Chapter 92
Clunk.
The carriage jolted slightly, perhaps having hit a rock.
Lost in thoughts of the past, Nerys was slightly surprised to realize that the scenery outside had changed.
The dense forests and sheer cliffs had vanished, replaced by a dazzling silver river and a white city built so that it spanned both banks.
The white city seemed to rise in elevation as it neared the center, and from a distance, one could see people coming and going through the gate of the elegant stone castle that stood at its heart.
Its slender spires, colorful pointed pennants, and gleaming white exterior catching the sunlight made it look as beautiful as a swan about to take flight.
“Young lady.”
It was the man who had served as her coachman up to this point—one of Cledwyn’s subordinates—who spoke from outside the carriage.
“What you see over there is Penmewick, the capital of Maindulante. We’ll be at the castle in just a few more hours.”
He was a kind man.
His only instructions had likely been to escort her to Maindulante. Yet when she had suddenly fallen ill and spent several days in bed, he had taken care of everything she needed without a hint of irritation.
And even when Nerys suddenly got up and began wearing a black veil that concealed her eyes, he asked no questions.
“I see. You’ve worked hard.”
Nerys answered gently and let her thoughts drift once more.
Considering the existence of a contradiction like Cledwyn, it didn’t seem likely that Nellusion had told her the entire truth at the time.
Had he overlooked the counterexample? That didn’t seem possible. Nellusion was a thorough person.
And if, as Nellusion claimed, “the House of Palos was exterminated for the glory of the Empire because a gray Jeweled Eye bearer was born,” then why had the House of Elandria been allowed to retain its honor?
Why had the Imperial Family taken Nerys as the crown princess and made full use of her violet Jeweled Eyes?
During that time, Nellusion had reaped every imaginable benefit from behind the scenes of the Imperial Family, eventually declaring an independent kingdom and even going so far as to make his own “blood” sister the new crown princess of Bistor.
There was clearly some kind of underhanded dealing involved. The important thing was to figure out what, exactly, that was.
‘Not including the Jeweled Eyes in the wedding portrait really was just as Nellusion suspected.’
When Nerys and Abelus were married, it was only natural that a famous painter had been commissioned to create a grand portrait. Both of them were illustrated adorned in layers of their family’s emblems like armor.
In that portrait, Nerys’s eyes were painted as ordinary ones rather than Jeweled Eyes. Nerys, having heard Nellusion’s explanation, and the House of Elandria, who likely had their own goals, raised no objections.
In the portrait gallery of the House of Elandria hung images of ancestors born with violet eyes. If Nellusion’s theory was correct, those people must also have been bearers of Jeweled Eyes.
And just like what had been done with Nerys, records or paintings would have excluded mention of their violet Jeweled Eyes, leaving only dry accounts of their lineage and life achievements.
“This is complicated…”
She wished she had more clues.
But there was no urgent need to uncover the truth just yet. For now, it was enough to think about seeing her mother again after so long.
With a rare and joyful smile, Nerys looked out toward the distant white city.
—
“Lady Nerys, I am Ellen.”
The first to greet Nerys as she stepped down from the carriage was the head lady-in-waiting of the castle.
The older a noble house, the stricter they were with the status of those who served them. Low-born attendants couldn’t properly serve the family of a lord, nor did they reflect well on the family’s honor.
Therefore, the head lady-in-waiting to a grand duke was either a noblewoman by birth or someone deemed worthy of such treatment.
It was so rare for the subordinate of a newly arrived lord to be greeted by the castle’s steward that it bordered on absurd.
Despite her surprise, Nerys found herself liking Ellen’s demeanor. She seemed a kind middle-aged woman, and the spotless cuffs of her sleeves suggested that she left no gaps in her duties.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
Not forgetting that Cledwyn held her in high regard, Nerys greeted her with perfect decorum. Ellen beamed at her.
“It’s truly a pleasure to meet you, my lady. If His Grace hadn’t been away from the castle, he most certainly would’ve come to greet you himself.”
That was ridiculous, Nerys thought.
Back at the academy, they had been senior and junior students, and they had formed a sort of friendship. But now that she had graduated and come all the way to Maindulante, she was just one of Cledwyn’s many subordinates.
For the head lady-in-waiting to personally greet her and announce the lord’s absence was a gesture reserved for only the most honored guests. Nerys wondered if Ellen had mistaken her for someone else. Was someone else arriving?
Though she said nothing aloud, Ellen chuckled softly as if she had read Nerys’s mind. Then she began to lead her inward from the castle’s front courtyard, as naturally as could be.
“It’s true. You’d be shocked if you knew how eagerly His Grace has been awaiting your arrival. Is the sunlight too strong for you? If so, shall we close the outer shutters in the West Wing?”
Ever since her Jeweled Eyes awakened, Nerys had worn a hat with a black veil. It didn’t interfere with conversation, but it made it difficult for others to confirm the light-reflecting effect of her eyes.
Ellen’s question had been prompted by that veil. Nerys replied with a completely straight face.
“No, I just felt like wearing this hat. I don’t want people to remember my face during the journey.”
“Well, you’re a beauty—it’s obvious even through the veil.”
Without hesitation, with graceful steps and quiet movements, Ellen led Nerys into the castle.
“You’ll be staying in the West Wing, my lady. It’s a bit desolate, but we’ve prepared it as comfortably as possible. If there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to call for me or Butler Gilbert.”
“Thank you. But I wouldn’t want to trouble the head lady-in-waiting unnecessarily.”
“It’s no trouble at all.”
Ellen’s eyes, as she looked at Nerys, were exceptionally warm.
Although she had improved in this life thanks to having received kindness from many older women, Nerys could never forget how she had been treated by the Duchess of Elandria, her adoptive mother in her past life.
Because of that, she often found herself shrinking back or becoming needlessly obsequious around middle-aged women, trying to please them. But in Ellen’s gaze, there was a genuine affection that was hard to believe came from someone meeting her for the first time.
Feeling a little awkward, Nerys shifted her gaze as naturally as she could to take in the atmosphere of the castle.
The castle, beautiful even from the outside, was just as splendidly decorated within. The overall color palette was dark and heavy, making it less ostentatious than the imperial capital’s high society, but its refined and elegant style made it even more impressive.
The corridor floors, laid in alternating black and white diamond-shaped marble, bore the crest of the Grand Duchy of Maindulante at specific intervals. The sharp, ribbed vaults overhead were white with delicate gold embellishments.
In the capital and throughout the Empire, it had long been fashionable to de-emphasize vaulted ceilings, favoring instead ceilings and pillars packed with paintings. But such decorations often felt overwhelming and lacked classical beauty.
It was a matter of taste, of course, but Nerys found herself very fond of this solemn yet graceful interior.
The uniforms of the staff passing by were neat. Their quiet steps and straight posture showed just how competent the overseers were and how carefully the castle’s staff had been selected.
The only oddity was the smaller number of staff visible for a castle of this size. Nerys could guess why.
The traitors.
They were likely the vacancies left unfilled after Cledwyn purged the elders.
Better to leave a position empty than to place the wrong person in it. Tasks that truly required manpower could always be temporarily filled with workers from the village below the castle. As someone who had once overseen the inner palace of the Crown Princess’s residence, Nerys fully agreed with that approach to staffing.
At the entrance to the castle, after passing a small room, they entered a large rectangular hall, where Ellen turned westward. Nerys followed her past the neatly framed door at the far end of the western hall.
“This is the West Wing.”
Beyond that door, a courtyard came into view. Flanking the open-air colonnade of white marble was a small but beautifully arranged garden.
The northern region had long winters. An open courtyard like this, completely exposed to the sky and not enclosed in a glass greenhouse, was hardly suited for the climate.
Especially one like this, with a garden of broad-leaved trees lush and full as Nerys now saw.
It must have cost a fortune to build. The trees having survived the winter could only mean it was a magically maintained garden. The maintenance alone would be astronomical, yet strangely, none of the trees had been pruned at all.
“Is this garden part of the West Wing as well?”
If it was for display, it should have been better maintained. Lack of staff could explain it, sure—but still. At Nerys’s question, Ellen sighed as if a little embarrassed.
“Yes, it is. In truth, when I mentioned the West Wing being desolate… I hope you’ll be understanding.”
“Well, what does it matter? It’s beautiful even with the wild growth.”
“Thank you for saying so.”
In fact, with the summer flowers in full bloom, the garden had its own kind of untamed beauty. Nerys hadn’t just said it to be polite.
They hadn’t walked far before the colonnade ended and a door—clearly the entrance to the West Wing building—appeared. Framed in white marble, the door was fitted with a smooth, golden handle.
Creak. Ellen opened the door.
Ellen hadn’t mentioned the West Wing’s desolation just because of the garden. The foyer one encountered upon entering the West Wing felt somehow devoid of human warmth, unlike the one in the main building. There were no paintings or sculptures to be seen.
But none of that registered in Nerys’s eyes.
Because the woman who had just descended into the foyer of the West Wing completely filled her view.
“Riz, my baby!”
Her mother—healthy and radiant—smiled brightly upon seeing Nerys.
