# 8
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Typically, there are three main channels through which a lady can obtain information.
The first was my family, including my husband.
However, there is no need to remind myf that my situation is a mess here.
Then the second thing is social events and acquaintances.
However, this was also not enough at all for Ariana.
“Because everyone avoids me”
The imperial family initially abandoned her, and then hated her so much that few people wanted to know her in person.
For this reason, it was impossible to comfortably enter events or salons.
The third and final step is to check publications such as newspapers...
“I am under surveillance and I cannot read the newspaper.”
Ariana looked at the attendees sitting two chairs behind her.
Everyone was either praying in silence or wearing hijabs, but I could tell they were looking at her by looking at their bodies and their tense eyes.
“They will report everything I see directly to Kenneth.”
After his recovery, he reached the peak of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Did he ever imagine that she would at least receive a call from the fugitive Crown Prince? And yet, I still can't know for sure what's inside.
In any case, the conclusion was that she was denied access to “useful information.”
“That is why I have no choice but to come to this cathedral.”
In Cremisa, after prayer, many people gather around the hall and talk quietly.
No matter how high or low a class in the empire, even moments like this were thanks to the weakness of humans who feared that if they split the line, they would die and flounder in brimstone.
“The dance schedule for the next public hall is-”
“The products from Strath's workshop are not as good as they used to be...”
If you listen to different topics, you will hear stories that will be useful to you in the future. Ariana bowed her head reverently and waited, as if she were still praying.
While different stories were being exchanged, I suddenly heard some familiar names.
“…So the last companies mentioned as craft businesses were Rowan and Strogen. Will Rowan be better this time?”
“Ah, no matter how you look at it, Strogen is most likely the most likely. This place has a long history, right? I heard that Ruan’s business is still bad.”
“I think that's true, right?”
The faithful left the hall asserting that it would be right to invest in Estrogen as usual.
But Ariana's eyes lit up at the rejected name.
“Rouen is a city in the Kingdom of Dobris”
This appears to be a time when the Dobris Kingdom was hosting many inter-provincial trade competitions to actively encourage commerce and the arts.
Of all the places shortlisted to the end, there was another reason Rouen particularly stood out.
“Was it the palace of the Marquis of the Kingdom, Damien Baptiste?”
Was he a minor member of the royal family and a business partner with Kenneth?
'I rarely spoke to him properly, but he wasn't a bad person.'
Tack-! Tack-! Ariana unconsciously tapped the handle of the chair with her finger.
Maybe it was because I had been watching Kenneth for so long, but sometimes his habits became ingrained in me.
Of course, unlike him, who was comfortable no matter what, I did this when I was worried and thinking.
Dobris is the closest to Cremisa, so it's easy to get there. The city that wins the competition has more jobs.
More work means the space is so lively that it wouldn't be noticed even if a faceless woman walked in with her child.
Above all, it was a foreign country that neither the Clifford Family nor the Cremisa Empire could reach.
'But I have to prepare in advance to settle down there, right?'
What I've learned while walking on thin ice in the Clifford family is to keep an eye on such economic trends.
'Privately good things must be taken before others take them away'
Anyway, now that I have good information, I can draw a rough diagram of how I can gradually hide myf.
But then a young nun approached me, smiling warily, carrying a fundraising box.
“Sister, today is Saint Colette’s Day, would you like to join us in the offering?”
“Yes of course”
In fact, coming to the Central Cathedral wasn't just about hearing information.
‘I know this place runs the largest donation organization for the unemployed.’
After Ariana's brother tore up his joint venture with Kenneth, countless people are out of work and struggling.
There was more than one family that collapsed, so even if Kenneth returned, it would not be possible to save all the victims.
Although Ariana said she was ignorant at the time, she also knew she couldn't be completely innocent because she was from Aberdeen.
Therefore, she donated enough money that she could be asked about the maintenance expenses of the dignity allocated to her.
“Then sister, that's enough.”
“Wait a minute, sister. Before you go, you must write your name in the donation register.”
"Yes? But-"
Ariana blinked several times at the unexpected request.
“If you don't want it, then there's no need to use it, right?”
However, when I saw the nun's elegant and forced smile, it became difficult for me to dare to go against her.
She seemed to have secretly noticed Ariana, and thought she was a rather unusual person.
[Anne Clark]
When I used a nickname that came to mind, the nun smiled and took a step back.
“Thank you, sister. May the blessings of God and Saint Colette be with you.”
Ariana also bowed silently and looked again at the cross hanging on the wall.
If Baby's death was caused by my ignorance, I apologize. Please protect my baby girl.
After praying earnestly, Ariana looked at the person in the audience whose eyes were sparkling with anticipation.
Emily's face was red with anticipation, as if she hadn't had the chance to look around the downtown area in broad daylight since she arrived.
So, how disappointed was I to leave after only recently seeing the cathedral?
“Ma’am, shall we take you to the palace now?” ,
There was a hint of remorse in Emily's voice.
Ariana smiled softly.
"Why? Do you want to look outside a little more?"
"Oh, no! It can't be-"
“No, I just want to stay out a little longer. Would you like to have some tea together?”
“Awesome, yeah!”
It may be embarrassing for others to hear, but it was nice to see others happy with something you did for the first time in a long time.
'This babe will soon call me dirty anyway.'
How about now? But before Ariana headed to the nearest cafe, she raised her head and looked at the sky.
The sky, which had been sunny just before leaving the palace, had already begun to turn a gloomy grey.
* * *
“… They say it is still in the cathedral today.”
After a few days I had a subtle suspicion about Ariana.
In a house in the capital, Kenneth was listening to his secretary's report with an indifferent expression.
“I think she will accompany a maid to the café and then return home.”
What on earth are you thinking? What is she trying to achieve by praying to the Governor about her false story?
I hated being manipulated, but if I had any doubts, I didn't feel comfortable unless I checked them myf.
“Let's go to the central cathedral.”
I was nervous about whether the woman was trying to escape or if she was secretly communicating with the remnants who supported the Crown Prince.
However, as he passed through the corridor, he heard a soft voice filled with laughter.
“Oh my God. I think I'm just in time.”
A black-haired woman wearing an elegant purple hat smiled.
Count Perrin's only daughter, Theodora Perrin, came to visit him.
Theodora straightened the hem of her elegant coat and walked slowly as if someone else's house were her own living room.
“Oh my God, Kenneth,”
Theodora smiled and closed her eyes gently.
“Your fiancée came in person, but you look so cold.”
Kenneth looked sideways at Theodora, who was smiling smugly.
“Here I am listening cloy to these jokes.”
“Oh my God, you are deceiving me again, because I fully believed in the promise you made when I was young.”
“Naivety must end when the time is right.”
The engagement she was talking about was a story I heard often when I was young. When mothers interact with each other, they joke about bonding with their babies who are still asleep in the cradle.
But Theodora was victorious.
“I know you have shown great gratitude to my father, but he probably thinks it would be good if this would lead to the union of the two families.”
“The Count also has high aspirations.”
“My father had difficulty moving these days, so I came in his place.”
Theodora extended her hand towards him, still smiling.
Even though he knew all the signs that she wanted an escort, Kenneth did not carelessly extend his arm.
The corner of Theodora's mouth twitched slightly, but she quickly stopped.
'It's embarrassing to see people in the back...'
He has been extremely reluctant to have physical contact with others since the incident at the opera house.
It was the same when someone else touched him first, and it was also the case when he had to be the first to act as an attendant and offer his arm as a courtesy.
“Anyway, be careful.”