Navia looked at Diana with a mocking glint in her eyes.
‘I wonder how I appear in your eyes now, who once despised and trampled on me as nothing but a vulgar hound of Agnes.’
Can you still call this impeccably refined etiquette 'a desperate struggle of a lowly bloodline to become part of high society'?
Or perhaps 'indeed born with nobility, fitting of a superior lineage'? Anyway.
"Navia Eseled greets Her Majesty the Empress."
Navia wore an innocent smile, revealing nothing of her inner thoughts, and perfectly performed the etiquette.
Diana smiled with interest. "Such flawless manners."
Even holding a rabbit doll, which should have looked childish, she was perfect.
Diana always wanted her niece, Sara Lucia, to have such naturally noble and pure manners, born perfect.
Could this be what she learned during the one year sent by Agnes?
Diana's eyes narrowed.
"So you are Lady Eseled."
She deliberately didn't tell her to relax her manners.
Children of this age usually think they can relax after this much and would carelessly raise their heads.
Diana often trapped those she wanted to pick on in this way.
But Navia still maintained her impeccably mannered posture, without any signs of nervousness.
Such naturally effortless demeanor was hard to believe for an eight-year-old.
'She's not an easy girl to deal with.'
Diana, with a soft and affectionate voice, said while her long eyes gleamed more warmly.
"Come on, stand up. You don't need to be so formal in front of the Empress."
Only then did Navia relax her etiquette and stood upright.
Her naturally blinking eyes and innocent expression caught Diana's attention.
It was unclear if she was just diligently following her etiquette training or if it was a cunning act.
"How can there be such a beautiful child? The Empress always wanted a lovely daughter like you."
Navia almost chuckled but skillfully maintained her façade, looking shy and pleased.
"You flatter me."
"Hehe, I was so curious about what kind of child you are. Let's talk in the drawing room."
It was quite extraordinary for the Empress to entertain an eight-year-old herself.
'She must be eager to pry out something from me by treating me this way.'
Diana casually opened the conversation after checking the tea set on the reception room table.
"Do you still keep in touch with Duke Nikan Agnes?"
"Ah…"
Navia, startled, hugged her doll tightly.
Diana, with a look of 'I knew there was something,' urged her to speak.
"I once met him at the Eseled Duke's house. But my brother..."
Navia stopped, her lips sealed in fear.
The tears welling in her eyes and her trembling, delicate movements showed just how brutally Wood had treated her. Diana judged that Navia's expression and tone didn't seem to be deceitful.
"Wood Agnes? That child's temperament is a bit unusual. But... what happened?"
"Actually, he... he pointed a gun at me."
"A gun? You mean a magical gun?"
How many spies of Agnes might be among the courtiers guarding this place?
Navia casually scanned the surroundings, pretending to soothe her troubled mind with sweet fruit tea.
Some of Agnes's minions caught her eye, and a sneer formed on her lips, hidden behind her cup.
Navia tried to appear calm as she put down her cup.
"My brother, he must hate me. That's why he did that."
Diana, excited and unsure how to react, quickly asked.
"My goodness, why would you think that?"
"Brother Wood said I'm a commoner."
"A commoner..."
Diana had never trusted Nikan's words from the start. That's why she was able to quickly figure out what was going on from the small clues Navia dropped.
'He massacred the distant noble family and passed this child off as the daughter of that household.'
Navia's origin had always been suspect. Suddenly hearing she was the legitimate daughter of Duke Eseled only added to the mystery.
'If Camilla, pregnant, had abandoned her child at an orphanage, and Nikan happened to take her in.'
Then it all made sense.
However, it was unlikely that the thorough Nikan would leave the orphanage alone.
Especially since he had sent a hastily written letter this morning, suggesting he had been deceived about Navia's birth.
'How ridiculous.'
Without evidence, she couldn't rashly confront Nikan.
Moreover, now that her son Ares and Vivian had met, they had become deeply entangled, making it impossible to stir up any scandals.
'But this certainly clarifies the interests between the families.'
Nikan's failure to properly raise Navia was already known through spies she had planted.
Would Navia really try to marry Wood?
Would Lark, who had just emerged from seclusion after finding his daughter, harbor a grudge against such a family?
'How can I use this...?'
The union between Agnes and Eseled had dissolved. Proud Nikan would never admit it.
But did this situation really benefit her?
Diana quietly observed Navia, with her pure silver hair and captivating red eyes.
'Would it be alright to bring this child in as Ares's bride?'
Her lineage was impeccable, but a troubling issue remained.
That hair and those eyes.
Her son's fanatical obsession with silver fur and red eyes!
Whether Ares's collecting obsession extended to people was yet to be seen.
After all, no one with silver hair and red eyes had ever existed before.
[Ares was not particularly interested in silver-haired people. So, wouldn't that child be fine too?]
It was okay for her son to collect such things. But she couldn't be swayed by them.
It's instinctive to covet beauty.
But what if that child dared to use it to take a share of the power that rightfully belonged to her?
She had even sent Ares to her parental home, the Duchy of Lucia, today, to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.
'That child could become Nikan's shame and Achilles' heel.'
If only it could be controlled.
Diana set down her teacup.
"I must be going now. See you next time, Navia."
Navia bowed neatly in response.
Diana left the drawing room with a mysterious smile, glancing at Navia.
Navia was left alone in the drawing room.
She chuckled.
It was quite amusing to watch the Empress eagerly calculate her gain from her words and actions.
The main party, Navia, had no intention of getting involved with them.
Hoping they would waste their time on unnecessary matters, Navia, who had been quietly retreating, addressed the courtiers.
"I heard there's a chapel in the palace as beautiful as a work of art. May I pray there?"
"We will guide you."
Navia had something to check out during her visit to the palace today.
'Nyx.'
The palace chapel was sizable, housing many gods, with paintings depicting various deities and statues filling the place, second only to the grand temple.
'Nyx was definitely there.'
Navia, having frequented this prayer room with Diana for show, knew the interior well.
"Here it is."
Navia stopped in front of the chapel.
"Is there a private prayer room? I'll pray alone and come out."
"We'll wait here."
Navia, holding Cesare, briskly walked into the prayer room.
"Nyx will surely answer since you're a divine incarnation."
Lark said that the god of Lark is not a being that communicates.
But Navia's god was relatively friendly to humans, so Lark said it would respond.
Navia clasped her hands tightly and prayed.
"Goddess of the night, Nyx. Your incarnation beseeches your presence."
Silence followed.
"...Lady Nyx?"
Navia looked around, calling Nyx a few more times, but nothing happened.
'Hmm. Did it fail...?'
She had originally intended to call upon a god with Lark.
But Lark had shaken his head and said, "The moment we enter the chapel together, external gods will detect your presence."
'It sounded like what mom said in the video was the key to breaking dad's infinite recursion.'
Navia prayed several more times, hoping for Nyx's descent, but had to leave the prayer room without any result.
"No response from White Moon either... Is there something wrong with the royal chapel?"
Then, the jewel-like eyes of Cesare, quietly nestled in Navia's arms, briefly shimmered.
But they soon returned to their original light.
However, Navia did not see this.
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