Chapter 39 We
“Nia, what’s wrong with your face? What’s wrong? You can’t be unhappy… What’s wrong?”
The warden, who had noticed Veronia’s dark look in the back of her mind, asked worriedly.
He hadn’t seen her look this dark in over a year of working with her.
“Let me know if anything happens. Is something wrong?”
“…No, of course not.”
Veronia struggled to keep her expression straight and forced a minimal, professional smile.
“It’s a good thing! I’m honoured to be in the Imperial Palace.”
“Indeed, it is, isn’t it? So, speaking of which, Nia…”
“But I can’t take part.”
Veronia cut her off before she could finish her sentence. Her stern expression and tone made her pause for a moment.
“Why… Come on, this is your project. If Nia doesn’t take it, who will?”
“I think I’ve made the plan pretty detailed, that should be enough, and I’ll make sure that any incidental additions or changes are in writing.”
“…”
“I can’t be out in the field, and I’d prefer not to have to do anything that requires me to be out in front of this plan, in general.”
“Nia… don’t do that, please…”
The warden said her name pleadingly. She was trying to appeal to her emotions.
But Veronia had already made up her mind. There was no appeal to emotion.
She fired a last-ditch effort.
“Look at my face, my blemished face.”
She lifted her chin and flashed the burn marks and tattoos that ran from the bottom of her cheeks to her neck in front of the warden.
The warden rolled her shoulders in bewilderment at Veronia’s unusually combative reaction.
“What’s wrong with your, uh, face? It was an unfortunate accident.”
“That’s what my colleagues and patients at the clinic think. It’s an ugly scar, but it was an unfortunate accident and an unfortunate life, and we should be sympathetic. The same goes for my colleagues at the Matap Institute.”
“…”
Veronia cleared her throat and raised her tone an octave. She squeezed the tears from her eyes.
“But the imperial palace is different, and the nobles I have to deal with there are different. They’ll try to throw me out, they’ll think I’m suspicious, they’ll want to investigate.”
Most of it was sincere, but there was a bit of exaggeration.
“Why would I enter the imperial palace to be treated in such a discriminatory, insulting, humiliating way, no.”
Veronia said bluntly. The warden didn’t agree with everything she said, but he was forced to back down for now.
“If that’s what you mean, Nia, then… I can’t help it…”
Judith normally proud shoulders sagged.
Veronia looked at the warden and breathed a sigh of relief that her emotional appeal had worked.
***
Jonathan arrived at the Empress’s palace to find Sandra greeting him with a less than pleased expression.
“I thought it would be a good idea to drop by and see if you’d like to join us, since you’re off on your own retreat.”
Jonathan’s casual remark made Sandra blush.
“She’s gone on a retreat, but not alone. You don’t realise she’s with Brienne, do you?”
With that, Sandra took a long gulp of wine. Her face was flushed from the wine she had already drunk, even though it was broad daylight.
“Is there anyone in this palace, in aristocratic society, who doesn’t have two or three lovers at all times? If there is, he’s an idiot and an arsehole.”
“Ahhhhhh…”
Sandra took another swig of wine.
“I mean, all this time he’s been hanging out in the back, hiding, maybe he’s embarrassed, but now he’s on the official agenda! How does this… make any sense!”
Sandra lost her temper and threw the wine glass she was holding to the floor. The glass shattered with a sharp clink against the marble.
When that didn’t work, she started screaming.
“Aaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”
Jonathan frowned at the harsh cry that pierced his eardrums. Unable to take it anymore, he finally stood up and walked over to Sandra’s side, gently grabbing her hand.
“Oh my God, hold on to it.”
“…”
There was a moment of soothing, and then the screaming stopped.
Jonathan spoke again, this time in a serious voice with a smile on his lips. He hoped Sandra understood his meaning.
“I’m always on your side. I just wish she would be a little more assertive, and stop denying her the rights she deserves within the palace.”
“Crown Prince…”
Sandra’s eyes were glassy with alcohol, but tears had formed in the corners of her eyes.
“You’ve had a lot to drink today, and I’m going to leave you to it, but please call me back when you’re sober.”
“…I will.”
“Take it easy and think about it, father. Father’s retreat isn’t quite over yet, is it? You have plenty of time.”
“…”
Having said his piece, Jonathan gave a quick bow and left.
Left alone, Sandra had a lot on her mind.
“Is there still a lot of time left on the retreat? Is there enough time?
What on earth was that snarky Jonathan thinking? Sandra’s mind spun like a whirlwind.
She had to figure out what he was thinking.
“Ah… head… head!”
But her pre-drinking brain was no longer functioning. Sandra pressed her temples together and shouted.
“Go and get the courtiers!”
“Yes, of course, Your Majesty.”
The corners of Sandra’s crimson mouth curled up as she watched the maid’s back as she raced off at a brisk.
***
Inside the headmaster’s office at the Imperial Normal Academy.
Killion, accompanied by two of his aides, is bombarding the headmaster with questions.
“What is the daily timetable?”
“What kind of classes do you teach these children, since they are so young?”
“Do you have any criteria for hiring teachers?”
Killion’s questions were endless. The aged headmaster’s wrinkled face lit up as he answered his questions.
It was no surprise. How often does one get to speak with the highest noble?
Besides, the fact that the highest noble was asking for his knowledge and opinions should make him feel good.
It was only the aides who were dying. Their hands were tired from writing down every word of Killion’s and the director answers.
After more than an hour of questioning, a short break was called. The sound of hororok tea being passed around filled the room instead of words.
“I didn’t realise the Lord Chancellor would take care of such details himself.”
The director eyes folded in half in satisfaction.
“I wanted to do the first part of the project with my own hands, so that I could see it with my own eyes, hear it with my own ears, and feel it with my own skin, so that I could make a proper judgement on the subsequent work.”
“You’re a great businessman. Great idea!”
Killion’s cheerful reply made the director smile broadly.
After a short break, the question and answer session resumed and lasted for about an hour. This was followed by a visit.
Killion visited art classes, music classes, and more before sitting down with the children for lunch.
The children giggled as they looked over at him, thinking it was funny to see him and his aides hunched over at the small table.
Then it happened. One of the children rushed up and greeted Killion.
It was Jediel.
“You must be Mr Kilion, right? Mr Kilion, do you remember me? I’m Jediel!”
“Of course I remember. Jediel, hi.”
“Wow, hi!”
The child bounced up and down, happy that Killion remembered him and called him by name.
“Can I eat here with you?”
“Of course. Have a seat here.”
Jediel smiled happily and sat down next to Killion, but Windler was taken aback by the child’s sudden outburst.
‘Mr Kilion…? How do you two know each other? No, more than that, how dare you call the Duke mister, even by his first name!’
He may be a child, but he was a commoner. It was certainly rude to call the Duke ‘Mister Killion’.
He was studying at an imperial institution, he should know better.
‘If you don’t know, you’ll have to tell me, Am, you will!’
Windler cleared his throat with a cough.
“Kid?”
“Yeah, mister, my name’s Jediel, what’s your name, are you friends with my mister Killion?”
“Uh… ah?”
There you go again! You said Mr Killion again! And what? Friends with Mr Killion? Windler was stunned.
He had to be firm and correct. He needed a stern look and a serious voice.
But facing the round face of a giggling child, he couldn’t muster a stern expression or a serious voice.
“Uh, that’s the thing. His name is … Windler.”
“Winder?”
“Windler.”
The child’s mouth opened and closed slowly as he struggled to pronounce the unfamiliar name.
“Wynn, dell, ruh! I think that’s a hard name.”
“No, it’s not hard at all. Try Windler.”
“Winn, Dll, Ler.”
“Try it a little faster. You can do it. Windler, windler, windler.”
“Winder, winder, winder.”
“No, it’s not that, it’s…”
Meanwhile, Killion was munching on a hard-boiled egg with a blank expression on his face, his mind replaying Jediel’s “My Mister Killion” on an infinite loop.
‘Did Jediel just say ‘we’? Did he just say ‘we…’?’
It’s amazing how one word can make you feel so good.
Killion couldn’t help but smile at how being included in the “we” category of a child he’d only seen a few times could make him feel so warm and fuzzy.
