Chapter 23
“Riv, you want to leave the palace?”
Queen Selina had an expression that said she did not understand why.
“What will you do then? And by what right?”
Queen Selina was really curious.
“You have no money and no house. Even if you are a noble, you have nothing.”
“Even after Marianne gets married, that doesn’t mean your situation will change, Riv Katana.”
Yes, Riv’s life belonged to the royal family.
“…so the Duke of Sentoren will marry the princess?”
“Of course.”
Riv felt her mind clear with the pain.
“The Duke of Sentoren knows everything. Do you know what happened Queen? Princess Marianne and the Lord, Marquis Quill, tried to kill the Duke.”
The queen’s eyes trembled. Her expression hardened.
Riv wasn’t lying to her, and the queen knew it. Shock slowly crept into Queen Selina’s eyes.
“Wait, Marianne brought in Marquis Quill? Does the Duke of Sentoren know of this?”
Riv nodded her head.
The queen had stopped caring about her daughter. Only annoyance could be seen on her face.
“You’re giving me a headache, Riv.”
Queen Selina, who pressed her forehead for a moment, interpreted the situation as she wanted.
“Yes, the Marquis must have been the problem. That playboy was the one who seduced my innocent daughter to play these pranks.”
The queen silenced El and Riv, who were about to scandalize her daughter.
She mumbled.
“Even if the Duke of Sentoren wakes up, nothing will change for Marianne and us. Nothing changes.”
Riv suddenly remembered the Duke of Sentoren.
Even if the Duke of Sentoren had sworn absolute allegiance to the royal family, his fiancée, the princess, still tried to kill him so that she would not be forced to marry him.
When Lionel wakes up, he would decide whether or not to keep the engagement.
“Queen, please let me go.”
Riv opened her parched lips and spoke her wish. All she wanted was one thing: freedom.
“Queen, I did everything you wanted.”
“What?”
“I kept waiting for you to get me out of the palace. I didn’t complain even once about how I looked!”
“What are you trying to say? Besides, what’s wrong with that look?”
Contrary to her words, Queen Selina’s gaze was cold.
“Weren’t you the one who came in disguise because you liked that ugly appearance?”
Riv was horrified by the gigantic dress she was forced to wear.
She wore these clothes and lived like an old lady, and she hated both the queen and Princess Marianne.
She seemed to think that Riv had kept this look because she liked it.
Queen Selina seemed to think she was generous.
“Riv, you can leave this room. I won’t set you free, but I’ll think about your request.”
Riv kept her head down and was silent.
At that moment El, who was watching Riv’s back, carefully spoke to the queen.
“I think Princess Marianne poisoned the food she gave to Madame Katana.”
“So what? She didn’t die, did she?”
“What?”
Rather, the queen ordered El.
“Marianne must be very angry. El, you should pay more attention to her. She should show less interest in Riv.”
El bowed her head and did not answer.
After the queen finished speaking, she left.
When the queen had completely disappeared, Riv fell to the floor. She no longer had any strength left.
Riv knew the door was open, but she couldn’t move.
She held her mother’s portrait and the Duke’s ruby ring hanging from her neck like they were her treasures.
“Riv Katana! Curse you!”
Princess Marianne’s swearing could be heard from somewhere.
A long night passed.
***
The next morning, Lionel entered the king’s office.
It was two days after Marianne’s coming-of-age ceremony, and ten hours after he requested an audience with him.
“The Duke of Sentoren has arrived.”
Philip II raised his bloated body to welcome Lionel.
The king tried to hug the Duke with his arms wide open. When Lionel avoided the hug, the king’s face turned cold. The king’s wig was crooked, but he did not realize it. Contrary to usual, Lionel, who was dressed in a perfect suit without a single wrinkle, seemed to be distraught.
Today, the red scar on his cheek had become more prominent.
The middle-aged king, frightened by Lionel’s sharp gaze, avoided his eyes.
“L-Lionel, are you okay?”
Lionel snorted.
“I’m okay considering that I almost died from Princess Marianne’s pranks.”
“Oh, that’s a misunderstanding.”
“What did my doctor and attendant see then? You even called a quack to dissect me alive.”
“Well, that was a mistake. If the rumors leaked, it would’ve been troublesome, so we called a doctor.”
Lionel laughed at the ridiculous situation. The king wiped sweat from his forehead.
“I heard that the girl with you planned all this. I’ll do my best to fix the situation, so please relax.”
“The girl who was with me? You mean Madame Katana? You say she’s the mastermind?”
“Yes.”
“Have you captured the Marquis Quill?”
The king desperately avoided his gaze. Lionel interrogated him again.
“The Marquis Quill even brought his companions to try to kill me. Madame Katana is also a victim like me.”
“Come on, you must be wrong.”
“Is Your Majesty’s reason for not arresting Marquis Quill because he was supplying drugs? Or is it because he is Princess Marianne’s lover?”
“What?”
The king’s eyes widened, but he could not deny the Duke’s words. Lionel asked again.
“Where is Madame Katana?”
“We’ll take good care of that girl. How about we hasten your marriage to Marianne?”
Lionel was stunned at the king’s words.
“Marianne was used by the Marquis Quill.”
“Do you really believe that?”
“My daughter, an innocent princess, was fooled by the devil’s tongue. I want you to protect my daughter so it doesn’t happen again.”
“Are you saying that even though the Marquis and Princess Marianne tried to kill me, I should still forgive and marry her?”
“It’s not Marianne’s fault!”
The king trusted his daughter Marianne blindly. For Lionel, it was a terrible situation.
Lionel endured until Marianne’s adulthood for the honor of the royal family. And now he has reached his limit.
He didn’t have a lot of expectations about the marriage. He tried to endure the engagement as desired by his deceased father. But now everything has reached a critical point.
“Your Majesty, I am terminating my engagement to Princess Marianne.”
“What? Breaking up a ten-year-old engagement over something like this?!”
“Then look at this.”
Lionel presented the materials he had prepared for the king.
“What is this? What are the names of the men?”
“They are all Princess Marianne’s lovers.”
The king swallowed his saliva, scanning the names of the noblemen listed on the paper.
“I-Is this real?”
All of the people on the list were people who stayed at the palace for a long time and were called aides by Princess Marianne.
“D-Duke of Sentoren, this isn’t something you fabricated?”
“To be certain, shouldn’t you bring in the parties involved and interrogate them directly?”
“What?”
“Or should I expose Princess Marianne’s infidelity myself?”
The king was already in damage control.
“Th-That can’t happen! My daughter’s honor is at stake!”
“I can always expose the princess’ past.”
“Did you really think I’ll stand idly by if you do that? I will ruin you at all costs!”
Lionel laughed at the king’s threat. It wasn’t that he didn’t know the king would react this way. He whispered a few words in the king’s ear. The king staggered as if he was about to collapse at any moment.
“Are you really going to do that, Lionel?!”
Lionel was sincere.
“I heard that countries across the sea want foreign young beauties. They wouldn’t know about the princess’ past.”
“You will send a princess to those barbarians?”
“They will be strong allies, even if they are savages. They have territories where gold and precious stones are produced, like a spring that never runs dry.”
“Ugh.”
“Do you want to make a lot of profit from a marriage alliance with other countries, or do you want to expose the crimes the Princess has committed against me as well as her infidelity?”
“……”
Lionel wasn’t lying. He had endured the ten-year engagement in silence.
The reason that Marianne had been rejected because she was young would no longer work as she was now an adult.
The king took a chance and quickly tore up Marianne’s list of lovers. For a middle-aged king with an oversized body, he moved rather fast.
“Haha. You have nothing now, Lionel.”
Breathing heavily, the king was proud of his actions.
“Lionel, I will pretend that you never brought up breaking the engagement. Nothing happened with Marianne.”
“Do you really think that’s the only list I have? If we don’t annul the engagement, I might revolt.”
“What?”
“It wouldn’t be too hard a job for me to subdue and kill Your Majesty right now.”
The king flinched because Lionel said it so nonchalantly.
“I cannot give you time to think long. But…”
“But?”
“If you break my engagement with Princess Marianne, I will cover up and forget everything.”
The king decided quickly. Lionel never lied.
Even if Lionel had no weapons, he could have easily killed the king by twisting his neck.
Even if he threatened Lionel and successfully had him marry Marianne, what would happen after that?
Lionel could deal with Marianne. Before that, Marianne’s infidelity could be exposed.
If Marianne’s scandal was revealed, she couldn’t even expect a marriage alliance with another country.
“I will do as the Duke of Sentoren says. I’ll break the engagement contract.”
Lionel had one more requirement.
“And give me Madame Katana.”