A Question of Quality
"I'm sorry to say this, Lady Basilure. But really, isn't this a bit too low-grade?" Agathe scoffed, picking up Camille's collection—the very one Chloe and her sisters had been admiring just moments ago. A soft, metallic clink echoed as the ornaments brushed against one another.
Lady Basilure, who had been standing by awkwardly, unable to cut in on the highborn ladies' conversation, flushed red. "Those are not actually for sale..."
"Then the reputation of Basilure is truly dead. To display such cheap, unsellable trash as if this were some common street market." At Agathe's words, Lady Basilure's eyebrows twitched.
The pieces currently filling the second floor of Basilure were all of the finest quality. It had been fifteen years since she inherited the shop from her father, the fifth-generation owner. Though she hadn't inherited his brilliant craftsmanship, she certainly possessed an eye for beauty.
As soon as she took over, Lady Basilure completely shifted the shop's direction. She renovated the interior to look incredibly luxurious and stocked only the largest, most expensive gems. Even if her father's collection looked somewhat modest in comparison, dismissing this entire establishment as a common market was an outrageous insult.
Damn it. I should have melted them down and sold them off long ago...
Lady Basilure was well aware of what was happening. Agathe Montpis was deliberately picking a fight to humiliate the Grand Duchess. No doubt she would offer a perfunctory apology later once the dust settled, but an apology wouldn't undo the humiliation. Lady Basilure lowered her head, her face burning with shame.
The delicate ornaments her father had crafted were originally meant for his daughters, and they had eventually garnered quite a bit of love from others as well. But they no longer suited Lady Basilure and Camille, who were now well into middle age.
"Sister, I'll buy all of them."
When Lady Basilure had been agonizing over how to dispose of them, Camille had stepped forward to purchase the entire lot. Even though Camille was also middle-aged, they still wore their father's collection. While Lady Basilure felt a quiet pride in that, she also found it foolishly stubborn. Every time she saw the necklaces, she would advise Camille to melt down the gold and sell the raw gems, but Camille never listened. And now, it had led to this disaster.
"My deepest apologies, Lady Montpis..." Lady Basilure spoke cautiously. She kept her voice tightly controlled, determined not to let her wounded pride show. After all, this rude young lady was still one of her shop's patrons.
But Agathe ignored her entirely and spoke over her. "And well, I suppose we'll have to wait and see if you're truly the more important person in this room, won't we?"
Chloe tilted her head. Smirking with absolute confidence, Agathe lightly lifted her skirts and swept past Chloe. Chloe naturally turned her gaze to follow her, only to freeze.
"Aunt Marie! Look at this. Do you have any idea what just happened to your poor Agathe?"
Standing there was a middle-aged woman, staring back at them with an expression of utter disbelief.
Aunt Marie? Is she Agathe Montpis's aunt? Only then did Chloe realize why Agathe had been acting so insolently from the very beginning.
Ah, so she dared to behave so rudely even in front of the Grand Duchess because she had a powerful elder backing her up.
Yet, Chloe was deeply perplexed. She had never heard of a "Marie Montpis" in her life. Chloe had been a highly competent aide. This meant that in the week leading up to her marriage to Curtis, she had memorized the entire register of Ivanes's prominent nobility. Of course, it helped that Curtis had drilled her relentlessly. She was so thoroughly trained that she could recite the royal family tree of Ivanes in her sleep. Even accounting for "Marie" being a nickname, there was no one with a similar name in the Montpis family.
"Agathe," the middle-aged woman said, her face completely expressionless as Chloe racked her brain. "I believe I told you not to call me 'Aunt' in public."
"But in front of Mother, you always let me..."
"My name is Mariette. And the only person I have ever permitted to call me by that name is your mother, my dear friend."
Agathe flinched at the unexpected severity of the reprimand. Meanwhile, the realization struck Chloe like a bolt of lightning.
Mariette Lot Flandre. She was the Marquise of Flandre. Originally known as Princess Mariette, she was a woman who had refused to allow anyone to address her by her given name ever since she inherited the marquessate without marrying. She was Curtis's half-sister, and in the absence of a queen consort, she was the highest-ranking royal woman in the Kingdom of Ivanes.
And what that meant was...
I'm screwed.
Chloe swallowed a sigh, keeping her panic strictly internal as she gracefully sank into a low curtsey, just as she had been taught.
"I greet the Marquise of Flandre. I am Chloe Le David Berk."
"Ah." The Marquise looked at her, a strange gleam in her eyes. Was she impressed that Chloe had deduced her identity from the name Mariette alone? Chloe quickly realized that was not the case.
"So you are the Grand Duchess who married my brother just yesterday. I heard you spent a long time in the military, but it seems you have much to learn about the etiquette of noblewomen."
She clearly disapproved of Chloe's posture. A sharp snicker escaped Agathe's lips, loud enough for everyone to hear.
The Navy doesn't do royal guard salutes! Chloe swallowed the urge to shout the excuse and forced a polite smile. How could her posture ever satisfy a woman who had been a princess since birth? Besides, it was highly likely the Marquise disliked Chloe on principle. The Marquise of Flandre was the King's sister and famously a lifelong friend of Countess Montfils. Agathe must have relied on the Marquise's backing to act so arrogantly from the start.
I should have realized what she meant when she babbled about seeing who was more important.
No matter how young, every action in high society was dictated by status. There was always a reason a twenty-something girl would dare to act so boldly.
Emboldened by the Marquise's presence, Agathe sneered openly. "What else can you expect from someone of such low birth? It's a tragedy that such a blemish has attached itself to the otherwise perfect Lord Curtis."
Chloe suppressed the surge of anger rising in her chest. When Curtis had made his remarks about her "undignified household," it hadn't stung like this. Perhaps it was different coming from an outsider. Regardless, with a royal elder present, she had no choice but to bow her head.
Even without Curtis Shan Berk's warning to "act like a proper Grand Duchess," she was indeed the Grand Duchess starting today. Chloe repeated her mental mantra once more.
This is a job. This is just a job...
A job that paid ten million shings a year, to be exact. The moment she framed it that way, her heart suddenly felt remarkably lighter.
"My apologies. I will strive to do better," Chloe said, raising her head. It was then that she noticed something odd.
Huh? Chloe realized Lady Basilure, standing right beside her, was looking exceptionally restless. Normally, when a royal elder like the Marquise appeared, a merchant would rush to pay her respects and explain the situation. Yet, Lady Basilure was repeatedly clenching and unclenching her fists, nervously eyeing the Marquise as if she had committed some grave crime.
Of course, she might just be anxious about having tried to stop and block Agathe, who had arrived with the Marquise. But she could easily play dumb and claim she didn't know. After all, neither the Marquise nor Agathe had made a reservation. Even taking that into account, her reaction was far too extreme...
"She was fawning over some cheap trash, and then she threatened me!"
"Threatened you?"
"Yes!" Oblivious to everything else, Agathe was busy exaggerating the encounter to the Marquise. Threatened? It was utterly absurd. All Chloe had done was lean her arm against the wall. Though...
I did know it would look a bit intimidating... Chloe had to admit that to someone as petite as Agathe, her action might have been momentarily frightening. Still, she couldn't just let Agathe's wild exaggerations slide. Chloe quickly stepped forward to defend herself.
"Forgive my intrusion, Marquise, but I had absolutely no intention of threatening Lady Agathe Montpis."
"That's a lie! You slammed your hand against the wall right next to me and lowered your voice like this!" Agathe shouted, clenching her fists. The Marquise raised a hand to silence them both before speaking.
"Agathe."
"Yes, Auntie!"
"According to your logic, I must be a person of very low taste as well."
Agathe's eyes went wide. Chloe's eyes widened in equal surprise.
"What? Auntie, what do you mean by..."
The Marquise of Flandre clicked her tongue and gestured. "Camille, Lady Basilure... you should have explained it to this child."
Only then did the two of them notice Camille standing behind the Marquise. No... that wasn't quite right. Chloe quickly realized that Camille wasn't the only one standing behind her.
Camille bowed. "My deepest apologies, Marquise."
"No, you didn't have the chance. I had to rush upstairs myself to chase after this child." Turning to the still-bewildered Agathe, the Marquise spoke in a chillingly cold tone. "Those pieces are the very gifts the Late King bestowed upon me when I was a child."
Agathe's face drained of all color. But her misfortune did not end there.
"And I, too, merely wished to present my Grand Duchess with pieces from the very jeweler my sister once wore." It was Curtis who spoke, stepping forward to finish the Marquise's sentence.