TFM 114

Chapter 114

***

A heavy silence settled over the banquet hall.

Realizing that everyone in the hall was watching her reaction, Talia let a smile play on her lips.

“Well then, what are you waiting for? Go bring in the guests.”

As she scolded the head butler in a feigned calm tone, the man standing by the door licked his lips nervously.

“Well… it seems Your Highness will have to greet the guests personally.”

Talia raised an eyebrow.

She currently held the highest rank in this eastern region. There was no way she would have to rush out personally to greet any guests.

Just as she was about to snap back, the man’s trembling voice pierced her eardrums.

“T-the head of the delegation is… Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress.”

Talia’s mouth fell open in shock. It felt as if her mind had suddenly gone blank. Then, hearing the murmur of the crowd, she snapped back to her senses.

She hurriedly made her way out of the banquet hall. In that moment, she didn’t even have time to worry that her awkward gait might draw unwanted attention.

With her skirt fluttering behind her, Talia crossed the vast hall and dashed out of the building.

In the castle courtyard, hundreds of envoys bearing the imperial flag stood in formation. The woman at the forefront waved her hand with a radiant smile.

“Talia!”

The woman, radiant as the sun, crossed the garden as if walking on clouds. She looked so fresh and youthful that it was hard to believe she was the mother of a nineteen-year-old daughter.

“Have you been well?”

Senevere, who had closed the distance in an instant, pulled her into a tight embrace with arms as soft as cream. The sweet scent of her skin made her head spin.

Talia looked up at her with eyes filled with a mixture of confusion, anxiety, fear, and longing.

“Uh, why is Mother here……………….”

“Well, I came to see you, of course.”

Senevere kissed her on the cheek and whispered tenderly.

“I was so curious about how you were doing that I begged Bilus to send me as an envoy. And, as always, he couldn’t resist my persistence.”

Then, cupping her daughter’s cheek with her delicate, rose-scented fingers, she gazed intently at her face.

“You look healthier than you did when you were living in the imperial palace. It seems your husband is treating you well.”

For a moment, a chill ran down her spine for some unknown reason. Talia pulled away from her as if she’d been burned.

“Really…………… Why did you come here? What kind of scheme are you plotting this time……………!”

“Your Majesty.”

At that moment, an icy voice cut her off before she could finish.

Talia turned her head toward the sound. Varkas, draped in a gray fur-trimmed cloak over a long black cotehardie, was crossing the garden.

It seemed he had heard the news during the cathedral meeting and had rushed over. Bringing with him a heavy scent of frankincense, Varkas deftly stepped between Senevere and Talia and bowed.

“Thank you for coming such a long way.”

“My condolences to Grand Duke Shiokan.”

Her blue eyes, as viscous as a swamp, slowly scanned the young man’s figure, which seemed to have been meticulously carved from marble. A wry smile spread across her lips.

“Your father must have had no regrets, seeing how splendidly his son has grown before his death.”

At the tone of her voice—as if she were speaking to a young boy—a faint sneer flitted across Varkas’s lips.

He replied in his characteristic monotone.

“I’m at a loss for words—such praise is far too generous.”

“You’re still as humble as ever. Many at the imperial palace miss you just the way you are.”

Senevere let out a gentle laugh and added, casting a meaningful glance toward Talia.

“In particular, the Crown Prince and the First Princess seem to feel your absence deeply. And no wonder. The three of you were particularly close, after all.”

Talia clenched her jaw to hide her reaction.

Senevere, who had been closely observing her, turned back to Varkas and flashed a cheerful smile.

“Come to think of it, those two asked me to pass on a message to you. Could you spare a moment?”

A sharp glint flashed in Varkas’s eyes.

It was a fact known to everyone that those two would never ask Senevere for anything.

Why would she try to talk to him, even going so far as to tell such an obvious lie?

He could sense nothing but a sense of foreboding.

Talia clutched Senevere’s sleeve with a hand that was trembling uncontrollably.

“You said you came to see me, didn’t you? Talk to me.”

At her urgent outburst, a look of annoyance flashed across Senevere’s face.

Talia felt a sense of helplessness, as if she had suddenly been transported back to being a nine-year-old child. Just as she had been back then, flustered by her coldness, she stood frozen in place, pale with fear—when a large hand settled on her shoulder.

“Your Highness, please return to your room to rest.”

Varkas, who had pulled her away from Senevere, gave instructions to the maids waiting by the doorway.

“Hurry and escort the Grand Duchess.”

No sooner had he given the order than the maids rushed over.

Talia reluctantly turned away. Just then, a gentle voice rang out from behind her.

“Let’s save our long-standing mother-daughter conversation for later.”

Talia, who had been glaring at her over her shoulder, immediately began to walk away.

***

Senevere, who had been in Varkas’s office for quite some time, didn’t come looking for her until sunset.

Talia, who had been pacing the room, immediately rushed to the door. But the nanny was one step ahead of her.

The nanny dashed out and grabbed the hem of Senevere’s skirt, shedding tears like chicken droppings.

“Your Majesty! To see you again so close… I have no regrets even if I were to die now!”

“Oh, why would you die?”

Senevere gently pushed the nanny away and flashed a girlish smile.

“You must live a long, long life. How could I possibly rest easy if Talia didn’t have her nanny by her side?”

The nanny looked up at Senevere with a face full of emotion.

Talia, who had been glaring at the scene as if finding it repulsive, tugged at her mother’s arm impatiently.

“Surely you can spare some time for me now, can’t you?”

At the question, delivered with a hint of sarcasm, Senevere’s eyes crinkled at the corners.

“Of course. In fact, I came here specifically to talk with you.”

She then flashed a playful smile at the knights of the Shiokan family who had been following her like watchdogs.

“I’d like to have a quiet conversation with my daughter. Would you mind stepping aside for a moment?”

“I’m afraid not, Your Majesty. For the sake of your safety, we cannot comply with that order.”

Tyron El Drakan bowed his head and politely declined.

The Empress, who had been watching the knight who defied her with interest, gave a light shrug.

“It seems it wouldn’t be wise for us to be alone after all. Shall we take a short walk?”

Talia, who had been wearing a wary expression, picked up her coat and left the room.

All the way through the hallway and toward the garden, countless eyes followed them.

It seemed everyone in the castle had gone on high alert upon hearing that a figure politically at odds with the Grand Duke’s family had come to the Eastern Quarter of her own accord.

However, Senevere paid no heed to the piercing stares. Descending the stairs with a dignified air, she glided through the hall as smoothly as flowing water. Talia limped along behind her.

Trying to keep pace with Senevere, her back was drenched in sweat in an instant. Yet the Empress seemed to have not the slightest intention of showing consideration for her daughter’s physical discomfort.

Stepping striding into the garden bathed in the rippling glow of the sunset, Senevere turned to look at the knights with an innocent expression.

“It’s all right if we keep a little distance, isn’t it?”

When the knights hesitated to answer, she pressed them with a smile.

“Or have you been ordered to eavesdrop on our conversation?”

“………………No. We’ll wait here.”

Tyron replied with a reluctant expression.

Senevere set off without delay along the path strewn with fallen leaves. Talia, who had been stumbling along to keep pace with her, spoke up anxiously once she judged the knights had moved far enough away.

“What on earth brought you here? Don’t lie and say you came to see me. I know that’s not true.”

“I really did come to see you. I wanted to check on how you’ve been doing.”

Talia snorted derisively.

This was the woman who hadn’t even shown her face the day she left for the East. And now she’s spouting this nonsense?

Just as she was about to snap back, Senevere whispered in her ear as if sharing a secret.

“And I also wanted to see if there was a chance your husband might switch sides and join us.”

Talia’s eyes widened at the unexpected remark.

Senevere, who had been gazing down at the rippling water’s surface, calmly continued.

“It seems that by marrying you, Gareth has begun to doubt the Shiokan family’s loyalty. So he’s reaching out to the North in search of an alternative power base.”

“Does that mean… . . . could it be that they’re pushing for a new marriage for Ayla?”

“Yes. It seems Gareth is hoping the Duke of the North will fill the vacancy left by your husband.”

A wry smile played on Senevere’s lips.

“But I’m not sure if that marriage will actually come to fruition. Your husband is actively obstructing it.”

Talia clutched the hem of her skirt so tightly her fingertips turned white.

Senevere added cruelly.

“Thanks to that, rumors of an incomplete love between the First Princess and the young Grand Duke of Shiokan are swirling throughout the imperial palace.”