It felt as if the entire situation had been flipped upside down.

Although it was the state celebration of the Emperor and Empress’s wedding, the Emperor chose to march with him.

And there was a baby announcement ceremony in the afternoon.

A gathering where nobles would present gifts.

“Hmm, hmm, hmm.”

The bedroom was once again enveloped by the scent of flowers instead of the stench of despair and solitude.

‘What should I wear for the procession? Which jewelry should I adorn?’

She had already placed orders at all boutiques in the capital.

‘Will I be able to sit beside Henri this time at the baby announcement ceremony?’

‘What gifts will they bring? They can’t possibly only bring gifts for the baby; I’m the one giving birth. They should bring gifts for me too!’

Lost in her dreams, Valérie paced around the bedroom, humming a tune. Although her maids looked at her with cold eyes, she didn’t even notice.

Two maids infected with the plague had worsened and died, and the one who survived had become too sick to work and returned home.

Yet Valérie hadn’t inquired about their wellbeing, not even once since the alchemy was lifted.

As a result, not just the maids but also the palace guards and all the servants in the palace harbored resentment against Valérie.

‘Everything’s back to how it should be. I must give birth to a healthy child. It has to be a boy!’

The joy of being pregnant was brief; anxiety enveloped her once more.

‘What if it’s a girl? To become Empress, I need to give birth to a boy.’

‘Will childbirth be painful? Could I even get a Csection here? Didn’t women in the past have high mortality rates during childbirth? What if I die after giving birth to a son?’

She was hardly old enough at just twenty to have a proper understanding of childbirth.

Moreover, there was no way to do research here, and she had no one to confide in about her fears.

Valérie, who had been momentarily lost in a joyful fantasy, crouched in a corner of her bed and began biting her nails again.

When she went to the site of the orphanage construction, she saw the wooden framework had been erected.
“Buildings can’t go up as fast as they do in modern times. Waiting is frustrating.”

For over two months, Ermedillin was frustrated with the slow progress of the foundation work. However, Bellest didn’t seem to think the same way.

“Hmm. The construction has progressed more than I thought?”

“Of course. I’m the one in charge of it.”

Pellio walked past Bellest with a somewhat arrogant expression and approached the laborers.

“Ugh. How do you work with that rude guy?”

Not just Bellest but also Riena, who came along, glared at Pellio with eyes full of complaints.

Certainly, Pellio didn’t seem to get along well with his peers.

“The empress will surely tolerate him a lot. He’s been rude ever since he was young.”

‘Ah, he’s a friend’s brother? So, they might have known each other since childhood.’

At Riena’s words, Ermedillin imagined a younger, more spiteful Pellio.

“Heh.”

Suddenly laughing, both Bellest and Riena looked at Ermedillin with puzzled expressions. Ermedillin quickly controlled her facial expression and turned her attention to the list of teachers.

“We can employ teachers with excellent careers. Thank you.”

“Riena helped a lot, too. The Duchess of Grania, who also helped, couldn’t come today.”

The Duchess of Grania, who seemed quite close to Biella, had gone to find a printer for foreign language textbooks today.

“Thank you, everyone. Not only does Biella serve as a teacher, but she’s also prepared the textbooks. I don’t even know how to express my gratitude.”

“She’s finally doing something befitting a maid. She had fun all these years, so you can push her more.”

Family is the most dispassionate indeed. Sharp rebukes are possible because of deep affection.

Even if their opinions don’t match and they grow to dislike each other, the relationship tied by a strong bond cannot be broken.

In their past lives, the twin sisters who were classmates in middle school always went to school and came back home together despite fighting fiercely every day.

Even when they pulled each other’s hair over a boy they liked, three days later they were holding hands as if nothing had happened.

The basics were to launch a joint attack against a friend who took one sister’s side over the other when they were fighting.

Enemies who could never break up, the closest friends in the world who couldn’t help but love even when they were fiercely arguing.

But Ermedillin couldn’t have such a relationship either in her previous life or here.

For a moment, Ermedillin felt envious of Bellest and Biella.

Then, someone swiftly approached and held her finger.

“??”

Turning her head, she saw Loony smiling like a child.

“I’m here, you know.”

“!!”

‘Did she read my mind?’

Truly surprised, Ermedillin looked at Loony, who calmly smiled and returned to her place.

There were no signs that she wanted to take advantage of the empress’s favor. She knew exactly when to step in and when not to.

Moreover, she would appear like a ghost when Ermedillin felt emotionally empty and offer subtle comfort.

‘I had a thrilling experience of having a blade on my neck, but I did well to protect you that day.’

After surveying the site to some extent and saying goodbye to the laborers, Ermedillin was about to discuss the next agenda.

While pondering what to say first, she suddenly felt the atmosphere around her become awkward.

Turning her head slowly, she saw not only Bellest and Riena but also Pellio subtly watching her.

She soon realized why they were looking at her.

“Looks like everyone has heard about Vallier’s pregnancy.”
Henri had intended to keep the mouth shut until the National Soul Day, but his secret was exposed due to Balliere, a royal guard, who had talked about it all day to the maidservants.

Thus, although everyone had heard the staggering news, they could not openly show it in front of Ermedillin, creating an awkward atmosphere.