Chapter 137 Nina's Plan
It's strange though - news from the eastern battlefield has already reached the capital, yet no one's saying who this female knight commander is.
On this matter, the Titan family has the most to say.
How many female knight commanders does the Soth Empire have left? Naturally, it's Holden's wife Candy!
Besides, Candy and Holden were ordered by His Majesty some time ago to personally lead the Dawn Knight Order to the eastern battlefield for support - talk about arriving just in time!
So the female knight commander everyone's praising to the skies must be Candy.
The old lady was practically glowing with pride, going out for walks much more often than before.
When Holden and Candy first left for the eastern battlefield, she thought that as commanders, they would just stay back and give orders - no need to fight on the front lines. But on the battlefield, weapons don't discriminate. Even the great Duke Skoda died from a poisoned arrow.
This showed how dangerous battlefields were, so she couldn't help but worry.
The old lady had secretly prayed that if a poisoned arrow flew toward Holden, it would be best if Candy blocked it for him. Better yet if she died - that way she wouldn't get in the way of Holden marrying a more noble young lady later.
Now the war was over. Though Candy came back unharmed, she'd achieved great merit, and the old lady had to admit she had some skills. With the couple both earning military honors, the king would surely reward them handsomely - an earl title at the very least!
The more she thought about it, the more excited she got. Every day she rode her carriage into town to show off, head held high, face beaming with joy.
When people heard about the female knight commander's achievements and saw the old lady so proud, they all tried to curry favor, sending gifts. The old lady accepted everything without hesitation - with Holden and his wife's bright future, even nobles should come flattering.
So the old lady decided to hold a ball at the Titan estate, inviting all the major nobles. If they didn't come now, next time they met, she might already be a countess or even a marchioness!
Perfect timing to arrange a marriage for Nina - families of too low status were naturally beneath the Titan family now.
The old lady put Nina in charge of preparations, but Nina was fed up with household chores and demanded Trion do it instead.
At first the old lady refused, saying Trion needed to care for Dr. Pascal. Nina argued that since Trion had met many nobles while helping with medical cases, having her deliver invitations would look more respectable. The old lady agreed and immediately sent for Trion.
This ball couldn't be as shabby as last time's wedding. Fortunately, there were still plenty of gifts from before. The old lady also took out some of her private funds and had Trion arrange everything.
However, Nina snatched away the spending duties. When she saw those shiny gold coins, her feet felt like they were filled with lead - she couldn't move. She immediately grabbed the old lady's hand and begged to be given this task.
The old lady initially questioned whether she just wanted to waste the money, but this time Nina was smart. She used the excuse that noble ladies need to learn household management and event planning, saying she wanted to practice with this ball and let everyone see her excellent side.
Seeing her daughter so eager to prove herself, the old lady naturally agreed, never imagining that the first thing Nina did with the money was go to the tailor and order herself a gorgeous ball gown, then take the remaining coins to a pastry shop to order desserts.
There weren't many servants at home. The servants who used to be good at making pastries either left with Anne or quit because they weren't getting paid. Now, to entertain guests, they could only order from high-quality pastry shops.
But after buying the dress, the remaining money couldn't possibly cover all expensive desserts.
Nina gritted her teeth, figuring most people at the ball would just go through the motions and not actually eat the pastries. She endured the shop staff's puzzled looks and asked them to use expensive desserts for the visible outer layer, while filling the hidden middle parts with their cheapest pastries.
What did other people's looks matter anyway?
Nina thought that when she made her entrance in that gorgeous ball gown, she'd definitely catch the eyes of all the noble young men. Even if her mother discovered the dessert issue afterward, so what? As long as she landed a few noble bachelors at the ball, her mother would only say she did well.
Trion initially didn't want to take over the ball preparations, but after Dr. Pascal heard the news from the eastern battlefield, he actually started packing his bags to leave.
"Trion, you're a good girl. Leaving this place wouldn't be bad for you."
No matter how Trion tried to make him stay, the elderly doctor still left in the night with his luggage.
Trion had no time to tell the old lady and could only complain to her husband Mephist, who cursed Pascal's direction when he heard the old man had suggested Trion leave.
"Damn old fool! Thinks he's so great because he knows some medicine? How dare he try to talk my wife into leaving! I should've been there with you to punch him right in his wrinkled old face!"
Listening to Mephist's angry cursing, Trion felt no joy. During her time with Dr. Pascal, she'd received respect, understanding, and kindness - things she'd never felt from anyone else in the family. Faced with Mephist coming over for praise after his rant, Trion couldn't muster the interest to humor him for the first time.
Mephist noticed Trion's exhaustion and looked at her in disbelief. "Darling, do you really want to leave me like that old man said?"
Trion shook her head. "I don't think Dr. Pascal was telling me to divorce you. He was advising us to distance ourselves from this family and split off on our own as soon as possible."