The Evil Empress Adores Me-Chapter 65

And perhaps...

‘Diamid has already noticed Her Majesty’s consideration.’

I stole a quick sideways glance at Diamid.

‘Besides, he’s never had the chance to meet other noble children until now.’

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Diamid looked genuinely pleased.

Well, of course. He had been locked away for so long.

This was practically a new opportunity for him to socialize.

"Thank you very much, Your Majesty."

Diamid bowed respectfully.

At that, Her Majesty smiled warmly.

"Well, rather than thanking me, I believe you should thank the Empress Dowager instead."

"...Grandmother?"

Diamid’s eyes widened in shock.

"Originally, I discussed this with Her Majesty first."

"Oh... I see."

"Yes. But she was the one who suggested that the Crown Prince be given this opportunity."

Diamid didn’t respond. He simply nodded with a distant expression.

Honestly, I felt a bit sorry for him.

After all, he and the Empress Dowager had still never met in person.

It had already been five years since I started going back and forth between the Crown Prince’s palace and the Empress Dowager’s quarters.

Just when exactly was the Emperor planning to let them meet?

As I grumbled internally, Her Majesty spoke again.

"Oh, Charl."

Huh? Me?

I blinked in surprise and looked at Her Majesty.

And at that very moment, she casually dropped a bombshell.

"You will be attending as my lady-in-waiting as well."

"What? Me too?"

Why me all of a sudden?

I gasped in shock.

But Her Majesty nodded as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Why, I would never attend a tea party without you, Charl."

"O-Oh, but..."

Would it really be okay for me to be there as her lady-in-waiting at such an important event?

Shouldn’t someone more experienced, like Head Maid Hayden or Chief Lady-in-Waiting Weber, be attending instead?

This was the kind of opportunity that could build an important career for a lady-in-waiting.

As I hesitated, Her Majesty smiled gently.

"Don’t worry. I don’t intend to leave everything to you."

"T-Then...?"

"I will have two other ladies-in-waiting accompany us as well, so you don’t have to feel too pressured."

Hearing that, a warmth spread in my chest.

It seemed that Her Majesty wanted to give me the same opportunity she was giving Diamid—to interact with my peers among the nobles.

Not just Diamid, but me as well.

‘Well, it’s not like I’ll ever debut in high society...’

Still, there was no harm in forming connections with nobles.

Most regular palace maids would never even get the chance to see a noble’s face in their lifetime.

I should be grateful for this.

Just as I nodded, Her Majesty spoke again.

"Honestly, I would rather have you attend the tea party as a lady instead of a lady-in-waiting..."

Her wistful tone made me freeze.

I know Her Majesty cherishes me, but... isn’t that a bit much?

"I told you before—I want to be recognized as a capable lady-in-waiting among the Empress’s palace staff."

I answered firmly.

At that, Her Majesty pouted.

"But..."

"I’m truly happy just for the opportunity to serve you, Your Majesty."

I made sure to put strength into my words.

Her Majesty, though still looking displeased, eventually nodded.

I gave her my biggest smile.

"Thank you very much, Your Majesty."

"Oh, no need for thanks. You’d best be prepared—I’ll work you hard that day."

With a teasing smirk, Her Majesty ruffled my hair.

Her touch was as gentle as ever.

At last, the day of the tea party arrived.

Her Majesty had personally invited a group of young nobles to the Empress’s palace to select her attendant for the Harvest Festival.

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Rumors said that nobles had been scrambling to get their hands on an invitation to Her Majesty’s tea party.

They were desperate to send their children, hoping to secure the position of Her Majesty’s attendant.

Well, I couldn’t blame them.

This was a rare opportunity to form a connection with the Empress of the Empire.

And if they were lucky, they might even gain the favor of House Rochester.

‘This is probably the first time Her Majesty has personally hosted an event like this.’

Until now, she had always avoided actions that could be seen as political.

She had never socialized privately with nobles, so this was a golden opportunity.

"Charl!"

A voice called out, and I turned to see Head Maid Hayden.

I quickly ran over to her.

"Are the floral decorations for the tables ready?"

"Yes, they’re all set!"

I nodded firmly.

"Then could you check with the maids to see if the food preparations are complete?"

"Of course!"

I hurried down the hallway.

Whew, so busy!

The maids and servants of the ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ Empress’s palace had been rushing around since dawn, making preparations for the tea party.

But if all this work could be of help to Her Majesty, then—

"Ah!"

Thud!

I landed on the floor with a hard bump and blinked in confusion.

What... what just happened?

Someone had suddenly rushed out from the side and crashed into me!

And to make it worse, the girl who had bumped into me was now standing over me with her arms crossed, looking down at me arrogantly.

"Who do you think you are?!"

She looked about twelve years old, with wavy brown hair that had a reddish tint.

She wore an expensive-looking dove-gray dress, but her sharp, upturned eyes made her expression look particularly mean.

"Watch where you’re going!"

Uh, shouldn’t you be saying that to yourself?!

...That’s what I wanted to say, but instead, I simply got up and bowed my head.

She was obviously a noble, and if I upset her, it could be a huge hassle.

"I sincerely apologize, my lady."

"Do you even know who I am?!"

Excuse me, but what exactly did I do to you?

You were the one who ran into me!

I was even the one who fell to the ground!

And why should I magically recognize who you are on sight?

...Of course, I couldn’t say any of that out loud.

As I stared at her blankly, she huffed and smacked her chest in frustration.

"My name is Leona Bennet, the only daughter of Baron Bennet!"

Baron Bennet?

Hmm, I think I’ve heard that name before.

After racking my brain for a moment, I finally remembered where I’d heard of them.

‘I was really hoping that the Bennet family wouldn’t be involved in this...’

While working with Chief Lady-in-Waiting Weber, she had mentioned them once.

‘Why, if I may ask?’

‘Well, it’s...’

After hesitating, Lady Weber had explained.

Baron Bennet’s family was a distant branch of House Rochester.

Their influence was similar to that of House Weber, and since their territories were neighboring, they used to have some interactions.

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But after House Rochester helped the Emperor seize the throne and became the leading noble house...

‘They completely cut us off.’

Lady Weber had sighed bitterly.

‘To them, a humble family like mine isn’t even worth associating with anymore.’

‘Really?’

‘Well, it can’t be helped. In fact, I only became a palace lady-in-waiting because of them...’

She had trailed off, and I hadn’t pressed her for details.

There was nothing I could do about it, and I didn’t want to upset her further.

‘So this is the Bennet family’s daughter.’

Now that I looked at her, her reddish curls did remind me of Her Majesty.

Leona glared at me for a long moment before finally speaking.

"It’s you, isn’t it?"

"Huh?"

"The lowly maid who’s monopolizing Her Majesty’s affection."

Her voice was dripping with mockery.

What? Lowly?!

I bristled.

"You were just a trainee maid in the education hall, weren’t you?"

"That’s correct."

"I don’t know what tricks you pulled to get Her Majesty’s favor, but don’t overstep your bounds."

Leona folded her fan and jabbed it against my chest.

"Because from now on, the one Her Majesty will cherish is me, Leona Bennet."

"......."

For a moment, it felt like I had swallowed a block of ice.

Of course, I was lucky to be receiving Her Majesty’s affection now.

But...

‘In the end, it’s Her Majesty’s choice who she cherishes.’

I swallowed hard.

But if she were to favor another child more than me...

And if the reason was simply because that child was related to her by blood...

‘That would be... a little sad.’

No matter how hard I tried, I could never surpass the bond of family.

I let out a bitter smile and stopped my thoughts there.