Chapter 15
“Are you a mage?”
Her eyes were fixed on Lira.
It seemed she had instantly realized that the obediently seated Lira on my lap was a familiar spirit.
Because everyone had been seated according to status, her seat and mine were close. Still, since the Marquisate of Serentia and the Duchy of Achelide were famously at odds, I hadn’t expected her to casually speak to me, so my response came a beat late.
“…Yes.”
“You’re young, but pretty capable.”
Her tone was incredibly condescending.
But I knew better.
The reason her manner sounded arrogant wasn’t because of the difference in status, but because of memories from her previous life.
‘To Ishtar, who used to be a great archmage, everyone here probably looks like babies.’
Besides, as a daughter of a ducal house, she occupied a position where she could speak casually to anyone except royalty, so it wasn’t even improper. I didn’t find it unpleasant.
The only thing bothering me was the attendant who had come in Cain’s place.
‘Fortunately, he doesn’t seem interested in me at all.’
The truth was, I had singled out that attendant because, through the information Lira gathered about the estate, I’d often seen him flirting with maids.
Sure enough, just as I expected, he was too busy hitting on palace maids to pay attention to me.
While I remained silent, observing the attendant, Ishtar suddenly let out a small gasp as if she’d realized something, then smiled warmly.
“Ah, so you’re that Serentia.”
She must have heard somewhere that the Serentia Marquisate was a renowned family of mages.
‘She doesn’t seem to hold any particular feelings about it.’
In the original story, merely hearing the family name irritated her, but apparently the marquis hadn’t done anything to her yet.
Since she didn’t seem to have any strong aversion toward House Serentia, I answered comfortably as well.
“My name is Tiamia Serentia. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve also heard much about your reputation, Lady.”
“You know of me?”
“Yes. I heard you became the youngest apprentice mage.”
“Apprentice… Soon I’ll become a full-fledged mage, so I’d appreciate it if you remembered me as the youngest mage instead.”
The word “apprentice” must have pricked the pride of someone who had once been a great archmage. She suddenly crossed her arms and spoke in a way others might consider arrogant.
‘But it’s not empty boasting. In the novel, she really did become an official mage very quickly.’
I was about to respond appropriately when Enkirion, who had been listening beside us, spoke first.
“To be that confident… as expected of an Achelide.”
“Enki is right.”
Enkirion had simply voiced an innocent impression without any hidden intent, but the Empress, who had been waiting for an opportunity to join the conversation with Ishtar, seized the moment immediately.
“Becoming the youngest mage alone would already be an achievement worthy of being recorded in history. But since you’re from Achelide, a family famous for swordsmanship, it’ll become an even greater sensation.”
As she said that, the Empress glanced briefly at me.
As if telling me not to take offense.
She had spoken in praise of magic in front of a child from House Serentia—part of the same political faction—in order to gain the favor of the neutral Achelide family, so she must have felt somewhat conscious of it.
After all, the Marquis of Serentia took immense pride in his family’s magical heritage.
‘Not that I’m offended at all.’
Having no desire to get entangled with her, I merely gave a slight nod to show I understood.
The Empress’s face brightened, and she openly began praising Ishtar even more.
“It’s already extraordinary to be the first mage born into a ducal house that has produced Swordmasters for generations. If you become the youngest mage as well, your value will skyrocket.”
“Thank you.”
“Have you perhaps already decided which family you’ll marry into?”
After lavishly praising Ishtar, the Empress finally revealed her true intention.
The tea parties held monthly at the Empress’s palace were meant not only to help Enkirion build connections, but also to find him a suitable fiancée.
Before Ishtar appeared, I had been the strongest candidate. But now that the Empress had personally asked her such a question in an official setting, public opinion would undoubtedly shift.
Rumors would spread everywhere that the Empress had chosen the Lady of Achelide.
‘Even so, it’s all pointless.’
In the original story, the Empress’s efforts amounted to nothing, and Enkirion eventually became engaged to Ansharie anyway.
“No. But I’m still young, so I think I’ll take my time deciding.”
While I was lost in my own thoughts, Ishtar answered firmly.
“Oh my, who said you’re still young? You’re actually already a bit late.”
“Really?”
“There are only a few families of equal standing, and among them, the good candidates receive countless marriage proposals from an early age and become engaged quickly. Men have a longer marriageable age range, so they’re fine, but for women, time passes in an instant. You can’t afford to relax.”
The Empress spoke gently with a worried expression toward Ishtar, then suddenly muttered to herself.
“Though, I suppose the Achelide family only has sons…”
The problem was that her “murmur” was loud enough for all the nearby nobles to hear.
Moreover, anyone could easily guess the intention behind her trailing words.
The Empress was subtly pointing out the vacancy of the duchess’s position.
‘She should be flattering her if she wants points, yet she’s acting like this. No wonder Ishtar hates the imperial family.’
In the novel, there were exactly two families Ishtar despised: the Babylonian imperial family and House Serentia.
As mentioned before, her issue with Serentia initially stemmed only from the poor relationship between the families, not personal feelings.
But once they became involved in the same field of magic, the Marquis of Serentia constantly picked fights with her. Later, he even harmed things Ishtar cherished, causing her hatred to deepen.
As for the Babylonian imperial family, she had disliked them from the beginning.
The incompetent current emperor continuously dumped every troublesome matter onto House Achelide.
In truth, House Achelide already possessed military and financial power surpassing even the imperial family.
Had they desired rebellion, they could have accomplished it long ago.
But because of a pledge of loyalty made with the founding emperor, they had no choice but to behave like dogs chained by the neck.
Having witnessed that reality up close, Ishtar naturally developed a strong aversion toward royalty.
‘That’s why, when she saw Enlirsian—the only royal with genuine power among those empty-headed royals—being oppressed by them, she couldn’t just ignore it.’
As I recalled the original story and drifted briefly into thought, the Empress smiled smoothly and added,
“Oh my, don’t take it too badly. Those words simply slipped out because I was worried about you, my dear.”
Ha. What a shameless lie.
Her intent to damage young Ishtar’s pride was obvious, yet the Empress hypocritically disguised it as heartfelt advice for her future.
Of course, I wasn’t worried about Ishtar. I knew perfectly well she wasn’t someone who would meekly endure such treatment.
Just as expected, Ishtar, who had listened silently to the Empress’s jab, smiled brightly and replied,
“Of course. I fully understand how dearly Your Majesty cherishes me.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
At first glance, the atmosphere seemed warm and harmonious.
That is, until Ishtar added one more sentence.
“Still, I’m relieved. Since I only have older brothers, I wanted the person who becomes my husband to be younger than me. Men have a long marriageable age anyway, so there should be plenty of younger young lords who haven’t become engaged yet. I suppose I should look into arranging a match with a family equal to ours among them.”
First Prince Enkirion was the same age as me.
Which meant he was older than Ishtar, who was the same age as Ansharie.
‘So she’s declaring she’ll never get engaged to the First Prince.’
The Empress had intended to subtly manipulate young Ishtar into becoming engaged to Enkirion, but instead she had dug her own grave.
‘The winner is obvious.’
Perhaps realizing the meaning behind Ishtar’s words, cracks appeared in the Empress’s polished smile.
Her trembling hand hurriedly opened a fan to hide her expression as she said,
“You must not understand because you’re young, but usually women do not marry men younger than themselves.”
“Is it written into law?”
“W-Well, no, but there are things more important than laws. Especially in high society—”
“If it’s not against the law, then that’s fine. I should tell Father as soon as I return home today. That I absolutely want to become engaged to a younger young lord.”
Cutting off the Empress’s words, Ishtar drove in the final nail.
The Empress’s eyes, partially hidden behind her fan, turned even colder, and the atmosphere of the tea party sank with them.
Heavy silence settled over the gathering.
Clearly aware that she herself had caused it, Ishtar nevertheless changed the subject with an innocent expression, as though she knew nothing.
“More importantly, I’ve been thinking since earlier—the garden is so beautiful.”
Perhaps deciding she couldn’t keep her mouth shut forever at a tea party she herself hosted, the Empress paused briefly before replying.
“…Is that so?”
Her voice remained gentle for the sake of the nobles watching, but the gaze visible above her fan stayed icy cold.
It was the sort of stare that would make an ordinary child shrink back in fear just from meeting it.
‘How terrifying.’
But Ishtar, who was far from ordinary, laughed cheerfully.
“It’s fascinating because it’s landscaped in such a different style from our family’s gardens. Ah! Would it be alright if I went to take a look around?”
“Go ahead.”
The Empress, who had stubbornly kept Ishtar at her side until moments ago, let her go without hesitation.
‘Her intentions are obvious.’
No matter how much they talked now, restoring her damaged image would be difficult. So instead, the Empress probably intended to send Ishtar away and turn the nobles to her side by criticizing her behind her back.
“Thank you for your consideration.”
The moment permission was granted, Ishtar immediately stood, seemingly unconcerned with whatever schemes the Empress might be plotting.
After Ishtar left, the Empress moved to the table where the noblewomen were gathered.
Then, like fish finally released into water, the noblewomen of the aristocratic faction began criticizing Ishtar relentlessly.
“Please understand, Your Majesty. She’s still young.”
“That’s right. It’s her first social event, so she simply doesn’t understand what’s important yet.”
