Chapter 26 The Girls Talk

Elsewhere, Maria lounged peacefully beneath the orchard pavilion, with Ambrosia and Lisa her side. At first glance, the scene seemed refined, but that was deceiving. Ambrosia had already talked the former Duchess into helping her weave flower crowns, while Lisa sat nearby, clutching a few blossoms and watching intently as the work unfolded.

“This one is crooked.” Maria adjusted the woven flowers expertly. “You must tighten the stem slightly here.”

Ambrosia immediately leaned closer.

“Ohhh.”

Lisa blinked softly. “You are very good at this, ma'am”

“Of course.”

Maria smiled calmly. “A proper lady should know many things.”

Ambrosia looked deeply impressed.

“Grandmother really can do everything.”

“That is because your grandmother had lived her life.”

Lisa tilted her head slightly. Maria’s smile turned faintly nostalgic afterward.

“When I was younger, noble society has always been unpleasant to me.”

Ambrosia blinked.

“Unpleasant?”

Maria adjusted another flower carefully.

“Every gathering had a political edge, every conversation hid a deeper meaning, and every slip-up turned into gossip.”

Ambrosia looked horrified already. “That sounds exhausting.”

“It was.”

Lisa hesitated quietly. “Did you dislike it?”

Maria thought for a moment.

“No.”

Their answer caught them both off guard, and the woman responded with a gentle smile. “I was very good at it.”

Ambrosia immediately looked proud for some reason. “As expected of grandmother.”

Maria laughed quietly. “You really sound exactly like Amos.”

Meanwhile Lisa remained quieter than usual. Maria noticed immediately.

“You are thinking too much.”

Lisa startled slightly.

“Sorry.”

“No need to apologize.” Maria’s gaze softened.

“You do that often, don’t you?”

Lisa looked down toward the flowers in her hands.

“…Sometimes.”

Maria did not push further. Instead, she gently reached over and adjusted a loose strand of Lisa’s hair. “You are a sweet girl.”

“You do not need to look so nervous all the time here.”

The black-haired girl looked genuinely caught off guard.

“…I’m trying.”

“I know.” Maria smiled gently. “And you’re doing very well.”

Ambrosia immediately nodded aggressively. “She really is!”

Lisa looked slightly embarrassed.

Maria watched the two girls quietly for a moment afterward and she smiled.

“He brought home wonderful people.”

Ambrosia blinked.

“Brother?”

“Yes.”

Maria leaned back slightly afterward.

“That boy has always been strange.”

“That is true,” Ambrosia admitted immediately.

Maria laughed gently.

“Yes.”

The former Duchess looked toward the distant lake afterward toward where Amos and Axios were likely still talking.

“He hides his feelings very deeply.”

Ambrosia puffed her cheeks. “He tries to act cool all the time.”

“That is because he inherited the Kyros men’s extremely terrible trait.”

“That explains father too.”

“Correct.”

Lisa hesitated slightly before speaking. “Young Master Amos cares a lot though.”

Maria looked toward her immediately. “Yes.” The answer came soft; He loves very deeply.”

The orchard breeze drifted gently around them. Maria’s expression grew quieter afterward. “And that’s exactly why I worry.”

Ambrosia blinked.“Why?”

“Because people who care deeply often push themselves too far.”

Lisa looked down slightly. Maria sighed softly afterward before suddenly clapping her hands once.

“Well then.”

Ambrosia straightened instantly. “Yes?”

“If Amos is going to continue growing into a handsome young noble then both of you must help ensure he develops proper taste.”

Ambrosia blinked.

“…Taste?”

Maria nodded seriously.

“In clothing, in social grace, and in..... women.”

“GRANDMOTHER,” Ambrosia shouted immediately while turning bright red.

Maria’s face lit up with delight. Lisa almost dropped the flowers in a burst of panic. Meanwhile, far away at the dock, Amos shivered as an unexplainable chill ran down his spine. The orchard pavilion had mysteriously changed, and at some point, during the conversation, tea had quietly appeared, then snacks.

Maria was calmly teaching Ambrosia and Lisa about “important young lady matters” with the terrifying confidence of a former duchess.

Lisa sat up straight, while Ambrosia fidgeted with excitement. Neither had any idea of the danger surrounding them, as Maria calmly and elegantly sipped her tea.

“Now then.”

Ambrosia immediately leaned forward.

“Yes, grandmother?”

“The first rule.”

Lisa suddenly looked nervous for reasons she could not explain.

“A proper lady must know how to present herself.”

Ambrosia blinked.

“…Present?”

Maria nodded calmly.

The older woman smiled knowingly.

“Presence.”

Ambrosia was instantly captivated, while Lisa seemed as if she’d stumbled into a battlefield. Maria, meanwhile, gestured with effortless grace.

“Become the reason a room changes when she who truly elegant enters it.”

“That sounds cool,” Ambrosia admitted.

“It is.” Maria smiled proudly.

Lisa hesitated quietly.

“How do you become charming?”

Maria looked toward her immediately.

“Confidence.”

Lisa visibly wilted. “…Oh.”

Maria laughed softly. Not loud confidence. That kind rarely lasts.” The older woman’s expression softened. “True confidence lays within yourself.”

“You do not have to force people to notice you. They simply do it themselves.”

Ambrosia looked deeply invested now. “So, grandmother was really popular?”

Maria smiled. “I had many admirers.”

Lisa blinked.

“Many?”

Maria nodded casually.

“Nobles, knights, and even a foreign prince once wrote me poetry.”

Ambrosia gasped dramatically.

“A prince?!”

“It was terrible.”

Lisa covered her mouth slightly trying not to laugh. Maria sighed faintly.

“He compared my eyes to moonlit soup.”

The girls immediately collapsed laughing.

“That is horrible”

“It truly was.” Maria looked mildly traumatized by the memory. “He was quite handsome fortunately.”

“That doesn’t help,” Lisa said softly between laughs.

“No.”

The older woman took another sip of tea afterward. “Your grandfather challenged him to a duel afterward.”

Ambrosia blinked rapidly.

“WHAT.”

“He lost.”

“Grandfather lost?”

“No. The prince lost.”

“That sounds more correct.”

Maria smiled faintly.

“Axios was very troublesome when he was younger.”

Lisa tilted her head slightly.

“Was?”

Maria laughed into her tea.

“And handsome too”

Ambrosia suddenly leaned closer. “Grandmother.”

“Yes?”

“What was grandfather like when he liked you?”

Maria went quiet briefly, then a very fond smile appeared.

“He became quite performative.”

The girls burst into laughter again.

“He started showing up everywhere—at gardens, at parties, at tea gatherings—anywhere he could track me down.”

“Once he ‘accidentally’ joined a charity event despite openly hating charity events.” Maria smiled softly into the distance. “He acted very confident, then immediately forgot how conversations worked whenever I looked directly at him.”

Ambrosia pointed dramatically. “THAT SOUNDS LIKE BROTHER.”

Then Maria blinked once.

“…Oh dear.”

Lisa froze too.

“…Oh no.”

The three girls suddenly thought about Amos and Elena simultaneously. Maria set down her teacup very carefully.

“Ambrosia.”

“Yes?”

“Has your brother always looked mildly panicked around that black-haired girl?” Ambrosia gasped.

“YOU SEE IT TOO?”

Lisa looked between them nervously.

“I thought it was normal…”

Maria smiled knowingly now.

“Oh, this is becoming interesting.”

Amos suddenly sneezed. Axios looked toward him calmly.

“Someone is talking about you.”

***

The conversation had taken another turn. Maria sat gracefully under the pavilion as Ambrosia eagerly sifted through the small stack of books she’d brought along for the trip. Lisa was carefully arranging them, when Maria’s gaze settled on one particular cover.  

“…Oh?”

Ambrosia looked up immediately.

“What?”

Maria gently picked up the novel from the table.

“A Moon Beneath Crimson Snow of Our Shadow.”

Lisa immediately recognized it. “That’s Ambrosia’s favorite.”

“It is very good,” Ambrosia defended proudly.

Maria opened the first page casually. “…This handwriting.”

Ambrosia froze. “Handwriting...., you are the one who donated this to the Kyros library?”

“Yes?”

Then the former Duchess laughed softly to herself. “Oh my.”

Ambrosia looked confused.

“What?”

Maria turned the book slightly. Several small notes had been written elegantly in the margins.

“These are my notes.”

“What,” Ambrosia whispered.

Maria looked deeply amused now.

“I donated several romance novels to the estate library years ago.”

“You read romance novels?” Lisa asked carefully.

“My dear.” Maria placed a hand against her chest.

“I even wrote some romance novels myself.”

Ambrosia looked spiritually validated. “I KNEW THEY WERE IMPORTANT.”

“They absolutely are.” The former Duchess flipped through several pages thoughtfully. “I remember this one.”

Ambrosia immediately leaned forward.

“It’s tragic romance, extremely great.”

Maria laughed softly. “You truly are a Kyros.”

Ambrosia looked deeply proud of this.

Maria closed the book gently.

“You know…” Her expression softened slightly.

“My own romance story was far more ridiculous.”

Both girls straightened at once, and even Lisa leaned in now.

“Really?” Ambrosia asked excitedly.

“Oh yes.” Maria smiled faintly into the distance. “When I first met your grandfather, he was utterly insufferable. He challenged someone to a duel within twenty minutes.”

Lisa blinked. “…Why.”

“He thought the man was flirting with me.”

“Was he?”

“Yes.”

“That sounds reasonable.”

Maria laughed softly. “He once climbed into my family estate through a second-floor balcony because my father banned him from visiting.”

The girls stared. “What.”

Maria nodded calmly. “He fell into a rose bush afterward.”

Ambrosia nearly collapsed laughing.

“GRANDFATHER DID THAT?”

“Oh yes.” Maria smiled warmly at the memory.

“He was very proud and very, very stubborn. But…” The older woman’s eyes softened. “He did loved me honestly.”

The pavilion grew quieter afterward. Maria looked down at the old romance novel in her hands. “In noble circles, you quickly realize that many speak with sweetness but lack sincerity.” Her fingers brushed lightly across the book cover. “Your grandfather was terrible with words sometimes.” Maria laughed softly.

“But when things truly mattered…” A very gentle smile appeared. “He never failed me.”

Lisa looked thoughtful.

“That sounds nice.”

“It was.” Maria glanced between the two girls afterward. “Real romance rarely resembles novels.”

“That is disappointing,” Ambrosia admitted.

“No.” Maria shook her head gently. “It’s usually quieter. It’s knowing someone will stay.”

Her eyes wandered for a moment to the far-off lake, where the two Kyros men were quietly fishing.

“Apparently the men in this family fall in love like complete disasters.”