My Starseed Meets Me In A Different World

CHAPTER CXLV

Muirine

In the grandeur of high society, the lady who once commanded reverence now bows humbly before her peers.

"My lady! My lady! This is it! I am ruined!"

Lady Decima from the Viscounty of Salo located in the north, whom I have been supporting in my inner circle by financing her stay in the Empire's capital, burst into my chambers wailing and with tears in her eyes, hollering.

I sighed, sitting at my vanity, and tisked at her outburst.

Despite supporting her financially and keeping her close to project an exterior appearance of a well-balanced, supportive group of noblewomen, I despised having to placate their feelings in moments like this.

Why is she fussing now? She should be relishing the fact that, despite her lowly Viscounty house status, she can gallivant about the capital and bolster her name due to her proximity to me. Instead, she's interrupting me when I'm busy with my day's tasks.

The news of the Empress's passing had shaken me to my core, and I was trying to ease my mind while the rest of the palace was in disarray. I had yet to hear from Simeon, which only added to my anxiety.

"Decima, what on earth are you blathering about?" I snapped, barely able to keep the irritation from my voice.

"Your noble excellence! My family's name! It's in ruins! My father... he lost everything!" Decima sobbed, collapsing onto a nearby chair."

I glanced over at my maids, silently signaling them to leave the room to grant us privacy. Once they had quietly exited, I turned my attention back to the distraught Lady Decima, who was attempting to catch her breath. It seemed whatever had recently transpired was of major importance. I had yet to receive the morning papers, having just finished washing and preparing for my hairdresser's arrival.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. You must be clearer if you wish for a solution," I advised her.

My words seemed to snap her back to reality. She adjusted her position, cleared her throat, and, after flicking away her remaining tears, pulled a crumpled newspaper from her purse. She rushed over to hand it to me. I took it with a displeased look, annoyed at how it was presented, but still, I began to read.

It was the Local Voice Daily, a paper I typically found uninteresting due to its focus on political and international issues—areas I admittedly wasn't well-versed in. However, it was a reputable publication, owned by a prominent noble family.

Scandal Rocks Vesneau: Viscounty of Salo Implicated in Financial Corruption.

My eyebrows lifted at the brazen headline, my interest piqued by the straightforward report on the Viscount.

I read the contents of the words with precision, pacing myself and my emotions the more I continued to dive into what was being said.

The accusations leveled against the Viscount Heber Da Attuwig of Salo, Count Ordta, and the Marquis and Marchioness Foron are nothing short of staggering. It is alleged that they have systematically abused their positions of power to line their own pockets, plundering public coffers and manipulating financial institutions for personal gain.

Revelations of secret offshore accounts, falsified financial records, and backroom deals have sent shockwaves through the city, leaving many wondering who else may be implicated in the widening scandal.

After finishing the article, I slowly closed the issue and set it on my vanity, remaining quiet as I processed the allegations. If this were true, Lady Decima's family would not escape prosecution from the imperial family and the government; they tended to make examples of nobles who stepped out of line to assert their dominance. If I continued to support Decima to protect her image, I risked being seen as sympathetic to a criminal's daughter. What would that do to my own reputation?