Chapter 14
“I don’t know what the atmosphere is like in the imperial palace of Gottorf, but here in Ehmonte, momentum is more important than anything else.”
“……”
“I’m not saying you should confront him head-on. However, if the Emperor humiliates Her Majesty the Empress in front of everyone and you remain silent, the nobles here will come to see Your Majesty as being worth less than even one of the Emperor’s concubines. Ehmonte is a nation of warriors. They revere strength and scorn weakness. You must not lose in terms of presence.”
Adelaide erased the trace of a bitter smile that had been lingering at her lips and focused on Elisabetha’s words. Seeing the Empress listen with a serious expression, Elisabetha straightened her posture and leaned closer.
“At present, the one who has seized real power here is Duke Despone. With one hand, he controls the corps of mages and thus holds authority; with the other, he uses Dian Poitiers to capture the Emperor’s heart. Do you think there will be no opposing forces?”
“You mean that those who stand against him will respond to the proclamation I issue?”
Elisabetha nodded.
“For generations, the Empress’s aide has been used as a mechanism to check the Emperor’s power. If that position had been reduced to nothing more than the meaning of ‘mistress,’ the people of Ehmonte would long ago have boldly replaced it with a far cruder term.”
“If I were to appoint an aide… whom would you recommend, Your Grace?”
At the Empress’s question, the Grand Duke fell briefly into thought, then recited the names of several families.
Adel etched his words into her mind.
“And though it is unlikely, if the House of Valdir should send a candidate, I recommend choosing him without hesitation.”
“The House of Valdir?”
At Adel’s question, the Grand Duke slowly nodded.
“If you ever need my assistance, please contact me. You can reach me easily through Countess Hanna Giggs, Your Majesty.”
＊ ＊ ＊
Hanna Giggs. Because of her connection to the former Empress, she had been able to become the Grand Duke’s wet nurse and godmother, and for a long time she had reigned as the power behind the throne in the imperial palace.
However, her world collapsed with the appearance of an unexpected figure.
Dian Poitiers. The moment Giggs saw her—like a single white lily placed in a vase—she caught her breath.
The former Empress’s taboo, the root of the illness that had driven her to her death. Dian Poitiers was a woman who exuded an atmosphere uncannily similar to that of Karl Ulrich’s biological mother.
The Emperor soon fell for her, and one day he stripped Giggs of all her authority. Dian Poitiers became the Emperor’s proxy. With the Empress’s seat vacant and the Emperor’s consent given, it was possible.
Dian’s first order was to expel Lady Giggs, who had been residing in the palace. The Grand Duke personally protested the command, but Emperor Karl declared it to be his own will and did not overturn Dian’s order. Thus, Hanna Giggs was forced to leave the palace without even holding a retirement ceremony.
The seasoned old lady, who had been dismissed in disgrace, felt as though her heart would burst when she received the summons of the newly enthroned Empress.
Wearing a formal dress with the high collar that had become her trademark, her silver-white hair twisted up without a single strand out of place, Lady Giggs’s blue eyes—set in her slender frame—resembled a piercing sky reflected on a snowy plain. If Empress Adelaide evoked deep darkness, Lady Giggs was someone who brought to mind a bone-chilling snowfield.
“Welcome. Thank you for responding to my request.”
“It is my pleasure, Your Majesty.”
Lady Giggs offered a respectful bow.
“Raise your head.”
As she slowly lifted her head, her eyes unconsciously swept across the Empress’s reception room. Her nose stung, her eyes burned, and she blinked rapidly, swallowing back her breath. This place was her life. The cool severity and strictness that had once settled like frost into every shallow and deep crease of her face softened simply because she had returned here. Adel waited, allowing the old woman to sink into her memories.
After a moment, Lady Giggs returned to reality, composed her expression, and apologized.
“My apologies, Your Majesty. Coming here again after so long has made me rather emotional…”
“It seems unchanged from how the former Empress used it.”
Lady Giggs lightly brushed the sofa as she spoke.
“I chose this sofa myself. But it’s quite old now—it may be time to replace it, Your Majesty.”
At that, Adel tilted her head and smiled, drawing up the corners of her lips. As her mysterious golden eyes curved long and her lips tilted like a reclining crescent moon, her cheekbones rose on her pale face. Even Lady Giggs found herself staring blankly at the Empress’s captivating appearance.
Empress Adelaide whispered,
“I was hoping to entrust you with some of those matters.”
“Hm-hm.”
“Would that not do?”
“I would be grateful, but His Majesty the Emperor will likely not approve.”
“And you would be all right with it?”
At that question, Lady Giggs straightened her already rigid back once more and placed a hand over her chest.
“As I said, it is my pleasure, Your Majesty.”
“Thank you.”
“If there is anything you wish me to do, please command me even now. I can act at once.”
Adel nodded and rose from her seat. She wished to speak with Lady Giggs about the compendium of imperial palace law.
However, an unexpected issue arose that required discussion. A maid who had been waiting outside knocked cautiously and entered, reporting something outrageous.
“Your Majesty, I… the dress you recently ordered has arrived.”
“And? What seems to be the problem?”
“Well, it’s just that… um…”
When the maid hesitated for a long time, even Lady Giggs, who had been seated on the sofa, frowned and stood up.
“Do not be afraid—speak properly.”
At the Empress’s calm request, the maid took a deep breath as if steeling herself and said,
“The Imperial Treasury has said that it cannot pay for Her Majesty’s dress.”
It was unheard of.
“…What?”
What kind of nonsense was this? They couldn’t pay for the Empress’s dress—what miserable farce was this!
A string of curses nearly burst from her throat. Adel clenched her teeth, barely holding them back, and took a long breath.
“So, you’re saying my dress has arrived, but the Imperial Treasury cannot pay for it…”
Her words slowed, and in the end the Empress closed her mouth and shut her eyes. Her face, pale to the point of whiteness, appeared calm, but the air roiling around her was ominous beyond measure.
Moments later, her golden eyes opened slowly, filled with a feral gleam. Instinctive fear surged through the maid, who quickly lowered her head to avoid the Empress’s gaze. The Empress turned her eyes from the maid to Lady Giggs.
“Would it be better to summon them to the Empress’s Palace and pay the cost privately?”
Unlike the terrified maid, the seasoned old lady maintained a cool expression and demeanor.
“Even if rumors spread, it would only damage Your Majesty’s dignity, so it is better to summon them to the palace and settle the payment there. You should also give them a little extra to keep their mouths shut. However, there is no need for Your Majesty to meet them personally. Leave it to me.”
The Empress nodded and turned away.
“You—go and bring them here.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
As the maid scurried out of the reception room like an animal with its tail on fire, Adel went to her own room and took out her emergency funds.
“To think I’d use this so soon.”
She took out a gold ingot and placed it into a silk pouch. Her slender fingers clenched the heavy pouch until they turned white.
“So, let’s do this.”
Adel muttered darkly, lifting eyes that shone brighter than glittering gold.
＊ ＊ ＊
Lady Giggs examined the gold ingot the Empress handed her.
“I will assess the quality of the dress before paying the price, but would it be all right if I used this entire ingot without leaving a remainder? I thought it might be good to give the impression that Your Majesty is generous.”
“That is why I brought it. Use it all—do not leave any behind.”
“Understood.”
The Empress drank some cold water to steady herself and asked in a composed tone,
“How could such a thing happen?”
“…I suspect that no budget was allocated to the Empress’s Palace.”
“No budget was allocated to the Empress’s Palace?”
“The Ehmonte Imperial Palace sets the following year’s budget at the end of the year. Since Your Majesty was not present last year, they likely did not draft a budget for it.”
“And you mean this situation is therefore natural?”
“Of course not. With an emergency supplementary budget system, the budget can be reorganized at any time. The problem is that authority over supplementary budgets is granted solely to His Majesty the Emperor.”
