“It’s so noisy it’s killing me. Close the window.”
The atmosphere in the audience instantly froze at the Queen's nervous voice. As the maids quickly moved to close the open window, the sound of music flowing into the palace faded away.
“Queen, you have to attend the banquet right now...”
When the Countess, who had been watching carefully, spoke carefully, the Queen's black eyes turned sharp.
“What should I do there?”
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. But... The Delacca Empire is a powerful nation. Because it was a mission sent directly by the Emperor...”
“Hmph, that sounds good, it’s a delegation. Aren't they the same as servants sent for a baby? Why do I need to go to such people?”
The three or four noble ladies seated looked at each other. They also came to the Queen's palace instead of the banquet to keep an eye on Queen Gilsis, but it was not comfortable for them to blatantly leave the place at a time when all the nobles were attending the banquet at Magnus Palace.
Queen Gilsis, who was unable to get involved in state affairs after sending Franz to the empire, stayed in her palace as if she were protesting the King. She often used headaches or illness as an excuse to not participate in important events in the country, and she was capricious.
The Countess spoke again, surveying the atmosphere.
“Queen, it is said that the Emperor of the Empire has awarded Franz an honorary title in recognition of his achievements. Your Majesty the King is also very happy for his return to the country, so you must follow His Majesty's wishes...”
“I don’t want to hear it!”
When the Queen let out a loud noise, the Countess immediately shut her mouth. The other noble ladies kept their mouths shut and waved the tip of her fan as they each turned their gaze.
There is now no one in the kingdom who is unaware of the fact that Franz returned home after graduating at the top of his class, beating out the empire's leading talents. The King's concubine's maid, who was excitedly talking about the news, was caught by the Queen and was slapped and kicked out.
However, just kicking out a maid and closing the door was not enough to stop all the rumors flowing into the Queen's palace. Everyone walking in the garden praised Franz for his great growth, and they whispered that the Emperor had sent not only a delegation but also his own son, the Prince.
Since the news of Franz's trip to Delacca was never delivered to the Queen, Queen Gilsis was completely unaware of Franz's achievements so far. She may have been domestic, but he was abroad, and as people said, she could not have made a spy who could reach the Queen's influence even in the empire, which was more powerful than Rotair.
Until he returned, the Queen could only hope that something was wrong with Franz. She risked everything focused on uncertain expectation and even got chronic headaches. Without any reward, Franz returned home as a worthy Prince worthy of everyone's recognition. The Queen's stomach couldn't help but turn.
“It was a cute trick on me.”
As the Queen ground her teeth, the noble ladies who had been whispering among themselves turned to look at her one by one.
“Queen, is he lying to you?”
“Franz! Have you been acting like a fool and blindfolded me?”
The ladies' gazes quietly crossed. In fact, the Queen was not the only one who did not know that Franz had such abilities. After the death of the former Queen, Gilsis never gave Franz a proper teacher. She kept a close watch on who he met, so no scholar would have been able to contact him in secret.
Nevertheless, the fact that Franz achieved remarkable results means that his talent was formidable to begin with. That was the part where Queen Gilsis could not control her anger the most.
“Your Majesty, if we keep going like this...”
The Duchess, who had been silent the entire time, tilted her head slightly with an anxious expression.
“...Don’t you think Your Majesty will soon nominate His Highness Franz as Crown Prince?”
"What!"
The Queen felt the anger she had barely suppressed explode all at once. She got up and threw down her fan, and the ladies sitting in the chair bent their knees to her in haste.
“Queen, please fix it.”
“What did you say, telling me to fix it? You’re saying things like that in front of me and telling me to fix it!”
“Your Majesty, I am only expressing my honest concern out of loyalty to you. Your Makestu, think about it. Isn’t Franz the only problem?”
Queen Gilsis wheezed, baring her teeth. The eyes that had been fluttering wildly moved slowly.
"Yes... Franz isn't the only problem. The biggest problem is that girl from Tien.”
The Duchess nodded urgently.
“That’s right, Queen Mother. Isn't the Princess receiving all of the respect by enticing His Majesty with her coaxing? His Highness Franz, who has just returned, will not be able to demand that he be made Crown Prince. But the Princess is different.”
“The Duchess is right, Queen Mother. If that country bumpkin had a royal grandson, wouldn't that make the problem even bigger? Your Majesty’s eyes will become even darker.”
“Royal grandson? Ha! How could that little girl like that be pregnant?”
Queen Gilsis did not see Judith for a long time because she was confined to the Queen's palace the whole time. Of course, the Queen did not know that Judith had never come to see Queen Gilsis on her own initiative, so she had grown much more than when she first came to Tien.
The ladies exchanged perplexed looks. They looked worried about whether or not they should tell the Queen that Judith had been young and frail a few years ago, but now she was completely different.
“Queen, but you don’t know what happens between a man and a woman, right? No matter how weak they are...”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Even if the sky is cloudy, you can see stars if you look closely.”
“Even so, what can I do? Are you trying to keep that girl away from Franz so that she doesn't have royal children? We've been away so far, huh! It might be easy.”
“It might be difficult to do that, Your Majesty. Think about it. Isn’t His Highness Krald always full of energy? So, Your Majesty, please comfort me and let me see the royal grandson first between him and the Princess...”
The Countess, who was whispering, glanced behind the Queen. Margit was standing there, looking down with a stern expression. The Countess, who immediately took her eyes off her, spoke to her.
“The Princess's mother is also a close associate of the Queen Mother, so the two of them worked together to somehow....”
“Krald says he doesn’t even want to touch the Princess’s sleeve, so what can I do? It is a problem that Count Montfort’s daughter refuses to let Krald go with all kinds of fawning, but the problem is that she cannot even fawn over him and only does dull things.”
Margit’s frozen expression became even harder. The Queen touched her forehead and laughed nervously.
“Well, what kind of man would want to embrace a woman taller than him? I wonder what the Countess fed your daughter to raise her. When you were pregnant, did you even carry radish greens in a cart and eat them?”
Margit’s face turned red at the Queen’s sarcasm. Although Krald was a bit taller than Flavia, he wasn't that noticeable compared to other people. During the final formative years, Flavia grew a bit taller while Krald was barely taller, which only made her more different.
Not only Margit but everyone else knew about this situation, but if they revealed it in front of the Queen, they were likely to be struck by lightning. Above all, Queen Gilsis did not forgive anyone for expressing negative opinions about Krald. The Queen's protection played a big role in the fact that Krald did not hesitate to act like a scoundrel and ran wild inside and outside the palace.
The Queen sighed in frustration.
“Really, there’s nothing I like. I wonder if I can get through this without getting a headache.”
The women blinked. Queen Gilsis slowly exhaled through clenched teeth. It was meant to calm her stomach, but it didn't really help her.
“Whatever it was in the Empire, it’s almost as if it’s now in my hands.”
The Queen muttered lowly. No one knew that this was said with Franz in mind.
“And Judith, that girl. If I had left her alone until now, it must have been my own world. However, if she dares to carelessly interfere with matters related to the fundamentals of the royal family, we cannot leave it alone.”
“Of course, Queen Mother.”
The Countess quickly went out to help the Queen. Queen Gilsis gritted her teeth until they made a clicking sound and frowned as she touched her forehead.
“The Prince from that empire.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“We need to bring him over.”
For a moment, silence fell. The gazes of the noble ladies facing each other were all filled with anxious wonder. Why the Prince and not anyone else?
“Why the Prince?”
The Queen's pitch-black eyes shone brightly like the back of an insect. The Queen tapped the curved ends of the armrests with her fingernails and blinked her eyes.
“What’s wrong with wanting to meet my son’s friend, as a mother?”
"...Of course, there is no problem. But..."
“I should congratulate him on having accompanied a Prince from a distant empire until now. Isn’t that right?”
The people sitting around each had expressions of confusion on their faces. Of course, there was no way the Queen's words were true. How could she possibly want to meet someone like Franz's friend?
However, if not, they did not understand why anyone would want to see the Emperor of the empire.
“I’m tired. With that in mind, let’s go home.”
The Queen, leaning diagonally on the sofa, held out one hand. It meant to get out.
The noble ladies stood up from their seats in bewilderment as if they had been kicked out. As they left the Queen's palace, each of them whispered.
“What on earth is the Queen planning to do when she meets the Prince?”
“How should I know? Tsk... She's getting more and more nervous every day.”
“Will His Majesty really make His Highness Franz Crown Prince?”
“Then do you think His Majesty will choose Emperor Krald over Franz? It might not be possible if the Queen's influence was as strong as before, but as of now, there is no way to do it. Even if Franz had not visited the Empire, it is unlikely that Krald would have surpassed Franz.”
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