Chapter 262

Chapter Forty-Nine Stars in the Night

Dong dong.

Someone was knocking on the door.

“Her Majesty, Captain Reckt requests an audience,” the old steward’s voice came from outside.

Victoria, who had already seated herself at the dressing table, motioned for a maid to hand over the brocade box cradled in her hands and asked her to open the door. Then she said to me, “Open it.”

The brocade box was heavy.

“What is this…”

The sensation of something hanging from my ears felt unusual. I shook my head slightly, trying to ignore the discomfort as if someone was constantly tugging at my earlobes. I lifted the crimson silk cloth covering the box and opened the lid, revealing a crown placed inside.

The crown glittered with gold, countless dazzling gems embedded in its body, shining brightly.

“Put it on me.”

Victoria spoke in a calm voice.

“Oh.”

I carefully took out this symbol of power, held it with both hands, walked behind Victoria, and placed the crown atop her head, securing it for her.

Lifting my eyelids, I glanced at the mirror opposite.

In the slightly yellowed reflection, a detached and beautiful face could be seen.

This was the first time I saw her wearing a crown.

If before, Victoria gave me the feeling of a fairy without any earthly烟火气息, then at this moment, the instant Victoria put on the crown, she became the true and cold Queen Isenbel.

I was once again awestruck by her beauty, completely at a loss for words to describe it. No matter how ornate the words, when used to describe Victoria, they would only make people feel inadequate, unable to depict even a fraction of her grace.

“Your Majesty.”

Reckt’s call snapped me out of my reverie.

Victoria looked at him, waved her hand to dismiss the maids, and then asked, “Is everything arranged?”

“Yes.”

“And what about Viscount Leonard and Harrison?”

“I’ll have someone keep an eye on them.”

“Good.”

Victoria nodded gently and stood up from her chair.

“Watch their movements. If anything unusual happens, deal with it immediately without reporting to me specifically.”

“Understood.” Reckt responded swiftly.

But he seemed to have some reservations, hesitated for a moment, and said, “Your Majesty, please forgive my impertinence… I understand that you are eager to gather the forces and rally them to resist the Clive family. There’s nothing wrong with that, but are some of these people truly trustworthy?”

Reckt did not explicitly say who “some people” referred to, but even I could see from the round table that some individuals, whose names I couldn’t remember, were showing signs of indecision. With Victoria’s intelligence, she must have noticed it long ago.

Although I knew she was very capable, she was still too young and had been crowned queen reluctantly. Her original place in the line of succession should have been further down. Therefore, there were inevitably some people… such as those from distant places, especially those from the north, the older and cunning nobles.

Although they harbored grievances against the Clive family, it didn’t mean they trusted the young queen. They certainly had their own calculations. After hearing Reckt’s words, I began to think… although these people may put on a good show, in critical moments, someone might suddenly refuse to contribute, adopting a wait-and-see attitude or simply do nothing. This could be a fatal flaw for Victoria.

Thus, I looked at her with concern.

“You can never make an accurate judgment about trust until something happens.”

But Victoria had her own thoughts.

“After all, they are my subjects. So no matter who they are, I will give them sufficient trust first. The situation has always favored the one with the people’s support, and that is my stance.”

The fair-haired beauty gently held my hand. Despite her stern expression, her palm was warm.

“Trust is mutual. If anyone betrays my trust, don’t blame me for disappointing their expectations.”

She led me towards the exit of the wardrobe.

“It’s almost time…”

With a click, the door opened.

The maids stood in a line outside, bowing their heads. The old steward, leading the group, said humbly, “Your Majesty, the birthday celebration ceremony is ready.”

“Hmm.”

Victoria responded softly, her steps unceasing, slightly lowering her head to glance at me.

“Let’s go to the banquet hall together.”

…

Sophia, who had just arrived at the palace, felt extremely nervous.

Although she often attended noble evening parties and various social dances, such occasions suited her perfectly. She knew exactly what to say and how to handle the various nobles with different preferences. Such matters, Sophia had long become adept at.

There was no choice. Since her brothers were not very competent and spent most of their time eating, drinking, and playing, her father, in despair, pinned his hopes on her. As the youngest sister among her peers, Sophia had always been competitive, enjoying comparisons, and striving to outdo others in everything she did. She greatly enjoyed the feeling of being better than others, and thus, she had put in enough effort.

Sophia urgently hoped to take on more responsibilities for her family’s business. Therefore, she begged her father to bring her to today’s evening party, wanting to meet more outstanding nobles and expand her network in the capital.

For this, she had prepared for a long time. The dress she wore was picked out after spending a whole day on a rest day, and it was very expensive. Sophia had nearly depleted half a year’s allowance to stand out among the many wealthy young ladies at the banquet.

She knew that today’s banquet was different from the usual ones.

It was the 23rd birthday celebration of Her Majesty the Queen.

Sophia felt that she was different from Sarah and Daisy. One of them kept talking about becoming a knight and boasting about her swordsmanship, but she was actually quite lazy and never went to the training ground after class. And the other… well, forget about the other one.

What could be said.

She was different from them. She bore the responsibility that came with being a noble from birth and would never waste her time easily. She had to always prepare for future opportunities.

When talking about nobles, Sophia thought of Pei Luo, the girl from the Valen Empire who was so beautiful it seemed impossible.

Originally, she thought Pei Luo was just an edge-blood relative from the Winter Moon—probably a distant cousin. Because she lacked the depth and sophistication expected of a noble, she even seemed a bit foolish, like a carefree girl who ate too much… A true noble would never have such eating habits, as if she was competing with someone… Ah, Sarah did sometimes compete.

So in Sophia’s mind, Pei Luo was similar to Sarah. Perhaps her family had some advantages, but they were far inferior to those ancient families’ heritage—though without any disdain, Sophia truly believed this all along.

Until today, when she saw Pei Luo get on that magnificent unicorn carriage.

Sophia knew it was Queen Isabella’s carriage because she had seen it before from afar with her father.

Not only did she recognize the carriage, but she also noticed the green-haired man inside. Sophia knew he was the Queen’s most trusted subordinate, the renowned Guardian of the Royal City and captain of the Canri Sword, Rector Lavenir.

His striking green hair made him impossible to miss. Of course, he knew who Sophia was, but she didn’t know him. This was normal; the captain of the Canri Sword was someone who might have met her father, but there was no way he would know someone like her—a young girl fresh out of childhood. Her social circle didn’t reach such influential figures.

This shouldn’t matter. Sophia believed that one day, through her efforts, such famous people would come to know her.

But what she couldn’t understand was…

Why was Pei Luo so familiar with the captain of the Canri Sword?

Why did she seem like such a close friend with such a prominent figure? They appeared to have no barriers between them at all. Even though Sophia felt nervous, Pei Luo conversed with ease.

Most importantly, why was Queen Isabella’s carriage…

No, not just Queen Isabella’s carriage.

Sophia heard a woman’s voice from inside the carriage. Though she wasn’t completely sure, being able to sit calmly in that carriage and speak in such a commanding tone to the captain of the Canri Sword… Sophia didn’t dare imagine further.

She couldn’t believe that Queen Isabella would specially visit the Royal Academy on her rest day, on her birthday, to pick up her silly roommate.

This was impossible…

How could Pei Luo…

On the way to the palace, Sophia’s mind was filled with that scene: the familiar black-haired girl confidently stepping onto the splendid carriage. Then, the unicorn carriage slowly moved, and she leaned out to wave goodbye to Sophia and Sarah.

At that moment, waves of emotion surged through Sophia.

Who exactly was she…

Various thoughts raced through her head until the unicorn carriage stopped in front of the palace square, unable to be dispelled.

But now was not the time to think about these things…

Sophia gathered her spirit, ready to face the upcoming challenge.

Yes. For her, this was a test.

Although she had attended many parties before, this was different… This was the palace, the center of power in Eichenbell!

Just walking from the square into the inner chamber with her father, Sophia had already seen many great figures whom her father had to bow to. These figures became even more numerous once inside the hall, almost a gathering of the top nobility. It was said that at least three marquises and many more earls attended… The hall was filled with well-known figures from Eichenbell, unlike the small gatherings of young nobles she usually attended.

Therefore, Sophia felt extremely nervous.

She realized she had overestimated herself because she had no idea how to interact with these figures. She could only follow her father, accompanying him in toasts. As his companion, Sophia felt slightly relieved.

Soon after, Sophia saw many people coming out from a side door of the hall, and her father hurriedly led her forward with a smile.

From their conversation, Sophia learned that these were the most powerful nobles in Eichenbell and the real guests of honor at this dinner.

“The Queen is still inside… Tonight’s events…”

“Yes, I understand… That’s wonderful…”

Someone whispered to her father, and both exchanged knowing smiles.

Sophia was curious, “What happened, Father?”

“Nothing.”

She saw her father shake his head, but he looked happy.

“The Queen just finished a council meeting, and the little princess from Suntel Castle arrived. If everything goes as planned, they might form an alliance… This is good news.”

The little princess from Suntel Castle? Who was she…

“Sophia, don’t spread this around. Be careful, someone might overhear.”

“Oh.”

Watching her father’s cautious demeanor, Sophia was momentarily distracted.

Soon after, she met the Queen.

The Queen, dressed in a white gown, walked through the long corridor under the crowd’s escort, waving gracefully to the enthusiastic crowd in the hall.

She was so beautiful…

Sophia couldn’t help but admire her. But then she froze.

Because she saw the Queen standing next to another girl, similarly surrounded by the crowd.

The girl wore a magnificent black mermaid dress, her jewels sparkling under the light. Despite the different attire, her petite figure was still so familiar.

Sophia thought she must have been mistaken.

She rubbed her eyes and shook her head hard, then stared again.

Yes.

It was Pei Luo. The carefree girl who always struggled to eat enough.

She walked beside the Queen, holding her hand, shining like the brightest star in the night sky.