A Painting of the Villainess as a Young Lady
chapter-160

Within this empire, there was a state of tension between the imperial family and the temple.

It was only natural that they had to engage in a cautious power struggle to secure their interests, but their situation seemed peculiar.

The imperial family claimed to have divine blood flowing through their veins, while the temple served God. This created a conflict of interests between them.

Violet couldn’t help but ponder if gods truly existed in this world. Observing the temple priests performing divine acts and miracles using their divine power made her wonder if there might be some truth to the existence of gods.

However, she didn’t immediately believe in them. Belief and certainty were separate matters in her mind.

In the midst of her thoughts, Aldin returned after having changed into new clothes. He had concealed his bare skin, but he still wore a perplexed expression.

“Why have you come here all of a sudden?”

“I just dropped by for a moment. I thought I might recognize some faces, and it turns out I did. I even saw someone I hadn’t even thought of at all.”

The familiar face mentioned by Violet was Aldin himself, and the one she hadn’t thought of was Cairn.

Misunderstanding her words, Aldin tilted his head, while Cairn, who had belatedly regained his composure, watched his friend and his older sister with a subtle expression.

“Well, this is a gift.”

Violet gestured towards Aldin as if offering something, but it wasn’t her holding the gift—it was one of the knights who stood nearby. Inside the gift package were several snacks.

Aldin was taken aback by this unexpected gesture, and the knights around them gathered, curious about what was happening.

Whispers began to circulate

What’s going on? The Ducal Lady has brought snacks. The Ducal Lady of Aesir? No, the Ducal Lady of Everett. The recipient is Aldin, isn’t it?

As the mutterings grew louder, Aldin’s ears turned increasingly red. He could hear everything.

“If you don’t mind, please join us.”

“We can’t ignore Your Ladyship’s kindness. Everyone, it’s break time!”

There were around thirty elite knights here, so the amount of snacks Violet had brought was limited. However, it wasn’t a problem sharing a small treat amongst the knights.

Amidst the grueling training, when the knights finally had a break, they openly expressed their delight.

However, their joy was short-lived as they received a reprimand from their captain. Then, as some knights began to indulge in their snacks, they were next scolded by the vice captain.

Nevertheless, these knights were quite straightforward, so they simply appreciated the sweet respite provided by Violet.

Even the knight from the third knight order, who was tasked with escorting Violet, enjoyed a bite. He took pride in having something to boast about to his peers who were not at the integrated training grounds.

“By the way, how does Lady Everett and Aldin know each other?”

“Well, there’s Cairn, you know. Despite his lack of proper decorum, he’s still from House Everett.”

“Oh, right, they’re siblings, aren’t they?”

“So, did they get to know each other through Cairn?”

“She’s so beautiful…”

“Come on, you don’t stand a chance.”

“Why not? I’m not that bad. Just a brief conversation…”

During the break, various small talk and discussions took place. Violet pretended not to hear the conversations going on around her while quietly smiling.

The captain of the first knight order and the vice captain of the second knight order, who were by her side, simply sighed.

“These young ones are lacking.”

“They’re the ones who are hardest to get into our ranks as knights.”

“Ignorant fellows. Just let them prattle on.”

“Haha.”

In the midst of it all, Cairn tried to steal another bite from Aldin’s share but was promptly blocked. Watching the two of them bicker, Violet couldn’t help but smile. Their squabble reminded her of boys their age, and she found it endearing.

The knights continued to speak amongst themselves.

“Cairn is a remarkable talent. If he could only control his temper…”

“He’ll probably get in right away without even a test once he graduates from the academy.”

“I heard he has no intention of joining the Imperial Guard though.”

“Haha, you know the future isn’t set in stone.”

Despite Cairn being a bit of a detestable jerk, Roen didn’t want him to be tied to the imperial family. Rajaden, of course, was yet another person Roen considered to be a detestable jerk.

When Violet subtly conveyed Roen’s genuine thoughts on the matter, the vice commander chuckled and let it slide.

Violet watched with a bewildered expression as her younger brother stretched out at the training grounds as though this was his home turf. It seemed like he was considered to be a highly sought-after talent by not only the crown prince, but even the knights themselves.

She still didn’t particularly like Cairn. However, it was more in the realm of ‘not liking’ rather than the intense aversion she had felt in the past.

He had initially offered to be her protector and insisted on accompanying her, but at some point, he had integrated into the knights rather than staying by Violet’s side. She thought it was fortunate that she didn’t have to see Cairn’s face frequently.

Nevertheless, despite various opinions around her regarding Cairn, those words did not carry Cairn’s true intentions. Still, the knight captain and vice captain continued to try to persuade Violet.

“Our knights have the most impressive uniforms.”

“…Is that enough to persuade me?”

“Hmm.”

“Are you going to give in?”

The knight commanders, who were entering middle age, continued with trivial banter. While inspecting the uniforms of the surrounding knights, Violet just gave an ambiguous response.

Then, someone asked.

“By the way, Sir Mikhail is also an excellent knight, isn’t he?”