IPSC 09

Chapter 09

The long-awaited day of the tea party finally arrived.

Dressed in a black gown according to the dress code written on the invitation, I arrived at the Count of Angus’s estate.

Following a servant, I entered the rose garden of the count’s residence.

Soon, I spotted several young ladies enjoying tea beneath a white gazebo.

Vivian, who had been sipping tea from the central seat, noticed me and smiled.

“Welcome, Miss Aisha. We thought you weren’t coming, so we started without you.”

“I arrived right on time, though?”

“How could that be? The invitation clearly says nine in the morning.”

I quietly looked at Vivian.

Just like before, she had deliberately written a later time on my invitation so she could paint me as a rude, tardy guest.

Vivian continued, smiling brightly.

“But what does that matter? I’m just happy you came. Please, sit beside me.”

As I took the seat next to her, Vivian smiled gently and began introducing me to the other ladies.

“This is Miss Aisha Amberbier. She’s come up from the countryside and doesn’t know much yet, so please take good care of her.”

The young ladies, dressed in pastel-colored gowns, scanned me with stiff expressions.

I asked them calmly,
“Why do you all look like that?”

“…Because your dress is beautiful.”

Despite the compliment, their expressions were clearly uncomfortable.

That was understandable. Black dresses were usually worn for mourning. Wearing black to a social gathering was considered improper.

Vivian must have changed only my invitation—both the time and the dress code—to embarrass me.

From the other ladies’ perspective, I was nothing more than a latecomer who hadn’t even dressed appropriately.

I spoke casually.

“Thank you. I’m glad I made the effort to follow the dress code. Your dresses are very colorful and pretty… though they’re quite far from the stated dress code.”

The ladies looked at me in confusion.

“What do you mean?”

“We dressed according to the dress code written on the invitation.”

I deliberately placed my invitation on the table.

“This is the invitation Miss Vivian sent me. It says lunchtime, and the dress code is black.”

The ladies passed the invitation around, reading it closely.

“It’s true. The seal is definitely from the Angus family.”

“This is different from the invitation we received.”

Seeing their puzzled expressions, Vivian hurriedly tried to smooth things over.

“I-It seems the scribe made a mistake. I’m very sorry. I’ll be sure to dismiss them.”

Oh. So that’s how she planned to play it.

Just as I was thinking she’d made a rather convenient excuse, Vivian changed the subject.

“Shall we try some new tea?”

At her gesture, servants brought out fresh teacups and tea.

“I saved these cups to use when Miss Aisha arrived. This is a rare tea imported from abroad through a merchant my father trades with.”

As the new refreshments were served, the tense atmosphere gradually settled.

The young ladies chatted while tasting the sweets.

“The Count of Romen’s ball last time was absolutely dazzling. The dress code was gold—it felt like stepping into the imperial palace.”

“The marquis’s social party was incredible too. I’ve never seen so many handsome young lords gathered in one place.”

Vivian chimed in smoothly.

“Shall we stop there? Miss Aisha might feel left out, having never been invited to such places.”

It was such a childish script that it didn’t surprise me at all.

“It’s fine. I’ve been to the imperial palace, and I see young lords every day. That kind of topic doesn’t make me feel excluded.”

The ladies’ eyes widened.

“Miss Amberbier, you’ve really been to the imperial palace?”

“What was it like? Is it really covered in gold?”

“There must be so many wonderful knights there!”

The imperial palace was a place only high-ranking nobles invited by the imperial family could enter.

To ordinary young ladies, it was practically a dreamlike realm beyond reach.

“Yes. All the pillars are made of gold, and the stained glass behind the throne is magnificent. And there are plenty of splendid knights as well.”

Having pursued Crown Prince Caliton in previous playthroughs, I’d grown sick of touring the palace.

So I knew its interior inside and out.

Their curiosity only grew.

“How did you get to go to the palace?”

“I’m Lord Cyprian’s disciple, so I live in the Moon Magic Tower.”

Their eyes went wide.

“You’re a disciple of Lowell Cyprian?”

“Yes. I’m learning magic from him.”

“My goodness!”

“So Miss Amberbier is a mage!”

Before I knew it, all eyes were on me.

“They say Lowell Cyprian’s magic is extraordinary.”

“He’s the greatest mage in the empire, isn’t he? Is that true?”

The conversation was clearly not going the way Vivian had planned. She bit her lip.

Trying to draw attention away from me, she quickly changed the topic.

“Have you heard the rumors about the Duke Miguel’s son changing his fiancée recently?”

The ladies, far more interested in romance than adventure tales, turned their focus back to Vivian.

“My goodness, they seemed inseparable.”

“They say the count’s daughter was caught secretly meeting a servant.”

“How embarrassing. Her marriage prospects are ruined.”

“Miss Aisha, have you heard anything?”

As everyone chimed in, Vivian looked at me with a pitying expression.

“Oh, you’ve only just come up from the countryside… you probably wouldn’t know these stories.”

I scoffed inwardly.

How ridiculous. She wasn’t even going to get her money’s worth.

Lowering my voice, I whispered softly.

“Do you know what the hottest story in the imperial palace is these days? A secret romance between the captain of the guard and a marquis’s daughter.”

The ladies gasped. I could even hear them swallowing hard.

Secrets, differences in status, the imperial palace.

Wasn’t that the classic recipe for a romance novel they adored?

And palace gossip like this wasn’t something one could easily know unless they were connected to the imperial family.

With their rapt attention on me, I continued in a hushed voice.

“The captain is the eldest son of a family loyal to the imperial faction, so he’s supposed to marry the lady chosen by the palace. But he’s fallen for the marquis’s daughter… the imperial family won’t let that slide.”

This was information I’d learned through multiple game playthroughs.

Background NPC information sometimes appeared as event flavor text. I never thought it would come in handy like this.

The ladies exhaled in shock.

“That’s insane!”

“What will they do now?”

“How tragic… I wish they could be happy.”

But it was too soon to be done. I hadn’t finished showing off what I knew.

I turned my gaze to Vivian.

“Miss Vivian, you’ve heard that His Highness Caliton recently adjusted the noble tax rates, haven’t you?”

“Ah… of course.”

Judging by the blank look on her face, she clearly hadn’t. The same was true for the others.

Most young ladies were keen on romance but uninterested in politics.

Drawing on what Caliton had explained to me during his route, I continued.

“On the surface, it looks like tax reform, but it’s actually meant to balance the power between old noble families and the rising industrial nobility. If merchant nobles gain strength, traditional nobles lose influence.”

“……”

“……”

The area fell silent.

The ladies stared at me, mouths agape. They clearly hadn’t expected me to know this much.

I smiled awkwardly and went on.

“I suppose I talked too much. Some people assume those from the countryside are unfamiliar with high society, so I just shared a bit of what I know.”

“…There’s nothing you don’t know, Miss Amberbier.”

“You have such fascinating information. I hope we can meet often in the future.”

The ladies looked at me with newfound admiration.

Meanwhile, Vivian’s face had gone pale. Her hands trembled as she clenched her skirt.

Serves you right for having such a nasty disposition.

As I looked at her with quiet satisfaction, our eyes met. Vivian forced a stiff smile.

“By the way, Miss Aisha, you haven’t taken a single sip of tea.”

Of course not. My cup was poisoned.

The fact that she’d been watching whether I drank it or not made her seem downright creepy.

“It’s really delicious. Please, have a sip.”

“No, thank you.”

“But I prepared it especially for you…”

I spoke to Vivian, who was pretending to look hurt.

“I think there’s a strange smell coming from my cup.”

“Strange? Really? What about the others?”

Vivian tilted her head. The other ladies sniffed their tea.

“I don’t smell anything odd.”

“It smells lovely to me.”

Vivian looked at me as if to say See?

“I find that rather upsetting. It feels like my effort to serve good tea is being dismissed.”

The ladies around us nodded in agreement. Some even frowned.

“Yes, Miss Amberbier. There’s nothing wrong with the tea.”

“She worked hard to prepare this party. You should apologize.”

I shrugged.

“Well, if not, then not. By the way, I switched my teacup with yours earlier, Miss Vivian.”

“…!”

At that moment, Vivian’s eyes shook. She jumped to her feet, stuck her fingers down her throat, and began retching.

“Ghk—! Ugh!”

“M-Miss?”

“Are you all right, Miss Vivian?!”

The ladies stared at her in confusion.

Watching Vivian collapse to the floor, vomiting, I said cheerfully,

“Oh my, I was just joking.