Chapter 16
Fortunately, the Duke of Railaten’s worries never came to pass.
The Emperor’s full attention was fixated on his nephew, Cheyton—the one he’d hoped would die but who had returned alive.
‘And now I’ve vanished as well.’
What would happen if Cheyton were to stage a rebellion right now, backed by the factions that supported him?
One of the largest forces loyal to the Emperor was the Railaten family, where Roshanne resided. Since she had no intention of protecting him, his downfall would likely be only a matter of time.
‘…That doesn’t sound half bad.’
Thinking that it might not be such a terrible idea for Cheyton to rebel and claim the throne for himself, Roshanne finished her grooming and stood up.
“Miss, what do you plan to do today?”
“What do you mean, ‘what’?”
Roshanne tilted her head, as if the question itself were odd.
“I’ll observe the clouds drifting by and measure how much the sprouts have grown since yesterday.”
“…Again?”
“‘Again’? There’s no such thing as identical clouds under the sky or sprouts of the exact same size. These are sights you can only see today.”
Why couldn’t she understand the joy in that?
Roshanne found it hard to comprehend the maid’s weary expression.
“What about attending a party or going out…?”
“I’m under house arrest right now.”
“Ah.”
The maid, who had suggested the outing, nodded with a look of realization, as if she’d just remembered.
“Then how about inviting a close friend to the estate?”
At the maid’s proposal, Roshanne furrowed her brow. She didn’t even need to rack her brain.
“I don’t have any friends.”
Roshanne had no friends.
The maid clamped her mouth shut again, her face showing another flash of regret at Roshanne’s casual remark.
“Then… then…”
The effect of those three jewels had been truly remarkable. Ever since that day, the maid had attended to Roshanne with utmost sincerity.
It was as if she were hoping another gem might drop her way, or pleading to be the one chosen if any more errands arose.
“Ah. I do want to visit the library, though.”
“The library? It doesn’t seem like your kind of place, Miss…”
“What?”
“No, never mind. I’ll go get the library key for you.”
Roshanne didn’t dislike people motivated by money. In fact, they were easier to handle because they laid their desires bare.
If someone tried to bribe this maid with money, all she had to do was offer even more to ensure no thoughts of betrayal crossed her mind.
After all, the Duke of Railaten would be the one earning the money.
“Yes, please do.”
Knock, knock.
“Miss, you have a visitor.”
Someone had come looking for Roshanne.
“Who is it?”
“Lady Brina Potlen has arrived.”
Potlen? She’d heard that name somewhere.
Roshanne searched her memory at the familiar family name.
“Gasp! Isn’t Lady Brina the one who’s been selected as the ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’ for several years now?”
“…The Milky Way of the Heavens?”
What on earth was that?
Roshanne frowned at the maid’s words. The maid’s eyes widened in surprise at her reaction.
“Miss, you don’t know about the ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’?”
“Who doesn’t know the actual Milky Way in the sky?”
“No! Not the real one—the social circle’s ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’!”
“Who came up with such a cheesy name…? Wait. ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’? That sounds awfully familiar.”
The Potlen family rang a bell too, and the title ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’ felt like something she’d encountered before…
“Gasp.”
As the memory surfaced, Roshanne drew in a sharp breath and wrinkled her eyes.
Hundreds of years ago, a previous Emperor had once asked Roshanne a question.
He wanted to pair the Crown Prince with a clever young lady from a noble family, but how could he identify the smartest one?
At the time, Roshanne—busy wrapping up a civil war—had replied offhandedly.
Just host a party at the palace, invite the young ladies, and select the brightest one. Slap on some title like ‘The Sparkling Milky Way of the Heavens’ or whatever, she’d said, gazing at the starry band across the sky.
The Emperor back then had agreed enthusiastically.
After settling the civil war, Roshanne had been sealed away again, so she never learned what followed.
‘It was the name I came up with…! And they’ve kept using it all this time.’
Roshanne bowed her head in horror at the realization that such a cringeworthy title had endured for centuries.
“Miss! The previous Emperor himself came up with that name…!”
‘He didn’t come up with it himself. That guy had no sense for naming—he even struggled with something as simple as village names.’
Roshanne swallowed her inner frustration and rubbed her dry face several times with her hands. Beside her, the maids stamped their feet in panic, fretting that her makeup was getting ruined.
“…So, this kid who’s like the moon or star or whatever in the sky has come?”
It was embarrassing even to utter it aloud.
“No! It’s the ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’! It’s a title only the most beautiful lady of the year can receive! Everyone tries so hard to become the ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’!”
Don’t bother trying to become something like that.
“Since this year’s ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’ hasn’t been decided yet, how about you give it a try, Miss?”
“I’m not big on using my brain.”
“Huh? Brain?”
“The smartest young lady becomes that year’s ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’.”
“Huh? No! It’s the most beautiful lady!”
“…Beautiful?”
“Yes! Since sparkling things are beautiful, they select the most beautiful lady!”
It seemed the meaning had warped over the passage of time. Facing memories of the past, Roshanne shook her dizzy head from side to side and stood up.
“But why has she come to see me? Were we friends?”
At Roshanne’s question, the maids exchanged glances. Then they slowly shook their heads.
“Not at all.”
Then why did she come?
“It’s rude to keep a guest waiting, so I’ll go see her anyway.”
Roshanne, her day’s plans interrupted, moved with a rather displeased expression.
Roshanne entered the drawing room where this sky’s cloud or moon or whatever was supposedly waiting.
The woman sitting on the sofa, gently fanning herself, turned her head toward Roshanne as she entered.
Before they even exchanged greetings, Roshanne guessed from the irritation plastered across Brina’s face.
This was not an ally, but an enemy.
‘She didn’t come to befriend me.’
In that case, no need to put on a good show.
Roshanne gave a cursory nod and sat down opposite Brina.
“Ha!”
Brina let out a loud, incredulous laugh. With a snap, she folded her fan and glared at Roshanne.
“Does the Lady of Railaten not even greet?”
Her shrill voice shot at Roshanne. Being the young lady selected as last year’s star or Milky Way or moon or cloud or whatever, she was indeed very pretty.
‘Clearly… it’s not about selecting the smartest young lady anymore.’
Looking at Brina, Roshanne calmly shrugged her shoulders.
“Isn’t it the person who barges into someone else’s home without an appointment who should first apologize for the rudeness?”
“B-barge in?!”
“Since we already know who each other are… and I don’t feel like greeting, and you seem the same, let’s just skip the greetings mutually.”
“Ha! What is this!”
“Why did you come to see me?”
Before even offering a cup of tea, Roshanne dove straight into the point as if she had no time, making Brina grimace.
“Such rudeness…”
Her escort standing behind Brina glared at Roshanne and muttered lowly. His gaze was filled with disgust, as if looking at a filthy bug.
“Leave it, Mark.”
Pleased that her escort took her side, Brina smiled as if she were a benevolent lady and soothed him.
“The uneducated are like that by nature. They don’t even know they’ve been rude, so don’t get too angry. We must embrace them, mustn’t we? The Lady of Railaten hasn’t had the chance to learn, so we should understand.”
Brina tucked a fallen strand of hair behind her ear and looked at Roshanne across from her. Despite being clearly insulted right in front of her, Roshanne showed no sign of being intimidated.
It was completely different from her usual demeanor, where she’d shrink her shoulders and lower her eyes upon meeting someone.
It was unclear if she was even listening; she seemed lost in entirely different thoughts.
“…I came to give you a piece of advice, for your sake.”
Brina found Roshanne irritating.
The current Roshanne, who had nothing but her family name—and even that was half-baked—yet acted so boldly.
And the past Roshanne, who had the best family name in the empire, even if half-baked, but couldn’t use it and just endured and shrank away.
“His Highness the Crown Prince came to see you, didn’t he?”
“….”
“Just in case, don’t get any funny ideas, Lady. His Highness the Crown Prince’s partner is me.”
His Highness the Crown Prince’s partner. More precisely, the position of Crown Princess.
Brina wanted that position.
Born as a noble, but she couldn’t become the head of a family. Because women had to shield the brilliantly shining sun with a parasol and smile only in the shade.
Her father always instilled great expectations in such a Brina, telling her to dream big.
So Brina decided to ascend to the highest position she could dream of.
Empress.
The Empress of this empire.
That was the seat Brina aspired to. It didn’t matter who her counterpart would be.
“Ah.”
Roshanne blinked her eyes.
Brina found the woman before her infuriating.
The lady of the Railaten family, at the heart of the Emperor’s faction.
The sole daughter of a house showered with every favor from His Majesty the Emperor, yet a worthless lady who knew how to do nothing.
“I’ve been the ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’ for several years now, Lady. So the one suited to be His Highness the Crown Prince’s partner is…”
“I remember now. The Potlen County.”
Roshanne, who had been straining to recall the familiar Potlen family all along, clapped her hands and her eyes sparkled.
“The Potlen family that paid a premium to buy a pedigree because they wanted to become nobles.”
Roshanne exclaimed in delight. It was she who had procured and delivered the noble family’s genealogy to the Potlen house back then.
The thought that a family starting from such humble beginnings had now produced a ‘Milky Way of the Heavens’ filled her with a sense of pride.
“W-what did you say?!”
But unlike Roshanne’s warm reception, Brina’s face flushed red with humiliation as her family’s shame was abruptly exposed. It was a secret known only to a few in the Potlen family—how on earth did this woman know about it?
“I can’t listen to this any longer!”
Seeing Brina’s face colored with disgrace, her escort bellowed in outrage.
“How dare you be so rude to my lady!”
The escort abruptly removed his glove and hurled it toward Roshanne. At the same time, the surroundings erupted in shock.
‘Huh? Why this all of a sudden…’
Roshanne tilted her head in confusion and picked up the escort’s glove that had been thrown to the floor.
“M-Miss!!”
From behind, the maid called out to Roshanne in utter alarm.
“Huh?”
She wondered if picking up the glove was such a big deal, but the answer came from Brina’s escort.
“Ha. So you’ve accepted my challenge to a duel.”
A duel?
Roshanne rolled her eyes, gauging the atmosphere around her.
‘Did that escort just challenge me to a duel? …Me?’
For real? Seriously?
Roshanne blinked her eyes.
