Beneath the Surviving Princess's Joyful Facade - Chapter 24

Eirik nodded with a complicated expression but couldn’t help asking, “Wait a moment, dear. How does sharing respect with a reverent heart turn into briefly rubbing bodies together?”

Miesa wanted to give a clear answer, but she didn’t fully understand the connection herself. There were too many incomprehensible words in the priestess’s explanation, and the Big’s remarks lacked coherence.

She blinked at him, lost for words. He seemed to find something amusing, as he kept laughing and failed to grasp the crucial points.

Irritated, Miesa pointed to her chest. “Anyway, this part doesn’t matter. It’s not used. Do you understand?”

Eirik patted her head gently. “What I’m trying to do is make that painful process less agonizing.”

“No, you must have learned wrong…” Miesa shook her head. But Eirik, undeterred, gently laid her back down and whispered, “If you keep resisting, we won’t get anywhere. This is the only way I know how.”

He knew she would eventually yield, which annoyed her even more.

“I’m doing this to save you, Eirik. Why are you being so stubborn?”

“To save me? Because your intention touches me deeply, it makes me want to take even more time. I don’t want to cause my dear wife any pain,” he said, pointing to her upper body with a shameless grin.

“None of this makes any sense,” Miesa murmured in disbelief.

“Sometimes I feel the same way with you. It’s nice to share this understanding process,” Eirik teased.

“Just hurry up and…”

“It would help greatly if you didn’t say anything at all.”

With that, he resumed kissing her face and neck. Miesa, realizing he wouldn’t relent, resigned herself to lying still.

Watching his actions, she knew there would be no consummation tonight. How long would it take to teach this clueless man and complete their wedding night? She closed her eyes, trying to quell her growing impatience.

***

“It’s ambiguous.”

The next day, while Gella was away for a while, the two royal maids discovered hickey marks on Miesa’s neck.

“Exactly. So, did they do it or not?”

“What’s going on suddenly? Did getting a lover bring about a change of heart?”

“Oops, the lover is back.”

As Gella returned, the two maids fell silent as if they hadn’t been talking at all.

Gella didn’t mind the awkward silence and continued with her own concerns, “The clothes Young Madam Miesa changed into yesterday haven’t dried yet, so she only has two dresses left for today.”

She had changed four times in total yesterday—once after visiting the garden and once after meals. Gella worried about the lack of clothes as she helped the young madam out of her nightgown. Then,

“Uh, it’s not eczema…”

Gella closely examined the reddish marks below Miesa’s prominent collarbone. When she realized what they were, her face turned bright red.

“Oh? Oh! Ah…”

The two maids were keenly observing Gella’s reaction, entirely focused. Miesa thought it was fortunate since she found it hard to act naturally out of embarrassment.

“Well, yes. It’s good that the two of you are getting along well. It’s a good thing.”

Gella laughed awkwardly, looking at the two maids. The royal maids returned a similarly awkward smile and said, “Will you be reading to her like yesterday? In that case, we can leave.”

With that, the two maids left the room.

Left alone with Miesa, Gella’s face quickly turned serious.

“This isn’t right. You can’t just do this to someone who knows nothing.” She couldn’t hide her shock. “He’s treating a person who’s practically like a child. Has the commander lost his mind?”

Gella was startled by her own words of disloyalty but spoke earnestly to Miesa, “Young madam, if you don’t like it, you have to say so. Push the commander, I mean, the young master away, bite him if you have to.”

Miesa, unsure how to respond, burst into laughter and flopped face down onto the bed. Her face felt warm, probably blushing.

“Who do I even tell about this? But then again, they’re a married couple. Who’s going to intervene… Poor lady.”

Gella stomped her feet in frustration while Miesa buried her face in the pillow, waiting for the moment to pass.

Meanwhile, Eirik was receiving a report from his mother’s maid, Edil.

“It seems they’re reluctant to replace Mrs. Maleca easily. There might be more to it. I stopped digging further to avoid raising suspicion.”

“She doesn’t seem to have any particular skills, yet they won’t replace her despite her flaws.”

According to Edil’s findings, Mrs. Maleca had sticky fingers. She had been caught stealing valuables in the palace but managed to keep her position by bribing the right people.

Her husband, Viscount Maleca, was busy trying to curry favor with the king. Despite their similar tendencies, the couple reportedly had a poor relationship, barely more than strangers.

The other maid, Mrs. Dialle, was also known for her duplicitous nature. She acted sweet but was known for her foul language behind people’s backs, matching Eirik’s expectations.

Edil handed over some documents and continued, “Anyway, Viscountess Manere is subtly stirring things up with the Chief Lady-in-Waiting. The Chief Lady-in-Waiting’s penchant for luxury makes things much easier. Here is the list of jewelry presented as gifts…”

Edil’s lengthy explanation suddenly came to a halt. Eirik raised an eyebrow in silent inquiry, prompting Edil to hesitantly speak.

“But, my lord…”

“What is it?”

Unable to meet Eirik’s gaze, Edil fidgeted for a long time before finally deciding to speak. “I do not believe that blind loyalty to the head of the family is the only form of loyalty. Speaking out when one is heading down the wrong path is also―”

“Get to the point.”

At Eirik’s cold command to speak plainly, Edil clasped her hands tightly and continued with determination, “Perhaps you should consider taking a mistress and stop paying attention to the young madam.”

“A mistress? What kind of loyalty is it to suggest sleeping with a woman I do not want?”

Edil winced at his sharp retort but pushed through with a suppressed voice, “You leave the affairs of the knighthood to Young Master Emmerich and spend your time in the bedchamber. What connection could you possibly have with someone you cannot even communicate with, that you would give opportunities to a distant relative eyeing the successor’s position?”

Eirik did not interrupt, intending to hear her out, and Edil’s words grew bolder.

“I don’t understand why you are so focused on changing those royal maids. What can two lazy women achieve all day long? Neglecting the young madam’s care? Did she uproot the garden saplings out of frustration yesterday because of that?”

Eirik let out a dry laugh. Even as he laughed, Edil continued her barrage, “The Margrave is infatuated with a barmaid, and you, my lord, are only concerned about replacing the useless maids. This situation is very unsettling.”

Publicly, his wife was in no condition to communicate. He couldn’t say that Miesa had conveyed their conversations, making it difficult for Eirik to justify his investigations into Crispin and the others.

But did he really need to present evidence to issue orders? Eirik sighed quietly.

“Didn’t you yourself say that there seemed to be something more about the maid Maleca?” Eirik questioned Edil instead of reprimanding her. “Have I neglected so much while spending time with my wife? Besides training the knights?”

Edil, originally his mother’s maid, wouldn’t know much about his affairs. When Eirik’s gaze shifted to Cullen, a prompt response followed.

“No, my lord. In fact, you resolved the territory’s food issues by transferring scrap metal from the Sidate side to Marquis Hetab. We have two other mines aside from the Halec Iron Mine, and our blacksmiths are already stretched thin repairing our weapons.”

Handing over collected arrowheads, shields, and broken swords from the skirmishes with the Principality of Sidate had earned a hefty sum from Marquis Hetab, who struggled to obtain iron for his plains-covered territory.

“Moreover, Young Master Emmerich has taken over knight training, though there’s widespread discontent. It’s a wonder he’s survived the battlefield until now.”

His cousin Emmerich was also doing his utmost to demonstrate his unsuitability as the successor. As Cullen explained each example, Edil’s expression grew increasingly uneasy.

When Cullen finished speaking, Eirik said, “If there’s anything else that worries you, speak up. You’re in an important position now and must not waver.”

“No, my lord. You’ve already considered everything. It was presumptuous of me.”

Edil bowed her head and left the office.

Eirik, holding the document in his hand, fell into deep thought. It was his long-standing habit to review his words to ensure there was no excess.

If he used power to suppress the other party, it would inevitably explode at some point. However, could this process of persuading each one individually be free of side effects?

His mind tangled with thoughts, he sighed and looked up. The Cladnier family crest hung on one wall of the office, staring down at him. Sometimes, he felt as if the crest itself was pressing down on him. Today was no different.

His judgments must always be made on a rational and correct basis. But…

Eirik naturally thought of his father. As the head of the Cladnier family, was his father truly fulfilling his role properly?

Edil’s words had some merit. Simply conforming was not true loyalty. Confronting and excising the rotten parts for the sake of the family was also necessary.

A bitter smile briefly crossed his face. A son devouring his father—was this his fate after all? The family’s creed of prioritizing family seemed meaningless.

Should he prioritize the family or put his family first?

The answer was already clear. His father had already betrayed the family first.

As he stared silently at the crest for a long time, Cullen informed him of the time.

“It’s noon.”

“Is it already?”