Chapter 38: An Invitation from the Empress

“Braid my hair into a single plait. And leave the pin as it is for decoration.”

Ena braided my hair neatly just as I asked.

The bangs that wouldn’t stay in place were pinned using the clip given by Reia.

Even after that, there was still more to choose from—accessories like necklaces and bracelets.

But since the outfit was modest, there was no need to choose anything flashy.

“I’ll go with the choker.”

I picked a choker with a sapphire on a black ribbon string.

This was polite enough in appearance, so I didn’t choose anything else.

Even with just this, an hour had already passed.

When I hurried downstairs, perhaps having heard the news, my mother was waiting for me.

“What’s all this about? Take this with you.”

Though flustered, Mother had prepared a gift for me to bring to the Empress’s palace.

It was a bouquet hastily made with flowers picked from the garden.

It wasn’t very fitting as a gift for Her Majesty the Empress, being rather humble, but it was the best option available at the moment.

Besides, it wasn’t like I could gift her one of Mother’s old jewels from her jewelry box.

The Empress wouldn’t blame me for a hastily prepared, formal gift.

‘If she does blame me, that would be a little disappointing…’

Though I was feeling emotional, I didn’t show it.

I didn’t want to burden my mother, who was already distressed, with my own feelings.

“I’ll be back.”

“Take care.”

I said my farewell and boarded the carriage prepared by Her Majesty the Empress.

***

It wasn’t my first time going to the imperial palace.

Of course, it was the first time in this life.

‘I had my debutante ball here at fifteen and my broken engagement at seventeen.’

After that, I visited a few times as a merchant to meet Her Highness the Imperial Consort.

And even sought an audience with His Majesty the Emperor to meet the gifted ones…

I wasn’t very familiar with it, but it wasn’t an unfamiliar place.

‘Still, it feels uncomfortable.’

Maybe it’s nerves.

It would be less nerve-wracking if I were going for business.

How do you act in front of a friend’s mother?

‘Is it even okay to treat her as my friend’s mother?’

I wasn’t sure what the Empress’s intentions were in inviting me.

I recalled a conversation I had when I once sought connections at the palace to meet the gifted ones in my second life and heard stories from the Imperial Consort.

“Her Majesty the Empress? She’s not one to do unreasonable things. Given her position, it’s hard to call her kind, but she’s not a bad person. She even understood her husband’s affair with another woman…”

“Yes, but. At the same time, she’s a pitiful person. So much so that I felt truly sorry…”

The Consort’s bitter voice echoed in my mind.

She didn’t elaborate further, so I still don’t know in what way the Empress was pitiful.

“Why is that?”

Their Majesties married after a fresh and pure romance and had a deep bond.

Even after many years, they were a model of enduring love.

That’s why when His Majesty the Emperor took in the Imperial Consort, everyone was shocked.

‘But that didn’t change the direction of his affection.’

Even though he accepted the Consort, he didn’t show her affection over the Empress.

He always did everything with the Empress, and aside from the Princess, he had no more children with the Consort.

‘Was she pitied because she had to share her husband with another woman?’

Just as I was lost in thought, the carriage arrived at the palace.

Being a royal carriage, it didn’t have to stop for me to get out—it used the transfer gate, so it had sped the whole way.

Passing through the outer palace district and into the inner palace where the royals resided, I became so tense that my mouth went dry.

By the time we reached the Empress’s quarters, it felt like I couldn’t even produce saliva anymore.

“We’ve arrived.”

At the coachman’s words, the carriage door opened.

The one who opened it seemed to be a royal knight.

He bowed respectfully and reached out his hand to me.

“I’ll escort you, Lady.”

It felt almost too respectful for an eleven-year-old girl, making me a little embarrassed.

I reached out my hand as if it were nothing, but maybe I was too nervous—my hand trembled visibly.

He pretended not to notice, placed my hand on his arm, and matched my short stride as we moved slowly.

With the bouquet from home in hand, I walked down the corridor of the Empress’s palace, escorted by the knight.

The invitation had said that, since the weather was nice, the luncheon would be held in the garden.

The weather was so nice I still couldn’t believe I was really here, and I walked absentmindedly through the corridor until the knight beside me spoke.

“You don’t need to worry.”

“Yes?”

“Her Majesty didn’t call you here to scold you.”

“Oh…?”

“Ordinarily, I wouldn’t presume to speak of my superior’s intentions… but you seem very nervous, Lady…”

With those kind words, the knight smiled gently.

Her reassurance helped my nerves ease a little, and I finally started to notice my surroundings.

Only then did I realize that the knight escorting me was a woman.

My stiff movements relaxed, and the knight’s smile grew deeper.

I awkwardly smiled back and kept pace.

At the end of the corridor, I could see a table set near a large garden tree in the distance.

Nearby servants bustled about, and a graceful noblewoman sat at the table.

‘That must be…’

I had seen her face a few times before.

My debutante ball was held in the palace, and I usually attended any social event hosted by the imperial family.

The Princes, Princesses, and even the Imperial Consort rarely attended, but Their Majesties always did, so I was familiar with their appearances.

The Empress seemed to have been looking at me even before I exited the corridor—her gaze was fixed.

Her gaze was so direct it felt like I was being evaluated.

Just as the knight had said, there was no hostility in her eyes, but it still felt like I was being thoroughly judged.

As I drew close enough to greet her, I lowered the hand I had held out for the escort, bent my knees and head, and greeted her.

“I greet Your Majesty. May your glory be eternal.”

“It’s nice to meet you.”

As expected, since she didn’t seem to be trying to intimidate me, she didn’t do the nasty thing of ignoring my greeting.

I stood up and handed her the bouquet I had brought as a gift.

The proper etiquette upon receiving such a gift was to pretend to smell it once, then hand it off to the nearby attendant.

However…

“Oh my, are these flowers from the Count’s estate? How lovely.”

The Empress said that and hugged the bouquet to her chest, not letting go.

The court lady next to her awkwardly reached out her hand and looked flustered.

To be honest, although it hadn’t been long since they were picked and they were still fresh, the flowers weren’t all that rare.

No one in the household had gardening as a hobby, so they had just planted some decent ones to fill the space.

However, Her Majesty the Empress treated the bouquet as if it were a legendary flower, and that left me flustered.

Was this a subtle insult disguised as praise?

I wondered, but judging from her expression, it didn’t seem like it.

‘Maybe I’m just being too cynical.’

It would be rude to keep assuming the worst when the other person had no such intention.

Reflecting on myself, I sat across from her as she gestured.

“Sorry for calling you in such a hurry. I just felt that now was the only good time.”

I waved my hands and assured her it was fine, but I also wondered what the reason was for such urgency.

‘Did something happen in the Empire around this time?’

I didn’t recall any major events, so I figured it must be something personal for Her Majesty.

Despite how tense I’d been on the way here, the Empress was incredibly kind.

“Do you have any foods you can’t eat? Any allergies, perhaps?”

“Oh, no. I can eat anything.”

“But there might be things you don’t prefer, right? Meals are only three times a day, and they should be enjoyable. Please feel free to tell me.”

After a moment of hesitation, I replied.

There were indeed foods I didn’t particularly like—not that I couldn’t eat them, but I just avoided them due to personal taste.

Still, I usually didn’t mention it, not wanting to seem picky.

But since she insisted so firmly, I couldn’t help but speak up.

“I don’t… really like strong scents. So anything with a lot of spices is a bit… Ah! It’s not that I absolutely can’t eat them, so…”

I was going to add that if such dishes had already been prepared, there was no need to remake them, but the Empress spoke with a joyful voice.

“Oh my! We have the same taste. I also prefer mild flavors and don’t use many spices.”

She seemed genuinely happy.

I was a bit puzzled, wondering if having similar taste was really something to be that happy about, but then she continued.

“Among my children, only Ley has the same palate as me. The others complain it’s too bland and dump so much pepper on top…”

“Oh… Ley, really?”

He had visited my house often, and we’d eaten together a few times, but he’d never mentioned that…

Noble food is usually rich with spices, so I was the only one in my house who ate mild.

Since Ley had never said anything, we had just served him regular noble cuisine…

‘Why didn’t he say anything?’

Now I just felt bad… I thought he liked everything because he always ate whatever was served.

I made a mental note that the next time we met, I would tell him to stop pretending everything was okay.

As I was muttering to myself, the Empress’s eyes lit up.

“So you call him Ley.”

“Ah, uh…”

Oops.

Officially, I was supposed to address him by his title as a prince, but the nickname slipped out from habit.

I grew tense, thinking she might find it rude to refer to royalty, especially using a nickname, so casually.

But once again, the Empress said something unexpected.

“That’s lovely. You two must be truly close.”

“Cough, cough!”

I was so surprised I swallowed wrong, and the Empress hurriedly offered me a glass of water in alarm.