Timid and Shy - Chapter 28

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

28.

Prince Robert stood surrounded not by young noblewomen but by middle-aged nobles. He had engineered it deliberately—as a newcomer to his fiefdom, he asked them questions and listened intently to their answers.
It was a method he’d chosen to avoid the awkward hours with young noblewomen, and it was proving surprisingly fruitful. Robert had no intention of seeking a marriage partner now, whatever the Emperor might think. He had no desire to provoke Wiscom either.
What mattered was watching how things unfolded between Cressida, Wiscom, and Garris. So much the better if they tore into each other.
‘The finest fight is one where both sides check each other endlessly—no victor, only the vanquished.’
Throughout the ball, both Prince Robert and Prince Frederick maintained their distance from Isabel.
People watched to see if Philip might not approach Prince Robert. On the other hand, some observed whether Isabel and Prince Frederick’s eyes might meet.
Everyone knew the House of Wiscom’s situation was deteriorating. They wondered if the two princes’ attendance at the ball meant something might be attempted to improve matters. Most believed Wiscom would never retreat so tamely.
Isabel was aware of the gazes upon her. There was no rush.
‘This is only the first attempt to seduce Frederick. One touch will be enough.’
Frederick used his friends as a shield while keeping Isabel in the corner of his vision, marking each kindness she showed others, each smile that graced her lips.
Frederick admired Isabel’s beauty, yes—but it was her shy smile and gentle manner of speech that captivated him. Everything about Isabel was soft and delicate, so unlike Parma’s confident bearing and sharp gaze.
‘If only Wiscom had a formidable army…’
Prince Frederick exhaled slowly. He could not afford to make a single mistake today. He’d come to this ball to erase Robert’s presence. He could not allow Isabel to ruin everything.
Turning back to Parma, Prince Frederick manufactured an affectionate atmosphere.
When Parma withdrew to the Powder Room to rest, Frederick stepped into the Garden for a brief respite. He desperately needed a moment away from prying eyes.
Isabel hurried outside to extract herself from a young nobleman who continued to dog her steps, his face darkening with frustration.
That was when Prince Frederick, returning from catching the evening air to re-enter the Grand Ball Hall, collided lightly with Isabel, who was rushing out.
Isabel spoke, flustered.
“My apologies. I wasn’t watching properly. Are you all right?”
“Yes. I’m fine.”
Isabel glanced at Prince Frederick’s face and turned away in surprise. Frederick, without time to think, impulsively placed a hand on her shoulder.
Hearing Isabel’s startled breath, Frederick hastily withdrew his hand and apologized.
“I beg your pardon. You seemed so alarmed that I spoke without thinking.”
“I’m unharmed. Then I’ll take my leave.”
Isabel gave a small bow and departed. Prince Frederick stood dazed, watching her receding form. He’d thought they might exchange another word or two, but Isabel gave him no such opportunity.
Having been so close to Isabel, even briefly, Frederick felt his heart pulled further toward her. Yet he knew, equally well, that it must not be.
Frederick stepped back outside to catch the wind and compose himself.
‘To become a strong emperor, there are things one must endure.’
When Isabel returned to the Grand Ball Hall, Philip took her away from the venue. As the Wiscom siblings departed before the ball reached its height, people whispered and murmured.
The Wiscom siblings appeared to leave early, having achieved nothing.
In contrast to House Garris, which had secured Frederick, House Wiscom seemed to be sinking deeper.
Yet Prince Robert saw differently. Isabel and Philip had withdrawn after accomplishing their specific objective.
The fact that Frederick returned to the Grand Ball Hall only after Isabel’s departure suggested that Wiscom had already begun its gambit.
Robert smiled.
‘If Isabel succeeds in seducing Frederick…’
Prince Robert silently wished for Isabel’s success—so that he might enjoy the sordid struggle unfolding among the three houses.
And now, he thought, he truly understood Isabel’s nature. Until now he’d seen her as merely a flower.
“A flower? The Duke of Wiscom’s most formidable weapon.”
Robert’s thoughts turned to Sophia.
‘Sophia Ariel is no flower either.’
Yet immediately Prince Robert denied the thought. He knew nothing of Sophia Ariel.
Moreover, Ariel was no house that could aid him. A house that depended on him rather than one he could lean on was beyond even his reach.
Robert shook his head and spoke to himself.
‘What am I thinking? Ariel is finished.’

***

Sophia entered the Underground Cavern carrying a torch. She brought it down to the ground and then raised it high, trying to make out her surroundings.
She moved slowly deeper in, repeating the same process.
A small stream ran through the cavern, and near the walls sat shallow pools. Since the ground wasn’t covered entirely with water, it seemed the water was draining somewhere.
Like the passage she’d come through, this place held no insects. There was no moss, no vegetation. Without sunlight, of course there wouldn’t be—but…
‘A place where nothing lives at all?’
Sophia hurried back along the path she’d come, torch held high. The moment she emerged at the entrance of the Temple, she drew in a deep breath of fresh air.
She extinguished the torch and left it at the cave entrance for later use. While Sophia stood dazed, collecting her thoughts, Gunther rushed into the Temple, breathing hard.
“Miss Sophia, staying here this late—what are you doing? The Baron is worried about you.”
“Gunther. Among the people of the fiefdom, has anyone gone missing after climbing the mountain, or died after being ill for a few days?”
Jack looked around the interior of the Temple and spoke.
“Not to my knowledge, not this year. Why? Did a body turn up?”
“No. There’s a passage inside the cavern that leads down to an Underground Cavern. I just wondered if anyone had slipped inside trying to escape the rain.”
Jack replied with a frightened expression.
“What’s inside there?”
Sophia stared at her own hands. There was not a trace of poisoning. She spoke in a deflated voice.
“Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Not gold, not jewels—nothing at all. Does the Goddess Titannia actually prefer Ariel to be poor?”
Jack looked back and forth between the cavern and Sophia’s face as he spoke.
“Was Ariel always poor in the old days too, with nothing to give the Goddess Titannia? Just like now? That would at least make sense.”
Sophia laughed weakly. Whether or not she had actually touched anything dangerous, she seemed to have breathed in foul air. Jack spoke with a grave expression.
“To be safe, don’t come here in summer. You may have inhaled mold spores or the like. Fungi thrive in heat and humidity, after all. It would be better to wait until winter or investigate properly first.”
Sophia nodded in agreement.
“I don’t think I’ll be able to manage it in summer anyway.”
When Sophia returned to the Manor, Alex was waiting for her with an angry expression.
“Do you have any idea how long you’ve been gone? I waited so long that my mind conjured up the worst imaginings.”
Sophia spoke.
“I’m sorry. In the cavern, I lost track of time.”
Alex shook his head as he spoke.
“For now, you’re forbidden from going to the Temple. Understood?”
“Yes. I understand.”
When Sophia acquiesced without argument, Alex felt his anger deflate. He had planned to firmly pin her down and issue a stern warning, keeping her confined to the Manor until the House of Fina’s family arrived. But Sophia had agreed far too easily.
Sophia had no intention of returning to the cavern until summer ended.
Looking at the map, the cavern did correspond to the Temple’s location. But there was something profoundly unsettling about that passage and Underground Cavern, where nothing seemed to dwell. She would not venture back until she felt certain it posed no danger.
Sophia needed to spend some time in the Greenhouse and Manor, recovering her strength and resting.
‘Is it truly the Temple of the Goddess Titannia? I thought it had to be a temple because of that phrase—”giving thanks to the Goddess”—but I won’t go back for a while. And I mustn’t let Father see that I’m disappointed.’
Looking out toward the Titannia Mountain Range, Sophia smiled with a touch of regret.
“I so wanted to receive the Goddess’s gift.”

***

The House of Fina family finally arrived in Ariel for their summer break. It was early for a summer holiday, coming as it did at the very start of the season. They had decided to spend time with Ellie in Ariel beforehand since Helen and Sol would be traveling a month later.
Sophia heard from Helen about the novel that had been the talk of society. The author had used initials for the protagonist names, apparently conscious of the gaze of her betters, but from the character descriptions and circumstances alone, it was easy to deduce who they were.

〈The Language of White Roses〉

It told of a young noblewoman caught between love and conflict with two men. Because of Duke Robert’s relentless obsession and schemes, she keeps her distance from Duke Frederick even as she loves him, or so the story goes.
The novel ran as a serialization in a cheap weekend newspaper, its primary readers being commoners, though it had gained a following among young noblewomen like Helen through quiet word-of-mouth.
Sophia laughed without meaning to. She had never believed in true freedom. In a society where the Emperor and aristocrats were layered in hierarchy, how much freedom could there truly be? There must surely be someone’s intention and hand guiding the publisher and newspaper company.
This cheap weekend newspaper was certainly nothing more than someone’s tool. And who was behind it was far too obvious.
The aims were so blatant that suspicion would fall on them, but no one would dare question House of Wiscom. There would be no evidence to prove it either, making denial easy.
Sophia spoke with a thin smile of contempt.
“If Isabel is cast as the unfortunate heroine, then the male protagonist is probably Duke Frederick.”
And the character threatening Isabel would be Duke Robert. If another villain appeared, it would likely be Parma of House of Garris—that much was easy to infer.
Helen spoke with excitement.
“People keep it quiet, but the circulation numbers are enormous. And it’s cheap. The Imperial Court held a ball, and those three appeared together.”
“Before the novel serialization?”
“Yes. It was already the talk before the ball even took place. It drew even more attention because the ball was held to find a partner for Duke Robert. An unusual number of young noblewomen and noblemen attended. There’s speculation that someone saw those three at the ball and wrote the novel based on it. House of Wiscom did come under suspicion, but now the prevailing opinion is that some unnamed noble found it amusing and wrote it in secret, and it unexpectedly became a craze.”
Sophia spoke.
“Then could we write a novel like that too?”
“Pardon?”
Sophia spoke playfully.
“I’ve read all the bestselling romance novels over this time, haven’t I? I already know how they’ll turn out. It’s settled. Help me, Helen. I think a story with three protagonists would work well. If we publish it, we’d earn money, wouldn’t we?”
Sophia spoke playfully at first, then grew serious.
‘I really wish it would bring in money.’
Sophia was considering a new way to earn money. There had truly been nothing in the Temple. She had written a book about mythology, but that could hardly make money. That book had a different purpose.
While Sophia was lost in thought, Helen was wandering through Sophia’s room, looking around. Helen picked up a Stone that Sophia had brought back from the Temple as a keepsake and spoke.
“It was a good idea to have brought Rock Salt before summer began. It’s still cool now so insects aren’t plentiful yet, but it’s wise to prepare in advance.”
Sophia looked at Helen and the stone as she spoke.
“……Is that Rock Salt?”
Helen examined the Rock Salt more carefully again and spoke.
“No? It looked exactly like the sample I saw at the school laboratory, so I thought it was rock salt.”
Helen touched her tongue lightly to the stone and spoke.
“It’s salty. Yes, it is rock salt. You received it without knowing what it was? You didn’t just pick it up off the road, did you…….”
Sophia stared at the stone with alarm. Helen looked at it once more as well.
“If you picked it up on the road……. In Ariel…… rock salt…… oh my!”
Sophia clapped her hand over her mouth.
“Salt!”
‘So what was glimmering in the Underground Cavern wasn’t moisture and water droplets gathering—it was salt?’
Sophia grasped Helen’s hand and started toward the Baron’s office, then thought of Gunther, turned back, and headed for Ellie’s room instead.
‘I have to keep this hidden. It can’t come out yet.’

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————