The Salian Empire was completely religious with the Holy Church having even more influence than the Emperor himself. The slightest negative comment towards the Gods was heavily frowned upon and one could even be imprisoned and executed if they were found out.
Lady Aisha's statement about the Gods being blind was directly challenging authority and it seemed as if Dione wanted to implement her as well. Valerie simply could not afford to be pushed into such a deep pit and did not care if she had to sacrifice this stupid girl if it meant clearing her name.
"Your Highness...?" Lady Aisha, on the other hand, donned a bewildered expression. It seems she still had not realized that Princess Valerie planned to abandon her because of her reckless mouth.
Princess Valerie harshly shoved Aisha's head down, forcing her into a low bow. "Don't stand there looking stupid! Apologize and repent for your sins to Princess Dione right this instant!"
Aisha's head nearly hit the edge of the tea table when she was forced down. Her eyes burned with tears and she still did not understand what had gone wrong.
Why should she have to apologize to this bastard child? Wasn't Princess Valerie clearly the one who ordered her to humiliate Dione? She was simply following orders so why was she the one in this pathetic state instead?
In any case, she was in no position to go against Princess Valerie so she sucked it up and with gritted teeth, she bit out a feeble, "I'm sorry! Please forgive me for my ignorance!"
When Aisha rose from her pitiful stance, she glared at Dione in bone-chilling hatred.
Valerie was at least able to hide her emotions better than Aisha. "Since Lady Aisha has now apologized and repented for her mistakes, this matter can be considered over. Surely you won't be petty and continue to beat a dead horse, right sister?"
Dione, whose expression looked as if she were lazily enjoying a show, laughed. "Ah, really? But I feel like being especially petty today."
"You!" Aisha shrieked.
Even Emery, who had been silent all this time, intercepted."Don't go too far!"
"Oh but Lady Emery, I'm afraid I haven't gone far enough. I think you're all deliberately forgetting something here. Not only did Lady Aisha insult the Gods by implying they were incompetent, she also insulted the Late Emperor by claiming I bewitched him. Even if we passed off her crime against the Gods as reckless ignorance, spreading malicious rumors about the royal family is punishable by death."
Lady Aisha felt as if she had been plunged into a sea of ice-cold water. The depth of her bones chilled as Princess Dione listed off one crime after another.
All she wanted to do was humiliate this useless girl a bit, how did it possibly come to this?
Insulting the Gods, and spreading malicious rumors about the royal family. As a daughter of nobility, she understood very well that these crimes were not laughing matters. She could even implicate her entire family!
For the first time, her body began to tremble with fear. She whipped her head around to plead with Princess Valerie and Emery near her side. Emery and Aisha were childhood friends and she could not bear to see her continue to look so pitiful.
Her enraged eyes landed on Dione's rather peaceful and lazy deposition. "Unlike you, Lady Aisha is a well-respected lady. There is no one who would dare to believe a single word of what you say!"
"Is that so?" Dione tilted her head as if she were really considering it.
Seeing that she seemed to be lost in thought, Emery took that as a sign of her defeat. She placed her hands on Aisha's shoulders to comfort her and was going to lead her out until she heard Dione call Caleb into the garden.
"Did you hear everything that Lady Aisha said?"
Caleb nodded. "I did, Your Highness."
Dione looked back to three ladies across from her as she gestured to the guard at her side, "See? Sir Caleb will be able to act as my witness."
"He's the Duke's subordinate, of course, he would lie for you!" Aisha shrieked, stomping her foot like a child.
"So now Lady Aisha thinks that the Duke has no integrity? First the Gods, then my father the Late Emperor, and now the hero of the Salian Empire. In order to humiliate me Lady Aisha is not afraid to offend all of the higher powers. This is truly an eye-opener for me!" Dione huffed angrily as if she were really a wife offended by someone insulting her dear husband.
Aisha really felt as if she would pass out now. She could not allow Dione to continue to add these crimes to her and smear her name like this so she dropped to the ground in front of Princess Valerie in a last-ditch effort to gain some help.
Her sobs were ugly to listen to. "Princess..Princess Valerie, you have to help me. You know better than anyone that I was only doing this for me, you have no right to throw me away like this!"
Princess Valerie, though furious a mere Marquess' daughter dared to speak to her like this, decided to throw Aisha a bone. She sighed, curbing her disdain, "What is it that you want exactly, Dione? Lady Aisha has already apologized to you, is that not enough for you? Don't be so petty."
"Well, it's not as if Lady Aisha has not always been an unruly child. Considering that I was once almost her mother, I'll take pity on her and will not find fault with the house of Marquess Neil."
Before the ladies could breathe a sigh of relief, Dione continued. "As long as Lady Aisha gives me a traditional apology, I will forget this matter has ever happened."
"Are you crazy? I would rather die than be humiliated like that!"
"You are absolutely crossing the line!" Emery agreed.
Dione's eyes turned cold. "Then die. Once this matter reaches the ears of the people and the Emperor you'll be a dead woman walking anyhow. So what will it be, Lady Aisha? Will you get on your knees and grovel like a good girl or would you rather this reach the ears of the Holy Church?"
Aisha's hands clenched at her side, turning them a ghastly white color. She was so angry that she trembled uncontrollably and her face was as red as a tomato.
A traditional apology included a person kneeling in front of its receiver and banging their head their head harshly on the ground. It was extremely brutal and in olden times, it was used as a punishment for criminals. They would bang their heads against the ground while confessing to their crimes over and over again until they eventually died.
Did she want to force her to do a traditional apology? Her reputation would never recover even if the rumors of what she said here today didn't spread!
Aisha looked back at Princess Valerie for any signs of help but Valerie wasn't even looking at her - she was staring at Princess Dione with a blank face. She did not look at Aisha even once. It was clear she could not rely on Valerie to help her.
After weighing the pros and cons, Aisha slowly knelt on the ground. If rumors of today spread it would also implicate her family. While she did not care for her father, the Marquess, she did not want anything to happen to her mother.
"Aisha…" Emery's voice choked as she saw her dear friend kneeling on the ground.
BANG!
Aisha's head hit the ground. Since she already decided to do it she did not see the need to be softhearted. The first hit was extremely hard.
BANG!
Again. This time, Aisha began to speak, "I apologize for my reckless mouth! I am a stupid woman who does not understand human language! Please have mercy on me, Your Highness, Princess Dione!"
BANG! BANG! BANG!
With each bang, Aisha repeated herself. Over and over again, her throat began to get sore. She was busy and she could feel the warm blood ooze from her forehead and drag itself down her face, burning her eyes and tasting metallic in her mouth.
Dione just leisurely in her chair, sipping her cup of tea that had now gone cold with all the ruckus. She looked bored, making Valerie's blood boil.
Dione just smirked subtly at her elder sister. Maybe Valerie thought she was stupid since she was always pampered by their father but she was still a noble princess was she not? Someone dumb and short-sighted like Aisha Neil was not a person she could not deal with. How boring.
And as angry as Valerie is, she is aware of the fact that she cannot do anything. She had completely underestimated Dione as a stupid woman. This time, it was her fault. It was truly her loss.