CH 124

The maid immediately straightened her posture and lowered her head.

“Allow me to guide you. This way, please.”

Erin didn’t particularly like the maid’s authoritarian tone, but she still held a lower rank than the maid for now.

‘Just you wait until I become the Crown Princess.’

Erin bit her lip, suppressing the urge to retort, and glared at the maid’s back.

The maid led Erin to the place where she had a meeting with the Empress before. It was a surprisingly cozy garden within the overwhelmingly splendid Empress’ Palace, a place where Erin felt at ease.

As Erin sat down and took a moment to catch her breath, the Empress revealed herself. She still had a smiling face, but her expression was strangely rigid.

“Lady Erin.”

“It’s an honor to meet you again, Your Majesty.”

“Yes, please have a seat.”

The Empress said so and took her seat. The maids brought tea and desserts, but there was no conversation between the two. Amid the silence, the Empress, who had been tapping the table, spoke up.

“It seems you haven’t done well with the task I entrusted you.”

“…Pardon?”

“A scandal has erupted once again, with Lady Siara’s name being mentioned.”

Erin tightly bit her lips. The Empress’s words were true. But with Dianel openly accompanying Siara and witnesses spreading rumors, there was no way to contain the gossip.

The scandal involving Erin, whom he had only met once, could not last long. However, Erin couldn’t make excuses in front of the Empress, especially when she didn’t seem pleased, unlike their previous encounter. 

Erin hesitated, unable to spit out her defense. The Empress looked at her with eyes full of disdain. Even though Erin lowered her head, she could feel the gaze, and her body gradually shriveled.

All Erin could see in the Empress’ eyes were her fingers tapping the table. The tapping slowed down, and then the Empress spoke.

“Do you know what you did wrong?”

“…What did I do wrong…?”

“Planning to harm Leven’s son and Lady Siara during the Debutante Ball, and instigating interference in their dance.”

Erin’s face stiffened in surprise.

Of course, she had intended to do such things. However, her interaction with Leven’s son was merely a casual conversation. When she asked about their progress later, she was told that Siara’s surroundings were too strict, making it impossible to approach her.

Moreover, jealousy among the favorites was not uncommon, although it may not have been right. But for the Empress to mention such matters.

‘Why?’

Could it be that Siara caught the Empress’ attention instead of her?

A sudden thought crossed Erin’s mind, and she looked up. The Empress, who had been looking down at her, gazed down at her condescendingly and murmured.

“I told you, I respect His Highness’ thoughts. But deliberately tormenting the person who caught His Highness’ eye and appearing before me?”

“….”

“You. How many times did you talk to Dianel? It is true that His Highness sent you a white glove, or… did the young lady lie?”

“No!”

Erin felt unjust and abruptly stood up from her seat. Realizing that she was in front of the Empress, she quickly sat back down, but she couldn’t erase the anger in her eyes. She felt her body trembling with anger and spoke.

“How can you say that? It’s clear, absolutely clear, that His Highness gave me the glove!”

“But Dianel only spent time with Siara, didn’t he?”

“That lady, I mean… Siara was a commoner! How can I be compared to her? Even if she joined the Astita family, how could she become the Crown Princess? His Highness gave me the glove. She couldn’t have received one!”

“Hmm, is that so?”

The Empress’ words trailed off. Her tone seemed to have become colder.

Even though her words were strong, it seemed that the Empress, as a former commoner herself, disliked seeing a commoner frolicking around by Dianel’s side. 

Perhaps that’s why she tried to suppress Siara and even rejected her request for a meeting.

‘So that’s why she blocked the entry to the palace and refused the request for a meeting.’

Erin thought of herself as being tested by the Empress and politely spoke.

“Your Majesty, you must like me more. If you can’t believe it, I’ll prove it.”

But the Empress only responded with a lukewarm smile and murmured like a sigh.

“Young lady, it’s not easy to hold onto a man who has lost interest.”

“…!”

“No matter what your status is, you understand, right?”

“…H-How can you say such a thing to me-“

“Right now, Dianel is willing to use all means for Siara. Seeing that he understands His Highness’ heart better than you, it seems my thoughts were correct.”

“…”

“Step back. And never contact the Empress’ Palace again.”

The Empress immediately stood up. 

Erin sat there in despair for a moment before rushing towards the Empress. She was quickly restrained by the knights guarding the Empress, but she didn’t give up. 

With a voice filled with tears, Erin called out to the Empress.

“Your Majesty, Your Majesty! If you give me one more chance, I won’t fail again!”

“…”

“Your Majesty!”

Even when Erin cried out loud enough to sit on the floor, the Empress didn’t turn around. Only after she disappeared did the maid who had guided Erin to this place earlier stand in front of her. She gestured for Erin to follow her.

Sobbing uncontrollably, Erin moved forward with unsteady steps. When they arrived at a certain place, the maid murmured something strange.

“Even if the river changes its course, the Crown Prince is still being played by a commoner.”

“…!”

Erin raised her head in surprise at the small voice. Whether the maid knew it or not, she continued muttering to herself.

“Even if she has no background in high society, her influence will soon become noticeable. It’s pitiful to see a noble who becomes obsessed with immediate benefits.”

“…”

“How pathetic.”

With those final words, the maid turned away. She glanced at Erin and muttered.

“I quite liked the things you did to Siara. …You should have been a bit more daring.”

The maid disappeared quickly. 

Erin sat there dazed, then avoided the gazes of the people looking at her with confusion and got into the carriage. She continued to ponder over the maid’s words.

Siara, who would soon expand her influence, and the maids of the Empress’ Palace who felt uncomfortable about it. Perhaps this was the Empress’ way of giving her a hint.

‘Yes, I admitted my mistake, but she didn’t scold me either, did she?’

If Erin does well, she might catch the Empress’ attention again. Above all, Erin disliked Siara. It was natural for people in high society to like and dislike each other, and it was only natural for things to happen between them. 

Moreover, unlike the other favorites, Siara wasn’t from a noble background. As an adopted child, she was sure to be disliked by many people, just like that maid.

If Siara were to make a mistake now, she would disappear without a trace. Dianel also wouldn’t want to associate himself with a woman with a ruined reputation, and the nobles who had shown interest in Siara would turn their backs on her.

‘Yes, I have to step on her before she becomes too influential.’

For that, Erin needed to create a bigger incident. Stepping on her toes during the Debutante Ball was far from enough.

‘There must be a better way.’

Erin bit her lip in contemplation. Then, suddenly, the faces of Duke Izbe’s two daughters came to mind. 

By now, they were likely to have developed a grudge against Siara, just like Erin. While Siara may not have been threatening in the past, now there were scandals surrounding Dianel that were widespread. 

The official candidate for Crown Princess was being mentioned alongside other favorites, and it couldn’t be a pleasant feeling for the noble ladies.

Moreover, their power was incomparable to Erin’s. If the noble ladies were to say a few negative words about Siara, the atmosphere in high society would turn hostile, and Siara wouldn’t be able to withstand it.

‘Yes, being the Crown Princess represents the Empire. It’s not something that can be decided by just one person’s feelings. It seems the Empress wants to show me that.’

With a firm resolve, Erin spoke to the coachman.

“Let’s go to the Izbe Ducal Estate.”

The coachman obediently turned the carriage. Erin buried herself in the carriage, taking deep breaths.

The ladies of the Izbe Ducal Estate were not to be underestimated. Erin thought about what to say to win them over, lost in deep thought.

* * *

Izbe Ducal Estate.

As the ladies chatted amongst themselves, they heard the news from a maid.

“Erin wants to see us?”

“What right does she have to come to our mansion?”

Then, the eyes of the two ladies met. They raised the corners of their mouths and laughed. 

One of them picked up one of the many gossip papers in front of her. The front page of the papers was filled with scandals about Siara and Dianel.

“Ah, could it be because of this scandal?”

“Goodness, it’s so pitiful…”

Naturally, the ladies were quicker than anyone to hear about the relationship between Dianel and Siara. And as experienced individuals in high society, they were perceptive.

‘When His Highness collapsed in the office, Siara sacrificed herself to save him.’

‘I heard that Dianel bestowed a golden mansion near Astita for Siara.’

‘All those who tormented Siara were apprehended under different pretexts.’

While they didn’t know what Siara felt, Dianel’s intentions seemed obvious. And Duke Izbe and the ladies didn’t want to face the same difficulties as those families who poked a sleeping tiger.

It was an era of strong power, and it was evident that Dianel would become even stronger when he became the Emperor.

So they gracefully gave up. 

Instead, the ladies made photo albums with pictures of the two, saying that it looked good when a beautiful person was paired with another beautiful person.

However, it seemed that some were oblivious and unable to give up. Although it was unclear how they managed to remain unscathed despite such a topic.

The eyes of the two ladies met, and mischievous smiles appeared on their lips.

“Should we tease her a bit?”

“Not a bad idea.”

The two ladies made up their minds and responded.

“Tell her she has come to the right place.”