Sigrid Novel Chapter 151

Marie-Chez stared blankly into the box with her mouth open.

Click.

She closed the box and then opened it again.

"This, this—"

"Do you like it?" Sigrid asked cautiously.

Marie-Chez closed her mouth and then exclaid:

"Of course I do! Oh my goodness! Wow! What is this?! Sigrid Ankertna!"

Watching Marie-Chez squeal and twirl around as if dancing, Sigrid felt relieved.

"I'm glad you like it."

Marie-Chez carefully placed the box on the table and took out the tiara inside. Then she slowly approached the window.

Under the streaming sunlight, the tiara shone brilliantly. The sapphire set in the center was exactly the sa color as Marie-Chez's eyes.

"Arkana made it. It's made from the leftover diamonds from cutting the one you gave us, and we sourced the sapphire. I don't know much about it, but the cutting is different from others, and he used magic to change the reflection angles to make it sparkle more."

Sigrid rembered how Marie-Chez had envied Lowengrin's tiara. Marie-Chez silently turned the tiara slowly under the light.

The countless reflections made it feel as if they were standing by a sunlit lakeside. The gems seed to emit light themselves. Marie-Chez lightly placed it on her head and turned to look at Sigrid.

"How does it look?"

"Like the goddess of dawn."

Sigrid said emphatically. Marie-Chez bead at those words. She carefully lowered the tiara with both hands and placed it back in the box. Then she rushed over and hugged Sigrid tightly.

"Thank you so much. I love you, Siri."

"This is nothing. For Marie, anything."

Marie-Chez laughed again at Sigrid's words. She lightly rested her forehead on Sigrid's shoulder, then pulled away and said:

"You're too good a friend for ."

"Not at all."

Sigrid raised her eyebrows, saying "What are you talking about?" and Marie-Chez smiled gently and released her arms.

"Really. Thank you, Siri. And let's be friends forever."

"Of course."

At Sigrid's words, Marie-Chez hugged her tightly once more before letting go.

"Oh right, look at . Would you like sothing to drink? Please, have a seat first."

As Marie-Chez spoke hurriedly, Sigrid sat down and said:

"I'll leave it up to you, Marie."

"Alright, then—"

Marie-Chez asked a maid to bring so warm tea. Even though it was spring, it was still chilly, so sothing warm would be better.

While waiting for the tea to arrive, Marie-Chez sat down and asked:

"I heard you ca up with Prince Awen?"

"Yes."

"Alkerto seed to like him."

"Would it be alright for him to attend the wedding?"

After thinking for a mont, Marie-Chez nodded readily.

"Yes, that's fine."

"That's a relief."

"I hear he's been focusing on magic lately?"

At Marie-Chez's question, Sigrid asked seriously:

"How do you know such news? Has soone planted a spy in our mansion?"

"Oh my? It seems Prince Awen wrote a letter to His Majesty himself. Saying he's learning magic these days."

"Really?"

"Yes. It's a clear declaration of his lack of interest in the throne."

How does that follow? After pondering for a mont, Sigrid nodded.

"He does seem uninterested."

"Well, it's not such a simple matter to judge..."

Marie-Chez tilted her head and then shrugged. Whatever the case, no noble would want to upset the Ankertna County at present.

There shouldn't be any attacks over Awen's issue. Conversely, Awen shouldn't be attacked either.

Unless it's by the Emperor himself. And the Emperor going against Sigrid?

Even Marie-Chez, who wasn't interested in politics, knew that would be foolish.

"Anyway, there's no problem with him attending the wedding. I'll have a seat reserved for him in the VIP section."

Sigrid nodded at Marie-Chez's words. A maid entered with the tea. Marie-Chez poured tea into Sigrid's cup.

As she savored the warm tea, Sigrid listened attentively to the news Marie-Chez shared. Having been out of touch with the capital, everything she heard was new to her.

"I see. So the Western Alliance has moved quite far into the center."

"Yes, Lord Mihas even attended a party."

"Really? Utulu?"

Sigrid gaped, and Marie-Chez nodded.

"Of course, he couldn't stay away from the west for long, so he didn't linger in the center. But that man was really huge... Like an enormous bear..."

At Marie-Chez's words, Sigrid said, "Right? I was envious," leaving Marie-Chez at a loss for words. After a mont of silence, Marie-Chez waved her hand.

"Anyway, it was amazing. How did you manage to win a duel against such a giant?"

"I got lucky," Sigrid answered modestly.

Marie-Chez said, "Beating a bear in a fight and calling it luck, that's ridiculous," and continued:

"He was quite popular among married won."

"Huh??"

"Lord Mihas, I an. Though he seed to be suppressing his irritation."

Marie-Chez shrugged.

"Married won..."

Sigrid opened her mouth and then closed it. She still couldn't get used to high society.

While Sigrid was listening to such exciting stories, Beramund was hearing a not-so-exciting tale.

Beramund lay sprawled on a long couch, propping his upper body on a cushion with one arm dangling, his chin resting on the other hand, staring blankly at Serios.

"So what do you think?"

At Serios's question, Beramund replied frankly:

"Pardon , Your Majesty, but didn't I retire from politics?"

"What retirent?"

Beramund groaned and hugged the cushion with both arms, turning his body to stare at the ceiling.

"What do you think?"

At Beramund's question, Serios plopped down in a chair near Beramund's head and said:

"The conditions don't seem bad. To be honest, the conservative nobles in the east are a concern, but they can't make a fuss about the south right now. There are fools investing in the south, looking for mines after Lord Danem's success."

"I see."

Beramund nodded and smiled.

"The magical beasts in the south will all disappear."

He muttered softly and then said:

"Let them invest freely. In the anti, the western nobles will move up, but they seem blinded by the diamonds in front of them."

"That would be good."

Serios nodded and then asked cautiously:

"By the way, Beramund."

"Yes?"

"Are you really not going to accept a title?"

"I don't need one."

"Then what can I do for you?"

"Being a good emperor is enough."

"You're asking for sothing difficult."

"Ah, and it would be nice if you took my side when I'm at a disadvantage."

Serios chuckled at those words. Beramund sat up on the couch.

"Oh, how's that slum project going?"

"Huh? Oh, it seems to be progressing surprisingly well. The Ankertna family and other high nobles have shown quite a bit of support."

"I see. But it can't be easy."

"Surprisingly, there's strong internal opposition."

"Among the poor?"

"Yes. They say it's a useless endeavor. Of course, ordinary poor people are happy about it, but it's the thugs who rule those areas."

"Ah."

"We'll have to sweep them away."

Serios said coldly, and Beramund replied, "Make sure to distinguish between them," then continued:

"I'm glad things seem to be going well for you."

Serios grinned at Beramund's words.

"At least I don't have to worry every night about soone coming to slit my throat."

"I see. How's Lucy?"

"I'm not saying this because she's my daughter, but she's really adorable. Just watching her walk, I can tell she'll be a beauty. She's absolutely gorgeous, I tell you. You should have one soon too."

"Am I the one giving birth?"

"Well, that's true."

Serios recalled rumors about female knights and infertility but had the discretion not to voice them.

Beramund stood up and said:

"Well, I should go see my cousin sister."

Referring to Erial, Serios quickly got up and said:

"I'll co with you."

"What about your work?"

"One day is fine. Let's go."

Serios wanted to show off his daughter personally.

In the end, Beramund listened to Serios boast about his daughter until Erial pushed him out, yelling "Enough already!" Only then could Beramund return ho with a light heart.

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Lowengrin, lightly stepping down from the carriage while holding Hatien's hand, said "Oh my?" as she saw Morris getting out of the carriage behind her.

"Did you get a new carriage?"

"A promotion gift from Sigrid. Hello."

After briefly answering Lowengrin, Morris politely greeted Hatien. Lowengrin chuckled as she looked at Morris's carriage.

"Should I say it's both like her and unlike her?"

The jet-black carriage emphasized practicality over extravagance. Even so, the intricate carvings on the wheels, doors, and seats clearly showed it was by no ans a cheap item. Soone with a discerning eye would recognize that the black color of the carriage was the natural color of untreated wood.

It was a carriage made of blackwood, said to deflect arrows. A material used to make battle chariots.

"It's unlike Siri to gift a carriage, but it's very like her that the carriage is sturdy enough to withstand battle."

Morris replied with a smile. Hatien grinned and said:

"Shall we go in then? We should enter early since we have front seats."

"Alright. Then Morris, we'll see you inside."

"Sure."

Morris waved lightly.

The wedding venue was splendid. It was decorated in a girlish style, according to Marie-Chez's taste. Large but not excessive lace decorations were interspersed with fresh flowers, giving the impression of spring.

Morris glanced around the venue briefly before heading straight to et the groom. The waiting room was quiet, with only Alkerto pacing back and forth nervously.

"Alkerto."

"Morris."

Alkerto replied in a voice that sounded as if he were being strangled.

"What's this? You sound like a new recruit heading to the battlefield."

When Morris teased him, Alkerto said, "That's how I feel," and fiddled with his cravat.

"What are you saying on your wedding day?"

As Morris laughed, Alkerto whispered in a low voice:

"What if my family does sothing ridiculous? What if they do sothing to fall out of favor with the Count's family? Or if they upset Marie? Or what if Marie suddenly changes her mind and doesn't show up at the venue?"

"That's not going to happen."

At Morris's words, Alkerto groaned and said:

"Still, could you check for ?"

"If the bride has arrived?"

"No, no. I an, check if my family is dressed properly. They look fine to , and the servants said they look okay, but I'm curious how they'd look to a noble."

Morris nodded willingly. It would be better to check once than to have Alkerto enter the venue in this state.

Morris left the room to check on the groom's family.

"Hello. I'm Morris Deforest, Alkerto's friend."

At those words, the children stood up abruptly as if at a military inspection.

"Oh, hello. Lord Deforest, I'm Rudi Danem, Alkerto's first sister. Hello. It's nice to et you."

"No need to be so tense."

As Morris replied gently, Rudi barely managed to nod.

"Y-yes."

Morris examined the family's attire. There wasn't anything particularly wrong with their appearance. The problem was that they were just too nervous, like Alkerto.

"Why is everyone standing?"

Hearing a familiar voice from the doorway, Morris turned around happily.

"Si, ri..."

"Morris, you're already here?"

As it was her friend's wedding, Sigrid had her hair up and was wearing a beautiful dress. Morris felt breathless. And he felt foolish for still feeling breathless. He exhaled and spoke, choosing an ordinary complint a friend could give:

"The dress really suits you."

"Thank you. You look handso today too, Morris."

Sigrid walked in gracefully and smiled at Rudi, saying:

"Have you been well?"

"Countess Ankertna..."

Upon seeing a familiar face, Rudi struggled to hold back tears that threatened to spill. At the sa ti, she was reminded that the person before her was a high-ranking noble. Unlike her usual attire of trousers, Sigrid in a dress clearly showed that she was a noblewoman.

"Is Alkerto inside?"

"Yes. Where's Beramund?"

"He's talking about sothing with Hatien."

"I see."

Morris nodded and turned to Rudi again, saying:

"Please relax. And it's okay to make mistakes. an people will find faults no matter what, so don't worry."

"Find faults? Who?"

Sigrid frowned.

"Not everyone in high society is an ally."