Chapter 79

Ever since receiving the invitation from the Anas Empire, Cyrus has been pondering what kind of birthday gift he should prepare for the empire's queen.

This should be a gift that has never appeared before, yet it could make any woman's heart flutter.

This must be a gift that every woman would find irresistible, envious, and jealous of, ensuring that the Queen becomes the focus of the entire birthday banquet, stunning everyone and attracting all attention.

Experience unparalleled beauty from the very beginning.

Therefore, Cyrus planned to give the Empress a complete custom-made gift, including makeup, perfume, haute couture evening gowns... a complete transformation from head to toe.

I believe no woman could refuse this gift.

He wanted to establish contact with and befriend the queen of the empire.

Firstly, it allows me to connect with relevant people; secondly, it leverages the existence of this gift—which possesses an irresistible charm for every woman.

As things stand, Cyrus's situation in the Empire is far from good.

After all, he possessed a White Sugar Formula that could generate enormous profits.

Even His Majesty the King, who sits at the very top of the throne, harbors ambitions of coveting power; how much more so the various nobles who surround him?

Just as Boris said, countless people are waiting for their chance to skin him alive, dismember him, and make a living off him.

Since setting up a stall at the port, people have been coming and going, both openly and covertly, trying to find out more about the situation.

But in the end, all they brought back was a box of finished Lemon Candy, rose candies, sugar paintings, or fruit wrapped in syrup.

The endless stream of gold coins all went into Cyrus's pockets, leaving these people with expressions of pain and helplessness.

Cyrus was very happy collecting money, and at the same time, she took advantage of the opportunity to set up a stall to find out a lot about the imperial nobles.

That day, the man who was talking to Tosi Cavendish at the Lemon Candy stand was one of the men that Cyrus noticed.

--The finance minister of the Anas Empire, Marquis Darnell of the Lawrie Family, and also the queen's nephew.

No wonder he disliked the king's illegitimate son Tosi, so much.

Cyrus learned within the empire that, despite the king's many lovers, the queen had initially made considerable efforts to win back his heart, but to no avail.

The king continued his philandering, showing no consideration for the queen's feelings whatsoever.

So, perhaps disheartened, the queen gradually fell silent and stopped paying attention to the king's absurdities.

Even one of the king's beautiful mistresses publicly mocked the queen, saying that the reason she was not favored by the king was because she had a good family background but no beauty, and was not even a pretty vase.

This news got out.

Although the mistress who made these remarks was immediately retaliated against and disposed of by the Lawrie Family, the Queen never came forward to refute the rumors.

She had not appeared in the palace for so long that even members of the royal family had almost forgotten her existence, to the point that the rumor that the queen was not even as good as a vase has been circulating to this day.

Cyrus was puzzled as to why the Queen did not come out to speak.

But the queen's surname is Laurie.

She had a powerful, long-established noble family backing her, which was why even if the king didn't pay much attention to the queen, he wouldn't ignore her.

But that's all.

Otherwise, the king would not have stood idly by and ignored rumors that were detrimental to the queen.

They weren't even "outwardly harmonious but inwardly estranged," which shows that the king and queen didn't even bother with pretense.

After learning of Darnell Laurie's identity from Grand Duke Orville, Cyrus decided to send someone to try and contact him, hoping to use the Lawrie Family to get in touch with the Queen first.

Not long after he returned to Duke Achiyoli's residence, he opened the box he had brought back from the ship, which contained a small, exquisite perfume bottle.

[Honestly, I've been using this app to follow my favorite books lately. It has multiple reading sources, various voice options, and works on both Android Apple.]

--It is about half the size of a palm in length, with a flat body and an exquisite cap that is shaped like a rose made of stained glass.

Such exquisite little items are undoubtedly thoughtful and pleasing gifts, whether used personally or given as presents.

As Cyrus uncorked the perfume bottle, a deep and intoxicating fragrance wafted from the bottle to her nose, then diffused into the air.

Even though there were no roses around, it felt as if you were surrounded by them. Petals were falling gently, and the scent in the air wasn't strong or pungent, but rather a rich and intoxicating fragrance.

Cyrus thought for a moment, then poured a little rose perfume onto her fingertips and applied it behind her ears and on the inside of her elbows.

He had just put the cork back on and was about to put the perfume back in the box when a servant suddenly appeared and knocked on the door.

After Judas went over and opened it.

The attendant said, "My lord, a guest has arrived and wishes to see you. The Duke requests your presence."

Somewhat puzzled, Cyrus followed the attendant to the reception hall, where she unexpectedly met an acquaintance, Archbishop Paul of the Holy See.

Paul placed his right hand on his chest. "Good day, Lord."

Cyrus nodded to him and asked, "Did you need something?"

Orville knew how to respect his guests' privacy.

Although Desinia lived in his place, he had freedom of movement.

So after Cyrus met with Paul, Orville considerately left to go to the large enclosure in the backyard to see the wild animals.

Paul bowed respectfully and said, "Sir, His Majesty wishes to see you."

His Holiness the Pope's personal visit to the Anas Empire remains a secret for now.

But since there was no one else around, Paul just said it directly.

Cyrus was naturally surprised by Segalot's arrival, and a hint of astonishment appeared on her face. "His Holiness the Pope is in the Empire?"

"Yes."

Paul asked again.

Cyrus agreed and, before leaving the Duke's mansion with him, instructed a servant to inform Grand Duke Orville that he had something to do.

When she reached the door, Cyrus suddenly realized that she was still holding the perfume bottle in her hand. There was no need to put it back now, so she simply put it in her pocket.

The carriage stopped in front of a doorway whose walls were covered with green ivy and flowers.

Paul led the way, passing through a lush courtyard and entering the living room. "My lord, His Majesty is waiting for you on the second floor. Please come up alone..."

He glanced with a troubled expression at Judas, the butler following behind Cyrus.

Cyrus: "Judas, you wait for me here."

Judas said yes, and gave a slight bow.

Cyrus climbed the stairs, stepped onto the soft carpet on the second floor, and slowly turned the corner...

He stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on the windows along the corridor. Finally, he spotted a flickering light in one of the windows, and heard a sound coming from within—

As Segalot approached, Cyrus immediately turned around, her discerning and smug expression meeting the Pope's face, which showed a hint of surprise followed by a deepening smile.

He grabbed the Pope's sleeve, trying to stop the other from reaching out to hug him, but his hand was instead enveloped in the sleeve...

Before Cyrus could react, Segalot used his other hand to wrap around his waist, scooping him up in one swift motion. He then took a few steps forward and placed him on the spacious windowsill.

Cyrus puffed out her cheeks, feeling extremely annoyed.

He was intimidated twice in a row, and thought he would stop three times, but in fact, the biggest difference was in height and physical strength, which he simply couldn't match.

He sat on the windowsill, kicked his legs, and pouted, saying, "Your Majesty, please make room for me so I can get down."

Segalot suddenly moved closer, sniffing the air with a hint of doubt. "I've smelled it since just now, the scent of roses... Could this Little Rose of yours really be a rose in disguise?"

He wasn't very close, maintaining a proper distance, yet the faint scent of roses was like an alluring hook.

Segalot couldn't help but move a little closer, his golden eyes darkening as if they were flowing liquid forged from radiance, and he gently brushed a strand of hair behind Cyrus's ear.

Cyrus grabbed his hand and pulled it down, then took out a perfume bottle from her pocket and explained, "Your Majesty smells rose perfume."

"I had it just made, intending it to be one of the Queen's birthday gifts."

"I haven't tested the scent of rose perfume yet, and I don't know how long it will stay on the body. When you asked Paul to invite me, I was just planning to test it myself."

"Looking at it now, the results are quite good."

As Cyrus spoke, she raised her wrist and sniffed it gently, then turned her wrist to Segalot's face. "Your Majesty, take a sniff; there's some here too."

Segalot had deep, mysterious eyes.

Looking at the earnest and innocent expression on the person's face, he suddenly smiled and said, "More than that, you smell like roses all over."

It really is a Little Rose.

Cyrus calculated the time it took to get here from the Grand Duke's residence and nodded in agreement.

He thought to himself that the fragrance was holding up well; now he just had to see when it would fade and disappear, and how long it would last.

Segalot leaned against the windowsill next to Cyrus with one hand and took the perfume bottle from his hand with the other to examine it closely.

His Holiness the Pope's long, flowing black curly hair cascaded down his shoulders, a few strands casually draped over Cyrus's arm, curling around a few times before falling into her palm, tickling her slightly.

Cyrus moved her fingers, grabbed a strand of hair, and gathered it all behind Segalot, her movement perfectly natural.

The smile on Segalot's lips deepened, his golden eyes shone brightly, and an undisguised laugh escaped his throat.

He gently swirled the perfume bottle, watching the beautiful liquid inside swirl around, and said slowly, "This is another money-making idea of yours, isn't it? Using the Queen's status and the birthday banquet as an opportunity to promote the perfume?"

Cyrus gave the Pope a thumbs up. "Smart, you got it right, but it's not just about perfume."

"What else?"

"Keep it confidential for now."

Seeing that he was no longer pressing the matter, Cyrus asked, "Why would Your Majesty come to the Anas Empire?"

"I remember that even at the Queen's Banquet, according to the Holy See's protocol, a cardinal should be present..."

But he only saw one archbishop, Paul.

Segalot: "The two cardinals of the Holy See are both very busy and don't really want to waste their time attending the Queen's birthday dinner."

"Oh."

Cyrus nodded. "Then you are...?"

"I have something to take care of."

Cyrus thought to herself: So he came to the Anas Empire on official business. It seems that the Pope's attendance at the banquet was just a side event.