Chapter 51

Mrs. Chester and Mrs. Lamont, who were running two major salons in the capital, were gathered in one place. Marianne felt so uncomfortable, sandwiched between them. Given the extreme unease of the host who was seated at the head table, other guests near her and those sitting at the end of the tables felt just as uncomfortable and could not even breathe.

Agonizing over how to cool the overheated atmosphere, Marianne suddenly clapped her hands. All the guests fixed their gaze at her instantly as if they promised.

“Gifts for you! I forgot the gifts!”

Her cheerful voice rang out in every nook and corner of the parlor. Cordelli quickly noticed it and beckoned the maid standing at the door to bring the gifts.

Shortly after the maid disappeared, well-dressed maids and good-looking servants came in with something in their arms.

“Wow, it looks like the leaves of Goddess Anthea! Next to it is the divine stone of our main god Airius, right?”

Looking at the gold plate in the maids’ arms, Rane spoke amicably. When she reacted excitedly, the cold atmosphere began to melt away. Several women glanced at the gold plates and whispered behind their fans.

“Aren’t you already familiar with them? There are plenty of them in Duke Lamont’s mansion.”

“There are several, but not many enough to tip over them. And it feels different to receive it directly.”

Rane put down the spoon, retorting at Mrs. Chester’s remarks.

Anthea was the goddess of the earth loved by Airius. Justice, music, beauty and love were also under her control. According to the legend, she was so beautiful when she was born that even the moon closed her eyes and the flowers on the earth bloomed out of season.

Airius fell for Anthea and won over her heart after his passionate wooing for 365 days. On the day they promised marriage, humans and fairies came to celebrate their sacred union.

Concerned that she might be blind because of too much glory and beauty of the gods, Anthea blackened the transparent leaves and handed them over to the guests. Airius put divine power into the pebble so that they would not be lost in darkness.

Aslan was an empire built under the protection of the gods. The royal families, who professed to be the descendants of Airius, held a masquerade ball the day before their engagement ceremonies to pay tribute to the gods. The participants were given brooches with dark silk masks and large rubies. The silk masks symbolized the leaves of Anthea while the ruby brooch symbolized the holy stones of Ailrius.

“How fortunate it is for the emperor to find his bride! If he didn’t, I wouldn’t get this gift until I died, right?” Rane said, shaking her mask and brooch back and forth. The guests standing in the back also received their gifts in excitement.

The royal marriage was not a common event that took place every year, and not all nobles were invited. Accordingly, the gifts they received were very rare, which only large and powerful noble families could receive only a few times in all of their lives. As such, there were lots of noble families that handed down the gifts to their descendants as a family treasure.

Even that sassy Roxanne was fiddling with the brooch with a sullen look.

“Thank you for your warm considerations.”

Beatrice bowed to Marianne for the first time and thanked her.

“Thank you for your kind considerations.”

Then the guests nearby thanked her in unison.

“You’re welcome!” said Marianne, smiling with a sigh of relief.

“Then, it’s time for me to thank you.”

While the maids handed out gifts to the wives and their daughters, the servants went out after putting large and small shower gifts in order.

Cordelli supported and escorted Marianne to the large space next to the table.

As she moved, the other guests stood up simultaneously.

This, too, was in line with the mythical ceremony. The humans and fairies who participated in the engagement of Airius and Anteia offered fruit, statues, flowers, and poetry to them. For this reason, it was customary for those invited to the eve ball to prepare one shower gift per family.

“This is Anthea Night!”

Marianne stood before a big picture as high as her breasts. As it was one of the old famous paintings she saw in an art history book, she confidently spoke about the title of the picture.

“This is a masterpiece by Simony.”

The person who prepared the gift seemed to be Duchess Lamont. Marianne greeted her, lifting the hem of her dress slightly.

“I’m not sure if it is proper for me to receive this precious gift. There are only a few paintings by Simony in the empire, so they are very rare.”

“It’s good to know that I can give my gift to someone who knows its value.”

Duchess Lamont replied with a slight aloofness. Even so, she didn’t give it to her niece-in-law because she liked the latter. She just wanted to show to Marianne that she was affluent enough to give such an expensive and meaningful masterpiece to her. In a way, it was just a sophisticated way of showing her conceit.

But it couldn’t be a more welcome gift for Marianne who used to run a salon in Lennox where she discussed poetry, painting, and music with the participants.

“I will remember your kindness while looking at it at hand,” she said.

Duchess Lamont stepped back with a satisfied face. She felt convinced that Marianne would like her gift best, although there were lots of other gifts on display on the back table.

“It is said that flowers bloom all year round in the north in spring,” Mrs. Chester said as if she was waiting for her turn earnestly.

“I hear there are over a hundred species of rare plants in the Lennox Mansion, but I think you will be seeing this species for the first time.”

There was a large flower pot Mrs. Chester pointed to with the tip of her fan.

The upper part of the stem was dense and plump, and as it went down to the root, it became thicker until it became as thick as Marianne’s waist at the bottom. It was a bit bizarre, but the buds hanging on the tip of the stem were really pretty.

“Yes, it’s my first time seeing this species. What’s its name?”

Marianne touched the flower tree with a curious look.

“It’s called Adenium. It is said that it was transported from the Sorman Kingdom studded with deserts. It grows well and blooms even on dry ground, so it’s called the desert rose.”

“Oh, how nice!”

Mrs. Chester smiled in scorn at Marianne who was looking at the pot with an innocent look.

Her dark purple fan naturally covered her mouth when she did so.

“Are there more rare flowers like this in the Chester Mansion?”

“Sure. If you want, you can stop by and explore my garden. If I’m not available, let me tell the maids to take good care of you when you happen to visit.”

“Thanks for your kind considerations.”

Marianne smiled brightly as if she was really happy. Mrs. Chester also gently bent her eyes over the fan.

In other words, it was like Mrs. Chester’s declaration that she would continue to keep informal relationship with Marianne in the future.

Duchess Lamont snorted as if she felt her intention was ridiculous.

“Can I take a look at the next gift?”

Standing before the gifts of Hubble Jr’s wife and Beatrice, she called them close. Her green eyes became thin and blurred.

* * *

“That’s enough. You can go out.”

The maids who adjusted the hem of the dress left the room.

Mrs. Charlotte glanced at Mrs. Renault’s dress in front of the mirror. The countess didn’t fit Marianne’s clothes, so she was wearing Mrs. Charlotte’s spare dress. Although their taste in dresses was different, her dress seemed okay on the surface.

“How about your hands?”

“I’m fine.”

“What a relief! You might have been in big trouble if Marianne had finished talking to Mrs. Chester a bit earlier. Besides, tea was rather less hot when it spilled on your hands.”

“Charlotte!”

“I think the teatime is almost over now. Would you like to go to the waiting room right away? Or you can take a walk in the garden…”

“Charlotte.”

Mrs. Renault repeatedly called Mrs. Charlotte.

“Yes, chief maid!” Mrs. Charlotte replied, after all. That was the most familiar call to her.

“You didn’t forget the emperor’s order, right?”

“Of course, I didn’t. I have never forgotten it.”

During the days when Empress Blair was in charge of the women’s affairs at the palace, Countess Renault was her chief maid and Mrs. Charlotte was her chief assistant.

“Do not worry too much. I’ve been watching her for a long time and I’m convinced that Marianne is not on the side of the marquise.”

“Then, is she definitely on the emperor’s side?”

“Well, I do not know. The thing is that she is not the marquise’s woman.”

Mrs. Charlotte smiled as she tied her fine ribbon again.

“I admit that Marianne’s conditions are not bad. But she is too fragile to beat Mrs. Chester. I don’t know if she had the will to win from the beginning.”