CH 21.5

“But, Lady Ezrada. Did you write to her first, and why has she not come?”

A lady asked Hilda with a worried expression. They were sitting on the sofa in the reception room, only looking towards the door.

In the parlour, where not even a cup of tea was served and no one came to visit, the five young ladies, including Hilda, were busy opening their mouths.

“Yes, it’s a tradition. But it’s a tradition we don’t do much any more, and it gets cold up north when the first snow starts to fall.”

Catherine, who had never seen Hilda in a good light, made a snide remark. Although Lila, who was going to become a duchess, followed her out of curiosity, she didn’t think highly of Hilda, who boasted of her friendship with the duke’s family.

“Oh, Lady. It’s a tradition you can’t participate in if you become a wife. Please don’t distort Hilda’s consideration like that.”

Said Maria, who had always been close to Hilda.

Hilda blew off the offence and smiled shyly at Catherine.

“I came to see you because I thought it would be good for Her Grace Lady Este to know the traditions of the North.”

Catherine hated that side of Hilda. She pretended to care about others, but was strangely inconsiderate.

“Well, I suppose you sent a letter first, didn’t Miss Luna ask earlier?”

Luna, who had first questioned Hilda, now nodded in agreement.

“You sent a letter, didn’t you?”

Hilda was stumped by their questions. Then she made a familiar excuse.

“The Duke’s house is as good as ours, and Luca said he was always welcome.”

Catherine rolled her eyes at the oddly evasive answer.

“So, in other words, we’ve just dropped in unannounced. For all your talk of manners, courtesy, and poetry, Lady Ezrada, you can’t even keep your own.”

The blatant sarcasm made Hilda ponder. She wanted to retort, but Maria beat her to it.

“Why does the young lady always say something to Hilda? If she gets ready in a hurry, she might forget. You can enjoy the drawing room of a duke like this. Right, Hilda?”

“That’s right, Maria.”

Hilda nodded in agreement and turned to Catherine.

“It will be all right; we had to wait a while last time, but Lady Este made us feel welcome.”

Just then there was a knock at the parlour door. Catherine, who had been stunned by Hilda’s answer, was forced to shut up.

Vincent entered the parlour, empty-handed. Instead, he carried a message from Lila.

“I have come to tell you that the Duchess is making preparations.”

Smiling pleasantly at him, Hilda asked.

“She will be here shortly, I hope? I skipped lunch because I was thinking of having a tea time.”

Vincent, who had been studying her smiling face, replied with an expressionless face.

“That is for the Duchess to decide. In future, I hope you will observe the courtesy of sending a letter in advance.”

With that stern reply, Vincent bowed and left the drawing room.

Without so much as the usual ‘Shall I make you tea?’ Hilda stiffened visibly at his behaviour, and Maria, studying her complexion, opened her mouth.

“They’re being a bit too much. Even if I didn’t send a notification, this treatment seems uncalled for.”

Catherine retorted with a different expression from Hilda’s in response to Vincent’s answer.

“It’s a matter of who did it first…”

“Excuse me?”

Maria snapped, as if she’d been waiting for it. Then she whispered loudly in Hilda’s ear, as if she wanted her to hear.

“Don’t pay too much attention to what she says, Hilda. She’s always jealous of you.”

“What?”

Catherine asked, this time venomously. Maria snorted as if she had been waiting.

“You’re right, Hilda is prettier than the lady, and I know she’s always looked at you in a bad light.”

“Are you done talking now?”

Catherine took this opportunity to press the bridge of Maria’s nose. It took a while for the Duchess to come down, so she figured it was a good thing.

“Catherine…”

That’s when Luna interrupted. Even as the four of them chattered loudly, the young woman at the head of the sofa remained silent.

Her long bangs hid her face, giving her a sullen look.

“Ah, Lady Paes. That was noisy, I’m sorry.”

Hilda called to Amy in the corner, hoping to calm Maria and Catherine.

Amy was taken aback by the suddenness of her call.

“No, it’s okay.”

“Well… I guess we’ll have to wait for now, and hope for the Duchess’s consideration.”

“Whatever…”

Her words made Catherine angry again. But she didn’t feel like arguing anymore.

Instead, like Maria, she whispered loudly to Luna.

“That’s a sickness, a sickness. The disease of thinking she’s the only one who’s good, right, Luna?”

“Catherine…”

Luna, being the fragile person she is, couldn’t help herself.

“Someone who has a truly kind and good personality wouldn’t have just come searching like this. They wouldn’t have come without letting them know or notifying them.”

“That’s not fair!”

That’s when Maria jumped to her feet. Her face flushed red, and she glared at Catherine.

“You have a bad temper like the lady, I swear. It’s true what they say about looks and character.”

“What, have you finished talking?”

“No, I haven’t finished yet!”

“Wait, Maria.”

“Catherine…”

Amy stared, unable to speak up in the instant chaos.

She tugged at her bangs to hide her face from Maria’s comment.

Then there was another knock at the door.

“The Duchess has sent me. If you will follow me, I will show you to the place for tea.”

Hilda felt uncomfortable at the sight of the unfamiliar butler. At a glance, the butler was a newcomer.

That alone made the noble ladies realise how they were treated. Catherine did not miss the momentary flicker of displeasure that crossed her otherwise docile face.

She was beginning to like the duchess, whom she did not yet know.

The young ladies were led by the butler to the garden, and Hilda, not knowing why they were going there in the snow, couldn’t help but ask.

“Why are they going to the garden? Surely they don’t know it’s snowing?”

As she questioned, Hilda enlightened herself.

“Lady Este must be ignorant of northern traditions. Does she not know that it is snowing outside?

Her suspicions were confirmed. Hilda paused at the gate to the garden.

She had summoned them first, so it was only right that she should speak for them.

“I must see Lady Este first. Will you show me in?”

The butler was a little taken aback by her remark, but he composed himself and replied.

“Of course, that’s why I’m escorting you now.”

The butler did as Vincent had instructed. Vincent said to him.

[These are young ladies who have dared to disrespect the Duchess, and have come to visit in such a manner. Today, I will teach you the hospitality for such occasions].

Then he gave an example and a contextualised answer. The butler finished in a firm voice, admiring his prophetic forecast.

“And you cannot ask the Duchess to meet first. Please be careful with your choice of language next time.”

Hilda’s face flushed red with shame at the butler’s words. This was the first time she had ever been treated like this in the ducal household.

Before he could say a word, the butler opened the door without delay. Cold wind and snow whipped in.

“Kyaaah”

The young ladies screamed in panic, but the cold northern wind was only for a moment. They were speechless at what they saw when they opened the door.

In the middle of the garden’s dappled white trees, a table and couch were set up, whiter than snow.

Despite the blustery winds, the tea table didn’t move at all. Something transparent was protecting the table and sofa.

The snowflakes falling from the sky were also accumulating on the transparent film. The accumulated snow floated on top of the table like a confectionery roof made of snow.

In the midst of this mystical scene, Lila, sitting on the white sofa, beckoned to the ladies.

“Welcome.”

Hilda was speechless as she stood up, skipped the formal greeting, and beckoned with a yo-yo glance.

This was not the Lady Este she knew. The hair and eye colour were the same, but the face and mood were completely different.

Everything was different, as if she were someone else.

“E, Lady Este?”

At Hilda’s startled call, Lila slowly folded the corners of her eyes. In her deep red dress, Lila stood out like a red rose in a field of snow.

Even more gorgeous than her dress, Lila’s appearance caused the rest of the young ladies, except for Hilda, to gasp in amazement.

A large blue sapphire was embedded in her softly curled mauve hair.

The blue hydrangea ring on her left finger glowed with every wave of her hand.

The colour of her eyes, her hair, and the colour of her dress might seem incongruous, but the blue sapphire in her dress and the blue of all her accessories made it all seem harmonious.

Pushing past the frozen Hilda, Catherine stepped forward.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Catherine Lu Hayan, a lady of the Earl of Hayan.”

“Good evening, Duchess. I’m Luna Lu Olleus, from the Count of Olleus.”

At their greeting, Amy, who had been squirming in the corner, stepped forward and grabbed the hem of her skirt.

She bowed apologetically and opened her mouth with difficulty.

“H, hello. I’m Amy Hugh Paes, from the Marquis of Paes.”

The dress and jewellery she wore were among the most expensive of the group, but her face was different.

Lila stared at her for a moment, the corners of her mouth twitching upward, and then she gestured.

““I’ve heard from Lucas about the Marquis of Paes… It’s a pleasure to meet you, young lady.”

“I, I apologise.”

Amy was nervous as hell around the dazzlingly beautiful Lila. Expecting her to be offended by her appearance, she didn’t even hear Lila’s words before apologising.

“Apologise for what?”

The earrings in her ears jingled as she spoke. Amy was momentarily confused by her words.

She hadn’t heard her correctly and didn’t know how to respond. That’s when Hilda stepped forward.

“It’s been a long time, Lady Este. I’m told that Lady Paes is a very shy girl, so please, don’t put her on the spot.”

Lila let out a small laugh as she looked at the woman who hadn’t changed a bit from the way she had treated her before.

“You haven’t changed at all, Lady Ezrada.”