It was an exaggerated exclamation in a high voice. However, the call of a cuckoolike voice drew everyone’s attention to Isabella.
Her addressee was her mother, Lucrezia. The intended listener was obviously Queen Marguerite and her maids.
“I am so happy that Her Majesty asked for a sermon on the part where Isaac’s Gohn was sacrificed. It’s my favorite part, mother.”
Lucrezia responded to her daughter’s remarks with satisfaction.
“I am pleased that I have taught you the language of the Galician kingdom. Which part did you like the most?”
“The part where Isaac’s Gohn was sacrificed! I love the part where all the people thanked him for sacrificing himself for everyone.”
The atmosphere grew chilly. According to the holy scriptures, Isaac’s Gohn made two sacrifices.
The first time he gave his life, he died alone, ridiculed, and after demonstrating the miracle of resurrection, he sacrificed himself to prevent the divine punishment that had fallen on the continent, then finally the general public praised and looked up to Isaac’s Gohn.
Today’s sermon was about Isaac’s Gohn’s first sacrifice.
Isabella, due to her poor Galician, only understood the word ‘sacrifice’ and assumed the sermon was about the second sacrifice that the aristocrats preferred. She made a show of being knowledgeable but inadvertently revealed her lack of understanding of the foreign language.
“Eventually, after a long journey, praise does follow sacrifice.”
A maiden who followed Queen Marguerite from the Galician Kingdom tried to lighten the atmosphere with an awkward smile. However, Isabella, not understanding the maiden’s goodwill to save her, laughed brightly.
“But right after Isaac’s Gohn passed away on the cross, didn’t all the residents of the Seven Hills of Gaius come out and weep together? Ah, of course, it is sad that he passed away, but how exhilarating must Isaac’s Gohn’s disciples have felt?”
Now the atmosphere was as icy as the inside of an icehouse. It was a statement that questioned her character, going beyond just naivety, to envy the fame he gained while celebrating and being thankful for the saint’s sacrifice.
Even Lucrezia, who couldn’t understand Galician at all and couldn’t figure out what mistake her daughter had made, was taken aback and looked around.
But Isabella, always unaware in strange places, was wideeyed and blinking, looking around at the people.
Finally, Ariadne, with a bitter smile, took the floor.
“I like the courage Isaac’s Gohn showed.”
It seemed the only way to salvage the situation was for her, the youngest, to make a joke.
“He must have been very scared before he passed away.”
“Ah.”
“The young lady is kind.”
The sight of a girl, who still seemed to be between a child and an adult, deeply empathizing with the adult’s pain, brought smiles to the adults’ faces.
As the atmosphere eased for a moment, the ladies threw a few sociable comments and quickly changed the subject.
Ariadne added a little late, ‘And he must have been uneasy about leaving it to those immoral, selfish, unintelligent people’, but everyone seemed not to have heard.
But Queen Marguerite was the exception. She looked at her maid and whispered in her ear.
“So the younger one speaks Galica.”
[“The second daughter speaks Galician.”]Queen Marguerite’s satisfied gaze then moved to Lucrezia.
Lucrezia, who was wearing a dress with a neckline that was deeper by a finger’s length than what was socially acceptable, bowed deeply when she caught the Queen’s eye.
“I am Lucrezia de Rosi, a saint from the Diocese of Taranto in the Etruscan Kingdom, greeting Her Majesty Queen Marguerite!”
This fuss was a panic to hide her fear. Lucrezia was merely a wife in the cardinal of de Mare’s house. Therefore, officially, she still had to refer to herself as a virgin saint.
Ariadne thought it would be hilarious if Queen Marguerite called Lucrezia ‘Miss Lucrezia’ here.
Lucrezia had never been married, despite having three children and an adult son.
Perhaps if I had called her ‘Miss Lucrezia’ right in front of her face, she would have turned blue with rage, trembling, then come home and likely had a hysterical tantrum, destroying the furnishings in the house for about a week.
However, Queen Marguerite seemed to have no intention of falling out with the Archbishop’s government and graciously accepted Lucrezia’s greetings with a nod.
“…….”
Whether the queen’s silence was awkward, the queen’s maid brightly offered guidance.
“Please come to the reception room. The ladies are gathered there.”
Without uttering a single word directly to Cardinal de Mare’s entourage, the queen moved on with dignity. Instead, the queen’s maid led Lucrezia and her party through a small corridor to a reception room behind the chapel.
“Oh my! You really are beautiful!”
The small reception room, beautifully decorated with green silk and mahogany, had a few ladies, each holding a cup of afternoon tea. They were Queen Marguerite’s closest ladiesinwaiting.
The Villainous Demon Lord Laid an Egg for Her (Female-Dominated)
Several months after transmigrating into a book, Yu Wu found herself facing the demon lord Li You, who could no longer conceal his dragon horns. With one hand on her aching waist and the other gripping a sharp sword, she stared at him.
The demon lord’s eyes were red with fury:
“This is all your doing! Today, I won’t rest until I kill you!”
Yu Wu rubbed her temples. Putting aside the taboo against bloodshed during pregnancy, wasn’t it this very man who willingly walked into her trap that day?!
Warnings:
- Male pregnancy.
- Height ratios are set to mirror typical male-female height proportions.
- Characters include a foot-loving demon lord and an eldest daughter from an immortal family’s concubine lineage.
