“Would you mind if I became the Duchess of Temnes?”
“What... what do you mean?”
“Is it okay if I marry Kaian?”
I opened ny mouth blankly, unable to respond to the absurd words.
The words that came rushing in at once seemed to shatter like fragments in my ears, unable to convey the meaning of the words to ny head.
‘My sister becoming the Duchess of Temnes.’
Kaian, marriage, Irena, Duchess of Temnes.
The floating words heatedly gathered together in my chest, piercing my confusion.
‘Are I okay? No...’
What if it’s not okay?
My turbulent emotions were immediately disrupted by the short question.
“Ah..."
It felt like logic and reason were locked in a small iron cage.
No matter what I thought, it was strange, and I rolled toward an answer I couldn’t come up with, and the unknown emotions inside me kept shouting that it wasn’t that.
Irena, who was staring at me like that, said forcefully.
“Come to your senses.”
Her voice was stern as if she was scolding me.
“You have to make up your mind, Claudel.”
Irena’s face changed into a sad one, revealing complex emotions.
“Think about it. Please.”
“...I’m scared.”
“...What?”
Irena was embarrassed because she understood what I was mumbling softly. My pale white face’s eyes turned red upon seeing Irena’s face.
“What are you scared of? What are you thinking about?”
“I think something bad will happen.”
The act of digging deep, thinking, and thinking was even more frightening.
“I don’t think I should do it.”
I kept thinking that something couldn’t go on like this, that there was no other way, that I had to do something to escape this current situation, but I kept telling myself not to do it or put the brakes on.
I couldn’t escape when my thoughts kept spinning as if I was trapped alone, but maybe I didn’t want to escape.
“Claudel.”
Irena looked at me with a pitiful look on her face.
At that moment, a commotion was heard outside the door.
Knock.
“Lady Claudel.”
A maid knocked on the door outside in an impatient voice.
“Are you inside? May I come in for a moment?”
The noise of several people was unusual, and I thought they were looking for Irena. Irena listened to the noise outside the door for a moment and confirmed that the door that was locked from the inside could not be opened from the outside. Then she quickly spoke to .e.
“Listen carefully. Madame Cronach is prohibited from entering the castle.”
“My mother?”
I had been waiting for several days without receiving a single short note.
“I sent someone several times. Who banned my mother from entering?”
“Who would have done that? Who would have the authority to do that in this castle?”
Irena said crookedly.
“They announced your marriage to His Majesty the King at the National Foundation Ball.”
My eyes widened. How could they announce something that we had not reached an agreement on?
“...His Majesty the King said he would wait if I didn’t want to.”
But that was just a condition that he had forced upon me, who kept refusing.
He also added that I would definitely marry him.
“Rumors have already spread throughout the capital.”
“No.”
That couldn’t be true. Unbelievable words poured out.
Irena put a small note hidden in her clothes into my hand.
“It’s from Madame Cronach.”
“Why? Why can’t my mother enter the palace?”
“Because if you’re Madame Cronach’s daughter, you can’t become Queen.”
Bang bang bang!
The knock on the door grew louder.
“Irena. Are you inside?”
Irena rolled her eyes as if trying to think of something to say to me.
“I came to the palace to ask permission to become the Duchess of Temnes.”
“...!”
“There’s no other way to see you.”
Irena gripped my shoulder with such force that it hurt.
“Claudel. Don’t give up and say that nothing is possible.”
Irena's voice sounded strangely clear.
"You must not give up on what you want to do and how you want to live."
It was hard to tell whether she was talking to me or herself.
"I will not marry the Duke of Temnes."
It sounded like she was hinting at herself.
“I decided so. For me. And for you.”
Irena’s golden eyes filled with tears as she poured out all she wanted to say.
“So, please. Go back to how you were. Claudel.”
Boom, boom!
As the commotion outside the door intensified, Irena wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and put her hood back on.
Bam.
As she opened the door, the people who had been clamoring outside suddenly became quiet.
“Didn’t you say you had something to do?”
“That is, I need His Majesty’s permission to see Lady Claudel...”
“Shut up!”
Irena raised her voice to the flustered maid.
“How dare you speak in front of me, Irena of Vermont?”
“I, I’m sorry.”
“Claudel is still a Vermont. How can you speak of a Princess who hasn’t even married yet!”
It was the first time Irena, who was known for her manners, got angry and found fault with someone like that.
“Guide me to where my father is.”
When Irena spoke coldly, the maids quickly ushered her away and disappeared.
“Lady Claudel. Are you okay?”
“I need to rest for a while. Please leave me alone.”
When I spoke, the maids quickly went out of the room and closed the door.
The words Irena had told me reverberated in my head.
“This is ridiculous. The National Foundation Ball is only two days away.”
I was at a loss, then began to open the note she had given me.
I desperately hoped that the note my mother had sent me would contain words that would put me at ease.
When she arrived at the Hanging Gardens, Bianque was in a very good mood.
“I asked you to speak nicely. Is this enough?”
The relationship between Bianque and the Valquiterre siblings was lukewarm. They say that there are brothers who are so weak and affectionate that they would give their liver and gallbladder to their younger sister.
She had heard stories of noble ladies having such brothers, so Bianque had imagined it in her heart.
‘Bianque.’
The sight of Valquiterre smiling affectionately at her.
However, in reality, Valquiterre is not very affectionate to Bianche, even though they are the only siblings.
Bianque thought it was because Valquiterre was the King.
When she was young, she thought it was because he was the Crown Prince.
Fundamentally, seeing him being so close to Kaian, laughing, and hanging out, she also thought that it couldn’t be helped because they were different genders.
In the winter, Queen Sylvia took Valquiterre and Bianque to the castle of Rowen to take refuge.
“Is it okay if I marry Kaian?”
I opened ny mouth blankly, unable to respond to the absurd words.
The words that came rushing in at once seemed to shatter like fragments in my ears, unable to convey the meaning of the words to ny head.
‘My sister becoming the Duchess of Temnes.’
Kaian, marriage, Irena, Duchess of Temnes.
The floating words heatedly gathered together in my chest, piercing my confusion.
‘Are I okay? No...’
What if it’s not okay?
My turbulent emotions were immediately disrupted by the short question.
“Ah..."
It felt like logic and reason were locked in a small iron cage.
No matter what I thought, it was strange, and I rolled toward an answer I couldn’t come up with, and the unknown emotions inside me kept shouting that it wasn’t that.
Irena, who was staring at me like that, said forcefully.
“Come to your senses.”
Her voice was stern as if she was scolding me.
“You have to make up your mind, Claudel.”
Irena’s face changed into a sad one, revealing complex emotions.
“Think about it. Please.”
“...I’m scared.”
“...What?”
Irena was embarrassed because she understood what I was mumbling softly. My pale white face’s eyes turned red upon seeing Irena’s face.
“What are you scared of? What are you thinking about?”
“I think something bad will happen.”
The act of digging deep, thinking, and thinking was even more frightening.
“I don’t think I should do it.”
I kept thinking that something couldn’t go on like this, that there was no other way, that I had to do something to escape this current situation, but I kept telling myself not to do it or put the brakes on.
I couldn’t escape when my thoughts kept spinning as if I was trapped alone, but maybe I didn’t want to escape.
“Claudel.”
Irena looked at me with a pitiful look on her face.
At that moment, a commotion was heard outside the door.
Knock.
“Lady Claudel.”
A maid knocked on the door outside in an impatient voice.
“Are you inside? May I come in for a moment?”
The noise of several people was unusual, and I thought they were looking for Irena. Irena listened to the noise outside the door for a moment and confirmed that the door that was locked from the inside could not be opened from the outside. Then she quickly spoke to .e.
“Listen carefully. Madame Cronach is prohibited from entering the castle.”
“My mother?”
I had been waiting for several days without receiving a single short note.
“I sent someone several times. Who banned my mother from entering?”
“Who would have done that? Who would have the authority to do that in this castle?”
Irena said crookedly.
“They announced your marriage to His Majesty the King at the National Foundation Ball.”
My eyes widened. How could they announce something that we had not reached an agreement on?
“...His Majesty the King said he would wait if I didn’t want to.”
But that was just a condition that he had forced upon me, who kept refusing.
He also added that I would definitely marry him.
“Rumors have already spread throughout the capital.”
“No.”
That couldn’t be true. Unbelievable words poured out.
Irena put a small note hidden in her clothes into my hand.
“It’s from Madame Cronach.”
“Why? Why can’t my mother enter the palace?”
“Because if you’re Madame Cronach’s daughter, you can’t become Queen.”
Bang bang bang!
The knock on the door grew louder.
“Irena. Are you inside?”
Irena rolled her eyes as if trying to think of something to say to me.
“I came to the palace to ask permission to become the Duchess of Temnes.”
“...!”
“There’s no other way to see you.”
Irena gripped my shoulder with such force that it hurt.
“Claudel. Don’t give up and say that nothing is possible.”
Irena's voice sounded strangely clear.
"You must not give up on what you want to do and how you want to live."
It was hard to tell whether she was talking to me or herself.
"I will not marry the Duke of Temnes."
It sounded like she was hinting at herself.
“I decided so. For me. And for you.”
Irena’s golden eyes filled with tears as she poured out all she wanted to say.
“So, please. Go back to how you were. Claudel.”
Boom, boom!
As the commotion outside the door intensified, Irena wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and put her hood back on.
Bam.
As she opened the door, the people who had been clamoring outside suddenly became quiet.
“Didn’t you say you had something to do?”
“That is, I need His Majesty’s permission to see Lady Claudel...”
“Shut up!”
Irena raised her voice to the flustered maid.
“How dare you speak in front of me, Irena of Vermont?”
“I, I’m sorry.”
“Claudel is still a Vermont. How can you speak of a Princess who hasn’t even married yet!”
It was the first time Irena, who was known for her manners, got angry and found fault with someone like that.
“Guide me to where my father is.”
When Irena spoke coldly, the maids quickly ushered her away and disappeared.
“Lady Claudel. Are you okay?”
“I need to rest for a while. Please leave me alone.”
When I spoke, the maids quickly went out of the room and closed the door.
The words Irena had told me reverberated in my head.
“This is ridiculous. The National Foundation Ball is only two days away.”
I was at a loss, then began to open the note she had given me.
I desperately hoped that the note my mother had sent me would contain words that would put me at ease.
***
When she arrived at the Hanging Gardens, Bianque was in a very good mood.
“I asked you to speak nicely. Is this enough?”
The relationship between Bianque and the Valquiterre siblings was lukewarm. They say that there are brothers who are so weak and affectionate that they would give their liver and gallbladder to their younger sister.
She had heard stories of noble ladies having such brothers, so Bianque had imagined it in her heart.
‘Bianque.’
The sight of Valquiterre smiling affectionately at her.
However, in reality, Valquiterre is not very affectionate to Bianche, even though they are the only siblings.
Bianque thought it was because Valquiterre was the King.
When she was young, she thought it was because he was the Crown Prince.
Fundamentally, seeing him being so close to Kaian, laughing, and hanging out, she also thought that it couldn’t be helped because they were different genders.
In the winter, Queen Sylvia took Valquiterre and Bianque to the castle of Rowen to take refuge.
To get along with her brothers, she would have to hold a wooden sword in her hand, wear pants, and run around outside.
However, it was much more enjoyable to wear a dress that she liked, decorate her hair with a lace ribbon that she had personally chosen, and sit between her beautiful mother and twin aunts, drinking tea and talking.
So Bianque tried to understand Valquiterre's frustration at being more relaxed and approaching Kaian than her.
She also didn’t feel like getting involved in the boys’ games.
This time, when she decided to separate Kaian and Claudel, and when she cooperated with the fact that Claudel would become the Queen of Valquiterre, she felt closer to her brother than before.
“Where is His Majesty the King?”
“He is in the Hanging Gardens.”
“Okay. I will go.”
However, the conspiracy taking place in the Hanging Gardens, where she had gone in hopes of getting compliments, was a sight to behold.
No, it wasn’t a conspiracy, it was closer to a trick.
Rather than a trick, Bianque felt it was a complete fraud.
“What did you just say to the Duke of Vermont?”
“It is exactly as you heard, Princess.”
The Duke of Vermont coughed in vain at her rambling.
“I was asking His Majesty the King to mediate between Vermont and Temnes, who have been at odds for a long time in the history of the kingdom.”
“Mediation? Ha.”
Bianque was so shocked that she fanned her face with her hand.
Something on her forehead felt hot, like water boiling over a kettle, and it was about to burst.
“I told you I would marry you to the Duke of Temnes!”
“Princess Bianque.”
She flinched at the cold name.
“Many people are watching, so what are you doing so indecent?”
“What are you doing, my brother?”
However, she, who usually had a hard time with Valquiterre and would be intimidated by his uniquely cold atmosphere whenever he called her Princess, was different today.
“You told me that you would send me to Kaien. You promised!”
“It seems that what the Princess promised His Majesty the King was less valuable than the assets of Vermont.”
Suddenly, a voice came flying in and a woman with long red hair approached the entrance of the garden with calm steps.
“The port of the Northern Route, the mining rights for the mine, and even the iron ore Your Majesty so desperately wanted.”
Irena smiled elegantly.
“We promised to give it to Your Majesty without holding back to become the Duchess of Temnes. Isn’t that right, Your Majesty?”
It was a very rare experience for Bianque to be pushed aside or ignored by anyone.
Bianque never even heard of a speech that put her down like this, except for Valquiterre, who was sitting in the highest dignity of the kingdom, or Kaian, who was hanging on to marry Bianque because he was sorry for her.
That’s why Bianche was so furious at Irena’s words.
“What? How dare you insult the Oberon royal family in the palace!”
Bianque glanced at Valquiterre. However, he watched the situation as if nothing had happened, making Bianque feel bewildered.
“Everyone, get out.”
At those words, only then did Count Makie, Duke of Vermont, and Princess Irena escape from the hanging garden.
“Brother. Right? You said you would send me to Rowen.”
As soon as the eyes watching her disappeared, she became very sad.
“Valquiterre. Why are you doing this to me?”
Her blue eyes were filled with the color of the sky and shedding tears as if shaking.
“You shouldn’t be doing this to me. Did you deceive me?”
The stone eyes, which seemed to have been split from the same gemstone, looked at her.
“...Why? Why do you hate me?”
“Yes. I hate you.”
There was no way she could have done this several times without saying so.
“You look too much like your mother, Bianque.”
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