Sophia exclaimed, "A banquet? What for?"
Noah smiled and replied, "Don't you remember?"
"It's for me."
Immediately, Sophia recalled some information about this event. It was a banquet hosted by the king himself in honor of the Crown Prince Noah, who had been guarding the kingdom's borders against enemy attacks. The public had dubbed Noah the "Guardian Prince" due to his legendary deeds and battles on the frontlines.
Out of appreciation for Noah and his fellow warriors, the king arranged this banquet, distributing gifts and promoting those who had excelled in the ongoing war. The event was attended by all officials and their families.
Smiling, Sophia responded, "Of course, I remember this occasion."
After a moment of reflection, she added, "I, too, apologize for not being able to welcome you. Despite being late."
Sophia forced a smile and said, "Welcome home, husband." At that moment, Noah was sipping tea. He saw Sophia's smile, but what she said next shocked him so much that he nearly choked on his drink. He thought, "Have the poisons affected her mind? Her condition was already pessimistic. People say that those who are dying undergo personality changes."
He looked at her with a touch of pity. He considered her one of his intelligent subordinates, and the idea of losing such a valuable asset left him feeling somewhat empty. After a brief moment of thought, he still determined to achieve his goal, "So, will you be attending?"
Her response was immediate, "Yes, I will attend."
"I must attend."
She couldn't ignore those meaningful words hanging in the air.
[Ding: Main Mission: Search for the Soul Gem Fragment in the Eastern Imperial Palace.]
[Ding: Reward: ???]
Noah raised an eyebrow upon hearing her quick answer, but he didn't bother to inquire further. With a confident smile, knowing that he would witness a spectacle soon, he said, "Very well, be ready tomorrow."
He got up and left, leaving her staring into space. She could only recall a few faces she despised – the real Sophia, the one she was impersonating, who would be present at the banquet.
Before her thoughts could linger, Emma's interruption caught her attention. With a concerned tone, Emma asked, "Are you sure, Your Highness, that you're going to attend?"
"I mean, your health hasn't improved yet."
Sophia looked at her with some suspicion, wondering, "What's the deal with this girl and why is she so friendly?" Yet, she refrained from saying anything, fearing to gain a negative view from another mistress to the story's hero. She might forget everything except how the original body's owner died due to hero's mistress number 2.
After a moment, she replied, hiding her thoughts, "Yes, I'm sure."
Then she asked a question that had been on her mind, "Who treated me?"
She took the matter quite seriously. After completing the mission to find the Soul Gem fragment, her second goal would be healing her body. She might die before achieving the first goal due to this trash body. Whoever treated her must possess some good abilities, and she'd feel obligated to express gratitude at the very least. Also, she hated having someone indebted to her.
Emma's tone turned somewhat melancholic as she asked, "Why do you want to know this, Your Highness?"
Sophia answered, "There's no specific reason. I just want to thank him and have a little conversation. I don't want anyone owing me anything."
Emma frowned even more upon hearing Sophia's response. She seemed like someone preparing herself for departure without leaving any lingering issues behind. So, she asked once more, "And what will you do for this person when you find out who they are, Princess?"
Despite Emma's persistent questions, Sophia decided to stick with her non-intrusive approach to not bother the hero's mistresses. She answered, "I'll do whatever I can to fulfill any request they have, within my abilities."
Emma smiled broadly and said, "Anything?"
Sophia felt a strange undertone in her questions but affirmed, "Yes, anything."
"Remember your promise, Your Highness. This young lady Fontaine wants you to become her social guide in women's affairs."
Sophia knew she was already the best teacher. The original body's owner was someone who understood the female mind well, having lived among snakes and scorpions .
without relying on memories of the original body, she was the best choice. As a seasoned reader of all kinds of novels, she knew all the tactics of the wicked, trivial, and repetitive female characters.
But before all this, didn't this mean that the person who treated her was Emma? She immediately realized how she had been treated by her. The story never mentioned Emma being good at medicine, leaving us with one possibility.
With a touch of gloom, Sophia looked at her and asked, "Did you use your ability?"
The other answered with a proud smile, "Yes, I did, and I'm glad I did."
Sophia wondered whether Emma would still remain happy and proud even after finding out that she took months off her life. She even felt a bit of guilt about it. It seemed that this young lady wasn't as bad as she initially thought, and she did need assistance with women's matters and their schemes.
In Sophia's perspective, Emma was like a gem in her father's hand. She realized that if she were in the inner courtyard of the palace, not even among the wives and concubines, she wouldn't survive for more than a week, as the novel indicated. The hero Alex would drain her to death while she remained oblivious to what was happening.
"Yes, I agree to teach you."
"First lesson: Don't trust anyone, not even me."
Emma tilted her head in confusion, but she didn't dwell on it much. She responded, "I didn't treat you alone. The doctor, Steve, helped me. He treated your wrist."
It appeared that Doctor Steve treated her wrist while Emma took care of balancing the poison within her body.
After that, Sophia didn't do much. She wandered through Prince Noah's palace while Emma supported her. During her exploration, she discovered that the prince's palace was indeed large, and there weren't many workers around. However, she didn't dwell on it much, estimating that the prince wasn't on good terms with a king who couldn't sleep well. She felt as if she was part of another clichéd story where the heroine transported from another world finds herself married to a powerful, cold prince whom the royal family despises.
In her thoughts, Sophia pondered, "Does this make me the heroine?"
After saying this to herself, she drifted off to sleep, not waking up until early morning when many maids entered her room. She realized these girls were her maids, who would prepare her for the banquet. Among them was a girl with brown hair and a few freckles on her face. She stood out from the rest due to her small stature and withdrawn appearance.
Sophia recalled this girl. She was the one who could only say, "My lady, my lady, my lady." She vaguely remembered that she had lashed out at this girl with everything in her room. So, she felt a hint of regret and apologized while the maids were preparing her, "Little Mei, I'm sorry for hitting you."
the other girl replied in a flustered and embarrassed manner, "Don't worry, Your Highness, nothing happened."
After Sofia spoke, the heavy atmosphere gone and the other maids began chatting and trying to flatter her, but she didn't pay them any attention. After preparing her makeup and hair, only her dress remained. She was waiting until an elderly man entered, addressed by everyone as Old Mo. Sofia was puzzled because Old Mo was responsible for fulfilling Noah's requests and overseeing palace affairs. In another word, he was the head of Noah's palace servants.
Old Mo didn't wait for her questions, saying lightly, "Prince Noah has sent you a dress as a gift," handing her a small note. She began reading it, not caring about the beautiful and neat handwriting. "I hope you like this gift from this prince, Sofia." She smiled at Old Mo and thanked him.
At the grand palace gates, Noah stood with two men. One of them had blue hair and blue eyes, bearing a strong resemblance to Emma. Thus, Sophia recognized him as Emma's older brother, Lenn Fontaine. He was dressed in red attire with a fan placed before his mouth, giving him the air of a pampered young lord.
Upon seeing Sophia, Lenn smiled at her, in contrast to the other man who remained grim-faced and acted as if he hadn't noticed her. Any other girl in her place would have been afraid of this man, given his black hair, brown eyes, and stern facial expressions, along with his penchant for wearing black. However, Sophia didn't pay much attention to this so-called Sue, as neither she nor the original body's owner held any negative impression of him.
Afterward, she looked at her husband, Noah, who was dressed in black with golden motifs. However, that wasn't the most imposing aspect, but the invisible aura around him that instilled fear.
When Noah saw Sophia, he gazed at her for a moment, as she looked beautiful in black with the golden patterns. Her hairstyle wasn't overly elaborate; there were some braids, with her hair cascading down to her waist, adorned with some jewelry that enhanced her beauty. She smiled at him, but her smile didn't reach her eyes, which remained like stagnant blue abyss . Noah noticed this, but he didn't pay it much heed. He also noticed that she still appeared pale and was holding onto her maids' hands tightly, as if she would collapse if let go.
At this moment, Sophia felt like her head was about to explode, and she felt she would fall if she let go of her maid's hand. She could only curse her body internally, but she was surprised when she saw Noah approaching. He took her hand and coolly remarked, "You're late."