Viscount Gongfyr greeted Raniero first.
“It’s Viscount Gongfyr. I see the great son of Actilla, who brings abundance to the Actilus Empire.”
“Yes.”
Raniero tilted his head at an angle and sat down roughly on the armrest of the Empress’s seat. Seeing that, Viscount Gongfyr smiled and took Eleanor’s hand, who was standing still behind him, and led her forward.
“This is Eleanor, my daughter. Even though she’s unworthy and lacking, she’s now serving in the glorious title of handmaiden to the Empress.”
“Gre, greetings to the great son of the God Actilla.”
“I see.”
Raniero didn’t seem to be listening at all.
At the same time, Eleanor smiled stiffly and couldn’t even glance at hi. As I turned to look at her, she had beautifully loosened her warm, dark brown hair and decorated it with flowers.
‘Pretty.’
She must have put in a lot of effort.
After all, if they caught the eye of the Emperor at such an opportunity, they might be able to enter the bedroom. If they were lucky, they might have children before me. In addition, the child would grow up with the same treatment as the child of the Empress.
While this country was strictly monogamous, the treatment of the Emperor’s illegitimate children wasn’t bad.
After greeting Raniero, Viscount Gongfyr got down on his knees to look up at me sitting on my seat. Eleanor, next to him, quickly followed her father.
“I also greet the Empress, who is the companion of the great son. I have heard many words from my child. Indeed, she’s mature and wise, suitable for the mother of the Empire…”
It sounded amazing.
…Mature, wise?
Did the dictionary definitions of ‘mature’ and ‘wise’ change without my knowledge? How many idiotic things did I do in the process of adjusting to this world after possessing it? Meanwhile, Raniero also seemed to have the same thoughts as me. A ‘pfft’ was heard above her head.
I answered awkwardly.
“Is…Is that so?”
Nevertheless, even if the superior showed a sour look or even sneered, the subordinate shouldn’t show a sign of embarrassment since everything would be ruined.
Well aware of this, Viscount Gongfyr went on brazenly.
“Our Eleanor is still young, but she’s quick-witted and fast with her hands.”
“Oh, she’s quick-witted.”
I nodded as I replied.
Viscount Gongfyr’s face brightened at the thought of being recognized, and he opened his mouth again.
“Thanks for taking good care of my lacking daughter—”
“Obviously, Roberta Jacques would never have publicly ordered her to overlook the Empress, but she stuck with it for a while and completely ignored me… Your daughter is good at politics at a young age.”
The atmosphere suddenly became cold at my words. Viscount Gongfyr’s face had now turned pale without brightening.
“Ho?”
I heard an interested mutter above my head as Raniero leaned back on my left side and stroked my hair.
“That was what happened.”
What? Knowing everything, all he got to say was, ‘That was what happened’?
‘This is ridiculous.’
Meanwhile, poor Eleanor was trembling. Pity arose as I saw her like that. Of course, what would she know? It was amusing to cast out a foreign empress from a small country. Even if it were not just her, everyone would have done the same thing.
With an apologetic look on my face, I uttered to Viscount Gongfyr.
“Don’t scold her. Perhaps, it was because she was so young and senseless. Shouldn’t it be better to do better from now on?”
At that moment, Viscount Gongfyr forgot the first priority in dealing with superiors: ‘don’t be embarrassed’ and floundered.
“Bu-but if there were any inadequacies in serving the Empress, how could God… I—how could this mistake be overlooked…”
It was at this moment when his plan to bring his daughter, the Empress’s maidservant, to the Empress and show the Emperor the beautifully dressed daughter and aim for one night with him came to naught… Oh, my. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Viscount Gongfyr.
I gave my sincere advice.
“It’s her father’s fault for not giving a good education to his still young daughter, so why don’t you scold yourself first?”
Why on earth do adults fail to grasp such a simple reason and pass the blame for the failure of home education to children?
A sigh came out of nowhere.
It was then that the banquet hall began to get noisy with low murmurs. I glanced away from Viscount Gongfyr and lifted my head. Raniero, who had been playing with my hair twisted in his hand, turned towards where the noise was coming from.
‘Ah.‘
Sylvia Jacques was quietly entering. She was still an exceptional beauty today.
Even though the conversation was completely ruined, Viscount Gongfyr seemed to have no intention of stepping down. It seemed that he didn’t realize the truth of life until he was at that age that most of the relationships he had were stuck in the mud because of his efforts to do too well.
He hurriedly changed the topic.
“Th-that is Sylvia Jacques.”
Around that time, the population density of the banquet hall began to rise, and only the side where Raniero was sitting began to increase little by little. While he was talking to himself, his voice was loud as if to tell everyone to listen.
“How shameless is she? How could she come to a banquet dedicated to Your Majesty the Empress…”
‘…Huh?‘
It was a hostile voice.
“How shameless. If she knew the outcome of what her mother and brother did…”
‘What…?'
As I was bewildered, someone spoke to me without even saying their greetings.
“Just seeing the child of the family who has put a strain on Your Majesty makes my loyalty torment. Please, kick Sylvia Jacques out of the banquet hall!”
“…Huh? Me? Why?”
I was so embarrassed that I forgot to speak formally. At the same time, the atmosphere turned cold again unexpectedly.
“Well. If you ask me why…”
The nobles began to make a commotion. To be honest, I was even more embarrassed by their agitation.
“Your loyalty…is in pain?”
I was asking that because I really didn’t understand. I continued to express my thoughts.
“Though for me, I think Sylvia would be more loyal than you?”
With my eyes widened as I continued my mutter, those words brought a wave to the nobility.
“Your, Your Majesty…”
“Sylvia, to be loyal to me, drove her mother, no matter how sinful she was, and was willing to give her to me as a prey… I don’t know if there’s any other kind of loyalty like this?”
In the first place, I wasn’t the only one who passed the test today.
Sylvia also performed well on the assignment given by Raniero as well. Not only that she cut Roberta Jacques’s achilles tendon, but she also came under me by making her mother bleed herself and offering her mother to me. Even though I took the drug and passed the test, Sylvia passed with her bare mind… Was this not really amazing?
In addition, I found this situation so strange and bizarre.
I could read the real hostility and madness in their voices towards Sylvia. Before I thank them for hating Sylvia for me, let me point out a few things.
Did only Marquis Jacques ignore me? Right after I got married, I didn’t receive anyone’s request for an audience, nor did I receive any gift from anyone. It meant that I was an invisible person to everyone while Jacques’ mother and son reigned as vice minister and handmaiden. Only after the punishment of Jacques’s mother and son was decided and news spread that the Emperor was teaching me to hunt was I properly treated as the Empress.
Furthermore, only today, after the hunt was over that I was incorporated into their community as a newly born Actilus.
‘To me, Sylvia or these nobles, they are all the same…’
The atmosphere became so irreversibly chilly because of my question spewing out thoughtlessly.
I was a little sorry.
…Should I have told a white lie and set the mood like I did to Raniero?
‘Still, just by dealing with Raniero alone, I already feel like my prepared social skills are exhausted…’
Eventually, I let out an awkward laugh.
“Still, you don’t have to sacrifice your mother to prove your loyalty to me. For the time being, your mother is innocent…”
…Unbelievable.
Even though it was a joke to lighten up the atmosphere, it became an insult to their parents instead… Seriously, it seemed that all my prepared social skills had been exhausted. Raniero was the only one who clapped his knees with delight at my words and burst into laughter.
“You say funny things. It’s an interesting thing to say.”
A cold sweat ran down my back.
…I swear I didn’t mean to entertain His Majesty. If they did something wrong, Raniero might line them up one by one for his regular enjoyment, demanding that he sacrifice his mother. With that thought, it was necessary to put an end to this subject quickly.
I said hastily, sweating profusely.
“It’s just a joke…”
I could clearly see the nobles rolling their eyes with stiff expressions.
When a superior brought the word ‘joke’ to their lips, you had to laugh even if it wasn’t funny. At once, everyone burst out laughing like an automatic puppet—Ahahaha. Hahaha. Hah, haha. Perhaps, it was because this was a military country. Everyone smiled mechanically at the right timing and angle like an army.
I stared at them with confusion, feeling like a bad boss.
How did Raniero enjoy this kind of thing? No, let’s not think about it. After all, no one would know what was going on in his head.
Eventually, Sylvia came near me like a ghost while the waves of unhappy laughter rippled. She carefully lifted the hem of her modest dress to greet Raniero first, then me, before carefully kneeling next to Viscount Gongfyr, who was still sitting there.
“Your Majesty the Emperor.”
A hoarse voice escaped her lips.
Raniero replied above my head.
“Yes.”
His hand had dug through my hair and was now stroking the nape of my neck. The act of gently scratching the fuzz with his fingernails was tickling. Because of that, I lifted my eyes slightly and glanced up at Raniero, then quickly turned towards Sylvia again.
It was because he was still gazing at me as he answered Sylvia.
Sylvia calmly spoke her words.
“I’ve come to receive the reward that Your Majesty had promised.”