“Mother!”
I turned my gaze at the sound of Sophie’s voice.
Who are you?
The nanny was wearing a troubled expression as she clutched at the seams of an outfit that looked one breath away from bursting.
“Sophie.”
Was this what a granddaughter visiting her grandmother’s house was supposed to look like?
If she fell over, she looked as though she would roll away like a ball.
The nanny approached carefully and asked me,
“Your Majesty, there are no clothes that fit Her Highness the Archduchess.”
Ah, so that was why….
“I suppose you couldn’t put her in a corset.”
Though it was called a corset, in reality it was a cotton vest.
An undergarment used to keep drawers or stockings from slipping down.
“Well, the corset did not fit either….”
I looked at Sophie’s plump, rounded cheeks.
She had not been this round when she left Vienna.
“Their Majesties….”
The nanny could not finish her sentence.
To those two, whose lives had been lonely without children, how precious must this child have been when she looked so much like Joseph?
They must have put every delicacy and every sweet Prague had to offer into her mouth.
I sighed as I looked at the corset ties wandering in midair, unable to reach each other.
“Hehe, Mother. This.”
Sophie opened her tiny fern-like hand.
A half-melted candy was clutched stickily in it.
“Great-Uncle gave it to me.”
I see. So Great-Uncle was the culprit.
Sophie stretched out her short arms and put the candy into my mouth.
“Goodness, look how sticky your hands are.”
Even as I sighed, I took Sophie’s sticky hand and wiped it with a handkerchief.
We were already planning to go to St. Vitus Cathedral this afternoon to attend Mass.
“There won’t be time to call a seamstress.”
The maids all nodded at once.
Afternoon Mass was just around the corner. If we measured her now and started altering the dress, the sun would set first.
“Dress her in something loose today.”
“But Your Majesty, propriety….”
“Is there any other way?”
I poked Sophie’s soft belly.
Sophie, finding it endlessly amusing, burst into giggles and rolled about.
Sophie, you may be having fun, but Mother’s head hurts.
Still, it was a relief to see her looking healthier than she had in Vienna.
It was a sight unimaginable under the Archduchess’s strict rules and dietary control.
Children ought to be a little plump and unruly like this.
“Actually, this may be for the best. Dress her in a loose Bohemian-style gown. One with Bohemian embroidery on the sleeves.”
“Ah, there are several among the gifts she received.”
“Don’t tie her hair too tightly either. Let it fall naturally, and it should be fine.”
While Sophie was being changed, I also began to prepare.
Standing before the mirror, the maids began comparing dresses one by one.
“What about the newly made blue silk dress?”
It was pretty, but not something I could wear now.
The fact that it had appeared in the newspapers meant that war was already practically a foregone conclusion….
“I’ll wear the black velvet.”
Esterházy immediately lowered her head.
“Understood.”
Sophie, smiling brightly in her loose dress, had to symbolize Bohemia.
I had to symbolize the Empire.
Another maid brought over the jewel box and opened it for me.
From it, I chose a garnet necklace.
Bohemian garnet.
I held the red garnet necklace against the black velvet dress.
A pale face, black clothing, red garnets—those three colors contrasted powerfully.
Honestly, I look beautiful no matter what I wear.
“Let us depart.”
*
The streets of Prague were already packed with crowds.
When I lifted the carriage curtain slightly, a roar of cheers rang out.
“Long live Her Majesty the Empress!”
“Long live Her Highness the Archduchess!”
The Bohemians were ecstatic. Unlike the stiff and arrogant nobles of Vienna, the people here were a little rougher, but far more passionate.
I deliberately seated Sophie by the window.
“Look over there! Look at what Her Highness the Archduchess is wearing!”
“That’s our Bohemian embroidery!”
“My goodness, she’s dressed like a child of Prague!”
The operation was a success. It was only a loose dress we had hurriedly put on her to hide her weight, but in the eyes of the citizens, it seemed to look like the imperial family respecting their culture.
Sophie, delighted by the pouring cheers, waved her hand toward the window.
“Mother, the people are shouting.”
“Yes, because they like you, Sophie.”
“Me? Why?”
I tickled Sophie’s side and whispered,
“Because Sophie is cute.”
The carriage climbed the hill along the Moldau River and entered the third courtyard of Prague Castle.
And beyond it rose the Gothic spires, soaring as though to pierce the sky.
St. Vitus Cathedral.
The carriage stopped, and an attendant opened the door.
I took one deep breath, took Sophie’s hand, and stepped down.
The hem of my black velvet dress spread softly over the stone pavement, and the red garnet necklace, catching the sunlight, turned blood-red.
At that moment, the surroundings fell silent.
I hoped the sight of the innocent child and the empress standing before war would leave a deep impression on the people through its strange contrast.
“Oh, she’s here! My nephew’s wife!”
The one who broke that solemnity was a bright, carefree voice.
Beside my uncle-in-law stood his guardian and wife, Empress Maria Anna, wearing a benevolent smile.
When I bent my knees and paid my respects, Ferdinand clapped his hands like a child.
“Pretty, pretty. Our Sisi is pretty today too. But why are you wearing such black clothes? Like a crow.”
“Nandi, mind your dignity.”
Anna gently restrained him. But Ferdinand paid her no heed and approached Sophie.
“Sophie! Did you eat the candy?”
“Yes! It was delicious!”
“Wasn’t it? Shall I give you another?”
As Ferdinand began rummaging through his pockets, the attendants tried to stop him in alarm.
I signaled to the attendants with my eyes to hold back. Right now, what the citizens of Prague wanted to see was not a strict imperial household, but the image of a human family.
“Uncle, if you give it to her after Mass, Sophie will be even happier.”
“Ah, is that so? Mass? Yes, we must attend Mass. We must greet God.”
Ferdinand nodded, then awkwardly took my hand and led me into the cathedral.
“Let’s go in. I saved us good seats.”
Inside the cathedral, dazzling multicolored light poured down through the enormous stained glass. The magnificent sound of the pipe organ was reverberating all around.
Listening to the Latin prayers, I devoutly clasped my hands together and closed my eyes.
The priest’s voice was low and steady.
Like a fifth-period mathematics teacher’s class right after lunch.
Besides, I think I understood exactly what Uncle meant by good seats.
A soft velvet cushion, and warm sunlight pouring down from behind.
“… Mo, Mother.”
Sophie shook me.
I really can never get used to it.
“Mother, Mass is over….”
Already?
When I glanced around, everyone else was pretending to pray as they waited for me to leave.
“Mother must have prayed too earnestly because she was worried about Sophie’s father.”
I could not very well say I had shamefully fallen asleep in front of the child.
*
They have now been doing nothing but facing off against each other for over four months.
During that time, my belly has swelled until it can no longer be hidden.
The newspapers in London, Berlin, and Saint Petersburg are now slowly losing interest and turning their attention elsewhere.
‘You’re not going to war? Then never mind.’ That is exactly the mood.
In effect, Austria is drying them out.
No matter how strangely we collect taxes, there is a difference in the size of our countries to begin with.
“Your Majesty, this is the report from Vienna.”
The documents Esterházy handed me contained this month’s tax revenue.
To be honest, our empire’s tax system is an absolute mess.
As if squeezing the common people’s pockets with things like city-gate consumption taxes and the salt monopoly were not enough, the tax burden is concentrated only on valuable lands like Bohemia and Lombardy.
The nobles slip through every loophole, and administrative costs leak away everywhere.
That is the reality of the Empire.
If this is not fixed, then even if we grant autonomy, the tax issue will explode sooner or later, won’t it?
“Does His Majesty not know about this problem?”
“He does know. However….”
“Just say it.”
“It is because the nobles of Vienna feel that the sun of the imperial house shines only upon the outskirts of the Empire.”
In plain terms, because the nobles of Vienna were sulking, it was difficult to carelessly resolve the tax problem.
We will have to open Pandora’s box someday.
At the same time as a knock sounded, the door opened, and a maid hurried in and quietly informed me by my ear.
“Your Majesty, the war has begun.”
That is not the important part.
“Who crossed the Ticino River first?”
Who crossed the Rubicon first?
“… Sardinia.”
We endured their provocations, their insults, and the standoff at the border until our blood ran dry.
Solely for this moment.
We won.
Britain desires Italian unification, but does not want it to fall under French influence.
Prussia does not wish for victory in war to be achieved through the help of outside powers.
Russia and the Ottomans are in a moribund state.
As long as Joseph does not take personal command… I saw the horrors of Solferino during the Crimean War.
“Chief lady-in-waiting. The list I prepared last time?”
“It has been prepared as Your Majesty ordered.”
It was just as I was about to tell them to prepare it.
“Your Majesty! You are in the final month of pregnancy!”
Have the maids been sticking to me for too long? I had not even gotten a word out yet.
Of course, that was a lie.
How important it is to look after the people while pregnant.
It is all about image, you know.
Superstars like me always have an obligation to take care of their fans.
Starting with Esterházy, the maids rarely opposed my opinions, but on this point they would not yield.
“… I see. Then what if I only sit beside them?”
“Your Majesty….”
They must be thinking, You have done well until now, so why go wandering around while pregnant this time?
But then and now are different situations.
“All the subjects of the Empire already know of Your Majesty’s pregnancy.”
That was true.
The story of the empress living in seclusion in Bohemia was an open secret, and even the newspapers had indirectly hinted at my pregnancy, so there were few who did not know.
When I remained still without saying anything, Esterházy eventually offered a compromise.
“… What about using the banquet hall of Prague Castle?”
“The banquet hall?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. What if we provide the meal Your Majesty has prepared there?”
Then there would be nowhere for me to sit, would there?
“Even if we conceal it with a curtain and show only Your Majesty’s silhouette, the subjects will know who prepared it.”
“Very well. Sophie Esterházy, I will do as you say.”
Esterházy sighed as if in relief and sent the maids out.
“Your Majesty, did you not call me that in Venice last time as well? In court, only one’s position exists.”
Ah. So she had not sighed because she was relieved.
It was because I had gotten the etiquette wrong again.
That could happen.
“Haven’t we become somewhat close by now? When will I be able to call you by name? The reading lady is already called by her name.”
Before I knew it, I had stuck out my lips in a pout.
“The position of reading lady was created for that purpose. If there ever comes a day when I can no longer assist Your Majesty at your side, I will hear it then.”
Then if I dismiss you right now, I can call you by name, can’t I?