After the trial, Westalia hurried back to the Archaites Empire as Westalia Lejainne. It had taken a lot of time and effort, but she had finally regained her true name.
Delphine was sentenced to death by poison for her many crimes. Lily, on the other hand, was only expelled from high society after petitions from her admirers came in from all over the place.
For Lily, it might be hell just to live with the loss of her credibility, Westalia thought. Lily had a strong desire for the approval of others above all else and needed to be liked and recognized. The loss of the position she had built up over the years must have been quite hard on her. She would probably be scorned, ridiculed, and criticized instead of adored by people, and she would have to suffer for the first time in her life.
Westalia returned to the Archaites Empire and first and foremost submitted a new personal statement. She stated that the name she had submitted her candidacy under, Cordata, was a fake name and that her real name was Westalia Lejainne. She was prepared to be punished in some way, but she wasn’t, either because of the circumstances that had led up to this point or because of Leonardo’s help.
“How would you like to accessorize today?”
“What kind of hair style and ornamentation would you like?”
“Would you like to wear perfume?”
The house was suddenly bustling with activity, as Westalia had hired several new ladies’ maids, cooks, and servants. She missed the days when she and Paige lived alone together in the sprawling mansion.
“I’m going to the hunting festival today, so I’ll leave it up to you all to decide what I should wear,” Westalia said as she sat in front of her mirror.
“Very well,” her ladies’ maids answered in unison. They chose a shirt and a pair of slacks for ease of movement and did her hair up in a simple bun.
She would finally be seeing Leonardo again after a long time apart. She’d been counting down the days. Needless to say, she was very excited, and she had been practicing her bow in order to surprise him. And today she was finally going to tell him that she was Westalia, whom he’d met so long ago when she’d been hidden away. Although, she got the sense that maybe he already knew that.