100 - Pieces of the Broken Glass Slipper
Shattered Glass Slipper Shards Episode 100
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“Well. I’m not well-versed in art… Biscuits, excuse me for a moment. I’m very thirsty.”
Giyomin asked for my understanding as I was about to start chattering again and took a sip of her tea. Then, she took out a handkerchief from her bosom and wiped the sweat from her forehead.
Her brow was twitching violently, as if the pressure and anxiety she was receiving had reached a critical level.
And she was about to talk about Chatoul again. Perhaps thinking that I didn't understand because she had spoken indirectly, this time she was more direct and very blatant.
But I, unconcerned, kept babbling about other things, and she eventually sighed and gave up. It happened after five attempts.
Unfortunately, the clown didn't have the tenacity to bite and cling to the opponent like a hunting dog. Instead, she glared at me with fiercely upturned eyes.
'Stupid girl. Can't even understand what I'm saying!'
The anxiety that she couldn't hide was creeping up on the face of the madam, who was sending silent rebukes.
It was around this time that another person intervened. She very naturally joined the conversation and pushed Giyomin to the back. It was a natural switch, like changing opponents in a card game.
Thanks to that, I could see Giyomin drinking her tea like water with a pale face behind his back, trembling. And the others were clicking their tongues at the sight.
Anyway, the new woman was a person whose slender eyes looked very attractive. She folded the fan that had been covering her mouth and placed it on the table. Then, she smiled softly and introduced herself.
"I'm late to greet you. I was having such a pleasant conversation with Giyomin that I missed the opportunity to speak. I'm Emery Nilam."
Emery Nilam seemed to be a very wealthy person. It was obvious from the clothes she was wearing.
She was wearing a dress with blue silk and lace decorations. The skirt was studded with pearls in the shape of waves.
The length was so long and voluminous that it was crammed into the chair and dragged all the way to the floor. The top, decorated with ribbons and sparkling jewels, even had ruby buttons hanging from it.
The shawl draped diagonally over her shoulders was embroidered with a trendy oriental pattern in silver thread and looked very soft.
The earrings and necklace hanging from her ears were a matching set of blue sapphires, and the stones were large. I couldn't even guess how much it would cost. It was truly like hanging money all over her body.
I greeted her politely.
"Yes, madam. I am Cis de Bishbalz."
"Oh my, I'm not a madam. Just call me Emery. I'm still a devout follower of Goddess Astra."
I was quite surprised by her answer. Even though she looked quite old, refusing to be called 'madam' was tantamount to confessing that she was single.
In the social circles of noble families, revealing that you are an unmarried old woman is not an easy thing to do. It was no different from proclaiming that there was a significant flaw in her sexual attractiveness as a woman.
But she smiled brightly as if she wasn't ashamed at all. And she nonchalantly pointed out Giyomin's attitude as if her flaws were nothing.
"Ignore everything Giyomin said a moment ago. She sometimes acts like that. It's an action that can often be seen in ignorant people who only know how to enjoy cheap gossip without intellectual exchange. Was it very difficult?"
Emery's fingers landed on the back of my hand and gently circled. It was an action as if she were treating a close person. I made an awkward expression and pulled my hand away.
"You probably don't know anything since it's your first time here. You must be feeling scared and excited, right? I know how that feels. But you've been to the Imperial Palace a few times, so you're not as nervous, right? That's why you seem a little calmer than Roena."
"I'm glad it looks that way. I'm trying to look that way."
Emery shrugged her violet-scented shoulders at my answer and muttered. There was a blatant hint of sarcasm mixed in that aspect.
"Is that so? Well, composure is a good thing. You don't panic in any situation. That's why it's often confusing. Whether you really don't know, or whether you're pretending not to know..."
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm telling you to speak clearly. To stand up to words that are meant to test you. No one likes maze-like words. Or rather, would it have been different if it were Roena?"
"My mouth has never betrayed my will. It has always been faithful."
"Then it's a matter of the heart. Or is it 'not now'? Come on, have some refreshments."
Her white fingers gently push the edge of the plate towards me. They were all sweets that would make your tongue tingle.
I picked up the smallest piece among them. Emery persistently stared at my hand until I took a bite of the pastry.
"Originally, Pulcher presides over tea time, but today is quite free. Perhaps it's out of consideration for the young lady who is participating in a gathering like this for the first time. Ah, no. Cis de Bishbalz, may I call you that?, it wouldn't be your first time. You must have met many other madams."
Emery Nilam was certainly more troublesome than Giyomin. She was subtly stimulating me by indirectly inserting words that pointed to someone without making direct mentions. It was so stuffy that I felt bloated.
"No. I have never met other madams. This is my first time here."
I had tea with Chatoul, but I had never had a seat in a place surrounded by so many people like this. So, you wouldn't have what you imagine. It was the truth that Nilam had induced.
"That's strange. Usually, the best thing about tea time is that many people gather and drink together. Without sharing secret stories. Yes. The best thing about secret stories is to meet alone. Especially in conversations between close people."
She wasn't directly mentioning 'Chatoul', but I couldn't help but know that the emperor's whore was silently included in every conversation she had.
So, Nilam was telling me to honestly tell her everything if I hadn't had a secret story. She unfolded the fan she had put aside at some point and fanned herself gently.
I slowly blinked my eyes and glanced at the Empress's face, which was slightly visible over Emery's shoulder. The gaze, which was lowered as if casting a shadow between the fan that moved slowly back and forth, was the dark night sky itself.
That's strange. I tilted my head at a question that was rising to the tip of my tongue.
Why does the Empress want to have her faithful women confirm how much Chatoul has insulted her? Could it be that she thinks the whore was jealous of her and insulted her? It's hard to know.
"Instead of madams, there were a lot of maids. So I never felt a secret state. If there had been such a thing, I would have been happy to tell you about it. It's a shame even now."
Emery Nilam looked momentarily embarrassed at my words, but soon opened her mouth and burst into laughter.
It happened at the same time that her hand grabbed my wrist. The fingers of another person touching my skin were very soft, but in terms of intimacy, it was nothing compared to the previous time.
She was blatantly getting closer to me and expressing her liking for me. It was to experience the 'secret state' that I mentioned together.
"There's nothing more attractive than having someone to share special stories with. I want to talk about it together, what do you think?"
"If it's someone to talk about caution with, I'm also welcome. But I'm too busy suppressing my excitement to even think about that yet."
"Even though it's not a place that requires boldness?"
Instead of answering, I looked towards Roena. She was already surrounded by a group of people.
She only has one person to talk to, and she's treated completely differently from me, who is approached sequentially as if taking turns if she doesn't achieve what she intended.
The women completely blocked my view by creating a natural wall, such as leaning their shoulders or leaning forward, as if trying to block Roena from me. It seemed to be to prevent me from knowing who I was talking to.
The young girl who told me to trust only herself was completely immersed in the new world and had forgotten her promise.
"I thought you didn't like being in the spotlight?"
Emery says to me as if she can't understand. She was frowning as if she had seen something she shouldn't have.
Then she adds, 'That kind of look doesn't suit you.' I asked her back.
"What do you mean by that kind of look?"
"I'm talking about the aspect of being swept away by an unclear topic and only flapping your ears. You struggle to keep up with the conversation and eventually lose yourself. After that, all that remains is a friend called silence. Because you instinctively realize that it's more beneficial."
"So you're saying it's better to talk alone?"
"As you revealed yourself, you're still clumsy at everything. But Roena is different. So I'm trying to dissuade you."
That 'Roena' made the mistake of sitting on a chair, but Emery Nilam was acting as if she had forgotten about it. Rather, she speaks as if she is considering and caring for me.
"What happens if a friend called silence wears a dress called hesitation?"
Emery tilted her shoulder slightly at my question. It was an attitude that someone else would answer for her.
So I made eye contact with the Empress. Just in time, Pulcher was slowly folding the fan that had been covering his mouth and was about to speak.
"It seems like we've had enough tea time, so how about we hold a reading session now? Let's move to the study."
I turned my gaze back to Emery. She was playfully winking as if to say, 'See?'
"Please tell that friend. Tell her to take off the dress of hesitation and put on the clothes of truth and the shoes of disclosure as soon as possible, even now."
"If not?"
"You always have a habit of asking back. It's a good attitude, but you should put it away for today. Because there's no place that admires young people as much as high society. Do you know what the characteristics of young people are? That's the point that they can carry out vulgar acts without hesitation."
As soon as Emery's words were finished, the Empress and the others stood up from their seats. Through the door that had been opened in advance by the maid, I could see a bookcase full of books. It was the Empress's private study.
