Chapter 3 – Taboo Name
“Lady Raphaella of Marquis Bringstone. Lady Greta of Count Arjeldo. Lady Barbara of Marquis d’Avar. Lady Patrijia of Marquis Grochester. And lastly, Lady Tricia of Duke Vasi. But why do you want me to tell you that?” a man said in a disapproving voice, and the woman who was listening to him returned an enchanting smile.
“Why? Can’t I not know?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“Why not?” the woman said languidly. “Shouldn’t your mistress know the name of the queen candidates?”
Emperor Lucio furrowed his brow in response. His Rosemand had always plied him with sweet words in his ears, and it often turned out like this. But her capriciousness was part of her charm.
Lucio smiled at her gently. “Why, are you jealous?”
“Why does it matter? I am only your nameless mistress,” Rosemond replied with a pout. She had been at Lucio’s side for nearly a year, but she was not recognized as an official concubine as the queen’s seat was vacant.
“I’ll give you the title as soon as a queen is chosen,” Lucio said in an understanding tone. “Will that satisfy you?”
“…I don’t know,” she replied. In truth, she had been satisfied with her situation for a long time, but she decided to pretend to be upset. She didn’t know how long she’d have with him.
“You know you’re the only one I want, hmm?” Lucio purred.
“I don’t know. You have to express it more,” Rosemont continued petulantly. “Your Majesty, Lucio. I have no title, and even the maids ignore me. You don’t intend to leave me alone like this, do you?”
Lucio’s expression turned stormy at her words. “Who is treating you this way?” he said in a scathing voice.
A smile spread across Rosemond’s lips. There was no maid who would dare be so disrespectful to the mistress who was with the Emperor for a year. Of course, the Emperor Lucio would not know that. Rosemond cleared her throat and quickly changed the subject.
“So is it a promise? It saddens me to be ignored.”
“Don’t worry, Rose,” Lucio murmured, stroking Rosemond’s pinkish hair. “You may be a baroness, but in the end you will be queen.”
“Oh, my.”
The harvest was better than Rosemond expected. She stretched her mouth into a wide smile and she let out a tinkling giggle. She never expected him to bring up the queen’s seat. “You say that too easily when you haven’t even looked at the queen candidates.”
“The candidates have no choice, and it’s I who will choose the queen. It may not be possible now, but someday, definitely—”
Lucio lowered his head to allow his lips to roam her soft body, and Rosemond gave an encouraging moan. His touch became more eager as he worked.
“—I’ll lay you on the bed of the queen.”
Oh, that was thrilling to imagine. What ecstasy they could share on the queen’s bed. Rosemond let out a coquettish laugh and enthusiastically grabbed Lucio by his firm shoulders.
*
“We have arrived, Lady Patrizia.”
Patrizia offered a kind smile to the driver outside of the carriage. “Thank you.”
Silent as a ghost, a servant appeared from the palace and approached her. “Please follow me, My Lady.” Patrizia nodded in acknowledgment. The servant would take her to her room where she would stay for a week.
She began to follow the servant without a word. The more her footsteps carried her to the palace, however, the more unease she felt.
“….”
She kept thinking about her past life. When Nilla was finally chosen to be queen, she invited Patrizia and their mother to the room where she stayed. The was the same room Patrizia was walking towards right now.
The strange discomfort of old memories made her frown, but soon her face reverted to its original expression. She couldn’t help but be obsessed with the past and current reality.
Finally, the servant‘s footsteps halted, and she stopped outside the room. A woman was waiting for her in the corridor, and when Patrizia saw her face, she nearly burst into laughter.
‘Mirya.’
“My name is Mirya. I will be serving the queen candidate Lady Patrizia.”
Mirya had been Petronilla’s lady-in-waiting. She had defended Petronilla’s innocence until the end, but the poor woman had her life ended on the gallows. A tightness clenched Patrizia’s chest that she found difficult to explain.
Now that poor woman, who used to be her sister’s lady-in-waiting, was her own. The thought of it caused Patrizia to grieve inwardly, but she did not let it show on the surface. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mirya.”
Of course, Patrizia was not her 22-year-old self anymore, but her 19-year-old self that was now a queen candidate. She couldn’t afford to behave sloppily. When Patrizia entered the room, Mirya helped her change into a dress reserved only for queen candidates. As the lady-in-waiting worked, she explained the upcoming schedule.
“The queen candidates will stay here for a week. There will be a total of three tests, and each round will be held every other day starting tomorrow. Do you have any questions?”
“None, Mirya. Thank you,” Patrizia said curtly. She had already indirectly experienced the selection process once, so she didn’t have any further inquiries.
Afterwards, Mirya commented that Patrzia must have been walking around a lot and encouraged her to take a rest, and then left with the other maids.
Now alone in the room, Patrizia went to sit on the bed. She didn’t want to lie down, but as soon as she made contact with the soft mattress, she had a sudden urge to do so. She lay back and stared at the ceiling.
“Rosemond…” she murmured. That name was still taboo. Patrizia recalled the woman from her memory.
Rosemond Mary la Phelps. Although she was the Emperor’s unofficial concubine, she held the title of baroness. And in the past…it was Baroness Phelps that brought Patrizia and her family to destruction. Patrizia squeezed her eyes shut.
There was one other reason why she and Petronilla did not want to apply to become a queen candidate. Rumor had it in the social circles was that Rosemond had been the Emperor’s mistress ever since he ascended the throne one year ago. The rumor turned out to be true, as evidenced when Petronilla had become queen. That fact probably still hadn’t changed. There was no weapon that was better than having the Emperor’s divine favor. It had already been proven once by the Grochester’s deaths in the past.
If by chance, Patrizia was unlucky enough to become queen, she would preserve her life as much as she could. She would ignore the Emperor and his concubine as much as possible. Her goal was to emerge alive as the final victor.
“First…let’s see if I can fall out of the first test tomorrow.”
The best option, of course, was not to be queen. It would yield the most positive outcome, and all her troubles could go away like a popped bubble. She did not wish to be queen in any case. Living in the palace as part of the Imperial Family would only put her under tremendous stress.
*
The queen candidates all wore plain white dresses, symbolizing purity and equalizing their appearance in fairness for the screening. Even this simple garb could only be worn when bestowed by the Imperial Family. Patrizia thought it convenient. She didn’t have to put the effort of dressing herself up every day.
Then queen of the Mavinous Empire was not merely a servant or companion to the Emperor, but an equal to him when it came to rule. Because of the importance of the position, the candidate selection process was held in front of the nobles, as well as the emperor himself.
“Are you nervous, My Lady?” Mirya asked.
Patrizia gave a faint smile. She wasn’t nervous. She was where she needed to be. Besides, failing would be the better option. There was no need for any anxiety, but…
‘That man.’
The Emperor. The man who was once her brother-in-law. The man who ordered the destruction of her entire family. Patrizia herself had no direct fight with the Emperor, and she held regret for him in some ways. Her sister Petronilla was put to death on the charge of causing Rosemond to miscarry, along with attempting to kill the Emperor.
From the Emperor’s point of view, the punishment was inevitable. In the former case, there was some allowance for deliberation, but in the latter, it was a felony tantamount to treason. If she looked at her family without any subjectivity, their ending was clear.
Patrizia was not exactly aware of what had happened in the last few days of her last life, other than some information she had picked up here and there. No one, not even Marquis Grochester and Petronilla, told her the whole truth. Perhaps they did not even know the whole truth.
Patrizia broke herself out of her thoughts and replied to her lady-in-waiting. “It’s all right, Mirya.” That was a thing of the past, but now she was here to change it. Already, she had altered the chain of events by becoming a queen candidate. And so…it was possible that the tragedy of that time wouldn’t happen again.
“Enter,” Duchess Ephreney said authoritatively. The five queen candidates stepped through wide the door with quiet footsteps. As they walked into court, everyone’s gaze turned to them.
It was a massively uncomfortable experience. Patrizia sighed inwardly, but outwardly she played the role of the perfect noble.
“Lady Patrizia of Duke Grochester and Lady Raphaella of Marquis Bringstone. Lady Greta of Count Arjeldo and Lady Barbara of Marquis d’Avar. Finally, Lady Tricia of Duke Vasi. A total of five queen candidates have entered.”
Patrizia loathed the feeling of being auctioned off like some animal, and she scoffed mentally.
“The first theme will be announced by Duchess Ephreney.”
Who would be chosen as queen would be determined by three tests. Two nobles and then the Emperor would announce the theme each test in order, and the evaluations would be discussed by three nobles along with the Emperor. Other nobles could challenge the decision made by the four, but that was a practice that was rarely ever put to use.
“This is the first theme,” Duchess Ephreney announced.
“….”
The air was heavy with silent expectation. Patrizia suddenly recalled the first challenge that Marquis Grochester had told her three years ago.