“Episode 19”
“I purposefully scheduled our arrival time later, but the reception hall of the inauguration ball was already buzzing with many people when Regina and I entered. Instantly, unsavory glances were directed towards me.
“Oh my, how shameless she is to walk in so confidently.”
“Yes, shouldn’t she have shown some restraint, considering she’s just a childhood friend of the prince?”
“She probably didn’t know any better, that’s why she shamelessly followed him all the way here. If it were me, I wouldn’t have dared to accompany him from the country estate.”
“Well, Prince Lucas probably thinks she’ll be his fiancée, otherwise, how could a noble lady of her age dare to follow him?”
Mocking laughter erupted among the nobles.
Yes, I had been careless. But what the past me knew and what the present me knew were not the same. Did I know things others didn’t?
“From the beginning, Lucas favored that girl as his favorite, not romantically though,” my inner voice taunted. Wasn’t she taking advantage of that fact to shield herself comfortably?
Ignoring their snickers, I walked into the reception hall.
“Don’t let their words bother you, Miss.”
“I’m not bothered. They’ll quiet down soon enough.”
“That’s right! It’s just idle gossip, and soon…”
“Soon?”
“What were you going to say?” I asked, and Regina giggled.
“Soon it will die down!”
“Right.”
I smiled and headed towards where the ladies who sent me the letters were gathered. The cute spirits had informed me of their locations.
—
“Look at that, Blanche really went all out in her attire, despite Prince Lucas not giving her much attention lately.”
“That’s true, she seems a bit anxious, doesn’t she? Hmm, hmm.”
“She used to dress so carelessly every time she came out.”
“Hmm, hmm. Well, it’s not bad. Oh, just a little bit, though!”
Despite their words, I sensed apprehension rather than mockery on their faces. Your expressions and words seem disjointed, aren’t they?
Some even seemed genuinely surprised, staring at me intently. As I approached, most of them either lowered their voices or hastily averted their gaze. But there were some who enjoyed picking fights with others or were just as arrogant as Lucas.
“Very impressive, Miss Blanche. If it were me, I’d be too embarrassed to come out.”
“Oh my, really?”
Turning the cocktail glass Regina handed me, I met her gaze. She was the sender of those strangely cute yet somewhat malicious letters. Apparently, her father, Viscount Chena, had been involved in some recent shipwrecks during his overseas trading ventures. Of course, Viscount Chena didn’t bother to inform his daughter about it, or perhaps he didn’t think it necessary to share such information. “So she came out in such luxurious attire, with jewels adorning her, all for today’s ball. All prepared just for today’s ball,” I thought, all financed by her father’s unspoken consent, as he continued to scramble for funds.
And among them…
“I had a trump card prepared for Lucas, too. Since the owner of it is about to change soon. The Countess Chena didn’t seem bothered by my counterattack; rather, she seemed to have flushed with her own reaction. Was it a blow to her conscience?
“Oh, is that so, Miss Blanche? Aren’t you being too oblivious? Doesn’t it bother you that Prince Lucas is hearing unpleasant things because of you?”
“Hmm.”
I showed only a relaxed attitude towards her raised voice. If someone gets angrier when you don’t react, that’s how it works. But the world doesn’t always go as you wish, young lady.
Intentionally, I set down the cocktail glass with a lot of leisure.
“It seems you’ve picked the wrong target for criticism, Miss Chena.”
“What do you mean?”
“As you all know, I haven’t been in the capital for long, and not many people know me well.”
I smiled gracefully.
“But how could I be described as Prince Lucas’s fiancée?”
“That, it’s obvious that you-”
“Oh my, does Miss Chena have the ability to read others’ minds? I never said it, so how can you think it’s obvious?”
I let out a soft laugh, a laugh I had learned as the daughter of Viscount Blanche, one that revealed elegance while scratching their insides.
“I have never once said, with my own mouth, that I am anything more than a childhood friend to the prince. Has anyone heard me say that?”
Everyone fell silent at my words. Even those who had mocked me upon my arrival.
Those kinds of people tend to gossip more and be more ruthless when the victim is humiliated and struggling. Oh, wouldn’t it be nice if someone just hit Lucas or me on the foot?
But that’s too petty, isn’t it?
At that moment, the hesitant girl behind me finally spoke up.
“T-then why! Is it wrong for Blanche to consider Lucas rejecting our promise and understanding her feelings?”
Right! That’s it!
With that, I could send a good parting gift to Lucas. Not just her, but the Countess Chena, and many other ladies who had meals or tea times with Lucas, looked at me angrily.
Truly, Lucas Meldrick, you’re a genius at creating problems you can’t handle. Your future seems full of pitfalls.
Approaching the girl with red eyes, I gently tapped her under the eyes with a handkerchief and said, “Oh, don’t cry. If you really wanted to criticize me and thought you were right, you should have done so confidently, shouldn’t you?”
“B-Blanche!”
She murmured softly.
“And you’ve also picked the wrong person to ask. I don’t understand why you’re asking me. It was Prince Lucas who said those words, not me.”
I straightened my body away from her and took out the letters they had sent from my bag.
“For the past few months, while I haven’t met Prince Lucas and exerted effort to socialize in the townhouse, don’t you think it’s too much for you to constantly express such complaints?”
Thud, thud, thud.
Several letters fell to the floor, spilling their contents.
“Ahh!”
Some of the nobles screamed at the contents.
“Such uncouth behavior. You sent me these, so why are you surprised?”
Amidst the astonishment and confusion, journalists who had obtained permission to attend the founding ball began to flash their cameras diligently. I approached Countess Chena in the midst of this chaos and whispered, “I omitted one thing from our earlier conversation.”
“W-what is it?”
The letter with her signature was filled with small swords. Quite typical and boring, really. But understandable since she probably thought Lucas was an easy target to manipulate.
“Tell Countess Chena that Solare Bank refuses the request for financial support.”
“W-what…! How dare you say such a thing? That’s Prince Lucas’s bank…”
Yes, but not anymore, starting from an hour later.
I had taken care of it beforehand.
Of course, I had no obligation to inform her.
“No, why would Father provide financial support to the bank? He’s too busy helping the prince.”
I replied with an attitude that seemed to suggest I couldn’t be bothered to respond further as I passed by her.
“Go ask him about it. I don’t have to answer all your questions, do I?”
With one last charming smile, I left.
As expected, Countess Chena exclaimed, “H-how dare you!” her face flushed with embarrassment. She then left the scene amidst the bewildered gazes of the other nobles.
“Really, I didn’t need to intervene at all, Miss!”
Rosina spoke with a delighted expression, noticing how the people who had been mocking me were now silent.
“It may not completely quell the rumors, but it should help.”
Indeed, it would lessen them.
Though it wasn’t a big deal, dealing with multiple people at once was a bit tiring.
“I’d like to go to the lounge for a moment.”
“Sure! I know the palace well. Let me guide you to the most comfortable and quiet lounge.”
I smiled and followed Rosina upstairs.
Unlike the bustling hall on the first floor, the second floor seemed quieter, with only a few people chatting.
Among them, Rosina found a secluded lounge, and I was able to relax there for about thirty minutes.
The stares and murmurs of people had been quite noisy and exhausting.
“I’d like to go out for a moment, is that okay, Miss?”
“Hmm?”
“It’ll only take a moment.”
Was it the restroom? I nodded willingly.
I felt like I should go back to the hall soon.
“I’ll go down to the first floor first.”
“Alright, Miss.”
As a representative of the Blanche Viscount family, it was appropriate for me to attend.
Feeling slightly annoyed, I left the lounge.
The second floor was certainly quieter, with only the sound of people chatting.
There were closed-off spaces like the lounge Rosina had guided me to, but there were also open sitting areas.
As I walked towards the first floor, intending to go back down, I heard the sound of a group occupying one of the sitting areas. I turned my head. I didn’t want to deal with any more hassle before my explanation spread throughout the entire ballroom.
But then…
“Alicia?”
A voice I knew all too well reached my ears.
Chapter 4. Another Entity Along the Timeline
