CH 70

A ball hosted by the empress? I had no idea.

Because Ive been incredibly busy lately.

Arden went on with a look on his face that said he was remorseful.

“It was a ball that all the nobility of the empire attended. But Madam Irene, who is the talk of the town right now, was conspicuously absent, much to the disappointment of Her Majesty.”

My vision was blurry as I looked up at Aden.

If I could ask, with all of my memories exposed, it was something I really wanted to do.

For about a month, I was dragged on by the Commander of the Holy Knights, broke through the middle of the demons, met the original male protagonist, and was forced to participate in the dark auction. Furthermore, I was threatened by the nefarious Nine to spill the blood of my husband within a month. Did I really have the spirit to dwell on the ball?

Arden emitted yet another pitiful sigh while I remained silent, gazing at him intently.

“Well, it would appear that Madam Irene is not yet conversant with the aristocratic culture of the capital. Because the culture of the capital has such a long history, there are a great deal of archaic customs and unspoken rules, like stars. It’s no wonder that Madam Irene had no chance of fitting in.”

I slowly cocked one brow in response.

The end of the sentence is extremely drawn out, but the meaning that he was trying to convey can be summed up in a single sentence.

‘A hillbilly like you won’t be able to adjust to the sophistication of capital’s society.’

There was no particular backlash. The notion that this aristocratic culture has a lot of pointless ways of doing things is one that I have no problem agreeing with.

“Thank you for your understanding. I’m doing my best to get used to it.”

When I responded with a smile, Arden’s forehead wrinkled slightly, as though he hadn’t been expecting that response at all.

It was obvious what thoughts were running through his mind. ‘You hillbilly, don’t you get that I was being sarcastic?’ Well, it had to be something along these lines, didn’t it?

I couldn’t help but keep staring up at Arden while smiling blankly. If I’m being completely honest, the sight of a wildcat dozing off with its claws extended after it had drunk didn’t bother me in the least.

Again, Arden stated it, but this time she did so with a smile that was as delicate as a flower.

“Do not worry. Isn’t it just a matter of learning those manners? We are also able to assist. Is that the case, Your Grace the Duchess of Beyondine?

She is the Duchess of Beyondine.

I racked my brain, trying to come up with the name of someone I hadn’t heard before.

‘Ah, that imperial faction.’

I remember that in the early days after I arrived at the cathedral, when I was learning about the imperial situation, one of the topics that I was required to study was the Beyondine duchy.

The Duke of Beyondine family was a well-known family and was also a representative figure of the pro-emperor faction.

In the original work, it wasn’t a very important family, but it was also not a small family in the empire.

‘Your new friend is quite popular.’

No wonder. His nose seemed to be higher than before.

The Duchess of Beyondine was a lady who exuded elegance like a tulip.

Her beautiful red hair looked like it was cared for every day, and her green eyes, which looked like they were sprouting, and her white skin, which looked like it had never been exposed to the sun, showed that she was pure innocence.

The Duchess of Beyondine flashed an embarrassed smile while she looked at me.

“If Madam Irene wants it, of course I can help.”

According to what I learned in the Imperial Situation class, in contrast to the Duke of Beyondine, who uses the Emperor’s meeting room as if it were his master bedroom, his wife is very calm and quiet person.

I thought it was so at the time and passed it on, but seeing it in person, I could see the innocence in her confused eyes. She was innocent in a way that was similar to Cordelia’s.

I can’t say for sure how he did it, but Aden seemed to have a knack for winning over the hearts of these kind of nice people.

“Madame Irene, if I dare to give you some advice.”

Arden spoke to me once more while wearing that smile that reminded me of flowers.

“It would be better to visit Her Majesty as soon as possible. She is Irene’s senior even as a saintess, and she is a distant senior in the social world…… Haven’t you ever visited and greet her before?”

As Arden continued to speak to me, the Duchess of Beyontine’s face displayed a trace of bewilderment for a moment.

She interrupted.

“As a newly appointed saintess, you must be very busy. Even Her Majesty the Empress won’t mind it.”

“She is that kind of person. Her heart is like a great favour, so she won’t mind it, but that doesn’t mean you can hide a subordinate’s duty.”

It seemed that she had become acquainted with the Duchess of Beyondine, and had made quite an acquaintance with the powers of the empress.

Arden, who referred to me as an underling and spoke to me in an admonishing tone, was crossing the line with ease. Just by looking at the Duchess of Beyondine’s very confused face, I knew what to do.

But I wasn’t too angry about the way his claws looked, like those of a poisoned wildcat.

I cocked my head to the side and pondered something.

“Arden is right. Her Majesty…… I should greet her soon.”

It wasn’t empty talk.

Right now, there are so many things that I’m preoccupied with, so it’s hard for me to relax, but I was personally curious about the empress.

Lorelai Blancia Rehart. She is the supreme empress of the Rehart Empire, a saintess, and and has an amazing power that can heal any wounds she has received in the past ten minutes.

Nevertheless, Lorelai was a character who was not a very important character in the original work.

So, I didn’t know if Empress Lorelai was on the Emperor’s side or if she was just a figure who supported him.

“However, as Lord Arden pointed out, I don’t know a great deal of people in the social circles of the capital. Would you, Arden, a senior member of this social circle, please assist me?

I gave Arden a grin and told him.

As if this reaction had caught him by surprise, Aden parted his lips in a daze.

Because of what I did to get him abandoned by Cordelia, he would rather die than help me. However, from the position that he was in, which was to assist me with his mouth just a moment ago, he could only provide one answer to the question.

“Of course… I can. Haha.”

“Sure. Of course I’ll help you. There’s no need to be very nervous because it’s Her Majesty’s ball. Madam Irene will adjust quickly there, too.”

The Duchess of Beyondine came out with a smile. I smiled wide and looked at her.

“It’s a huge weight off my shoulders knowing that you are cheering me on. I must definitely attend the next gathering hosted by Her Majesty the Empress. As long as the conditions are appropriate.”

“Well, Irene. Then, will Sir Ian be attend……?”

A woman who had been listening to what Arden’s crowd was saying asked in a timid manner in the meantime. I smiled my eyes at her in response.

“Perhaps he will? You can’t imagine me going there by myself.”

This was half true.

Even though it’s not because of jealousy, since the underground ball happened not too long ago, it’s clear that if I say I’ll go to the ball again, I’ll be interrogated with my eyes open.

When the girls who didn’t know the truth heard my answer, they were excited and whispered among themselves.

Since the women couldn’t hide their excitement, Ian must have been a famous person in this world.

‘Yes, it’s better when they don’t know the truth.’

The night before yesterday, whenever I thought about those terrifying eyes staring at me and questioning me, I couldn’t help but shiver uncontrollably.

Thanks to the excited ladies, a joyful atmosphere unfolded. Arden, who had been quiet for a while, then spoke up with a big smile.

“I’m glad you felt that way. I just know how to help you, Madam Irene.”

“Really?”

Do you think that fox would really want to help me?

I forced myself to ignore my misgivings and turned to look at Arden with an inquisitive expression on my face.

“Yes. It is a secret weapon that can win the heart of Her Majesty. Of course, she is a noble empress, but she also has a strong identity as a saintess.”

Hmm. I have a premonition of something unsettling.

With a bright smile and a face like a flower, Arden said, 

“Does Madam Irene know about this tradition?  In the past, when cathedrals had a stronger hierarchy, it was common for the newest saintess to give “elixir” to the oldest saintess.”

Elixir was an elixir that the priests made by collecting their divine power to heal the sick.

In other words, the story of how he asked me to give it to the empress.

“Are you saying that I will extract my divine power and give it to Her Majesty as a gift?”

“Exactly. Her Majesty the Empress will be very happy.”

I looked at Aden silently with a smile on my face.

Arden’s intentions were obvious. It would be necessary to amass a sizeable quantity of divine power for it to be sufficient for the empress, and the recovery process would necessitate a fair amount of laborious effort on the part of those involved. That’s a cheap trick to play.

But it is a fatal move for me.

‘I do not possess divine power.’

Even if I had a tremendous amount of respect for the empress, there was no divine power that I could give her that would compare to the power of my nails.

Let’s figure out a way to turn the situation around and dismiss it. It was while  I was racking my brain for an explanation for what had happened.

“You know only one thing and don’t know two.”

Upon hearing the unexpected break in the voice, everyone turned in the same direction.

“Oh.”

“Oh my.”

The women who were confirming who the voice belonged to were startled and whispered.

Not only did they and everyone else find it surprising, but they found it surprising as well.

‘Why is that person here?’

Ray Monaghan, no.

The Master of Magic Tower, who was disguised as Ray Monaghan and headed in this direction with a grin on his face.