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Chapter 78 Part 12 – The fortune teller ‘Mother’ appears. The 「True History」 is starting to be revealed little by little. Our love story is beginning to move. Carrying various emotions, the curtain rises on the night of the dance ball.

With perfectly synchronized timing, the 10 imperial knights stopped their horses.

It was an unbelievable sight.

The Imperial Guards is the only exception amongst Hydrangea’s military force, which is inferior to the four great kingdoms. It is a gateway to success where commoners can rise to knighthood through military prowess. The toughest people in Hydrangea have been further sharpened through even more intense training to create a super elite group. Their charging attack can destroy head-on even hordes of mercenaries with long spears, who are the natural enemy of cavalrymen.

They are the last line of defense of the royal family that breaks all common sense on the battlefield. Hence, they are considered as the symbol of royal authority and are not allowed to leave the royal castle without an order from the king.

Why are the imperial guards here at tonight’s ball? Moreover, there’s even 10 of them.

The sly old nobles were stunned out of their wits and stood still. The servants that were guiding the carriages of the guests at the entranceway were also stunned.

The imperial guards looked down at them from their horses. The servants shuddered when they noticed that the imperial guards were wearing the visors of their sallet helmets. It was a sign that they were ready for battle. Although the servants could not see their expression, their glaring eyes were full of murderous intent. Steam seemed to be pouring out from the gaps in their helmets.

So, when all of the imperial guards simultaneously lifted their huge lances at once, the pitiful servants nearly became incontinent. When they raised the lance over their head, the tip of the lance made a terrifying sound. The dull gleam of steel left a trail of afterglow. The lance was uncovered. The accident prevention cover has already been removed.

Fortunately, the servant’s fears that they might be stabbed with the lance were unfounded, and the imperial guards quickly split to the left and right.

Everyone there opened their eyes wide in surprise and was speechless.

Not to the horsemanship of the imperial guards who maneuvered the horses as if they were their own limbs.
From behind the imperial guards, an eight-horse carriage of great magnificence and luxury appeared.

A sigh of admiration came from the ladies.

At that moment, both the young ladies and the noblewomen forgot to be conscious of other people’s eyes even though it was an instinct for survival in high society that they would not forget even if they heard the news of their parents’ death. The degree of surprise was so great that it blew that instinct away. They didn’t even notice that they had taken down the feather fan with which they covered their mouths when they engaged in private conversations.

What the young ladies and noblewomen saw there was the very dream that all of them longed for when they were little girls and wished to have for at least once in their lifetime even after they had grown up.

The light of the moon and the light from the scarlet mansion made the outline of the carriage sparkle. Not only the door, but also the carriage body was decorated with fine workmanship of gold and silver, which diffusely reflected the light. Like the facets of a jewel, even the angles are carefully calculated. It looks as if the carriage is covered in golden ivy that emits its own light. The crimson cloth of the coachman’s stand seemed to be ablaze with gold embroidery.

‘Aah, if this carriage is mine, I will not want any necklaces, rings, or jewels for the rest of my life ……’

Just like warriors admiring a great sword, most of the ladies lost track of time.

What kind of noble person would come down from such a carriage?

「……!!」

However, some of the more discerning noblewomen exchanged looks with each other and quickly turned their backs to the scene. They noticed that the carriage bore the coat of arms of the Duke of Wilhelm. They then changed their minds, thinking that it was not a good idea to make an enemy of Cornelia who is the owner of the carriage. Although they did not know the source of the money, Cornelia was no longer an opponent to be underestimated since she was able to prepare such a luxurious carriage.

Despite her title as a duchess, Cornelia was looked down upon because she had no weapons to fight in high society. She was, so to speak, a lion for show, without claws or fangs. Which is why the nobles could torment her without any worry.

But now, Cornelia has the imperial guards by her side and rides in a carriage that is more luxurious than the royal family’s. She is probably more powerful than a real lion with fangs. Perhaps even more powerful than Countess Rosenthal, the hostess of tonight’s ball. If we carelessly lay a hand on her, we will be devoured to death.

However, those foolish people who don’t realize this fact will surely insult Cornelia as originally planned. If we continued to stay in the hall, we would be considered as a group with those fools. I absolutely don’t want to get caught up in those idiots’ self-destructive behavior.

Judging so in an instant, the noblewomen quickly ascended the grand staircase at the end of the hall. Perhaps while still regretting that they would not be able to see the surprise Cornelia had prepared for them.

At the top of the staircase were the men’s antechamber, the women’s antechamber, and beyond that, the ballroom.

Then, as they rushed through the empty antechamber, sounds of astonishment resounded from below, and the noblewomen were convinced that their premonitions had come true. The women froze as they felt disappointed that they could only hear about what had happened afterwards, but also relieved that they had successfully evacuated.

「…… Fufufu, this is better than what I expected. That is what I expect from the wife that ‘that person’ chose. That is what I expect from you, Cornelia. This is finally the night that I’ve been waiting eagerly for. I’m so glad you’re here. Now then, make my heart beat even faster.」

Countess Rosenthal slowly walked toward the noblewomen with bright, hazel-colored eyes. Then she walks right past them as if she can’t see them. The noblewomen were so stunned that they forgot to bow.

Because the noblewomen realized that Countess Rosenthal, the powerful person who reigns in high society, had come out to greet Cornelia. Even when royalty visits her mansion, Countess Rosenthal would not come out to the dance hall in front of the grand staircase and would just wait in her chair. Why would Countess Rosenthal come out to greet Cornelia?

…… Who in the world is Cornelia?

The noblewomen paled at the sight of an incident so beyond their comprehension that they could do nothing but gape and nervously stare at each other’s faces with the same uneasy feeling they had when they were just young ladies who couldn’t tell right from left.

But this was only the beginning of the night’s legendary surprises.