She was Celosia Ferner, the daughter of Duke Ferner, one of the prestigious nobles in the vampire race.
As the daughter of a duke, her life felt like a princess, didn't it? Just lacking the formal title. Now that a genuine one showed up, it was like a basin of cold water splashed on her head, reminding her she wasn't a true princess.
No matter how close she was to the few queens, in the end, she was still not a true royal.
The palace maids around working on their job shifted some part of their attention to the two of them, their ears perked up like an audience listening to a drama.
Queen Alvira had just returned from giving orders to a maid. She kindly gazed at Irene. "Irene, sit down. I will introduce you to a new friend."
Irene complied, sitting down without any scruple. The palace maids seemed to hear the sigh of disappointment from within their hearts.
"This is Celosia. She is the daughter of Duke Ferner. Her mother was pretty close to your mother back then." Queen Alvira introduced her, her tone was slightly enthusiastic.
It was a moment later that she seemed to realize the tense atmosphere between the two. She also turned to Celosia, introducing Irene, thinking that perhaps she hadn't known who Irene was. "Celosia, this is Irene, our royal princess. I hope that you can help her adjust to life here. She had just returned and was still new to things."
Irene's expression was still neutral, she sat straight elegantly in her seat, fully displaying the behavior of a noble lady. From start to finish, she didn't spare a glance at Celosia, treating her like air.
"Hello, Irene." It was Celosia who took the initiative to greet her. If she didn't reply, it would be too rude, right?
Irene was too lazy, so she just nodded in acknowledgement.
The tense atmosphere was still lingering. The palace maids exchanged secret glances. The mood was rather suffocating.
"You are already here." The courteous, pleasant voice floated to their ears.
It was Queen Izora, the second queen. She walked briskly, but still had a graceful demeanor. In no time, she arrived at the scene.
"Izora, you are here. Sit down, Irene is visiting the palace today, so I invited her to come with us." Queen Alvira said generously.
Queen Izora had already noticed Irene's presence the moment she stepped into the northern royal garden. She nodded affectionately. "It's good to get out more, don't be cooped up in Blackcourt City."
With the arrival of Queen Izora, the tense situation was gradually eased.
"Serve the drink." Queen Alvira ordered the palace maids around them, and they scrambled to exercise the order.
Irene emotionlessly watched them moving around. She gave a light sweep with her eyes, then shifted her gaze to the red liquid in the glass in front of her.
Nausea bubbled in her stomach. She forced herself to hold the stem of the glass. They used a wine glass, but the content inside undoubtedly wasn't wine.
"Drink more of the blood. It's filled with nourishing properties to strengthen your body." Queen Alvira smiled.
To hear her say so straightforwardly that it was blood, Irene felt even more nauseous. She held the stem tighter, fortunate that their attention was not on her, who hadn't even taken a single sip yet. She was about to forcefully drink the contents when Celosia, who had taken a few sips that slight red coated her lips, suddenly spoke.
"I heard from His Highness Stelian that recently there are a lot of guards who died in Blackcourt City." She glanced at Irene meaningfully. "It's unfortunate that it happened when the princess had just taken charge. It's been a lot of years since such a thing happened."
It was said casually, but among those who had lived in the palace for a long time, who didn't understand what this daughter of the duke was insinuating?
She addressed Stelian as His Highness and referred to Irene's title as the princess so casually that if one heard it without watching with their own eyes, they would think that the princess wasn't there. And second, she was implying that Irene was incompetent as a city lord.
Irene softly put the glass back down on the table. Her eyes flashed as she traced the smooth surface of the glass. She lifted her head, the pair of clear eyes with black pupils gave a sense of evil beauty.
"My age is young, so I still lack a lot of experience of governing a city." She said bluntly, her voice pleasant and calm. "If Miss Ferner has any experience in city governance, I will have to bother asking Miss Ferner for guidance, especially for a city near the Forest of Beasts."
As soon as she said those words, she watched in amusement as Celosia's complexion darkened. She had indirectly called her old, and how could she have any experience of governing a territory? The daughters of nobles who had brothers had no such privilege. Cities near the Forest of Beasts were even more prone to deaths, and harder to manage.
The situation, which had gotten better, suddenly became tense again.
Queen Izora quickly tried to appease the atmosphere. "It's alright. Blackcourt City is the nearest to the Forest of Beast, so the maintenance will be harder. Irene had also just taken over the city and she could still learn. If Celosia had the tips from her uncle, she could share it with Irene."
Stefan Ferner, Celosia's uncle, was the former lord of Blackcourt City, and he had governed the city for a long time. The king granted him a holiday and after his resting time ended, he would continue to assist Irene in governing the city.
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"Don't think too hard about such matters." Queen Alvira also said. "Just enjoy your drink and relax more."
Irene's eyes flashed, and she was also no longer entangled with the matter. Celosia's expression was still filled with indignation about not being given a chance to retort back, but she also quickly adjusted her expression. Every time her eyes landed on Irene, her eyes would stare at her sharply.
Irene wasn't bothered. She didn't know if the rumor was right. This spoiled little princess was going to be the fiance of that grave-faced Stelian. She couldn't help but slightly rejoice in his misfortune. With this kind of little ancestor in his mansion, he was bound to have a lot of headaches. Celosia was too reckless, not thoughtful enough, and also lacked the ability to read the room.
She could tell that this little gathering was intended for her to know other queens better, so that she'd have a smoother time in the palace.
She just wondered why Queen Alvira chose this kind of woman for her beloved son. Such a life-saving grace from Duke Ferner had cost her son his harmonious remaining life.
Only the two queens were present this time. She had a rather good impression of Queen Lamia, who looked like a sickly beauty, so she couldn't help but ask. "I wonder why Her Majesty, Queen Lamia isn't present today?"
It was Queen Alvira who answered her question. "Lamia's body isn't good. She has just gotten sick again this time."
Then, she shook her head. Her expression revealed the look of pity and regret. Irene didn't ask again. Everyone knew that Queen Lamia's body had deteriorated since she gave birth. They speculated that it was because she gave birth to a pair of twins.
Irene stayed a bit longer in the little gathering. She just mostly listened to their conversation, and occasionally received Celosia's flash of ridicule in her eyes. Was she arrogant because she could hold conversation smoothly with the queens?
Irene didn't care.
Halfway, she excused herself. She wanted to visit Queen Lamia in her palace.
After she arrived at her palace, she got permission to enter easily. However, as soon as she arrived in front of Queen Lamia's chamber, the palace maid in charge of taking care of the queen was hesitant.
"Irene is visiting? Let her in." The palace maid's hesitation disappeared and she opened the door respectfully.
Irene's impression of Queen Lamia was mostly from her son, Edmund. She could take care of him to grow into such a sunny young man and didn't pressure him to fight for power. It can be seen that she cared genuinely for her son.
In actuality, Irene had only met her a few times and in all the opportunities, they just exchanged greetings without delving too deep into a more serious topic of conversation.
Nevertheless, she still wanted to visit Queen Lamia. She had never had the chance to get face-to-face alone with her.
"Irene greets Her Majesty, Queen Lamia."
Queen Lamia's eyes were full of complexity when she heard Irene's way of greeting, but she quickly adjusted her expression and smiled. She joked, "Irene finally comes into the palace. How can the palace be without the little princess?"
"Your Majesty can jest." The corner of her mouth also curled up slightly.
They talked about a lot of trivial things, like about what was in the human world and its technology, or also some little gossip in the palace.
"In the human world, there is no teleportation array, but people can travel through the air and see scenery from above." Irene spoke eloquently, narrating her experience.
Queen Lamia also listened with interest. They talked until it was time for Queen Lamia to take her rest and sleep. Due to her disease, she was weak and needed occasional rest.
Irene didn't leave until the queen closed her eyes. She looked around the magnificent room. It was spacious and comfortable. The sun penetrated through the cracks in the window, warding off the darkness, thus the atmosphere wasn't gloomy.
Her eyes spotted the dark red flowers filling a vase on the table. It had five petals, and it was pretty. Each petal was shaped like a triangle with the long pointed end coated with a gradient of scarlet colors. There were red dots at the end of the petal, and a whitish line in the middle.
"Those beautiful flowers, where did you get them?" Irene asked the maid standing at the door.
The palace maid was taken aback at the sudden question. She glanced at the flower, and answered, "Replying to Her Highness, the flowers were sent by Her Majesty, Queen Alvira."
"Queen Alvira visited in the morning?"
The palace maid quickly replied, saying that it was indeed from Queen Alvira who visited this morning.
A thought filled with interest crossed her mind. The relationship between the queens of the vampire race actually seemed so harmonious.