Published at 31st of December 2020 11:48:09 AM
Chapter 71
Chapter 71 – Banquet (II)
Wynn, whose arms were crisscrossed with Leticia’s, was taken from the servants’ waiting room and walked down a corridor composed of white stone and elaborately carved stone columns . Even in the corridor, the nobles who had been invited to the banquet, as well as their assistants and servants who worked in the imperial palace, were busy coming and going .
Wynn walked among the people, arm in arm with Leticia, who was wearing a delicate dress .
Everyone turned to Wynn and Leticia as they looked away .
‘Are we not getting too much attention!? Letty, is this okay?’
The eyes of the people around them were stabbing him like daggers . Wynn walked down the hall amidst the attention of the people, his heart racing .
She only smiled in good spirits as she walked, although Wynn was waiting for Leticia to release his arms, she only hummed a song to the tune of the court orchestra that filtered in from the banquet hall . As for Leticia, even though she was not exactly going to dance with Wynn, it was fun to be able to spend time with him in such a beautiful dress .
It wasn’t a long walk down the aisle, as it was a room adjacent to the great hall where the banquet was held, although it was large, but it seemed like a long time to Wynn before they stood in front of the double doors leading to the hall .
There were two guards standing in the doorway in front of the hall, as in an audience room, and they gave Wynn a strange look .
Not that the two guards didn’t know Wynn’s face . On the contrary, Wynn’s face was well known to those who worked in the Imperial Palace .
After all, he was currently the only servant of the First Princess Cornelia .
However, only a small number of people belonging to the high hierarchy in the court could enter beyond this door . Wynn’s rank did not allow him to pass through it .
But when the beautiful and noble lady, escorted by Wynn on the side, smiled and nodded to the guards, they were momentarily surprised and fascinated by the fact that the lady was Leticia . They quickly opened the door for them .
The huge door opened, and Wynn’s eyes were bombarded with the beautiful world of the nobles .
Countless round tables lined with luxurious dishes, and palace servants, carrying drinks, moving around busy, yet gracefully among themselves .
Beautiful ladies in their various ornaments and luxurious dresses, and men in their cozy clothes, listened to the music and songs, dancing and chatting to the music of the court musicians .
It was a banquet organized by the Emperor to welcome the Crown Prince from the neighboring country .
It was one of the greatest evening parties Wynn had ever seen .
“It’s Leticisama…”
“Leticisama has returned . ”
The doors opened and the whispers of those who had noticed Leticia’s return to the Great Hall were like a ripple through the room .
And of course, the eyes of the surrounding world also turned to Wynn . Leticia, with a happy smile on her face, crisscrossed her arms more firmly around Wynn’s arm .
Some nodded in approval of the show, some were jealous, and others?
When Wynn and Leticia stepped forward, a path made by the people was quickly opened .
In addition, the royal siblings, Prince Alfred and Princess Cornelia, and Raul, the guest of honor at the banquet, welcomed them with a smile on their faces .
‘…I don’t like this . I don’t like it!’
Her sister continued to attract all the attention .
The men around her looked at her with attention, and even the women looked at her with admiration . Her younger sister had her arms intertwined with those of a man and a smile on her face, carefree and happy .
Yes, she had her arms intertwined with those of a man .
But the other men around her continued to cast burning glances at her sister .
‘And that man! And that one there too!’
Until a few years ago, those looks, many if not all of them, in this, the Lemmrousell Empire, were monopolized by Stacia, the eldest daughter of the Duke Mavis family, who was related to the imperial family and one of the most famous families .
In the past, everyone whispered all kinds of words in her ear . They would give her ornaments, including brilliant jewelry, paintings by renowned artists, dresses made to measure by first-rate tailors, and other items that single male nobles had given her in piles every time she attended an evening party .
So what now?
The one who gathered all those men just by looking at them was the sister who was not expected by her father and mother .
When she was a child, they were always angry with her younger sister because she never learned the lessons of study or anything else, she was an idiot, different from her brothers and sisters . As they stood at the side of the desk, she would be scolded like “If your brothers and sisters can do this, why can’t Leticisama,” and always doing nothing but looking at other’s faces . She was the scorned sister . In time, she often snuck out of the mansion without permission, and was treated like an infection by even the servants of the Duke’s family .
Her father, Lektor Mavis, did not send her younger sister into high society while she was learning .
Her sister, Leticia, was now one of the stars of this banquet, along with Alfred, the Crown Prince, her sister Princess Cornelia, and even Raul, the Crown Prince of Lyon .
No, as for the attention she attracted, she had already surpassed the three young royalty and the royal family itself .
She had also heard that Alexei, the Emperor of the Lemmrousell Empire, wanted Alfred and Leticia to marry . However, with great irreverence, it was said that Leticia refused . She refused the Emperor’s request, even knowing the status he possessed .
Probably the man she was now crossed with was…
Stacia’s father, Duke Lektor Mavis, wanted to have a deeper connection with the royal family . However, when Leticia refused to approach Alfred, he asked Stacia to approach the royal family in return . However, not to the Crown Prince Alfred, but to the second Prince Neumann, whose mother was a concubine .
Neumann, the second prince, was the third in the order of succession of the empire, where the existence of an emperor was permitted, after Alfred and Cornelia, who were the children of the emperor and his wife .
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The order of succession to the throne was not low at all .
But the fact that he chose to deal with Neumann, the second prince, instead of Alfred, hurt Stacia’s pride . And her father, Lektor, seemed to be still plotting an arranged marriage between Alfred and Leticia .
It was said that Emperor Alexei wanted Leticia to be Alfred’s partner, and if not, a princess from some other country . If they wanted to strengthen their ties to the imperial family through marriage, Duke Mavis’ eldest son, Rails, had no fixed partner either . If that were the case, a marriage between Princess Cornelia and Rails would normally be conceivable, but unlike the women of other royal families, the women of the imperial family did not have many political marriages .
In many cases, the marriage of a woman of noble status, such as the royal family, royalty or nobility, is treated as a political transaction, but perhaps because the founding fathers of the Lemmrousell Empire here were women, there had been no previous cases of forced marriages to couples who did not conform to the wishes of a royal woman .
There was a restriction that unmarried princesses were not allowed to touch anyone other than the man who would be their future partner, with the exception of their families . However, conversely, the princess had the option of choosing who her partner would be .
Nevertheless, in most cases, the emperor chose his own consort among the candidates of good family origin, so that in the end there was only a small number . However, compared to the royal women of other countries, one could say that they were quite privileged .
Anyway, the premise was that, if Princess Cornelia did not like Reils, the marriage would not take place, so there was no place for Lektor’s intentions there .
So, he planned the marriage of his eldest daughter, Stacia, to the second prince, Neumann .
Even Emperor Alexei himself wanted to strengthen his ties with Duke Mavis, who belonged to a powerful noble family leader . If the talks with Leticia were broken and Alfred received a princess from another country as his consort, it would be profitable enough for the imperial family that the Second Prince Neumann and Stacia would marry .
‘Am I only a replacement for Leticia?’
That did not sit well with Stacia .
It was likely that the Duke’s first daughter would become the head of the Ducal family if something happened to Rails, the Duke’s first son . Even if not, there were many houses that would want to be associated with the Ducal Mavis house .
As she had been the most notable person in social circles, she could not allow Leticia to take away her position, as she had been despised for so long . She was not even allowed to enter high society, as she was used to doing all kinds of eccentricities, such as escaping from the mansion before it was even dawn and it was still dark outside .
‘I cannot forgive Alfred-sama for not choosing me, nor my father for trying to replace me with Leticia!’
Stacia bent slightly, then looked at Alfred, Cornelia, Raul and Leticia, who were about to leave the Great Hall, and at the back of the other young man whose name she did not know, while her feelings of jealousy only grew .
“Listen to me, everyone, you are being fooled by that girl…”
Stacia whispered almost in a low voice, so no one could hear her .
“Yes, you are absolutely right, Stacisama . ”
But there was something that responded to that murmur .
“Her Majesty seems to think that Leticisama is a suitable partner to be Her Highness Alfred’s wife . However, even though she is a woman of intelligence, fame and good looks, she has devoted herself to a man of unknown origin, who has no idea what kind of liquor he is drinking . Many aristocrats of the noble families of the old lineage are of the opinion that such a person is not suitable to be the consort of the emperor . That’s right… the most suitable person to be the next Imperial Mother is someone like Stacisama, who comes from a noble family and culture . ”
“As I recall, you are the Marquis Cliffdorf…”
“My name is Jade, son of Marquis Cliffdorf . Please give my regards to your father, Duke Mavis, Stacisama . ”
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He smiled with his good-looking face and bowed slightly with his right hand to his chest .
“The current imperial family shines by its disdain for us nobles, such as naming commoners in key positions formerly occupied by pure-bred nobles . But many of these policies are not the will of His Majesty, but of His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince . Although our respect, the venerable nobles, for His Imperial Highness the Prince is not remotely worn out, many of the nobles who love the empire most are saddened by the fact that an uneducated commoner holds a key position in our country . ”
Jade whispered as he walked towards Stacia .
In a short time, the people had been driven away from Stacia and Jade’s surroundings . Not to seem unnatural, the nobles who were under the command of Marquis Cliffdorf led the people away from them .
But Stacia was not aware of this . All because of her jealousy of Leticia .
And as she became angry with the other men who did not pay attention to her, especially Alfred, Jade guided Stacia’s feelings to further inflame her anger towards him .
“If something were to happen to His Royal Highness Prince Alfred and Princess Cornelia, His Royal Highness the Second Prince Neumann would ascend the throne as the next Emperor… Although he is a member of the secondary family, since his mother is a concubine, he comes from the family of an Earl who is connected to us Cliffdorfs . And if that happens and Prince Neumann is crowned Crown Prince, and his partner is you, Stacisama, the daughter of Duke Mavis, many nobles loyal to our Empire will be satisfied . Of course, that is if something happens to Alfred-sama . ”
“Right . In this age of deteriorating relations with Petersia, no one is safe, not even the royal family . ”
“Yes . Last year, there was even an attempted coup orchestrated by Zaunas, who was even hailed as a hero by the Empire . Even in the unlikely event that something happens, you never know what will happen . ”
“Indeed . Even if it is improbable, there is danger lurking around every corner . ”
“Now, in my mansion, there is a study group of true nobles who care about the future of the Empire . Would you like to join us, Stacisama?”
“Yes . As a noble of this country, it is natural to worry about what might happen . ”
Stacia’s eyes were somewhat dazed when she looked at the place where the four people (and one more) who had been calling attention to themselves had disappeared, and there was a faint light in them .
When Leticia brought Wynn from the antechamber, Alfred refused to say a word about leaving them at ease, and then took them all to a room in the Imperial Palace . It must have been one of Alfred’s private rooms .
In the center of the room was a round table and four rosewood chairs, shiny and polished with beautiful wood grain, tasteful stately furniture and a white porcelain vase decorated with seasonal flowers in a variety of colors . This was a room that Alfred could say he used to entertain his guests .
The Imperial Crown Prince Alfred Lau Root Lemmrousell, Cornelia Lau Root Lemmrousell, the First Princess of the Empire, Raul Orto Lyon, Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Lyon . An imperial noble, Leticia von Mavis, daughter of the Duke Mavis .
Wynn was mixed among them .
Omitting Leticia, of course, he did not feel much nervousness being with Cornelia, since they were classmates . However, in this situation, having in front of him such imposing people as Alfred and Raul, made him nervous, as expected .
Fortunately, because of his position as Cornelia’s servant, Wynn would be standing behind her chair while she sat down to be face to face with Alfred and Raul .
Since Cornelia was the imperial princess, he would have to get used to these situations, but for now he was relieved . But when he got behind Cornelia, Leticia looked at Wynn with a slightly dissatisfied expression on her face, so he hesitated and stayed behind Cornelia and Leticia .
Cornelia, who had been looking at the scene in a somewhat amusing way, gave Wynn a little smile, and he returned it, a little embarrassed .
Once the four of them were seated, a maid poured tea from a white porcelain teapot into cups . Then she whispered something in Alfred’s ear, and after making sure Alfred nodded, she left the room .
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When Wynn looked at the top of the round table, there were five cups of tea . Was the tea served to Wynn, who was waiting as a servant?
As he thought about this, the maid returned to the room with another servant . A chair was in the man’s hand .
“The chair will be placed between Leticisama and Cornelia . ”
The servants bowed profusely to all of them and left the room as Alfred had told them to do, leaving the chair .
“Wynn-kun, you too sit down . It is difficult to drink the tea standing up . ”
“Yes, sir . Excuse me . ”
“Here, Onii-chan . ”
Leticia offered Wynn a plate and cup .
“This tea is for you, Onii-chan . ”
“Thank you, Leticisama . ”
After making sure Cornelia, his mistress, nodded, Wynn accepted the cup .
“It’s just ‘Thank you’ . Stop being so formal with me!”
Wynn smiled at Leticia, who insisted on a low but strong tone .
“Thank you, Letty . ”
“Yes . ”
Leticia smiled happily .
To be honest, Wynn’s hands were shaking from the stress of being here, and he was worried about making any noise while drinking his tea, but somehow, he managed to get it into his mouth without any problems .
There were only five people in the room .
Wynn, who clearly had a different status here, thought he should leave them alone, but after thinking about that, he thought about how Raul bothered to call him, and Alfred had a chair brought to him . Raul then opened his mouth just as Wynn put the plate and cup on the table .
“Well… the reason I came to this country is because there was something I wanted to let Letty know . And I decided it would be good for those here to know that information too, so I asked Alfred to prepare this place for us . ”
When he said that, Raul looked at all their faces and then took a deep breath . Then he looked at Leticia’s face .
“Letty, you remember Sarah Ferrule… the ‘apostate’?”
Leticia’s eyes quickly narrowed at that word .