Chapter 10
Hearing the announcer, Michelle turned her head towards the entrance of the hall, and just like everyone else, she bowed in her waist as the Emperor and the rest of the Royal Family walked through the banquet hall towards their seats.
The Emperor and Empress sat down on their thrones, and the Emperor finally waved his hand at the aristocrats. "Stand up, our subjects! This is a joyous occasion, so do not be too formal!" he had a smile on his face as he spoke.
Michelle straightened her back and folded her fan, holding it down. Her eyes were deep and profound as she scanned the Royal Family, taking in their traits. After a short while, she retracted her gaze and retreated into the crowd.
Using the contract between herself and Mare, she checked Mare's location and found out that she was already entering the banquet hall, so Michelle went towards her.
The moment Michelle reached Mare, she placed the tip of her fan on her lips to keep her quiet, a dark smile on her lips. "The show will begin soon," she said in a whisper. Her words caused a brief smile to flash across Mare's lips, as that was the thing she anticipated the most, just like Michelle and the Archduke.
That the show was about to begin was quite a vague thing to say, as for the start, Michelle needed the Emperor to act as she expected. By disguising as a palace maid for a whole maid, Michelle found out that the Emperor was unaware of the assassination attempt the Crown Prince pulled on the original Michelle, and he was even worried about her well-being after finding out about her memory loss.
After observing for a while more, Michelle had discovered that the Emperor was planning to find out more at the banquet, which played perfectly into her cards.
And just as Michelle had anticipated, the Emperor soon called her forward.
"Is Young Lady Grace present?" the Emperor asked after having called forth quite a few people.
Just like everyone before her, Michelle stepped out of the crowd and bowed down in her waist. "Subject Michelle Grace greets the Emperor! May Your Majesty's reign be as graceful as the midnight moon, and last as long as the sun keeps shining on the Empire's days!" she greeted formally.
The Emperor looked at Michelle with a piercing gaze, studying her demeanor. She had clearly changed since the last time he had seen her. Just like before, her stance carried some arrogance, but in the past, it was more like the arrogance caused by having an influential father, but at the moment, the arrogance was elegant and peaceful, caused by reasonable confidence in one's own ability.
Another thing that was clearly changed about Michelle was her way of dressing. In the past, she used to dress in bright and lavish dresses which were supposed to highlight her silver hair, but didn't quite suit her, but at the moment, Michelle was wearing a dark purple dress with silver streaks, which complemented her violet eyes and was in sync with her silver fan which complemented her hair.