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Chapter 8
“They say the succession ceremony ended very quickly. Everyone is now having their meal in the banquet hall…”
“……”
Those words didn’t register in her ears. Eda walked toward the banquet hall, guided by Claude, lost in thought.
*It meant the ceremony had been held while Eda was being dressed up. Surely, they hadn’t deliberately brought me late, had they?*
Eda glanced at Claude.
This kind of torment was all too familiar. Perhaps she had let her guard down because of Claude’s gentle demeanor.
This woman must surely be trying to torment her as well.
“How dare they ignore the Mistress. How could they…”
However, Claude looked flustered. Pushing aside her unease, Eda entered the banquet hall.
Inside, long tables were set, with servants and maids busily carrying food. In one corner, an orchestra was playing.
The enticing aroma of delicious food and pleasant music filled the hall.
Involuntarily, Eda’s gaze fell upon the instruments the orchestra had brought.
As Eda entered, the gazes of the people who had been chatting noisily began to fix on her, one by one.
There were those who had mocked Eda before, and others she was seeing for the first time.
Of course, neither group’s gazes were favorable toward her.
The woman who had lost her husband and was to marry his brother. The woman who had lain with her husband’s brother on the last day of the funeral.
Hearing the murmurs, Eda walked toward Astalda, who was holding a wine glass at the head table.
His outfit of blue-green fabric embroidered with silver thread suited his hair frighteningly well. When he had worn armor, he looked like a beast, but now, dressed in neat attire, he resembled a refined noble.
As he spoke with someone beside him, his high nose and the delicate line of his Adam’s apple stood out.
Seeing this, Eda swallowed nervously. This man, her husband’s brother and soon to be her husband, with whom she had shared a bed, was excessively attractive.
Just then, perhaps tipped off by the person next to him, Astalda’s gaze turned to Eda. His eyes widened upon seeing her.
Then, frowning and muttering a curse, he approached her and spoke loudly, as if for everyone to hear.
“Didn’t I tell you to rest?”
*Why is he speaking formally?* Eda was surprised by his tone.
“I know you’ve fallen ill from grief.”
The words were a clear dismissal. *Had she come somewhere she shouldn’t have?* Eda considered just turning back. Then, someone spoke up.
“We request a congratulatory address for the Lord’s succession ceremony, my Lady.”
“We would like to hear your esteemed words.”
“We request a speech from Her Highness the Grand Duchess.”
The words were laced with mockery. Following that, snickering laughter could be heard from various places.
Eda was frightened. The hostile gazes made her feel like she couldn’t breathe.
“That’s enough.”
Astalda said in a menacing tone, but the mockery in their eyes didn’t vanish. Their gazes turned to her, as if to say, *Let’s see what you have to say.*
Eda looked at Astalda and the crowd.
What would happen if she backed out now? Even though she was a Grand Duchess in name only, she would surely suffer a more terrible fate from now on.
But she couldn’t speak either. Her ugly voice would only become a laughingstock.
Even she thought her voice was hideous. *To ruin the succession ceremony with my own voice.* He might even be angry at me for ‘tarnishing’ my face. After a long moment of thought, Eda bit her lip and spoke with resolve.
“Then, I will play a congratulatory piece for my husband.”
Eda took a lyre-harp from the musician holding it and sat down on a chair.
And as her fingers plucked the strings, the noise instantly ceased.
People were mesmerized, staring at Eda.
She had always been a woman who kept her head down and her shoulders hunched. Her insecure expression had made her the perfect target for them.
But the moment this woman, who had always been mindful of others’ gazes, picked up an instrument, people looked on in astonishment at her transformation.
Once, twice. After plucking the strings, she tilted her head, tuned the instrument, and swept her hand across the strings. A clear, pure sound flowed out.
Eda plucked the strings again and began to play. As her body moved, her cascading silver hair shimmered brilliantly.
The figure of the woman playing the lyre-harp seemed melancholic, perhaps because of the melody itself.
*She had this kind of skill?* People listened to Eda’s performance with dazed, entranced gazes.
A gaunt body and large, always frightened eyes.
But the hands playing the instrument were unwavering. With each gracefully plucked note, her silver hair waved beautifully.
Then, the mournful melody began to take on a solemn, stirring quality.
Her fingers moved faster.
The flow was so natural that people remained speechless, completely absorbed in the music.
It seemed as if Eda’s body was emanating light. *Had that woman always been so beautiful?* Watching her play felt endearing.
Soon after, Eda’s performance ended.
Looking at the silent crowd, Eda flinched. Especially at the sight of Astalda’s slightly parted lips, she wished she could hide somewhere.
Then, someone was the first to come to their senses and spoke.
“What a truly sorrowful succession ceremony this is.”
“……”
“It seems Your Highness the Grand Duchess harbors great regret regarding the Grand Duke’s succession.”
Eda stared back with a hardened expression.
The person making this malicious observation was one of the nobles who had mocked her before. She remembered him as the father of Ivar’s concubine.
“Such a somber piece of music—does Your Highness the Grand Duchess find the succession ceremony sad?”
The loud remark continued, clearly meant for her to hear. At those hateful words, Eda shook her head in surprise.
She knew music better than anyone. This was absolutely not a piece that could be misinterpreted.
“That’s right, isn’t it?”
“She must be grieving because she put her heart into it?”
As if unwilling to admit they had been captivated, the people’s gazes turned suspicious.
“N-no, that’s not it.”
Eda had to convince them somehow. As her face flushed red and she tried to continue speaking, a voice cut in.
“Count, it seems you lack discernment when it comes to music.”
“Eh, excuse me?”
People were taken aback by Astalda’s sudden remark.
*Someone who had rolled through bloody battlefields was now talking about musical discernment.* Even Astalda’s knights looked bewildered.
“This piece tells the story of a princess who became queen in place of her elder brother, who died in battle.”
Eda was startled.
“Queen Neherni, the protagonist of this song, became a wise ruler after inheriting the will of her brother, who died young, correct?”
How did Astalda know this story? Eda nodded.
He carefully took Eda’s white hand, which had been holding the harp.
“My wife is truly wise, isn’t she.”
“……”
“I will gladly accept the blessing you offered through your performance.”
He then smiled. *Why is he using informal speech all of a sudden? Why does this man keep fluctuating like this?* Eda was bewildered.
Just then, the surroundings grew noisy. The people, who had been relaxed due to Eda’s performance, turned their heads in shock.
“Stop him!”
Someone was desperately charging at Astalda, sword drawn.
Astalda stepped in front of Eda to block the attacker. As if to protect her—Eda was taken aback.
Even with an assailant charging at him with a sword, he showed neither anger nor fear.
He simply watched leisurely as the knights subdued the intruder.
It seemed the knights were subduing the sword-wielding man without difficulty. But then, the man suddenly rolled his body, sprang up, and lunged at Astalda.
*Clang!*
A sharp metallic sound rang out. It happened in the blink of an eye.
The man standing before her, Astalda, had raised his sword to block the assassin’s dagger.
Astalda pushed with force, shoving the man back with his sword, and the assassin lost his balance and fell. Astalda, unconcerned, kicked the assassin in the stomach.
*Thud!*
“Be grateful my wife is here.”
Standing before Eda, Astalda crushed the assassin’s arm.
“Aaaaargh!”
“If she weren’t, I would have slit your throat right here.”
Along with the crackling sound, a terrible scream echoed in their ears.
The man glared at Astalda. His murderous, sinister eyes were so chilling that Eda covered her mouth. *So this is an assassin, the kind you only hear about.*
“Take him away.”
At Astalda’s command, the knights dragged the man away.
“Bastard of Bohgort! You beast! May a curse be upon you!”
Several curses were hurled at Astalda, but they soon fell silent after a knight punched the man. Soon, the banquet hall was enveloped in silence.
“There seems to have been a disturbance.”
Astalda spoke as if nothing had happened and sat back down. The meal resumed.
Eda looked toward him. Aside from the bloodstains left by the assassin, everything appeared natural, as if nothing had occurred. Eda shuddered at the sight of the blood.
When food was placed before Eda, her face stiffened. It was a large chunk of meat. For some reason, her stomach churned.
Just then, Astalda cut it up and held it out to Eda’s mouth. Startled, Eda tried not to show it.
*Probably, he means for me to eat it? Is it really that?* She alternated her gaze between the meat and Astalda before taking it into her mouth. His fork then lowered, only to offer her another piece.
Chewing the meat, Eda looked at the man.
Strangely, this man was kind. His expression was intimidating, but unlike Ivar, he seemed to look after her.
Moreover, he was someone who understood music well. She had heard from Ivar that he was a butcher who sliced people with his sword. It was unexpected.
For Eda, marriage had always been merely an obligation. So she had never expected any kind of emotional fulfillment from her husband.
The night she spent with this man was the same. She hadn’t felt repulsed; she simply did it because it was her duty.
Eda lived because she couldn’t die, and she married him because she would die if she didn’t.
A loving husband, family—there were none. Having a place to stay in her bleak life was enough.
“You’re too thin.”
“……”
Like a mother bird, he kept offering her food.
Eating it, Eda felt a flicker of warmth. Then, flinching, she reined in her feelings once more.
*Because there’s no such thing as kindness without a reason.*
