Elisha was very busy. She was almost done organizing for the memorial service. Following her instructions, the servants and the priest moved industriously.
“This fruit doesn’t fit here. Among the fruits of the ancient gods, the northern loquat is said to be the fruit of the world tree. I have to let it go. And the flowers were well prepared with lilies of three colors. And you have to put a very dark blue-black berod in front. It is a cloth that symbolizes the Rothprix River belonging to the main god that the dead cross.”
Gail was in awe as he worked with Elisha and admired her.
“You are very well educated. No one is familiar with the rites for this kind of ritual, so how… … .”
“I grew up in a monastery. So there were many memorial services for nobles. Children entrusted to the monastery, like myself, assisted when there was a big occasion.”
“I see. This refined demeanor comes from monastic teaching. I’m sure the monastery that produced such a lady must be proud.”
“… … Thank you for the compliment,”
Elisha replied modestly.
She had no ill regard for Gail from her previous life. Most of the duke’s people, including Jacob’s minions, despised Elisha for her ugly appearance.
But Gail was a proper and polite person, so he never looked down on people. So Elisha treated him with respect.
‘The High General is a very difficult person to deal with. But his wife is completely the opposite.’
Gail thought she was much easier to engage with than Lucerne. Usually, it was exceedingly difficult for him to deal with Lucerne.
So naturally, they were affable to each other.
While preparing for this event, the Lord often asked about Elisha; Gail’s consistent, unwavering answer was, ‘She is truly the perfect lady.’
***
A gaze tenaciously followed Elisha’s back.
Carola was sick to her stomach as Elisha pretended to be the hostess. But she couldn’t make it obvious in front of Gaju.
‘Isn’t the Duchess’s memorial service supposed to be held by Carola, the mistress of the duke’s mansion? But why is she acting as the hostress?’
Carola had never thought deeply about the Duchess before. But when things turned out like this, she felt that Elisha had robbed her of something.
‘I can’t stand seeing that bitch run amok anymore. After tonight, this will be over. Damn bitch. Um…What if she was found having an affair with a man in the duke’s temple?’
Carola recalled the drugs in her pockets. Her parents’ preliminary wealth was from their herbal business.
When her mother brought in a large sum from her parent’s house, the business boomed in her father’s generation. Carola’s parents were wealthy because they owned several types of medicinal herbs with exclusive distribution rights.
So naturally, Carola’s parents’ house had some unique drugs secretly used only by her family members. There were a lot of nobles who wanted illegal drugs.
So for a long time, Carola and her family had run illegal salons and provided narcotics. Initially, it was a respectable business, but as more drugs were outlawed, the trade became increasingly secretive.
One such drug, ‘Phantasmic Dreams,’ was now in Carola’s pockets.
This unique drug was an inhaled narcotic. When this small capsule burst, anyone nearby, male or female, fell into an aphrodisiac state.
Promiscuous aristocrats would use this drug for pleasure during orgies full of men and women. However, the effect of the drug was so strong that it was now a prohibited substance, so much so that just being in possession of it was a felony.
‘The effect of this drug is strong. Even if she has just has a whiff of it she won’t even know who the man and woman facing her are. She’ll mistake them for the lover she has in her heart and rush into their arms.’
In addition, Elisha said that no one should come near the shrine for the quiet memorial service. Even Elisha conveyed the order herself.
She would be alone in the temple all night and receive a visit from Zain at dawn.
And tomorrow morning, everyone would witness Elisha’s humiliation. Just the mere thought of it made Carola’s limbs tremble with thrill.
‘You’ll be ruined soon, Elisha. I know Lucerne’s temper very well. There’s no way he will hold on to a woman who has been violated. Then you will be miserably abandoned, then your real hell will commence.’
Jacob ran a club called the Red Club for money laundering purposes. Masquerades were often held at the club, and suspicious people often came and went. Carola would often hide her identity to infiltrate and play.
While there, she heard outrageous tales like a club that puts on a show where women are imprisoned and forced to have sex with animals. Once Carola captured Elisha, she would sell her to that club, making her worse off than a prostitute. The thought of it made her so excited that she couldn’t even stand.
‘Just watch, we’ll be the next grand ducal hosts of the Cartier family. And the next duke will be the blood of Carola. Never a lowly bitch like you.’
Carola laughed as she thought about Elisha’s mother. A woman of such a trashy bloodline was not qualified to give birth to an offspring of the ducal family.
***
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