“Nel, Dianne. Thank you for coming.”
“Thank you for inviting us.”
Neris and Dianne greeted Angarad and extended small gifts. It was the culture of the imperial nobles to give trivial gifts as a token of gratitude to the one who invited them to a party.
Dressed cutely in a creamcolored dress in line with the latest fashion, Angarad smiled with pleasure. Neris’s gift was deliciouslooking blueberry jam, and Dianne’s was expensive, highquality chocolate.
“The jam looks really tasty, Nel. Dianne, the chocolate is beautiful. I’ll eat it deliciously.”
Dianne raised her eyebrows as Angarad continued to call Neris ‘Nel’ even after the last purse incident, but she did not point it out now as they were invited to the party.
Angarad spoke in a dignified voice befitting the hostess. A creamcolored satin ribbon was beautifully tied in her hair, fluttering.
“Megara and Idalia have been invited to a gathering of higher nobles. But since the other kids are here, go and mingle.”
During their time at the academy, even though they called each other comfortably in the same classroom and attended classes together, in reality, the two young duchesses were of a different status than the other children.
One grand duke’s house, three duke’s houses, five count’s houses.
The members of the nine families referred to as the great nobility in the empire were so noble that they hardly even noticed the difference between lower nobles and commoners.
Idalia of the Kendal Count’s house almost always clung to Megara. However, despite Megara being the daughter of the more powerful Likandros Count, she showed a fair and kind attitude to the other students. It was one of the reasons why Megara had absolute popularity.
‘But if there’s a gathering of higher nobles, there’s no reason to refuse that and come to Angarad’s party instead.’
It was rather a good thing. If Megara got involved in today’s event, it would have been complicated.
Neris took Dianne’s hand and went inside the party hall. Unlike Dianne, Angarad did not have a dormitory room large enough to invite the entire class to a party, so today’s party venue was one of the venerable academy’s affiliated banquet halls.
“It’s old.”
Dianne looked at the oldfashioned arch columns lined densely on the banquet hall wall and assessed it in one word. Neris chuckled.
“It’s an old building. They say they’ve held many theology department masses here.”
“No wonder.”
Dianne’s adorable eyes widened.
“The theology department has moved to a newly built building, and now this place is used as a banquet hall.”
“Yeah. This building itself was a temple. There must be lots of spiders if you go to the corner?”
Dianne was delighted at the statement that seemed like guidance.
“You really know a lot, Liz? But I need to go to the bathroom now. The way from the dormitory to here was too long.”
“Let’s go together. The bathroom is upstairs.”
Dianne, who didn’t ask for unnecessary help, couldn’t help but nod to that.
If it had been a more luxurious party, they might have been able to get the help of a worker, but Angarad only had one maid who was now busy running between the kitchen and the banquet hall.
“Okay. Thank you.”
“I’m thirsty, so I’ll just have a drink and come.”
“Sure.”
Neris left Dianne chatting with an appropriate classmate and approached the table where drinks and food were placed. She poured a glass of peach punch and drank it, then returned to where Dianne was.
“Let’s go.”
The lower noble child who was chatting with Dianne also spoke to Neris.
“Next month, Angarad, Hardy, and I are planning a casual gathering, would you like to come too? It’s a gathering of lower nobles, and sophomores and juniors will be there as well.”
At the academy, there were gatherings like the one Megara and Idalia attended today, which were only for higher nobles, but there were also frequent gatherings for lower nobles. It was natural to gather with people of similar status, as it was good for finding marriage partners and strengthening bonds with each other, plus various other benefits. Besides, there were endless other gatherings that could only be held at the academy.
In a previous life, Angarad had been responsible for sending out invitations to class gatherings shortly after enrolling, and Neris was never on the invitation list.
Neris was the lowest in status and the poorest among the classmates, and had no friends, so no one objected even if she was blatantly excluded.
“Alright. Send me a card later.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Neris, who had greeted, and Dianne went to the bathroom on the upper floor after leaving the banquet hall. Dianne quickly took care of her business and washed her hands cleanly with cold water scooped from a basin carved out of marble. Neris first assisted Dianne in washing her hands, and then received help washing her own.
As the two were going downstairs to where the banquet hall was located, they heard a loud noise reaching all the way to the stairs.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
