The situation wasn't very pleasant as both Blanche and Allen waited for his fiancée to speak up about her complaint. It took a while.

Briana bit her lip before meeting the concubine's gaze. After that, she still remained quiet but finally opened her mouth when Blanche almost believed that she would give up. “What happened at the tea party... I wanted to tell you that I didn't mean the things I said back then.” That was a pleasant surprise, and it just got better. “I was just furious and sad and nervous and didn't know what to do. Because of that, I was too loud and made others look. I also said that it was just your fault when I bumped into you as well. And then I panicked because I cherish that dress and didn't want to lose it. So...” She went on for a while, and it quickly became clear that she wished to apologize but didn't want to say the words ‘I'm sorry’.

For a moment, Blanche was uncertain whether she should wait until the girl finally managed to voice that phrase. After all, anyone had to be able to acknowledge their own mistakes. On the other hand, Briana looked uncomfortable enough, and the concubine didn't want to see her cry. Especially since she had been forced to apologize at the tea party and knew how awful that felt. When Allen opened his mouth, without a doubt to scold his fiancée for muttering around, the decision was made for Blanche, and she hurried to interrupt. “It's alright. I thank you for your concern. On that day, I was rather tense too, so I hope that you can excuse my words as well if they should have been harsh. If I may ask, what happened to the dress?”

Briana blinked at the other woman as if the concubine had grown wings for a few seconds until she had processed the question. “Oh, thanks to the quick help of the servants in the palace, we were able to get rid of the stain. Luckily, the dress looks as pretty as before, so Mother would be happy. It was her favorite, and she wore it very often, so I should...treasure it more.” Her lips formed a soft smile, but her eyes were still full of sadness, which immediately pained Blanche. How could someone whom the concubine had found annoying in the past suddenly seem that vulnerable?

Even Allen didn't speak up this time, which was for the better since the concubine would probably have scolded him for that.

Briana really didn't need any mean comment now, especially since she already upset herself enough. She stared into the distance for a while before her fake smile faded, and suddenly, big tears began to roll out of her eyes. Apparently, she had remembered her deceased mother at an unfitting point in time. As if the cork had been opened, she broke down at that and began sobbing, but in contrast to Blanche's normal crying, it was extremely quiet so that one could barely hear it.

Finally, Allen did something that wasn't mean or insensitive. He walked to Briana's side and pulled her into a hug so that she could hide her face from anyone in the vicinity. Then he began to stroke over her head in slow soothing motions and whispered something to her. It seemed like he wasn't a completely useless fiancé after all.

The concubine just stood to the side and remained silent to not disturb them. She knew how hard it was to deal with the loss of people that one loved, so she just inwardly wished the best for Briana. At the same time, she had to ignore how her heart stung at the memory of the pain she had felt after her family's execution, but she refused to let that get to her. Blanche was only pulled back into reality when another person appeared in the corner of her eye. She turned her head to meet Lucille's gaze, and immediately, she had a bad feeling about this.

Lucille had a strange expression. She seemed almost depressed while approaching them. Then she gazed to the side, and a second later, she forced herself to seem a bit more confident. Yet, it almost appeared like her hands were shaking as looked at Allen and Briana, who had not yet noticed her. “This seems to be quite a predicament. If it truly is like it seems, this would be pretty cruel of you, Lady Blanche.” Her words were dripping with mockery, but for some reason, it didn't even sound like she was genuine in her display of dislike, which just confused the concubine even more.

Briana and Allen looked up at that too, with the girl's face still being reddened and full of tears.

Blanche furrowed her brows as she scanned Lucille while being more skeptical than upset. “I'm not quite sure what Lady Valerian is referring to. I did nothing that would be deserving of being called cruel.”

Lucille hid her mouth behind her hand to feign shock, but her eyes revealed the truth. She was much too unhappy about being here, and yet, she continued the act. “Please, do not be angry. Of course, I don't dare to tell you what to do, but I couldn't help but feel pity for the people you are currently conversing with. If you see it from my perspective, it does look strange. I would argue that...approaching a woman's fiancé until she is crying is very cruel.” For some reason, it sounded like she was reading something off a chart while saying this. “It looks like you made Lady Bellfaux feel rather awful. Over and over, it has been made clear that you are capable of seducing a man you just met once, but choosing an engaged one is as terrible as tempting a married one. You already charmed the most powerful man in the nation and made him...” Lucille even hesitated and swallowed before finishing this sentence. “Discard his wife. Doing the same with Lady Bellfaux's fiancé would be even more despicable. After all the things that were said during the past months, I have to believe that Lord Duremont is thinking about breaking off the engagement, and he might just do that if he is tempted.” Why did she sound so uncertain while dealing out such insults and even closed her eyes as if she waited for the direct punishment? That invalidated the whole intention, did it not?

Blanche couldn't even be angry at these words. She was too shocked by how nonsensical all this was. How insolent did Lucille think she could be for no reason? This definitely would not be pretty. When the concubine finally felt a bit of irritation grow inside her as she thought about the words, it already died down again. Lucille didn't act content after delivering her blow. She just seemed to shrink in herself, and there might even be tears pricking in her eyes, which was even more confusing. What also helped in making Blanche pity the girl was seeing the icy look in Allen's eyes though. After that, she just began to fear for Lucille's life.

While sugarcoated insults belonged to the daily life of an aristocrat, this had been a direct one, which would have consequences if it could be proven. In a conversation between two people, gathering enough evidence was impossible since both testimonies would contradict each other. But in this case, three people had been offended at the same time, and their words would be enough proof to put a viscount's daughter on trial for slandering others. Something like this wouldn't entail a harsh punishment, but it would ruin the perpetrator's reputation. That could cause the whole family to suffer within noble society and destroy that person's chances to marry into an influential household. Risking that was just plain stupid, and seemingly, Lucille wasn't even happy about upsetting others. Why was she doing this then? Right now, no one would believe that there could be an advantage for her.

In fact, Allen's glare almost made it seem like Lucille might not survive to suffer the consequences of her actions. He surely had been raised by his father, which caused his anger to be terrifying enough to make even Blanche, who wasn't at fault here, shiver. Hearing how the people that were most important to him, his sister and his fiancée, had been insulted infuriated him to a level that even the concubine, fortunately, had never been able to evoke in him. He was terrifying. Without letting go of Briana, he spoke up in a cold voice that sounded like the one the empress used to threaten her opponents. “Did Lord Valerian not teach you manners? Or did he want you to make the Duremont family your enemy by insulting not only me and my fiancée but also my sister, the empress of Artias, herself? Do you wish to repeat this while she is present, or would you rather have His Majesty take care of this matter?”

It was a pretty clever strategy to involve Theodore since it was obvious how he would react to his lover indirectly being called a whore.

Lucille took a step back at those words, and for a second, her face was filled with bitterness, but she unsuccessfully tried to cover it up by putting on a surprised expression. She looked to the side as if she was searching for help before looking back to Allen. “Lord Duremont, do not be so wrathful for no reason. I...I wasn't trying to insult anyone. I was merely worried about the situation and wished to intervene before Lady Bellfaux would be hurt even more. Thus, I pointed out how it could seem to others. There... there is no need to involve His or Her Majesty at such a joyful event and ruin their mood, correct?” Now that she was stuttering, she seemed even more pitiful.

Still, no one replied to that excuse.

Allen continued to glare at Lucille, with him looking like a war god that would slaughter his victim soon. Briana's expression had only scrunched up even more, and she bared her teeth while her eyes were filled with such anguish that the concubine felt horrible despite not having done anything.

Then as if she had waited for her cue, another woman's voice sounded from afar. “Lady Blanche!”

The concubine turned around just in time to see how Fiona Lamont lifted her skirt slightly and rushed to the group. If Blanche had to guess, she would say that the other woman would somehow use this situation for her sake. The realization that this whole scenario was fake was proven to be true when the duke's daughter reached her and grabbed her hands without a warning.

Fiona put on a sad smile as she spoke up in a voice that sounded like she was extremely emotional right now. “I'm so happy to see you here. After the last ball, we didn't see each other again. I was scared that you might be seriously sick. I was so worried that I could barely sleep. I wanted to visit you, but I wasn't allowed to do that. Please forgive me for not being by your side during such a hard time.” She squeezed the concubine's hands while giving her best to appear as pitiful as possible and speaking in a loud voice so that everyone would look at them. Did she want to use this upset to the other woman, or did she just want to distract from the current issue? It wasn't clear.

Blanche let her eyes roam across the venue and noticed that very few guests were paying attention to their conversation now since they were at a remote place. Her first instinct was to pull her hands away and tell Fiona not to touch her and spread such useless lies, but that was exactly what the other woman wanted.

Pushing the other woman away now would only make Blanche seem like the bad person who was horrible to treat someone who worried about her with malice. Worsening her reputation wasn't something she could risk right now. For that reason, she wouldn't play along with Fiona's schemes.

Blanche did the opposite of what she longed to do. Hopefully, her acting skills would suffice to not let her anger be completely obvious. The concubine lifted the corners of her lips to show the other party a wide grin and squeezed her hands. “Lady Lamont! It's been a while. Thank you so much for your concern, but you don't need to be worried. I have fully recovered already, and I am enjoying good health, as you can see. I apologize for not writing you a letter, but I was very busy, and my mind was constantly focused on another topic. It's wonderful to be able to meet you here. How have you been?” She didn't yell like Fiona but was still loud enough to make sure that anyone who was interested would hear her. The sugary tone that she tried to imitate already frustrated her, so she hoped that the other woman was even angrier.

And for a moment, it really looked like flashes of shock appeared in Fiona's eyes before she went back to a flawless smile. “I'm so glad to hear that. I apologize for my rashness. Truly, I didn't mean to startle you. I was simply scared. I feared that-” It was obvious that she was acting when she suddenly turned her head to observe Briana and Allen, who were still hugging each other, and Lucille, who was eager to meet the other's gaze. Fiona pretended to be surprised before she spoke up. “Oh my, why is everyone looking this dejected? Did something happen to Lady Bellfaux?” The fact that she emphasized this only made it seem like she had somehow already known that something was happening and wanted to get involved.

Allen narrowed his eyes at Lucille before replying. “Lady Valerian thought that we would simply accept her throwing audacious insults our way. But I have no intention of forgetting this matter.”

Fiona finally let go of Blanche and lifted her hands to cover her mouth. “How awful. This all must be a grand misunderstanding. After all, Lady Valerian is a close friend of mine, and I know that she would never wish to upset someone purposefully. Of course, her choice of words is a little careless at times, however, I can assure you that she never meant to offend you.” She folded her hands and gave Allen a pleading look. “Please see it in your gracious heart to forgive her just once. I promise that I will-”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“Briana? What is going on?” And just like that, the originally remote location became a bit fuller than anyone was comfortable with.

Fiona's expression fell for a moment upon being interrupted by a person that she seemingly hadn't wanted to be involved with.

Everyone turned their heads to see Madeleine hurrying toward them as quickly as she could without running. She stopped next to her sister and looked appalled upon seeing Briana's tear-stained face. Her eyes widened, and she alternated between glancing at all the present people. “What happened? Why is my sister crying?” It almost seemed like she narrowed her eyes at Blanche, who would have liked to complain about being suspected but kept quiet to let the others reply.

Briana just sniffled at that while her fiancé patted her head.

Allen was the one to respond before Fiona or Lucille could voice an excuse. “Lady Valerian believed that it was amusing to hint that Lady Blanche was attempting to make me break my engagement with Briana. Her crude accusations went even further than that, but I refuse to repeat how she insulted Her Majesty.” Thankfully, he hadn't twisted the facts to make the concubine the bad one, which Blanche had almost worried about.

Madeleine's expression turned sour at that, and she glared at the concerned person. “Is that true?”

Lucille exchanged one look with Fiona before replying with panic oozing out of her voice. “Of course not! I would never dare to do anything like that. You misunderstood!”

The temperature in the area around Allen seemed to drop as he stared at Lucille like he was observing an insect that he was about to crush. “Misunderstood?” His voice was shaking with anger as he resumed. “Three people clearly heard your words, and you still have the audacity to lie?”

Lucille took another step back before rushing to Fiona's side and throwing her arms around the other woman. “I know that I'm...just the daughter of a viscount and your ranks are way higher than mine. But I didn't mean to upset you. I only...voiced my concern about Lord Duremont and Lady Blanche being alone together, which made Lady Bellfaux cry. You know how horrible rumors can be, so...I... I wanted to warn you. I'm not the bad one here!” She buried her face in the other woman's shoulder and let out a demonstrative sob, which might not have been fake at all. Even while she had spoken, her voice had been much too uncertain and unsteady, which hinted that she was crying for real. That didn't match with her coming here to insult the group at all.

Blanche became even more uncertain regarding what this was about, but she chose not to speak up. If she got involved here, she could only be blamed by either party. She neither wanted the Duremonts nor the Lamonts to be mad at her, so she should avoid this conflict by acting like she was just an onlooker. Still, she couldn't help tensely listening for each detail.

Fiona hugged Lucille back and frowned slightly while she gazed at Allen. “I fear that all of this is the result of a terrifying misunderstanding. Lady Valerian was only trying to help. As I already said, she speaks before she thinks, so her choice of words might not have expressed her intentions well. I, as her close friend, will work on that with her and teach her how to speak more deliberately. So, please do not blame a young girl, who is not even an adult yet, for her childish characteristics. As the future Duke of Duremont, you are naturally educated and exhibit flawless manners, but you cannot expect the young and inexperienced to match your level of composure. Please forgive her, just this once.”

While everyone was quietly watching the conversation, Blanche just asked herself how Fiona could be this confident that her plan would work out. What did the other woman want to gain from this apart from infuriating a duke's son if she sided with the person Allen was upset with? And why had Lucille even done any of this? Blanche had no idea.

Allen still didn't have any intention of giving in, but his anger slowly turned from a cold one to a boiling one. “So, you are telling me to ignore this grave offense because of her age? She might be young, but she isn't a child anymore. She should be well aware of the fact that her actions will have consequences. Aside from that, there is no way that I can interpret her words as accidental insults. None of her accusations were attempting to give us a fair warning because she was worried.”

Fiona averted her eyes and glanced to the side. Then she looked at Blanche, who immediately had a bad feeling about this. Fiona turned to Allen again and spoke up. “I understand why you insist on that Lord Duremont, however, you only keep repeating that she offended others. How about we ask them whether they felt insulted by Lady Valerian's words? Lady Blanche, what do you think? Did you feel offended?”

The concubine almost sighed at this childish trick and considered being direct about how useless this strange strategy was. But staying calm would be the better approach in any case, especially since Fiona wanted to force her into a dilemma. Claiming that Lucille had insulted her would cause others to believe that she was overreacting like in the past, and that was a rumor that she needed to avoid. However, the other option was lying and thus antagonizing Allen for making him seem like he exaggerated.

So, Blanche would reply by using Fiona's choice of words against her and by simply doing it like most nobles, staying neutral. “Lady Lamont, this isn't a question of whether I felt offended. Unfortunately, it's a fact that Lady Valerian said things that would insult Her Majesty, Lord Duremont, Lady Bellfaux and me. Even if that might not have been her intention, she ended up being insolent, and an honest apology would be in order. Every word has its value, and denying this afterward would be a lie to yourself as well.”

Fiona was quiet for a moment before turning to Allen. “In that case, I would still ask you to be generous. Would you, Lord Duremont, Lady Bellfaux and Lady Blanche, be willing to forgive her after a sincere apology? Like this, she will remember that she must be clear of the consequences of her words, and we still give her the benefit of doubt by not insisting on unnecessarily involving anyone else.”

The wrinkles in Allen's forehead deepened at that, and he gritted his teeth but didn't reply immediately. Yet, he gave up when Briana nodded. “This once, we'll make an exception. If anything like this ever happens again though, I will remember this incident and insist on real consequences.” Somehow, it wasn't surprising. He would never have let the concubine off the hook, but when it was anyone else, he reacted like this. But in today's case, that might be good.

All eyes landed on Blanche, and she merely nodded too. She didn't want to make a bigger issue out of this than it had already been ever since Lucille had appeared.

Madeleine also didn't complain after locking eyes with her sister for a moment, so the matter was settled.

Fiona contently nodded at that. “Very well. I thank all of you for your understanding. Lady Valerian?”

Lucille hesitantly let go of the other woman and lifted her head. Her whole face was red with tears running down her cheeks, which was rather irritating. What had she expected to happen when she offended multiple people of a higher rank than her? She slowly bowed down before speaking up with a shaky voice. “I...sincerely apologize from the bottom of my heart. I never wished...to make it sound like this. Please forgive me.” Her apology sounded dejected but oddly honest for someone that was only a mediocre actor. Lucille glanced up to see the others' reaction, and when no one responded, she straightened her back again but slouched her shoulders. For a short moment, she looked to the side before sinking in herself and lowering her head in shame. This seemed strangely fearful if one considered that she had caused this whole situation.

Madeleine still glared at Lucille, but her expression softened when Briana tucked at her sleeve, which made it seem like no one would re-address this matter for now. That only raised the tension though.

Fiona, who was well aware of that and hurriedly tried to change it to help her friend, was silent for a while before speaking again. “Lady Bellfaux, I couldn't help but notice that your attire is quite unusual. Is there is a specific reason for that?” This was only supposed to distract the group, but still, everyone followed her gaze.

All the gathered people scanned Madeleine's clothes and realized that they certainly were abnormal. After all, women never wore trousers instead of long frilly dresses, so it was a surprise that no one had noticed that earlier. Madeleine almost forgot her anger and appeared to be a bit embarrassed when she replied. “Yes, I expected people to react with confusion, which I would have liked to avoid. But in the end, it's necessary. I will take part in the hunting competition, so this type of attire is a requirement.” Immediately, everyone's eyes widened, and they stared at her in confusion.

Blanche was taken aback by that too. After all, only men were allowed to participate, and it had been like this ever since this festival was introduced. If a woman had taken part, the novel would have definitely mentioned that, especially since the concerned person was a close friend of the heroine.

Briana was the one to open her mouth and spoke with a hoarse, barely audible voice. “But you can't do that, right? You're not a man. Father will be angry if you cause an uproar.”

Madeleine began smiling at that. “Don't worry. That won't be an issue. His Majesty gave me permission to participate. He said that no rule ever stated that women couldn't hunt, so when I asked him whether I could join too, he agreed.” That was a surprise.

While Blanche had known that her lover's attitude on the matter of gender equality was rather advanced, she knew that he would receive a lot of criticism if he tried to change the law to reflect that. So, Theodore avoided mentioning that topic unless he had to deal with specific important cases. The fact that he allowed a woman to take part in the hunting competition would arouse attention, and many would ridicule his decision and claim that he was ignoring traditions. Doing this was a risk, which he usually evaded. However, upon seeing Madeleine's beaming expression, the concubine understood why he had agreed.

In the novel, it had been stated that Madeleine was interested in sword fighting multiple times. She had to hide that from a society and a father that would forbid her from enjoying activities in fields that were dominated by males. Still, the motivation that she showed whenever she was able to train would paint a smile on most people's faces. It wasn't odd for Theodore to reward such dedication by allowing her to do what she loved.

This thought made Blanche grin. With every occasion on which her lover did something unexpected, he made her prouder. Though, she seemed to be the only person who found it easy to believe that.

Allen frowned at Madeleine. “I personally don't mind, but you have to know that that will cause an uproar. His Majesty really gave his permission for that?” He said that, probably without expecting a response from the mentioned person, much like anyone else.

Blanche felt her lover's hands on her hips before she could hear his voice.

“I did.”

The concubine tensed and let out a high-pitched yelp before spinning around and meeting Theodore's gaze. Her lover was just standing there and grinning at her while her heart was beating so quickly that she felt like she was barely able to breathe. “Theo! I told you to stop scaring me like that!” She uttered a frustrated response before realizing that calling him by his pet name and hinting that he surprised her often might not be the wisest idea. She took a few seconds to calm herself, which earned her a smirk by her lover. Blanche glared at him in return but remained quiet. She had already said too much, so continuing now could only make everything worse.

Theodore shrugged and responded in a just as informal tone as she had previously used. “When you are this immersed in something, it's just too tempting. I warned you, didn't I?” Theodore took a step to the side to stand next to her, and all the women in the group curtsied while Allen bowed. He just smiled at them for a moment before speaking. “You may rise. It's a wonderful day, isn't it?” All the people who had straightened their posture before he had allowed it, which was everyone except for Lucille and Madeleine, froze at that. The emperor hadn't demanded anyone to wait for his permission before rising ever since his coronation.

Blanche gave him a questioning look, and Theodore met her gaze to show her a bright smile before returning to his polite one and speaking to the group. He greeted every person and gave them a chance to respond while beginning with Allen, as the son of the most influential household, and ending with his lover. Blanche almost flinched when he addressed her without her title and showed her another one of these radiant smiles. That had to be suspicious to everyone who was paying attention to his expressions. While replying, she was careful to not use his nickname nor his title, knowing that he would be upset if she called him ‘Your Majesty’ even though they were being watched.

After the greetings were finished, they were silent for a moment until Theodore turned to Madeleine. “As I had expected, the news of your participation has already caused all imaginable reactions. Now you are under pressure. You have to prove that you are experienced enough to deserve to hunt in the annual competition. While I believe in your skills, I still wish you the best of luck, just in case. It would be great if you took the second place to make sure that no one will dare to argue whether you are qualified.”

Madeleine showed him a determined grin at that. “I will. I might just be even better than that. Thank you for giving me the chance to prove myself, Your Majesty.”

Theodore let out a low chuckle. “While I certainly support your dedication, I have to warn you. The second place is the only goal that you will be able to reach. It has become a tradition that I win after all.”

“Traditions have to be broken at some point, right? I'm happy that I will be able to see Your Majesty's skills by myself. It's an honor to be allowed to compete with you.” Madeleine's eyes were shining with determination, which was quite the stark contrast to how she usually looked when the concubine was near. That was almost a bit adorable.

However, Theodore's gentle smile was the one that made Blanche's heart flutter as he replied. “I accept the challenge, Lady Bellfaux. I was motivated during the last years already, but I believe that I will surprise everyone with my result this time. May the best hunter win.”

Madeleine happily nodded before announcing that she would withdraw to prepare herself. Her sister and Allen, who glared at Lucille one last time before leaving, accompanied her since he had to get ready too.

Surprisingly, Fiona asked for permission to leave as well instead of trying to impress the emperor. Lucille copied her words and followed behind her while letting her head hang down. The latter one was crying, and Fiona began whispering to calm her with an expression that made it look like she was truly concerned. Lucille wouldn't able to fake cry that well either. It didn't seem like these two were acting since they wouldn't gain anything from it right now.

This scene confused the concubine a bit. Though, she didn't have much time to think about that as Theodore and she currently were alone, unless one counted Stella, who was boiling with anger, and Owen, who was standing a few steps away from them. Blanche hadn't remembered that her maid had been listening at all and tried to give her a reassuring smile, but the servant was still upset, most likely due to Lucille's words. But she wouldn't be able to do anything about that now.

So, the concubine turned to her lover, who had stopped smiling.

Theodore's eyes were directed onto the people who walking away until they were out of audible reach. Then he met Blanche's gaze with a serious expression. “From what I could see from far away, something unpleasant happened, right? I'm sorry for not coming earlier, but I was trapped in a conversation with the marquess that will announce the winner later. Did someone offend you?”

Blanche didn't know whether she should nod or shake her head. Somehow, there had been an issue, but in comparison to everything she was used to dealing with, this didn't bother her too much.