As the Grand Duchess corrected her posture and stroked her hair, the attendants began to set up an oak table, lay a lace cloth on top of it, place a small vase, and arrange teacups and desserts around it.
Odelia also dragged a chair and sat down in front of the Grand Duchess. Cedric sat down next to Odelia, and Calix sat across from Odelia.
"Do you usually enjoy drinking tea?"
The Grand Duchess pulled out the handle from the tip of the cane. Then, a thin staff about the size of a baton came out of the long staff. Odelia instinctively realized that if she did something wrong, it could be a mistake.
I'm just drinking tea, but is this something to be so nervous?
Odelia swallowed her dry saliva and glanced at Calix on the other side, and replied.
"...No. It is not."
"In the social world, the most common banquet is the daytime tea party. In particular, the Empress has a tea time all day after luncheon. The more you know about tea and teacups, the easier it will be to catch the Empress's eye and earn her ring?"
After saying that, the Grand Duchess nodded at Odelia as if asking her to try the tea.
As soon as Odelia reached out and grabbed the teacup, she tapped the back of Odelia's hand with a thin baton so that it wouldn't hurt. Then she slapped Odelia on the shoulder once more.
"A lady has to move like a feather moves, and keep in mind that you should always hold things tightly when you hold them. When the shoulders are raised, people look stiff, and those who look stiff cannot feel relaxed, right?"
Odelia then nodded at the appearance of the Grand Duchess, giving an example.
As if asking her to try again, the Grand Duchess smiled slightly and nodded, and Odelia slowly reached out and squeezed the handle slightly, unlike before. Soon, slowly but not slowly, Odelia lifted the teacup and took a sip of the tea.
As she savored the taste again without realizing it, the Grand Duchess said.
"It's black tea from the Ankba Empire, and it's characterized by a stronger flavor than the black tea of the Allendasia Empire. What do you think?"
"...I really don't know the difference."
Originally, cultured ladies not only memorize hundreds of types of tea leaves, but also compete to see how well they brew tea, and they are enthusiastic about buying the tools, but they think this is actually enough for Odelia's taste.
It's sour, but it's not too strong to have a strong taste. The aroma was good, but the taste was not very likable. Rather, Odelia's taste was closer to the flavor of fermented wine than the flavor of fermented tea.
'You're pathetic for saying that.'
Thinking so, Odelia unknowingly glanced at Calix.
Unlike her, he was a member of the royal family, but the sight of Calix leisurely lifting a teacup, holding the tea, and closing his eyes as if savoring the aroma and flavor was very plausible. So that's what dignity looks like, she thought, and then her eyes met his as he opened them slightly.
"Actually, I don't really like teas either. I'm more of a cognac drinker."
The sight of Calix looking at Odelia with a smirk was so piercingly beautiful. Is it so beautiful to even see people in the world making such jokes?
With a rare smile on his face, Odelia stared blankly at Calix without realizing it.
Then their eyes met again.
Oh boy. Odelia let out a small sigh, and her expression was sharply turned away.
Maybe she was mistaken for eye contact, but Odelia felt her heart pounding like a child who had secretly been doing something naughty for no reason.
It's very rare to show a smile like that. She pressed the intaglio of the handle of the teacup with her fingernail.
What was he thinking about smiling like that? No, he may not actually have any ideas. However, after serving him on the battlefield for several years, she realized. He is really a person who has no emotion.
He has a bundle of rationality. As a Crown Prince, he did not show anger or joy even when he was on the verge of defeat or when the victory horn sounded. He just planned what to do next with an expressionless face, as usual.
"Cognac, Your Highness, speaks very well of you."
"Thank you for the compliment."
"To the point where you consider it a compliment."
At his sneer, the Grand Duchess raised her hands and shook her head as if in surrender.
Odelia burst into laughter without realizing it. Following that, Calix also burst into laughter. In fact, there was a story that only the two of them knew.
The general, who was the commander of the 1st Division and Odelia's former superior, loved black tea so much that there was a rumor that he secretly carried black tea in a cognac bottle on the battlefield for fear of being criticized for being noble for no reason.
Odelia had worked under him, so she knew it wasn't just a rumor. And Calix couldn't be unaware of the tastes of his entourage.
Only the Grand Duchess and Cedric, who couldn't get into the sudden laughter, looked at the two of them alternately with puzzled faces.
Although it wasn't a very funny story, Odelia didn't stop laughing so much, and later she laughed up to her stomach, and then she heard the Grand Duchess say that she had to learn how to laugh.
***
Odelia has completed several weeks of grueling bridal classes. She learned how to distinguish the taste of exotic black tea by holding a teacup elegantly, and also honed her skills to spread the fan in one go without dropping it.
Of course, she still makes the mistake of stepping on Cedric's foot instead of the step, but she doesn't think it's that bad.
She memorized the peculiarities of the men on the list of candidates for husbandship, and now she doesn't look awkward in a dress and doesn't waddle even when wearing shoes.
Finally, she finished all the grooming and arrived at the debutante dress that perfectly fit her body.
Touching the embroidery of the finely wrapped dress in a huge box with colorful patterns, Odelia was quite thoughtful. It was a jumbled-up thought that she couldn't grasp.
Tomorrow is a real debutante.
Tomorrow I have to wear this dress and find a husband who won't even love me.
Tomorrow...
That day, Odelia had another nightmare.
However, this time it was not a dream of running to death, nor was it a dream of floating in the freezing cold.
There, Odelia was holding another man's hand for a wedding, and although she had never seen his face, she thought she would never love him for the rest of her life.
At that moment, someone grabbed Odelia's other hand tightly.
When she looked back, the man who held her hand tightly was none other than Prince Calix.
She woke up in anger. Odelia wondered what kind of nightmare this was, so she stood up with a dumbfounded face.
The attendants, who came in just in time with the bathtub, put Odelia, who seemed to be still awake, into it and began to pour hot water into it.
"Today, you should have as little swelling as possible, so I'll give you a lymphatic massage."
"This is the highest quality fragrance from a foreign country. If you take a bath while applying this, your body will smell like a flower."
"It's a cloth soaked in rose water. It'll make your face white, so please stick it on for a while."
It was like Odelia, who was washed, scrubbed, and scrubbed again and again, her mind disturbed by the dream she had in the morning.
***
The theme of the Allendasia Empire's debutante changes every year. The theme of this debutante was 'The Empress's Garden', so most of them will probably wear dresses like colorful flowers.
The Empress was also busy from early morning. Dozens of maids are busy helping the Empress dress up.
"Do you really have to stand out the most in the place of discovering the brightest newcomers of this social season? What did you put on your clothes, flowers? Is this a real flower?"
Liam smirks at the sight. Fabiana fights back.
"Of course, it's a harmony made of silk. Your Majesty also decided to participate in person, unlike usual, right? How much will you be greedy this year?"
That's right. The Emperor aimed for a shining rookie every year. Fabiana had grown tired of the Emperor's on-again, off-again love affairs with his mistresses, since he couldn't afford a formal court.
"Do you know that I am accompanying you to the interview to find a woman to be your government? To witness my very rare sight firsthand."
Originally, only the Empress in charge of social affairs was in charge of the debutant, but this time was an exception. He was willing to change the law if he had to.
It was natural. The crowds that come to see this debutante will probably be more intense and bustling than ever.
Whether it's hoping for Odelia to be completely transformed or just to find something to poke fun at, it's all to see Odelia make her late debut.
Empress Fabiana didn't like it. In the end, the main character has already been decided to be Odella.
"Don't you just want to mock her childishly?"
Liam's expression changed significantly.
"I want to see my brother's eyes. If Calix's face is distorted, my face will be straightened, and if his face is straightened, my face will be distorted..."
"Did you call Calix?"
Fabiana slammed her seat and stood up. She must have been in the middle of putting a decoration on her head, and when she moved violently, she was stabbed by a sharp object.
When she threw away her jewelry in annoyance and left the room, the maids followed her with pale faces.
The Emperor chuckled at the appearance as if it was very funny, but then clicked his tongue and left.
***
While the Empress and the Emperor have been fighting fiercely since early in the morning. Calix stands in front of the mirror with a very calm face, away from all the chaos, and corrects his clothes. Through the window where he inadvertently turned around, carriages began to arrive one by one.
'I'm sure she's had enough.'
Looking out the window, he carefully examines whether Odelia is among the ladies getting out of the carriage.
'I've already chosen Odelia's debutante dress, so don't think about seeing it until the day, right?'
It was the Grand Duchess who never allowed him to see it, like it were a big secret.
"I'm not even curious."
He just thought that to distinguish Odelia from the ladies who would have been dressed up quite gorgeously, it would be a little easier to know the dress.
Even as he rationalized like that, Calix fixed his gaze on the window for a long time, as if trying to find Odelia. Continue until he goes to the banquet hall.
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