Chapter 177: CHAPTER 89 (1) – Would there be Smoke, if there was no Fire?

“I am going to obtain a confession this afternoon. Rosemond will be put on trial for treason for an assassination attempt on a member of the Imperial Family.”

“The death penalty should come out, right?”

“It will, unless something specific happens.” Patrizia continued with a thoughtful expression, “When this scandal explodes, the reason the Duke of Efreni holds to Rosemond will disappear. No one will be able to object.”

“I think so, too.”

“When will the Duchess of Efreni return?”

“This afternoon. It should be around four o’clock, if nothing else comes up.”

“Sounds good, Nilla.” Patrizia exhaled a shallow breath. “It is a bit crazy to see things happen all at once… Yes, it might be better to have all of this taken care of now.”

“Is that not how it usually goes? How good it would be if incidents popped up one by one. The problem is that things in the world do not work out like that.”

Petronilla nodded, agreeing with Rafaella’s words. “It will be good to finish all of this quickly, Lizzy. The rewards will last for a long time, and the punishment will be short.”

“You are right,” Patrizia sighed. “But even so, I would like to bring this up to His Majesty only after Rosemond’s crimes have been proven.”

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Duchess Efreni looked out the window, her face blank. Blue waves were crashing about outside the window. A seagull cried above them as it passed by. It was truly a peaceful landscape.

Duchess Efreni was just staring out the window, her face devoid of expression at this serene beauty. It was like all her emotions were stolen from her at once. Her white face looked even more pale, and she acted like she had lost her reason for life.

Someone called out to her, “Duchess.”

“…”

But she remained silent. The person that called out to her was a long-time maid of the Duchess of Efreni, and she spoke to herself, knowing she would not get an answer. “I am told that we will arrive at the Marvinus Empire soon.”

“…”

Duchess Efreni could reply back, but she did not even open her mouth. The Duchess’ maid sighed, and quietly stepped out of the cabin. With a thud, the door closed, and the Duchess was left alone. She was still staring at the sea, her eyes out of focus. A long time later, a single tear rolled down her dry cheek.

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Around an hour later, the ship carrying Duchess Efreni anchored at a large port in the Marvinus Empire. The maid went down first to escort the Duchess.

“We have arrived, Duchess. Please come down.”

“…”

She continued to not utter a word, and only moved her body. Everyone around her knew her circumstances, and looked at her with compassionate eyes. It was not normally permitted to gaze at the high-ranking Duchess in such a daring way, but at least for now, anyone was allowed. Duchess Efreni and the other maids did not make an effort to stop such looks.

Soon the carriage from the Duke of Efreni’s residence stopped in front of the Duchess of Efreni to pick her up. She did not budge as she noticed the familiar carriage’s appearance. It was like only the shell of her body remained, and her whole soul had escaped. The maid placed her in the carriage without saying anything, and then got in herself.

“…”

While on the way to the Duchy of Efreni, the Duchess sat still, without moving her lips even a millimeter. She had been like this for exactly one week.

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Meanwhile, Petronilla did not cancel a meeting scheduled for the afternoon with the Lady of Vashi.

The Lady of Vashi considered the situation and let Petronilla know that it was fine for her to push back their social gathering, but the offer was denied. It was for a specific reason that she had wanted to meet with the Lady of Vashi today.

“Hello, Lady Trisha.”

Petronilla entered the gardens of the Duke of Vashi’s residence with an admirably social smile. It was a garden worthy of the Duchess of Vashi, who was known to be interested in gardening.

Lady Trisha was in a dress reminiscent of trees, with mixed colors of light green and brown. She greeted Petronilla, “Welcome, Lady Petronilla. You managed to make it to this meeting.” She continued in a slightly dubious voice, “As you know well, the Imperial Palace has turned upside down? Of course I thought you could not come.”

“Not at all, my Lady. In fact, if it was not for what happened, Her Majesty was regretfully saying that she would have invited Lady Trisha to the Inner Palace.”

“I am sorry for what has happened to Her Majesty.” Lady Trisha swallowed and continued, “I heard those who dared to harm the Imperial Mother have been captured.”

“Yes, that seems to be the case, my Lady,” Petronilla replied calmly. “A lot of people are trying to get their confession from the dungeon right now.”

“It must work out well. I heard that Marchioness Ethyller is the most likely suspect.”

“It is so shameful. She was suspected of attempting to assassinate Her Majesty a previous time. The doubts from that time may not have been in vain.”

Of course, she had officially been cleared of any fault at that time. Petronilla accepted a cup of tea brought by the Duke’s maid. She asked, “Is this Earl Gray?”

“Yes, my Lady. Do you like it?”

“I do not like it, and I do not hate it,” Petronilla replied in that way, sipping the hot tea. It was still too hot, and she thought she should drink it after a little more time passed.

“More than that, what would happen if Marchioness Ethyller turned out to be the real culprit?”