Ch#114
A heavy silence descended upon the banquet hall.
Talia noticed that everyone in the hall was watching her reaction, and she forced a smile onto her lips.
“Then what are you doing? Bring the guests in at once.”
When she rebuked the head butler in a feigned tone of nonchalance, the man standing at the door moistened his lips with a tense expression.
“That is… It seems Your Highness must greet the guests in person.”
Talia raised an eyebrow.
At present, she held the highest rank in the entire East. There could not possibly be a guest for whom she had to personally rush out to receive.
Just as she was about to snap at him, the man’s trembling voice pierced her ears.
“The, the one who came as the representative of the delegation… is Her Imperial Majesty the Empress.”
Talia’s mouth fell open in dazed shock. It felt as if her mind had suddenly gone blank. Only upon hearing the rising murmurs did she snap back to her senses.
She hurried out of the banquet hall. In that moment, she didn’t even have the luxury of worrying about whether eyes were drawn to her unnatural gait.
Her skirts fluttering, Talia crossed the vast hall and rushed outside the building.
In the castle courtyard, hundreds of delegates bearing the imperial flag stood in formation. The woman at the front waved her hand with a bright smile.
“Talia!”
The woman, shining as brilliantly as the sun, crossed the garden as if walking on clouds. She looked so fresh and vibrant it was hard to believe she had a nineteen-year-old daughter.
“Have you been well?”
In an instant, the woman reached her and pulled her into a sudden embrace with arms as soft as cream. The sweet scent of her skin made Talia’s head swim.
Talia looked up at her with eyes filled with a mixture of confusion, anxiety, fear, and longing.
“M-Mother, why are you here…?”
“I came to see you, of course.”
Senebier whispered tenderly, kissing her on the cheek.
“I was curious about how you were doing, so I implored Virus to send me as an envoy. And as always, he couldn’t break my stubbornness.”
Then, she cupped her daughter’s cheeks with fine fingers scented with roses and gazed quietly into her face.
“Your complexion looks better than when you were at the Imperial Palace. It seems your husband is treating you well.”
Suddenly, for some unknown reason, a chill ran down Talia’s spine. She hurriedly pulled away from her mother as if she had been burned.
“Really… why are you here? What kind of scheme are you plotting this time…!”
“Your Imperial Majesty.”
At that moment, a voice as cold as frost cut her off.
Talia turned her head toward the sound. Varkas, wearing a gray fur-trimmed cloak over a long black cotehardie, was walking across the garden.
It seemed he had rushed over after hearing the news during a meeting at the cathedral. Bringing with him the heavy scent of frankincense, Varkas subtly blocked the space between Senebier and Talia as he bowed.
“Thank you for making the long journey.”
“I offer my condolences, Duke Shearkan.”
Deep, swamp-like blue eyes slowly scanned the young man’s figure, which looked as though it had been precisely carved from marble. A peculiar smile spread across her lips.
“Your father must have had no regrets, being able to see his son grown into such a fine man before he passed.”
At the tone, which sounded as if she were addressing a young boy, a faint sneer flickered across Varkas’s lips.
He replied in his characteristic monotone.
“I am humbled by your generous words.”
“You are as modest as ever. Many in the Imperial Palace miss you.”
Senebier let out a soft laugh and added, casting a meaningful look at Talia.
“In particular, the Crown Prince and the First Princess seem to feel your absence greatly. It’s only natural, since the three of you were so close.”
Talia clenched her teeth to avoid showing a reaction.
Senebier, who had been watching her closely, turned back to Varkas with a bright smile.
“Come to think of it, those two asked me to deliver a message to you. Could you spare a moment for us to speak privately?”
A sharp glint flashed in Varkas’s eyes.
It was a fact known to everyone in the world that those two would never ask Senebier for anything.
What was she trying to discuss with him, even while telling such a transparent lie?
He felt nothing but an ominous premonition.
Talia gripped Senebier’s sleeve with hands that trembled slightly.
“You said you came to see me, didn’t you? Talk to me.”
At the words she poured out urgently, a flash of annoyance crossed Senebier’s face.
Talia felt a sense of helplessness, as if she had instantly reverted to a nine-year-old child. She stood pale and frozen, just as she had in the days when she used to fret over her mother’s coldness, when a large hand landed on her shoulder.
“Go and rest in your room, Your Highness.”
Varkas, having pulled her away from Senebier, gave instructions to the maids waiting at the doorway.
“Escort the Grand Duchess at once.”
As soon as his order was given, the maids swarmed toward her.
Talia turned away reluctantly. Then, a gentle voice echoed behind her back.
“Let’s save the old stories between mother and daughter for later.”
Talia glared at her over her shoulder before finally walking away.
Senebier, who had stayed in Varkas’s office for a long time, only came to find her at sunset.
Talia, who had been pacing the room, immediately ran to the door. However, the Nanny was one step faster.
Rushing out, the Nanny grabbed the hem of Senebier’s skirt and shed thick, heavy tears.
“Your Majesty! To see you again from so close… I can die now with no regrets!”
“Oh my, why would you die?”
Senebier, who naturally shook the Nanny off, let out a girlish laugh.
“You must live a long, long time. How could I rest easy if Talia didn’t have her Nanny by her side?”
The Nanny looked up at Senebier with a face full of emotion.
Talia, watching the scene with a glare as if it were loathsome, pulled on her mother’s arm with an impatient hand.
“Can you spare some time for me now?”
At the question spat out sarcastically, Senebier’s eyes crinkled.
“Of course. I came here specifically intending to talk to you.”
She then flashed a smile at the knights of the Si’eikan family who were following them like shadows.
“I wish to speak quietly with my daughter. Would you mind giving us some space?”
“My apologies, Your Majesty. For the safety of you both, I cannot follow that order.”
Tyrone El Drakan bowed his head and politely expressed his refusal.
The Empress looked at the knight who had defied her with interest, then lightly shrugged her shoulders.
“It seems being alone is out of the question. Shall we take a short walk?”
Talia, wearing a wary expression, picked up her coat and left the room.
As they passed through the corridor and headed to the garden, countless eyes followed them.
At the news that a person in political opposition to the Grand Duke’s family had set foot in the East, everyone in the castle seemed to have gone on high alert.
However, Senebier remained unfazed by the stinging glares. Flaunting her majestic poise, Senebier descended the stairs and crossed the hall with fluid grace. Talia followed behind her, limping.
Because she was trying to match Senebier’s pace, her back was soon soaked with sweat. However, the Empress seemed to have no intention of showing any consideration for her disabled daughter.
Stepping firmly into the garden where the sunset glowed, Senebier turned back to the knights with an innocent expression.
“It should be fine to keep a little distance, shouldn’t it?”
When the knights hesitated to answer, she applied pressure with a smiling face.
“Or were you ordered to eavesdrop on our conversation?”
“…No. We will wait here.”
Tyrone replied with a reluctant expression.
Without delay, Senebier set off along the path covered in fallen leaves. Talia, who had been staggering to keep step with her, spoke up impatiently once she judged the knights were far enough away.
“What exactly is your purpose for coming here? Don’t lie and say you came to see me. I know better.”
“I really did come to see you. I wanted to see how you were doing.”
Talia snorted.
This was the woman who hadn’t even shown her face on the day Talia left for the East. What nonsense was she talking now?
Just as she was about to snap back, Senebier whispered in her ear as if sharing a secret.
“And, I wanted to see if there was any possibility of your husband turning to our side.”
Talia’s eyes widened at the unexpected words.
Gazing down at the rippling surface of the water, Senebier continued calmly.
“It seems that by marrying you, Gares has come to doubt the loyalty of the Si’eikan family. That’s why he’s reaching out to the North to find a replacement power.”
“Does that mean… surely, that he is pushing for a new marriage for Aila?”
“Yes. It seems Gares expects the Duke of the North to fill the vacancy left by your husband.”
A bleak smile hung on Senebier’s lips.
“But I don’t know if that marriage will actually happen. Your husband is actively interfering with it.”
Talia gripped her skirts so tightly her fingertips turned white.
Senebier added cruelly.
“Thanks to that, stories of the unfulfilled love between the First Princess and the young Grand Duke of Si’eikan are floating all around the Imperial Palace.”
