Cesare hurriedly lowered his eyes. As expected, Alfonso and Leo III glared at Cesare at the same time as Julia Helena’s words. One of them had eyes that seemed to want to chew him up, while the other had eyes filled with suspicion and anger.
“...”
Isabella bit her lip. Even if no one else knew the answer to Julia Helena's question, she knew it well.
Isabella could sense the man's gaze on her like a ghost, even if she thought it might not be like that now. During the entire meal today, Isabella did not feel that stinging gaze even once. Cesare still pursued Ariadne alone with burning desire.
“...”
Cesare lowered his long eyelashes and cut open the fish. Then, fortunately, the next course arrived.
“It’s a dish of fried chicks coated in flour!”
Attendants dressed in yellow robes came in, pushing trolleys. With dazzling dexterity, they served the dishes to the guests and opened the lids.
“Wow!”
Julia Helena exclaimed. Contrary to the palace attendant's explanation, the silver lid did not contain fried chicken, but a crown-shaped pastry. But that was not the point.
“It’s so pretty!”
The Duchess smiled proudly at the princess's cute exclamation. This was an Etruscan specialty, and it was a dish that the Princess, who was from Latgalin, would naturally see for the first time. Rubina explained proudly.
“A whole young pheasant was fried in a crown-shaped box made of wheat flour dough.”
Instead of jewels, the crown of sweets was studded with colorful preserved fruits. The candied fruits looked like real jewels, and the flour shell was also quite elaborate. The rolled flour dough had ripened to a golden color, just like a real crown.
“I don’t think I can eat it because it’s too precious!”
Julia Helena was amazed. She turned to look at Cesare, who was sitting next to her.
“How do I eat this...”
She was about to ask a question without thinking, but then she flinched and stopped talking. She was the type of person who would ask questions without any urgency, but when her last question was ignored, she didn’t dare to ask again.
Rubina, who couldn't stand to watch, stepped in and answered on his behalf.
“You can just break it with the small hammer next to you and eat it, Princess.”
Duchess Rubina kicked her son's shin under the table. Cesare, who had been silent as if his spirit had left him, looked up in surprise. At his mother's wink, he reluctantly picked up the hammer.
As Cesare leaned over to help Julia Helena eat, his face caught the Princess’s gaze. His smooth jawline, his high nose, his bright blue eyes filled with wisdom. The young Princess immediately felt cheerful again.
“Do you break it and eat it? If it breaks, won’t there be any powder left? Can you eat the powder as well?”
The Princess, who was in awe, chattered beside Cesare, who had no answer. Cesare kept his mouth shut and picked up the hammer to break the flour husk that covered the pheasant dish.
Bang!
As if a gift was coming out, a golden roasted pheasant emerged from its shell.
“Wow!”
Julia Helena exclaimed again. Cesare also smiled faintly. It was a smile of joy at having been able to wake up at once, but it did not seem that way to others.
Ariadne prayed, feeling Alfonso's discomfort prickle on her skin. Yes, please, let them be well. No, I don't want that Princess to be well with Cesare and become Alfonso's political rival, but please, whether you have a new woman or a new man, don't pay attention to me.
Isabella, who saw that sight, chewed the flesh inside her mouth. That seat should have been hers. That little blue thing shouldn't have come over there and been treated like that.
She remembered the day when Cesare had mocked her for not marrying her. The cruel expression and voice of Cesare on that day when Duchess Pisano's dream was shattered rang in her ears. Isabella tasted blood in her mouth.
When Cesare broke Julia Helena's pheasant dish for her, Alfonso also took Ariadne's hammer.
Boom!
This one shattered into pieces with a loud noise, either because of the difference in hand strength or because the dough was cooked a little more.
Alfonso was embarrassed, and Ariadne laughed lightly.
"Pfftt!"
The Prince touched his wife's toe under the tablecloth, and Ariadne lowered her head to hide her laughter.
Leo III, seeing the Prince and Princess joking around, became uncomfortable and coughed loudly.
“Ahem!”
When he felt Leo III notice, Alfonso immediately raised his head and glared at his father. He looked as if he would pounce on him if he said even one word of displeasure. The young Prince’s eyes were filled with stubbornness. Leo III, feeling like he would not get his money back, ended up just coughing in vain.
In the meantime, Cesare glanced at Ariadne out of the corner of his eye. He caught a glimpse of her luscious black hair, and her upper body turned completely toward Alfonso. The back of her neck, which stretched out beneath her half-tied black hair that was tied up like a cloud, was slightly revealed. Cesare swallowed dryly without realizing it.
He wanted to raise his head proudly and look at Ariadne. He wanted to see her, look her in the eye, and ask her if she loved him.
He knew the answer would be negative.
While Cesare was suffering, Isabella was doubly upset when she saw Alfonso and Ariadne.
'Is the strength good?'
Alfonso's smashing of the flour crown with a hammer irritated Isabella. She had lost her Duchess position to a young child, and her sister, who was not as pretty as herself and of humble origin, was being taken care of by a Prince!
The jealousy that she couldn't contain came out on its own.
“Countess de Mare.”
Isabella smiled crookedly and waved. Ariadne looked up and looked at Isabella.
“You’re really good to men.”
It was a word with many implications, thought Julia Helena.
'Are you saying you can't do it to women?'
Hearing that, Countess de Mare had a nice body and seemed to have a sexy aura about her.
'It kind of looks like that...'
While Julia Helena was dizzy between her prejudice and her own judgment, Isabella, who had pretended to be friendly with her earlier by calling her 'Ari' but had lost her temper, started the conversation by calling Ariadne by her official title this time.
'I am a Countess and you are a Countess, so why shouldn't I speak first?'
Although she had not yet considered the possibility that Prince Alfonso would be angry at his wife for being polite, Isabella had one confidant: Leo III, who was sitting at the same table.
Ariadne was an unacknowledged daughter-in-law. Leo III gritted his teeth and refused to treat her any better than his son's partner, a Countess.
'Let's say that Ariadne is the Prince's wife without His Majesty's permission. Even so, the Princess's consort is given the title by His Majesty the King.'
The title is the same. If the Prince cannot push through with power and must reason, Isabella now has the upper hand.
When the conversation got this far, it was impossible to ignore it. Julia Helena, who was sitting in this seat, also became concerned. Ariadne straightened her posture and turned her head proudly.
“What do you mean, Countess Contarini?”
“No, I just thought you two looked so happy together.”
Isabella smiled and muttered something random.
“They say that if a woman is good, a man will love her that much. You show that you are loved. The Prince even personally cracks the flour husks for you, and since he is so special, I can’t help but think that Countess de Mare is good.”
Leo III's expression turned sour when he didn't break the pheasant with his hammer, but that's a different story.
“...But what good is it if you only treat men well? What’s really important is to treat adults well.”
Isabella looked at Leo III and smiled brightly.
“You should listen to your elders. Isn’t that right, Your Majesty?”
Leo III didn't know why she was acting like this all of a sudden, but he felt happy and laughed. Meanwhile, Rubina glared at Isabella with a face of disbelief. What? Do you listen to adults?
Isabella asked directly, not caring about Rubina's gaze.
“Countess de Mare. Are you really going to enter the palace without His Majesty’s permission to marry?”
“...!”
Many people who had not expected such an explicit story to come out at the dinner table looked at Isabella in surprise. No one was surprised. Even Leo III was surprised.
But Isabella thought this was a flower party. At this point, Ariadne was in a difficult position no matter what she said. If she said she would move as planned, she would be a woman who disobeyed Leo III's words. On top of that, she didn't even receive proper recognition from her father-in-law.
It's unlikely, but if she refuses to move in as His Majesty the King says, that would be sweet in its own way. The Prince seems to be very stubborn. Won't they have a huge fight when they get home?
Isabella advised with a smile.
“A great nobleman, no, a great son, listens to his father well.”
“I don’t think that’s something Countess Contarini should be saying.”
"Yes?"
Rubina cheered inwardly. Right! Ariadne immediately responded.
“If the Countess had listened to her father, you would be at the Convent of Saint Angelo by now.”
Isabella's expression completely rotted away. Leo III, who was thinking about the past, wondering why Isabella was in the convent, also distorted his expression for a moment. He glared briefly at Cesare.
Cesare poked at the flour with his fork, his face like a dead man. Isabella was the most expensive woman he had ever touched in his life.
Julia Helena rolled her eyes, confused as to what the convent was talking about. Ariadne looked at Isabella and smiled brightly.
“You are a model of a person who succeeded in life by not listening to adults.”
Isabella turned to Leo III to reply, 'How obedient I am to adults!' but the old King turned away from her with a sour expression.
'Oh my...'
Isabella was even more annoyed. You know I'm married, so why are you acting so sloppy all of a sudden? I came from the secret passage in the palace, so I can do that, but I can't do that in a convent? I've done everything myself, right?
But it was a no-brainer. She couldn’t stop now. Isabella ignored Ariadne’s answer and went straight to what she wanted to say.
“I heard that they are just destroying the house without even looking for a new one and without any plan.”
She raised her head and looked straight at Ariadne.
“Are you really trying to ignore His Majesty the King’s wishes and force your way into the Prince’s palace?”
But Ariadne immediately questioned.
“I see you have become His Majesty’s confidant?”
As she spoke, Ariadne glanced at Duchess Rubina. It was an unspoken question as to whether Isabella had permission to act like this.
“The Duchess didn’t say anything to me either.”
Rubina, who was suddenly dragged into the middle of a fight between the sisters by the hair, answered with a mixture of annoyance and annoyance.
“How can I possibly guess His Majesty’s intentions?”
Leo III had kept his mouth shut and said nothing for a while. He could see the sparks flying between Ariadne and Isabella. He also knew that Rubina was very upset because of Isabella. But women's business was for women to handle.
Moreover, Leo III had a vague sense that Alfonso would allow Ariadne into the palace without his permission, as his son had decided. He did not want to associate what was going to happen anyway with his authority.
And Leo III never actually said outright that he 'forbade the Countess de Mare to reside in Palazzo Carlo '. If the King was going to clash with Prince Alfonso, he wanted to get something different out of it.
Moreover, it was not his style to speak out unless his temper was at its peak, and Leo III was planning to indirectly pressure Alfonso today, not to fight his son in front of everyone. It was better not to fight a fight he could not win.
“That is also disloyalty and arrogance.”
It was so complicated and multifaceted that it was difficult to properly calculate. Isabella realized from Rubina's remark that the reinforcements she had been expecting would not come. Without Leo III's protection, she quickly changed her stance.
“I heard that a new Cardinal will be taking office soon, and I am worried.”
At some point, Leo III's concerns became Isabella's personal concerns.
“Because when a new cardinal comes, the de Mare mansion will have to be removed.”
“Thank you for your concern for my accommodation, Countess Contarini.”
Ariadne cut it like a knife.
“I heard that a nice mansion in the capital will be up for auction soon. I think I’ll go and take a look at it.”
A wry smile hung on Ariadne's lips. The 'good mansion of the capital' referred to the Contarini mansion. Isabella glared at Ariadne. At this moment, Leo III finally intervened.
“Yes. The Contarini mansion. That mansion will be up for auction soon.”
When the subject of the King's intentions came up, he did not want to open his mouth, but since the topic had changed, he decided that it would be acceptable to listen to a little bit of remorse.
“I offered to stop the auction, but Countess Contarini refused.”
Besides, Leo III wanted to show off to everyone sitting there. He pointed to Isabella and said.
“She could abuse the King’s favor, but she refused it for the sake of the nation’s discipline. Isn’t she a truly virtuous woman, a rare sight these days?”
Two sons! An old wife! And a haughty woman who has been rejected by the King! Look, there is someone who gives to me like this!
“Countess, you too should not be stubborn and cause trouble to men...”
“Pfft!”
But Rubina couldn't hold back her laughter and burst out laughing. Leo III looked back at her with a puzzled look. Duchess Rubina fanned herself and cooled her face.
“I apologize for interrupting you while you are speaking, Your Majesty.”
But the laughter was not hidden. Duchess Rubina spoke with a smile on her face.
“Yes, a woman who doesn’t require maintenance costs. Sounds good.”
“...”
Isabella bit her lip. Even if no one else knew the answer to Julia Helena's question, she knew it well.
Isabella could sense the man's gaze on her like a ghost, even if she thought it might not be like that now. During the entire meal today, Isabella did not feel that stinging gaze even once. Cesare still pursued Ariadne alone with burning desire.
“...”
Cesare lowered his long eyelashes and cut open the fish. Then, fortunately, the next course arrived.
“It’s a dish of fried chicks coated in flour!”
Attendants dressed in yellow robes came in, pushing trolleys. With dazzling dexterity, they served the dishes to the guests and opened the lids.
“Wow!”
Julia Helena exclaimed. Contrary to the palace attendant's explanation, the silver lid did not contain fried chicken, but a crown-shaped pastry. But that was not the point.
“It’s so pretty!”
The Duchess smiled proudly at the princess's cute exclamation. This was an Etruscan specialty, and it was a dish that the Princess, who was from Latgalin, would naturally see for the first time. Rubina explained proudly.
“A whole young pheasant was fried in a crown-shaped box made of wheat flour dough.”
Instead of jewels, the crown of sweets was studded with colorful preserved fruits. The candied fruits looked like real jewels, and the flour shell was also quite elaborate. The rolled flour dough had ripened to a golden color, just like a real crown.
“I don’t think I can eat it because it’s too precious!”
Julia Helena was amazed. She turned to look at Cesare, who was sitting next to her.
“How do I eat this...”
She was about to ask a question without thinking, but then she flinched and stopped talking. She was the type of person who would ask questions without any urgency, but when her last question was ignored, she didn’t dare to ask again.
Rubina, who couldn't stand to watch, stepped in and answered on his behalf.
“You can just break it with the small hammer next to you and eat it, Princess.”
Duchess Rubina kicked her son's shin under the table. Cesare, who had been silent as if his spirit had left him, looked up in surprise. At his mother's wink, he reluctantly picked up the hammer.
As Cesare leaned over to help Julia Helena eat, his face caught the Princess’s gaze. His smooth jawline, his high nose, his bright blue eyes filled with wisdom. The young Princess immediately felt cheerful again.
“Do you break it and eat it? If it breaks, won’t there be any powder left? Can you eat the powder as well?”
The Princess, who was in awe, chattered beside Cesare, who had no answer. Cesare kept his mouth shut and picked up the hammer to break the flour husk that covered the pheasant dish.
Bang!
As if a gift was coming out, a golden roasted pheasant emerged from its shell.
“Wow!”
Julia Helena exclaimed again. Cesare also smiled faintly. It was a smile of joy at having been able to wake up at once, but it did not seem that way to others.
Ariadne prayed, feeling Alfonso's discomfort prickle on her skin. Yes, please, let them be well. No, I don't want that Princess to be well with Cesare and become Alfonso's political rival, but please, whether you have a new woman or a new man, don't pay attention to me.
Isabella, who saw that sight, chewed the flesh inside her mouth. That seat should have been hers. That little blue thing shouldn't have come over there and been treated like that.
She remembered the day when Cesare had mocked her for not marrying her. The cruel expression and voice of Cesare on that day when Duchess Pisano's dream was shattered rang in her ears. Isabella tasted blood in her mouth.
When Cesare broke Julia Helena's pheasant dish for her, Alfonso also took Ariadne's hammer.
Boom!
This one shattered into pieces with a loud noise, either because of the difference in hand strength or because the dough was cooked a little more.
Alfonso was embarrassed, and Ariadne laughed lightly.
"Pfftt!"
The Prince touched his wife's toe under the tablecloth, and Ariadne lowered her head to hide her laughter.
Leo III, seeing the Prince and Princess joking around, became uncomfortable and coughed loudly.
“Ahem!”
When he felt Leo III notice, Alfonso immediately raised his head and glared at his father. He looked as if he would pounce on him if he said even one word of displeasure. The young Prince’s eyes were filled with stubbornness. Leo III, feeling like he would not get his money back, ended up just coughing in vain.
In the meantime, Cesare glanced at Ariadne out of the corner of his eye. He caught a glimpse of her luscious black hair, and her upper body turned completely toward Alfonso. The back of her neck, which stretched out beneath her half-tied black hair that was tied up like a cloud, was slightly revealed. Cesare swallowed dryly without realizing it.
He wanted to raise his head proudly and look at Ariadne. He wanted to see her, look her in the eye, and ask her if she loved him.
He knew the answer would be negative.
While Cesare was suffering, Isabella was doubly upset when she saw Alfonso and Ariadne.
'Is the strength good?'
Alfonso's smashing of the flour crown with a hammer irritated Isabella. She had lost her Duchess position to a young child, and her sister, who was not as pretty as herself and of humble origin, was being taken care of by a Prince!
The jealousy that she couldn't contain came out on its own.
“Countess de Mare.”
Isabella smiled crookedly and waved. Ariadne looked up and looked at Isabella.
“You’re really good to men.”
It was a word with many implications, thought Julia Helena.
'Are you saying you can't do it to women?'
Hearing that, Countess de Mare had a nice body and seemed to have a sexy aura about her.
'It kind of looks like that...'
While Julia Helena was dizzy between her prejudice and her own judgment, Isabella, who had pretended to be friendly with her earlier by calling her 'Ari' but had lost her temper, started the conversation by calling Ariadne by her official title this time.
'I am a Countess and you are a Countess, so why shouldn't I speak first?'
Although she had not yet considered the possibility that Prince Alfonso would be angry at his wife for being polite, Isabella had one confidant: Leo III, who was sitting at the same table.
Ariadne was an unacknowledged daughter-in-law. Leo III gritted his teeth and refused to treat her any better than his son's partner, a Countess.
'Let's say that Ariadne is the Prince's wife without His Majesty's permission. Even so, the Princess's consort is given the title by His Majesty the King.'
The title is the same. If the Prince cannot push through with power and must reason, Isabella now has the upper hand.
When the conversation got this far, it was impossible to ignore it. Julia Helena, who was sitting in this seat, also became concerned. Ariadne straightened her posture and turned her head proudly.
“What do you mean, Countess Contarini?”
“No, I just thought you two looked so happy together.”
Isabella smiled and muttered something random.
“They say that if a woman is good, a man will love her that much. You show that you are loved. The Prince even personally cracks the flour husks for you, and since he is so special, I can’t help but think that Countess de Mare is good.”
Leo III's expression turned sour when he didn't break the pheasant with his hammer, but that's a different story.
“...But what good is it if you only treat men well? What’s really important is to treat adults well.”
Isabella looked at Leo III and smiled brightly.
“You should listen to your elders. Isn’t that right, Your Majesty?”
Leo III didn't know why she was acting like this all of a sudden, but he felt happy and laughed. Meanwhile, Rubina glared at Isabella with a face of disbelief. What? Do you listen to adults?
Isabella asked directly, not caring about Rubina's gaze.
“Countess de Mare. Are you really going to enter the palace without His Majesty’s permission to marry?”
“...!”
Many people who had not expected such an explicit story to come out at the dinner table looked at Isabella in surprise. No one was surprised. Even Leo III was surprised.
But Isabella thought this was a flower party. At this point, Ariadne was in a difficult position no matter what she said. If she said she would move as planned, she would be a woman who disobeyed Leo III's words. On top of that, she didn't even receive proper recognition from her father-in-law.
It's unlikely, but if she refuses to move in as His Majesty the King says, that would be sweet in its own way. The Prince seems to be very stubborn. Won't they have a huge fight when they get home?
Isabella advised with a smile.
“A great nobleman, no, a great son, listens to his father well.”
“I don’t think that’s something Countess Contarini should be saying.”
"Yes?"
Rubina cheered inwardly. Right! Ariadne immediately responded.
“If the Countess had listened to her father, you would be at the Convent of Saint Angelo by now.”
Isabella's expression completely rotted away. Leo III, who was thinking about the past, wondering why Isabella was in the convent, also distorted his expression for a moment. He glared briefly at Cesare.
Cesare poked at the flour with his fork, his face like a dead man. Isabella was the most expensive woman he had ever touched in his life.
Julia Helena rolled her eyes, confused as to what the convent was talking about. Ariadne looked at Isabella and smiled brightly.
“You are a model of a person who succeeded in life by not listening to adults.”
Isabella turned to Leo III to reply, 'How obedient I am to adults!' but the old King turned away from her with a sour expression.
'Oh my...'
Isabella was even more annoyed. You know I'm married, so why are you acting so sloppy all of a sudden? I came from the secret passage in the palace, so I can do that, but I can't do that in a convent? I've done everything myself, right?
But it was a no-brainer. She couldn’t stop now. Isabella ignored Ariadne’s answer and went straight to what she wanted to say.
“I heard that they are just destroying the house without even looking for a new one and without any plan.”
She raised her head and looked straight at Ariadne.
“Are you really trying to ignore His Majesty the King’s wishes and force your way into the Prince’s palace?”
But Ariadne immediately questioned.
“I see you have become His Majesty’s confidant?”
As she spoke, Ariadne glanced at Duchess Rubina. It was an unspoken question as to whether Isabella had permission to act like this.
“The Duchess didn’t say anything to me either.”
Rubina, who was suddenly dragged into the middle of a fight between the sisters by the hair, answered with a mixture of annoyance and annoyance.
“How can I possibly guess His Majesty’s intentions?”
Leo III had kept his mouth shut and said nothing for a while. He could see the sparks flying between Ariadne and Isabella. He also knew that Rubina was very upset because of Isabella. But women's business was for women to handle.
Moreover, Leo III had a vague sense that Alfonso would allow Ariadne into the palace without his permission, as his son had decided. He did not want to associate what was going to happen anyway with his authority.
And Leo III never actually said outright that he 'forbade the Countess de Mare to reside in Palazzo Carlo '. If the King was going to clash with Prince Alfonso, he wanted to get something different out of it.
Moreover, it was not his style to speak out unless his temper was at its peak, and Leo III was planning to indirectly pressure Alfonso today, not to fight his son in front of everyone. It was better not to fight a fight he could not win.
“That is also disloyalty and arrogance.”
It was so complicated and multifaceted that it was difficult to properly calculate. Isabella realized from Rubina's remark that the reinforcements she had been expecting would not come. Without Leo III's protection, she quickly changed her stance.
“I heard that a new Cardinal will be taking office soon, and I am worried.”
At some point, Leo III's concerns became Isabella's personal concerns.
“Because when a new cardinal comes, the de Mare mansion will have to be removed.”
“Thank you for your concern for my accommodation, Countess Contarini.”
Ariadne cut it like a knife.
“I heard that a nice mansion in the capital will be up for auction soon. I think I’ll go and take a look at it.”
A wry smile hung on Ariadne's lips. The 'good mansion of the capital' referred to the Contarini mansion. Isabella glared at Ariadne. At this moment, Leo III finally intervened.
“Yes. The Contarini mansion. That mansion will be up for auction soon.”
When the subject of the King's intentions came up, he did not want to open his mouth, but since the topic had changed, he decided that it would be acceptable to listen to a little bit of remorse.
“I offered to stop the auction, but Countess Contarini refused.”
Besides, Leo III wanted to show off to everyone sitting there. He pointed to Isabella and said.
“She could abuse the King’s favor, but she refused it for the sake of the nation’s discipline. Isn’t she a truly virtuous woman, a rare sight these days?”
Two sons! An old wife! And a haughty woman who has been rejected by the King! Look, there is someone who gives to me like this!
“Countess, you too should not be stubborn and cause trouble to men...”
“Pfft!”
But Rubina couldn't hold back her laughter and burst out laughing. Leo III looked back at her with a puzzled look. Duchess Rubina fanned herself and cooled her face.
“I apologize for interrupting you while you are speaking, Your Majesty.”
But the laughter was not hidden. Duchess Rubina spoke with a smile on her face.
“Yes, a woman who doesn’t require maintenance costs. Sounds good.”
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