Pride and Sanctimony

Chapter 45

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The only Princess in the entire Empire, Elizabeth was bored. 

This lady….no, this child was still very young, and was not yet old enough to debut in society.

Of course, it wasn’t as though she lacked friends her own age. Numerous noble ladies worked closely with her mother, the Empress, and wished to introduce their daughters to her. However, because she was a Princess, it was hard for those girls to get along with her freely. They always acted extremely polite for fear of making a mistake.

[Girl] “Are you bored, Princess?”

Just like this one.

She was the daughter of a count, but it was hard for her to become a true friend to the Princess.

Whether she liked it or not, Elizabeth was the most powerful young girl in the entire Empire, and even the young daughter of a count lived her life knowing that she could not go against the whims of such a fierce young miss.

It was hard to call someone a friend when they felt they could not ask if she was sleepy after she yawned because they did not wish to offend her.

[Elizabeth] “No, I’m just a little tired. I’ll go in first and rest.”

[Lady] “Oh, then I will see you again tomorrow, Princess.”

If she wanted to indulge in the life of a noble, then she could do so as she wished, but sometimes it was terribly boring. And though she was a Princess beloved by many, even that lacked any kind of excitement.

[Maid] “I will take you back to the palace.”

[Elizabeth] “I want to go see my mother.”

But because Elizabeth was a Princess, obviously her mother was the Empress. She was a busy woman, and unfortunately, was not within the Empress’ palace.

[Maid] “What should we do, Your Highness? Her Majesty is away.”

[Elizabeth] “I’ll just sleep then.”

[Maid] “Oh, are you tired? Well then, you should take a nap.”

[Elizabeth] “I’m going to sleep in my mother’s room.”

Elizabeth took the handle on her own, twisting it open in a way that was very unladylike. She was often told that she was not allowed to open doors like this without having a maid or another servant open it for her, but Elizabeth couldn’t be bothered.

She snuck into the Empress’ bed and soon after closed her eyes.

And what woke her was her older brother’s loud voice, speaking very informally. For a second Elizabeth was confused on what her brother was doing in her room, but then she’d realized she’d fallen asleep in her mother’s bed.

[Axion] “Mom……”

[Empress] “How is Lexus doing these days?”

Elizabeth immediately closed her mouth. She was taught that eavesdropping on other people’s conversations was very rude, but at the same time, this felt very unfair. 

She wasn’t a lady yet, so she couldn’t debut in society right now, but it felt so unfair to exclude her from conversations just because of that.

[Axion] “He’s fine. He goes to the Academy, comes back, and plays with his dog. He doesn’t go out or anything. He’s acting strangely quietly.”

[Empress] “Yes, I agree. He’s being far too quiet. Has something happened? He’s not sick, is he?”

Truth be told, Elizabeth liked Lexus a lot. Her second older brother was very mischievous and teasing, but his attitude was pleasant, and the way he treated her made her feel like a normal girl, not a Princess.

Axion laughed at the Empress’ comment.

[Axion] “He’s so quiet right now, it’s actually a bit troubling.”

[Empress] “He must be trying to stay unseen now that the article about the outdoor circuit has come out.”

[Axion] “Yes. I think so, too.”

[Empress] “That reminds me, what happened to her? The woman who slapped him in the face. Did they say her name was Syner? She was the one involved with the incident at the circuit, was she not?”

Is that true? Elizabeth’s eyes widened.

Everyone knew about it, but they were hiding it from her. She was certain her father knew too, but no one was telling her the important stuff.

Obviously, it wasn’t a very good story for the young Princess to hear, which was why they didn’t tell her, but Elizabeth was not mature enough to understand that fact.

[Axion] “Yes.”

[Empress] “I also heard he commissioned a dress from La Vie en Rose. Is he taking her as his partner for the Fall Banquet? Normally we would’ve heard some rumors about who he was taking by now, but it’s just been too quiet around him lately.”

Considering the Empress was speaking with such certainty about it, it was clear this was no mere speculation on her part. Even the young Elizabeth was able to realize that the probability was highly likely, given the circumstances.

[Axion] “Let me talk to him about it.”

Then that settled it. If she went to the banquet, she’d be able to meet this mysterious woman who lay dead center of all these rumors.

She must be really cool, considering she slapped her brother in the face like that. No one had ever done that before, not even a member of the Imperial family. Even Elizabeth’s grandfather, who was a very strict Emperor, never once raised a hand against his sons.

Elizabeth liked to think of herself as a mature young lady, but she was still a very brazen child. And so, she decided to do something only the most brazen of young girls would do.

She would break into the Academy and attend the Fall Banquet.

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[Lexus] “Looks like it’s my sister making a fuss at the entrance. I think I need to go take care of this.”

With no other choice, Lexus made his way back to the entrance. He had to deal with this situation, one way or another, whether it was sending her back to the palace or dragging her back home himself.

[Elizabeth] “I thought everyone was supposed to be equal here! What kind of equality is this!?”

She was a cheeky speaker, it was almost impressive, and Lexus ended up unconsciously nodding.

[—] “But, we cannot ascertain your identity…….” (1)

[Elizabeth] “I’m—!”

[Lexus] “The Princess of the Empire, Eliza.”

Realizing the stink eye she was getting, Elizabeth grinned at Lexus, who called her by her nickname.

[Elizabeth] “Brother!”

She looked at him with a wistful expression. Stuck in an unfamiliar place with people she didn’t know, she must think that her family, or in this case, her brother was her only connection. It was awfully cute of her.

[Lexus] “What’s going on here?”

[Elizabeth] “I came here to see you, brother.”

[Lexus] “So you came here from the palace to play around, is that it? Did you get Mother’s permission?”

[Elizabeth] “Did I need Mother’s permission to be here?”

She widened her eyes like she was completely baffled and had absolutely no idea. Apparently, what she had done was far worse than she expected it to be.

[—] “Is that the Princess?”

[Lexus] “That’s right. Sorry about all this.”

[—] “Oh, no it’s alright. My apologies, Princess.”

[Lexus] “Eliza, you should go now.”

[Aigis] “But she’s come such a long way. Now that she’s here, why not have her stay as a special guest?”

That was when the group consisting of Valentia and Aigis arrived near the entrance to the banquet hall. Lexus had run off in such a hurry to catch the Princess that they were left to quietly trail behind him and witness the aftermath.

It was clear she probably escaped from the palace and snuck here without permission, but no one there could find it in them to scold her. To save her reputation, they formally welcomed her and spoke politely.

Valentia was the one who greeted the Princess first.

[Valentia] “Hello. I am Valentia Syner. Dear Princess, Star of the Empire, it is an honor to meet you.”

[Aigis] “I am Aigis Ayli.”

Lily and Red introduced themselves next. Elizabeth’s cheeks immediately flushed red. This was her first time receiving such a proper greeting from a group of well adjusted ladies.

And so, using what she learned, Elizabeth responded in kind.

[Elizabeth] “I am Elizabeth de Beltane Abyssid.”

[Aigis] “It is an endless honor to see you shine before us.”

Considering she just crashed the party, relief washed over Elizabeth’s expression at their kind and friendly greetings. Apparently, she must have been really worried someone would get mad at her.

[Aigis] “I did not expect you would be attending, Princess. This banquet is a humble one meant for students, so everyone would be especially honored to have you with us.”

[Elizabeth] “Really? You don’t think I’m a nuisance because I’m an uninvited guest?”

[Aigis] “Of course not. How could such a lovely guest be a nuisance?”

[Elizabeth] “Ah, but that reminds me. Miss Syner. Have we met somewhere before?”

Elizabeth turned and poked at Valentia. Valentia was a little bit shocked, but she quickly responded as naturally as she could.

[Valentia] “My apologies. I have not yet had the honor of entering the Imperial Palace, so I am certain this must be our first meeting. It is an honor to meet you, Princess.”

[Elizabeth] “That’s strange. I don’t recognize your face, but why do I feel like I’ve heard your name somewhere…..?”

[Lexus] “Eliza.”

[Elizabeth] “How is my brother doing at the Academy?”

[Valentia] “Of course, Lord Lexus is the envy of many students.”

[Elizabeth] “Don’t worry, I know everything. My brother is definitely not a good student like that.”

[Valentia] “Oh. I cannot best your wisdom, Princess.”

Elizabeth spoke with confidence, crossing her arms as she did, and she looked so cute that small smiles formed on the faces of everyone who heard her voice, chirping along.

However, with Elizabeth’s next words, everyone’s smiles quickly disappeared.

[Elizabeth] “Oh, I remember now!”

[Valentia] “What is it?”

[Elizabeth] “Syner! You’re the one who slapped my brother in the face!”

Lexus heaved a sigh and held his forehead in his hand again, hearing his sister shout such an uncouth thing. Valentia’s eyes also looked a little bewildered with how wide they were—clearly taken aback and unsure.

[Valentia] “I’m sorry, Princess.”

[Elizabeth] “No! I’m sure he had it coming, it was definitely all his fault! But you actually slapped him in the face! I love that! I haven’t even had the chance to do it yet!”

[Lexus] “Elizabeth.”

Reaching out to her, Lexus sternly said his sister’s name, but she completely ignored him. His feeble attempts at trying to get her to shut up could not stop her. Instead, her eyes were absolutely sparkling right now.

[Elizabeth] “Amazing. Tell me how it happened. He must’ve done something wrong, yes?”

[Lexus] “Eliza…..Do you really want to slap me in the face?”

[Elizabeth] “Obviously, you’re so annoying! Actually, I came here because I really wanted to meet you, Miss Syner. I was very curious to know what kind of person you were.”

With reddened cheeks and eyes brimming with admiration, there wasn’t even a hint of malice or anger in her expression.

[Aigis] “I don’t know if this is the time or place for that sort of story.”

[Elizabeth] “What do you mean?”

[Aigis] “This regards your honor as a lady as well. And this is not the sort of question a lady would ask.”

[Elizabeth] “I’m not technically a lady though, since I haven’t debuted yet.”

[Aigis] “You became a lady the moment you stepped into this place.”

[Elizabeth] “Really?”

This banquet was technically a gathering for the Academy. And because she was now one of the many attendees, this was a rather elegant way of saying that the Princess was now a young lady.

[Aigis] “Yes. You are a Princess who will be a beautiful point of reference for all other ladies to look up to and respect. Does that not make you want to be the best you can be?”

Aigis had a younger sister, so handling the young Princess was an easy task for her. She spoke so gently that Elizabeth got a coy look on her face.

[Elizabeth] “In that case, might you show me off a little bit, Miss Aigis?”

[Aigis] “Of course.”

Aigis turned her head back, sending a soft wink Lexus’ way. And he was a much more quick-witted Prince than others might assume, given his usual behavior.

[Lexus] “Let’s get out of here.”

[Valentia] “Sorry?”

He tilted his head down, whispering softly and sweetly into Valentia’s ear.

[Lexus] “I want to escape from here before my cute little sister gets the chance to chase us down.”

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T/N: (1) Elizabeth hasn’t debuted in society yet, which may explain why lower ranking nobles/commoner folk don’t know exactly what she looks like and may not recognize her.