Chapter 238 – Rumors
Princess of the Empire, Alicia von Diana Solaris.
She always shines
Like the moonlight that illuminates the night sky, she lives in awe of the people and praises her beauty just by existing in this world.
Of course, fancy modifiers that suit him always follow.
The golden jade leaf of the imperial family, the flower on the cliff, the noblest woman in the empire…
Among countless modifiers, this is the list of the most acceptable types.
Her many minstrels and pompoms exalt her with all her daytime fuss, but no one condemns them for being rowdy.
This is because the bloodline of the original imperial family is so noble that it cannot be described with any modifier.
No one can deny the fact that Alicia, the only woman in the direct line of the imperial family with legitimate right of succession and gifted with her gentle nature and supreme beauty, stands out the most among the royal family.
Jininba The most famous and popular among the public regardless of power or power.
In other words, she was the mascot of the imperial family.
Of course, Alicia herself was the one who knew her own position better than anyone else.
She always attended large and small external events hosted by the imperial family unless there was a special occasion, and was devoted to raising public favorability and loyalty to her imperial family.
Originally, these were all roles an empress had to perform, but she passed away shortly after giving birth to her youngest daughter due to her chronic illness.
Alicia, her daughter, was also to take on some part of her mother’s role.
Alicia’s contribution must be invaluable to the ever-higher loyalty of her people to her imperial family, despite foreign invasions.
Truly a daughter of a noble family and a model life for a virgin.
Alicia, who had lived such a life all her life, had no flaws.
However.
Recently, a disquieting rumor has begun to circulate in the social world of the Empire about Alicia.
These days her name is in the air more often for controversy than for her praise.
The most famous salon in the islands, Libera.
A band dressed in black tailcoats plays a calming tune, and men and women dressed in fancy ceremonial robes and dresses dance a slow waltz.
Standing in the center of the spacious banquet hall is a statue of a nymph with her wings spread wide. The stream of water trickling down from the water bottle it held adds to the excitement of the banquet.
In a corner of the ballroom, a man and a woman with wine glasses sat down and started whispering.
“Sir Herman. Have you heard the news? These days, the princess…”
“Shh. Lower your voice, Lady Lucia. It’s not something to talk about loudly.”
“Oh…!”
Even if you pretend, it’s not a pleasant topic, but it’s a very cautious attitude.
Even though the voice wasn’t very loud, the brown-haired young lady, Lucia, who shrank her body as if frightened, bruised her partner sitting across from her.
A woman who had been watching the scene carefully approached the two slowly.
— Again and again
“Oh my God. What are you talking about so interestingly?”
“Hot…! Te, Princess Theresia!”
Long wavy blue hair.
A very impressive woman in a dress adorned with various precious metals, including topaz and lapis lazuli, sat down at the table with a meaningful smile.
The two men and women who were about to talk then froze in place.
The man, Hermann, laughed most awkwardly and desperately tried to make an excuse.
“Ah, ahaha. It’s not a big deal. Just a little bit of a little rumor.”
“Hmm… Really? But why is the young lady so startled like a frightened squirrel? She’s cute…”
“Huh, huh…!”
Lucia shuddered and seemed to be wary of meeting Princess Theresia’s eyes.
The same reaction as a small animal encountering a poisonous snake.
Theresia watched her trembling Lucia and licked her lips coquettishly.
“Don’t be so nervous. That’s right. Come on, aren’t you nice…?”
She then stretched out her hand to her white face and slowly began to stroke her cheek.
Her hands reached her slender neckline, shoulders, collarbone and below in a strange way.
Lucia couldn’t even dare to reveal her discomfort, so she forced the corners of her mouth up to give her a smile.
Then the aristocrats who had been pacing around the table quietly lowered their eyes and avoided their seats.
Even though he was harassing the same nobleman in public, no one could point it out.
Theresia de Bellaryon.
She is the only daughter of Prince Bellaryon, one of the four grand dukes.
She was a woman notorious among many aristocrats for having rather unusual and dangerous tastes.
“Haa… Your breasts are so pretty. They look like water droplets.”
“Hey…! Go, thank you.”
Theresia, who poked her upper breast with her index finger at the lady she had never seen before, smiled as if all of this was just a prank on her, and laid her chin on her table.
“Well. Let’s stop joking around here. Let’s listen to the story at least once.”
“Yes? What are you talking about…”
“Oh, are you trying to be pretentious? I don’t really like that kind of thing. You guys were definitely talking about the princess, right?”
“…”
“I want to hear that story. Right now.”
When Theresia gestured at the two of them, they forcibly continued their conversation as if putting on an awkward play.
“Hwa, hasn’t the princess become more beautiful these days? They say women in love are beautiful. I think that’s right. Haha…”
“Yes, that’s right! What is a late first love, Cha-am?”
Although the two of them were trying to escape the situation somehow.
“Hmm, wouldn’t that be it?”
They couldn’t help but close their eyes at Theresia’s arms crossed and tilting her head.
Before long, Theresia gently placed her hand on Lucia’s back.
“Now… Tell me what you really saw and heard. Come on.”
Then, against her master’s will, her mouth began to open at will.
Suddenly, in the suffocating silence that filled the banquet hall.
Only the conversation between the two women could be heard.
“Th-Come to think of it, isn’t the princess a bit strange these days? Holding the most promising member of the imperial military under her skirt, showing off her friendship with the new saintess, and even frequenting the magic tower, what the hell do you want to do?”
“Oh my God! I was stuck in the corner of the West, so I didn’t know at all. These days, quite unusual stories are going around in the center, right?”
A spiritual paranormal ability that members of the Duke of Bellaryon rarely have.
Apart from her dangerous tastes, Theresia, who possesses the ability to force ‘confessions’ on others, was feared by the lesser nobles.
Hiding each other’s true feelings is a daily routine, and in an aristocratic society where it is compulsory, her supernatural ability, which is no different from walking around as a confessional, is nothing short of a disaster.
Even having to confess a secret you wish to hide would put you in great trouble.
What if, in a public setting like this, you become a victim of rumors about the imperial family?
Perhaps you will never be able to get over it casually.
“Hmm, let’s go ahead. Sounds kind of dangerous…”
“So, so… Rumors are circulating in the system these days… Rumor has it that the princess actually had a goal she had been hiding for a long time, and that even her good deeds were thoroughly calculated for that purpose…”
Lucia’s voice trembled and tears flowed.
Theresia smiled viciously at seeing her like that.
From the moment she sat down at her table, her band stopped playing.
In such a crowded salon.
Intentionally creating a quiet atmosphere.
What is the reason for putting on a kind of show where you hold on to a young lady you’ve never seen before and make her ‘confess’ to what is just a rumor?
Perhaps, Theresia wanted to make rumors more than just rumors.
“So, what is the specific content of that rumor? The princess’s hidden goal…”
“Hwa, the princess… Is trying to succeed to the throne by surpassing the princes…”
Lucia, who had finished her confession, sat down on the floor like a kite with a broken string.
Leaving her Hermann behind as she hurriedly supports her and leaves her place as if to run away.
Theresia opened her eyes wide in an exaggerated expression and blocked her mouth.
“Oh my God…! I never thought such disturbing rumors would be circulating in an island I haven’t visited in a long time.”
The banquet hall soon fell into chaos.
It was like a clumsy play, and in a way, it was a very unnatural scene.
The conversation just now gave a huge shock to those who heard the rumor for the first time here.
“What the hell is this…? No, the princess really?”
“I don’t know. It’s a story you don’t want to believe easily.”
“But, it’s strangely fitting for a mere rumor.”
Above all, it was because the rumor had a strangely misleading aspect of Alicia’s recent activities.
“I’m going. Why is everyone being so swayed by rumors? I can’t look at them anymore.”
“I agree. In the end, isn’t it just a rumor that has not been confirmed to be true or not?”
Of course, there were many who did not believe the rumors at all.
Maybe even themselves for a while? It can’t be denied that I harbored a suspicion.
“Whoops…”
Theresia looked at the confused nobles and quietly raised her wine glass.
Although these mud fights were a little far from her preference.
All for her second prince, whom she longs for.
On the other hand, behind Theresia.
“…You dare to do nonsense to the princess. I will never let you go.”
A girl with long black hair and red eyes slipped into the shadows, her eyes flashing.
