CHAPTER 413: LOSING BATTLE

Rochelle had been busying herself with the other noble ladies the entire duration of her trip to the northeast. Only when her husband arrived did she immediately go to him, but only an hour later, she was off with another group of ladies interested in tea and the kingdom’s gossip.

However, all women had gone off in various directions to get themselves ready for what was to ensue at the banquet. It was in the interest of all women to dress better than they usually might. After all, the eligible young Duke was at his first banquet. Even those married wanted to dress their best just to add to the fun and show off their status, hoping to be seen as worthy.

An added cherry on top for Rochelle was that not all noble wives were able to stay in the Earl’s home. It was only due to her husband’s feats that she was able to. All the advisors to the Duke were allowed, after all. Everyone else was set to stay in the nearby township.

Being dropped in her own carriage at the front of the Earl’s home while the other ladies went off in other directions made her feel particularly spoiled.

Predictably, Arthur was waiting for her. He always had a way of knowing where she was or when she would return to him. It was one thing about him that she always loved. He considered her to be his prize and took care of her very well to show this.

"Where is our daughter?" Rochelle asked her husband.

Arthur had been speaking to the advisors all day. It was like catching up with old friends and slightly tempering the way they were to receive the young Duke.

The former knight found himself liking Duke Mattson both as a political figure and as the Commander over the knighthood. He was young but had a surprising amount of experience under his belt. He was jaded by the capital rather than in awe of it, despite his humble beginning. That was something the North needed rather than an inflexible extension of the King.

"I haven’t seen her since the knights’ morning practice," Arthur admitted.

"I surely hope she will be joining us as a Litharion and not as a knight," Rochelle admitted. "She was invited as a guest, not as a guard."

"She is both a Litharion and a knight," Arthur reminded his wife. "I don’t see the issue if she doesn’t want to play dress up."

"It’s more out of respect than anything, Arthur," Rochelle insisted. "I respect the Sunsto customs. It’s the same thing to be part of the Kingdom of Peroda."

"I have no stake in this battle," Arthur admitted, kissing his wife on the forehead as he slowly led her towards their guest quarters. "I just want the two women in my life to be happy."

As they entered the quarters, Rochelle walked towards the closed door of Irene’s room and gave a couple of knocks. She listened for a moment and was met with silence. After that, she pushed the door open and sighed to see her daughter killing time by sleeping. Her beautiful red hair was fanned out across the bed as the young woman dozed.

"Irene," Rochelle called. "It’s time for you to get ready."

Irene rolled over with a groan and pulled the pillow over her face.

Her mother smiled faintly, realizing her daughter still slept the exact same way she did when she was a small child. She looked awfully the same as well.

Unfortunately, Irene knew she wasn’t going to get out of it. Despite having slept off her bad thoughts as well as the outcome of her bad behavior, she sat up with a stretch and allowed the blankets to fall off of her.

"Your hair is a mess," Rochelle realized.

Irene stood up, pushing the blankets off of her as she did, and went to her mother.

"It’ll be tamed against my will, I’m sure," Irene complained.

"You smell of sweat," Rochelle continued. "Did you rest without bathing earlier?"

Irene frowned faintly.

"A whole bath for this banquet? It seems a bit excessive."

"You will not represent the Litharions smelling like metal and sweat," Rochelle persisted. "I will request a bath. It isn’t as if I’m asking you to wear perfume."

Irene knew arguing was futile, so she merely dragged herself to the bathroom that her parents shared and waited somewhat impatiently for servants to bring water and the maids to insist they needed to help her scrub herself.

With her mother close by, Irene decided to rein herself in and allowed them to bathe her until she felt like she was thoroughly polished from head to toe and her innocence had been stripped from her with the way they handled every inch of her body.

"My lady, these scars are quite scary. You must have been through a lot," one of the maids commented.

"I could never go through what you do," another said. "You’re far braver than I."

Irene merely responded, "Being a knight requires bravery to ensure that neither of you is burdened with the darkness of the world."

"Then we will take care of you in return," the first maid insisted.

And with that, Irene smelled like the mild, milky soap and was wrapped up in a warm robe as she was permitted to go to her room and look at the selections of clothing left out for her.

Unfortunately, it seemed that she had exhausted her options that contained pants, because as she dug through what was left, she only found dresses. It was enough to put a small frown on her face.

She didn’t want to relent just yet. Instead, she sat down at the edge of her bed with the clothing from the night before sitting next to her. She would rather just wear that again than have to present herself to her knights wearing a gown.

If something happened and she was unprepared, she would feel awful. There wasn’t exactly a place to keep a sword in a dress.

A short while later, Irene’s mother came into the room after knocking a couple of times.

"Do you need help dressing?" she asked her daughter.

"I think I will wear the clothing from last night," Irene admitted, knowing her mother had seen her before bed when she bid her a goodnight.

Rochelle let out an even sigh, and she stepped towards the bed where the dresses had been laid out.

"I thought that I had compromised enough with these choices," she admitted. "I requested they be made with thin skirts that are easy to move around in and less skin showing than what I know some of the other noble ladies will be wearing this evening."

"I don’t wear dresses at all," Irene insisted. "At this point, I don’t even feel as if I know how to behave in them as I did as a child."

Rochelle’s frustration was growing, but she didn’t want to sully the bit of time she had with her daughter.

"Just for tonight, could you please try?" Rochelle requested. "It would be good for His Grace and our family if you decided to follow customs just this once. Tonight is the Duke’s first event in Chemois. It isn’t as if being a knight hasn’t made it so you’re no longer a woman."

Irene’s eyebrows lowered.

"It doesn’t, but isn’t that what you told me when I was a child?" Irene asked in disbelief. "That you didn’t have a daughter anymore when I decided to join the knighthood as an apprentice?"

"I certainly did say that, but despite all the horrors you’ve put your body through, you still managed to grow a womanly figure and show up on my doorstep within days of your first monthly bleeding," Rochelle responded a bit curtly. "Despite not nourishing your womanhood, you still have managed to walk the line between both man and woman."

Irene worried that next she would start talking about possible marriage candidates, and she did an unexpected thing to pacify her mother.

"Fine," she relented. "Just tonight, I will wear a dress, but the moment I leave the banquet, it’s coming off."

Rochelle took a small victory when she could and quickly excused herself.

However, she did not see Irene put on a sage green dress with flowy yet thin skirts, while also putting pants underneath the dress. Not only that, but the knight tied a tunic on her thigh so she wouldn’t be without a shirt later on. Since the dress went to the floor, hopefully, few would notice that on her feet were boots she always wore.

She would be damned if she was caught off guard, depending on the situation.