9. Rosa Wants to Avoid Flags (3)
W-what does this mean?
Rosa was confused.
After all, even though she made sure to arrive more than an hour earlier than the appointed time, the tea party was already about to begin.
I ended up joining the tea party! What of my plan to destroy the flowerbeds…!?
Indeed. Rosa had thought of sneaking into the garden before the opening ceremony to pluck off the flowers that Queen Dorothea was so proud of.
While vandalizing the queen’s property was considered a grave offense, but stealing the flowers wasn’t, apparently.
Rosa had made a serious consideration.
She had to carry out an act that was barely punishable by law, but as close to a crime as possible.
Rosa was oddly serious, and she was determined to achieve more than her mentor, Anton, had hoped.
…Actually, she could just pluck them off right in front of the queen after the start of the tea party, but she heard that the queen always had muscular pages attending to her. Rosa was wary that the pages might thwart her plan.
Therefore, before the organizer, Chris, could arrive, Rosa intended to execute her plan by arriving at the venue first.
Who would’ve guessed that instead of taking the initiative, she was on the verge of being late?
As she was about to reach the venue, she was confused about the voices coming from there. Then, when she emerged from the darkness of the construction site, she was greeted by the sight of all the other ladies perfectly seated around the table.
Suffice to say, her surprise was extraordinary.
So, going to the venue an hour earlier is the etiquette of the royal castle…!? Wow, I have no clue at all. I guess my manners are indeed flawed…
Of course, there was no such etiquette, as this only happened because Queen’s plan to delay Rosa’s arrival by an hour conflicted with Rosa’s plan to sneak in an hour early to vandalize her garden.
Oblivious to that, Rosa was once again filled with anxiety, thinking that the etiquette of the royal castle was more complicated than she expected.
Will I be able to breach etiquette at this rate…?
—No, be confident, Rosa.
Considering that you’re late to the party, you’re off to a good start.
Also, while everyone is dressed somberly, I’m the only one with mourning clothes and a flower on her head!
Rosa quickly glanced around the table as Chris offered her a seat.
According to the preliminary information, all the ladies will be wearing magnificent attires, and some would even shape her hair into a boat, while decorating her entire body with bird feathers.
—And yet there was no one who fit such a description among the ladies. At least none that she saw.
If anything, their outfits matched that of Rosa.
Their dresses were modest in color, but each one had a unique design, and their hair was neatly tied up and adorned with dainty jewels.
Speaking of which, Rosa once visited the monastery in this outfit. Even the honey-tongued director averted his gaze from her, saying, “I can’t bear to look at you directly.”
Therefore, Rosa was confident in her shabby appearance.
Furthermore, despite wearing a mourning dress, she had a flower on her head, as if she was about to attend a wedding. As if that wasn’t enough, the flower came from the small rose garden at the back of the venue.
Roses were tucked away amidst the sea of moonlight tuberoses that made the garden, so Rosa happily picked them.
Immediately after that, she accidentally came across the tea party, and as a result, she could only steal one.
—But it’s stealing nonetheless, so it’s fine!
Now, it was simply the matter of when to hint at her crime to the queen.
This should be a good start—
—Isn’t that so, Uncle…!?
Rosa secretly glanced at Anton and saw that he was smiling unnaturally, which confused her.
What does that expression mean?
Everyone was at a loss for words, and Chris even said, “You’re the poorest.” So, there should be no problem.
“By the way, Rosa, what happened to the dress we prepared for you?”
When Rosa headed for her seat, Leon asked out of curiosity.
Rosa flashed the widest, nastiest smile as if she had been waiting for that question all along.
“It didn’t suit me, so I sold it. Afterwards, I used the money to fund literary classes at the monastery!”
Ta-da! (Rosa)
Without consulting her patrons, she sold their gift without permission because she didn’t like it.
Which is absolutely inhumane—! (Rosa)
When she looked around with confidence, she could see that everyone was holding their breath in shock.
Inwardly, Rosa made a fist pump.
But,
—Hey! Did you listen properly to Her Majesty the Queen’s speech just now!? Why are you proving her points!? (Anton)
Rosa was the only one who was confident of her victory, and in reality, everyone was deeply moved by Rosa’s points.
Realizing that, Anton screamed internally.
Unlike the rest of the ladies, who were simply abstaining from luxury for the time being, Rosa outright sold her gorgeous dress to aid the poor.
Based on that, one could easily see why Rosa came out on top.
Normally, Rosa would be criticized for selling the dress without permission, but after the queen gave a speech about how ‘only a vain lady would attract attention by wearing a flashy dress,’ Rosa ended up being praised for her act.
—Also, what’s with that downcast smile!? (Anton)
Yes, the way she knitted her eyebrows while awkwardly smiling made it seem as if she was saying, “Fancy dresses don’t suit me.” In a self-deprecating manner.
There should be a limit to how clueless one could be! (Anton)
Impatient, Anton quickly set out to follow up.
“My comrade, Father Matthias, may God bless you today as well. Please take a seat.”
Anton raised his voice a little and offered Father Matthias, who stood near the queen, a seat.
His poor co-worker, who was suddenly caught in the crossfire, was rooted on the spot. At Anton’s offer, he gladly took a seat, his gaze full of gratitude.
“God bless you.”
With all the guests seated, the queen had no choice but to start the tea party.
The flow of the scene changed, and the discussion about the dress was temporarily postponed.
“…Welcome to my tea party. All of you here are people who my daughter takes care of on a daily basis. As her mother, I’d like to thank you from the bottom of my heart. Please relax and enjoy the dazzling winter flowers and fragrant tea.”
Addressing both tables, Dorothea delivered her greeting as the host.
As one would expect from the woman who gave birth to Leon and Chris, her beauty was so mesmerizing that it was hard to believe she was a mother of two.
Her voice was firm, yet had a tinge of luster to it.
Her solemn dress only served to accentuate her curvaceous figure, alluring jade eyes, and plump lips.
—Indeed, neither the virtuous rose nor the pure lily suited her; only the moonlight tuberose, which bloomed with its intoxicating fragrance.
From here on, the men and women were divided and chatted for a while until they finished their planned stroll through the garden.
Pages with handsome faces that suited the queen’s preferences elegantly brewed tea as conversations began to occur at the table.
“Oh my, what a delicate tea cake this is! Is this a new product from the Schultz Workshop?”
“What keen eyes, Petronella. I expect no less from a girl who hailed in the royal capital. I had it custom-made with authentic flower petals so you can savor the blossoms.”
“How wonderful, Your Majesty the Queen! We can now admire and taste the flowers!”
“While the royal capital has everything, the only drawback is that there aren’t many flowers in the winter. Well, unless you live in the countryside. Still, with these sweets, no longer will the royal capital lack anything. Don’t you think so?”
The part about the countryside was probably a mockery of Rosa, who had a flower in her hair.
The fun-loving queen, Dorothea, had been attending tea parties and evening galas every day, so her attitude as a host was also on point.
By choosing her topic and minutely adjusting her facial expressions, Dorothea reigned over the atmosphere.
Dorothea didn’t even need to say anything directly, because her lively conversation with certain young ladies already did it for her.
Unable to bear it, Chris tried to call her out on it, but the queen easily dismissed him, not giving Rosa any opportunity to join the conversation.
Within ten minutes, Dorothea had established that Petronella was an urbane lady and the queen’s favorite, whereas Rosa was a country girl from the frontier.
Meanwhile, at the men’s table, the men raised their eyebrows at her blatant harassment of Rosa.
Leon, in particular, was furious when he saw someone precious to him, whom he invited with good intentions, continued to be ignored.
“She’s also indebted to Rosa, so what in the world is she doing…?”
“What’s with her? Hey, Prince, why don’t we join her at the table over there instead of waiting for her to take a stroll amidst the garden? I can’t bear to watch it. I want to take Rosa out of that place.”
Ladu also seemed uncomfortable.
What a strange coincidence! I can’t stand looking at it either, and I want to take Rosa away right now…! (Anton)
—And next to them, Anton’s smiling face twitched.
Of course, he wanted to take Rosa away for an entirely different reason.
…After all,
“Look, Rosa is keeping her head up, silently enduring the roundabout mockery. …Damn, it’s painful for me to see her like that.”
Rosa, don’t tell me you’re still trying to put up a difficult front, adamantly refusing to participate in the conversation? (Anton)
Rosa had intended to play the role of an unsociable girl, but the combination of her ephemeral beauty and the situation made her look like an independent woman braving adversity.
“That girl called Petronella recommended what looks like black tea mixed with sludge to Rosa, saying that it was good for beauty—eh!? She drank it! Rosa, are you okay…!?”
Oi, oi, oi! In this situation, even if you confidently chug that crap down, it still won’t be considered a breach of etiquette—!? If anything, it just seems as if you’re bravely confronting hostility!? (Anton)
As part of the harassment, Rosa was offered a bizarre kombucha (made by adding sugar and fermenting black tea), but she resolutely drank it despite Chris’ warning.
“She’s holding her mouth and shaking…! Was it that disgusting!? Could it be poisonous…!?”
—You’re enjoying it, aren’t you!? (Anton)
Rosa’s eyes watered and twitched because of how much she enjoyed it. Perhaps because her tastes were rotten, Rosa loved fermented foods.
Rosa was garnering the sympathy and admiration of her surroundings like breathing.
What are you doing!? Now you’re just this optimistic and beautiful girl who doesn’t bow down to harassment! Stop with that angel nonsense!! (Anton)
Inwardly, Anton was tearing his hair out.
He was so busy retorting that he didn’t get to admire the girls’ tea party…
Looking at Rosa, not only the prince, Chris, and the healer, but also the young ladies, who used to be neutral, began to pity Rosa.
Anton leaned forward to somehow rectify the situation, but—
“Anyway, Antony, my comrade, your face always makes me feel the grace of God… But now that I think about it, don’t you resemble someone…?”
He was shocked when Matthias, who was sitting next to him, tilted his head curiously.
Despite being a priest, Father Matthias was a veteran nobleman who held the rank of earl.
In other words, apart from the queen, with whom he had little contact due to her high status, Father Matthias was the only person in this place who knew the face of Lily Pig Anton.
Although Anton was in a position where he was well-received as Father Anthony of the Church of St. Julia, if his true nature was exposed, he’d be expelled in an instant.
Furthermore, Matthias was one of the strictest priests when it came to women’s chastity and sexual morality.
…In fact, when the scandal of Lily Pig Anton was discovered, it was Matthias who urged him to burn the yuri novel and threw him into that squalid monastery.
Those harrowing, lily-less days were forever etched in his mind. No matter where he looked, there were only men to be found.
At the very least, he wanted to avoid having his true nature discovered at this tea party and being forced into that monastery again.
He couldn’t afford to be so fixated on Rosa that he neglected taking measures in that particular area.
When will this end…!? (Anton)
While Anton was nervous about his conversation with Matthias, the situation continued to worsen.
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