Chapter 38
‘What have I done to deserve this?’
Katharina felt like the world was conspiring against her. First, the opportunistic Tannburg princess toppled one of her most promising plans with an offhand comment, and now this.
One does not simply ‘refuse to play’. That was just not how it worked for aristocrats, and even less so for the daughter of a duke. Princess Klara was being unreasonable, but it didn’t matter. There was nothing Katharina could say or do right now to convince her. Their stations were too far apart for a lecture – a lesson Katharina had painfully, but lastingly learnt four years ago.
As if to underscore the point, the Princess picked up another pastry, took a huge, entirely unladylike bite out of it, and smirked triumphantly.
Two severe setbacks in one day. Uncomfortable reminders just how precarious Katharina’s situation was right now, despite the false sense of security she felt in the presence of Prince Arnold.
But not all was lost. Despite her words and harsh expression, Princess Klara had not left, still shoveling food into her mouth and occasionally taking a sip of the expensive tea.
Katharina could tell that the Princess lacked Arnold’s uncanny intuition. She had fully bought into the little tricks – a subtle wince here, a minuscule stutter there – and was thus much easier to handle in the long run. Now it was mostly a matter of understanding her character.
She was proud, almost ridiculously so. But her pride was not the pride of a typical noblewoman. If anything, it seemed more… masculine than, say, Prince Ludwig’s. While Klara would undoubtedly respond violently to personal insults, Katharina got the impression that her reaction to an insult to House Eisenberg would be significantly more pronounced. Carefully avoiding traditionally offensive actions would be enough to handle this particular quirk of hers, and it would offer countless opportunities in return.
She also severely disliked the finer arts of conversation. A good percentage of aristocrats would grudgingly respect someone who managed to outmaneuver them with words or trick them without resorting to blatant untruths. The same could not be said for the Princess, who obviously thought little of ‘silklings’ and their verbal battlefields. This was perhaps the most difficult challenge for Katharina to overcome – those were the only battlefields she was equipped for.