Chapter 31 - Ladies First

“That’s good,” Kael nodded. Irene had picked up her spoon, but she showed little sign of putting food into her mouth. Nonetheless, Kael didn’t point it out. He’d invited her to lunch because he thought she might eat a little more than usual if he did so. Since his intention wasn’t to force her to eat, he simply observed. “Thanks to you, I’m having a good meal time.”

“You must be very busy,” Irene politely responded, as she lifted a small spoonful of soup to her mouth and pretended to eat. ‘Huh? It’s delicious… Is my appetite returning?’ Her eyes widened slightly, but quickly returned to normal. Even drinking water had felt uncomfortable for her not that long ago, to the point that she began to wonder if her sense of taste had disappeared. Oddly enough, she felt fine now. She was even a little happy that she was able to enjoy the taste of the simple yet savory soup.

“Yes, I’m quite busy. My parents have taken a trip down south with Marquis Charis and his wife.”

“I heard that you were delegated the full authority of His Majesty, the emperor.”

“When you get older, you can’t see what you used to see, and you get to see what you don’t need to see. I’m planning to only work until I’m 45-years-old. So, you must be diligent in your successor studies—those were my father’s words that I’ve heard and grew up with ever since I was a child,” Kael explained with a soft smile, as he watched Irene move her spoon with a quicker pace.

“That means you inherited the government early.”

“My father was right. Besides, it was always his wish to travel and spend time with my mother before he became too old.”

“Ah, I’ve heard the rumors that His Majesty loves Her Majesty very much.”

“Fortunately, there are only rumors about him being so loving towards my mother,” Kael joked with a light shrug.

“Pardon?” Irene’s eyes widened at Kael’s lighthearted remarks.

Kael smiled pleasantly when he caught the flash of surprise expressed on Irene’s normally impassive face. As he lowered his spoon, he also took note with some satisfaction that Irene’s bowl was almost empty. “You look great in Perkan attire,” Kael mused aloud, “though I think the Theorin garbs still suit you better.”

At the sudden change of topic, Irene lowered her gaze to glance down at her clothes. It was the first time she had worn Perkan clothing, so she’d no way of assessing whether it suited her or not. “Thank you,” she replied without much thought.

‘Is she comfortable receiving compliments like this when she was obviously so awkward about receiving an escort earlier? Come to think of it, she had a similar reaction that time I complimented her on her beauty,’ Kael wondered, feeling perturbed by Irene’s bland and careless response.

Unbeknownst to Kael, Irene simply didn’t believe that Kael’s words were true. The central aristocrats in Theorin often changed their words—praising her to her face, yet disparaging her for her lack of femininity behind her back. Having grown accustomed to such treatment, Irene developed a habit to overlook the compliments she received from others. Even if Kael’s words were sincere, she reacted to them in the same manner by default.

“If it’s not rude, may I say something?” Irene asked after some hesitation.

“Of course,” Kael replied with a light nod. He waited with uneasiness, though he showed no signs of it on his face.

“I’ve accepted the apology you offered earlier. However…” Irene raised her head to gaze at the servants that had gathered to serve the next course—among them stood Emilla. She watched the girl blink nervously under her cold gaze and thought, ‘I did warn you that I hold my grudges, Emilla Hustler. Oh, did I mention that I can stoop low too?’ She wasn’t about to overlook the disrespect that she’d received while being groomed. After taking a sip from the glass of water placed next to her, Irene continued, “There’s one vexing matter that I feel compelled to mention.”