CH 81

A chilly silence settled.

I looked alternately between Dietrich, who had a displeased expression as though he’s about to pull out a sword, and Charlotte, who was staring at him, not understanding his displeasure.

"Why are you angry? Northerners also have the freedom of religion promised by the Valliere Imperial family."

"Freedom of religion, you say. It would be nice if the cold won’t freeze you in the North." 

"I'm surprisingly strong. Don't worry."

Charlotte blinked her eyes beautifully and beamed.

‘No, I think he’s more upset than worried.’

I rolled my eyes at Charlotte’s optimistic response and peeked at Dietrich’s hardened face.

From his shoes, it was definitely something to feel insulted about. First, they painted Lagrange as the villains in order to suppress the shadow demons, and now they’ll send a priestess that believes in the sun god. 

‘But is it alright for the main characters leading the romance to be responsible for such a bloody atmosphere?’

It wouldn’t be strange if a fight broke out right now.

If I left it alone, I feel like he would cause trouble in front of the emperor again, so I forced my head to stick in between them.

“Do we just need to invite Charlotte to Lagrange’s Castle?”

“No. The Lagrange guest I want is one with a  guaranteed status that will allow me to officially stay in the North. Do you not know the royal guest system, Princess?”

I scratched my chin and lowered my head at the words of Charlotte, who looked back at me in surprise with her eyes wide open.

‘I think I really need a tutor to be educated.’

I was too busy surviving that I only studied about Eredia, so I lack the general knowledge about the Empire.

My face flushed as I felt a little embarrassed and gave her a light smile.

“Y-Yes. Of course, I’ve heard of it. So, you want to be an official guest of Lagrange, right?”

"Yes. If the Duke allows me to stay. There are only a few Solists1 in the North. I want to take care of those who are being persecuted." 

‘There are people in the North who believe in the sun god?’

I tilted my head at Charlotte’s words.. It would be a relief if I didn’t hear someone make a ruckus roaring ‘how dare you preach about a cunning Southern god!’ 

“In any case, if we accept Charlotte as a guest, will you officially grant the title of the grand duke?”

“Yes. I swear in the name of Valliere.”

At my question, the Emperor came forward and nodded. Seeing that, I grabbed Dietrich’s hand and leaned in to whisper.

“Let’s just say yes for now, okay? So that your workload won’t increase.”

It’s obvious that the Valliere Imperial family and the Euclids were already in cahoots. No matter how powerful the forces of Lagrange were, scratching them now would only lead to an early demise.

“Are you really going to wage war? You won’t, right?”

At my urging, Dietrich slowly nodded his head in reluctance. Even though he was in front of the Emperor, he proudly crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

“All right. However.”

“However?”

“Stay out of my sight.” 

Dietrich’s cold words were familiar, as though I’ve heard of them somewhere. 

‘I think that line came up in the Rose Wars of Men.’

Charlotte and Dietrich did not fall in love with each other at first sight. Their love was more like a drizzling rain that slowly wets your clothes over time. 

‘It started with dislike, but in the end, they couldn’t take their eyes off each other.’

I smiled, wondering when that dry relationship would turn pink.

As if he found my expression unpleasant,  Dietrich pressed his fingertip on my forehead.

“Why are you smiling?”

"It's nothing. I'll have to ask the butler to arrange the room where the saint will be staying."

“Thank you, Princess.”

I didn’t think being an official guest of Lagrange would simply mean visiting the estate. Charlotte smiled at me to confirm that I understood her point. 

Charlotte took a gentle step and came close to us. Seeing her up close, she already had a brown suitcase in hand. 

‘You must’ve really planned your stay.’

It was as though she had packed her belongings certain that Dietrich would welcome her as a guest.

Gently swaying her suitcase, she smiled like a golden flower blooming in the spring.

“I’ll be in your care. ”

She lowered her head, lifting the hem of her modest white dress. Her silver tresses, which looked like a fine gift, were displayed in front of me. 

“I will greet you formally. My name is Charlotte Vallandia. A saint of Vallandia and a faithful servant of the sun god Hera.”

Anyone could see that it was a perfect greeting full of elegance. I didn’t really doubt that she had any ulterior motive. Because I could see her aura.

However, Dietrich didn’t hide his suspicions of her intentions.

Charlotte watched his unfriendly back silently as he went to the second floor of the mansion without accepting her greetings.

────── 〔✿〕──────

Due to the fact that Charlotte stayed in the capital as a guest of Lagrange and thanks to the Emperor’s favor was invited to the imperial ball, the invitation was extended to us as well.

“Her Majesty has asked that only the Princess should come. By the way, it seems that His Grace is not in the mansion.”

“He’s in the office. Do you want me to take you there?”

“Oh, n-no! It’s alright!”

The emperor’s messenger that came with the invitation, didn’t hide his fear and reluctance of facing Dietrich.

“I’m glad I was able to deliver it to the Princess instead.”

He sighed as he said that to me, who didn’t possess the sharp energy of a Lagrange.

“He’s not that scary, my older brother.”

“I apologize for being rude. I was scared because his nickname from the battlefield has spread to ordinary people like me.”

‘What in the world could his nickname on the battlefield be?’

I stared blankly at the back of the messenger, who ran away after completing his work, and headed towards the office.

‘I’m sure he would dislike this kind of thing.’ 

“What is this?”

“The Imperial Ball will be held. Her Majesty has invited me to come.”

“Is that damn woman telling people to come and go as she pleased again?” 

As expected, Dietrich was not pleased with the Emperor’s invitation. I let out a wry smile as I glanced at the unopened invitation that was crumpled and tossed in a corner.

As if a lot of effort had been put into it, a scent of lilac was emanating from the envelope sprinkled with golden powder.

“If you dislike it so much, can’t you just reject it?”

Now that I've come all the way to the capital, I wanted to go to the ball that was famous for being fancy, but it wouldn't be a comfortable place for Dietrich. At my careful question, he bit his lips, holding back his irritation.

“If I don’t go, they’re gonna go nuts again, I mean, make a fuss and call it treason or some other.”

As he had been on the battlefield, Dietrich’s words and actions felt a little rough. He scratched his chin and sighed. 

“As expected, a kingdom…..” 

“Hm?”

“I may have no choice but to build a kingdom and become independent.” 

Wasn’t this why you’re always accused of treason? I hastily looked around and shook my head at Dietrich’s harsh words.

“Euclid is Lagrange’s main enemy. Not the Valliere imperial family.”

“That’s right. Even if I build a kingdom, they should be dealt with first.”

I was sweating profusely at Dietrich's expression, as if he was going to bring Hermann's neck at any moment.

‘No, I’m telling you, please be careful of what you say and do.’

If Valliere and Euclid worked together, in the end Dietrich would have no way to stand against them. Even if I tell him in advance that he would lose the war, he won’t believe me.

Knock knock.

“Your Grace, may I come in?”

“Should I open it? I think it’s the butler.”

Worried about the future of Lagrange, I approached the door.  A soft, dark gray tailcoat was in the arm of the butler who entered the office.

“It’s a gift from Her Majesty.”

Dietrich frowned as he took the clothing that was devoid of wrinkles. I leaned in close to look at the luxurious tailcoat.

“She also sent one to the Princess. It should be ready in the dressing room by now.”

How beautiful would a dress sent by the Emperor of the country be?

‘That’s right. You need to have something like this to make it fun going to the ball.’

I entered the dressing room with high expectations.

“My Lady, look at the dress Her Majesty sent you!”

They obviously ran away around the time Lagrange was turned inside out ,however, I didn’t know when they came back but Vanessa and Natalia made a fuss, shuffling on their feet.

“When did you come back?”

“W-What do you mean ‘come back’? While the gateway succession is still in progress, it’s the duty of the employees to temporarily leave Lagrange.” 

“Hmm. Is that so?”

'I thought they were simply lacking in loyalty, but was there such a tradition?'

“Anyway, please look at this dress, Princess. It’s very pretty.”

“Is it so pretty for you to make a ruckus?”

Vanessa and Natalia’s mouth looked like they were ripped with their wide smiles, but I couldn’t help but harden my expression at the displayed dress.

The dress sent by the emperor was indeed beautiful.  The yellow satin boasted a smooth luster and sparkled, and the lace adorning the sleeves and hem even had pearls.

‘However……’

Editor’s Note: 

Solists - This appeared in the previous chapter, too. I think we can use this term referring to believers of the sun god. Sol means sun in Latin and written as 솔 in Korean romanized as ‘sol’. [New word not in the dictionary. Nice.] **BCK uses the term Solicism to refer to the sun god’s religion.