CH 65

When Edward spotted Mariabelle, he approached her happily.

His lustrous golden hair and blue eyes, which seemed to capture the colour of the sky, had not changed a bit from the last time she saw him. His gentle smile was exactly the kind of prince a girl dreams of.

Renato silently hugged Mariabelle's shoulders and pulled her even closer, as if to show her off to Edward.

Seeing this, Edward stopped and furrowed his brows.

"Mariabelle, you poor thing... It's all right now."

Edward said this with his hands outstretched, and not only Renato, but also Cedric, wrinkled his brows.

Mariabelle gently pushed Renato's arm and stepped forward.

"Your Highness, it's been a long time."

"Yes. It really has... It's the first time I haven't seen you in such a long time, so it feels strange."

Edward, who spoke nostalgically, repeated again, "It's all right now."

"I've heard your story. I heard that the Marquis de Berkeley is planning to make you a concubine of the crown prince as a gift to the empire, in order to transfer his position to the empire, since his engagement to me is over and he can no longer hold a higher position in the kingdom. But rest assured that I will never let that happen."

Edward, who kept his hands outstretched, probably thought that a thrilled Mariabelle would jump into his arms, but Mariabelle did not move a single step from her spot.

On the contrary, her emerald eyes showed none of the affection that had been there before.

"Mariabelle...?"

Edward, who had lowered his hands, called Mariabelle's name in a puzzled manner.

"I have told you before that I no longer have anything to do with His Highness, and I would deeply appreciate it if you would not call me by my name."

She did not want to be called Mariabelle, especially with Renato next to her, she thought even more strongly.

"And you have misunderstood, Your Highness. I am marrying as a consort, not as a concubine... I am late in introducing you, but this is my fiancé, His Highness Renato, Crown Prince of the Gallerian empire."

"I'm Renato. I have heard about you from Mariabelle. I heard that you have found true love. I congratulate you on your true love. Congratulations."

Saying this, Renato hugged Mariabelle from behind as if to show off to Edward.

Mariabelle looked at him as if she had no choice but to stay in his arms.

"Thanks to your true love, Mariabelle and I had a fateful encounter. I'd like to thank you for that. Thank you very much."

Edward looked at Mariabelle and Renato in surprise.

Then, as if he had understood something, he turned his affectionate eyes to Mariabelle.

"Once you become my queen, you will be free from any pressure from the empire."

"... what are you talking about? Didn't you break off your engagement with me in order to make Annette your wife?"

"Of course, my love for Annette has not changed. I told Annette that it was the only way to help Mariabelle and she agreed. As expected, you could not refuse the request from the empire as a concubine, but as a regular queen, it would be fine."

Mariabelle wondered if this was the same Edward she knew.

It's true that he was a little overly prejudiced, but he wasn't the kind of person who wouldn't listen to what other people had to say.

Mariabelle saw the aides who have come to the hall with Edward.

"...They are in different positions."

Until now, Percy Coleridge, the Chancellor's son, had been right behind Edward.

But now he is farthest back, with a stern expression on his face.

And standing closest to Edward was Simon Lent.

Perhaps Simon is guiding Edward's thoughts...?

Mariabelle looked up at the king, upset.

'I even noticed it myself. The king must have noticed it, too.'

She looked up at Frederick III, who was looking down at her with calm eyes the same colour as Edward's, as if he was testing her.

Yes, he was testing her. She is being tested.

They were being tested to see how Mariabelle and Edward would deal with everything that began with the breakdown of their engagement.

Mariabelle's palms slowly began to sweat.

Surely, if they made a mistake in the conversation ahead, something irreversible would happen.

"I think there are various... misunderstandings, may I ask Your Highness a few questions?"

"Of course you may."

"First of all... why did you think that I would be Renato's concubine instead of his wife?"

"I wonder if Mariabelle hasn't been informed yet. Then I can't hand you over to the empire. The empire prince will marry the princess from the Republic of Morvia as a sign of peace. Between the daughter of a mere marquis and the princess, don't you know which one will be chosen as the first wife?"

"I heard that in the Republic of Morvia, the head of state changes as soon as something happens, so even if she is a princess, she is treated no differently from a noble."

"Change?"

"The Romont family has regained power and has been elected Supreme Leader for life. So from now on, the Romont's will be like a royal family."

'I see, apparently there was another change of head of state in the Republic.' Mariabelle thought.

She had never heard of a supreme leader before, but even with "for life," the newly created position would soon be gone if there was another change of government.

She hasn't heard about it recently, but it was a story that was common during the chaotic period a little while ago.

She looked up at Renato to see if he knew about this, and he nodded lightly.

'I figured he knew about it.'

However, it was a little strange that Edward knew about it.

How could he be so familiar with the internal affairs of the Republic when he was unfamiliar with the internal affairs of the Empire, which was closer to him and was also a friendly nation?

"Your Highness. Who told you about this?"

"The Duke of Danzel who is in charge of foreign affairs, of course."

"Is that so...?"

The name of Duke Danzel came up again.

Mariabelle involuntarily turned to Cedric.

With a stiff expression, he tried not to miss any of Edward's words.

That was the moment when suspicion turned into conviction.