Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 351 Sophia’s Mansion

Sophia's Mansion was located on the highlands by the sea to the north of Coldwater Port City. Although it was called a mansion, it actually served as a summer retreat for the Royal Family.

To the west of the mansion was the ocean, to the south lay the urban district of Coldwater Port City, and to the east and north were the Coastal Forests—where local nobles indulged in hunting and fishing. These forests also served as an important local source of wood for Coldwater Port City during the winter.

Shard had once visited Miss Galina's estate in Tobesk, but he had not had the chance to look around the estate. He had also visited Lakeside Manor during a banquet, but that place was simply incomparable to the Royal estate.

After the group returned to Sophia's Mansion, two scholars were temporarily taken into custody and Lecia would handle their case separately.

Updat𝒆d fr𝑜m freewebnøvel.com.

The princess was completely soaked and went to bathe upon returning. The estate housed a large dedicated bathing pool for the use of the Royal Family members.

Shard certainly was not allowed to use such a bathing pool, but Lecia had arranged a room for him, and the washroom in the room was sufficient for him to clean himself up.

However, as the soaked Shard received his clean clothes and was ready to wash up, the two young maids who delivered the clothes did not leave:

"Is there anything else?"

The outlander asked, his shoulders still draped with the towel he had used to dry his hair.

"The Princess asked us to help you..."

"No, leave."

Only then did Shard realize that outlanders were not accustomed to such things.

"You misunderstand, we are the Princess's personal maids, not those from Sophia's Mansion..."

"Leave."

Shard waved his hand, his principles were not something he was willing to change easily. Although the outlander hoped to adapt to this era, there were some things he preferred to stick to his principles:

"Leave."

Thus, the maids could only apologize and turn away, leaving Shard to enjoy a hot bath in peace.

After Shard changed his clothes, he was initially ready to see Lecia, only to be surprised by two hairdressers, led by a mansion maid, who trimmed his hair. However, after finishing and checking the mirror, he could not see any difference from before.

After that, Shard still could not leave, as the servants pushed a clothing rack with wheels, allowing him to select outerwear, trousers, shoes, and a hat. Shard, who was not particularly concerned about his attire, casually chose a black set. However, under the insistent gaze of the middle-aged maid who seemed like the head maid, he was forced to try on many other combinations.

Even after selecting his clothes, he could not leave. It seemed the middle-aged maid, possibly the Head Maid, actually took a deck of Roder Cards out of her skirt pocket and wanted to gamble on Roder Cards with Shard:

"This is too much. What exactly do you want to keep me here for?"

Seeing his question, the middle-aged maid, who called herself Leah Hearse, replied hesitantly:

"The Princess is not ready yet, so she asked us to find something for you to do. If the weather clears up, we could take you to the garden for a stroll, but it's still raining now, and it's inconvenient for you to visit other parts of the mansion."

That's when Shard understood:

"Then I shall wait a while. By the way, aren't you curious about who I really am?"

When he and Lecia returned, they openly entered through the front door of the mansion.

Ms. Hers flashed a faint smile:

"You are Rejed's Hamilton Knight, the one who saved Her Majesty Queen Diana, the prince's mother. You need not worry about His Majesty the King finding out about the prince's acquaintances, this isn't Tobesk. Moreover, since the prince was arranged to visit Carsonrick for such an important diplomatic mission, do you really think there aren't enough trustworthy people around her?"

It seemed that Shard's perception of the so-called "Princess" was still overly influenced by the stories from his homeland.

By the time Ms. Hers led him to the dining room, it was already noon.

Outside, it was still raining, and from the restaurant's floor-to-ceiling windows, one could see the small trees in the mansion's garden swaying gently with the wind.

Having changed out of the clothes she wore to conceal her identity, Lecia Cavendish wore a fluffy blue and white princess gown, sitting at the head of the dining table waiting for Shard. The dining room was not dimly lit; golden candlesticks on the long table burned brightly, and the gas lamps on the wall bearing the Royal Family's crest emitted light as well.

Behind Lecia, on the wall hung a giant oil painting, with red curtains descending from the ceiling on both sides, and gold tassels at the bottom nearly touching the floor. The painting depicted an elderly man in knightly armor on horseback, recognizable even by outsiders as Myr Cavendish, known as the "Red Lion," the great-grandfather of the current King Fire Jumper Larus III, and grandfather to Miss Galina.

He had personally led his troops into Carsonrick's territory and slain the governor of Carsonrick's southern shire with his sword—being the last renowned knight emperor before the rise of firearms. His stories were long celebrated in Draleon and he was truly a legendary figure.

Shard paused for a moment in front of the two large doors of the dining room, then finally entered. Discover hidden content at novelbuddy

Lecia sat at the far end of the long table, resting her face on her hand as she looked out at the rain through the window, her meticulously styled red hair hanging behind her head. On her right ear was the Sage-Level Relic Ruby Earring, and on her left was the mermaid-shaped ruby earring Shard had given her last time.

A silver crown sat upon her head, glittering under the gas lamp light. The lightly made-up girl's skin radiated a tempting pale rose hue, and her lips, colored by a lipstick shade Shard couldn't recognize, looked strikingly vivid.

Even though he had seen many nobly-dressed ladies at banquets before, he had to admit that none could outshine the princess who sat at the end of the table.

The servants pushing the serving carts were arranging dishes, and just from what Shard saw, there seemed to be enough food to feed him for three meals. Of course, he wouldn't comment on wasting food; he only slightly regretted not bringing Mia along.

"Good afternoon, Shard."

As Shard approached, Lecia gestured for him to sit at her right side.

"Good afternoon."

Shard replied, then following the principle of "when unsure what to say to a lady, compliment her dress," he quietly praised:

"That is a really nice dress."

The princess showed a shy smile:

"Shard, please sit down. I mentioned on Monday that I wanted to treat you to a meal, but you left in such a hurry that day. Now we finally have the chance."

In the end, only the two of them sat at the table, yet there were eight dishes and two soups. Shard thought that was a lot, but Lecia told him that she hadn't expected they would return for lunch, so this was a hastily prepared meal.

The custom of the era was that dinner was the most important meal of the day, and the feast Lecia had prepared for Shard would actually appear at dinner.