Chapter 116
Nella bit her lip nervously.
Her expression was already a mess.
After enough time had passed for the watching noblewomen to understand the situation, I spoke carefully with a troubled tone.
“Actually, there’s something I hesitated to mention for fear of worrying you all.”
The noblewomen shifted their gaze from Nella to me.
I scanned them all and continued.
“A few days ago, I really almost died. The rumors were justified. And the cause was…”
I paused briefly for dramatic effect. Then, looking at Nella, I delivered the final words.
“The ‘poison’ that Princess Nella just mentioned.”
Sounds of surprise and sharp intakes of breath came from among the noblewomen.
A suffocating silence descended upon the hall, and Nella, unaware that her face had crumpled, gritted her teeth.
“That morning, if I hadn’t suddenly felt like not drinking mint tea, and thus hadn’t drunk the mint tea that neutralizes the poison, I…”
The noblewomen were listening to my words with bated breath. A flash of killing intent briefly crossed Nella’s purple eyes.
“This tea party with you all would have been impossible. I would probably have stopped breathing by now.”
“You, you…! You knew? You put the Crea flower here knowing?”
“Mind your address, Princess. And I don’t understand what you’re saying. The Crea flower is in my bedroom. What’s on the table is just a lily.”
As I shrugged, Nella glared at me, then approached the table and plucked one flower.
“Nonsense! I saw it clearly! Look, here on this leaf, there are red spots…!”
But Nella couldn’t finish her sentence.
After inspecting the leaf thoroughly, she began muttering to herself with a pale face.
“It—it should be there. It should be… I clearly saw it earlier…”
Nella frantically examined the other flowers. However, none of them showed the red-spotted leaves she claimed.
“It can’t be… Did I hallucinate…?”
Nella murmured blankly, blinking in confusion.
In truth, Nella had seen correctly. When she looked at the flowers, there would have been red spots on the leaves.
Because I had arranged it that way.
I had used volatile dye that fades over time to make them appear like Crea flowers.
By now, the red dye would have completely evaporated, leaving only the leaves of ordinary lilies.
But Nella seemed to be crumbling at the thought that she had hallucinated.
“Then why did I… why did I worry so much! It can’t be, can’t be. It can’t…”
After convincing her that Crea flowers were here, I served Earl Grey.
I predicted that Nella wouldn’t drink it. She knew better than anyone that drinking it would mean death.
Normally, people would have frowned but overlooked Nella not drinking a cup of tea.
Despite her willfulness, she was a princess who stood in a position of power above others, making such behavior permissible.
But that would mean I couldn’t pressure Nella for not drinking the Earl Grey.
So before serving Earl Grey, I provoked Nella into behaving even more rudely.
Behavior that warranted punishment, beyond mere rudeness.
I induced her to speak rashly to Silver Lily, who would soon be Empress, and to forcibly remove my veil.
This plan would have been difficult to execute if not for Nella’s typically arrogant and prideful nature, but fortunately, she was the type who believed in herself more firmly than I had imagined.
‘She fell for it so easily because her superiority complex makes her view others as insects.’
Such people find it difficult to endure being pointed at and cornered.
And that prediction proved exactly right.
From the moment she removed my veil without permission, the noblewomen gave her cold looks, and when Nella refused the Earl Grey tea, they could no longer hold back and pressured her.
‘Nella’s already been marked by the future Empress.’
As a result, cornered Nella found it harder to make accurate and quick judgments.
When Lady Grandel, with whom I had arranged everything beforehand, collapsed, Nella believed her assumptions were undeniable fact and blurted out things she shouldn’t have.
In truth, I hadn’t expected Nella to reveal so much.
But for the better, I had no intention of letting Nella walk out of the palace unscathed.
“I thought the Crea flower I received as a gift was purely coincidental. As the Princess said, it’s something you wouldn’t know without special research.”
“…”
“The person who gave me that flower also called it a lily. But why, Princess…”
Looking at the already crumbling Nella, I continued coldly.
“Do you know too much? And to know Crea flowers so well that you mistook the lilies in the Lily Palace for Crea flowers.”
After saying that, I paused as if pondering, lowering my head to the floor.
After pretending to be disheartened and shocked, I raised my head again with a determined expression.
“Do you all think my suspicions are excessive?”
At this sudden question, the noblewomen were busy gauging each other’s reactions.
Among them, several noblewomen I had planted beforehand shook their heads vigorously, expressing their will.
“Not at all, Lady Silver Lily. It’s a completely reasonable suspicion.”
“That’s right. I think the Princess needs to formally explain this.”
“Since you all think so, I feel more certain. I will report this to His Majesty. And as for Princess Nella…”
I nodded with a troubled expression and spoke to Nella.
“Due to concerns about evidence tampering, I order her to be confined to the imperial palace’s annex until we hear a satisfactory explanation.”
At the word ‘confined,’ Nella’s pupils dilated.
Watching her eyes tremble like an aspen tree, I slightly curled the corner of my mouth.
Though it was a momentary smile, it would have been clearly visible to Nella, who was staring daggers at my face.
Her pale face distorted monstrously, and madness rippled through her purple eyes.
“How dare you! Who do you think I am to be confined! The Balkyrino ducal family won’t stand for this! I-I am innocent…!”
“Save your explanation for the formal trial.”
“I am innocent!”
“Guards, what are you waiting for? Take Nella Balkyrino to the annex immediately. Ah, since the Deache family is staying in the First Annex, send her to the Second Annex.”
“T-this, this… you’re imprisoning me, a princess, without any evidence? This is absurd! W-where is His Majesty? His Majesty surely won’t allow this!”
“Princess, if you’re truly innocent, won’t you be released soon? This order is based on reasonable suspicion. As the noblewomen here have said.”
As Nella was dragged away by guards holding both her arms, I comforted her in a gentle tone.
“It’s not like you’re being thrown in a dungeon. It’s just a stay at the palace until the trial, due to concerns about evidence tampering. If you’re innocent, there’s no problem, right?”
“N-nngh…!”
“Besides, when else would you get to experience life in the imperial palace? If you’re innocent, enjoy the palace stay, Princess. It won’t last long.”
“Aaaagh! Let go! I won’t let this slide! How dare you, how dare you treat me…!”
Nella’s struggling eyes no longer seemed human.
The expressions of the noblewomen watching Nella had long grown cold.
People are so self-serving.
Until just recently, they had honored her as Princess Balkyrino, but now that the balance of power had tilted toward me and Nella’s position was in jeopardy, everyone turned their backs on her.
“Since her guilt hasn’t been confirmed, treat her with the courtesy due to a princess.”
“Understood, Lady Silver Lily.”
When I smiled at the guards taking Nella away, her expression grew even more fierce.
“Let go of me! I said let go! I’ll walk on my own!”
Realizing she couldn’t reverse the situation, Nella tried to shake off the guards’ arms.
But the guards firmly dragged Nella out of the hall.
Through the wide-open doors, I could see Nella being dragged away, struggling.
Until she turned the corner and disappeared from sight, the hall remained absolutely silent.
While no one spoke, I said in a dejected voice:
“I’m truly sorry that such an unpleasant incident occurred after inviting you all to a tea party.”
“Not at all. It’s not your fault, Lady Silver Lily.”
“That’s right. To think Princess Nella tried to harm Lady Silver Lily…!”
“It’s very shocking. Even so, for a princess to go that far.”
“Are you alright now?”
“I hope you’re not pushing yourself today? Your complexion doesn’t look good.”
The noblewomen approached me and offered flattering words. Among them, some seemed genuinely concerned about my well-being.
Memorizing each of their faces, I quietly smiled.
“I’m fine. Thank you for your concern.”
The key was to smile pitifully, as if in slight pain.
After forcing a smile, I touched my forehead once and slowly took a step.
“This isn’t the time for this. Right now, I’m more worried about Lady Grandel than myself.”
“Ah…!”
“Lady Grandel just has a simple cold, unlike Lady Silver Lily.”
“That’s right. Lady Silver Lily was actually poisoned.”
Leaving behind several noblewomen who continued to flatter me, I headed toward the hall doors.
“I’ll end today’s tea party here. I’m sorry we couldn’t finish it. I’ll invite you all to a more enjoyable tea party next time.”
With a smile, I signaled to a maid and brought the tea party to a close.
“I’m afraid I won’t be able to see you out… I should go check on Lady Grandel.”
“It’s fine, Lady Silver Lily.”
“Of course. If it’s alright, may I also go to see Lady Grandel’s condition?”
The noblewomen who were trying to score points with me kept approaching annoyingly.
I awkwardly smiled and shook my head.
“The imperial physician said Lady Grandel needs stability. I think it would be better if I check on her quietly rather than causing a commotion. I’ll convey your thoughts to her.”
“Ah… I understand, Lady Silver Lily.”
“If that’s the case… we’ll take our leave now.”
One by one, the noblewomen bowed to me and left the hall.
After confirming everyone had left, I opened the door to the lounge beside the hall.
As I entered, a fragrant aroma that helped calm the mind and body enveloped my nose.
In the quiet and comfortable atmosphere of the lounge, I quietly called the noblewoman’s name.
“Lady Grandel.”
