Episode 34. A Wolf Does Not Serve Two Masters
Christine and Adele, who came down the stairs, bowed to the Emperor and Empress sitting on the golden chair.
The Empress did not hide her displeasure the whole time. However, the Emperor smiled slightly and made a polite remark while gesturing to the chief chamberlain behind him.
“Bring it.”
The people watched this situation anxiously. They imagined the chief chamberlain handing the Emperor a sword and cutting off Adele’s head with it. Some people who were jealous of Adele looked like they really wanted that to happen.
However, what the chief chamberlain brought was a document with the Emperor’s seal.
Jan stood up and spoke as if to let everyone listen.
“Adele Grills. By the Emperor’s authority, from this moment on, I hereby expel you from the Marquis of Oswald. Are there any objections?”
At that moment, Adele’s face brightened.
Even while preparing for her engagement to Christine, she was still the Marchioness of Oswald. The title followed her like a terrible chain.
But now she could escape the ghostly name of Oswald.
Adele.
She had regained that name.
“No, Your Majesty.”
Adele answered the Emperor with reddened eyes.
“And this is my gift. Miss Adele.”
Jan held out a small, ornate gift box along with the documents. Inside the box was a key.
“The key to the villa south of the palace.”
At that moment, Christine’s expression hardened. That meant that he was holding Adele hostage in the palace.
“I have already prepared a mansion for my fiancée to stay in, Your Majesty.”
Jan smiled with the utmost kindness.
“Don’t do that. The captain of the guard will have to live in the palace from now on. How can you separate lovers in the prime of their lives? Please don’t reject my heart.”
Numerous nobles watched Christine and the Emperor’s reactions with sparkling eyes.
Anyone could see that Jan had already made many concessions and was considerate. If the gift was rejected here, the Emperor would have to draw his sword to protect his authority.
Furthermore, since he had freed Adele from the Oswald family, Christine could not possibly refuse.
Knowing this, Jan must have handed over the key as if he were proud.
“Here, take it quickly.”
Jan urged Adele and held out the box containing the key.
“Thank you for your deep consideration, Your Majesty.”
When Adele politely accepted it, he smiled happily and raised his glass.
“For Count Weiss and his beautiful fiancée!”
Those who had been anxiously watching Adele’s head fly off felt a little let down. However, they all hid their feelings and followed the Emperor and raised their glasses.
“Cheers!”
Christine’s eyes met the Emperor’s as he brought the glass to his lips.
“I have checked the blank document. As promised, I will permit you to be engaged to the woman you desire.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“But if you betray me, she will pay a terrible price.”
“A wolf does not serve two masters. If Your Majesty does not harm her, I and the White Ghost Knights will be loyal.”
They confirmed each other’s conversation with their eyes once more.
***
“How unexpected. I naturally thought it would be April’s engagement party.”
The person who approached the Emperor and his wife was an elegant woman with black hair.
“Are you here? Lady Isabel.”
Jan greeted her politely.
She was Isabel Valencia. She was the former Empress and Jan’s sister-in-law. If the war had not been so urgent, the Emperor would have been her son by now. Furthermore, her father was the Duke of Rodwell, the head of the Elder Nobles.
Currently, he was one of the most threatening figures to Jan.
The people’s faces filled with curiosity at her appearance. It was obvious why she had come here, even though she rarely attended year-end banquets.
“Could it be that our April lost to the villainess of Kalime?”
Isabel’s voice was filled with laughter, as if she were dying of joy.
The Empress objected with a serious expression.
“No way. Our April is still too young to meet a man.”
“Well. I heard she’s a well-behaved cat. Isn’t that a pretty scandalous rumor for a virgin?”
April, who was with the Emperor and Empress, looked like she was about to cry.
At that moment, Adele stepped forward, carefully greeting her.
“Rumors originally started to belittle someone they envy. And rumors can never overcome the truth.”
Isabelle’s eyes sharpened as if she were offended by Adele’s bold attitude.
“You must feel guilty after stealing April’s man, right? Pretending to take her side.”
Then April spoke up in an adult manner.
“It seems that my aunt has misunderstood something. To me, the Count is like my brother. Miss Adele is my friend. How dare you believe the strange rumors spread by those who like to make up stories?”
Adele took April’s side again.
“The social circle is a place where strange rumors start, even if you vomit.”
“That’s right. If you cough, rumors will spread that you have a fatal disease. Well, then we’ll go now.”
After politely greeting Isabel, April turned around with Adele.
The people watching were bewildered.
They thought there would be some kind of strange war of nerves between Adele and April. However, Adele took April’s side, and April called her her friend.
It seemed like nothing had happened between them, with Christine in the middle. No, they even seemed very friendly, so rumors began to spread that the rumors were false.
Isabel, who was left behind, blushed in embarrassment all the way to her ears. She didn’t know that she would be hit like this by the innocent April.
“You’ve grown up since I last saw you, April.”
Then she elegantly fanned herself and turned around, pretending nothing happened.
The imperial couple finally looked relieved.
***
April and Adele entered the private room next to the banquet hall.
Knock!
As soon as she closed the door, she glared at Adele.
“Are we done now?”
“Yes, you did a good job.”
“Shut up! Who wanted to hear compliments?”
“I’m sorry.”
“But it would be better to pretend to be friends for a while, just like you said.”
Adele had come to see April before the banquet began. She had said that to put an end to the unpleasant rumors between Christine and April, it would be good to pretend to be close.
Of course, April disagreed and kicked Adele out.
However, no matter how much she thought about it, that was the only way. To restore her honor, she had to ridiculously join hands with Adele.
“A devilish woman. I believed you because you said you were like siblings...”
Adele smiled bitterly. She was sick of being called a villainess, but she felt like she had done something really bad to April.
How friendly had the Princess been when she heard that she and Christine were like siblings?
It was like hitting her in the back of the head after all that.
However, she was going to point out the Princess’s wrongdoings as well.
“Your highness, you also tried to deceive Count Weiss and the people.”
“That’s...!”
“Yes, I know how you feel. Sometimes when you’re desperate, you don’t even know what you’re doing and run away.”
Then Adele knelt in front of April.
“What are you doing! Get up!”
April shouted in panic.
Adele stubbornly lowered her head.
“I have nothing to say about the Count even if I had ten mouths. I also thought it was right for me to be like siblings with him. But I just couldn’t stop these feelings. I couldn’t help it even if I incurred the Emperor’s wrath and died... So please, Princess.”
Adele's eyes became moist. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop her heart from rushing towards him. She just hoped that her heart wouldn't get in Christine's way.
April hated Adele like that, but on the other hand, she understood.
Didn't she feel it from the moment she first saw her? That she had no place to come between her and Christine.
"Nothing was going on with Count Weiss. I want to make this clear."
"I know."
April glared at Adele again as if she was going to die of hatred. That expression showed that she didn't doubt anything.
"But it's true that the Count came into my bedroom that night."
"I know that too."
But her expression didn't matter. That was possible because she absolutely trusted Christine.
"Anyway... thank you for helping me."
"The Princess helped me, too."
April was displeased with Adele, who was always calm and mature. She thought she knew why Christine chose her over her.
Standing next to her, who was mature and elegant, she still felt like a child.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, then.”
***
When Adele left the room, Christine was standing outside.
“Chris, why are you here...?”
“To protect my fiancée.”
“I was just talking to the Princess.”
“The other person is the Princess. She could easily hurt you if she wanted to.”
Adele ended up laughing as she looked at Christine, who was very serious.
“Thank you for worrying. But there was a problem that the girls had to solve. And it was solved well.”
Adele, who reassured him with a gentle expression, naturally placed her hand on his forearm.
Christine pulled her hand closer and made her link her arms even tighter.
She could feel his rock-hard muscles under his uniform. Moreover, Adele felt embarrassed because it seemed like her chest would touch his arm if she got even a little closer.
“This is too close, Chris.”
“It’s our engagement ceremony, so what?”
She smiled at the people and whispered so that only Christine could hear.
“No matter what, it’s rude to do this in front of people.”
Christine also greeted the people with a neat and gentlemanly face and whispered.
“You keep whispering with those pretty lips, so I can’t help but want to kiss you.”
“Chris...!”
When her eyes met his mischievously curving ones, Adele quickly turned her head.
‘Why are your eyes so hot!’
His eyes were burning brightly as if he were really going to kiss her here. Since Christine didn’t care about what other people thought, she didn’t seem to be able to do it if she wanted to.
“Actually, I’ve wanted to kiss you ever since I received the rose earlier.”
Kook!
Adele whispered with a smile on her face, stomping on his foot.
“If you keep saying embarrassing things, I’ll step on you with my heel this time, Chris.”
She was currently wearing silver high heels that were a gift from Madame Chanel.
“Tsk!”
April’s eyes grew moist as she watched the backs of the two.
She knew she had to give up, but it didn’t seem like she could give up as easily as she wanted.
“Are you really going to give up like this?”
She turned around at the sound of a voice beside her.
“Ah, Miss Seira.”
“The one who should be laughing over there right now is the Princess... I’m sorry. I’m so angry just watching them.”
“It’s okay, it’s all over. I guess I was the one who did something stupid last time. I just listened to Miss Seira and did something like that.”
April’s words were filled with resentment toward Seira. Even thinking about that incident now makes her face burn, so much so that she kicks the blanket off her head while she's sleeping.
However, Seira scolded April instead.
“No, you should have acted a little more innocent and asked His Majesty for help. If you had, the Count would have been yours. I thought you had some sense since you grew up in the palace, but it was so easy...”
“Are you saying that I messed up because I was stupid?”
Seira sighed softly when April got angry.
“No. It’s my fault for not knowing that the Princess was unusually innocent.”
Seira turned around, waving her fan sarcastically. April felt like she was going to cry because she was upset. It was painful enough just seeing the Count and Adele together in front of her, but Seira was treating her like an idiot. On top of that, she knew what the people who were glancing at her and whispering were saying. She felt like she couldn’t hide her upset expression any longer, so she quickly left the banquet hall.
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