greeted Bluebell in a friendly way, quite unlike how she had been talking to Sienna. Sienna was bothered by the friendly relationship between Arya and Bluebell.

“Thank you for the invitation. There seems to be a good relationship between Empress Bluebell and Empress Arya.”

Kitroll helped Sienna by her side.

“I agree. You two look very friendly. Like a mother and a daughter.”

At Kitroll’s words, Arya pulled Bluebell’s shoulder and said, “Really? Do we look more alike this way? It’s an honor to look like such a beautiful Queen Bluebell as a mother and a daughter.”

“It’s an honor for me, too.”

Bluebell was shy, looking up at Arya, who held her shoulder affectionately. Sienna, who saw it and realized something, unwittingly laughed. Bluebell and Kitroll looked at Sienna with questioning faces, but Sienna tried hard to hide her expression as if nothing happened.

“I’m just jealous. You two look so close.”

Arya answered with a strange smile on her eyes.

“Hoho, Empress Bluebell. I think Empress Sienna is jealous of us.”

“Would Empress Sienna do that, really?”

The two exchanged words like long-time friends. Sienna looked at Arya and Bluebell with anxious eyes.

Bluebell guided the party to the restaurant. They immediately started eating.

The more the food went in, Bluebell looked more distressed, and Sienna was convinced it was because of her dress. She was wearing a corset that was in trend in the capital this year, a style that tightens the waist into a handful. That’s why Sienna had a long argument with Hain about not wearing it.

One of Bluebell’s charms was that she didn’t lose all her baby fat, and today she was hollow-cheeked. Although she was originally slim, so although she may look pretty she looked very uncomfortable, and Sienna wondered how she even put the dress on.

Frail innocent look. It was not Sienna’s favorite word, but she thought it might be the most appropriate word to describe the current appearance of Bluebell.

“Empress Bluebell, your dress looks great on you. It’s a dress that’s hard for anyone to pull off.”

When Sienna asked, Bluebell said in a boastful tone.

“Is that so? It’s the dress you sent me.”

Sienna looked at Arya with suspicious eyes. Arya was by no means a generous enough person to do this kind of favor without anything she wants in return. Sienna’s mind became complicated trying to figure out what Arya was up to.

Clang-!

“Ah!”