Chapter 678 — Interlude, the Wind Never Stops

The ancient Silverhold had been thoroughly refurbished: the shrubs and flowerbeds had received a meticulous trimming, the centuries-old classical columns and arcades were adorned with bright garlands, banners bearing the imperial crest hung from the second floor all the way to the ground, and in the great courtyard before the main keep, the grounds for the evening banquet stood ready—

The banquet following the coronation would be divided into two parts, inner and outer. The main hall of the castle would host the inner banquet, with more magnificent decorations and stricter rules of etiquette, while the courtyard at the castle's front would host the outer banquet, to which all the nobles of the capital, representatives of the merchants, and delegates of the church and the citizenry were invited.

Clearly, Rebecca preferred the lively bustle of the courtyard.

The girl had been forcibly dressed in a court gown meant for formal occasions, but even so sumptuous a dress could not restrain her leaping heart. She ran back and forth among the flowerbeds and fountains before Silverhold, curious about absolutely everything—the last time she had come, she had still been a destitute minor noble of the Southern Marches, with the Xuanmai Sect overseeing everything from start to finish, so within Silverhold she had not dared to run about at all, and had been careful even about letting her gaze linger too long. But today... no one could rein her in.

At least, apart from the two elders, no one in this castle dared to rein her in.

"The shrubs in the north really are different from the south—this kind is rare where we come from. Terribly hard to keep alive," Rebecca squatted before a flowerbed, plucking at the branches around it while chattering away to the maid beside her. "The druids at the academy have been studying the transplantation of northern and southern plants lately—they want to breed hardier crops... you know the agronomy group?"

The maid attending Rebecca was a blonde woman in her twenties, who at that moment wore a helpless expression and, with a hint of nervousness, glanced around before bending down to remind her cautiously: "Your Highness... please don't get too close to the plants. Your dress..."

"Oh, it's fine—I'm only wearing it for today anyway," Rebecca waved a hand. "More importantly—can you make a whistle out of a leaf?"

The blonde maid blinked, looking troubled. "...Your Highness, I'm very sorry. I can't."

"That won't do—you're no match for Betty... speaking of which, where is Betty?" Rebecca finally remembered the little maid who had come along with her, and looked up curiously, searching around while asking, "Hey, have you seen Betty?"

The maid struggled to follow Her Highness's train of thought, and only after a moment realized she meant that slightly dull-looking little maid. "Betty... I saw her just now, staring off into space by the fountain."

Even as she answered, the maid could not help but mutter inwardly. She simply could not understand how that little maid—who looked like she had not a thought in her head—could have been chosen as Chief Maid of the Inner Court, a position even a notch above her own. The dazed girl knew nothing at all about court etiquette, her reactions were worryingly slow, and this seemed to be the first time she had ever been in a gathering of so many people; she had no idea where she ought to stand, and whenever no one was attending to her, she would stand dumbly by a flowerbed or a fountain...

Yet it was precisely this slow-witted girl who was so beloved by the new imperial household—truly, it was beyond comprehension.

She was halfway through her bewilderment when she saw Rebecca crane her neck toward the fountain, and what the princess did next nearly made the maid jump out of her skin—Rebecca raised a hand and swept it through the air, and a bright, dazzling fireball shot up into the sky...

"Your Highness! What are you—"

Amid the blonde maid's cry of alarm, the bright fireball burst above the courtyard, and the magical flames traced out a line of clear, neat letters in midair: *Betty, come here a moment.*

Before long, under the maid's dumbfounded gaze, the little maid called Betty came running up swiftly from not far off and bowed deeply before Rebecca. "Miss, you called for me?"

The blonde maid wanted to remind this new Chief Maid that she ought now to address Rebecca as Your Highness rather than "Miss," but the two girls before her had already stopped paying her any mind—Rebecca and Betty were squatting on the ground together, plucking several leaves from the shrubs and folding them into leaf whistles, blowing them one after another, dissolving into giggles...

When Gao You saw a fireball burst into a string of letters, he had already guessed whose handiwork it was. Following the direction from which the fireball had risen, he made his way with Amber and found, sure enough, Rebecca squatting on the ground blowing on a leaf together with Betty, while beside them stood a blonde girl in maid's attire, her face full of hapless confusion.

"Your Majesty," the maid, still in her daze, grew all the more flustered and nervous at the sight of Gao Yang, "Her Highness, she..."

Before she could finish, Rebecca had already leapt up with a cry of delight: "Wow! Zuyan Ren is here!"

Betty, half a beat slower, stood up as well. "Master... ah, Your Majesty."

This girl, always so slow to react, had actually managed to recall the correct form of address in time—though on her first attempt she had still gotten it wrong.

"It's fine. Relax and enjoy yourself today." The sight of Rebecca, now changed into a court gown yet her spirit in no way constrained by the garment, could not help but put Gao Yang in good humor. He waved a hand. "Only try not to throw fireballs about. After nightfall there will be mages patrolling above the castle, and apart from the magical fireworks in designated areas, a fireball tossed up like that could easily knock someone out of the sky."

"Oh, got it..."

Gao Yang nodded, then looked at the blonde girl standing nearby, all at a loss and staring blankly. "You were one of Silverhold's original maids, weren't you?"

The blonde girl hastily bowed her head. "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Relax. Take some time to adjust—if you're willing to keep serving the new imperial household, you'd best get used to a life with fewer rules."

"...Yes, Your Majesty."

Gao Yang gave a murmur of assent and was about to leave, but he had scarcely taken a step when Rebecca called him back. "Oh, right, right—Zuyan Ren, I heard that the black-haired maid serving Duchess Victoria is actually a black dragon in her true form. Is that true?"

"Who told you that?" Gao Yang halted, looking at Rebecca with some surprise. "It's not exactly a secret... but it hasn't been made public either, has it?"

"I heard it from Philip, and plenty of soldiers were talking about it too."

"...Fair enough. There were many witnesses that day," Gao Yan nodded. "That's right. Her name is Maggie, she is a black dragon, but she has no intention of spreading it far and wide. What made you take an interest all of a sudden?"

"Ah, I'm just a little curious—a dragon actually living together with humans..." Rebecca blinked, her face alight with inquisitive fascination. "I hear dragon magic is very powerful. Do you think Maggie knows draconic magic too?"

"Hard to say. Perhaps she does, but it seems weaker than that of a normal dragon," Gao Lan said, then promptly cautioned, "It's not good form to discuss such things behind someone's back. You may go ask her to her face, but mind your manners. There seems to be some 'problem' with her dragon bloodline—if she doesn't want to talk about it, don't press her too rudely."

Rebecca nodded vigorously, her face utterly earnest. "Don't worry, don't worry—I'm ever so polite!"