Empress of Another World

Sixty Five

“What!? Me?”

I started to sweat. I pretended to remain calm, but I couldn’t hide my anxiety. Agnes tried to console me.

“Please don’t worry, your highness. It’s not a widespread rumor yet. Everyone knows it was Count Glane who arranged the assassination.”

“Th… That’s true.”

However, this rumor had some truth to it. I didn’t personally kill or ordered the assassination, but I was an accomplice.

Of course, I had no intention of ever letting anyone know. Agnes and Samantha were no exceptions. Only Lucretius and I would ever know the truth.

I felt a sudden panic. Lucretius made sure Count Glane was framed for everything, so why did this rumor suddenly start?

My first thought was it was Lucretius who started the rumor. There were only two of us who knew the truth, and since it wasn’t me, there was only him.

However, I shook my head quickly. There was no reason why he would backstab me like this. Even without his love confession, it still didn’t make sense he would do this to me. I was his only wife and he would gain nothing if he framed me for the crime. In fact, it would hurt him.

My voice trembled slightly when I replied, “What a silly rumor. It’s ridiculous.”

Agnes nodded.

“Yes, so I will take care of it as quickly as possible. I will find out who is spreading the rumor and…”

I suddenly thought of something. Before Agnes could finish her sentence, I interrupted her and ordered, “No, leave it.”

“Pardon?”

Agnes looked up at me in shock. I knew I was not making any sense, so I could understand why she was confused, but I was sure about this.

“Do find out who is spreading the rumor but continue to feign ignorance. There is something I want to find out first.”

After a brief silence, Agnes asked quietly, “Are you thinking it’s the dowager empress’s doing?”

“A rumor like this doesn’t just appear out of nowhere. There must be a reason for it, and the most likely suspect is the dowager empress. In a way, this could be a chance for us to find out who works for her.”

“… you are wise, but…”

“I know this is dangerous, but to get what we want, we need to take certain risks. It will take everything I have to defeat someone like the dowager empress. Don’t you agree?”

Agnes seemed impressed. She bowed deeply and replied, “Yes, your highness.”

After Agnes left, I drank the tea, which was cool by now.

I laid down the bed, but I couldn’t sleep at all.

***

It took so much work to get ready for the ball. My maids and I worked tirelessly.

The rumor about me started to become more widespread. I needed to make sure my own people were on my side. I made an excuse to give gifts and bonuses to everyone who worked in my wing.

I knew a mere gift wouldn’t be enough to buy people’s loyalty, but I hoped my reputation would benefit from it, even if just a little.

For my own personal maids, I presented special gifts. When they saw them, they were overwhelmed.

“Your highness…”

Even Samantha and Agnes seemed speechless.

The gifts were picked out by me personally. They were from my own royal collection of jewelry. I made sure to pick out the pieces I wore at least once.