IHMEB - Chapter 122 < Evidence Of Reconciliation >

“My lord. His Majesty’s messenger has arrived.”

"What? “Are you an errand boy for His Majesty the King?”

There was urgency in the voice coming from beyond the door.

“The advance team has arrived and is waiting in front of the drawbridge. Please give orders.”

When Kaian saw me in his arms, he lifted me up and carefully put me down.

“...Advance team?”

The man's face frowned as he pondered what he had just heard. The advance team is the ones sent ahead before the main unit moves. They were sent to check if there were any problems with the route or to obtain cooperation from the territory or village they would pass through.

This meant that if the King's advance party arrived, then of course the person who followed behind was also the King.

'What does that mean?'

I also blinked as I looked at Kaian’s expression.

'I think this will be a problem even if the King comes or not.'

Is someone impersonating the King's messenger? 

It was a big deal and it was not an ordinary task to have to welcome a large guest without any preparation.

“I’m going now.”

Kaian responded as if half-screaming, then lightly hugged me and patted my back.

“You go and rest.”

“His Majesty the King is coming?”

After the words, ‘So suddenly?’ was omitted. Kaian didn't seem to have any intention of explaining it right away as it also happened suddenly.

“It’s no big deal. Don’t worry, just relax.”

I held up the paper he had just stamped.

“How could I not care? We need to rework our budget right now.”

Kaian let out a small groaning sound and soon returned to his original cold face.

“Have a butler. You rest.”

When he opened the office door, the butler and the head of the guard in charge of the drawbridge of Rowen Castle were waiting in front of him, with four of his men in tow.

"Butler. Please take Claudel with you.”

"Yes. My lord.”

I stood still for a moment and watched Kaian walking quickly towards the first floor.

'Something is a bit disappointing.'

I was planning to talk to Kaian properly, but the opportunity passed away.

The doctor told me that once I reached a plateau, my mood swings and fluctuating symptoms would improve. That his old neat and calm personality will return.

However, I couldn't remember what the doctor said my original personality was like before, and I felt like a colt was running wild inside me with its tail on fire.

It was like an extension of last night's madness, but today it was so peaceful as if the burning flames had been blown out all at once.

'I wish I had told you today.'

As each day passed, the unborn baby would become more and more firmly rooted in my womb. The doctor even said I might as well talk when I start feeling very full.

As soon as I gave myself some space to wonder if it would be okay, my mouth was itching to speak. I couldn't help but wonder what he would say if he found out that I was going to have a half him and half her baby.

'We'll have to talk soon.'

It suddenly occurred to me that Valquiterre was the baby's uncle. Kaian was like family to me and him, and he was someone I trusted.

'If His Majesty the King were to come to Rowen, we could celebrate together. It might be better that way.'

Because Valquiterre was the one who connected our marriage. If a baby were born between me and Kaian, it would literally be proof of reconciliation. If it was possible to put an end to harmony between enemies, the King's mediation could not have shown a clearer result than this.

As I collected my thoughts, the butler urged her on.

“I will take you there, Lady."

“Please.”

The butler led the way towards my room.

“By the way. What happened to you all of a sudden?”

“They must have come to Pihan.”

“Pihan?”

In Valmonde, who lived in frozen land for half of the year, there was no concept of refuge. This is because Valmonde's cold was a cold that could not be avoided.

The snow piled up to a height exceeding the height of a person and was pressed down by its own weight, making the bottom as hard as a rock.

When snow begins to fall on the frozen ground in earnest, it is not until early spring in the kingdom's season that it becomes green enough to turn on the road. Before that, it was easy to freeze to death if you went out of the castle.

“The capital is warm.”

The butler, who understood my words, laughed out loud.

“Isn’t the Castle of Valmonde famous for its frozen winters? There is no colder place on the entire continent.”

“It wasn’t cold in the capital.”

The butler nodded his head without a smile in his eyes.

“I guess you can feel that way. The refuge of previous Kings was for rest rather than to avoid the cold.”

I felt pride in him as he had been a powerful figure in Rowen Castle for a long time.

“Her Majesty Sylvia came to Rowen to seek refuge because Madame Elise was there, so I guess she did so as an excuse.”

"Right. But the Duke went to war almost immediately after inheriting his title. He has never heard of the King going to Rowwn for refuge.”

The fact that the seat next to the young, unmarried King was empty caused a stir in the social circles of the Oberon Kingdom.

It was an activity that cost a lot of money and time, so there were many people who wanted to make an appropriate excuse not to attend the capital's social scene because they felt burdened, but if the family had a daughter of marriageable age, there was no way not to come to the hostess and daughter's torch.

“If the King had come to Rowen to seek refuge, all the noble ladies in the kingdom would have flocked here.”

The King's whereabouts are very important and sensitive information, but I have never heard of such a rumor.

I knew very well that in the current kingdom, a noble male marriage partner with excellent morals and virtue was valuable.

The Duke of Vermont tried to find a new husband for Irena in the capital through Madame Arnanti, but it was not easy. Irena was unable to attend the funeral of her husband, and his son-in-law.

How carefully did the Duke of Vermont choose his son-in-law? There were not many noble families that could match Vermont, the King of the North.

However, when his son, who returned from the battlefield and became Vermont with the Marquis's last name as his second middle name after signing the marriage contract, returned to the family instead of the Valmonde surname and was buried in the Marquis's family cemetery, the Duke was very angry.

In the capital's social circles, the Vermonters were so criticized that they were a barbarian family that was rude, crude, and lacking in basic morals, so much so that from then on, only the bridegroom, who was not worthy of the Duke of Vermont's eyes, showed interest in the position of his son-in-law.

Those who openly showed interest in Vermont's power and money were inelegant. So Irena's search for a husband was still in progress.

Even with Vermont's wealth and power, that's enough. How coveted would be the position of a monarch with no flaws in appearance, power, or honor?

The butler answered my question.

"Yes. This is the first time this has happened. Last year was the first time the lord accepted an invitation to the royal palace after becoming the head of the family.”

"Right."

The Oberon Kingdom was now in a state of peace. The reward from the victorious war was so sweet that the young King's resentment for unreasonably sending his family's young men to the battlefield was forgotten.

As the territory was expanded and the spoils were divided, those who criticized the King, saying that it was a foolish decision to start a war because of precious treasures that could be seen, fell silent.

“Anyway, you have to help me. Please come in.”

“You’ve been there, Lady."

As I entered my room, Hannah greeted me.

“I have to look at my budget right now, Hannah. I will come with the butler, so please prepare tea for two people.”

"Yes, lady."

The butler sat across from me at the table, took a piece of paper, folded in half, from the inside pocket of his jacket, and held it out to me.

“Just in case, I have summarized the expenses incurred by Her Majesty Sylvia when she came to visit.”

“Thank you. Yes, now that we’ve talked about the budget, tell me more about what happened when you avoided it.”

Thanks to the savvy butler, I was able to listen to the old stories he told with peace of mind.

***

Irena sat on the terrace and watched people busily walking up and down the street.

“A winter without snow.”

Although it was a bitterly cold winter as she celebrated the New Year, it was very sunny and nice for Irena. As long as it doesn't snow, you can do as many outdoor activities as you like.

The more she saw the liveliness of the capital city, the more she liked it. The castle of Valmonde was noisy with people all winter, but the activities of those who were confined were different from those of those who were freely moving outside.

“Just as the flowers grown in a greenhouse are different from the flowers that bloom outside.”

The flower that Irena knew was the one that bloomed as if the light-colored petals had been forcibly squeezed from a thin, slim stem. A smile came to her face when she thought of the large flower clusters during her time in Rowen, which were heavy with layer upon layer of petals as if holding a stone in their hand.

“I guess Claudel will be fine?”

She looked at the southern sky, thinking of her younger sister, who was now a worthy lady.

At that moment, the glass door leading to the terrace burst open and her maid was shocked.

"Miss. Why don’t you come out here again?”

“I was about to go in.”

"Ugh. Aren’t you cold in your thin clothes?”

The maid, wearing an apron over her thin quilted dress, made a fuss at the sight of Irena, who was out on the terrace wearing only a thin blouse and a shawl, narrowing her shoulders as if she was cold.

“Madame Arnanti is coming this afternoon, so she told me to pay for the fare.”

"My father?”

"Yes. The Duke of Vermont said he would personally greet guests in the parlor.”

It felt like a heavy burden was placed on Irena's chest.

'It's another confrontation.'

The maid who threw the firewood into the fireplace shook her hands.

"Oh! A letter has arrived addressed to you.”

"Letter?"

The maid's expression brightened as she took the letter she held out from the pocket of her apron.

“What’s going on?”

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