Isabella glared fiercely at the young intruder who had suddenly started a fight. But Julia Helena didn't give an inch to her six-year-old sister.
Julia Helena looked Isabella up and down, focusing on areas that were said to be unable to hide signs of aging, like the area around her eyes and the nape of her neck.
It was a truly disgusting gaze. Unable to bear it, Isabella snapped.
“Why are you staring at me like that? Is that rude?”
As if the evaluation was over, Julia Helena looked Isabella in the eye and smiled brightly. It was even more unfortunate that she smiled so late.
The young sixteen-year-old confidently cast a wide-area taunt.
“If the front seats have been switched, then it’s over for you as a woman.”
“What, what?”
The room grew quiet. Except for Julia Helena and Isabella, who were glaring at each other with a serious air, everyone else exchanged glances with a mysterious expression.
It was clearly Julia Helena who had jumped in to help Rubina. The context made sense. However, the belligerence in her words left even Rubina uneasy.
'That... is helping me, right?'
But the young Princess, who had grown up next to a pagan land where early marriage was common, was unwavering. Indeed, in her region, it was more common for people to get engaged in their single digits than in their twenties.
Julia Helena beat Isabella, who had just turned twenty, without mercy because of her age.
"At your age, you shouldn't be so greedy. Just go home and rest. Sticking your butt out here and there is not classy."
It was Julia Helena's own territorial display, warning her not to overstep Grand Duke Cesare. However, Isabella had no way of understanding its deeper meaning.
'What am I being greedy for?! I'm just sticking with Leo III and being obedient, I'm just enduring it in my own way!'
Isabella, unable to hide her resentment, protested.
“When did I ever stick my butt out here and there for you to say such nonsense?”
“The very fact that you’re here means you’re not in your proper place. What about your husband?”
Husband, Isabella was hit where it hurt. This was her greatest weakness. While Isabella was speechless and trembling, the Princess leisurely delivered another blow.
“I heard you have a baby too.”
Isabella, struck by this flurry of blows, nearly dropped her teacup as her hands trembled. She raised her head and glared at Julia Helena.
Isabella wasn't happy with the subject itself. She had to change the subject somehow. The only card she had left to play was Leo III.
“His Majesty, His Majesty, please. If His Majesty wants me, what can I do?”
The protest was that being outside the house was not my choice, but the King's order.
Julia Helena laughed heartily.
Isabella was nervous.
'You're not trying to point out that I haven't slept with His Majesty yet, are you...'
Fortunately, Julia Helena's attack came from a different direction. However, because it came from an unexpected angle, it was a rather heavy punch.
"Countess Contarini, your loyalty to your country comes before your own family. You are truly a loyal subject."
It was a tone that anyone who heard it would find offensive.
"The greatest loyalty a married woman can offer her country is usually raising her children well... It's truly admirable that you can make an even more significant contribution to the country."
Bianca watched this battle breathlessly. Even though she only half-understood, Rubina and Ariadne, who were fully aware of the situation, simultaneously gasped at Julia Helena's next attack.
“You must be very skilled.”
'Oh my.'
'Ah.'
Rubina began to question the upbringing of her chosen daughter-in-law.
'She's only sixteen, how can she be so poisonous already? Will I be able to control her?'
Of course, as was typical of Rubina, she worried about herself before her son. What would happen if Cesare fell into her clutches was Cesare's own business, not hers to worry about.
'Skills? What skills?!'
Isabella was driven mad by the sexual undertones of Julia Helena's teasing. It directly affected her weaknesses.
'Do you think a man's greed to possess even a woman's past will be avoided here?'
It was a warning Rubina once gave Isabella. She laughed it off that day, feigning strength, but Isabella soon realized it was a grave threat to her position.
Although only a married woman can be the King's mistress, that doesn't mean the King is willing to tolerate his mistress having had experiences with other men.
Isabella found Ottavio de Contarini's presence a thorn in her side. Of course, Rubina had also entered the court bearing the title of "Countess." But Count Contarini, who had lived and breathed with a false husband who never existed and even sat on the King's three-person council, carried a different weight.
Moreover, Isabella had a child with Ottavio, a fact known throughout the capital.
'Giovanna, you're such a useless person! If only it weren't for that, she could've caught me!'
Even for Isabella, who was still in her 'pure' position as the King's official government official, the fact that she had a husband that everyone knew about while she was not yet in a formal relationship with the King was too burdensome.
Isabella, with nothing more to say, glared at Julia Helena with a blazing gaze. "If I'm being sarcastic, I have to take at least one last word," Isabella spat through her teeth.
“...There is a world of adults that a green child doesn’t know about.”
Julia Helena snorted calmly.
“The adult world? A loser’s bracket?”
If the conversation had continued further into sex, it would have clearly come up that the Princess had gone too far. At this point, her skill in feigning ignorance was truly outstanding.
But behind her, the stern Rubina, taking damage from a wide-area attack, clutched her chest. Doesn't that mean that once you've married, you can't have a new, healthy in-law?
Ariadne, who had been thinking of running away from Alfonso, also paled. This meant that not only she, but also Alfonso, would be forced into the loser's bracket.
But now, Julia Helena, who was burning with joy as she threw in a series of consecutive moves with splendid control, had no regard for her surroundings.
"One, half, one, one. Only first-timers can participate in the marriage market."
You won't even come near Grand Duke Cesare. Don't even think about it. Don't even imagine it. Get out of here.
"This is a place where kids play together anyway. We'll just have to bicker and get along."
When did I get in there?!
Isabella, who had been rejected without even confessing, trembled and clutched her head with both hands as a migraine suddenly struck her.
“Ah!”
Isabella was too distressed to speak. The King's government, ignorant of its own position, had come. It had won.
Julia Helena looked down at the 'old loyalist' who was suffering from a migraine with dignity.
But the atmosphere was strange. Having defeated a public enemy, everyone should have been praising her, but the Tea Party roundtable was silent.
The Princess, bewildered, looked around.
First, Rubina bit her lips tightly and closed her eyes.
'Of course... I'm not dreaming of a new wedding or anything like that now, but I don't want my possibilities to be limited by others like this.'
By Julia Helena's classification, Rubina is a walking corpse. Even according to the Princess's classification, which states that each change in the front seat ends in a woman, Rubina died twice. Or was it three times?
Bianca, who had no idea what popularity had to do with the number 1, also remained silent.
'Me... No way... Is this my prime, and I'm getting scolded by the Princess for not having a man?'
Ariadne, a married woman in her twenties who had no intention of becoming a mother anytime soon, swallowed dryly.
'Ah. I want to go home.'
The teacups were now empty. The servant hurried over and tried to pour more tea, but she raised her hand to stop him. It was a good thing she hadn't accepted Julia Helena's friendly advances earlier. She's no joke.
'I want to go home and stroke Sancha's hair.'
That's why Ariadne didn't want to come to the palace. She was sick and tired of having to do this for the rest of her life.
While some women were weaned from palace life, others found a purpose in life in this war of nerves.
“This is the palace!”
Julia Helena, who had been attacking all day without getting hit at all, shouted excitedly.
“Honestly, it was really boring to live in a small village in the middle of nowhere and talk about being the Emperor’s descendant and the palace!”
Even if you're overflowing with gold, it's no fun if you have no one to show it off to. Now, there was Isabella, who took every blow she struck. The impact was incredible. The blood rushed through her body with youthful vigor.
“Your Highness. A boring and unchanging daily life is truly happiness...”
Irene, who cared for her, always said that, but Julia Helena couldn't agree.
Julia Helena looked Isabella up and down, focusing on areas that were said to be unable to hide signs of aging, like the area around her eyes and the nape of her neck.
It was a truly disgusting gaze. Unable to bear it, Isabella snapped.
“Why are you staring at me like that? Is that rude?”
As if the evaluation was over, Julia Helena looked Isabella in the eye and smiled brightly. It was even more unfortunate that she smiled so late.
The young sixteen-year-old confidently cast a wide-area taunt.
“If the front seats have been switched, then it’s over for you as a woman.”
“What, what?”
The room grew quiet. Except for Julia Helena and Isabella, who were glaring at each other with a serious air, everyone else exchanged glances with a mysterious expression.
It was clearly Julia Helena who had jumped in to help Rubina. The context made sense. However, the belligerence in her words left even Rubina uneasy.
'That... is helping me, right?'
But the young Princess, who had grown up next to a pagan land where early marriage was common, was unwavering. Indeed, in her region, it was more common for people to get engaged in their single digits than in their twenties.
Julia Helena beat Isabella, who had just turned twenty, without mercy because of her age.
"At your age, you shouldn't be so greedy. Just go home and rest. Sticking your butt out here and there is not classy."
It was Julia Helena's own territorial display, warning her not to overstep Grand Duke Cesare. However, Isabella had no way of understanding its deeper meaning.
'What am I being greedy for?! I'm just sticking with Leo III and being obedient, I'm just enduring it in my own way!'
Isabella, unable to hide her resentment, protested.
“When did I ever stick my butt out here and there for you to say such nonsense?”
“The very fact that you’re here means you’re not in your proper place. What about your husband?”
Husband, Isabella was hit where it hurt. This was her greatest weakness. While Isabella was speechless and trembling, the Princess leisurely delivered another blow.
“I heard you have a baby too.”
Isabella, struck by this flurry of blows, nearly dropped her teacup as her hands trembled. She raised her head and glared at Julia Helena.
Isabella wasn't happy with the subject itself. She had to change the subject somehow. The only card she had left to play was Leo III.
“His Majesty, His Majesty, please. If His Majesty wants me, what can I do?”
The protest was that being outside the house was not my choice, but the King's order.
Julia Helena laughed heartily.
Isabella was nervous.
'You're not trying to point out that I haven't slept with His Majesty yet, are you...'
Fortunately, Julia Helena's attack came from a different direction. However, because it came from an unexpected angle, it was a rather heavy punch.
"Countess Contarini, your loyalty to your country comes before your own family. You are truly a loyal subject."
It was a tone that anyone who heard it would find offensive.
"The greatest loyalty a married woman can offer her country is usually raising her children well... It's truly admirable that you can make an even more significant contribution to the country."
Bianca watched this battle breathlessly. Even though she only half-understood, Rubina and Ariadne, who were fully aware of the situation, simultaneously gasped at Julia Helena's next attack.
“You must be very skilled.”
'Oh my.'
'Ah.'
Rubina began to question the upbringing of her chosen daughter-in-law.
'She's only sixteen, how can she be so poisonous already? Will I be able to control her?'
Of course, as was typical of Rubina, she worried about herself before her son. What would happen if Cesare fell into her clutches was Cesare's own business, not hers to worry about.
'Skills? What skills?!'
Isabella was driven mad by the sexual undertones of Julia Helena's teasing. It directly affected her weaknesses.
'Do you think a man's greed to possess even a woman's past will be avoided here?'
It was a warning Rubina once gave Isabella. She laughed it off that day, feigning strength, but Isabella soon realized it was a grave threat to her position.
Although only a married woman can be the King's mistress, that doesn't mean the King is willing to tolerate his mistress having had experiences with other men.
Isabella found Ottavio de Contarini's presence a thorn in her side. Of course, Rubina had also entered the court bearing the title of "Countess." But Count Contarini, who had lived and breathed with a false husband who never existed and even sat on the King's three-person council, carried a different weight.
Moreover, Isabella had a child with Ottavio, a fact known throughout the capital.
'Giovanna, you're such a useless person! If only it weren't for that, she could've caught me!'
Even for Isabella, who was still in her 'pure' position as the King's official government official, the fact that she had a husband that everyone knew about while she was not yet in a formal relationship with the King was too burdensome.
Isabella, with nothing more to say, glared at Julia Helena with a blazing gaze. "If I'm being sarcastic, I have to take at least one last word," Isabella spat through her teeth.
“...There is a world of adults that a green child doesn’t know about.”
Julia Helena snorted calmly.
“The adult world? A loser’s bracket?”
If the conversation had continued further into sex, it would have clearly come up that the Princess had gone too far. At this point, her skill in feigning ignorance was truly outstanding.
But behind her, the stern Rubina, taking damage from a wide-area attack, clutched her chest. Doesn't that mean that once you've married, you can't have a new, healthy in-law?
Ariadne, who had been thinking of running away from Alfonso, also paled. This meant that not only she, but also Alfonso, would be forced into the loser's bracket.
But now, Julia Helena, who was burning with joy as she threw in a series of consecutive moves with splendid control, had no regard for her surroundings.
"One, half, one, one. Only first-timers can participate in the marriage market."
You won't even come near Grand Duke Cesare. Don't even think about it. Don't even imagine it. Get out of here.
"This is a place where kids play together anyway. We'll just have to bicker and get along."
When did I get in there?!
Isabella, who had been rejected without even confessing, trembled and clutched her head with both hands as a migraine suddenly struck her.
“Ah!”
Isabella was too distressed to speak. The King's government, ignorant of its own position, had come. It had won.
Julia Helena looked down at the 'old loyalist' who was suffering from a migraine with dignity.
But the atmosphere was strange. Having defeated a public enemy, everyone should have been praising her, but the Tea Party roundtable was silent.
The Princess, bewildered, looked around.
First, Rubina bit her lips tightly and closed her eyes.
'Of course... I'm not dreaming of a new wedding or anything like that now, but I don't want my possibilities to be limited by others like this.'
By Julia Helena's classification, Rubina is a walking corpse. Even according to the Princess's classification, which states that each change in the front seat ends in a woman, Rubina died twice. Or was it three times?
Bianca, who had no idea what popularity had to do with the number 1, also remained silent.
'Me... No way... Is this my prime, and I'm getting scolded by the Princess for not having a man?'
Ariadne, a married woman in her twenties who had no intention of becoming a mother anytime soon, swallowed dryly.
'Ah. I want to go home.'
The teacups were now empty. The servant hurried over and tried to pour more tea, but she raised her hand to stop him. It was a good thing she hadn't accepted Julia Helena's friendly advances earlier. She's no joke.
'I want to go home and stroke Sancha's hair.'
That's why Ariadne didn't want to come to the palace. She was sick and tired of having to do this for the rest of her life.
***
While some women were weaned from palace life, others found a purpose in life in this war of nerves.
“This is the palace!”
Julia Helena, who had been attacking all day without getting hit at all, shouted excitedly.
“Honestly, it was really boring to live in a small village in the middle of nowhere and talk about being the Emperor’s descendant and the palace!”
Even if you're overflowing with gold, it's no fun if you have no one to show it off to. Now, there was Isabella, who took every blow she struck. The impact was incredible. The blood rushed through her body with youthful vigor.
“Your Highness. A boring and unchanging daily life is truly happiness...”
Irene, who cared for her, always said that, but Julia Helena couldn't agree.
"I'm in a world where fireworks are exploding, both in my head and in real life!"
No matter what Viscount Panamere nagged at, Julia Helena ran to her quarters, excited to tell the great tale of her day.
“Your Highness, wait a minute!”
But before she could even open her mouth about what happened at the tea party, she was caught by Viscountess Panamere.
“Huh, huh?”
She was forced to sit down at the desk. Viscountess Panamere handed her a thick envelope.
“An order has come from home.”
“Orders from home?”
Julia Helena's face brightened.
'Isn't this a letter granting permission to marry Grand Duke Cesare?'
The fireworks keep going even after the tea party is over?! How can it be this much fun every single day?
Princess Julia Helena picked up the envelope the Viscountess had handed her, her face shining brightly.
It was a letter her father wrote to her.
The Princess was secretly confident.
Meanwhile, she had ordered Viscountess Panamere to wait and not report back to her home country. This effectively halted the Viscountess's reporting line.
However, behind the Viscountess's back, he continued to write and send positive letters about the Etruscan kingdom.
Her plan was for her letters, which described only the best-case scenario, to replace the neutral official reports.
"The Etruscan kingdom has a mild climate and fertile land, making it ideal for growing crops...."
"In addition to the Black Helmet Knights, which the Prince personally possesses, the kingdom also has a standing army of approximately 4,000 soldiers under the direct control of the King. This appears to be something that Grand Duke Cesare could utilize in times of emergency by order of the King."
“It seems that the Prince is very devoted to his wife and would not kick her out in the middle of the marriage for the sake of an heir...”
"Grand Duke Cesare has a gentle and gentle personality, and he doesn't tend to create fights..."
Some were excerpts from the facts to achieve the Princess's purpose, and some were complete fabrications.
Young and confident, she was convinced that the letters she had sent so far would be enough to deceive her father.
“Will my father attend my wedding in person?!”
Viscountess Panamere, knowing the truth, remained silent. There was no need for her to be the messenger to deliver bad news to her, who would soon be disappointed.
'How hard must puberty have hit for our intelligent Princess to be unable to assess the situation like this?'
The Viscountess was completely unaware that Julia Helena had sent a fake report behind her back.
While Viscountess Panamere was silent, Julia Helena opened the letter with a puzzled expression.
No matter what Viscount Panamere nagged at, Julia Helena ran to her quarters, excited to tell the great tale of her day.
“Your Highness, wait a minute!”
But before she could even open her mouth about what happened at the tea party, she was caught by Viscountess Panamere.
“Huh, huh?”
She was forced to sit down at the desk. Viscountess Panamere handed her a thick envelope.
“An order has come from home.”
“Orders from home?”
Julia Helena's face brightened.
'Isn't this a letter granting permission to marry Grand Duke Cesare?'
The fireworks keep going even after the tea party is over?! How can it be this much fun every single day?
Princess Julia Helena picked up the envelope the Viscountess had handed her, her face shining brightly.
It was a letter her father wrote to her.
The Princess was secretly confident.
Meanwhile, she had ordered Viscountess Panamere to wait and not report back to her home country. This effectively halted the Viscountess's reporting line.
However, behind the Viscountess's back, he continued to write and send positive letters about the Etruscan kingdom.
Her plan was for her letters, which described only the best-case scenario, to replace the neutral official reports.
"The Etruscan kingdom has a mild climate and fertile land, making it ideal for growing crops...."
"In addition to the Black Helmet Knights, which the Prince personally possesses, the kingdom also has a standing army of approximately 4,000 soldiers under the direct control of the King. This appears to be something that Grand Duke Cesare could utilize in times of emergency by order of the King."
“It seems that the Prince is very devoted to his wife and would not kick her out in the middle of the marriage for the sake of an heir...”
"Grand Duke Cesare has a gentle and gentle personality, and he doesn't tend to create fights..."
Some were excerpts from the facts to achieve the Princess's purpose, and some were complete fabrications.
Young and confident, she was convinced that the letters she had sent so far would be enough to deceive her father.
“Will my father attend my wedding in person?!”
Viscountess Panamere, knowing the truth, remained silent. There was no need for her to be the messenger to deliver bad news to her, who would soon be disappointed.
'How hard must puberty have hit for our intelligent Princess to be unable to assess the situation like this?'
The Viscountess was completely unaware that Julia Helena had sent a fake report behind her back.
While Viscountess Panamere was silent, Julia Helena opened the letter with a puzzled expression.
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