The selection for empress was in its final stage; however, there was a clear difference in the number of artificial flowers that the two candidates had managed to accumulate in their storerooms. Westalia’s remained empty, while Elizabeth’s was full to bursting. Even under such dire circumstances, Westalia remained calm, happily making flowers by hand on the terrace of the garden attached to her rooms, together with the girls from the factory who had now become her ladies’ maids. She kept a watchful eye on the girls to make sure their presence wasn’t noticed outside of her residence.
“It’s done! What do you think? It looks good, doesn’t it?” one of the girls said.
“It’s passable,” Westalia replied.
“Huh? Wow, harsh!”
“Speak politely, please.”
“Okaaay. Do you think this is enough to win against your rival?”
“Yes, I think so.”
The girls surrounding Westalia on the terrace were making a lot of noise. It was a common occurrence. Even though they said Westalia was unfriendly, she’d grown quite attached to the girls. Their artificial flowers left a lot to be desired, but they would still be included in the final tally.
Westalia placed the completed flower in a box at her feet and let out a small sigh. The gardens were meticulously cared for by the gardeners, with seasonal flowers planted in the flower beds and the bushes trimmed into neat shapes. Each breath of fresh air entering her body made her feel refreshed.
Paige appeared on the terrace and slammed her hand down on the white table, making the flower-making tools resting there bounce into the air. The girls followed the movement with confused looks on their faces.
“Westalia, are you still making fake flowers?!” Paige cried. “Trying to escape from reality doesn’t change the actual reality!”
“Call it a creative exploration, not an escape from reality. Besides, I’m not going to be making any more.”
“What you need to be doing is concentrating on coming up with a strategy to win the empress selection. Wait, you said you’re going to stop?!”
“You’re being quite loud. And yes, I’ve grown bored of it.”
“You’re...bored of it?”
Westalia stood up from her chair, put away the tools that were spread across the table, and then picked up the box of flowers from near her feet.
“Shall we go claim our victory?”
“W-Wait a minute! What do you mean?!” Paige asked, bewildered, as she followed behind Westalia to her storeroom.
“Has Lady Westalia lost the will to compete? This is as good as conceding defeat.”
“From the very start she had no chance of winning. She was up against the Reyn family, after all.”
“But still, this isn’t right! With only a month left until the final count, she has zero pieces in her storeroom! Is she making fun of the sacred empress selection?”
The two knights in charge of guarding Westalia’s storeroom sighed in dismay. Elizabeth’s room was filled with artificial flowers, while Westalia’s remained empty. The wind blowing in through the windows only stirred up a cloud of dust. The people of Le Chantier Palace had initially had high hopes for Westalia, who had been the talk of the town with her great comeback story, but their enthusiasm had waned to almost nothing over the past six months.
“I have no intention of losing.”
“Lady Westalia! You heard...” The knights paled. Both men had been so engrossed in gossiping that they had failed to notice Westalia and Paige’s arrival.
“If you’re going to gossip, you shouldn’t do it somewhere so public,” Westalia said.
“Please forgive us!” both knights said in unison.
Westalia ignored the apology and handed the large wooden box she’d brought over to the knights. Inside were the artificial wisteria flowers that she’d been diligently making. Westalia’s servants, along with Paige, followed suit, handing over the boxes of handmade artificial flowers that they’d made over the past six months. Even so, it wasn’t enough to fill the room. Like the knights, Westalia’s own servants were skeptical of her confident attitude.
Then Elizabeth, accompanied by her attendants and a large number of knights, sashayed up to Westalia, her heels clicking against the floor.
“You look like you’re putting on a brave face,” Elizabeth said. She crossed her arms as she looked at the storeroom, which contained only a modest number of artificial flowers.
Westalia was silent.
“What do you think you can do with only a month left? You were supposed to beat me and prove that you were worthy of being empress. I am utterly disappointed in you,” Elizabeth continued, her shoulders slumping.
“I can’t tell if you want to actually beat me and become empress or not,” Westalia commented.
“Of course I do! I will become empress and be the one at Leonardo’s side!” Elizabeth shot back. “But...”
At this rate, if Westalia was unable to confront Duke Reyn and Elizabeth became empress, then Tiberio would do everything in his power to make Elizabeth follow his wishes.
“I’m going to become empress and confront my father on my own! I’m not going to rely on you anymore!” Elizabeth cried. Westalia remained silent as Elizabeth barreled on. “If everything continues like this then Leonardo will be lawfully wed! Is that really okay with you?!”
Westalia still said nothing.
“Say something!” Elizabeth cried.
“You’re right,” Westalia finally said.
“I am?”
“If I don’t do anything, the title of empress will be yours. I wonder what will happen to me if I lose. Your father doesn’t seem to be my biggest fan, so I might get erased.”
The assassins who had attacked her hadn’t been able to be identified, meaning Tiberio had prepared carefully to ensure that.
I don’t know what the future holds. Maybe I’m just being stubborn. I’m always so afraid and anxious, Westalia thought.
Westalia’s rare moment of weakness and uncertainty made Elizabeth’s expression cloud over.
“Let me ask you something. Have you already exhausted the budget you were given for this challenge?” Westalia asked.
“Why are you asking all of a sudden? As you can see, my storeroom is fit to burst with all my flowers. Of course I’ve used my entire budget. All that’s left is to wait for the day of the count. You’ll be weeping by the end of it,” Elizabeth replied.
Westalia’s lips curved into a beautiful arc. Now that Elizabeth’s budget had run out, the time was ripe for Westalia to make her move. “I will do what I can until the end. If I keep running, then surely one day I’ll gain a tailwind blowing me forward. Maybe today is the day my destiny changes.”
Elizabeth looked on in confusion as Westalia, a wry smile on her face, left the storeroom area with Paige.