101 - Evil Husband (15th Anniversary Edition) Chapter 101
Aileen froze, still clutching the bouquet. She was so surprised that her mind went blank.
She never imagined he would come to the Tea Party. She knew better than anyone how busy Cesare was. Countless people in the Traon Empire wanted to meet him. Even the Emperor had to wait to see Cesare.
But he had come to a small Tea Party for noble ladies. It was unbelievable. The ladies were equally stunned by the unexpected situation. They stared at Cesare, unable to even blink.
Everyone in the Traon Empire knew Cesare, but very few had ever been close to him.
Having started as a child soldier at the age of ten and constantly wandering the battlefields, Cesare didn't spend much time in the capital. Moreover, he rarely attended social gatherings, so even high-ranking nobles didn't have much personal connection with him.
He was like the sun in the sky, revered and admired by all, yet unattainable. And now, such a distant figure had appeared at the lady's Tea Party with a bouquet of flowers.
While the ladies were frozen by Cesare's appearance, Aileen was no different. With her eyes wide open, Cesare lightly tapped the tip of her nose with a gloved hand.
Only then did Aileen take a deep breath. Her face, which had been flushed by the ladies' questions, was now completely red.
"I, I just said you were being mischievous."
She tried to make excuses, but she had nothing to say. Aileen hugged the bouquet in her arms a little tighter. The wrapping paper rustled, making a small noise.
"I just... that's all. You don't have to be careful."
Cesare chuckled and wrapped his arm around Aileen's waist. He put one arm around Aileen and looked back at the ladies. They were clearly nervous as they watched the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess.
Cesare's red eyes were beautiful but difficult to look at directly. Even seasoned soldiers and politicians couldn't hold Cesare's gaze for long, let alone these ladies. Cesare gave a faint smile, as if to signal his harmlessness.
"It seems I've intruded on the ladies' gathering."
At Cesare's words, one of the ladies quickly spoke up.
"Absolutely not, Your Grace."
It was the one who had asked Aileen about the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess's bedroom affairs. She spoke bravely, looking at Aileen with pleading eyes. Aileen could almost hear her voice in her eyes. 'Please, let His Grace join us!'
If she could have her way, she would have asked him to join them for tea. There would be no stronger ally than Cesare at the Tea Party. But she was worried that her request might trouble him, given how busy he was.
Aileen hesitated, deep in thought. Cesare, who had been watching Aileen intently, spoke again.
"Still, I didn't come empty-handed."
Following his words, Sonio appeared in the garden. Sonio brought a large cake box and placed it on the table. When Sonio opened the box, the ladies gasped like young girls.
It was the new cake from the capital's famous bakery. Only one of these cakes was sold per day, making it incredibly difficult to obtain. Aileen had heard about the cake, but she had given up on buying it because she couldn't afford it.
'There's no way Cesare stood in line to buy it.'
The bakery must have prepared the cake separately for Cesare.
'Then he should have told me in advance.'
Cesare had been planning to come to the Tea Party from the start. Realizing this, Aileen suddenly felt a surge of confidence. She gently grabbed Cesare's sleeve and asked.
"If you're not too busy, would you like to join us for tea? The weather is nice. And the ladies would like it too..."
She glanced at the ladies, who eagerly added their words as if they had been waiting for it.
"It would be a great honor to have Your Grace join us."
"Please, give us the opportunity to be with Your Grace."
And so, a Tea Party attended by none other than the Grand Duke was held. The servants quickly prepared a seat for Cesare.
Cesare, dressed in his uniform, stood out among the ladies in their dresses. Unlike the brightly colored dresses, the Imperial Army uniform was dark and somber, making him stand out even more.
The ladies' faces lit up. It was already a great honor to have tea at the Grand Duke's Residence, but to be in the company of Cesare was something else entirely.
Aileen, worried that her pounding heart would be heard, handed the bouquet to a servant. The servant divided the bouquet into vases and decorated the Tea Party table even more lavishly.
During the brief commotion, a sense of unease spread among the ladies. Cesare hadn't given Ornella any special greeting. Considering the friendship she had been flaunting until just now, the atmosphere was strange.
As the atmosphere of the Tea Party settled down, Ornella greeted Cesare with a gentle voice, as if she had been waiting for it.
"Your Grace. It's been a while."
"Ah, Lady Parbellini."
Cesare simply nodded lightly, ending the greeting with a mere acknowledgment. There was no small talk. Ornella was about to speak again when it happened.
"Aileen."
As Aileen picked up a knife to cut the cake for the ladies, Cesare simply stopped her. He took off his leather gloves and placed them on the table, then picked up the knife himself.
The sight of a tall man in uniform cutting a soft, fluffy cake was truly incongruous. But Cesare skillfully cut and placed the cake on plates, as if he had done it many times before.
The ladies were about to faint at the sight of the Grand Duke cutting the cake instead of his wife. They had only imagined the commander of the Imperial Army wielding a gun and sword, never a cake knife.
Aileen, who received the cake first, was so flustered that she awkwardly tried to eat it, accidentally getting a little cream on her mouth. She quickly tried to wipe it off with a napkin, but a large hand came from the side.
A thick thumb brushed Aileen's lips. Cesare wiped away the cream and naturally licked his finger. Then, meeting the eyes of the ladies, he smiled and said.
"We're newlyweds."
He asked the ladies to be understanding, and they nodded furiously with reddened faces. Aileen, who had turned into a burning tomato, moved her lips slightly.
"Thank you for the cake..."
"I have to be affectionate during the day since I'm mischievous at night."
"Y-You're affectionate at night too."
Surprised, she quickly retorted, and laughter erupted from here and there. Cesare cooled Aileen's flushed cheeks with the back of his hand and replied.
"Then I'm glad."
Aileen quickly took a bite of the cake. It was an attempt to activate her frozen brain with sugar. She had to entertain the ladies so they wouldn't get bored, but she couldn't just keep showing them her and Cesare talking. Little did she know that was the most interesting gossip.
Aileen brought up a new topic to lead the Tea Party as the Grand Duchess. She brought up the topic of the banquet, and the lady who had been the most active from the beginning said with a delighted expression.
"We're planning to hold a ball soon."
Aileen remembered hearing that the banquets she hosted were famous among the capital's nobles. It was also a candidate for a social gathering that Aileen would attend after the Tea Party.
"I'm thinking of holding a ball after the Hunting Festival, and I would love for the Grand Duchess to come. And if possible, His Grace as well."
She was putting a lot of effort into this banquet, and she had managed to invite the most famous dancer in the capital with great difficulty, she said with a light jest.
Cesare didn't make any negative comments, so she had a hopeful expression. To prevent the conversation from flowing too much towards the ball, another lady changed the subject.
"Now that you mention it, the Hunting Festival is coming up soon, isn't it? Will Your Grace be participating this year?"
The Hunting Festival was held in the early summer in the forest owned by the Imperial Family. It was a kind of festival dedicated to the gods who protected the Traon Empire.
The most precious game caught at the Hunting Festival was offered as a Sacrificial offering, and the person who hunted the animal that would become the offering of the year would wear a laurel wreath and have the glorious opportunity to offer the sacrifice directly to the gods.
As a humble noble lady, Aileen had naturally never attended the Hunting Festival. Cesare didn't attend every Hunting Festival either.
He didn't enjoy hunting, so he rarely decided to attend, but whenever he did, he would give Aileen the fur of the hunted animal as a gift.
Aileen was curious if he would attend this year's Hunting Festival. She waited for an answer, looking at Cesare, but for some reason, he was staring at Aileen.
"Do you want to go?"
As if all the decisions were up to Aileen, Cesare asked in a gentle voice.
"Shall we attend the Hunting Festival?"
