Chapter 119
So, the only tea party attendees that Sophia knew of were her, Killian, and Estelle.
Therefore, she couldn’t help but be surprised when she encountered Ian at the Empress’s Palace.
“Why are you here, Ian?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
Ian seemed just as surprised.
“I’m here because I was invited to the party today.”
Sophia showed him the invitation, and Ian also presented his.
They had received identical envelopes.
When Sophia received her invitation, Ian seemed to have received his at the Ruchtainer, as they both lived in the same house but were unaware they were going to the same party. ‘What a sweet Fraus family,’ Sophia thought.
At that moment, Ian’s gaze shifted towards Killian, who was standing beside Sophia.
“…His Grace, the Grand Duke, has also been invited. How’s the wound?”
It wasn’t a tone of genuine concern, but Killian graciously responded nonetheless.
“Thanks to some good rest, I’m fine. And you, Sir Ian?”
“Thanks.”
Ian raised the corners of his mouth, but his expression was clearly very, very angry.
However, Killian casually struck up a conversation with Ian despite his expression.
“I heard you’ve taken over the investigation into the Black Moon incident.”
“Yes. It seems the matter isn’t being resolved at the Military Police Headquarters.”
“That’s what I’ve heard too. It should be resolved at your level, shouldn’t it?”
Killian looked genuinely worried.
Sophia squeezed herself between the two of them, feeling nervous.
“Take it seriously, Killian!”
What if Ian really catches the black moon?
However, contrary to Sophia’s worries, Killian smoothly continued the conversation with Ian.
And when they reached the garden where the tea party was prepared, they were warmly greeted by Beatrice.
Estelle had already arrived and was waiting for them.
Following the queen’s guidance, Ian, Sophia, Killian, and Estelle sat around a round table in that order.
On the white tablecloth, there were tiered trays filled with sandwiches and various desserts, along with tea sets.
Sophia unknowingly looked around for Elizabeth.
The queen must be cautious, but what crime could Elizabeth have committed? A cat is just a cat.
There’s no need to give up something cute just because of personal issues.
The queen noticed Sophia looking for Elizabeth and smiled.
“Elizabeth is taking a nap for the day.”
“Oh. I see…”
Sophia awkwardly laughed.
Too bad. Elizabeth was the only good reason to come to the Empress’s Palace.
“Mikhail was supposed to come with us, but he couldn’t make it because he’s busy. I thought since there were young people of the same age, they would get along well, but it’s a pity.”
Beatrice looked around at the gathered guests.
Killian actually thought it was fortunate that Mikhail didn’t come.
‘It would have been awkward to meet him here.’
Since their last argument, the two haven’t contacted each other at all.
Normally, someone would have reached out first to naturally reconcile, but this time was different.
Perhaps they would continue to keep their distance from each other in the future, Killian thought.
“We’ve arranged this gathering to express our gratitude to Lady Sophia and Lady Estelle for their help during the last beast incident. They couldn’t enjoy it properly back then and had to leave halfway.”
The queen looked at Sophia and Estelle in turn.
“And we’ve invited Sir Ian and Killian to thank them for their efforts during the last tournament. While it’s nice to meet each of you separately, we thought it would be more enjoyable to gather together since you all know each other.”
Beatrice smiled warmly as she poured tea.
The reasons for inviting them seemed plausible.
But still, Estelle’s side bothers me.
“Come to think of it, Ian and Estelle don’t know each other, do they?”
Beatrice, who was sorting out their relationships, asked Ian and Estelle.
“Oh, no… We’ve met once at the last ball.”
“…Is that so?”
Ian frowned and looked at Estelle. It seemed he didn’t remember at all.
With Estelle’s unusual pink hair, it should have been memorable.
Moreover, he couldn’t remember after saying unfortunate things to Estelle, whom he met for the first time that day.
Is his brain only for training in Ruchtainer…?
‘Indeed, the perpetrator often can’t remember, while the victim is destined to remember.’
Sophia thought to herself, shaking her head at Ian.
The queen wanted to introduce Ian to Estelle, and they greeted each other.
Although they had already greeted each other, Estelle greeted him again as if it were their first meeting.
However, Ian, unable to control his expression even in front of the queen, responded to Estelle’s greeting with a bitter face, nodding curtly.
Sophia felt the urge to give Ian a good slap on the back.
“Sir Ian, Lady Estelle, or should I say, Sir Estelle in this setting? Anyway, Sir Estelle here gave up joining the Orhel because she wanted to enter Ruchtainer.”
The queen said this to Ian.
Then Ian looked at Estelle as if he could see through her and nodded, saying,
“Ah, I remember now. You asked about Ruchtainer at the ball too.”
“Yeah. She’s an exceptionally skilled lady. Even during the incident with the beasts, she adeptly assisted in handling the aftermath. Quite the worthy member of the Niore family,” praised the Empress about Estelle.
Estelle seemed uncomfortable with the praise and simply nodded modestly.
“Hunting beasts is always a task in the north,” she replied humbly.
“Come to think of it, with the scar on your waist, it seems you must have grown up learning such things,” Beatrice suddenly brought up Estelle’s scar.
Killian immediately became alert.
Why bring up the scar here? Was it a coincidence? Or did she know an illegitimate child has a scar on his back?
Killian casually sipped his tea while observing the Empress. However, since he had never disclosed the conditions or evidence of the illegitimate child to Sophia, she didn’t understand the significance of this conversation.
“I’m sorry for ruining the Founding Ball that day, Your Majesty.”
“It’s fine. I heard about what happened that day. Barbara also had her faults. But how did you get such a large scar?” the Empress asked directly.
Was she trying to expose her? Trying to let everyone know that Estelle is an illegitimate child?
Killian kept his expression neutral as he watched the two of them.
“It’s been there since I was young.”
“Since you were young?”
“Before I was adopted. So, I’m not sure how it happened.”
“Is that so? Hmm…”
As Beatrice nodded in understanding, her gaze shifted briefly to Killian.
Killian met her eyes without any hint of hesitation, smoothly lowering his teacup.
“By the way, both Killian and Sir Ian seem to have recovered well from their injuries,” Beatrice casually changed the subject, testing Killian.
“If either of you had any lingering grievances since our last encounter, feel free to air them out here,” the Empress added, seemingly attempting to reconcile the two.
However, Ian’s face was filled with bitterness.
Instead of airing out any lingering grievances, his expression seemed to suggest that he might create more grievances before leaving.
Sophia couldn’t help but roll her eyes at her brother’s behaviour.
‘How did he manage social interactions with such an expressive face?’ she wondered to herself.
Even if he had been in the Order of Knights since childhood, there must have been things to learn. Did he simply rely on his skills to get this far?
Sophia sighed inwardly.
Beatrice seemed to be aware of his temperamental nature but didn’t comment on his visibly irritated expression.
Perhaps this was Ian’s way of navigating the world, Sophia thought.
“Oh, and Killian, you could give advice on catching the Black Moon. After all, you’ve handled cases like this before,” Beatrice suggested.
“I haven’t been able to catch it yet, so how can I advise Sir Ian? I’m not worthy,” Killian replied modestly, causing a subtle tension between him and Ian.
Sitting between the two of them, Sophia felt increasingly uneasy.
Perhaps it would have been better to seat them next to each other.
No, she couldn’t place the precious Killian next to the unfortunate Ian. (T/L: Thats cute.)
“I understand that all the military police data has been shared with Sir Ian as well. I’ve organised the information as thoroughly as possible, so you should be able to handle it,” Killian assured.
Ian quickly turned his head at Killian’s words.
He seemed like he wanted to say something like ‘yeah, right’, but restrained himself in front of the Empress.
“Alright. I trust that Sir Ian is capable; that’s why I’ve entrusted him with the task.”
Beatrice smiled at Ian.
Sophia couldn’t help but worry that Ian might end up being executed by the Empress.
“Come to think of it, Ian and Sophia are siblings, aren’t they? They look quite alike,” Beatrice remarked, observing the two of them.
‘Alike? Where?’ Sophia felt puzzled.
But Ian’s expression remained cold and indifferent.
Thanks 😊