Chapter : 07
“Yes. I will keep that in mind. I suppose life does bring days where I find myself grateful for my brother’s whims.”
At the mention of Axel, the Queen waved her hand dismissively as if a fresh headache were coming on, signaling that she didn’t even want to hear his name.
Setting down her teacup, Anais softly called out, “Mother.” She then motioned for the ladies-in-waiting and servants to withdraw from the room.
“I received a reply from a friend in Vasa last night. They say the internal situation there isn’t good. Ominous rumors are circulating.”
“Ominous rumors?”
“Apparently, the Pope hasn’t been seen in months. While they can’t see the internal state of the Temple, it’s said that something happened to the Pope, and in the interim, a young Cardinal seems to have seized control.”
The Kingdom of Vasa, which possessed a territory about one-third the size of Zenobia, was Zenobia’s neighbor and a vassal state. It was a country that had bowed down and requested a treaty of subordination even before Zenobia, led by Axel, could invade.
Vasa had a king, but he was a mere puppet with limited roles; the practical power resided within the Temple.
While Zenobia had a state religion but allowed a fair amount of religious freedom, Vasa treated any faith other than the state religion, Mortism, as heresy and strictly rejected it.
However, three months ago, a ridiculous rumor drifted in from Vasa: that Queen Madelaine of Zenobia and the King of Vasa were longtime lovers.
Winchester Island was geographically closer to Vasa, and that was the starting point of all the rumors.
The story claimed that while the Queen was the daughter of a Grand Duke, she had traveled back and forth to Vasa to nurture her love, and that she was deceiving the Oter Imperial Family by passing off the Vasa King’s child as an Oter royal—essentially, that Vasa blood was trying to take over the Oter throne.
Upon hearing this absurd rumor, several nobles, led by Duke Brahe, took the lead in fueling the controversy and even demanded an explanation from the royal family.
It was a transparent ploy by Duke Brahe, who wanted to install his own daughter as the Crown Princess, to weaken the Queen’s influence. However, as the controversy grew, the King himself had to step in to explain and forcibly suppress the rumors.
Yet, the fire would not be easily extinguished.
“Tell your friend to keep looking into the source of the rumors but to keep a low profile. Though His Majesty is suppressing and appeasing the nobles, I have a bad feeling. We must be cautious.”
“Yes. I will convey that. Could it be that my brother is heading to Winchester for that reason as well?”
“Who knows? He’s never been one to talk about himself. Just as you, Anais, carry the blood of Oter, Axel is a born Winchester. Winchesters have very keen intuition.”
Lately, Madelaine frequently recalled the words her father, the Grand Duke of Winchester, used to say like a habit: ‘Nothing in this world happens by coincidence.’
“I guarantee you, if that boy is pushing this hard, he must be certain of something.”
“……”
“So, you must do your best to become Queen. Show them that you are a true Oter.”
After the incident at the noble shopping district, Count Roman immediately sent a servant.
Shamelessly, he not only demanded the return of the down payment but also asked for compensation. Despite this, the Baron was flustered and couldn’t say a single word of protest to the Count’s servant.
In fact, the Count’s servant had visited the Baron’s estate frequently before, and each time, he was treated with extreme hospitality.
Haley found her father utterly pathetic, wondering just how much money he had borrowed from Count Roman to act so subserviently toward a mere servant.
One thing was strange, though. The servant visited the estate several more times regarding the compensation, and unlike the first day, the atmosphere seemed unexpectedly smooth.
Finally, when Haley peeked at the servant and the Baron through a crack in a broken drawing-room window, the two were shaking hands and discussing a “deal.”
‘What kind of proposal did the servant make?’
In any case, Haley had intended to explain the humiliation she suffered that day if the Baron got angry with her. But the Baron and his wife were unexpectedly quiet.
They didn’t try to lock her and Theo up, nor did they say a word about her sneaking out.
That gave Haley a strange sense of anxiety, though she couldn’t yet identify the source of it.
“I will ask one last time. Is your mind still set on leaving this house?”
“Yes.”
As if they had expected Haley’s answer, the Baron and his wife exchanged looks and nodded. Then, they held out a golden envelope to Haley.
“It’s an invitation from the Royal Palace. They say the Queen is hosting it herself. It’s the biggest banquet of the year.”
“…And?”
“Please attend this banquet with us one last time. Since it’s an invitation sent to an unmarried lady, I cannot go alone as an old mother.”
Haley didn’t even bother looking inside and pushed the invitation back toward the couple.
“No. If you’re trying to coax me into marriage, don’t even dream of it. I’m leaving this house with Theo.”
The event was originally for unmarried young ladies. Haley had no intention of attending, and the Baroness was the worst possible chaperone, so there was no reason for the Baroness to be there.
Haley looked at the Baroness with a somewhat pathetic gaze.
“Who said anything about not leaving? I’m just asking you to attend the banquet. Is that too much? Even if it’s this mother’s final request?”
“Yes. I don’t want to.”
She saw the Baroness bite her lip hard, hitting the solid wall of Haley’s refusal.
The Baron cleared his throat and spoke.
“Do you have any idea how much money we have to repay the Count because of you? We’re about to end up on the streets. I need to get your mother into that banquet hall so she can scout for other investors. I’m not trying to marry you off, so if you want to get even a penny and leave this house, attend for just one day!”
She had run away from a Prince’s proposal, and now it was a banquet for unmarried ladies.
Haley didn’t know for sure, but she suspected this banquet was somehow related to that crazy Prince, so she didn’t want to attend for even a single day.
“I already explained that the money is something you should naturally give me.”
“Do you think a problem like this would be solved quickly if we took it to the royal court, as you suggested? Stop talking and just attend for one day. Not even a full day. Half a day is enough.”
The Baron’s words made sense. It was actually a point Haley had been worried about. The Baron would likely drag his feet and act like a nuisance.
“In exchange, promise me right here. I’ll write it down as a document for evidence.”
“We are your parents! Do you not trust us?”
“Of course not.”
Thinking it would be better to marry that crazy Prince than to trust the Baron and his wife, Haley brought the paper herself and secured their promise in writing. Then, she threatened that she would take the paper to a legal representative in the shopping district tomorrow to have it notarized.
And so, Haley and Theo’s escape plan seemed to be progressing smoothly.
Haley was very busy lately.
She was losing her mind being dragged around to boutiques by the Baroness because of the dress she had to wear to the Royal Banquet.
Every boutique in the shopping district was crowded because all the noble ladies in the capital were ordering dresses for the event, so they had barely managed to secure an appointment.
When Haley said she would just wear the plain dress she’d received for the matchmaking session, the Baroness firmly refused, citing “minimal dignity” as the reason.
Haley argued, but the Baroness insisted, asking how she could possibly go to the palace in that. Being dragged around only resulted in a waste of time.
Haley had plenty of other things to do besides such useless tasks.
I really wish Haley were my mom.
Theo was a bright and observant child, so he had known for a long time that Haley wasn’t his biological mother. Because he didn’t want to put Haley in a difficult position, he had always called her by her name, “Haley.”
However, on the day of their first outing, Haley had held his hand tightly and told that giant-race man that she was his mother. He must have loved that so much, because he wrote his honest feelings in his diary that day.
Haley had peeked at Theo’s diary for the first time that day. She only looked because he was writing for so long, but after reading that sentence, she sobbed privately so Theo wouldn’t see.
End Of Chapter : 07
