-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: Attempted Poisoning (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Rosette's cheeks flushed slightly as she straightened her back.
“I'm sorry.”
“There's no need to be sorry. Let's go.”
Joshua led the way to the Empress's Palace. After a quick glance to check if Rosette was alright, Isabelle walked with her back straight, as if she were familiar with the place. Rosette, however, hunched her shoulders a little and looked around.
“Shoulders back, stand straight. And don't look around so much, just walk forward.”
“Yes.”
“Have some confidence. You're an Adrian, too. There's no need to be intimidated.”
“Okay.”
The three of them soon entered the Empress's Palace. The guards, initially wary, recognized Joshua's face and let the children in.
Once inside, one of the Empress's ladies-in-waiting personally guided them to a drawing room.
As the three children entered, the Empress stood to greet them.
“Welcome, all of you. Was the journey difficult?”
The Empress of Ehrnhardt, Ophelia Ehrnhardt, was a woman with the same silver hair and amethyst eyes as Joshua. And she was more beautiful than any woman Rosette had ever seen.
*Wow.*
Rosette, who had been staring at her blankly, belatedly followed Isabelle in a curtsy.
“We greet Your Majesty, the Empress.”
“We greet Your Majesty.”
“Yes, you may both rise.”
Ophelia took the two children by the hand and led them to a large, round table, upon which a variety of snacks were laid out.
“You sit as well, Joshua.”
“Yes.”
Ophelia, Isabelle, Rosette, and Joshua sat around the table in clockwise order. Rosette, finding herself seated next to Joshua, tensed up.
Seeing this, Ophelia smiled softly.
“There's no need to be nervous. Don't think of me as the Empress, just as a close auntie.”
“How could I…”
“If Vanessa were still alive, she would have adored you as her youngest daughter. Vanessa's daughter is my daughter, too. So please, feel at ease.”
But it wasn't as easy as it sounded. Rosette nodded in understanding, but she couldn't release the tension coiled in her body.
Ophelia poured black tea for Isabelle and Joshua, and hot chocolate for Rosette.
“By the way, Isabelle. You haven't visited in a while.”
“My apologies, Your Majesty. It's been difficult to find the time.”
“Yes, managing the estate is no easy task. And you have your sword training as well.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Has your swordsmanship improved? You seem to have grown a lot since I last saw you, too.”
“I still have much to learn. As for my height, everyone says I'll be tall like my father.”
“Being tall is good for a swordswoman. And how is Lucas?”
“That boy is doing *too* well, that's the problem.”
Ophelia chuckled softly.
“It's good that he's well, what's wrong with that? Had I known, I would have invited Lucas as well.”
After that, Isabelle and Ophelia continued to exchange simple updates.
“I heard Duke Adrian nearly met with a terrible fate.”
“Yes. It's a great relief that he's safe.”
“Yes, a great relief indeed. I was so shocked when I heard the news, I couldn't sleep properly.”
“I'm sorry. Had I known you were so worried, I would have come to see you sooner.”
“I'm not scolding you, so there's no need to apologize.”
The Empress, who had been chatting warmly with Isabelle, suddenly called to Rosette.
“By the way, your name is Rosette, isn't it, Young Lady?”
Rosette, who was nibbling on a cookie with her front teeth, was so startled that she hid it behind her back.
“Yes, that's right. My name is Rosette Adrian.”
“It's a name that suits you well. Was it inspired by your hair color?”
“Yes. They said I resembled a pink rose, so they named me Rosette.”
Rosette answered shyly, then mustered the courage to lift her head.
“Um, Your Majesty!”
“Yes, dear?”
“P-Please call me Rosette!”
Isabelle touched her temple, and Ophelia laughed.
“Oh my, is that alright with you?”
“Yes!”
“Very well, Rosette. You have such a lovely heart.”
Rosette didn't understand what part of that showed she had a lovely heart, but she just smiled brightly.
“Alright, Rosette. I hear your skill in magic is quite remarkable.”
She was used to praise from her family and the people at the estate. But hearing it from a stranger was incredibly embarrassing. Rosette's face turned as red as a tomato.
“I-It's nothing special.”
“Nothing special, she says.”
Isabelle muttered.
“You can even summon a familiar. Celine was incredibly surprised.”
She pretended not to, but she was subtly boasting about Rosette. In that way, she was just like Lucas.
“Oh my.”
Ophelia showed interest.
“You can summon a familiar?”
“U-um, yes.”
“Goodness, that's truly incredible. My Joshua is said to have quite a talent for magic, but he hasn't summoned a familiar yet.”
“Oh, but…”
*The Prince already has a familiar.*
Rosette was about to murmur just that, but she instinctively shut her mouth.
When she glanced over at Joshua, she saw him subtly shake his head.
It seemed his summoning of a familiar was a secret.
Rosette mumbled something vague.
“The Prince is very skilled, so I'm sure he'll summon one soon.”
“I hope so. But more importantly, may I see your familiar?”
“Of course!”
Rosette immediately summoned Pipi.
[Chirp?]
Pipi, summoned so suddenly, looked around. It seemed unfamiliar with the surroundings, which were different from what it saw every day.
The white tit was especially curious about Ophelia, whom it had never seen before. As Pipi stared at her, Rosette whispered quietly.
“Pipi, that's the Empress. Say hello.”
[Chiiirp?]
Pipi jumped in surprise, then stood on its two feet on the table. It then bowed its head toward Ophelia.
[Chii, rp.]
Having seen it somewhere, it even extended one wing like a person. But it lost its balance and bonked its head on the table.
[Chiii….]
Pipi chirped mournfully. The Empress, who had been stroking the spot where Pipi had bumped its head, held out her palm.
“Come up here.”
Pipi hopped onto her palm with its feet together. It wagged its tail feathers at Ophelia, acting cute, and even got some biscuit crumbs.
Rosette felt a little betrayed, but Pipi, oblivious to its master's feelings, excitedly pecked at the crumbs.
“It's fascinating no matter how many times I see it. To summon a familiar at such a young age. Even in my home country, the Kingdom of Iveline, I've never heard of an eight-year-old summoning a familiar.”
Ophelia's praise made Rosette feel very awkward.
In the past, she had first summoned Pipi at the age of eleven. That was impressive in itself, but it didn't have the same impact as doing it at eight.
The reason she had a familiar at the age of eight was purely due to her memories of the past.
Meaning, it wasn't entirely her own skill. Her mana core, too, shouldn't have existed yet.
“I was just lucky.”
“In times like this, you should just say thank you. You shouldn't be overly modest.”
At Isabelle's comment, Rosette blushed even more and mumbled.
“Thank you for the compliment.”
The Empress reached out and gently pinched Rosette's soft cheek.
“How can you be so adorable? This is why one needs a daughter. Joshua has no cute side to him.”
“Mother.”
“Am I wrong? Anyway, why don't you teach Joshua how to summon a familiar?”
“Me?”
“Yes. You're his senior in this, aren't you?”
To teach the Prince, a prince who had already summoned a familiar, no less. It was absurd.
But Ophelia was looking at her with an expectant face. Rosette stammered as she tried to explain her method of summoning a familiar.
“You just have to think that you want a friend…”
Joshua scoffed. He was clearly mocking her. Rosette felt like crying.
“A friend? Me?”
“Or family…”
Rosette's voice trailed off. Ophelia called to Joshua in a slightly lower tone.
“Prince.”
The change in address revealed that she was slightly angry. Joshua wiped the smile from his face.
Ophelia whispered affectionately to Rosette.
“He's just shy. Please understand. Later, if Joshua summons a familiar, they could become friends. I wonder what kind of animal Joshua's familiar will be.”
*The Prince's familiar is a wolf. A big, silver wolf.*
But she couldn't say that, so Rosette just mumbled vaguely.
“I hope the Prince's familiar is a bird.”
“A bird?”
“Yes. So it can be friends with Pipi.”
“That would be nice.”
“I'll handle my familiar on my own.”
Joshua replied bluntly and rose from his seat.
“By the way, Mother. May I give the young lady a tour of the castle?”
“Oh, you mean Rosette?”
Ophelia seemed a little surprised, then gave a knowing smile.
“Of course, that's perfectly fine. There are many wonderful things to see, so go ahead and show her around.”
“Thank you.”
This time, Joshua looked at Rosette and spoke.
“Let's go, Young Lady.”
“Ah, yes.”
It seemed the time had come.
Instead of asking the foolish question, 'Why are you showing me the castle?', Rosette tensed up and followed him.
Joshua moved close to Rosette and whispered.
“How much do you know about that matter?”
“I know what kind of poison was used. But I don't know where it was placed, so I'll have to look for it. It's probably somewhere related to herbs or tea.”
“Then let's go find out.”
Joshua walked ahead, explaining things Rosette didn't know.
“The culprit who poisoned my mother was a lady-in-waiting named Sophia Cannon. She was the second daughter of Viscount Cannon and had been in the Empress's Palace for about five years.”
“Is there a reason Sophia Cannon was identified as the culprit?”
“My mother collapsed after Sophia lit some sleep-inducing incense for her. My mother suffered from insomnia and often used it. Only a few people, including Sophia Cannon, knew about that. Isn't it obvious she'd be singled out as the culprit?”
“Did she admit to the crime?”
“No. She maintained her innocence to the very end.”
Joshua gritted his teeth.
“The audacity.”
“Was any poison found in the incense?”
“No. Coincidentally, no known poison components were detected. However, the Empress's royal physician suggested a new, undiscovered poison might have been used. But despite continued investigation, they never managed to identify the substance.”
“And they still executed Sophia Cannon?”
“Yes. I argued for more investigation, but His Majesty made the final decision. He said Sophia had a motive.”
“A motive?”
“Yes.”
Just then, passing maids bowed to the two of them. Joshua ignored them, while Rosette gave a small nod.
“Viscount Cannon's family was being hounded by debt collectors, but about a month before my mother's death, they cleared all their debts. The Viscount claimed he won the money gambling, but no one could corroborate his story.”
“Gambling dens are illegal. No one would have wanted to get involved.”
Rosette nodded.
“The circumstances certainly are suspicious. But it's more likely that Sophia Cannon wasn't the culprit.”
