T/N: Hi hi! I have decided to change Patricia’s title to Imperial Consort. Her previous title did not convince me at all since it said nothing about her position in the Imperial Family. Sorry for the confusion.
Isabelle quenched her thirst with wine to ease her mind before speaking.
“I think Elizabeth has a child.”
“What?”
When something unexpected was revealed, Edith asked again without realizing it.
“But there weren’t any children in Fortrion Manor?”
Most servants with families, who were owed overdue wages, ran away during the night, so Edith had never seen a child in the mansion.
“Her child wasn’t in the manor.”
“But Elizabeth has never left the estate since her marriage.”
“I think she might have left the child in someone else’s care and came to live at Fortrion Manor.”
Isabelle explained to Edith, who was astonished, why she felt this way.
“I can’t give you any proof, but I’m probably right. Elizabeth always treated me as if I were a naughty child, so she wasn’t thorough in front of me. She liked to drink, so she often looked sloppy after having one or two drinks during the day.”
That’s why Isabelle liked Elizabeth and thought they could become good friends.
Sophia was territorial and emphasized her noble status often, but Elizabeth treated her without fault, despite having married at a young age.
The greater her disappointment Isabelle felt towards Elizabeth, the greater her hope became that she would pay for her sins and reflect on her actions.
So she decided to talk to Edith about it.
“Edith, you know about carnix tea, right? It’s the tea you shouldn’t drink when you’re pregnant.”
Edith couldn’t help but know about it, especially because of the recent incident when the Duke accidentally gave her that tea.
“Any woman would know this. Most people enjoy it because it tastes good.”
“That’s right. I had that tea with Elizabeth once, and she suddenly said something strange.”
⋙“Elizabeth. Is this tea so delicious?”⋘
⋙“Yes. Even if it’s not that delicious, when you hear that you shouldn’t drink it for about a year, you go crazy.”⋘
Isabelle recited to Edith what she remembered of Elizabeth’s remarks.
“It felt off, I thought she was babbling nonsense because of the wine, it was like she was speaking from experience. You know? If a woman refrains from drinking carnix tea for about a year, it means…”
“That’s only when a woman is pregnant.”
“That’s right. After tea time ended, as I thought about it more carefully, I realized that there was something else that was bothering me. Elizabeth once invited me to have tea on the balcony of her room, but she forgot about it.”
“Was there something in her room?”
“Yes. I think Elizabeth was writing something that looked like a letter on her desk. However, there was a portrait of a child on her desk that I had never seen before.”
Isabelle didn’t think much of it at that time.
However, when Isabelle thought back to the incident when Elizabeth made a slip of the tongue while drinking carnix tea, she remembered that at that time, Elizabeth’s expression seemed somewhat anxious. Just like someone who shouldn’t be caught doing something.
It was only then that Isabelle pieced together the information, and it felt like the portrait of the girl who resembled Elizabeth in many ways couldn’t simply be her niece.
“Of course, I don’t think having a child is a mistake. As for the Viscount… If it were him, he wouldn’t hesitate to buy a woman, regardless of whether the woman has a child or a lover.”
Edith almost burst out laughing.
“Your evaluation of Nicolas Fortrion is very objective.”
“Well, he wasn’t a good person, was he? What he did to you and Walter, and I have my own grievances, so even if it’s just a slap in the face, it’s fine.”
“Thank you for understanding my position.”
“But the child might be the reason behind Elizabeth’s actions, so there’s no harm in investigating.”
Edith nodded slightly.
『 Benjamin said that many people saw Elizabeth associating with Gerturk’s youngest son.』
If there’s a child between them, and if Elizabeth is helping Count Gerturk in exchange for raising and educating her child…
『 It wouldn’t be a bad idea to follow Isabelle’s suggestion and investigate the child.』
While Edith was devising her plan, Isabelle smiled wistfully and took another sip of wine.
Snitching on someone you were once close to but no longer like was not a pleasant thing to do, no matter how much it was for the sake of justice.
If she had known sooner, she wouldn’t have given her heart.
“Why didn’t I know? That Elizabeth is hiding something from me too.”
“Isabelle…”
“Sometimes, I wish I had been a bit more tenacious and cool-headed. If that were the case, I wouldn’t be feeling so down right now.”
A faint shadow fell on her face, which had always been adorned with a sunny smile.
Edith stroked the back of Isabelle’s hand affectionately as she blamed herself.
“Isabelle, when you got married at a young age and first moved into the manor, you must have been lonely. In such a situation, it’s natural to open your heart to the person who approaches you first.”
“…”
“It’s your kindness that helped me and Walter, isn’t it?”
“Well…”
“If you hadn’t accepted my proposal back then, I might have been under even worse attack by now. And perhaps I might have been captured and locked up somewhere.”
Isabelle’s eyes grew warm as she heard Edith’s kind comfort.
Isabelle had unknowingly been angry with herself for not seeing the situation clearly from the moment she received the letter stating that it was Elizabeth who killed Nicholas, or rather, when Elizabeth had brought an unreasonable number of servants.
“Thank you for saying that, Edith.”
Edith smiled, lightly patting Isabelle’s shoulder as she forced a smile.
“Now that you’ve calmed down, shall we go out? I announced that the person who would become the best singer in the capital will sing tonight.”
──────────✿◦•
Franz, who was guarding the banquet hall, chuckled as he saw Walter focusing all his attention on one place.
“The ladies are staring at you.”
“I have no intention of dancing, Grandpa.”
Walter didn’t have the energy to respond to another woman’s request to dance.
He was busy trying to figure out who approached Edith without being noticed.
『 When I was a stableman, I couldn’t approach her. And now, even though I hold the title of Little Duke, I still can’t get too close to her in public… Why?』
Now that Edith had to keep the fact that she was pregnant, Walter had received explicit orders not to approach Edith in public gatherings.
The only fortunate thing was that Edith was capable of dealing with people by herself.
“M’lady, who is the designer of your dress? It suits you very well.”
“Thanks for the compliments. Lady Hestia called upon a designer named Ford; he was in charge of the dress.”
“Oh…”
Edith knew very well what information she could give to her advantage.
It was clear that people, upon hearing that the esteemed Lady Hestia had called a designer to assist her, knew they shouldn’t treat her lightly.
The three ladies of Lexion, watching her from afar, were also smiling with great satisfaction.
“Edith is doing well, so now it’s your turn to interact with people.”
“…”
“She will be happier if you strengthen your position.”
The Duke of Lexion gave a glance to those gathered around him and discreetly stepped back.
Then, those who had anxiously been waiting to find out when they would be able to meet the person who would become the next master of Lexion quickly closed the gap.
“Nice to meet you, Little Duke. I am Count Hartzel.”
“Nice to meet you too, Count Hartzel.”
Walter’s speech and body movements were so natural that it seemed as if he hadn’t trained for just a few days.
⋙“Young Master, it seems like your body still remembers the etiquette Lady Leah had taught you.”⋘
Walter realized from the people’s reactions that Vane, who was in charge of the lessons, wasn’t flattering him like a sycophant.
“I am delighted to be speaking with the great supporters of Lexion.”
Those who were concerned that an uneducated person was chosen as Lexion’s heir simply because he inherited Lexion’s blood had their concerns dispelled with just a few words exchanged with him.
Moreover, unlike Franz, who was accustomed to the stiff and authoritative speaking style typical of high-ranking nobles, Walter’s words had a hint of playfulness.
The young nobles, who couldn’t even have a proper conversation with Franz because they were afraid of him, couldn’t help but like the Little Duke of Lexion.
“It’s undoubtedly fortunate that you’ve returned to the capital just before the New Year’s Festival, Your Grace.”
“That’s right. Count Gerturk was so proud after he had purchased an aura-user knight to send to the Swordsmanship Tournament…”
As the young gentlemen gathered, the conversation naturally shifted to the upcoming Swordsmanship Tournament after a while.
The Swordsmanship Tournament held every year before the New Year’s Festival is actually a competition to select the strongest among the knights or heirs representing each family.
Walter, well aware of this fact, spoke as he had planned in advance.
“This year, I’m thinking of participating to honor my grandfather and Lexion.”
“…”
“Your Grace means you’re going to participate yourself?”
Lexion’s closest associates who had gathered around him showed bright smiles for an instant.
They had never seen the man in front of them fight, but it seemed like it would be more difficult for a man of this size and these eyes to lose.
“Just having the Little Duke’s participation will put tremendous pressure on Gerturk’s side.”
“It would be fortunate if they withdrew from the competition out of surprise.”
“As this is a tournament hosted by His Majesty the Emperor, I will do my best.”
Walter thought to himself with a cool smile.
A Swordsmanship Tournament is the perfect place to set a special trap for the Imperial Consort Dowager’s faction, who dared to mess with his woman by spreading false rumors.
❀.°• ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ •°.❀
