Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The moment Riena finished speaking, not only the ladies-in-waiting beside her, but even the maids immediately protested.

"What are you saying, Your Highness? Absolutely not! This is not your fault!"

"Lady Trinia tried to use Your Highness. You must never feel sorry for her."

"Exactly! She tried to take advantage of Your Highness's kind heart. That's not something that should ever be forgiven."

"But... Lady Trinia was always kind to me."

Riena let her voice trail off and sighed again.

"We don't know whether that kindness truly came from her heart, or whether she had some hidden motive."

As expected of Countess Sertua.

She was always so clear and decisive.

To think she would shut Riena down this firmly. Twice, no less!

Seeing Riena looking discouraged, Countess Sertua carefully spoke again.

"Still, the palace physician said you were fine, so how about this instead?"

Everyone in the room turned toward the countess.

"The Harvest Festival will continue for another two days. Rest properly today, and tomorrow, why don't you host a small tea party?"

"A tea party?"

That was unexpected.

Her memories from when she was six were hazy, but she was certain there had never been a tea party.

"I believe many noble families brought their children to the Imperial Palace for the Harvest Festival. If you send them invitations and invite them to tea...."

Before the countess could finish, the viscountess let out a small laugh.

A tea party with a six-year-old Imperial Princess.

Just imagining it was adorable.

"It will be a chance to meet Her Highness the Imperial Princess up close! Everyone will compete to receive an invitation!"

"I'm certain it will become a splendid tea party."

They had a point.

It would be a rare opportunity to build a direct relationship with the Imperial Princess.

There was no doubt that the children of noble families would eagerly attend.

"Then let's prepare it immediately. Right now."

It was a good opportunity.

A chance to see what kind of thoughts the children of each noble family had.

The moment Riena gave the order, the ladies had servants bring over a stack of formal invitation cards.

Riena unfolded one with her tiny hands and began writing.

"Ah, could you also bring me a list of all the noble children attending this year's Harvest Festival? Invitations without names would be dangerous."

Writing invitations one by one would be exhausting.

But this was something she absolutely couldn't skip.

She wanted to make sure no intruder could slip in unnoticed.

That was the kind of position a member of the Imperial Family held.

And Riena, who had learned that lesson in the most painful way possible, had every reason to be cautious.

"We didn't even think of that. Your Highness may have just saved our lives."

"Exactly.... As expected, we simply can't keep up with you."

"How wise of you, Your Highness!"

The old Riena could have written out invitations quickly.

But with such small fingers, writing fast wasn't easy.

Even so, she carefully wrote the initials of each noble child in neat handwriting.

Then, as she casually flipped to the next sheet, her delicate brows instantly furrowed.

[Kanter Cartes]

Her heart dropped.

Seeing his name somewhere she hadn't expected made her chest tighten.

So he came....

Riena pressed her pen firmly against the paper and wrote his name.

Was her heart pounding because of hatred?

Or because of sadness?

It was both.

Love and hatred tangled together.

She wanted to hate him.

But even that wasn't something she could do freely.

Could Riena really bring herself to hate someone who had been thrown into a cage with his wings already broken?

Even the little she had heard about Kanter's childhood had been enough to make it impossible to listen without tears.

Please grow into a good man in this life. Please.

She quickly finished writing his name and moved on to the next invitation.

"Your Highness has beautiful handwriting, don't you think?"

"Absolutely. How can such tiny hands write so neatly?"

As the pile of completed invitations grew on Riena's desk, the servants nearby became busier and busier.

The sudden announcement of a "Tea Party with the Imperial Princess" immediately set the atmosphere ablaze again.

Nobles grabbed their heirs and began urgently teaching them what they could and couldn't do.

Some even warned that one wrong move could get their heads cut off.

And since that wasn't entirely impossible, it was probably wise to make sure the children understood the seriousness of the situation.

"It's been busy since morning. Is this because of Her Highness's tea party?"

Grand Duke Jeremier frowned with a tired expression.

But his violet eyes were full of curiosity.

It was an unusual look for him.

"So, what does Melance intend to do?"

"The young master said he doesn't particularly care."

The Grand Duke burst into hearty laughter.

Like father, like son.

It was exactly the sort of answer he would expect from his eldest son.

"Even so, he can't refuse an invitation from Her Highness. I attended the Harvest Festival despite finding it bothersome, so tell him to get ready as well."

"Yes, Master!"

His jet-black hair and snow-white skin created a decadent contrast.

His violet eyes, which seemed to change shade depending on the light, had an unusual allure for someone so young.

"The Grand Duke said you must attend. No. Matter. What. Understood?"

"You're getting worse at lying every day."

"I-I'm telling the truth!"

"......"

He could have at least answered properly.

Melance turned away indifferently and picked up the outer jacket of his uniform.

"A tea party with a bunch of little brats."

He couldn't help but let out a quiet laugh.

"Her Highness the Imperial Princess has granted permission to enter!"

The moment the loud announcement ended, the thick doors opened.

It was a small banquet room usually used when noblewomen visited the palace to enjoy tea with the Empress.

It was smaller than the main banquet hall, but every bit as luxurious.

"Wow...."

Fresh, bright eyes stared up at the painted ceiling in amazement.

Kanter had thought the banquet hall was the most splendid place in the world.

His tiny jaw dropped as he looked around in every direction.

"Young Lord Kanter, could you please watch where you're going?"

"......"

Marilen, the daughter of a count, snapped at him sharply.

Kanter immediately shrank into himself.

Marilen snorted at him, gathered up her elegant skirts, and walked ahead.

...She's scary.

Kanter clasped both hands against his chest and made his way toward the table.

White and gold runners had been neatly layered across the tabletop.

The tea sets were arranged in perfect rows, enough to inspire admiration by themselves.

And on the three-tiered stands were fresh fruits of every kind and rare desserts.

It was almost enough to make someone feel full just from looking.

"Thank you for accepting my invitation. It's only a modest gathering, but since I arranged it so suddenly, I hope you'll forgive any shortcomings."

Those were astonishingly dignified words from the mouth of a six-year-old princess.

The noble children exchanged cautious glances.

All except one.

"Th-thank you for inviting me, Your Highness!"

Kanter looked at Riena with a bright smile, dimples appearing in his cheeks.

Riena gave him a brief nod before sitting back down.

He's right beside me!

Riena took a small breath, quickly regained her composure, and calmly accepted the greetings from the other noble children one by one.

There weren't that many guests.

No one had dared refuse the Imperial Princess's invitation, but not many nobles had brought their children with them to the Harvest Festival.

Clunk.

"Greetings, Your Highness. Please forgive my late arrival."

His uniform was so perfectly arranged it looked as though it had been measured with a ruler.

Even his tone was precise and formal.

It was the Grand Duke's heir.

He hadn't wanted to attend, but showing that openly at an official gathering was simply not in his nature.

"It's fine. Hurry and take a seat."

He gave a brief bow and sat down.

Come to think of it, I've never actually spoken with the Grand Duke's heir alone.

By the time she had become old enough to properly get to know him, she had already lost her sight.

And after that, everything had fallen apart.

This is a good chance to find out what kind of person he really is.

A sharp light appeared in Riena's golden eyes.

The Imperial Palace was never truly peaceful.

But why did this year's Harvest Festival have to become such a disaster?

The Empress held her head in both hands.

"Will it really be all right to let this continue?"

"What else can we do? It is the Imperial Princess's wish. Let her proceed. How is her condition?"

"Well... she's so energetic that we haven't had a chance to stop her."

The Empress let out an incredulous laugh.

"So energetic that you can't stop her? That's a good thing, but how is a mere six-year-old princess supposed to handle all of this...?"

The attendant silently nodded.

Every invited child was older than Riena.

Most of them were also the children of counts or nobles of even higher rank.

It would not be easy for Riena to deal with them all.

"The princess is the one who started this, so all we can do is watch. Keep a close eye on the situation and report back."

The attendant bowed and left for the small banquet room.

Even if she is the Imperial Princess, this may be too much for her.... Why isn't Her Majesty stopping her?

The thought of the young princess being mocked by the noble children made the attendant hurry his steps.

"So then?"

"I thought it was the perfect moment, so I swapped them first."

"Ahahaha!"

The children's bright laughter echoed all the way outside the room.

And at the center of it all was Riena.

"So Caros's younger brother still doesn't know?"

"No. He still has no idea."

"Oh my! Hahaha!"

Caros Shilton, the son of a count, was such a lively storyteller that everyone around him clapped as they laughed.

When the laughter finally began to settle, Riena spoke.

"I hope you're all enjoying the tea party. I did my best, but I invited everyone so suddenly that I was worried it might feel rushed."

"I love it, Your Highness!"

"We're so happy you invited us!"

They were simple, childish answers.

Riena smiled in relief and looked around at everyone's faces.

"Did you enjoy it too, Young Lord Melance?"

Melance, who had been sitting there with an expression that clearly said When is this going to end?, flinched.