The Engagement of the Baron of Flowers and the Withered Tree Lady.

Chapter 64 Julia and the guest

“Madam, your guests have arrived.”

During the explanation of the Plant Baron’s financial report for the previous year in Lord Romand’s office, Sharie said this to Lady Julia.

“Guests for Lady Julia?”

Hyde furrowed his brow. Few knew Julia was here. However, upon hearing that the visitor was a special forces officer from her fiancée, he relaxed.

As Julia and Hyde headed to the reception room, there were the Baron Fermeel Larson of the special forces, introduced at the royal castle soirée two days ago, and an unfamiliar young lady.

“She’s around the same age as Lord Romand, nineteen. Her family mainly engages in dairy farming, I recall.

It’s said the Larson Baron’s expertise in breeding and training horses is unmatched in this country, likely making them the royal knights’ preferred choice.”

Julia was good at remembering faces and names.

The young lady with him was Baron Fermeel Larson fiancée, Miss Ramey daughter of a viscount.

Thinking they’d like to talk to the wives of the special forces, Julia assumed they were being considerate.

However, it wasn’t that. Instead, during the meeting with the wives, they ended up asking for help. Even though Ramey was four years older than Julia and had just made her debut in society two days ago.

“Why me?”

Although it probably didn’t show on his face, Fermeel seemed to read Julia’s thoughts and began speaking apologetically about his fiancée.

Miss Ramey hails from a tribe governing vast grasslands near the eastern border’s Mongant Province.

Most residents are settled now, but they were once a nomadic people before the nation’s founding. They freely moved between this country and the neighboring eastern one.

About a hundred and fifty years ago, they nominally came under the Greenwood Kingdom, but currently, they still identify as Mongant Province, holding a quasi-autonomous status.

The reason the Greenwood Kingdom tolerates this is because their continued exchange with the eastern country maintains peaceful relations. There has never been any conflict between them. In other words, neglecting Mongant Province would immediately escalate tensions with the eastern country.

Miss Ramey sitting before Julia manipulates a rare creature spirit, a “Yellow Spirit User,” in this country. After graduating from the capital’s academy, she’s attending a specialized school to become a veterinarian.

Could there really be anything I could assist such an outstanding woman with… thought Julia once again in her heart, asking:

“Then your mother comes from the eastern country?”

“Rather, my grandmother is from the eastern country. Despite only a quarter of my blood being from there, it seems the eastern blood runs strong in me.

Originally, due to deep exchanges with the eastern country, I think it’s ancestral return, but they say they’ve never heard of a woman using a ‘Yellow Spirit’.

Moreover, my grandmother died when I was young, so except for Fermeel-sama, no one in the family noticed my strength.”

“Ramey and I were childhood friends like Baron Romand and Julia-sama. Because our fathers were best friends.

When I knew that Julia-sama was a ‘green spirit user’ the day before yesterday, I talked about Ramey to Baron Romand. I hope Julia-sama will become Ramey’s friend and teach her etiquette and social skills. She is a strange person, so she has few friends.”

“Calling someone a strange is quite harsh, you know.”

With a slight tilt of her already slanted eyes, Ramey retorted, and Fermeel calmly replied, “But isn’t it true? Lies get exposed immediately. If you really want to be close to someone, isn’t it quicker to show your true self from the start?”

Watching their exchange, Julia chuckled softly. She hadn’t seen such straightforward honesty in years, and it was refreshing.

“You made the Countess laugh. How will you fix this? You’re always telling me to behave like a noblewoman, Ferm, but…”

“But no matter how many years I nag you, you haven’t become a proper noblewoman at all. Given your background, it’s hard to imagine you’ll ever become a lady, even after all these years.”

Julia inwardly protested being singled out. “But I’m a fake Countess, after all…” she thought, but managed to keep her expression composed.

“Um, may I ask a question?” Julia interjected.

Fermeel responded, explaining Ramey’s challenging environment as a viscountess in Mongant Province, which functioned almost like an independent state culturally distinct from the Greenwood Kingdom.

“However, Ramey-sama graduated from the Royal Academy, didn’t she?” Julia asked.

“Yes, that’s right, but…” Fermeel began hesitantly.

Ramey looked down, mumbling softly, “If I had entered together with everyone else, things might have been different, but joining a year late…”

Fermeel continued, recounting how Ramey, already labeled as the ‘Wild Mare,’ had initially kept her distance even after his enrollment, fearing she might burden him as her fiancé.

Fermeel, infuriated by Ramey’s self-perception, exclaimed, “Why would I find you, my fiancée, a burden? Do you really think so poorly of me?”

“I was also naive. I felt sorry for lonely Ramey and spent time with her outside of classes. As a result, she never made female friends and never learned the manners or social skills expected of a lady.”

“Fermeel-sama did the right thing. Rumors don’t just disappear overnight. If Ramey-sama had been left alone, who knows what kind of harassment she might have faced. Still, Ramey-sama is truly loved by Fermeel-sama. How wonderful.”

“W-Well…”

Ramey blushed deeply at Julia’s words. Despite that, she nodded slightly.

Even though she was older, Julia couldn’t help but find her cute. Despite her intimidating appearance, she seemed so honest and pure-hearted, making it seem challenging for her to fit into noble society.

Reflecting on her own experiences of being mistreated by mean-spirited noble relatives and servants, Julia felt she could handle any bullying in high society. She had feared the recent soirée not out of fear of social torment, but because she worried her mother’s carefully chosen dress might be ruined.

“Fermeel-sama, since childhood, I’ve been frail and spent three years away from the capital, recovering in the countryside. I have few friends and no experience with socializing. I’m sorry, but I may not be of much help in that regard. However, I would be delighted to become friends with Ramey-sama.”

“If you’d like, I could assist with etiquette and dancing,” Julia added tentatively.

Upon hearing this, Fermeel’s eyes sparkled. “Thank you so much. I look forward to your guidance. Your dancing at the recent soirée was stunning, enough to captivate anyone.”

He bowed deeply, prompting Ramey beside him to hurriedly follow suit.