Chapter 95

'What is it, him.'

I've never seen his face before.

I know almost all the details of the nobles in the 1st District of Huangdao.

'The fact that I don't know him means he must be from an insignificant family...'

I was thinking this when—

"Eril."

"Erilrot?"

The twins called me.

"Uh-huh."

"Are you not eating? Is it bad?"

Balzac looked at me with a worried face.

My family was very afraid when I didn't eat.

Because I'm the type who loses my appetite when I'm sick or troubled.

"No. It's delicious."

I twirled the pasta on my fork and popped it into my mouth.

Only then did Balzac's expression relax.

Meanwhile, Richmond was running away from Catherine, who was chasing him from a distance.

* * *

After finishing my meal, I went up to my room.

I like the room assigned to me at the Eclipto Manor.

Of course, it's not as luxurious as Astra, but it looked well-maintained.

It seems my luggage was moved while I was eating.

Just as I was about to sit on the sofa, I heard a knock.

"It's Lumelisa."

When I opened the door, Lumelisa and a few other young ladies were there.

Lumelisa showed me a tea case and said,

"How about some tea after dinner? I have some good tea."

'I'm a bit tired... but...'

I can't miss this opportunity to build connections.

I smiled widely and replied,

"Sure!"

"Let's have it in the garden. There are other people there too."

"Okay."

I put on a cardigan and left the room.

We chatted as we walked, and it was a short distance to the garden.

The garden of Eclipto Manor was beautiful.

'It's more like a field of evening primroses.'

There were no other flowers, only evening primroses everywhere.

There were also beautiful lights scattered around.

The evening primroses, illuminated by the light, were truly beautiful.

"There's a table over there."

One of the girls pointed to a gazebo.

We, the girls, took our seats at the only table in the garden.

"I'm glad the table is big. We can all sit."

"Yes."

We asked a servant to prepare the tea, and we started chatting.

"Recently, about the Azis family..."

"Empress Ocellia..."

"Our family is starting a new business..."

I tried to hide my amazed expression.

'These cute chatterboxes.'

In just a few minutes of conversation, I obtained a lot of information.

It's really good that they're still kids and don't keep secrets.

While we were chatting, a servant brought the tea.

The tea leaves Lumelisa brought were indeed excellent.

"The aroma is wonderful."

"The pastries are great too. Amazing..."

We were enjoying the tea and chatting.

"Looks like some people have already arrived."

A group of girls approached.

'It's Catherine.'

Lumelisa's expression wasn't good.

"Good evening, Lady Trang."

Catherine was the child of Duke Trang and a princess from another country.

In terms of nobility, she was one step above Lumelisa, who had the Empress Dowager as her great-aunt.

When Lumelisa greeted her, Catherine replied,

"Yes, Lady Phaunte."

'Oh, it seems Catherine doesn't like Lumelisa either.'

She emphasized the word 'Duke' heavily.

Lumelisa's brows furrowed.

"I'm sorry, but we've already taken the seats."

"It's fine. I can just sit with Lady Astra."

Catherine smiled and looked at me.

"Nice to meet you, Lady."

"Hello, Lady Trang."

"Lady Phaunte, you call her by her name, right? Please call me Catherine too."

"Um? Ah..."

Lumelisa glared at Catherine without even trying to manage her expression.

'Come to think of it, they were enemies even in my first life.'

These two had a lot in common.

1. Both were born into noble families.

2. Both were the only daughters of powerful families.

3. Both had towering pride.

4. Both were leaders of different groups.

Just as two suns cannot coexist, two leaders cannot coexist in one world.

Lumelisa and Catherine always tried to tear each other apart when they met.

"Lumelisa Phaunte is the princess of society? What a funny story."

"Catherine Trang is the poet of society? Maybe I misunderstood the meaning of poet."

They got along as badly as the famous enemies, Lord Chateaubriand and Lord Gérôme.

'Why are they suddenly fighting over me...'

Catherine blinked and said,

"Um? How about we call each other by our names?"

"Um... Miss Catherine..."

"Wow, I'm so happy! Shall we go then?"

"Ah, I..."

As I was wondering what to do, Lumelisa stepped in.

"Miss Erilrot has prior commitments with us. Lady Trang, your actions are only making Miss Erilrot uncomfortable."

"I heard that Lady Phaunte often socialized with Miss Erilrot in Huangdao. Can't you make an exception for someone you're meeting for the first time?"

"People aren't objects to be given away. Miss Erilrot isn't an object."

"I didn't mean to give away a person. I meant to give away this evening. Can't you read the context, Lady Phaunte?"

Lumelisa and Catherine's gazes clashed in the air.

I thought sparks might fly.

'This is going to turn into a fight.'

"Um, then—"

Just as I was about to speak,

The other girls, who were looking back and forth between the two, stepped in.

"Why don't we all have tea together? There's plenty of space at the table!"

"Y-Yes."

Lumelisa and Catherine frowned.

But seeing my troubled expression, they sighed as if they had no choice.

The young ladies on Lumelisa's side gave up their seats to the young ladies on Catherine's side.

"Please sit."

"Lady Phaunte shared her tea leaves, and they were excellent."

"Hey, you, bring another tea set."

That's how we ended up having a tea party in the middle of the night.

With ten chairs, it was really lively.

'Almost a tea party... Wait, ten chairs?'

Me.

Five on Lumelisa's side.

Five on Catherine's side.

'Eleven people?'

Turning my head, I saw a red-haired young lady standing a bit away.

The one who called me 'dirty blood.'

A black-haired young lady on Lumelisa's side said in confusion,

"What should we do? There aren't enough seats..."

"Indeed. But who is she? I've never seen her before."

Catherine, who had sat in the remaining seat first, said, "Ah."

"She's Sara of the Fog family."

"The Fog family...?"

Not recognizing the name, the girls were confused, but Catherine said lightly,

"They're not from the 1st District, but they've come to Huangdao this time. Right?"

Sara Fog shuddered and replied,

"Yes! Nice to meet you, ladies."

The girl bowed her eyes in greeting.

The other young ladies also bowed their heads slightly.

"Nice to meet you, Lady."

"Hello."

"But what about the seat?"

At that moment, I said,

"How about we all squeeze in a bit?"

These girls would never imagine sitting closer together.

In Huangdao, there's always plenty of space.

Especially at parties, the number of guests is always counted, and everything is set up perfectly.

There are no uninvited guests or unpermitted visitors.

That would be a huge rudeness.

The girls clapped their hands and nodded.

"Ah, that's a good idea."

"Let's get another chair!"

These girls are really nice.

'If I said this in Astra...'

I briefly thought of Liangtin.

"What? We got here first, why should we give up our seats? Are you crazy?!"

We squeezed in a bit, and a servant quickly brought a new chair.

Sara Fog clapped her hands and was delighted.

"Having a tea party with noble ladies at night. It feels like I'm in a fairy tale."

The other girls laughed.

Catherine, holding the teacup brought by the servant, said,

"Sara always speaks so sweetly."

"But how did you two meet?"

"Through the friendship between Lord Fog and my father."

Sara giggled.

"My father started a business with Duke Trang."

The atmosphere was warm and friendly.

Lumelisa didn't show any more unpleasantness to Catherine for the sake of the other young ladies.

Catherine, not wanting to ruin the mood, pretended not to see Lumelisa.

Fortunately, the midnight tea party was not chaotic.

.

.

After the tea party, it was late at night.

The young ladies dispersed one by one.

"That was a really enjoyable tea time."

"Shall we meet tomorrow and have tea together?"

"Sure!"

I smiled and greeted the young ladies.

Then I walked out of the garden with light steps.

'I heard a lot of good things!'

Just as I was about to climb the stairs happily,

"Um, Lady."

A voice came from behind.

Turning my head, I saw Sara Fog.

"Miss Fog?"

"Yes!"

"Is there something you need?"

"Well, I wanted to apologize for misunderstanding you."

"Apologize?"

Sara Fog hesitated and approached, saying,

"I heard a lot of bad rumors about you. I was misunderstanding you. I... was rude, wasn't I?"

She must have laughed falsely in the dining room for that reason.

Sara smiled and said,

"Someone as considerate as you couldn't possibly have half commoner blood. I was so silly, wasn't I?"

"People are too jealous. To spread such rumors about your abilities..."

"..."

"I apologize for my misunderstanding. I hope we can have a good relationship in the future."

"If you're talking about my mother being a commoner, yes, that's true."

"..."

I was already a few steps up the stairs, so I looked down at Sara from above.

"Being rude is also true."

"Ah..."

"But I also hope we can have a good relationship in the future."

What's the point of fighting with a child?

'There are many nobles who judge by bloodline. I can't fight with all of them.'

When I saw her in the garden, Sara just wanted to fit in with the other young ladies.

"Um, I... I'm sorry, Lady Astra."

"Yes."

I bowed my head slightly and continued up the stairs.

But from the entrance, I heard a noisy voice again.

"Miss Erilrot! It's Catherine! If you're free, let's talk—"

"It's Lumelisa! You liked the tea leaves, so I want to share them with you!"

'Oh no.'

It seemed another battle over me was about to start.

* * *

The next day.

I was looking tired between Catherine and Lumelisa.

Catherine said,

"I want to show you the illustrations in this book. I've always dreamed of meeting the prince in these illustrations, and when I saw Lord Richmond, I was really surprised—"

Lumelisa twisted her lips.

"So you came to see Miss Erilrot because of him? You couldn't approach him, so you wanted to ask Miss Erilrot for help?"

"I can approach Lord Richmond on my own. Of course, I like the similarities in hair and eyes... but I was also interested in Miss Erilrot."

"Ah, so it's derived interest, right?"

"Is that bad? When you see someone similar to someone you like, you can be drawn to them."

"It seems you want to use Miss Erilrot as a channel."

"It's not like that! I just think I can talk well with a young lady who has an older brother like Lord Richmond!"

"Ah, I see."

"Besides, Lady Phaunte, you also gave tea leaves to Lord Balzac!"

"Mother! I like you more as a person, not just romantically—"

The two of them argued incessantly.

'Save me...'

The other young ladies giggled, looking at me as if my soul had left my body.

"Stop it. You're making Miss Erilrot uncomfortable."

My words...

Catherine said with a wronged expression,

"I really don't have any ulterior motives to approach Lord Richmond! I just want to talk about him!"

She really does.

'She wants to have an idol talk.'

I sighed.

Then I caught Sara's eye, standing a bit away.

'Ah, she can't fit in with the kids.'

Yesterday, Catherine included her in the conversation.

It seems she needs Catherine or the other young ladies to include her to fit in with the group.

Sara hesitated and tried to talk to the young ladies on Catherine's side.

"Um, Lady—"

"But, what's Lady Astra's favorite star? We call each other by star names. Catherine is the North Star."

The topic changed, and Sara hesitated and backed away.

I asked Sara,

"Then, what star are you, Miss Fog?"

"I..."

Catherine smiled.

"Miss Fog is the Starflower. Right?"

"..."

"Because her eyes sparkle like a starflower. Right?"

"..."

"I think the Firestar suits Miss Erilrot. It's the most beautiful star."

Catherine said.

"No, the Harpstar."

"It's not a central constellation!"

"But the Harpstar makes other constellations beautiful. It fits Miss Erilrot, who is considerate and steps back. Right?"

Sara closed her mouth.

'Even when I try to start a conversation, she can't keep it going.'

Looking back, she only spoke when she was at the center of the conversation.

'Maybe she's more timid than I thought.'

I tilted my head.

* * *

In the afternoon.

Sara went out to the garden alone.

"Where are you going?"

Another young lady asked, but Sara only slightly lifted the corners of her mouth.

The place she headed for was the lakeside on the opposite side of the garden.

At the lakeside, boys were gathered and chatting.

A boy was also swinging a wooden sword.

"Lord Balzac! Look! Is this how you do it?"

"...You'd be perfect for a dance in that getup."

Balzac turned his head with an extremely annoyed expression.

Joshua nudged his brother's leg.

"Did you forget what Erilrot said?"

"I know. I know. She said to get along with the young lords."

So even though he found it annoying, he didn't refuse the young lords and came out.

Just as he was deeply sighing,

"Um..."

Sara approached the young lords.

"Can I stay here?"

The young lord swinging the wooden sword widened his eyes.

"The young ladies are in the garden. They're all gathered there. You should go see them."

"The young ladies... don't seem to like me very much..."

"Huh?"

"They don't include me in conversations either..."

Sara sniffled and tightly gripped her skirt.

The young lords looked at Sara in surprise.