Just then, two priests passing by spotted her and approached.
They were priests who had been on standby at the banquet Valen had hosted not long ago.
They examined Diana’s complexion and asked carefully.
“My Lady, we apologize. Do you require divine power?”
Even the ones asking the question looked no better themselves.
They were in better condition than Diana, but their bloodless lips and pale faces looked utterly drained of vitality.
Still, the priests focused on Diana rather than on themselves.
Seeing the white rose in her hand, one of the priests gave a faint smile.
Slowly helping her to her feet, the priest whispered softly by her ear.
“Would it not be better for you to remain at your residence as much as possible on ‘that day’?”
Nodding a greeting toward the maids watching from afar, the priest led Diana across the garden.
Behind them, another priest with a poor complexion followed, pretending he was fine.
Diana turned her head and glanced back at the staggering priest, asking,
“What brings you to the Palace?”
“Since the day is what it is, we were going around thinking there might be issues among our brothers and sisters. Thanks to that, we were able to be of help to you, my Lady. It must be foresight.”
On the surface, the words sounded kind, but the subtle sense of disappointment contained within them was something only Diana could perceive.
As they spoke, a faint light gathered around the hand holding her up.
But the most important thing, divine power itself, was absent. It was nothing more than a device meant for appearances.
As they were leaving the garden, the priest asked.
“Since this isn’t something that can be resolved with treatment anyway, we will stop here for today.”
“I will go on alone from here.”
“Yes. Then we will see you later.”
The priest nodded with a benevolent smile.
Instead of replying, Diana shook off the hand that had been supporting her.
Turning sharply, she pretended to walk with a bit more strength.
Even with all her effort put into the act, her entire body was still devoid of energy.
***
Back alleys.
Diana, wearing a robe, hurried along a familiar path.
Inside the robe, she was still tightly hiding the white rose.
Once inside the building, everyone in robes acknowledged her without energy, unlike before.
“Will you be stopping by the basement first today?”
“Yes. I’ll just deliver it quickly and come back.”
It was a slightly more lenient response.
Diana passed through the long corridor without even being watched.
The person she needed to meet would be beyond the door, but on a day like today, it was taken for granted that he would wait.
When she opened the door at the end of the corridor, stairs leading underground appeared.
As she went down the stairs, a narrow prison came into view.
It was small, and though it hadn’t been used for a long time and was clean, its distinctive musty smell irritated her senses.
In the corner of the prison with the door left open, white roses were piled high.
Diana gently placed the rose she had been holding so carefully onto the pile of white roses.
Staring at it quietly, Diana murmured softly.
“I think this is your retribution.”
Her attitude was cold for someone meant to be mourning another.
“It’s impressive, really. That every year on this day, I have to suffer like this because of a dead person.”
Letting out a scoff, Diana lifted her head and stared at the dark ceiling.
“And it’s ridiculous that it feels strange if I don’t do this every year.”
With those words, Diana left the underground without hesitation.
Back in the corridor, Diana opened a familiar door and stepped inside.
There, a man in a robe was sitting on the sofa, waiting.
From beneath the robe he had barely pulled over himself, only the long curve of his lips caught her eye.
The moment she saw him, cold sweat broke out more than usual, and her heart began to pound.
It was partly because she had done something wrong, but perhaps the bigger reason was that it was a day when her condition was poor.
When Diana sat down on the sofa across from him, the man smiled and asked.
“Still, today is pretty hard, isn’t it?”
Diana deliberately acted affectionate.
“No. I am fine. It is bearable.”
“Don’t be too cautious. I didn’t quite expect her resistance to our power, but it’s not something that will cause problems.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“I wasn’t expecting the Princess to die anyway.”
The reason she had been summoned here today flowed from his mouth.
The man crossed his legs leisurely and continued speaking in a soft, almost chuckling voice.
“I’ve been checking continuously as well. We need to know just how far our abilities don’t work on the Princess.”
This was something Diana herself had been curious about.
It was a phenomenon that couldn’t be found in Liselotte before her marriage.
Diana carefully opened her mouth.
“The Grand Duke is by her side. Could he be protecting her with the Word of Command?”
“I doubt it. I’ve been poking at it little by little over time, and there were no signs of that.”
He rubbed his hands together and tilted his head.
“I tried pulling out trees, dropping flower pots, all sorts of things, but there was no reaction of the Word of Command in the surroundings.”
It seemed that a great deal had progressed without her knowing.
Diana kept her mouth firmly shut without responding.
Still in a lively tone, he asked again.
“The Duke and you. Wouldn’t it be such a waste to back out now, after all the effort we’ve put in so far? Right?”
As if that needed an answer.
Diana clenched her fist tightly and forced a smile.
“Right.”
“I even had you adopted into House Gloria. And yet you can’t bring me even that one obvious thing.”
“This time, I will resolve it before the trial. I’m certain now, so I can move.”
“Good. I may not trust the Duke, but I trust you. Because you are the one who resembles me the most.”
The man’s smile spread even wider.
Despite how careless that smile looked, Diana felt cold sweat run down her back from tension.
Sitting up straight, Diana spoke as if making a vow.
“I will bring it back. This time, for sure.”
***
“What, why is it taking so long?”
Liselotte couldn’t hide her bewilderment as she looked at the letter.
Keilos manor, Liselotte’s room.
Only late in the evening did a reply from Valen arrive, and she pressed her forehead with one hand.
[I told Father, and he says we should set another date around ten days from now. I did my best.
—Your older brother.]
“Please set it quickly, seriously.”
Around ten days, not even a fixed date, but saying we will set another date then?
I gave three conditions, and not a single one of them was fully accepted.
“At this rate, it seems like I won’t be able to see him until the remaining hearing dates are over.”
She was thinking of using any decent information as evidence if she found it before then.
It seemed they would have to investigate Gelloa Village first.
‘It would be nice if evidence came out that could tie the cause of Gelloa Village’s ruin to the incompetence of House Gloria.’
If there were already precedents, it would be easier to argue.
In truth, the trial was already as good as won, but Liselotte’s goal was a large compensation.
‘If I want to buy an estate somewhere quiet later and travel around, I should at least move personally to this extent.’
At her sigh, Marsha, who had been fidgeting and watching her nervously at the side, rolled her eyes around.
Holding her teacup stiffly, Marsha asked in a voice that broke awkwardly.
“P-Princess Liselotte. Shall we try drinking a sweet tea brewed with magic tools this time?”
“…Why is your tone suddenly like that?”
“Huh? I’ve always been the same, though? Could it be that my earnest wish for Your Highness to drink a sweet tea with milk just sounded that way?”
“You don’t brew tea very well, Marsha.”
“Now I can brew it normally using magic tools. They say if you drink this tea, you sleep really well at night.”
“I already sleep well.”
“Right. But wouldn’t you be able to sleep even better?”
By anyone’s standards, wasn’t this suspicious behavior?
It wasn’t behavior born simply from wanting to show off tea brewed with magic tools.
Liselotte, who had been watching Marsha closely, slowly rose from her seat.
“I already decided to have tea time with Eren in the evening, so it’s fine.”
“What I mean is, at the evening tea time, I have to serve you this milk tea…”
“Did you say ‘have to serve’?”
When Liselotte sharply asked back, Marsha slapped her lips with her hand.
“Oh dear, that was a slip of the tongue. I mean I want to serve it! You’ve only been drinking strong tea all this time.”
“If you want it that badly, I don’t mind.”
Without withdrawing her suspicious gaze, Liselotte opened the door and stepped out.
When she headed to the right, Marsha came running after her in a hurry.
“Your Highness! You need to go to the left!”
