It happened that someone familiar came into her sight.
‘…Ah.’
A little embarrassment panned across Pristin’s face.
And the same was true for the person she discovered.
“…Let’s go in.”
However, she soon returned with a casual expression and entered the palace with the ladies of the delegation.
───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────
In the end, the reception was a great success.
Thanks to Pristin’s fluent Perkian, the interpreter who had come with them had very little work to do, and the atmosphere became very cordial.
When it was time for them to return to the palace where they would be staying, most of them expressed a desire to talk more with Pristin. Pristin, relieved that everything went well despite her worries, gracefully escorted each lady to the palace where they would be staying.
And finally, only one person remained. It was the woman Pristin had noticed earlier and was momentarily surprised to see again.
“I didn’t expect to see you here.”
The woman who spoke first was one of the Perkian noblewomen. Pristin nodded with a somewhat flustered expression.
“Yes. I couldn’t have imagined it.”
“Of course, I received a letter saying that I would be going to the palace. So, while I was in Limburg, I thought I should take the opportunity to meet you…”
“…”
“I didn’t know you were a countess.”
“As I mentioned earlier, a lot has happened since then.”
Pristin said with a bitter expression.
“Aunt.”
“Yeah. I was really worried when you refused all of our help and decided to stay here… I’m glad you’re doing well.”
“Yes… How about you, Aunt?”
“Nothing special for me.”
“Christine…”
Pristin asked hesitantly.
“There’s still no contact?”
Christine was the name of Pristin’s little sister. She went to visit their grandmother, who was a Perkian noblewoman, a year ago and went missing.
“Yes. I’m still putting up flyers, but I have no news. Maybe she might be here in Limburg, as you think. Or…”
About to say that she might be somewhere else, Countess Gremlyn, Pristin’s aunt, decided to stop. There was no need to talk about such gloomy things in this situation.
“I’m still putting up advertisements in Limburg, but there’s been no contact.”
“Don’t think too impatiently, Pristin. Christine will surely be alive.”
In fact, even Countess Gremlyn had almost given up on finding her niece, but she didn’t bother to remind Pristin of that fact.
Pristin may have already given up by now, and even if she hadn’t, she would naturally come to terms with it as time passed. The absence of her sister.
Countess Gremlyn changed the subject in a soft voice.
“Anyway, I’m glad you’re doing so well. Your uncle will relax, too. How worried we were when you said you would go to Limburg…”
“…I’m sorry.”
“No, don’t be. As you said, we should have at least one person here just in case Christine is in Limburg. I respect your decision.”
Countess Gremlyn looked at Pristin with warm eyes.
“Anyway, I’m proud of you. Reception of the noblewomen is originally something the empress does… It’s quite impressive. Let’s keep in touch more often from now on.”
“Yes, Aunt. Take care.”
“Yeah. See you soon.”
After parting with her aunt, Pristin was left alone, and Aruvina approached her cautiously.
“Countess Gremlyn is your aunt.”
“Oh, yes.”
“I… I couldn’t have imagined she was a fallen noble.”
“…”
Pristin answered by choosing the right words.
“It hasn’t been that long since the family fell.”
“Ah, I see.”
Pristin felt bitter at the response, realizing that even Madame Korsol, who had spent a long time in the palace, didn’t know about their situation.
‘She probably didn’t know that we had gone through something like this…’
It was a moment when Jerald*, who couldn’t even imagine such a situation, finally understood.
*[EN: Yes, we’re confused why he’s mentioned here too.]
“I didn’t know you were looking for your sister.”
“Her whereabouts were unknown after she left to go to the Perk Empire a year ago.”
Pristin said with a nostalgic expression.
“I just hope she’s alive… It would bring me so much happiness to know that much.”
“Well…”
Madame Korsol asked with a pensive expression.
“Or why don’t you ask His Majesty the Emperor for a favor?”
“The emperor?”
“Yes. Wouldn’t it be much more effective to ask His Majesty than to put up a missing advertisement?”
“But it’s such a personal request…”
Pristin hesitated and replied.
“It’s a delicate matter.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that at all.”
Aruvina shook her head and corrected Pristin’s thoughts.
“Think about it. You’re already a benefactor who saved Her Highness’s life. From His Majesty’s point of view, there’s no reason why he can’t listen. Besides, you did a great job serving the wives today? You deserve enough compensation.”
“Well…”
Pristin had tried to refrain from asking Jerald for anything, but finding her missing sister was something she desperately wanted, even if it meant grasping at straws.
Nevertheless, seeing Pristin carefully contemplating a request, Aruvina encouraged her more.
“Please consider it, Your Excellency. If the emperor intervenes, wouldn’t the task become easier? And it’s possible that your sister might not be in Limburg or Perk. I believe you have every right to seek help from the emperor.”
“Understood. I’ll think about it.”
Aruvina smiled with a relieved expression when Pristin gave a positive answer.
“I hope you find your sister.”
“Thank you for your concern, Madame Korsol.”
“Of course. After all, you are the one I serve.”
As they gently wrapped up their conversation, Aruvina immediately asked another question, as if she had forgotten.
“By the way, you’re going to attend the masquerade, aren’t you?”
“Oh, the masquerade…”
“Well, there’s no way to confirm who will be attending, so it’s up to you if you want to go or not…”
“That’s right.”
“But wouldn’t it be fun? Masquerades are quite popular in the Perk Empire, but they’re not as common in Limburg. I’m planning to attend as well.”
“Oh, even Madame Korsol?”
“Yes. It’s exciting, isn’t it? Dancing and conversing with each other without knowing each other’s faces or status. Isn’t it thrilling?”
“So, in the Perk Empire, when they have masquerades… Do affairs happen frequently?”
“Oh, well, I suppose there might be some dysfunction like that.”
“Of course, there are also lovers seeking sweet love. Even I…”
Pristin unconsciously continued speaking, but stopped herself too late. Oh no, she shouldn’t have mentioned that.
“Even…?”
“I also dreamed of such love. Anyway… why don’t you give it a try this time?”
For reference, Aruvina was still unmarried. Aruvina smiled and shook her head, which was rare.
“Oh my, even the countess. I was joking. Just go and have fun.”
After quickly suppressing the smile on her lips, Aruvina asked Pristin.
“So, you’ll be going too, Countess?”
“Me?”
“Well, you mentioned dreaming of that sweet love. Let’s go together.”
“Well…”
“Yes? Let’s go together. Yes?”
When Aruvina was rarely persistent, Pristin was embarrassed but eventually nodded.
“Yes. Let’s go together.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, of course.”
Pristin smiled faintly and spoke.
“But I was surprised that you were so actively urging me to go. You’ve never done that before.”
“Ah…”
At that, Aruvina panicked for a moment, then quickly recovered.
“Well, it’s a fun event, but it’s sad if you don’t attend. That’s why, well.”
Pristin could not have known that Aruvina’s uncharacteristic behavior was because she had been asked by Jerald to ensure that Pristin attended the masquerade.
Fortunately, Pristin didn’t have much suspicion and moved on.
“Anyway, you must be tired from entertaining. You should go back and rest until dinner.”
“Yes, that’s true.”
Pristin nodded with a smile. Relieved that they had safely weathered the storm.
───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────
After returning to Camer Palace, Pristin immediately lay down on the bed. She didn’t realize it when she was at the Veron Palace, but now that she had returned, she felt the exhaustion weighing heavily on her body.
‘I must have been really tense.’
Pristin asked not to be awakened until it was time for dinner, then quickly drifted off to sleep.
.
.
.
And how much time had passed?
“Hmm…”
Pristin unknowingly tossed and turned in her sleep, waking up. Even though she opened her eyes, her mind was still groggy, as if she had fallen into sleep immediately after lying down on the bed.
“What time is it?”
Just as Pristin turned her head to look at the wall to check the time, she exclaimed in surprise.
“Oh…!”
Seeing an unexpected sight, Pristin unintentionally made a startled sound.
“…Your Majesty.”
“I guess you were tired.”
Jerald looked at Pristin with a faint smile on his face. Facing such an unexpected situation as soon as she opened her eyes, Pristin’s mind became chaotic.
“I came in quietly. I didn’t want to wake you up.”
“No, that’s not the issue…”
Pristin sighed, giving up on trying to raise her voice unintentionally.
“What are you doing here anyway?”
“You didn’t forget there’s a dinner tonight, did you?”
“Of course.”
“I’m here to go together with you.”
“With me… Your Majesty?”
“That’s right. Is there a problem?”
“…”
Strictly speaking, there was no problem, and it was actually in accordance with proper etiquette. Unable to say anything, Pristin’s confusion brought a smile to Jerald’s lips.
“It’s my first time trying this ‘partners’ thing. I feel very excited right now.”
“When did you come here?”
“A while ago. About…”
Jerald replied with a pensive expression.
“About an hour?”
“You’ve been sitting like this since then?”
Pristin asked Jerald in a bewildered voice. Technically, Jerald had been watching Pristin sleep for about two hours. However, he intentionally lied, as he thought that if he said he had been sitting there for more than an hour, Pristin would be even more surprised.
“It wasn’t uncomfortable at all. I was sitting on a chair.”
“I’m sure you must have been bored. And you must have been tired too…”
“Just watching someone sleep was enough to make time pass.”
Jerald’s voice exuded a lightness that suggested his words were not a lie.
“It was actually quite enjoyable.”
“…”
Wait a minute. So he had been observing her sleeping all this time?
As that thought crossed her mind, embarrassment rushed over Pristin. Her cheeks quickly turned red.
