The Queen Who Deserves To Be Tainted - Chapter 33.2

The nobles, who had prepared their reactions for a disastrous speech, were left at a loss, staring in disbelief, unsure of what to do next.

—Clap, clap, clap.

Then, a slow, heavy clap broke the silence.

As everyone turned toward the sound, they saw Ejnar standing a little distance from Elfreda. Though his face was expressionless, he was clapping slowly, almost as if he were smiling. Seeing Ejnar’s silent applause, the elderly scholars from the Academy began to clap along.

Soon, those nearby joined in, and the thunderous sound of applause filled the spacious hall like a roar.

Elfreda finally felt her tension ease, her body nearly going limp though she gathered her strength, standing tall and smiling as she accepted the applause.

Just as she was about to return to Ejnar’s side…

“Ah…”

Her legs weakened slightly, and in that moment, Ejnar approached her like a mirage and escorted her.

Thanks to him, she managed not to appear foolish in front of all those people.

Elfreda looked at Ejnar in surprise as if asking how he had anticipated that. He chuckled softly and replied in a teasing voice,

“My queen is high-maintenance.”

Her face flushed with embarrassment, and Ejnar, sensing it, refrained from teasing her further as he led her to their seats. With her speech successfully completed, Elfreda felt all her tension melt away. It felt as though she might fall asleep at any moment, but she focused her energy to stay awake.

Ejnar found her determination amusing and couldn’t help but watch her closely.

“You look awful.”

He made an excuse in a voice that only Elfreda could hear. Her face turned a deep shade of red, and as a result, any lingering sleepiness vanished.

* * *

The opening ceremony of the library concluded successfully.

Elfreda leaned against Illene’s shoulder and dozed off during the carriage ride back to the palace. She barely opened her eyes when they arrived, catching a glimpse of Illene’s proud expression through her slightly dazed vision.

“We’ve arrived, Your Majesty. It’s time to get down.”

Elfreda accepted Illene’s escort and stepped down. Throughout their journey to the Solar Palace, Illene’s enthusiastic praise didn’t cease.

“You were truly magnificent today. How could you speak so fluently?”

However, Elfreda’s expression didn’t look good compared to the achievement of the day. In fact, she appeared somewhat downcast, but Illene assumed it was simply exhaustion and dismissed it.

“Did you see the looks on their faces? They were stunned as if they couldn’t believe how well you did! Watching their astonishment was so satisfying! To be fair, you spoke as if you had memorized the entire speech.”

“I did memorize it.”

“Huh?”

Illene’s expression turned blank at the unexpected response. Elfreda smiled faintly and repeated herself.

“I did memorize it, Illene. I memorized every line from the first to the last.”

“Why go that far…?”

“I’ll explain the reason now.”

Elfreda stepped into the Solar Palace with cold, steely eyes. Marchioness Magnum stood rigidly, waiting for her, as always, her eyes filled with disapproval directed at Elfreda.

At first glance, one might assume that the Marchioness was simply displeased with Elfreda’s performance today, which would be understandable. However, Illene couldn’t shake off the peculiar atmosphere surrounding Elfreda, nor the fact that she had insisted on memorizing the entire speech.

This led her to form a hypothesis.

‘…Could it be?’

As Illene silently gasped, covering her mouth in shock, Elfreda returned to the room and took a seat in a plush armchair, fixing her gaze on the Marchioness.

Marchioness Magnum met Elfreda’s stare with a blank expression, concealing her true feelings.

Without bothering with formalities, Elfreda immediately asked,

“Who handed me the speech earlier?”

“….”

“Marchioness Magnum.”

Under her insistence, the Marchioness reluctantly gestured to the maid in question. The maid hesitated, looking flustered, but ultimately stepped forward in silence.

Elfreda looked at her with a cold gaze and spoke.

“Your name.”

“Kasina Reddington.”

“Kasina Reddington, explain yourself.”

Elfreda interrogated her with a face as cold as her piercing eyes.

“Who instructed you to give me that speech?”