CH 119

“I was very impressed with your behavior just now, Lady Floyen.”

I frowned at Mary Ann’s words. “Huh? My behavior?” No matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn’t understand what she meant. I was simply relieved with others thinking I wasn’t a nuisance, let alone a person with impressive behavior.

As if to answer my question, Catherine placed her teacup down on the tea plate and beamed. “No matter how close a lady is to her friend, it’s not easy to reveal the secret behind making great tea like this.”

‘A secret? I only told them because it was common sense…’ I became flustered, unaware that they would think this highly of me. “No, it’s just…” Of course, I was extremely grateful that they had viewed me in a positive light, but I couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable since they were praising me after misinterpreting my behavior from what I had intended. That’s why I decided to be frank and confess that this wasn’t what I wanted. However, the aforementioned two stopped me before I could speak.

“I agree. I’m thankful that you’ve trusted us enough to tell us this.”

“Although this is only my second time meeting you personally, I’m deeply moved by your kindness.” 

This really wasn’t what I had hoped for. I sat in confusion, thinking about how they had misinterpreted my intentions, when someone piped up.

“That’s enough, everyone.” Amid all the people unable to form rational judgements, someone who was capable of making a proper decision interjected. Lady Terrence continued as she glanced over at me. “Although Lady Floyen kindly shared the secret behind her tea, answered all of our questions well, and is a better person than we had originally thought, we should remain unbiased in our evaluations about the tea.”

Was it my imagination or did it seem like she was complimenting me somewhat? In any case, I had no intention of becoming an active member of the tea tasting party, so I quickly spoke after her words. “She’s right. I would like things to remain unbiased as well.”

Lady Terrence nodded at my answer. “On that note, I’ll say in all fairness that the tea Lady Floyen served us today seems like an ordinary Darjeeling tea at a glance.”

It was true. The tea leaves looked pleasant to the eyes as they had flowers mixed in, but there was no way anyone was going to look at the tea leaves, as they were meant to be placed in the filter paper to brew the tea. ‘Well, I guess that means I failed the test to become a member,’ I thought.

“But the process of using a special technique to give the tea leaves a new scent was excellent. The fragrance was very nice as well. Could I say that it felt like the scent of dewy roses was spreading inside my mouth?”

I was listening to Lady Terrence’s praise with a blank face, when she warned, “Keep in mind that you will be kicked out if you break the rules of our party in the future.”

‘Kicked out?’ I didn’t have enough time to process the sudden phrase mentioned when the others began to congratulate me.

“Oh my goodness, congratulations!”

“We’ll be able to see each other more in the future!”

“We’re pleased to have you as a member!” 

I came to my senses at their greetings then lamented. ‘Ah, Lady Terrence. How could you… have let me pass?’

* * *

“Oh, time passed by so fast…!”

“We’ll let you know in advance when the next meeting is!”

The members of the tea tasting party bid their farewells one by one.

“Could I write to you as well from now on?” Veronica asked with a blush.

“Of course,” Jubelian nodded slightly.

Veronica’s face brightened. “See you next time!”

After Veronica left, only two people remained in the empty drawing room. Max gazed at Jubelian with gentle eyes.

“I heard that even the former empress had shunned the crown prince.”

A bitter smile formed on Max’s face as he recalled those words. 

“Don’t come back to this place from now on. I don’t know where the poison might be,” his mother had told him. The reason why the former empress had made her son stay away from her was because she was afraid that he might become poisoned. Max, who knew the truth, didn’t suffer from the rumors because he knew his mother loved him despite what others would say.

“I’m sorry. I don’t think I’ll be able to protect you,” his mother had said. 

After his mother had passed, the only reason Max was able to survive under Empress Isabelle’s evil influence was because of his temporary ally, Duke Floyen. Empress Isabelle had thought that using force wouldn’t be enough, so she attempted to destroy the young crown prince’s mind.

‘The crown prince is violent and has a cold heart. He does not shed blood nor tears,’ was the malicious rumor she spread to tear him apart. At first, Max was angry and felt victimized, but even when he tried to denounce those words, nothing changed. For this reason, he chose to become insensitive towards rumors about him, because even if he did pay attention to each and every one of those lies, the situation didn’t get any better. Over time, he started to think that it wouldn’t be so bad to become a cold-hearted monster who didn’t shed blood nor tears as the rumors stated. He decided it would be better than being threatened by those who looked down on him.

Even so, when Jubelian had defended him, something arose inside him and shook him greatly. “Isn’t it too early to be jumping to conclusions when we haven’t seen him yet? He might be more generous than we think,” she had said.

It was such a strange sensation. ‘How come you’re different from the others?’ Max watched Jubelian with a deep gaze, when she suddenly turned her blue eyes towards him. He could have looked away, but Max continued to stare straight at her with a desire to look into her eyes. When their eyes met, the sound of his heart pounding rang loudly in his ears. ‘Do you feel the same way as me?’ he silently hoped. However, Jubelian only grumbled in return.

“I guess I’m stuck with having to engage in social events,” she sighed.

‘What’s wrong with social events?’ Max almost asked unconsciously, then shut his mouth. When he thought about it, Jubelian was always acting strange. During the banquet, she was alone and had only answered others’ questions instead of starting a conversation. He suddenly recalled the gossip he had heard about her one day.

“It was Lady Floyen who made me interested in attending the banquet, especially since she always causes trouble…”

Only then did Max realize why he had become so angry back then. ‘Is it because you’re similar to me?’

Max, who had been silently gazing at Jubelian, opened his mouth. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine,” he reassured her.