Chapter 9:
The Future Duchess Attends the Academy
TIME PASSED BY very quickly after my social debut, and before I knew it, there was less than a month before I would start at the academy. My days had been very busy since my debut, visiting various nobles I had met at the party.
First, I went to Count Dranbaldt’s, then visited the houses of Count Caldina, Count Danas, Marquis Marea, Marquis Dungley, Marquis Filis, Marquis Rudolph, Count Telrose, and even more on top of those… Eventually, I went to visit every single person who had invited me at the banquet.
Actually, going around to all their homes made it easy for me to see who got along with who and to learn about the various power structures within the upper class. It was also highly advantageous to me because I got to hear gossip about each family’s businesses and the states of their financial affairs. But, of course, there was no telling how much truth was in the rumors, so I had to take everything with a grain of salt.
Anyway, I realized that the wives were very sensitive to all kinds of information. Tea parties and other fetes were valuable sources of knowledge in high society. I didn’t want all these connections I made to wither on the vine, so I planned to visit them again before I left for the academy. This time, I took the initiative and invited them all to my house.
However, planning to host an event yourself was incredibly nerve-racking. An event was an opportunity to show off your skills as a hostess. If it was boring, guests might leave unhappy and you’d be branded as a boorish person with no style whatsoever. After such a failure, you’d be lucky if anyone showed up at your future events at all.
I labored for hours, trying to figure out what kind of event I should have. I just attended a ball at someone else’s house… I could have a banquet, but that was the least interesting option…although it could be the safest choice. I started making a list of things to remember for the event.
I ran out of paper and started rifling around in my desk to see if there was anything else to write on, and I finally found one more piece. I opened it up and noticed an address on it. It was the note the opera singer Brittany had given me—the girl I helped back at that village. It just so happened that I was just wondering what she was up to lately as well.
Right then, there was a knock at the door, and Anna entered my room. She expertly made me a cup of tea and set it down on my desk.
“Thank you, Anna. By the way, do you remember that opera singer, Brittany?”
“Yes, of course. Speaking of which, my lady, the last time I was in town shopping, I coincidentally saw that the opera troupe she belongs to is in the capital.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, the troupe is called Étoile.”
“Étoile?!” I shouted, jumping to my feet.
Anna blinked at me, startled by my reaction.
“That’s a famous opera troupe! It’s new, but it’s very highly regarded.”
At that time, it was probably one of the most famous opera troupes in the capital. Despite having less of a history, it was so popular that it was almost impossible to get seats.
“That’s right… That’s it! I’ll ask Brittany if she’ll come perform at my fete! Thank you, Anna!”
It was quite common for nobles to ask popular singers or musicians to perform at private events. People got tired of attending the same old tea parties and banquets over and over again, so it was important to make your event stand out.
I genuinely did want to see Étoile perform, so I immediately dashed a letter off to Brittany.
Preparations for my event continued. I sent out invitations, and before I knew it, the day of the party was here. I wore another dress made by Madame Crejours as I greeted my guests. At first, I thought maybe it was inappropriate to host the event all by myself, but since I was the only lady in House Anderson, I didn’t have much choice. Father was also here to help greet my guests, though.
“Welcome, Countess Caldina!” He greeted the first guest to show up.
“My… It’s nice to see you, General Gazell. And thank you so much for inviting me here today, Lady Merellis. Did I arrive too early? I was just so excited to come that perhaps I got carried away!”
“Not at all! I’m not sure if I’ll be able to live up to your expectations, but I’ll do my best to make sure everyone has a lovely time.”
“He he. Oh, don’t be so modest! This really is amazing, though—I can’t believe Brittany from Étoile will be here! I’d expect nothing less from you, Lady Merellis!” Countess Dranbaldt looked positively over the moon with excitement.
“Oh, things just fell into place! I’m really looking forward to her performance as well!”
I wasn’t aware of it until after I got back in contact with her, but apparently Brittany was Étoile’s star singer. I’d all but given up on her coming and thought it was asking too much, but she responded by saying, “I’d love to come perform at the Anderson mansion if that will be helpful to Mer.”
Brittany was already on stand by, waiting to perform. I tried to suppress my excitement about her act and busied myself with greeting my guests. Once everyone had arrived, the party began.
Father gave a speech, and then it was time to enjoy Brittany’s singing. She gave a passionate performance of a scene from a popular opera. Her voice was so overwhelming and beautiful, one had to wonder how such a grand sound could come from such a small body.
But most of all, she sang with such intensity—even though she was only singing a part of the opera, we were all drawn into the story.
Once she was finished singing, everyone rose to their feet and gave her a standing ovation. The audience continued clapping even after she excused herself from the room. I could tell by the looks on my guests’ faces that my event was a success, and it was all thanks to Brittany. Now, the rest would be up to me. I’d be on my own as I went around to the various guests.
Now that the performance was over, I invited everyone into the salon.
“Brittany’s performance was just superb!”
Everyone was talking about what we all just watched.
“It certainly was! I had tears running down my cheeks!”
“This opera is apparently her first starring role! You certainly wouldn’t think that, hearing her sing!”
The ladies were all abuzz as they sipped their tea, talking about Brittany.
“By the way, Lady Merellis—I heard you’ll be going off to the academy soon?”
“Yes, that’s right. I probably won’t be able to see you all for a while.”
“Oh, that’s a shame.”
“That’s kind of you to say.”
“Isn’t Prince Edgar entering the academy this year as well?”
“Yes, that’s right! Everyone’s very curious about this year’s new students!”
“Especially since Prince Edgar isn’t engaged yet! We’re all wondering if he’ll fall in love with someone at school!”
“Oh, is that right? I didn’t know that,” I said, even though I did know that, obviously.
“Well, of course you didn’t! After all, you already have a lovely fiancé.”
“That’s right. If I were younger, I would be beside myself with jealousy that you have a fiancé like Lord Louis!”
“Goodness!”
Everyone tittered at that. We all chatted about various things for a while, and all of my guests left with satisfied smiles on their faces.
My first time playing hostess had been a grand success!