Beneath the Surviving Princess's Joyful Facade - Chapter 145

“The Grand Duke of Hagail seems to have taken a liking to Gella.”

“What? Absolutely not. Don’t say such ridiculous things.”

Miesa, startled by Salachez’s comment, pulled Gella into a protective embrace. Although it looked more like she was clinging to Gella than protecting her.

Duke Salachez agreed with the queen’s opinion. He, too, had seen the murderous look in the Grand Duke’s eyes. But he continued speaking, offering a silent apology to Gella in his mind.

“I heard from the Margrave that the Grand Duke can’t hold a normal conversation for more than ten minutes.”

“That’s right. I heard the same.”

“Yet he managed to hold out for thirty minutes with us.”

Salachez had only one reason for trying to link Gella with the Grand Duke: to divert Miesa’s attention. There’s nothing more entertaining than someone else’s love life.

“And the fact that he finally agreed to a medical examination after all these years.”

“He refused treatment for years?”

“Would he be in such poor condition if he hadn’t?”

“That’s true.” Miesa nodded, then shook her head again. “No way. He’s too old for such nonsense.”

At this point, Gella, who had been quietly listening, spoke up for the first time. “The Grand Duke isn’t that old.”

“I believe he’s thirty-one,” Salachez interjected, but Miesa raised her hand to stop him.

“Gella, no matter how old the Grand Duke is, it’s not happening.”

“But he really needs to recover his health, doesn’t he?” Gella seemed lost in thought, as if considering something else. “If Your Majesty permits, I wouldn’t mind going to the Grand Duke’s residence every day.”

“No. This conversation ends here.”

Miesa firmly drew the line.

The next day, she sent a royal doctor to the Grand Duke’s residence. However, the Grand Duke expressed his displeasure by cutting off a chunk of the doctor’s hair.

After much persuasion from Duke Salachez, Miesa reluctantly sent Gella to the Grand Duke’s residence along with twelve royal guards. This time, word came back that he had finally received proper treatment.

“That’s unbelievable…,” Miesa muttered. 

Duke Salachez teased Gella with exaggerated glee, “Gella, it must be true! The Grand Duke seems to have taken a liking to you!”

But Gella didn’t seem entirely displeased. She lowered her head and muttered something. “You might be right… As soon as I arrived, it was like he had been waiting for me to get his treatment.”

Salachez was inwardly baffled. He had clearly seen the Grand Duke glaring at Gella as if he wanted to strangle her, so how could it be that he welcomed her eagerly?

While Salachez’s objective was to divert the queen’s attention, he couldn’t understand why Gella was playing along. Could it be sudden ambition, or was she somehow drawn to the idea of becoming the Grand Duke’s mistress?

But that was of no concern to Salachez. He continued to tease Gella for the queen’s amusement. “Gella, you’re blushing.”

Gella shook her head in embarrassment. “Duke, please stop.”

One late evening, after Gella had been visiting the Grand Duke’s residence regularly and enduring Duke Salachez’s teasing, Salachez was walking through the corridors, having just completed his duties as chamberlain.

From a distance, he saw Gella leaving the queen’s chambers. She closed the door behind her and stood there, frozen. Curious, Salachez took a step forward, and the sound of his footsteps made Gella hurriedly move away.

Perhaps it was time to tease her about becoming the future duchess. Having grown fond of teasing Gella, Salachez quickened his pace and caught up with her.

“My, how honorable of you…”

“Please, stop.”

Gella’s eyes were red. Had she been crying? Startled, Salachez blinked in surprise as Gella covered her face with her hands and finally burst into tears.

“You can tease me all you want in front of Her Majesty, but not now. We’re not in her presence.”

“Gella… I’m sorry.”

Salachez was taken aback. If he had known she hated it this much, he would have stopped long ago.

“Gella, if you dislike it, you should have told me. I’m really sorry. I won’t mention the Grand Duke to you ever again.”

“No, keep doing it in front of Her Majesty. Please.” Despite her sobs, Gella managed to speak, “I just… I can’t bear to see Her Majesty like this.”

“Why? What about Her Majesty?”

Without a word, Gella pointed toward the queen’s chambers. Salachez’s eyes widened, and he moved toward the door. Pressing his ear against it, he knew the queen should have retired to the bedroom by now, and there was a room in between, so no sound could be heard.

After exchanging a glance with Gella, Salachez opened the door and entered the bedroom. One of the royal guards raised an eyebrow, but Salachez motioned for silence and pressed his ear to the door.

“‘Don’t worry. You will be the most beautiful person there.’”

The queen’s voice, lowered, imitated someone’s words.

“‘You will be the most beautiful, intelligent, and vibrant person there.’”

Salachez recognized the tone she was mimicking—Margrave Cladnier’s.

“‘Everyone will be fooled by your outstanding acting.’”

The queen was using her sharp memory to recall every detail of her past with the Margrave. Unable to make a sound, Salachez suddenly felt his legs give way, and he sank to the floor.

The queen’s monologue continued for a long time.

***

At that moment, Eirik, who had just finished evacuating the civilians, was resting in his tent with his eyes closed.

He had expected it to be challenging, but the reality was even more dire. The soldiers from Sidate had lost their minds, acting like madmen, driven to insanity by the brutal death of the daughter of the Semenov family, who had devoted her life to aiding the poor and defending Sidate’s borders.

In contrast, the morale of the Esquillir soldiers, particularly those from the Cladnier knights and troops, couldn’t match theirs. It seemed that the Esquillir soldiers couldn’t fully empathize with the Sidate soldiers’ righteous anger.

Though the Esquillir soldiers were enraged by the senseless slaughter of innocents, they would bow their heads in shame as they scrubbed off the blood-written curses from the walls of civilian homes.

“Despicable slaves of Esquillir.”

“May the corrupt souls be judged in the name of Sidate.”

Eirik felt a heavy weight in his chest. He stared blankly at a corner of his tent before taking out a piece of paper that he kept close to his heart—a letter he couldn’t bear to look at unless his longing for her became unbearable.

“I love you.”

The few words written on the letter were so precious to him that he didn’t dare kiss the paper, fearing the words might fade. He just stared at it, cherishing the memory.

The morning of his departure, she had handed him the letter with a flushed face, and when he had stood there in a daze, Duke Salachez had quietly remarked that the queen had wasted twenty-one sheets of paper the previous night trying to write that short letter.

Upon hearing that she had been so nervous that her hands had sweated through her handkerchief as she wrote, Eirik had been so moved that it delayed his departure.

“I must return quickly.”

Eirik gazed at the crooked handwriting and made a vow to himself once more. He carefully folded the letter and tucked it back into his chest.

***

The queen’s birthday had arrived. However, in accordance with the queen’s strong desire to avoid any festivities during wartime, the day passed quietly without celebration.

As Duke Salachez returned from delivering food and supplies to the alms house and orphanage, he was stopped by a servant.

“Duke, a painter and a writer have arrived, sent by the Margrave.”

“A painter? Who are they?”

“We’ve never heard of them before. There are two of them, and they’re sisters.”

It wasn’t as if Duke Salachez would recognize the names of painters or writers even if he heard them. He led the way to the waiting room.

There, two young women were waiting. They appeared ordinary, but if the queen found out that the Margrave had been associating with young women, she wouldn’t be pleased.

Salachez tilted his head in puzzlement and asked the women, “Did the Margrave send you? So, you’re from Cladis?”

“No. Our studio is in the capital. The Margrave sent someone to commission our work at the end of last year.”

Upon checking the date, Salachez nodded, realizing it was around the time when they had closed off the secret chamber inside the office.

“Even so, I need to verify everything. Do you have the order form?”

“Here it is.”

The paper bore the seal of the Cladnier family, and the payment had already been made in full.

“Wait, what exactly did you make to warrant this price?” The Duke shook his head in disbelief as he scrutinized the cost.

One of the nervous women to hand him a wrapped item. “It’s a storybook. We write and illustrate children’s books.”

The other woman, suddenly remembering something, pulled out another envelope. “The Margrave instructed us to deliver this letter to you, Duke Salachez.”

Duke Salachez opened the letter. It contained a few brief lines written in familiar, neat handwriting.

The duke was instructed to unwrap the package, inspect the contents, and explain what the gift was before presenting it to the queen. As he carefully read through the instructions, Duke Salachez called for a servant.

“If it’s a newly made book, the price is understandable. Have them send a thank-you gift to these ladies.”

“Yes, I will.”

Once the two women had left, relieved, Duke Salachez unwrapped the paper.

The cover of the storybook depicted a small, white-feathered chick in a bright garden setting, looking so tiny and cute that it was impossible to imagine it causing any harm.

As he flipped through the pages, the book was filled with charming and pretty stories and illustrations. Although the book was only eight pages long, having been made in just about two months, it was clear that a lot of care had gone into its creation.

“Well, this is quite something.” Duke Salachez tilted his head to the side, raising his eyebrows.

Lately, the duke had been lingering outside the queen’s bedroom every night. Even though he knew he would be in big trouble if he was caught, it was as if he were under a spell, spending his nights leaning against the queen’s door.

Despite being warned several times by Tilberg, he managed to avoid being stopped by claiming he was monitoring the queen’s mood. However, the number of guards posted outside the bedroom had increased to four.

The Margrave’s words, channeled through the queen’s voice, were sometimes so heartfelt that they brought Salachez to tears, while at other times, they were so frustratingly stifling that they made him pound his chest in anger.

“Well, at least that bastard is doing something.”

Salachez couldn’t help but envy them. The love they shared, clearly blessed by the goddess, was something Salachez knew would never be granted to him.

As he stood there, his face stiff, a knock on the door brought him back to his usual, sharp expression.

“What is it?”

“The Council of State meeting has ended. The queen has returned to the office.”

“Alright. Come with me and bring this.”