The Queen Who Deserves To Be Tainted - Chapter 26.2

Marchioness Magnum simply wanted to push Elfreda to study harder. She had even fabricated reasons to force her to learn ancient Machi…

‘I never expected it would actually be useful…!’

This was a thought shared by both Elfreda and Marchioness Magnum. For the first time, Elfreda felt grateful towards Marchioness Magnum, while the Marchioness, inadvertently helping her, felt a strong desire to kick herself for her past actions.

She should have just kept that woman stupid! Elfreda, despite being a barbarian, had diligently learned the language, proving to be quite intelligent.

Marchioness Magnum couldn’t hide her embarrassment and took a deep breath. On the other hand, Illene’s expression hardened as she watched the Queen being insulted right in front of her.

Elfreda, however, seemed unfazed, which only fueled Illene’s frustration.

“Countess Wilburn, how dare you—”

“Well, just in case, I’ll study a bit more before the inauguration.”

Before the situation could escalate, Elfreda intervened appropriately. Illene, who had been about to confront Countess Wilburn, stared at her in confusion.

Elfreda, sensing her hesitation, smiled reassuringly before turning to Countess Wilburn.

“Thank you for your concern, Countess.”

“What? Oh, yes…”

Countess Wilburn, who was taken aback, responded clumsily, and Elfreda smiled brightly.

‘How unexpected.’

She wasn’t particularly hurt by the Countess’ description of her as a ‘foolish barbarian.’

After all, everyone in Machi, including the King, likely thought the same about the Makaeri. Such perceptions weren’t confined to Machi alone. Moreover, it was indeed illogical for a queen who didn’t know ancient Machi to be preparing for the library’s inauguration.

Elfreda smoothly shifted the topic.

“Countess Payson, are you helping the preparations for the king’s birthday celebration?”

“Yes? Oh, yes.”

“In just a few months, I’ll be relying on your assistance a lot as well. I don’t know much about His Majesty, so I’ll appreciate your help.”

Perhaps out of embarrassment or confusion, the atmosphere of the tea gathering relaxed significantly. No matter how much they disliked Elfreda, they couldn’t maintain their haughty silence after being caught insulting her in front of the Queen.

Elfreda thought it was fortunate and diligently continued the conversation. Thanks to her efforts, the tea gathering went quite well despite some awkwardness, and Elfreda ended the event on a friendly note.

“Thank you so much for coming today. Since this is my first time meeting all of you, I prepared a small gift, I hope you like it.”

Elfreda had prepared a tea set adorned with traditional Machi patterns.

Taking Illene’s advice that tea sets were currently in vogue among the social elite, she had carefully chosen this gift. Although she described it as something small, the tea cups were quite elegant.

When the noblewomen opened the box, a flicker of surprise crossed their faces. They were concerned about the lingering influence of Machi. Furthermore, since the cups bore traditional designs, it would be difficult for them to discard them.

Despite the fact that the noblewomen left with somewhat sour expressions, Elfreda remained composed, showing no signs of disappointment as she bid them farewell.

“You worked really hard today, Your Majesty. You did wonderfully!”

After everyone had departed, Ilene hugged Elfreda tightly in encouragement. However, a moment later, a complaint arose.

“But, why did you let Countess Wilburn go? For her to act so rudely to Your Majesty is an act that deserves punishment according to the law.”

“I’m just grateful that everyone came. I know how hard you worked to arrange this, so I can’t act recklessly.”

“But what if other noblewomen take your kindness for granted and behave even more rudely?”

“Well, no matter how I act, they won’t think well of me anyway.”

Ilene felt hurt by Elfreda’s resigned tone. It was true, and she knew that even Lady Wilburn wouldn’t feel any gratitude towards Elfreda after today’s events.

‘They probably think they just got lucky this time.’

Ilene firmly grasped Elfreda’s hand and said with determination.

“I think well of you. So please stay strong, Your Majesty.”

“Thank you, Ilene. Today was all thanks to you.”

What a scene.

Marchioness Magnum glared at the two from a distance, her expression clearly displeased.