Chapter 31

Madame Romani readily accepted the role of Ariadne's chaperone. Thanks to Madame Romani's willingness to chaperone, Ariadne was able to enjoy two precious outings in late summer, one of which was a visit to the Lamboy charity. The date for attending the Marquise Cibo's art salon, to which Ariadne had promised to go, quickly approached, and now she was on her way to the Cibo residence in a carriage.

"Miss, the prince has arrived!"

Sancha, who was in the carriage with her, chattered excitedly.

"I should have dressed even more beautifully today!"

Ariadne was wearing a lovely yellow dress tailored at the Raggiune dress shop and had on topaz earrings set in gold, which Isabella had once coveted. The luxurious jewelry she wore over her neat outfit unmistakably revealed her status as a young lady from a noble family.

"The jewels bestowed by Her Majesty are truly beautiful, but Miss, your wardrobe is too limited. Can we place another order at Raggiune dress shop soon?"

Ariadne smiled at Sancha's excitement.

"Let's wait and see."

The real reason Ariadne wanted to attend the Marquise Cibo's salon today was not for the prince but for something else. Today's gathering was an actual art auction featuring items from the merchants of the Republic of Porto. This art auction had caused a stir in the Etruscan Kingdom in her previous life, and Ariadne still remembered it. It wasn't a particularly positive stir, though.

The main pieces and highlights of today's auction were ancient Hellenian sculptures newly excavated from a newly discovered site in the northern city of Lustra. Among them, the most famous was the statue of Nike, the ancient goddess of victory, which was praised by the historian and writer Halicarnassus in his "Travelogue of Hellenia" as "a work that embodies the indomitable and robust will of humans rising towards the sky."

While the sculpture techniques in the central continent were rapidly developing due to the coexistence of the noble patronage system for artists, the individual apprenticeship system for artists, and the national painter guild's art festival system, the demand for ancient Hellenian and subsequent Latin Empire sculptures remained sky-high, both for research and for ownership and display.

However, the biggest drawback of ancient Hellenian sculptures, even if they were marble statues, was that they were often poorly preserved because they had been buried in the ground for a long time. The fate of the "Victoria Nike" statue was even more severe, with Halicarnassus lamenting in his time, "Her delicate wings were already damaged and restored once due to the Moorish army that swept through the temple during the Selaphon War..."

The subsequent text of Halicarnassus' travelogue was lost, making it impossible to verify. The merchants from the Republic of Porto were thrilled, claiming that today was the "resurrection of Victoria Nike" and that such a well-preserved ancient Hellenian sculpture was rare. Their boasts were indeed true.

A powerful noble from San Carlo, captivated by this, purchased the "Victoria Nike" at the highest price in history and completely renovated the front courtyard of his mansion to install it. The grand construction project, which involved removing the fountain in front of the mansion's main gate, was a hot topic in the town. After the noisy construction was completed, the noble family installed the "Victoria Nike" where the fountain had been, displaying her noble posture to assert their prestige to everyone.

However, the discovery of the lost latter part of Halicarnassus' travelogue became a problem.

"Her delicate wings were already damaged and restored once..."

This was the original text, and the newly discovered subsequent text concluded as follows:

"...it became impossible to restore, and one of her wings was missing. Her head and left arm had also disappeared, but the people of Tibos said that the appearance of the 'Victoria Nike' who had survived the devastation of the Selaphon War was also a facet of victory, and they enshrined the broken goddess as she was. It was a scene that highlighted the mature historical consciousness of the people of Tibos."

It turned out that the statue was not "already restored and displayed" as previously interpreted. The fact that the "Victoria Nike" statue, which was supposed to be broken and impossible to restore according to the newly discovered "Travelogue of Hellenia," had both beautiful wings standing tall, and even its head and both arms intact, was the real issue.

Moreover, the ancient Hellenian city of Tibos, located at the eastern end of the central continent, had a different ethnicity, and the face of the "Victoria Nike" clearly resembled an Etruscan woman, leaving people speechless.

The entire city of San Carlo was turned upside down, and the authenticity of the statue became a topic of debate, which heated up the city for about a month. This vivid memory was still fresh in Ariadne's mind.

"We're here to buy something."

Ariadne instructed Sancha. Of course, she wasn't going to buy the "Victoria Nike." She had no reason to, and she didn't have the money. What Ariadne was after today were a few paintings that would be auctioned alongside it.

Depending on her budget, she would decide how many to buy, but the young artist whose works would be auctioned today would see a significant rise in value next year and would become the main painter of the royal court in just 5-6 years.

"We've arrived!"

With the coachman's announcement, Ariadne, supported by Sancha, got out of the carriage. A servant from the Marquise Cibo's household was waiting outside to guide them. Ariadne, holding the parasol Sancha had given her, followed the servant's lead and slowly walked towards the main building of the Cibo residence. Suddenly, the sound of a noisy carriage procession came from behind.

- "Come on! Come on!"

- Clattering.

The carriage, drawn by four white horses adorned with gold, did not slow down even as it approached the point where other nobles had dismounted and walked in. The golden carriage passed by a few walking nobles and stopped very close to the main entrance of the Cibo residence.

"His Highness Prince Alfonso has arrived!"

"Has the prince arrived?"

"It is a great honor for our humble home. Please come in, Your Highness."

The distant voices were faint, but the prince's attendant's voice was so loud that the prince's name was clearly heard.

"It seems the prince has arrived."

Sancha, who should have been excited, was somehow indifferent.

"Why are you like this, Sancha? You were so excited about seeing the prince earlier."

In response to Ariadne's question, Sancha pouted.

"Well, we all get off far away and walk, but the prince gets off right at the front door and walks in. We're the ones wearing high heels and the ones with weaker bodies, but the carriage is brought right up to the door for the prince, not for us."

Ariadne tapped Sancha's pouting lips with her finger.

"Don't say that! You'll be dragged away!"

Ariadne glanced at the servants of the Cibo residence. They didn't seem to be listening to their conversation. Lowering her voice, she whispered to Sancha.

"A good ruler protects his people from foreign threats in times of war and cares for the weak in times of peace. The authority they enjoy is a tool to make this easier. A ruler without authority cannot exert power when it is truly needed."

After a moment of recollection, she added to Sancha.

"I believe Prince Alfonso has the qualities of a good ruler."

"What about the current king?"

"He is a wise ruler!"

Ariadne answered loudly enough for everyone around to hear and subtly showed Sancha a hand gesture with her index and middle fingers crossed under the sleeve of her dress. According to the teachings of the royal court, lying would bring punishment, but this hand gesture was a plea to the gods for "just one time, please."

Sancha burst out laughing, and the two entered the main building of the Cibo residence, laughing merrily.

* * *

"Miss de Mare has arrived!"

The servant of the Cibo residence announced Ariadne's arrival. The murmurs of the people inside the hall suddenly quieted. This was not the oppressive silence that accompanied the entrance of Prince Alfonso or other powerful figures but a momentary silence out of curiosity.

Everyone wanted to see the second daughter of the famous Cardinal, who had become incredibly famous due to the Apostle of Asereto incident. After a brief pause, the conversations exploded.

- "Her beauty doesn't match her sister's."

- "But she's still cute. They say she's only half-blood."

- "How can the eldest daughter be so beautiful when Lucrezia isn't that pretty?"

Everyone was talking about Ariadne, but no one approached her to greet her. Only the Marquise Cibo, who had sent the invitation, hurried over to greet Ariadne.

"Miss de Mare, thank you for gracing us with your presence today. Was your journey smooth?"

"Thanks to you, it was comfortable. Where is Madame Romani?"

"She's in the ladies' powder room, feeling a bit overheated. She'll be out soon. Please take a look around!"

As the hostess of the party, the Marquise Cibo couldn't stay by Ariadne's side. Moreover, given the nature of today's art auction, the majority of the attendees were mature nobles and their wives, not Ariadne's peers.

Ariadne decided to wander around the hall, hands behind her back, until Madame Romani returned. At that moment, she saw Prince Alfonso, surrounded by people, in the distance. Before their eyes met, Ariadne bowed her head and turned to head for a corner of the party.

For some reason, she didn't want to be seen alone by him.

'Why now...?'

To hide her confusion, Ariadne tried to analyze her feelings. She thought she was very comfortable eating alone, walking alone, and locking herself in her study, but it seemed she was actually bothered by something. That's why she didn't want to meet the prince.

Just then, the golden-haired boy, surrounded by people, spotted Ariadne first. Unable to call out her name loudly in the crowded place, Alfonso looked straight at Ariadne and raised his right hand.

Ariadne was about to leave the party, but she couldn't stop her gaze from following the prince. The black-haired girl, who was about to leave, stopped and burst into laughter when she saw the prince's gesture.