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~Chapter 52~
“You know me?”
Riden was about to ask how he knew her, but the man spoke first.
“Then you’re heading in the wrong direction.”
“Pardon?”
“I mean, there’s no need to go that way. My mother is a bad person.”
His amethyst eyes shimmered with self-deprecating amusement. There was something strangely familiar about that gaze, Riden thought.
Meanwhile…
The door of the empress’s carriage had just closed.
Several members of the Imperial Holy Knights mounted their horses to escort her.
At their head was Ethan, newly appointed as the acting commander of the Holy Knights after returning victorious from war.
As he tightened formation and prepared to mount his horse, the carriage door suddenly opened again.
“Duke.”
“…?”
“Ride with me in the carriage until we part ways.”
Ethan handed his reins to a subordinate and stepped into the carriage.
The empress was headed to the Florence estate, where the Baroness was hosting a salon. It was rare for an empress to attend a mere noblewoman’s salon, but she felt guilty for upsetting the Baroness over the first ball and chose to make it up with her presence—even if slightly late due to urgent affairs.
Ethan had been assigned as her escort. While he stared out the window, the empress struck up a conversation.
“I can’t tell you how reassuring it is to have you as acting commander.”
“I’m honored, Your Majesty.”
The former Holy Knight Commander had resigned his sword, and with debate over the next successor causing friction between the court and the knights, the empress had asked Ethan to fill the gap.
“With His Majesty bedridden, I had no one to rely on. It’s such a relief to have you and the Duchess back from the battlefield.”
“The dukedom serves as the sword of the empire.”
Ethan replied formally and looked out again. He knew the empress was a close friend of the Duchess. Still, it was awkward—like being cornered by a talkative mother’s friend when you had nothing to say.
“You used to be more charming as a child, if I recall…”
The empress wrinkled her brow at his stoic expression. Ethan smiled awkwardly. But she was still the empress—he couldn’t treat her as casually as a family friend.
A pause followed until the empress suddenly recalled something.
“They say a Possessed One has appeared?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
There had been a report that a Possessor—a soul from another world inhabiting a native’s body—had appeared after a long while.
As acting commander, Ethan was now tasked with tracking them down, since identifying and interrogating Possessors was one of the Holy Knights’ core responsibilities.
“The Tribunal has set up checkpoints at likely locations. The tip came in early, so we should be able to catch them easily.”
“Good. They always pop up just when you’ve forgotten about them.”
The empress nodded, then pulled out the Florence salon invitation.
“Have you seen this? Isn’t the topic amusing?”
Ethan gave it a glance and nodded.
“Oh, maybe the Duchess’s ‘special interest’ is attending too? Hm? Samantha asked me to be a chaperone but hasn’t even told me who it is yet!”
The empress was slowly shifting into full “mom friend” mode, and Ethan was feeling the pressure.
“Your Majesty… please maintain your dignity.”
“Ugh. Whether it’s my son or someone else’s, they’re all so dull!”
As she clicked her tongue, Ethan’s mind briefly drifted to Riden.
He recalled her twisted expression when he’d said, “I do everything necessary. That’s what love means.”
A wry smile slipped out again. He forced his face back to neutrality, wondering when he might see her again.
Back at the Salon…
Madam Kim Si-eom was starting to feel the shift in atmosphere.
At first, the noble ladies had eyed her with suspicion. But now, their gazes had turned warm.
“I had no idea the Baroness was such a delightful woman,” one baroness remarked.
Si-eom smiled sweetly at her, while thinking:
‘Ugh, acting all chummy when you don’t even have a dowry.’
It was time to wrap up.
Si-eom clapped her hands.
“Shall we each say a word and conclude today’s salon?”
“Yes, let the hostess speak first!”
Clearing her throat, Si-eom was just about to begin when the drawing room doors opened.
The woman she’d been waiting for arrived.
Riden McCreary.
‘She’s here!’
She had been worried Riden wouldn’t show at all, but now things were going perfectly to plan.
Riden, hoping to stay unnoticed, quietly took a seat in the back and prepared to listen.
‘Time to fix my image properly.’
Si-eom had already cleared up rumors about Byeongmin. She told everyone that he hadn’t laid a finger on the count’s daughter and was immediately released.
She even added that the misunderstanding likely arose because Count Kenwolf had acted out of compassion for the poor girl.
The noblewomen agreed—it seemed plausible.
Si-eom’s syrupy words about being a good mother-in-law, like a second mother to her daughter-in-law, also went over well.
‘Absurd. Why are your children suddenly my daughters?’
Still, today’s goal was nearly achieved—only the perfect conclusion remained.
Just then, a messenger arrived to announce a new guest.
The Empress.
‘Oh my! What is going on?!’
She’d come without warning? What incredible backup!
All the women in the room rose and bowed.
“Relax, everyone. I’d love to hear this fascinating topic myself.”
Gasps filled the room.
It wasn’t unheard of for the empress to attend social gatherings, but this level of familiarity with the Florence Baroness?
As the room quieted again, Si-eom continued:
“What I mean is—welcoming a daughter-in-law is like adopting a new child. Becoming a new mother. And from where I stand, that’s a truly wonderful thing.”
“Think about when we first held our babies. That joy, that overwhelming happiness. Didn’t it feel like we had the whole world in our arms?”
“That’s how it should feel to welcome a daughter-in-law.”
“How refreshing and beautiful!” someone whispered.
“So when families with sons argue over how much dowry a girl should bring—don’t you think that’s a bit much?”
“Did we buy our children with money? Of course not.”
“A dowry… money… It’s just not important. What matters is the heart—if both sides truly want to become a family, then happiness will follow.”
All the ladies in the salon nodded in sincere agreement.
Even the empress was touched.
She, too, had a daughter—one who might marry and move far away someday. The Baroness’s words felt heartwarming.
‘If only my daughter’s mother-in-law were like her, regardless of status…’
Si-eom glanced around, gauging the admiration in everyone’s eyes.
She was just about to deliver her final lines—
When suddenly, a woman raised her hand.
“Excuse me, Baroness. May I ask a question?”
