My Stepmom is Too Pretty, and It’s Troubling Me – Chapter 142

The first day in the capital of the Empire was less eventful than I had expected.

I merely wandered around, enjoyed a nice dinner, and then spent the night chatting with Ella and Rize in bed.

We drifted into a slumber after talking about things we wanted to do in the capital, and I couldn’t even recall what was said in those final moments before sleep took me.

“Ugh…”

Honestly, I felt like I had the best sleep yesterday.

Although quite some time had passed since waking up, I certainly felt refreshed.

It was my first time sharing a bed with three people, so I had some concerns at first… but maybe it was because I was flanked by two cute and pretty girls?

Honestly, I think I enjoyed it.

“Rize… how was it yesterday? Did you sleep well?”

“Thanks to you and Lady Ella, I was able to sleep comfortably.”

“Hehe, that’s a relief.”

Ella and Rize were lying on either side of me, and by the time I opened my eyes, I found myself in a position that felt like I was giving Ella a back hug. I really slept well.

Of course, since I woke up before Ella, nothing unusual happened.

“Yawwwn…”

“Young Lady, how should I deal with your hair?”

“Just let it dry. I’m going to be moving around anyway. I don’t think there’s any need to fuss over it.”

“Understood.”

From the morning, we were busily preparing… breakfast.

Unlike my other friends who were getting ready to leave, I wasn’t busy at all.

Originally, Rize had come along to help the noble ladies, including myself… but after all, Rize was my maid.

Besides, everyone didn’t particularly want Rize’s help when it came to washing up or getting dressed.

“Haa…”

In the end, Rize had to help me with my bath and even drying my hair afterward, so I couldn’t really complain about how convenient it was.

Rize’s familiar touch as she slowly dried my hair was comforting beyond belief.

After all, I had been receiving her care like this for nearly ten years, so it was natural.

“Rize, what should I wear today?”

“Given that the weather has been warming up lately, I think it would be okay to wear something a bit cooler. I recommend a dress or a shirt.”

“Shall I go with that?”

“Yes. Just in case it gets chilly, I’ll prepare a cardigan separately.”

Yeah, this is really comfortable.

While I had to handle most of the business side of things, my everyday life was quite nice.

I could only manage that because I had someone like Rize who understood me well.

“It looks really comfortable.”

“Yep, super comfy.”

I replied to Ella’s question with my eyes closed.

After all, having Rize dry my hair with magical tools was just too relaxing to resist.

“Sigh…”

“Have you finished getting ready, Young Grace?”

“I finished ages ago. Honestly, the only ones who haven’t are you and your sister.”

“I’m good, all I need to do is get dressed after my hair is done.”

“Haa…”

Anyway, there was still plenty of time before the schedule, and since Rize would take care of my preparation, there was no problem at all.

Even though Grace said that, not everyone else was completely ready either.

We’d been preparing since morning, but today’s schedule was surprisingly simple.

Basically… we’d head to the Imperial Palace in the morning, tour around the Solkemia Imperial Palace once we arrived, and then move on to the next location.

“Has anyone here ever been to the Imperial Palace?”

It was a rare chance to visit the palace, and since it was my first time, I decided to ask.

Although everyone here was a noble, the palace wasn’t exactly a place just anyone could enter.

Unless you were from a high-ranking family like the Duke’s house, the palace was usually only a sight to behold from a distance for most people.

“This is my first time…!”

“Me too.”

The two from the Count’s family were also first-timers.

“Really? Have you not been before?”

“Of course, I have.”

Ella from the Baroness family also answered that she had never been.

After confirming the responses from the three, we all turned our heads to Ivana.

After all, she was the only one left who hadn’t answered.

Being from the Nordal Duke’s family, we all assumed she had some experience.

“I used to go often when I was young.”

Ivana’s answer was just as everyone had expected.

“Hmm… But I haven’t been recently, so I can’t really say much.”

“That’s impressive, it fits the Duke’s family.”

“Indeed…”

“Lady Nordal, just to confirm, is there anything we shouldn’t do when entering the Imperial Palace? I’m a bit worried since it’s my first time…”

Truth be told, it was just a palace… but a grand and gorgeous one at that.

Excluding Ivana, we were all pretty excited about going to the palace.

Even just before heading out, we were bombarding Ivana with questions while riding in the carriage.

*

Half an hour on the carriage… That probably sounds about right.

It’s hard to tell exactly since we were chatting the whole way, but it took that long and we finally arrived at the Imperial Palace.

We had arrived…

“Wow.”

I had anticipated a grand palace as soon as I stepped out of the carriage, but the scene that greeted me was quite different.

Sure, I could see the palace…

“It’s enormous.”

“Indeed. And really… vast…”

“…Right.”

Where we got out was not the palace itself but rather an area close to the gardens in front of the palace.

The palace was visible at a distance, and it seemed the gate we entered was the main entrance to the palace.

“C-Camelia…? The teachers want us to move now…”

“Oh, sorry! I was so distracted by the view.”

Anyway, we began to walk.

Today, our teachers were responsible for a few groups each, guiding us alongside the palace staff as our schedule unfolded.

There were quite a few students after all?

“The gardens of the palace are truly impressive…”

“Yeah. I thought our family garden was pretty, but… it seems there’s a massive difference.”

“…Indeed. The Roseaki family garden was also stunning.”

Though I had visited as a child, and thanks to Karen, I had seen quite a bit, I couldn’t possibly compare it to this palace’s gardens.

Not just the Roseaki garden, but also the one Ashley and I created at Leonhardt was nowhere near this level.

At first, the palace seemed vast and the buildings looked far away, so honestly, I felt a bit lazy to walk.

But as I strolled slowly through the garden while listening to the explanations… I found it rather captivating.

Even though I wasn’t really someone unusually interested in nature, plants, or flowers, this garden drew my attention irresistibly.

“This statue here is from the past Fourth Emperor…”

While it was nice to hear about the numerous artworks and landscaping in the garden, the sheer scale and quality of it were astonishing even without a guide.

We were all leisurely strolling through and enjoying the beauty of the imperial garden.

“Wow…”

Even Grace, who usually poked fun at me, had a pure expression as she gazed at this beautiful sight.

“Ivana, haven’t you come to the palace often?”

“Though I have, this garden is so gorgeous that I can’t help but look every time I come.”

“That’s definitely true. I think… this is my first time genuinely admiring a garden.”

As we walked slowly, chatting with my friends, I spoke up.

“Camelia.”

“Yes, Ivana?”

“Did you know that there aren’t many gardens in the North?”

“Hmm… That’s the first I’ve heard of it.”

It was a sudden topic, but it was definitely something new to me.

In fact, not much was known about the North to begin with.

That’s why Ivana’s point about gardens being scarce was a bit puzzling.

“Are you saying that noble families in the North don’t have gardens?”

“Right.”

“Isn’t it typical for most nobles to have gardens at their mansions? At least, every noble house I’ve visited so far had one.”

“Most nobility tend to create gardens, but the North has a harsh climate.”

She explained that the harsh climate, with more focus on training knights belonging to their family over gardens, was largely to blame.

A result of being a warlike region where monster hunting was frequent, perhaps?

“Hmm… It’s quite fascinating how different it is from the South. Though knights in the South brag about theirs as well.”

“Creating a garden is probably one of the hardest things to do.”

“I believe that.”

The North, as I learned long ago from Rosalyn, was brutal in terms of cold.

But why was this conversation being brought up?

Was it merely because we were strolling through the garden?

“So personally, I want to create a large garden in the North. Not as grand as the palace, but something impressive like it.”

“Aha.”

I got the idea.

“Are you asking how to make that possible?”

“Yes.”

While it was an abrupt topic, I now understood why Ivana brought it up.

One thing I learned while getting to know Ivana was that she acted with purpose.

Thus, I deduced that her inquiry about the garden just stemmed from her intentions.

“It’s not that hard. If you have the money… most things can be dealt with.”

I smiled lightly at Ivana as I replied.

“If it seems a bit tricky, then it just means you’ll need more money.”

And that was the truth.

Most matters could be resolved with more money spent, after all.