CH 150

It’s finally here… today is the day of Helen’s soiree…

I was very depressed today. I don’t care about Helene’s soiree itself. Since it’s Helene we’re talking about, she probably initially wanted to call me alone to a place where there the only other guests were members of her faction, who would then all laugh at and shame me. Then Ludwig asked her about it and ended up inviting himself, and I theorize that’s why the scale of her evening party exploded in the blink of an eye. 1

No matter how much I asked Christa about it, she wouldn’t tell me, but I came to that conclusion while I had Isabella and Helmut doing various investigations on House Bayen.

It would have been fine if I had been made to participate in the Helene faction’s party by myself and made of a fool of while I was alone. Anyway, the harassment that Helene thinks up is nothing more than childish bullying. I’ve experienced having drinks thrown at me several times since my social debut. People around me made fun of me, laughed at me, made my dress dirty, and bullied me like that at parties. It’s not like I’m worrying about something like that now.

And again, the problem is that Ludwig overheard and invited himself. It seems that Helene sent out invitations here and there after that to make her cover story consistent, but since I was the first invitation and a witness to Helene and Ludwig’s conversation then, I can guess the timeline.

It’s quite clear Helene sent out invitations much later than mine. You only needed a little bit of digging before you realize that. And normally, you would invite me at the same time as the other guests or I would be later than them. Because of my relationship with Helene, there’s no way she would make me the first to receive an invitation to a party she was hosting.

Because of all these circumstances and the fact that she was suddenly in a panic to prepare for the evening party, Helene didn’t originally intend to hold an evening party of this size, but Ludwig said he would be participating, so it turned out like this, I suppose.

And now Christa, who couldn’t bear to see it fail, moved independently to help Helene, which is probably why she ran to Caanza for help. We got to that point while Isabella and the others were looking into it, and after various twists and turns, we made it so we were only working with Christa, personally.

If Caanza lends a hand at this evening party, it is a given that various problems will arise in the future. It’s especially easy to imagine what Duke Bayen will say later. So we need to make sure there are no flaws here. The groundwork and evidence are sufficient, so we won’t suffer any damage.

If the Bayen Duchy doesn’t do anything, the contract will just end without any problems, but if by some chance they do something we planned for, we’ll react accordingly. I still don’t know what will happen, but I’d like to think that the members of House Bayen aren’t that stupid.

Aside from that, what makes me depressed isn’t anything related to Caanza, House Bayen, or Helene. I don’t care about Helene’s bullying and her minions, and that Caanza is catering for them, so there’s nothing to worry about. What makes me depressed is…

“Miss Flora,” Katharina said, “His Highness Ludwig has arrived.”

“Haah…” I sighed. “I’m heading out now…”

I made one final check of myself in the mirror before leaving the room. Yes, what makes me depressed is that Ludwig is accompanying me at this evening party.

I have agreed to team up with Queen Elisabeth and Margarete to annul my engagement to Ludwig and propose Margarete as a replacement wife. No, the other two didn’t say so clearly, but if they didn’t object when I said that, they probably agreed.

Even so, this Idiot Prince who doesn’t read the mood said that he would come to pick me up at the evening party today and have me ride with him in his carriage.

Well, he’s my escort, so it might be logical to go with him, but I don’t think it’s necessary to go that far. If we meet randomly at the venue and walk together for a short while, that’s enough. Why do you have to pick me up at home in your carriage, drive to it with me, and go home with me? Ludwig is the cause of my depression.

A carriage was parked at the entrance. The crest of the royal family is accompanied by a crest dedicated to the crown prince. He came in a carriage that stands out again no matter what… I wanted to quietly make myself a wallflower, but this would attract attention from our surroundings… I’m trying so hard not to stand out, but this idiot Ludwig ruined it all.

“Flora! This outfit suits you very well. You’re beautiful,” Ludwig said.

“Fuhn! Even a Country Girl can dress up and transform herself like this.”

… Why is Rutger riding in the carriage with us, in the seat across us?

“Thank you very much,” I said. “Well then… umm…” I glanced at Rutger.

Ludwig immediately sensed my intention. “In all honesty,” he said, “I was going to pick you up by myself… but then Rutger found out, he got tangled up with me and I failed to shake him off, so I was compelled to take him with me. It was supposed to be just the two of us, so forgive, me Flora.”

No, no… I’m actually thankful that I’m not alone with you. But I can’t say that I’m happy it’s Rutger with us. Just having two escorts, it’s unusual, but it’s even more unusual with the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister’s Heir, two people who are or are closely related to royalty.

And now… what should I do with two young men who are my two escorts, crammed into such a narrow carriage? I haven’t learned manners with two men escorting me, have I?

“Don’t look at me too hotly, Country Girl. Prince Ludwig is here, too,” Rutger said quietly, so only I could hear it.

… Huh? Was it when I looked at him, wondering why he was here? I wouldn’t call that a “heated gaze” because I was looking at an annoying pest. Am I crazy? Is this what that phrase means in this country?

“It can’t be helped if we’re like this,” Ludwig said. “Let’s head out right away.”

“Sire……” the coachman said.

And with that, the carriage takes off. I was embarrassed and wanted to ask what to do if there were two escorts in the carriage with me, but we just looked at each other. In the end, before we got there, the two split into my left and right sides, and I was in the middle. I’d never done it before, but after that, I have no choice but to perform it perfectly in front of the crowds.

As expected, we were the center of attention when we arrived at the venue. The idiot Rutger ignores customs and enters the venue as a trio, the idiot Ludwig takes us in a conspicuous carriage to begin with, and on top of that, there’s no way I won’t stand when I’m being escorted by two members of the royal family and relatives.

No matter how hard I try to be just a face in the crowd, all my efforts will be in vain with just these two around me. In the end, I have no choice but to keep my distance from them both.

“Flora!”

“Mikoto… and Alexandra, too,” I said.

And while we were being stared at during our entrance, someone called out to me. Naturally, as a member of the Royal Family of Del, Mikoto was sent an invitation and Alexandra also had an invitation for some reason.

I can get why Mikoto was invited. If you had foreign royalty at your evening party, it would be a considerable amount of publicity. If you fail, it will cause significant damage, but if you’re confident and pull it off, there’s all the reason to invite them.

However, I was honestly surprised that even Alexandra was invited even though she was the highest among the counties. But if you look at the participants, it makes sense. Houses that don’t have very status among the nobility are also called to the festivities.

I’m guessing here, but when Helene first thought about inviting me alone, the rest would be filled up by people from her faction. Of course, there are members with low family status. It would be impossible to call only the lower ranks of one’s own faction without calling the lower ranks of other factions. In order to balance the numbers, it seems that a considerable number of invitations were sent out, even to those in the lower ranks of nobility.

As a result, the scale of this party has snowballed and has become this large. I guess Helene had to send out invitations to House Lingerburg, too.

“Your Highness Ludwig, Your Lordship Rutger, I would like to have a little chat with the other ladies,” I said. “Thank you for escorting me so far.”

It’s a good thing that Mikoto called out to me, as now I have an excuse to break up with them. Otherwise, I’m going to end up stuck with these two and being stared at the whole night.

“I see…” Ludwig said. “Well, there will be times when ladies have to chat with one another. I will see you later.”

“If someone bothers you and tries to ask to escort you because you seem to be alone, tell me right away,” Rutger said.

Neither pursue it too deeply and simply left. It’s probably because they understand that it’s not good manners for a man to mix in with ladies’ talk. Besides, there are many nobles waiting to greet Ludwig and Rutger. They’ll be starting their Greetings Hell now, I suppose.

“You saved me, Mikoto,” I said.

“It’s for your chastity, Flora,” Mikoto said. “It’s only natural.”

What was that about who’s chastity…?

“I was surprised when I heard about your situation from Katharina, Flora but… but I guess it’s true, isn’t it?” Alexandra said.

“So even you, Alexandra…” I said.

The five of them already know from Katharina that I don’t want to marry Ludwig. The reason Mikoto called out to me was probably to create an excuse for me to leave those two. By the way, Alexandra still lives in the Carruthers Residence, but she came to the venue earlier today in a different carriage.

Mikoto, Alexandra, and I become wallflowers watching Rutger and Ludwig in the distance being actively approached by high-ranking nobles.

I can feel the glimmering eyes on me, but no one approaches me to talk. There were people who just greeted us normally but never asked me to dance.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with Mikoto or Alexandra, by family status or appearance… why is no one approaching us?

In this event, there are many Houses with the same status as Lingerburg. If you think about it normally, it’s likely that there will be a lot of suitors for someone like Alexandra, who is cute and has the perfect prestige among the counts. Well, if you knew the situation of House Lingerburg, it might be difficult to talk to them…

The same goes for Mikoto. She’s actually the Princess of the Demon Country, but here she’s supposed to be a member of the Kingdom of Del’s Royalty. Even though she looks cute, no one tries to pick her up, but is this really the way it’s going? Mikoto has a bit of a rough personality, but you can’t know that unless you talk to her, and no one has done that just yet.

No… I think it’s better if the two aren’t picked up by strangers, right? Rather, if the two of them were picked up by some guy and asked to dance, I might just punch him and be their dance partner instead.

But it’s strange that two people who are so cute and beautiful can’t aren’t approached at all. Is there something I don’t know about?

“Hey…” I said, “Mikoto and Alexandra, you’re both very beautiful and cute, and you don’t have any escorts, why hasn’t anyone approached either of you?”

I couldn’t resist asking. If you don’t understand, best to ask.

“Haa… are you serious, Flora?” Mikoto groaned.

“Princess Mikoto… Flora is that sort of lady…” Alexandra said.

The two of them looked at me as if they were feeling sympathy for some dumbfounded, stupid child. In the end, they didn’t explain why we were the only ones left alone.

The evening party wasn’t very exciting for much of its run. But, thanks to Christa popping up somewhere between the middle and the end, it was a huge hit from then on. Both crepes and pudding were extremely popular and they both rapidly dwindled.

“Good evening to you, Lady Flora.”

“And to you as well, Lady Margarete,” I said.

After the crepes and pudding were served, Margarete arrived with Ludwig and company. All three of them seemed to be eating pudding. Of course, those two would be.

“Now that I’ve seen Your Highness since a while ago…” I said, “You’ve eaten a crepe earlier already, and isn’t that your third serving of pudding…? If you eat too many sweets, you will get fat, won’t you? And you’ll also get ill. As with you as well, Your Lordship Rutger.”

The crepes and pudding Christa brought out were not well-received at first by this crowd of nobles. These two took the initiative to start eating it in front of everyone, so the rest followed suit, and it worked out well.

“It’s very like Lady Flora to be so concerned about the health of both of them, isn’t it…?” Margarete said. “I didn’t even think that far…”

“Huh? Umm…?” I went.

And for some reason, Margarete mock cries. I have no idea what she means by this.

There’s no wonder people in this world don’t yet understand diseases caused by excessive sugar intake, obesity, and so on. I just understand that it’s better to be careful about that kind of thing because I have modern knowledge.

“Flora!” Ludwig said. “I can feel the weight of your concern!”

“No, no, Your Highness,” Rutger said, “she was talking to me.”

“What are you saying?!” Ludwig snapped. “She addressed me first, didn’t she? You were just a follow-up, Rutger.”

And now the two of them seemed to be fighting. As the squabble seemed to be growing worse, Margarete and I took a few steps away from them.

“I haven’t had the chance to introduce you to each other,” I said. “This is Lady Margarete von Greif.”

“I am Mikoto Vandenlissen,” Mikoto said. “Nice to meet you.

“I am Alexandra von Lingerburg. It is a great pleasure to meet you today, Lady Greif……” Alexandra started.

She goes on for a while. So long… this rigidity and formality is the same as ever. Well, as a member of House Lingerburg, she’s been rigorously trained for many years to not shame the family, so I guess this is just unavoidable.

“All this aside, I’m surprised Lady Flora introduced me first, and not Princess Vandenlissen,” Margarete said.

……Ah! That’s right… Normally, it would be polite to introduce the highest-ranking person first. That’s why it’s normal to start with Mikoto. There should be no such thing as putting off the introduction of royalty from a foreign country.

If such an exceptional thing is allowed, it’s only with relatives. Relatives don’t have to be blood relatives, by the way. Just someone close to them still counts.

For example, even if the other party that you’re introducing your group to is of lower rank than you, the newcomers should be introduced first, and then in descending order of your group, from the highest social status.

In other words, from the current exchange, it is nothing less than showing that Margarete is an outsider and the three of us are quite close.

There is nothing to worry about if Margarete finds out about it here. If we had talked a little bit here, you would have noticed it right away. But that doesn’t mean it’s okay to be careless. It seems I was a little careless too. Thanks to Margarete, I was also taught what I should be careful about from now on.

“From now on, I would like to be a part of this circle,” Margarete said.

“Right?” Mikoto said. “I think we need to cooperate moving forward.”

In short, they were showing they were comrades in breaking my engagement with Ludwig and Margarete marrying him instead.

After this, the four of us worked hard to exchange information until the party was over.