Precarious Tea Party (II)

"Was Sir perhaps invited to this private event?" suddenly asked Edan in his politest tone and Reza turned to him.

He looked this young Dunbar up and down once before taking out his fan and looking the other way with a snicker. Reza thought it was a little amusing that someone who wasn't even related to the family was asking him about invites to private gatherings.

'For a politician's son, this one seems a bit slow,' he thought.

"I'm a guest of Princess Kamaria. Lalla[1] has duly welcomed me with some lovely tea. Having introduced myself, a wise enough person should be able to tell what my business is with the imperial family."

Besides Khayri, no one had ever had the audacity to disregard Edan in this way in public.

The grip on his wine cup tightened after being answered in such a manner but he calmed down and looked toward Kamaria since it was apparently her guest.

"Excuse my rudeness then your Highness."

Kamaria gently nodded as acknowledgement and continued drinking her tea.

Elodie was not interested in this type of boring courtesy display, now she only had this beautiful man in her head, forgetting her rudeness earlier.

Observing further, in one ear he had a small gold hoop and in the other ear it differed, it was a gold hoop as well but attached was a delicate amber pendant that highlighted his striking eyes and warm bronze skin.

"Surely, we have room for one. It's not a problem is it, Princess Velia?"

Velia glanced over at her friend and could only nod, having to discard the thoughts of throwing Reza out. If he could wander round the palace so freely without the guards stopping him, he had to know someone.

If it was the case, throwing him out would create unnecessary trouble which her mother always told her to avoid.

"It seemed as if the topic was interesting, the place looked lively even from a distance," Reza commented.

"Nothing interesting Mr Shafaei," insisted Yrsa and he noticed how he had suddenly been downgraded from Lord to Sir then a Mister when the others addressed him.

Kamaria knew where the topic was leading, so she chose to not join the fun anymore. It would only make it awkward for the newly arrived guest.

"I apologize I seem to have developed a slight headache. I think I just need to have a short rest."

"Oh, that's unfortunate, is the event running into the Princess's time for treatment? We wouldn't want the Empress Consort to worry about her only child," commented Elodie and the statement made Kamaria pause in her seat.

Initially she decided that they were not worth the trouble, and she would take a nap not only to relieve her boredom but also avoid being seen around the palace.

The important thing was that she had shown her face to not be considered discourteous, but the day clearly had other plans for her.

"Miss Elodie, of course she's outgrown most of the treatments, her um… healthy shape should make it obvious. Here's to wishing to the good health of imperial little sister," happily said Thyra the other twin.

As she had a drink, Thyra eyed the youngest princess while thinking about her mother's words.

Her mother was right about Kamaria, despite the way the Empress disregarded her, the little cripple had more than they could ever have.

Consort Johari was a fourth wife but had been married as an empress affording her much more respect in social circles even though their own mother (Lady Alva) was the second wife.

Even if Kamaria was a second rank princess, she was considered to have a higher title though she was younger than them. Due to this title, it was easier for her to have a higher rank marriage match even possibly with a crown prince or king.

With her title and an emperor as in-law, those men would overlook all her flaws big or small. How was that fair?

Kamaria barely ever appeared in public but when she did, she was praised for an elegant and gentle character.

It was as if she was some holy goddess and not a little fool who simply bowed and smiled at everything. She barely even conversed with them as her sisters as if she thought herself better than them.

"Maybe the health difficulties are just from a certain side of the family. The other imperial siblings seem healthy after all," said Elodie.

The maids outside hearing the conversation were almost too shocked to even react.

Sure, the empress consort didn't have powerful people like the Vilaro family behind her, but she was still an empress with other parties backing her and should be afforded the respect. However, in the palace, one had no eyes, ears, or mouth unless they were told otherwise.

Reza looked at Kamaria beside him and suddenly figured out this apparently fun topic. He was about to speak up but noticed the long blink Kamaria took before looking up at Elodie.

The beads and coin-like pendants of her headdress made gentle tinkling sounds contrasting the sudden sharp light in her eyes that the rest of them seemed to not notice.

"Miss Mercier, I think that's quite enough. Surely, we have other topics to discuss," firmly commented Mirek.

He was tired of watching this polite game of insults as they became worse and wondered how Kamaria could take it.

"Were you saying something Sir Mirek?" asked Elodie with an innocent blink.

Mirek glanced at Kamaria while adjusting his spectacles and suddenly realised he had almost done something wrong. If he directly defended her, it would bring unnecessary gossip about the relationship between them even though they barely knew each other.

He might have just seen it as speaking up for someone who was being bullied but once it became a topic people discussed over tea, it could ruin an innocent young woman's reputation.

"Come now everyone, it's all in good jest. Thank you for being concerned about my sister Elodie. Should we bring in more snacks?" asked Velia with a radiant smile, saving the day.

Mirek, who was done with the social niceties, suddenly stood up.

"I have an appointment at the Academy, your Highness. Edan, are you staying?"

Edan turned to look at him for a second and raised his eyebrow before turning to take a sip of his drink. The answer was obvious.

Mirek bowed to everyone and left the pavilion while trying to contain his anger. Besides the obvious disdain of the situation, he was also confused about why they were looking down on her due to her physical condition and intellectual ability.

He had noticed the cane next to her seat but had come in after her so had not seen her walking. It wasn't something Urien had ever focused on meaning it wasn't serious. In fact, this had nothing to do with her intellect.

The Imperial Academy was one of the strictest in the empire and many people older than her thinking themselves educated took the entrance exam more than twice.

Besides that, it would mean that she had passed the previous exams that were written before qualifying for the main entrance exam.

There were seven other kingdoms or states under the rule of the empire with the imperial state as the central. There were three major levels which were county, provincial and royal exams in each state. The top candidates of the royal exams then qualified for the imperial exam which was written in Jaroya.

The intake was limited, so the process helped with filtering the candidates. Then she had only taken the entrance exam once and had passed even educated when grown men cried.

Mirek would have wasted his time studying as a judicial candidate if he was not critical about the situation. If he couldn't make sense of this little thing, he would be lost in a courtroom.

Kamaria's passing mark was unusual and very measured. It was just one enough to get her a qualification. Although this put her at the bottom, it gave her an entrance opportunity without attracting too much attention though she was a princess.

If it was luck, then it was simply too incredible. Only someone who knew what they were doing could be able to measure the minimum mark and get just one more.

With her abilities she could likely write a government exam and even before twenty take up a minor official position or begin scholarly duties. If anything, the young woman was an academic tyrant.

Since Mirek returned from travels with his mentor, Urien had told him quite a few things about her, but he had wanted to meet her without Urien around to determine her character. One could hardly trust the words of a smitten person.

It was probably unknown to Urien, but Mirek could clearly see the love-struck daze on his cousin's face very early.

Kamaria's gentle nature was one of the things Urien admired about her but this type of temperament in the palace or any noble family was not ideal. She even had to lower herself and abilities this much. Since his cousin had the intention, it seemed that he would have to take her out of the palace as soon as possible.

Knowing that noble families often had these types of conflicts and how tough it was to navigate high society, Mirek could only imagine what she went through daily.

[1] Lalla – title of respect for a noble Lady or respected female elder